The Villain Bought the Heroine

Chapter 4

It’s an early hour to call it morning.

Alicia opens her eyes precisely on time, changes into her clothes, and welcomes the faint sunlight.

As soon as she opens her eyes, there are things she must do.

– Tick tock.

It’s been four months since she arrived at this mansion. She walks down the familiar, yet still elegant corridor swiftly but with grace. Her steps pass by a room where neatly folded towels are stored, and a special well where cold, clean water constantly flows.

“Good.”

After gathering the items to prepare in various places, Alicia stands in front of a door that is unusually spacious and filled with peculiar items compared to other rooms.

-!

The sound heard at the door at that moment.

The gentle movements of shoes, the friction of the floor, rough breaths felt with each inhale, the dull but loud clash of iron against iron.

It was all a kind of art created by one person.

When does this happen? It seems like they go to bed late, so there must be a lack of sleep. Then where do they get that drive and endurance?

Listening to the sound for a moment at the door, Alicia gently opens it to peek at the man in that narrow space to avoid being noticed.

Heat rises from the man who has taken off his outer clothing. The sinewy muscles that make up his body move up and down significantly with each breath he takes.

Sweat is already flowing down his entire body to the point where it could be mistaken for having taken a shower. A drop at the end of his hair falls silently to the floor, scattering into several strands.

The owner of that seemingly carefree face is actually a tremendous hard worker, living a busy life by constantly dividing his day. Truly to the point of being bloodless.

‘A person quite different from the first impression.’

Such thoughts continue.

Then.

“What are you doing?”

His sharp gaze meets with Alicia’s.

“Ah, that… I assumed your training had finished, so I prepared a towel for you to wipe your sweat and cold water.”

Approaching briskly, the man forcefully opens the door to fully reveal his character.

“Are you hiding like that?”

The heat from the training radiates.

“I, I’m sorry. Sir Bargan! I was just slightly peeking to see if it might disturb your training. I was observing the situation with the door slightly open.”

“Hmm, it seemed like that.”

The man took the towel Alicia had and left.

Unlike usual, he was watching, but fortunately, it didn’t seem like he was going to give any particular punishment.

He lightly wiped his head with the towel and walked away. After walking a certain distance, he turned back to her.

“By this point, you should be more alert. Shouldn’t you quickly bring the cold water this way?”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“Anyway, there’s so much to teach. What a troublesome lad you are.”

“…I will be more careful in the future.”

As expected, he was too harsh with his words. As always, she would hear rude remarks again.

“Moreover, a pervert peeking at what the master is training secretly. Sigh… Hopeless. Truly hopeless.”

“Yes, yes?! That, that is…!!”

Today started more tumultuously than usual.

***

“Young Master… What on earth is this place…?”

The underground of the mansion. A place so dark and cold that chills ran down the spine.

“Oh, it’s nothing much. It’s something I did when I was young, so there’s no need to be so nervous.”

“B-but… what’s filled inside here…!”

Alicia, with a pale face, looked into the deep pit. Due to the depth of the pit, it appeared dark inside, but that wasn’t the only reason.

“They are just a bit loose.”

“A bit… you say.”

Of course, it might be a bit of a stretch to call them ordinary bugs. The adults easily reached 30cm.

Alicia examined each one of the densely packed appearances with trembling eyes.

The solid, chitinous armor. Dark in color, it resembled the bugs commonly seen around the house, but with a larger mouth, making it even more eerie.

“They are called scavenger bugs. As the name suggests, they are disgusting creatures that eat just about anything, but they play a significant role as decomposers in the ecosystem.”

“If they are decomposers… are they like fungi?”

“Yes, but the difference is that they also eat living creatures. They are opportunistic feeders, consuming magic if it’s magic, flesh if it’s flesh. They are beneficial creatures that eat anything. Of course, if ordinary people encounter them in the wild, they would be stripped of all flesh and painfully die.”

“….”

Why are you just standing there looking like that?

It’s none of your business.

“Why are you standing there instead of going in?”

“…Inside there, you mean?”

Alicia asked, swallowing nervously.

“This is also to awaken your talents. Since we checked how long the magic circle lasts last time, today is the advanced lesson.”

“I understand your deep intentions, Young Master….”

It’s impressive how she tries not to lose her smile. Even so, the muscles in her face are trembling, revealing her true feelings.

“Young Master, if we have to go in anyway, can I have a moment to prepare my mi⎯”

Alicia, your preparation time is too long.

⎯Push.

He pushed her light body.

Her body was so light that she was pushed without any resistance.

Alicia’s body fell, spinning in the air before her expression of shock became fully visible. Her mouth, unable to finish speaking, remained wide open along with her eyes.

“Screaammm—!”

With a scream, Alicia’s figure vanished into the darkness.

Soon after.

Boom! A bright blue light, blinding enough to blind one’s eyes, burst forth with a gust of wind. The power was enough to make even an adult stagger. The magic emitted from Alicia overwhelmed the surroundings in all directions.

The condensed mana, manifested in an instant, created the gust by its pressure. Rushing mana like Alicia’s was a behavior of high consumption in the long run, but excluding such aspects, this level of brightness was remarkable.

Although it hadn’t been long since she started properly using mana, she was already capable of rapidly releasing such high-purity magic. One would rightly show respect for her.

As the storm passed once, the intensity of the light diminished. Now, there was no need to squint.

Look into the pit.

Insects, regaining their senses around Alicia’s blue light, gradually gathered. In an instant, black bugs surrounded Alicia, filling the gap where the light escaped.

But that’s not all.

Gnash, gnash. The insects’ mouths moved busily. They gobbled up the crystals of light as if nothing in the world was tastier.

Seeing this, Alicia, with a face full of astonishment, further expanded the purity and radius of her magic. Outwardly, it seemed like inflating a balloon with air.

“Master, do you happen to know how long we should stay inside here?”

In the midst of a small lump of noise, the usually calm voice was gone, replaced by an urgent tone that rang in the ears.

“If those bugs feel full, wouldn’t they stop eating?”

Well, it wasn’t going to be brief.

Alicia looked at the massive force surrounding her. She was terrified, as it didn’t occur to her how much magic she needed to extract to satiate them all.

“…I will try to endure as much as possible.”

Gnash, gnash.

With those words, Alicia’s surroundings were so filled with light that there was no space left for it to escape. The bugs wriggled. And then came.

Tap, tap.

Clear footsteps. A woman’s figure came into view.

“Why have you come?”

“I came because I was worried about Alicia. Master, you’ve gone too far. You threw Alicia without any explanation like that.”

The woman in a long robe, the magic instructor Paula.

“It’s not just about the bugs feeding on magic, is it?”

She pointed to a very thin thread attached to the bugs’ bodies. Real-time activity was ongoing in that thin thread.

“Through Alicia, the magic the bugs consumed is gathering towards you. In other words, even if Alicia pulls out magic, she can’t satiate the bugs.”

Oh, indeed, even if her speech was loud, she was a magic instructor. Her keen eye was quite impressive.

“Yes, you are right. Even if Alicia pulls out magic, she can’t escape from within. Soon, she herself will realize that fact.”

“While tormenting with hopeful words… Where was it… Ugh! It’s really disgusting, isn’t it? Alicia is in there, right? If it were me, I would have run away immediately… Wait, the state of the bugs…”

Frowning and concentrating, Paula. Soon, as if surprised, she let out a bitter laugh.

“Master… you’ve added another trial to stealing magic, haven’t you?”

Upon hearing her question, I smiled slyly.

“Well, of course.”

***

Strange.

No matter how much magic was drawn out to create a barrier for the bugs to feed on, they did not stop their meal.

No, that’s not all.

“The speed of eating is getting faster…”

The consumption rate of the protective magic blocking herself is excessively rapid compared to before.

Alicia was pouring out magic with a fierce determination. It had been several hours since she first sensed something was amiss. Despite squeezing out her magic as there was no other way, even that had reached its limit.

Alicia operated her mana in a tense manner without a moment to wipe the sweat flowing all over her body. She felt like she might pass out any moment due to the headache and dizziness, but she wrung out every bit of mana she had deep within.

Four months ago, she could absorb floating mana in the surrounding air, but this time, the insects did not allow it.

Only the mana she possessed. That was the only means of survival.

“Gulp…!”

Breathing felt difficult as if her throat was blocked. She tried to inflate her body forcibly, yet she couldn’t feel the air filling her lungs.

A sense of suffocation. Agony that she wanted to vomit out cleanly right now simmered within her.

She wanted to give up.

Perhaps enduring this much was not typical for her ugly self.

Such a weak thought that started to rise at some point filled her mind. She tried to suppress it with both hands, but like the insects over there, it did not cease.

Yet, Alicia did not stop the emission of magic. What she needed to do now was to carry out the orders given by her master. If she did not follow them properly, she could not fill her worth of 100 gold coins.

She intensified it even more. As the distance with the insects suddenly closed, a powerful light emanated as if expressing her will.

Due to the thickened layer, the insects moved away again. Alright, if she continued like this, she could endure more…

Thud. Her forehead collided with the ground. She had been maintaining a state of exerting all her strength, but in the extreme situation, she had poured out all her remaining power, leading to complete depletion of mana.

“It’s not working… like this…”

Alicia had no strength left even to move her fingers. It was all over when she turned her head, stuck to the ground, to the side.

She watched as the cold bugs approached through the gaps, unable to even blink her eyelids to block them.

Is this how I’m going to die?

The momentary thought of dying did not hit Alicia despairingly. On the contrary, just a bite of that seemingly sweet sentence seemed like it would make everything happy.

She might be able to see the people she missed.

Her past flashed by. The happiest memory before meeting her second mother, the most joyful moment in her life. Simultaneously, the longing face and the dreadful day emerged.

“….”

Memories continued to flow like this. Recently, it had been a series of astonishing events. It was all because of one person, yet everything changed with their casual actions.

It’s okay to die like this. Being alive is a series of suffering, filled only with hardships rather than good things.

But there were two beings that did not easily let go of her frail heart.

The second mother who lived alone in loneliness.

Even though she must have suffered a lot. She had been picked up when she was an orphan, collapsing from hunger with nowhere to go. The grateful mother who raised her until she matured.

And surprisingly, the man who suddenly appeared recently.

Although arrogant and cold, he was the first person to believe in her worth. To discard the expectations of such a person. If she died miserably like this, he would probably be greatly disappointed. That’s what kept Alicia from giving up.

Yes, she had to live.

She must not die like this.

She tried to exert strength in her trembling, delicate muscles. Even though she couldn’t move properly, she had to muster all her strength despite a slight tremble.

“Mas… ter…”

Alicia called out to him from above. In response, the chime of the bell rang.

“Young Master…”

“Alicia has been sleep-talking continuously since earlier. Well, even if she falls asleep after exhausting all her mana, she won’t be in her senses.”

“It was a good opportunity to check Alicia’s current state and forcibly increase the total amount of mana. She’ll have to endure this much.”

“It seems Lord Doyeon is still cold. Or rather… perhaps he’s kind, considering he rescued me just before being covered by bugs.”

“Shut that useless mouth and focus on moving properly. Starting tomorrow, things will get extremely busy, so you need to restore yourself to your original condition.”

Paula, without saying another word, uses magic to levitate Alicia in the air. Once in the room, she will assist in replenishing her magical powers. It won’t take long for her to recover.

Once that happens, Alicia, who has advanced a step further in her training, can move her piece on the game board.

– Alright, up to this point is perfect.

One could say that everything is proceeding as desired. However, we must not let our guard down. The moment of significant change begins now.

Alicia’s everything will change from the next trial she faces. Forcing in a moment that would have been far off under normal circumstances will surely bring considerable recoil.

But that doesn’t matter.

Whatever it is, one must bear the risk commensurate with the reward. The greater the reward, the greater the risk. Therefore, achieving it will be even more valuable.

Approaching Alicia floating in the air, her radiant skin stands out.

Next, gently passing a strand of hair from Alicia’s sleeping face over her ear. It’s the face of a naive girl who doesn’t know what awaits her.

“Sleep well.”

And welcome the morning.

Basic preparations have been made, now it’s time to show a further transformed appearance. I, your spectator, am waiting for that. Will you understand what I mean?

Cowardly Alicia.