Chapter 20 – My Villain, My Hero

My entire future was finally here.

The Grateful Goblin inn was exactly as generic as its name. Heavy wooden beams ran across the low ceiling, stained dark from years of smoke. The air was thick with the smell of roasting chicken, stale ale, and damp wool. We sat at a heavy oak table near the hearth, its surface polished to a dull sheen by a thousand spilled drinks and restless elbows.

“So, it’s official.”

Kenji planted his hands flat on the table, his expression serious. He looked every bit the hero making a grand proclamation. My stomach twisted with a feeling so close to joy it was painful.

“Mayor Pedro and I have formed an alliance. We’re going to work together to protect Olvido.”

A jolt went through me, pure and electric. It was happening. It was legit happening. My perfectly greasy, text-book corrupt mayor had done it. He had sunk his slimy hooks directly into the party’s squeaky-clean hero. This was the moment. This was the glorious, beautiful foundation of my entire betrayal arc.

I had to clench my fists under the table to stop from throwing them in the air.

My face felt like it was going to split in two. I forced my lips into a wide, brilliant smile. It was a masterpiece of emotional fraud, a perfect mask of uncut joy designed to hide the diabolical glee churning in my soul. They would see it as relief. They would think I was happy for the town, for our party, for this new partnership.

What a bunch of beautiful, magnificent fools.

My plan was a work of art. Pedro, my sweet, sweet villain, had played Kenji like a cheap fiddle. He’d weaponized that earnest, heroic sincerity. He was definitely, one hundred percent, already plotting how to use the party for his own shady ends. And the very first item on his agenda would be convincing Kenji to cut the dead weight.

Me.

I was a puppet master. I was a 5D chess grandmaster. I was a god-tier plotter walking among simple, predictable NPCs. I wanted to leap onto the table, kick over a few mugs of ale, and announce my magnificent victory to the entire room.

A hand landed softly on mine.

Reina, my loyal and terrifyingly devoted shield-maiden, was looking at me with those intense eyes. They were shining, but not with the usual homicidal glint. This was something else.

“You look so happy, Ryuuji-kun.”

Her voice was a soft murmur.

“It must be such a relief to know your faith in the mayor was so well-placed. You saw the good in him when we couldn’t.”

Yes. Relief. That was the word for it.

I just nodded, stretching my smile until my cheeks physically ached. I didn’t dare open my mouth. If I tried to speak, a wild, triumphant cackle might claw its way out, and that would ruin the whole vibe.

Across from me, Daisuke let out a low grunt.

He lifted his mug, which was filled with water, and gave a short nod. It was his version of a toast. He was approving of my brilliant, flawless plan.

Of course he was.

Kenji beamed at me, his whole face glowing with that disgustingly heroic light. He looked like a human sunbeam. It was nauseating.

“I have to admit, Ryuuji, I was wrong. You saw something in him we didn’t.”

His words were like music. The sweet, sweet music of my impending doom.

“Your trust… it’s what convinced him to work with us. You’re the real hero here, man.”

He had no idea how right he was.

This was it.

The stage was set.

The actors were in place.

The entire world was holding its breath.

All that was left was for the knife to fall.

My betrayal was locked in.

My future was a beautiful, sprawling canvas of suffering and eventual domination.

Everything was going exactly according to my master plan.

A loud crash shattered the cozy tavern atmosphere.

The heavy wooden door of the inn slammed open, smacking hard against the interior stone wall. The chatter and laughter died instantly. Every head in the room turned toward the entrance. A figure stood framed in the doorway, silhouetted against the fading evening light.

Her chest heaved from exertion. Her knuckles were bone-white where she gripped the hilt of the dagger at her belt.

It was Reina.

“Ryuuji-kun!”

Her eyes, wild and panicked, scanned the room. They locked onto me. She broke into a sprint, weaving through the tables of startled patrons like they were training dummies. She didn’t slow down until she skidded to a stop right beside our table.

“Siegfried tried to betray us!”

Her voice was sharp, a shard of ice cutting through the stunned silence of the inn.

“He tried to steal the fruit.”

The world stopped spinning.

What?