Ascension Of The Villain

Two hours before the explosion.

"You are cutting it too close these days. Try not to be late," Wyatt grunted and returned his gaze to the front.

Vyan was relieved as he thought, Perfect.

Wyatt's eyes were sharp as he thoroughly scanned all the people present in the grand room, blissfully unaware that the threat today didn't lay ahead of him.

Vyan had followed Raith for an entire day to pick up on his habits and how he interacted with Wyatt and Storm. The three of them were the closest to Edgar—Defenders of the Emperor. So, it was important for Vyan to know how to handle them in case of an emergency.

Vyan retreated back behind the curtain and pouted as the waiting around started.

He waited behind the curtains for a couple of hours, rolling his eyes at the droning voices echoing through the chamber. He wanted to be home! He wanted to meet his brother after a long time!

The court session was its usual pompous spectacle. He didn't want to be listening to the emperor going on and on about what could have happened if Princess Maria hadn't been caught and stupidly punishing some guards.

He was almost entertained a little when Maria protested. Who knew that bubbly, clumsy girl had that in her?

But then came the moment that caused his eyes to widen. Edgar decided to flex his powers—literally. With a flick of his wrist, he used Vyan's mana to squeeze Maria's body.

Vyan's face contorted in discomfort, feeling the bizarre sensation as his mana was siphoned. It was like having his insides pulled through a tiny funnel—a sensation both intrusive and nauseating.

"Fucking son of a bitch," Vyan muttered suppressing a shudder.

At last, the court session started to reach its tedious conclusion.

Knowing it was finally time, he cautiously pulled out the explosion materials he had hidden in his cloak. He grumbled in annoyance as he set them up. All of it would have been so much easier if he could simply use destructive magic.

He couldn't do that; it was too distinct, too easily recognizable. He needed something mundane but effective—something that wouldn't immediately scream "An Ashstone did this." Aster wouldn't be able to do this as he most likely had something blocking his mana usage. And the only other Ashstone alive was, well, Vyan.

Setting up the explosives carefully, Vyan primed them with a long fuse, allowing himself enough leeway to be far away when the fun began. He wouldn't want to be caught up and lose a limb over this plan.

As the herald announced the end of the court session, Vyan brought the sacks inside into the hidden chamber and opened the sacks, revealing two dead bodies—one resembling Aster, the other Raith.

Their physiques were close enough; at a quick glance, they could pass. These were fresh unclaimed bodies Clyde and Vyan had stolen from the morgue from the medical facility. Thank goodness there were no instruments invented yet to figure out the particular day or cause of death.

"Long live His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor of Haynes, Edgar Crawford Haynes!" The herald's announcement of the emperor's departure was Vyan's cue.

He did a final check on Edgar's location, not before making sure of Althea and Maria's location as well so that they weren't caught up in it and got. He carefully slid the rings onto the corpse he had disguised as Aster.

"Here goes nothing." With a sharp breath, he lit the fuse on the explosives. Instantly, he darted back down the tunnel.

Twenty seconds. That was all he was going to get.

One... Two... Three…

He ran as fast as he could. He turned a corner, counting silently in his head. He kept running, his pace calm and measured. At five seconds left, he could feel the anticipation building in his chest.

He came to a halt at the completion of twenty seconds. The tunnel walls trembled, and a deafening explosion rocked the ground beneath his feet. Dust and debris burst from the tunnel opening at the throne room. Screams echoed from the chamber beyond.

Vyan allowed himself a small, satisfied smile. "Well, that's done. Now, let's hope Thea does a good job at turning this into an assassination attempt on her father." He leaned against the cool stone wall, allowing himself a moment to bask in his victory.

The explosion's shockwave still echoed in his bones, and the chaos he had just unleashed brought a wicked grin to his face. It would have been so easy to bring the emperor down with this.

But a man like that didn't deserve such a painless, instantaneous death.

Vyan had been playing his part well. It was only about time till he was finally able to complete his revenge and give the most painful, slow death to the emperor and everyone else involved. With Althea's rise to the throne, the game was shifting to his favor.

Getting his brother back was a bonus—no, scratch that. It was a miracle, truly.

Just a little bit more, and Vyan would be able to meet Aster. Aster should be home by now. His plan was foolproof, after all—at least, he thought so until he heard the crunch of boots on rubble behind him.

Not even a minute after the explosion, Wyatt burst through the smoke and debris like a battering ram. His eyes were sharp and searching.

Vyan straightened up. Damn it, Sir Wyatt, already? He didn't have time to ponder. Without missing a beat, he bolted down the tunnel, his footsteps pounding against the uneven ground.

Wyatt's keen ears picked up on the hurried footsteps echoing in the tunnel. "You think you can run from me after killing my comrade?" he called out, his deep voice resonating like a death knell.

"Shit," Vyan cursed under his breath. It would be impossible to outrun an aura-user. And to contribute to his great fortune, the captain was fast, faster than he had hoped.

He could hear Wyatt gaining on him, the man's breath unnervingly steady.

Vyan's mind raced. His magic, his most powerful weapon, was practically useless here—teleportation or invisibility spells were blocked by the warding runes etched into the stone walls, and he was too deep underground for any of his destructive spells to work without burying himself alive.

His eyes darted around, searching for an escape route or a hiding spot. But it was an unfortunate fact that the exit was still a good distance away. Too far. Much too far.

Wyatt's footsteps grew louder, like a predator closing in on its prey.

Content from m-vl|emp,yr

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!" Vyan hissed through gritted teeth. "It's all over if I get caught."