The Villain's Story

Chapter 840: James Smith: Arrival.

Even though Alan was certain that he didn’t have a good grasp of the true character of James Smith, what the man had done after arriving was a complete shock to him.

His memories, or rather the dreams, were not really accurate and never in an appropriate timeline, so much of it was just speculation, but James Smith had moved in a way contrary to what Alan had expected.

He thought he knew him somewhat, but it turned out he didn’t know him at all. The first time James had appeared in this universe, he hadn’t done anything important. He didn’t take over the world even though he was able to in Aranus’s body, nor did he concoct some devious scheme. He didn’t move in any way Alan would have expected.

For most of his first iteration, he had lived like a normal human being; although his life was shown in glimpses, it was enough for Alan to concur how James lived...

He got a job in the awakened industry, hunted monsters for a living, and spent his earnings on traveling, food, and a lot of alcohol. He moved so differently from the image Alan had of him.

It was only at the end of it all, when other forces got involved, that James moved in the way Alan thought he would. When Aranus woke up, the temptations of the Abyss started again. Before all of this, he had merely enjoyed the world he had been reborn in.

Alan couldn’t be certain whether it was true or not, for he still believed that the visions he saw were manipulated by James, but it was still a surprise nonetheless, even if he didn’t dwell on it much.

It was only in the latter half of it that James began to act like the James he thought he knew, and even then, most of what Alan saw were only conversations between the Abyss and James, and one thing stood out to him the most.

You lowly! Insignificant being! How dare you treat that treasure so leisurely?!

It was an outburst from the Abyss that spiraled things into action, the motivation James had needed to finally start acting towards another goal. Alan was still oblivious to almost everything that had happened after, however, he did know how many times James had regressed in Aranus’s body.

A total of two hundred times, that was how many times the Chalice had been used again, and even though the result was still the same, one that forced the dragons to rewind once more... Something different was happening.

Unlike Aranus, who was unable to truly defeat the Abyss, James was under no such bindings. The Abyss had succeeded in tricking a young Aranus into offering his soul, but the latter was not one easy to be tricked. James could actually fight back in more ways than one. The iterations where he was in control were also always the longest and the ones hardest to remember.

There weren’t any grand battles like there were with Aranus; James had lived a more elusive life, so much so that Alan wasn’t sure about anything. Everything was a jumble in his mind.

All he knew for certain was that something major had happened at the end of the five hundredth iteration, an event occurring between James Smith and the Abyssal Conscient, and something else.

It was the start of ’Alan Peccator’ as well, roughly. After the events of the five hundredth iteration, James’s soul had begun to falter; it was beginning to break down, prompting Aranus to create what would later become...

’Me.’

Similarly, the approach of the Abyss also halted; it became scarce after the five hundredth turn. And after a while, when Alan became fully conscious and started living in the five hundred and fifty-fifth turn... The Abyss was never present. Up until now, at the very least.

It hadn’t bothered him like it had bothered James, and that was something he was thankful for, because he knew he wouldn’t be able to resist like the damn bastard. The Abyss didn’t just use words but everything at its disposal.

Mental hexes, spells, and skills to taint the soul and mind—everything it could, James could resist, but Alan Peccator couldn’t.

Whatever had happened, it made sure Alan Peccator wasn’t disturbed. After the five hundredth iteration, things began to move... rapidly.

From the bits and pieces that Alan saw, he was able to deduce a few things. One, James was basically on his last straw. His soul couldn’t handle anything more, and so he mostly remained inside the soul Aranus had created. The new soul would pilot the body, while James piloted it

He didn’t feel anything no matter what happened, which was why he had begun to grow bolder and bolder with his actions... But then again, what mattered most was.

’I had been ’born’.’

But the specifics of his birth were still a mystery.

All he knew, in the fourth iteration after the creation of the puppet soul, something other than James had begun to embody it; it was [Dominatus]. However, it wasn’t concrete at that point.

[Dominatus] had been born, but Alan Peccator hadn’t been. The skill was there, but the person who it belonged to was still nonexistent. However, a seed had been planted. It was the fourth where Alan really thought he was starting to come into being.

In the fifth, James had realized the existence of [Dominatus], but instead of doing anything to it, he had let the skill be. None of his visions showed why such a man like him chose to do so, but there was definitely an ulterior motive.

In the sixth, Alan was taking shape, but he was breaking apart again and again, ultimately resulting in James taking greater interest in the budding of the Unique Skill. And it was here where James had probably come up with the plans of using [Dominatus].

He didn’t have any visions, which would suggest it was the seventh iteration, but he did know about the eighth. It was the one where Alan Peccator, he himself, had come into existence.

In the five hundred and eighth iteration, the existence of Alan Peccator had been born.

’Though I wasn’t really conscious at that point yet.’

However, that was it. Alan had no other dreams or visions that could give him any other clue; all he had was...

In the eighth, after the creation of the new soul, James had begun to move seriously.

And that was all. After that, all Alan knew was that it was in this turn, the five hundred and fifty-fifth, that his consciousness fully came into being, and before this one, he had just been used as a puppet to do whatever James wanted.

And all he knew were the painful memories of it. The beach and the sea were just one calming one, even if it was accompanied by pain.

’Haaa...’

Alan sighed, because all of it was still speculation, and although there were some parts that Alan was certain were true, that they were real... Were they really?

After all, it could just be James’s doing, couldn’t it? The visions, the dreams, and even the act of Alan understanding and putting some sense into them. That was why he craved to see Valus, a dragon that could finally, finally tell him what was truly happening.

After all, Suleras was vague; Lanesha dodged his questions. His two guardian dragons were ambiguous. He had a feeling Suleras was able to tell him plenty of things, but that dragon had disappeared for a while, and Lanesha would just start going on a useless ramble about the intricacies of fate.

He didn’t care if his meeting with Valus was something James had planned; as long as he got to know something, it was fine in his eyes.

What assurance did he have that this dragon would tell him something? He had Ariel and Lanesha, and even then, he did have a trump card up his sleeve to force it out of the dragon.

Although, he would prefer if he didn’t have to use it.

With it all out of the way, Alan turned around, failing to find any message of importance in the grand halls of the central church of Darkness. As he made his way out, he noticed dozens, if not hundreds, of gazes falling on him, all belonging to the believers of the church.

He questioned why they did it, for no matter what skill they used to look at him, they wouldn’t gain anything. Even his dragon eyes were useless in front of the law of this world, where everyone’s privacy was well protected.

What would they gain by focusing on him? Nevertheless... if all of them were doing it, he had to have done something, so Alan hastily made his way back to the mansion to get away from it all and to also lay on a soft bed and sleep for a while before eventually sailing into the Black Sea.