I Am The Game's Villain

Chapter 427  [Event] [Semester-Exam At Vanadias] [15] Bryelle's Fate

"Then what exactly was their problem?" I asked, guiding Bryelle through the grand corridors of the castle. Bryelle, however, remained silent, her small frame nearly trembling in front of me. Her wide eyes were glazed with confusion, her lips parted as if frozen mid-thought.

"Bryelle," I called her name softly, my hand brushing against her neck in a light poke.

"Ah!" She gasped, recoiling like a startled deer.

"Don't yelp like that," I muttered.

"S–Sorry…" Bryelle whispered, bowing her head.

I glanced at her, my brows furrowing slightly. "So? What was their problem? Why were they bullying you? Did you do something to upset them?" I asked, though deep down, I doubted she would harm even the smallest insect from what I had seen so far.

"No… um, weren't you a little too far with them?"

Her words caught me off guard. Dumbfounded, I turned to face her fully. I went too far?

For a moment, I stared at her, searching her face for any sign that she might be joking. But Bryelle was serious—dead serious. It was as if she didn't fully comprehend what had been happening to her for what I suppose years. They seemed to be tormenting her relentlessly, and yet, she was worried that I might have overstepped?

Well, I guess for someone who just saw them for the first time, it might've seemed a bit much. But they deserved a reality check. People like them don't understand anything unless they're knocked down a peg. Just like I did with Allen. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Not at all," I replied.

"I—I see…" Bryelle mumbled.

I guided her forward again, ignoring the disapproving stares and curious glances of the maids bustling around us. They likely weren't used to seeing the young princess led through the castle halls by someone like me, a Human. But I didn't care.

"So, Princess Bryelle Teraquin, why were you spying on me?"

Her cheeks flushed a delicate pink, and she shook her head frantically. "I—I wasn't spying! Please don't call me that…" She whispered in embarrassment..

"Now it all makes sense—why you hate humans, why you're not allowed outside. You're a Teraquin princess after all. It's only natural you'd have some restrictions."

Bryelle remained silent, though her shoulders dropped slightly as I continued to wander around aimlessly. It was obvious I was just finding an excuse to avoid training, and, to her credit, she seemed willing to let me.

At least I hoped she'd cover for me later. If not, I was definitely in trouble.

After a long pause, she finally spoke up. "Um… Lord Amael?"

"Don't call me 'Lord,'" I corrected, waving a hand dismissively. "We're of the same status, after all."

"Oh, yes…you're a royal from the Olphean House, isn't it?" Bryelle asked.

I offered a casual nod, my lips curling into a faint smirk. "Yes, so don't worry about those idiots I beat up. They can't touch me. If they even think about trying, I'll just use my status to destroy their lives."

Bryelle's expression tightened, and a small, awkward smile crept onto her face. "T–That might be too much…" she said softly, though I could tell by the slight nervous laugh she thought I was joking.

Bryelle's expression tightened, and a small, awkward smile crept onto her face. "T–That might be too much…" she said softly, though I could tell by the slight nervous laugh she thought I was joking.

But I wasn't. Not in the slightest.

Status existed for that very reason—to protect, to wield power. [<You sound like an arrogant Young Master, Amael.>]

'I am a Young Master.'

There was no shame in admitting it; I was born into privilege, and I fully intended to make use of that privilege when necessary.

"Um, Amael, you're a student at Trinity Eden Academy, right?" Bryelle asked, her tone shifting as she changed the subject, her gaze now wandering ahead, lost in thought. "Are you going to the Exam tomorrow?"

"Yep," I replied, watching her face closely. "We're here for that after all."

Her expression softened as she heard my words, and I noticed the wistful look in her eyes. It didn't take much to guess what she was thinking—there was a longing there, a desire to escape this castle, to live a normal life like any other student. But Bryelle couldn't. She was a Teraquin Princess, trapped in her role, her duties, her obligations.

"You're a Teraquin Princess, right?" I asked. "Why don't you come and watch the Exam? I'm sure a lot of high-ranking nobles will be there to observe. Don't you want to see how Alvara is doing? She's your sister or cousin, right?"

At the mention of Alvara's name, Bryelle's face lit up instantly. Her once timid demeanor vanished as her eyes sparkled with excitement. She raised her voice in a sudden burst of energy, unable to hide her enthusiasm. "Y–You know my Elder Sister?!"

Wow, she really did seem like a fangirl. Her entire mood changed the moment I brought up Alvara.

"Who doesn't know the 'Goddess Alvara'?" I said, my tone dripping with mocker but to my surprise, Bryelle took my words at face value.

"R–Right?!" She exclaimed, her excitement bubbling over. "Elder Sister is like a Goddess! She's amazing, beautiful, strong, and kind!"

I grimaced slightly at her naivety. "I agree with the first three, but the last one seems a bit hard to believe."

Alvara... kind? The thought alone felt like a stretch. Maybe in some alternate universe. The Alvara I knew was ruthless, her punishments swift and severe, especially toward the Halves. If that was what Bryelle considered kindness, then we clearly had very different definitions.

"She is kind!" Bryelle insisted, her eyes gleaming with sincerity. "She really is!"

I raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "How so?"

I couldn't help but think of the countless times Alvara had burned Halves alive, her judgments delivered without mercy. Sure, they might've deserved some form of punishment, but hers often bordered on the extreme.

Bryelle, however, seemed oblivious to that side of her sister. "You see," she began, her voice softening as she recalled her memories, "the other day when I had a nightmare, Elder Sister stayed up the whole night, watching over me while I slept. She didn't leave my side, not even for a second."

Her tone grew warmer, filled with admiration. "And whenever we're alone, she always cooks for me, preparing all my favorite meals. Everything I like, she makes sure it's perfect. She helps me a lot too—she teaches me so many things. She's always looking out for me. She's the kindest person in the world!"

"Just curious, but are you sure we're talking about the same person? Is there another Alvara in your family?" I asked, my voice tinged with disbelief.

Bryelle's expression fell, her gaze drifting away as if she were sulking. "My bad," I added with a halfhearted chuckle, trying to ease the awkwardness. "It's just... hard to believe."

Really, really hard to believe.

The Alvara I knew—the one whose reputation preceded her—wasn't someone I could picture wearing an apron, cheerfully cooking meals or tenderly comforting someone through a nightmare. No, the Alvara I imagined was far more…dark. I could easily envision her poisoning someone's food with a cold smile or quietly strangling an enemy in the dead of night.

Yet here was Bryelle, utterly blind to her sister's darker side, caught in the glowing web of familial love. It was clear she idolized Alvara, unwilling or perhaps unable to see the truth of who her sister really was.

If only she knew what her beloved sister was planning... what she was capable of during the upcoming War.

A War where even Bryelle wouldn't be able to stop her.

Huh?

I stopped in my tracks, my body going rigid. Something had just clicked in my mind.

"I–Is there a problem?" Bryelle asked, her voice tinged with embarrassment. She glanced at me, perhaps regretting how much emotion she'd let slip in our conversation.

But I barely heard her. My mind was elsewhere, piecing together fragments of a future I hadn't fully considered until now.

If I remembered correctly, Alvara's involvement in the War had been her wish all along. From the very beginning, she'd wanted to throw herself into the conflict. But when she finally got her chance... something was different. By the time the War started, Alvara had already begun unraveling, her mind cracking under some unseen pressure.

She looked unstable even now, but during the War, it was worse. Far worse. It was as though something inside her had shifted, something that made her even more dangerous.

I dug deeper into my memories, my hand instinctively reaching for my head as I tried to recall the details. It had been a few years since I played the game, so the specifics were blurry, buried beneath layers of other, more immediate concerns.

Still... I could vaguely remember a mention, something small, almost an afterthought in the game's storyline. Alvara had lost someone—someone in her family, right before the War. The loss had been engineered, a cruel scheme set up by Utopia to push her over the edge, to weaponize her madness and bring her to their side.

The more I thought about it, the clearer the picture became. And then, the dots connected.

Bryelle.

I glanced down at her, the realization hitting me like a punch to the gut. She was staring up at me, her eyes wide with concern. She had no idea what was coming. She was going to die.

Before the War, sometime soon, Bryelle was going to die. I didn't know exactly when, but it was enough to explain everything—Alvara's descent into madness, her unchecked rage during the War. It all made sense now.

"Hey, you!"

Before I could dwell any longer on my thoughts, the harsh voices of guards cut through the air, their footsteps closing in fast.

The guards of the Teraquin family had spotted me. Damn it. I needed more time—I needed to talk to Bryelle, to warn her, to do something.

"I'll see you later, maybe," I said quickly, turning on my heel and making a break for it.

"W–Wait!" Bryelle called after me.

I stopped, glancing back over my shoulder. "Yeah?"

A soft, genuine smile spread across her face. "Thank you for helping me, um…Amael," she said, with a sincere and shy tone.

I returned her smile, a bit concerned though. "Don't worry about it."

And with that, I left her behind.

But I couldn't let her die. I wouldn't let her die.

If I could change her fate, maybe I could prevent Alvara from becoming the monster she was supposed to be.