The Villain's Second Time

Chapter 30

My sister, Adela.

One of the top ten absolute strong ones in this vast demon realm, and a pitiful yet upright demon who wouldn’t hesitate to lay down her life for me.

Adela’s intelligence was impaired due to an accident she experienced as a child. However, she inherited her father’s talent intact, making her martial arts extraordinary. She even trained alone in the treacherous Demon Beast Forest.

Of course, I also enter the Demon Beast Forest, but I know exactly where the dangers are and what lives where. Adela, on the other hand, ignores all that and plows through with sheer brute force. There’s no comparison.

There’s about a thousand-year age difference between my sister and me, but that’s a trivial matter.

Anyway, our amazing sister Adela is now, surprisingly, in a completely defenseless state. To the point where even someone as mediocre as me could attack her without her being able to block or dodge. Unless it’s a cross, no matter how hard I hit her, I wouldn’t leave a scratch.

"Since when has Adela been like this?"

"W-What do you mean?"

"Exactly how many hours ago did she enter this state?"

"Well... about three, three and a half hours ago...."

"Is that so? Not much time left then."

Using the magical power of Horus’s Egg and my illusion skills, I sealed Adela’s mind, but this is temporary. My body’s energy channels aren’t fully open yet, so if I could seal her forever, I’d be the Demon King already.

And I don’t even want to do that to my beloved Adela.

"Aunt, you should head back now. And act as usual. Report Leonard’s disappearance in about three days. Since I’m your new investment now, it’d be best to listen to what I say."

"Ah, understood. Then I’ll take my leave."

"Yes, yes, I’ll be counting on you from now on?"

"......I’ll be counting on you too."

"Hehehe-."

My aunt hesitated, composed herself, and left the room. I giggled as if telling her to listen well, then stood in front of Adela.

The remaining time... about 10 minutes? No, since I just wasted some time, it’s about 9 minutes now.

Good. The show’s already over, but the right amount of tension makes life more efficient. Like a child rushing to finish homework before inspection, or a student flipping open textbooks in a panic the night before an exam, time limits push me to act faster.

I took out the Black Rosary from my pocket. As I expected, this rosary wouldn’t react to Adela.

Though she’s a demon by birth, she’s incredibly virtuous. She’s not the type of hero who can’t stand injustice, but she protects those around her and loves her family. That’s the kind of demon Adela is.

Click-.

Oh, as expected, my predictions never fail. The Black Rosary only trembled in front of Adela, unlike when it spewed purification flames in front of Retavis. It growled like a cat hissing, but that’s a minor detail.

Wait, does that mean the cross didn’t react to me because I’m actually good? Because I’m so kind-hearted that it doesn’t feel any rejection toward me? That makes sense. I’m actually very soft-hearted, and my nature is as pure as a saint’s.

Holding the string with two fingers, I lifted the cross to Adela’s dazed eyes. Due to my much shorter height compared to hers, I had to struggle on tiptoe to reach.

Anyway, after holding the cross in front of her, I began to sway it gently from side to side.

"Adela, look at the cross. It’s ticking and swaying gently, right? Just follow its rhythm."

Hypnosis is the realm of control and suggestion. Just like inviting someone who enters the room to sit on a chair, or offering water to a thirsty friend and suggesting they drink, hypnosis is completed through the perfect balance of control and suggestion.

Someone once said we live in a world of control. Every conversation and non-verbal expression in our daily lives is an act of controlling others.

Hypnosis isn’t difficult. It’s just like a kidnapper luring a child with candy—whether the target is human or demon, you just need to coax them to where you want them to go.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

The important thing is consistency. Adela needs to fully adapt to the rhythm of the cross. Start with something easy. I’ve already used Horus’s Egg to make her fall into hypnosis, but to control a strong one like Adela, you have to put effort into every little detail.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

"One, two. One, two. That’s right, the rhythm’s good now."

Her dull eyes followed the cross back and forth. I smirked as I watched her.

Soon, I began to whisper softly and smoothly, like a sparrow chirping.

"There is a lake. A lake so vast and deep that once you fall in, you can never come out."

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

"Adela is standing in front of that lake. You have something in your hand that you want to throw away, but you’re unsure if you really should."

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

"In your hand is a stone. A stone that’s making you hesitate. Because it’s not an ordinary stone."

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

"The stone has the word ‘memory’ written on it. It contains memories from yesterday’s dinner to what happened when you entered your brother Oscar’s room. How about it? Don’t you want to throw it away right now?"

"......."

"Don’t you want to throw it away right now? Really, truly?"

"......."

Huh, this is getting a bit dangerous. She’s not swaying. Maybe I should touch on her emotions.

"Do you remember?"

Nod-.

"What do you remember? Can you tell me?"

In response to my sweetly spoken question, Adela opened her mouth with a mechanical, monotonous voice.

"Clearly... at dinner... Aunt... was locked... in Oscar’s... closet...."

"And then? What happened next?"

"The door... disappeared... My head... went blank... My mind... grew hazy... It was... very strange...."

"That’s enough, Adela. You don’t have to say any more. From now on, we’ll do a treatment to make you feel better."

"A treatment... to feel better...?"

"Yes, removing the illness in Adela’s heart. When you’re cured, you’ll feel better, right? Just think of that."

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

One fortunate thing is that low-intelligence individuals are more susceptible to hypnosis. Of course, my hypnosis skills are so advanced that even dragons are left in awe, but I learned this after my first failure when I tried to hypnotize the Emperor of the Empire.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

"Adela, how do you feel recalling those memories? Be honest and tell me exactly what you’re feeling."

"Uh... scared... terrified... eerie... chilling... that kind of feeling...."

"Right? It’s very unpleasant, isn’t it? Like trudging alone through endless darkness, feeling lost?"

"Hmm...? Listening to you... it does seem... kind of like that...."

"You should throw away what you dislike. Adela, it’s simple. Just lift the stone in your hand high. Then, throw it as far as you can into the lake. You’ll feel better."

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

The lake is the abyss of memories. Just as we can’t remember the moment we were born, the abyss where even trying to recall something doesn’t work. There, we’ll bury Adela’s recent memories.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

Adela raised her arm emotionlessly. Her hand seemed to be gripping something invisible.

"Think of it as shooting a bow, pull your arm back. Then, throw it with all your might. Anywhere into the lake. The lake is so vast that no matter where you throw it, it’ll definitely land in the water."

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

My arm’s starting to hurt. I hurriedly spoke before my muscles gave out.

"Throw it. Adela’s painful memories. Right now."

Whoosh-!

Her arm, holding nothing, swung through the air. So fiercely that you could feel the cool breeze. It showed how much Adela trembled in fear during the hypnosis, lost in inexplicable phenomena.

"Splash-."

The flying stone fell into the lake. Slowly, it sank into the deep, deep water.

"Your heart won’t betray you, Adela. It knows your innermost self best. Just now, you did what you most wanted to do."

"Uh...."

Due to buoyancy, the stone doesn’t descend quickly. But it keeps falling endlessly. Until it reaches the bottom.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

Oh no, time is almost up. When will it reach the bottom? Perhaps because Adela has lived for a thousand years, the abyss of her memories is too deep.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

It seems it won’t be easy to time this right. I kept my hand shaking the cross in place, while stretching my leg to close the wardrobe door that was left open. It was a move that required great flexibility, but for a nine-year-old like me, it was no problem at all.

Swish, swish, swish, swish-.

Roughly estimating, there’s about 30 seconds left. Once Adela’s mind returns to its original state, the hypnosis will immediately be lifted. Since the clothes I’m wearing are soaked in Retavis’ blood, I have to come up with something.

"......Thud- Just now, the stone reached the bottom of the lake. Now, the stone will never rise again."

"...."

There’s no response. I don’t have the luxury to worry about it.

I quickly put away the cross. The hypnosis is over, and Adela is back to the dazed state she was in when I first entered the room.

I take off the clothes I was wearing. Thanks to the blood drying on the way back from Endros’ Cliff, thankfully, no major disaster like the floor being soaked in blood occurred.

I crumpled the clothes and shoved them deep under the bed. I also tossed the gloves in there. After that, I turned off the room’s light, naturally pulled up the blanket, and lay down on the bed. I covered my exhausted body with the soft blanket.

Just like that, 30 seconds passed.

"......Huh?"

Adela’s voice was heard. Her puzzled voice now had a hint of liveliness, unlike before.

"Where... is this? Is this Oscar’s room...? Ugh, my head...."

Adela staggered. She placed a hand on her forehead, rewinding her memories. It wasn’t entirely clear, but the atmosphere visible through the dim darkness suggested as much.

"Why... am I here...."

Good, this is about the right time. It’s my turn to step in.

"Nu, Nuna? Is that you, Adela Nuna?"

"...Oscar? Are you awake?"

"I just heard your voice... Nuna, what are you doing in my room...?"

I asked, deliberately slurring my words, as if I had just woken up.

I am, after all, someone who just woke up and is still half-asleep. Be fully aware of that.

"Oscar, do you know why I was here? Ugh, my head feels like it’s splitting apart."

"Uh, I don’t know? I’ve been feeling unwell since evening and was asleep until I just heard your voice...."

"You’re unwell...? Could it be the aftereffects of your head injury? Oh no, this is no time to be dealing with a headache. Wait a moment. I’ll bring you some medicine right away."

"Uh... hey, medicine? I’d prefer an elixir over medicine...."

"I can’t just sit still when my younger sibling is sick. I’ll take care of you all night tonight. Oscar, rest well."

"...Huh?"

"Since you were hurt because of my mistake, I won’t let it slide. I’ll be right back."

With those words, Adela dashed out of the room like an arrow. Shortly after, she returned with an armful of various medicinal herbs.

Uh... Nuna? I just fought all night...? This nine-year-old body is too exhausted, and I really need to sleep now...?