Became the Patron of Villains Chapter 284 : Treatment (3)
Previously on Became the Patron of Villains...
The encounter with Historia had just concluded.
“I am incredibly, deeply sorry!”
Alon stared down at the male beastman who was currently groveling at his feet.
The arrogant and cynical demeanor he displayed earlier had vanished entirely, replaced by a man who was practically prostrating himself on the floor.
“Wow, that is just pathetic...”
Evan, standing to the side, whispered with a look of pure disdain in his eyes.
To be honest, Alon shared the sentiment.
This individual, who had behaved like a typical villain only moments ago, now lacked the courage to even lift his head.
Naturally, it wasn't Alon’s own strength that had forced this submission.
“Ria.”
“Yes, God.”
Historia reacted instantly when Alon spoke her name.
Her usual vacant—or perhaps slightly daydreaming—gaze was fixed directly upon him.
“Aren’t you standing a bit too close?”
As he pointed out, Ria was positioned right against him.
She was pressed so tightly against Alon’s side that her white tail was coiled firmly around his waist.
“It was always this close before.”
“The tail, too?”
“It was always like that.”
Ria wasn't exactly lying.
Ever since Arquilainisis had first wrapped a tail around Alon’s waist, every other tailed being he met seemed to follow that example.
“What exactly does the Marquis do to have such women constantly stuck to him?”
“Well, it’s a bit complicated, but... usually it ends up being his fault.”
Alon could overhear the conversation between Evan and Penia behind him, and he did his best to ignore the troubled look Radan was giving him.
He began to reflect on how easily this situation had been resolved.
With nothing more than a single command from Ria, the soldiers had retreated like a receding tide.
Alon addressed the beastman who remained on his knees.
“Please, raise your head. As I mentioned before, we didn't come here seeking a conflict. First, may I ask your name?”
“Y-yes, certainly!”
His body stiff with tension, the man introduced himself as Hao, the manager of the Eastern Nation's harbor.
“I am truly, truly sorry...!”
He pressed his head against the ground once more.
Seeing him bow so desperately, Alon found it hard to remain angry.
“Please, look up. I won't deny that I'm unhappy about what occurred, but I have no intention of holding a grudge against you.”
“Thank you so very much...!”
Hao beamed with joy, looking as if he had been saved from execution.
Simultaneously, he kept throwing nervous glances toward Historia.
Seeing this, Alon wondered exactly how much influence she wielded in the Eastern Nation—but he steered the conversation back to the matter at hand.
“Could you explain the current state of the Eastern Nation? Like I said, we are travelers and don't know what is happening in these lands.”
“I will explain everything!”
Taking a deep breath, Hao sat up straight and began to describe the situation in the Eastern Nation.
Alon was finally able to understand the circumstances.
“You’re saying there is a rebellion and acts of terrorism?”
“Yes. To put it simply, humans wearing red robes who call themselves ‘The Martyred’ have appeared. They’ve caused such chaos that it has sparked a massive rebellion within the Eastern Nation.”
“The Martyred... I see.”
Alon muttered to himself, rubbing his chin.
It was a name he recognized instantly.
The Martyred.
They appeared during the middle section of Psychedelia, right after the destruction of one of the sins, and they were famous among players for being an absolute nightmare.
If a player failed to complete the urgent quests that appeared whenever they invaded a territory, that region would fall, rendering all its services useless.
Furthermore, the Martyred sought to end the world to "crown a new god"—a goal that was barely coherent.
Players generally viewed them as a cheap mechanic used by the devs to artificially inflate the game’s difficulty.
In the time-restricted world of Psychedelia quests, they were the definition of a nuisance.
However, a question occurred to Alon.
He had never actually played the DLC content.
Predicting the events of the Eastern Nation was impossible for him.
Even so, the Martyred being active here felt strange.
He thought in silence for a moment, then nodded as if coming to a conclusion before turning to Historia.
“?”
Historia tilted her head, noticing Alon’s stare.
“Ria.”
“Yes? God?”
“Why are you here?”
“You mean, here in the Eastern Nation?”
“Yes.”
Historia parted her lips slightly before giving an answer.
“Because of a gift.”
“A gift?”
“Yes, I came for that.”
“To receive one?”
“To grant a favor.”
“So... you performed a favor and came to collect a gift in return. Is that it?”
Nod.
Their dialogue was brief and somewhat disjointed.
As Alon tried to piece the facts together, Historia simply continued to nod.
Feeling once again that their communication was always slightly out of sync, Alon turned back to Hao.
“Would it be possible for me to meet the King of the Eastern Nation?”
“You mean His Majesty?”
“Yes. I traveled here because I was informed the King wanted to see me.”
In truth, the primary reason Alon had come to the Eastern Nation was due to the instructions of the goddess Sironia.
Perhaps I’ll find answers if I speak with the King—Alon was thinking this when—
“God, is your goal to meet the King?”
“It is.”
“Then I will take you there.”
“...You will?”
“Yes, I was going to head there anyway once my work was done.”
Historia interrupted.
“If you travel to the Sacred Vessel where the King resides alongside Lady Historia, you will certainly be allowed an audience,” Hao added.
With that confirmation, Alon made his choice and walked out of the room.
The moment Alon and Historia departed, Hao exhaled a massive sigh of relief, looking like a man who had just cheated death.
“!”
He jumped, spinning around at a presence he suddenly felt nearby.
“L-Lady Historia? Did you forget something...?”
Historia was standing there—even though she had clearly just walked out with Alon.
Terrified, Hao forced a shaky smile.
Historia, observing his trembling face, said, “Remember.”
With a face devoid of any emotion, she added, “There will not be a second time.”
Having said her piece, she turned and walked away without a sound.
Following that, Alon managed to discover two more facts.
The first was the specific reason Historia was currently in the area.
She had arrived at the King’s request to suppress the Martyred, who were the driving force behind the rebellion.
And the second fact—
“Lady Historia...!”
“...Wow... It really is Lady Historia.”
“Is that the Great Heavenly White Wolf...?”
—was that Historia possessed an incredibly prestigious status within the Eastern Nation.
Alon watched the expressions of the beastkin.
Filled with deep respect and awe, they looked exactly like the fanatical worshippers he had seen in Sironia.
The Historia he remembered—from both history and the game—was a solitary figure who always acted alone, even among the Seven Great Powers, so this sight was quite strange to him.
But the feeling was fleeting.
“God, wait here.”
Historia moved forward.
“So you want me to wait while you take care of business?”
“Yes. It won't take long.”
“You have already located them?”
Alon spoke up.
“We will help you.”
“You will, God?”
“Yes. After all, you helped me earlier.”
Of course, even without her intervention, he could have escaped that situation.
However, without her, the odds of resolving it peacefully would have been nearly zero.
“Hmm—”
Historia thought for a moment, then casually looped her white tail around Alon’s waist and said,
“Thanks.”
“Then let’s move out.”
“Okay.”
The two of them, joined together, began to walk.
“...Seriously, are they just not going to explain anything to us?”
“I thought I gave a basic summary earlier?”
“A few more details would have been nice... Sigh, let’s just go. It’s not like this is the first time I’ve been left in the dark.”
Evan complained as he watched them leave, then shrugged and followed.
Penia also began to move, but then—
“?”
She noticed that Radan, who had been standing next to her, wasn't moving.
“Aren’t you coming?”
Radan, biting his lip nervously with a pained expression, whispered to himself.
“This is dangerous... I might not be able to restrain myself...”
Penia flinched, giving him a confused look.
But Radan didn't seem to notice, still consumed by anxiety.
And within his shaking eyes—
—a red brooch gleamed.
***
It wasn't long after they joined Historia that Alon reached the Martyred’s base of operations.
Or more accurately—
“This is way beyond a simple hideout.”
They stood before a massive stone fortress.
It was built into a crevice beneath a mountain range so vast it could hide the sun, a location no ordinary person could ever reach.
Just by looking at it, the Martyred’s fortress bled an unsettling Cultivation energy.
Everywhere Alon looked, he saw them—
—the corrupted monsters that were always found where the Martyred gathered.
These creatures were easily twice as powerful as standard monsters.
And that wasn't the only issue.
Compared to the Martyred bases he had cleared in Psychedelia, the one in front of him was significantly larger.
But what worried Alon the most—
“Abyssal Beings.”
“They are here as well.”
The Abyssal Beings, which were already a major threat in the Allied Kingdom, were present here too.
While Alon weighed his options—
Sss—
Historia, who had been clinging to Alon with her tail around his waist, stood up straight.
“Ria?”
Alon called her name.
Historia looked at him for a moment, then spoke.
“I’ll be back. It won’t take long.”
She started to walk toward the fortress.
“Wait, it’s not a good idea to go in alone—”
Alon reached out, attempting to stop her.
He was well aware of how strong Historia was.
Even if he lacked details about 700 years ago, she had been one of the Seven Great Powers of the Allied Kingdom.
But even so, the Martyred were not simple opponents.
Every member was a monster in their own right, appearing in the mid-game with terrifying powers.
And under the guise of “sacrificing for the great god,” they were capable of any atrocity, including suicide attacks.
Knowing it was reckless to fight them alone, he tried to hold her back.
But in the next heartbeat—
Alon saw it.
An immense quantity of Mana began swirling around Historia’s body as she reached for her sword.
Then—
First Ritual.
Historia pulled her blade.
Genesis.
...Nothing seemed to happen.
Click!
Historia slid the sword back into its scabbard and turned around.
The world looked exactly the same.
The Martyred inside the fortress still stood.
The monsters had not moved.
Nothing had changed at all.
“...?”
“?”
Evan looked completely baffled.
Penia looked the same, and even Radan tilted his head in confusion.
Alon was no different.
But—
[...You have got to be joking.]
Only Basiliora, sitting on Alon’s shoulder, cursed in shock.
Just as Alon turned to ask Basiliora what was wrong—
-!
A very faint sound reached their ears.
It sounded like a light scratching—a tiny, nearly imperceptible noise.
Skrrrrrk!
And then—
Alon saw it.
A sharp, blinding light from the sun suddenly filled his vision.
He squinted at the brightness, confused.
From their position, the massive mountain range should have blocked the sun, keeping the area in shadow.
So why was there suddenly direct sunlight?
He didn't have to wait long for the answer.
Beneath that sunlight—
“Ah.”
—the great mountain had been sliced perfectly in half horizontally, and was now sliding down toward the valley where the Martyred were stationed.
!!!!!
A deafening roar shook the entire world.