I Got Reincarnated as the Game's Villain

"You… for some reason, you seem to repel it. Instead of being drawn to me like everyone else, you actually… despise me," she said with a chuckle. I wasn't sure she was entirely sane anymore.

"Then… why did you let me almost kill you?" I asked, trying to make sense of her behavior.

"As I said, it was just to verify something," she replied cryptically.

"Verify what—?"

"You want something from me, don't you?" she interrupted, her eyes narrowing. Her words made me freeze.

Seems she's already figured it out.

"And what makes you say that?" I asked cautiously, probing for her reasoning.

"Come on now. You keep insisting you could kill me, but your actions say otherwise. It's obvious—you want something I have," she said with an unsettling calmness.

No wonder she wasn't scared. Not even a hint of fear crossed her face, despite me being the one with the upper hand.

It was infuriating.

No matter how powerful she was, one swing of my frost sword infused with ether would be enough to end her. Yet she didn't even consider the possibility.

What made it worse was the fact that I couldn't force her to comply with my terms. She was far stronger than me, and there were limits to what I could do.

Breaking her mentally might be an option, but pain wouldn't work. After all…

SHE'S A FUCKING MASOCHIST!

"Is it food?" she asked suddenly, her tone sharp.

I neither admitted nor denied it.

"And why do you think that?" I countered.

"Because I've seen what hunger can drive people to do. The lengths they'll go to," she said with a small, knowing smile. "I'll give you what you want—but on one condition," she added.

"What condition?"

"Tell me how you're able to repel my ability. I need to know," she said, her voice tinged with desperation.

I stared at her silently for a moment before answering. "I don't know what you're talking about. I don't have any such ability to repel things," I replied honestly. I wasn't in the mood for lying.

Her brows furrowed, frustration flashing across her face. "But… how?" she muttered.

The ice began to crack, and I felt my frost energy wane. My ether reserves were nearly depleted, leaving me vulnerable.

I was at her mercy now.

I could kill her—right here, right now—but that would leave me trapped in this dimension. Wherever here even was.

"Fine. Then how about this?" she said suddenly, her voice trembling with desperation. "I'll use a relic on you. Just once."

"What relic?" I asked warily.

Her lips pressed together, hesitation flickering across her face.

"I can't agree to something that might harm me. What does this relic do?" I pressed, trying to assess the danger.

"It… it halts all flows of mana," she admitted.

"…And what happens after that?"

"I just want to know if whatever helps you repel my ability will still work once your mana is sealed," she confessed.

I regarded her skeptically.

"Don't worry," she said quickly, sensing my hesitation. "I'll remove it the moment nothing happens. You'll be fine, I promise."

"Why… why are you trying to find a solution?" I asked, genuinely curious.

I thought she said she had begun to enjoy it.

So why was she now trying to find a way to stop its effect on people?

"I… I don't even understand myself sometimes," she sighed. "Just like how you're talking to me right now on your own, without any influence. I just… I just want that sometimes. I feel like all the care and love I get are fake—and they are fake. So, I don't know. Sometimes, I just want this…" She gestured vaguely. "The way you are right now—real, not fake, not forced. You don't even like me, which is… actually a first," she added with a bitter laugh.

"Perhaps that's how everyone else would be without this… ability. Maybe I wouldn't be this popular or this loved, but at least it wouldn't be fake. If someone eventually showed me care, it would be true—not something they were blinded into doing," she finished.

I could only stare at her.

Strange.

She had everything, yet she despised her life.

I had nothing, and I despised mine too.

So what would give someone true satisfaction? What would make someone feel complete?

"Wait… that girl who was with you," she said suddenly. "She was able to repel it too, wasn't she? Or… could it have been because you were in contact with her? No… that doesn't make sense. Even now, you're still repelling it."

Her words made my thoughts drift to Lily.

Strangely enough, when Lily was with me, I felt happy.

She became a shoulder I could lean on, and I, likewise, became one for her. We came from completely different worlds, each carrying our own pain and traumas.

It really does hurt, knowing she's gone. I guess you only truly value what you have once you lose it.

"Why… are you crying?" her voice broke through my thoughts, and I realized my cheeks were wet.

Ah.

"It's nothing… Fine, let's do it," I said abruptly, breaking the ice.

She stared at me for a moment before speaking. "Don't tell me you're sympathizing with me," she said, rolling her eyes.

"You wish," I replied flatly.

Suddenly, she manifested mana cuffs.

"Cuffs? Really?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

She avoided my gaze.

"Just get it over with," I said, stretching out my hands. I was already devoid of ether, so it wasn't like I could resist anyway.

She stepped forward, placing the relic onto my wrists. It locked into place automatically. In an instant, I felt a strange sensation, as if some vital connection had been severed.

One minute.

Two.

Three.

We just stared at each other.

"Are you… feeling anything?" she asked, frowning.

"Like what?" I replied.

"I don't know exactly," she admitted. "I've never felt it myself, but someone once said it's an overwhelming need to protect me. Do you feel anything like that?"

"I do feel a need, but it's definitely not to protect you," I said flatly.

Her frown deepened.

"You know… you still haven't told me why you hate me so much," she said, her tone softer now. "Even back at the guild, from the moment you laid eyes on me, I could feel it—that disgust. Why? You're the only person I know who isn't affected by my ability. I just want to understand."

I looked at her for a long moment.

"I'll be honest with you. I don't like you. There's no grand reason for it. I just don't. Now take this damn thing off. It's obvious nothing is going to happen," I said, my voice cold.

She stared deeply into my eyes, and for the first time, I saw it—sadness. She was holding something back, her emotions just barely contained.

"Is it because of my character… or is there some other reason you're not telling me?" she asked, her voice quieter, almost pleading.

"What do you want me to say? And why does my opinion even mat—"

"It does!" she interrupted, her face a myriad of emotions.

How had the conversation shifted so quickly?

"It doesn't. My disliking you doesn't mean you're not a lovable person. Not everybody will like you, so stop being so persistent," I said, urging her to remove the cuffs. I really didn't have time for this. Staying in this dimension any longer made me feel powerless.

"No, it does matter," she said, her arms at her sides as she clenched her fists. "After all, that's how everyone will probably see me someday if I lose this ability." She looked down at her palms, her voice trembling slightly.

Well, it seemed she wasn't as much of a bitch as I'd originally thought.

This was probably the reason she never reciprocated Leo's feelings. She must've thought his emotions were fake—tied only to her ability—and that if she ever lost it, he'd stop feeling that way instantly.

"Just stop. We had a deal. Your problems aren't my problems," I said flatly. For a moment, that dark feeling clouded my emotions, and the sight of her tears seemed to vanish from my mind.

At that moment, I didn't care if she was in pain. All I saw was a heroine standing before me. A potential enemy.

She stepped forward and unlocked the cuffs. With a wave of her hand, the world regained its color, and we were back in the forest.

"My ring," she said, holding out her hand.

I threw it to her, though not without some reluctance. "Here."

In exchange, she tossed me another ring from somewhere.

"Alright," I muttered, inspecting it instantly. Inside, I found a massive stock of supplies.

Without a word, she turned and began walking away. But for some reason, it didn't feel right. This wasn't the best way to leave things between us. So, I called out, "Cilla."

She stopped in her tracks, her shoulders stiffening.

"I don't like you," I admitted, "but I don't hate you either. You're getting it all wrong. Maybe you think that because I'm not influenced by your ability, I'm giving the 'true' reaction of anyone who wouldn't be. But that's not how it works. Just because I don't like you doesn't mean everyone will hate you without your ability. And even if they did… you could make them love you."

She turned slightly, her expression unreadable, so I pressed on.

"Opinions aren't fixed. They're flexible. You just have to make people see who you really are—not the mask you always put on. Show them who Priscilla is inside. I don't think anyone could hate you if they saw that. You just need to be… truthful. You're beautiful person, Priscilla. You don't even have to try that hard, and they'll be yours."

I finished my speech, surprising even myself. That was, without a doubt, the longest stream of BS I'd ever spouted. It's like I said before—aside from a messed-up sleep schedule and an even more messed-up life, the only thing I specialize in is BS.

"…"

She stared at me with wide eyes, her mouth slightly agape.

And then, suddenly, the most genuine smile I'd ever seen claimed her lips. It was beautiful—real, unguarded.

"Thank you—" she began, but her words were cut off as the ground trembled violently beneath us.

"Cilla!"

I turned to see Leo rushing toward us, sword in hand and fury etched into his face.

"Leo, stop!" she yelled, trying to intercept him.

But before anything could happen, a bright light engulfed us, and we vanished.