I’m the Main Villain but the Heroines Are Obsessed With Me

40 – 20. If You Can Stop It, Try (1)

Jane, who had fled, made her way to the headquarters of the demons in Astelgia.

Originally, her plan was to slowly dismantle the Volkanov family. However, there was no time to spare.

“I didn’t expect to save the family so quickly.”

Even as she carefully chewed her innocent lips, her anger did not subside.

How much time had she devoted to breaking down the family? She had approached Leticia with the intention of dealing with Kilian Volkanov, the Empire’s master.

Even if it took nearly a decade, it was not an exaggeration to say that she had dedicated those years to this operation.

Her efforts were not in vain, and in reality, Kilian Volkanov was on the brink of self-destruction.

“But that brat ruined everything! That Ian!”

However, an unexpected interferer had ruined everything. After successfully bringing the family to ruin, he managed to restore the family’s situation with a potato business.

He had enticed the guests with greed, and Ian had overcome this situation with the people he had brought.

It was a situation that could drive anyone crazy.

What made Jane’s life even more difficult was the success of Ian’s one-man play after the successful Danotu.

At that time, she wanted to abandon all plans and escape. For Jane, it was the worst day.

“No… But I need to calm down.”

Fury surged at the thought of everything falling apart. Jane clenched her teeth.

All the time she had invested so far, it would be a waste even if she ruined everything in the end, wouldn’t it?

Tick-tock.

With each step towards the mansion, Jane remained resolute.

At the end of that path, the man she had been waiting for was leaning against the wall.

A man with blond hair and elegant attire,

As Jane frowned at the dazzling radiance he exuded, the man bared his teeth and smiled.

“How long has it been since I last saw you? Nice to meet you. Oh! You haven’t been in a situation to exchange pleasantries, have you?”

“If you’re going to say nonsense, shut up. Are you trying to mock me?”

“Mock you… I think about it every time I see you. How about working on that temperament of yours? Jane… No, Asmodeus.”

“Huh. The crow obsessed with money… You dress well for a jester.”

Jane’s face twisted in response to the man’s mockery, and she pulled out her wand.

Thud!

Her body began to transform strangely. Her skin started to rise like a reptile shedding its skin, and her dorsal scales writhed.

Kraaak!

“Phew…”

When the transformation was finally complete, you couldn’t find a trace of a human form in her anymore.

From the horns of a ram to the wings of a giant bat, even her tail.

As Asmodeus revealed his true form after removing the disguise, Mammon’s lips formed a smile.

“After all, you changed into a human form to get closer to Mrs. Volkanoft. Have you given up on such a macabre hobby now? Well… I thought the form of a monster suited you better than Lady Sinyang’s proper attire.”

“Stop irritating me, Mammon!”

“Just a joke, just a joke. I was trying to ease your mood, but it seems you’re not in a good mood. Even in this situation, you’re playing around… Doesn’t this guy have any sense?”

“The situation isn’t good. The plan to destroy Volkanoft from the inside has failed. It looks like we’ll have to intervene ourselves.”

“To intervene directly… It was expected, as there didn’t seem to be any further progress. But… is there a reason to do it now?”

“What are you talking about? Are you suggesting that you’ve come here to do nothing?”

As Asmodeus growled at Mammon, the latter looked down at him and smiled slyly.

While gazing at the landscape outside the hall, Astelgia, who had fallen behind, began to speak.

“There is no act as foolish as building a tower on uneven ground. Isn’t that precisely our situation now? I hear your followers are not faring well either.”

Mammon always valued thorough preparation.

He was not as passionate about preparing for war, knowing that the northern barbarians, who were followers of Asmodeus, were discontented.

As Mammon gazed at her, prompting a response, Asmodeus confidently replied.

“You need not worry about that. Their condition doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things.”

“Not important?”

“I never intended to entrust the crucial mission to the barbarians. They don’t possess the power to rival individuals like Ian or Ariel unless they belong to our family’s order.”

There was never an expectation of assigning them a significant role.

Their goal was simply to create chaos for Volkanov and, if necessary, serve as sacrifices to fuel their strength.

“Don’t worry. Everything is ready.”

“Very well.”

Mammon nodded in agreement as she looked at Asmodeus with a reassuring gaze.

“Indeed. If we neglect Volkanov as you say, things could spiral out of control.”

“In that case, prepare as quickly as possible. The more time we waste, the more Ian might grow.”

“Don’t worry about that. It’s just that our appetites won’t be the only ones moving.”

“Appetite of the Demon Lord? What are you talking about?”

Asmodeus widened her eyes at the mention of appetites moving together. Having two Great Demons might be a good thing, but arriving in the mortal realm was a whole different story.

“Moving appetites together! Do you realize that if three of us intervene in the mortal realm, it will impose severe restrictions? Even if we offer all our followers as sacrifices, we won’t be able to exert even a tenth of our inherent power!”

Just as humans couldn’t fully exert their abilities in the Demon Realm of Astelgia, demons too would be powerless if they stepped into a domain not governed by the Abyss.

Knowing this, making such a statement, was she in her right mind?

“Minimizing restrictions when two intervene is the limit, you should know that!”

Asmodeus gazed at Mammon, as if asking for an explanation, but Mammon didn’t provide a clear response. Instead, she gestured with her hand.

Swoosh!

Mammon’s hand lightly gestured as if calling her closer. It was in that moment, as Asmodeus turned her head, that it happened.

Thud!

A magically covered arm pierced through her abdomen.

A bizarre and erratic hand. Although covered in magic, it was clearly the hand of Baal Zephub, the demon of gluttony, according to my memory.

So, he attacked himself?

“Wh-what! What on earth are you doing!”

Asmodeus, now weak and fallen to the ground, stared blankly at Mammon.

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t understand. Why would Mammon attack him in a situation where he needed to gather strength to deal with Ian Volkanoth?

He wanted an answer. But Mammon didn’t open his mouth.

With a faint smile, Mammon bowed his head and locked eyes with her.

He lightly caressed her cheeks, which were losing color, and burst into laughter.

“It’s not understandable, is it? Why gluttony and I want to kill you.”

“M-Mammon….”

“Do you want to know the reason? It’s obvious. You’ve been useless for four years, that’s all.”

Asmodeus had recently lost Rilis, her closest subordinate.

Of course, that alone wasn’t a problem.

Even though Rilis played a major role in the legion of lust, she was still a demon queen.

However, the problem lay in the nature of her power.

“Your power doesn’t come from blindly loyal followers. But aren’t they all trembling right now?”

Managing the state of the followers, who were the source of her power, was extremely important to her.

Even if she gathered the savages in one place, could she exert her power?

And what about the restrictions due to interfering in the intermediate realm?

“There’s no reason to bring a baggage like you who is not helpful anyway.”

Wouldn’t it be much more reasonable to join forces with Baal Zephub, the demon of gluttony, rather than her, who is of no help?

Asmodeus, who heard the truth, emitted an evil aura. It was so thick… that even the forehead of Mammon, the great demon, involuntarily furrowed.

“You want to kill me just for that? Answer me, Mammon!”

“Of course, that’s not all. The second reason is because of your behavior for the past four years.”

“My behavior is the problem?”

From Mammon’s face as he looked down at her, there was no trace of playfulness. With an expression full of disgust, Mammon stomped on her dying head.

Thud!

“Ack!”

“I always thought, but you were too arrogant. I used my power personally to help deal with Volkanoth, but you couldn’t even do that properly. You couldn’t even manage one limb properly, so you couldn’t handle one human properly!”

There wasn’t a single thing that pleased him.

Alone and unable to do anything, dealing with this and that, not knowing the subject, and feeling repulsed by the lazy demon king who aimed for the next drink without accomplishing anything.

“A woman like a leech…”

Mamon knew the nature of such people well.

He also knew that it was not right to leave people who put a spoon on the table without having achieved anything alone.

That was why.

“When you killed a woman named Jane and took her identity. If you had not ruined the family, this would not have happened. It’s all your fault! Eat up, Baalzepub.”

“No, please. Don’t come… Don’t come!”

Asmodeus, sensing her impending death, tried to escape by crawling, but Mamon was not a good person to spare her.

Crunch!

“Kuaaah!”

Baalzepub, with a mouth that manifested as magic, swallowed her. Only then did Asmodeus’s mouth close.

“Hmm… It’s the first time I’ve eaten a Greater Demon, but it’s not a bad feeling.”

Baalzepub wiped the blood on his hands and relished the ecstasy of the magic spreading through his body.

He could absorb some of the target’s power into himself using his abilities. In other words, he had absorbed Asmodeus’s abilities as well.

It might be a fiery battlefield, but she could probably use the abilities she used.

“So, Mamon, what’s the next plan? Are we going to attack as she said?”

“Yes. Originally, I planned to watch them destroy themselves, but now it’s not possible.”

“I’m already prepared. Since I absorbed all of Asmodeus’s power anyway.”

The magic of the one who had risen to the position of the Demon King, even if it rotted, was truly immense.

Since he had absorbed all of her magic, even if there were restrictions, his power would not be significantly weakened.

“If we categorize it within the range of human abilities, I should be able to reach the level of an expert or a master.”

In a situation where there were two such demons, there was nothing to fear.

“At this level, it shouldn’t be difficult to deal with that Ian guy. It might be a good idea to take care of the hero at the same time.”

“I understand your excitement, but still, we must not let our guard down. Ian is not a foe to be underestimated.”

“I know. If he dealt with Lilith, he must not be an ordinary opponent. Of course, we can’t be complacent.”

Baalzepub knew how crucial this opportunity was.

If they left Ian Volkanov, who was growing at an incredible speed, alone, he would soon become a major threat to the Demon Realm.

He was already well-prepared to face such an enemy.

Balzephub, full of confidence, crossed his arms and looked at Mamon.

“Are we going to send the barbarians away first?”

“It would be better to do so. Although their condition is not great, it would still be enough to cause confusion if a large number of them suddenly cross the mountains and launch an attack.”

Taking advantage of the distracted border forces of Volkanovka due to the sudden attack, they would be able to launch an all-out offensive.

“Surely Ian Volkanovka said he wouldn’t do anything and just stay still. Whether he let his guard down or not, he will surely suffer significant damage.”

While contemplating the plan, Mamon felt a restlessness in his body.

He couldn’t contain his ecstasy at the thought of being able to kill Ian immediately.

***

Unbeknownst to him, time flew by quickly and already four days had passed.

During this time, Ian spent his days leisurely, reminiscing about his school days.

“It was comfortable. I didn’t do anything and just waited.”

Normally, he would train whenever he had spare time. But this time, he didn’t.

He only engaged in training and watched Igor, without conducting separate personal training, spending time in Arc.

To others, it may have seemed like Ian had become lazy after tasting wealth.

Of course, Ian wasn’t actually becoming lazy. There was a reason why he had to act this way.

“As long as Arc’s influence reaches outsiders, I can’t openly prepare.”

Arc was not a safe zone that protected external powers.

Even when he was released, weren’t there mines disguised as saints?

“I can’t train in a situation where those bastards might still be hiding.”

They were always watching him, and if he trained recklessly, it would raise suspicions or rumors among the demons.

“I can’t train, but I can’t just do nothing either…”

It was a frustrating situation, but fortunately, there was a way out.

Ian looked at the transparent window that appeared before his eyes.

“[You have received the reward for 10 challenges!]”

“[Skill! Roa’s Eros is reinforced. While blocking the enemy’s attacks, it reflects the attack!]”

“Has Alex Volkanovka fought with Eleks already…?”

Since he couldn’t go to the training grounds, Ian actively used simulated battles and soon achieved the 10th challenge.

“Reaching 10 challenges is a good thing, but the biggest achievement is being able to fight Eleks and Hogak with Roa now.”

The Sunstone given by Bedon was truly a great help.

As seen in the notification that Neltalion recovered a part of the new sanctuary, Ian had experienced tremendous growth.

The amount of available mana increased, and it was now possible to implement multiple arms for Neltalion.

“Thanks to that, I’ve become strong enough to aim for victory against Electus,” he said.

Compared to before, when he was happy about just getting a single injury, this could be considered tremendous growth.

“Of course, I still haven’t fully adapted to Neltalion’s newfound strength, so I can’t improve my actual abilities yet. But there’s potential.”

If he tried a mock battle one or two more times as expected, he could expect good results.

“Now, all that’s left is to spend leisurely time like this and have mock battles.”

At first, he thought it would be comfortable just wandering around Arc, but trying it out, it wasn’t exactly comfortable.

“I thought they were crazy.”

Ian thought about the students who had crowded the corridor.

The rumor spread so quickly that their performances in the event were quickly transmitted to the world of the nobles.

Those who usually didn’t even have conversations came flocking, starting with when the next event would take place.

“My father wants to invest, do you have any ideas? Do you have any plans to hold the next event in a different territory?” They would bring up such things.

“Some of them were people who asked if they couldn’t participate as players.”

Just like Arc, where they didn’t discriminate based on origin, there were commoners who weren’t nobles, and there were also those who approached discreetly to relay stories.

“But what’s with those who say they’re going to participate in the martial arts competition instead of studying hard to become bureaucrats or join the military?”

They were the ones who made statements that pierced the hearts of parents struggling hard to save money.

Ian decided not to look at them badly.

After all, weren’t they also human beings? Seeing those who were going to win an enormous prize in one fell swoop in the competition, it was inevitable that they would be stimulated.

“Those guys wouldn’t have done it with ill intentions anyway.”

It could be considered that the event was going well and received a lot of attention.

“And now their attention has been diverted elsewhere.”

When he turned his head and looked out the window, he saw students crowded at the bulletin board in front of the main building.

“Hey! If you’ve seen everything, step back a bit! Why are you still in front?”

“We want to see too! Are you the only ones allowed to see?”

They were students who had gathered to check the results after the recent midterm exams.

Of course, Ian had already confirmed his grades using Eri’s spirit, so he was able to prevent himself from being part of that crowd.

“If the overall grades are A+ and nothing special happens, the top spot for this semester is guaranteed.”

The classes that affected his grades would have already ended. Now, he just had to wait for the roughly one-month-long vacation.

“Usually, it would be great if something happened around this time… When will the bait be taken?”

It would be a dirty job to engage with enemies during the vacation, but…

It was much better than fighting with enemies while juggling school life.

Because of that, Ian hoped that the Mazoku would start their attack as soon as possible.

Could Ian’s wish have reached the heavens?

Ding!

The device started ringing again.

Ian checked the message and grinned.

[It seems that the recent momentum of the northern barbarians is quite worrisome. According to the Border Patrol, they are preparing to cross the mountain range.

You should return to the family as soon as possible. I’ve also sent a message to Lady Ariel.]

– Written by Shulkin.

“He’s coming back.”