Raising Villains the Right Way

”...Huh?”

A blue radiance enveloped his whole body.

Alon let out a startled exclamation without realizing it and looked at the necklace.

Now, as he rose to deliver the final blow to Sin.

The momentary doubt over the necklace that suddenly emitted blue light was short-lived.

[There’s no time.]

A voice suddenly came from behind, and soon he realized it was the goddess Sironia.

”...Goddess?”

Alon quickly set aside his doubts and prioritized taking down the Sin before him.

Because now was the perfect opportunity.

For some reason, the moment he rose into the sky.

The Sin of Jealousy, who should have swung an arm at him, froze with its gaze fixed on the air.

Alon captured the sight of the Sin in his eyes.

It was very different from the Sin he had seen in Psychedelia.

The body born from the messy cocoon had not fully formed, leaving its limbs abnormally long.

And there was no sign of the intelligence that should have been in a Sin’s face.

In short, it was a monstrously incomplete being.

Alon inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

Even such an incomplete Sin wielded irrational power.

Had a fully formed Sin been born, it would have been unimaginably horrifying.

He didn’t even want to imagine it.

[Listen carefully, you must take off its head in one strike! No matter what it takes!]

Despite the headache caused by the recoil of Reverse Heaven, Alon nodded to the goddess’s instruction and hesitated for a moment.

The moment his hesitation ended.

Crackle-!

Lightning sprang up around Alon’s body, and two horns began sprouting atop his head.

At the same time, chilling cold spread from the clawed gauntlet on his fingers.

And soon, what he grasped in his hand was.

Crackling!!!

Bluish lightning.

A spear emitting lightning ropes in all directions as if connecting the earth and sky.

It was now gripped firmly in Alon’s hand.

But Alon knew.

That while this was his best, it still wasn’t enough to defeat the Sin before him.

Thus, the choice he made was.

”Array of Thunder.”

Adding more power to the lightning spear.

Of course, he had never experimented with this before.

Thus it was reckless.

Thus it was dangerous.

If he made even a single mistake in the incantation here.

This golden opportunity could be lost just like that.

Even knowing this.

Alon spoke the incantation.

Because he had no other choice.

Because he had to fight with everything he had.

The spear in his hand grew ever larger.

The lightning that had merely illuminated the ruins of Rosario now split the sky and scattered fierce light across all of Rosario.

Yet he did not stop.

More.

Just a little more.

Just a bit more.

The spear grew larger.

More.

More.

Just a little more.

And thus, what was created, infused with Alon’s seemingly infinite mana.

Was a colossal spear that split Rosario.

It blotted out the starry Milky Way spread across the dark sky.

It blotted out the bright blue moon.

The vivid bluish spear shimmered in Alon’s hand.

It was a spear imbued with an amount of mana unimaginable for Alon under normal circumstances.

Even Alon himself couldn’t grasp how much stronger this attack had become.

He only knew that brute-forcing mana didn’t necessarily translate directly into firepower.

Originally, this magic was extremely incomplete.

Neither fully researched nor properly tested — merely improvised based on Alon’s knowledge at this moment.

Thus, he could not be confident.

But.

One thing was clear.

This was the best he could do.

Heaven (天).

Alon threw the lightning.

Along with it, the blue radiance wrapped around the spear of lightning.

And the dark sky split open.

The cleft darkness.

Contained an incredibly blue and clear sky within.

Soon after.

Heh—

As if seeing something truly amusing.

The long-silent eye behind Alon curved strangely into a smiling shape.

The moment that happened.

-!!!

Light engulfed the world.

Right after the pure white light faded.

Alon, having completed Reverse Heaven and descended to the ground, saw.

A Sin with only half a head remaining.

Alon furrowed his brow and tried to use Reverse Heaven again.

But soon stopped.

Because the Sin’s body was turning to dust and slowly disappearing.

The disappearance of the Sin.

Confirming this, Alon let out a sigh of relief.

[...I’m sorry, my child.]

The goddess Sironia, still positioned behind Alon.

Alon, puzzled by her murmuring, suddenly realized something.

That clear rationality had momentarily returned to the eyes of the previously mindless Sin.

Alon, who had been staring blankly, now.

”Please do not mourn too much, Goddess. It’s just...”

Unlike the grotesque screams it had let out earlier.

The Sin now struggled to open its mouth with a clear voice.

”My choice was simply mistaken...”

He gained a new understanding.

He realized why the Sin of Jealousy had stopped its attack earlier.

And then, the light that had been lingering on the necklace faded, and the figure of the goddess Sironia disappeared.

The vivid blue light that had shone in the Sin’s eyes also slowly faded.

”Thank you.”

With its final words, the Sin returned to its mindless state.

From that moment, the Sin’s body rapidly oxidized.

The moment Alon bowed his head and let out a small sigh.

[This is not the end—]

”....”

At the sudden voice, Alon hurriedly looked forward.

[Protect...]

There still stood the vanishing Sin.

Its ash-gray eyes devoid of reason, opening its mouth toward Alon.

[To protect—]

In an endlessly chilling voice.

”Protect...?”

Alon repeated the word the Sin had uttered.

However, unfortunately, no answer came back from the Sin.

The next moment, the Sin’s mouth vanished.

Eyes devoid of reason stared at Alon.

Then, with difficulty, the Sin looked up at the sky.

And finally.

The Sin disappeared completely.

”......”

Alon stood in the ruined world, blankly staring at the place where the Sin had vanished for a while.

***

At the same time Alon killed the Sin.

”No, no way, no way this could happen—!”

The apostle who had once rejoiced with his head fallen when the Sin awakened.

Now was desperately running away, his face filled with disbelief and horror.

Crude arms and legs made from pale flesh sprouted from his neck and moved awkwardly.

”It’s all because of that guy. That guy, that guy~!! Because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him because of him—”

The apostle ran madly through the forest, repeating the same words.

The man who had always been composed now had eyes full of confusion and fear.

Even while defeat wrapped around his entire body.

’It’s fine, I can still escape and start over from the beginning. Even if it takes some time, if I can just summon Him back here, then it’ll be fine.’

He thought so.

But unfortunately, the apostle’s hopes.

Crack—

”Graaaah—!”

Were crushed by the black hand that snapped his leg.

The apostle rolled on the ground, desperately trying to regenerate his leg and get back up.

But, unfortunately.

The newly regenerating leg was again snapped by another black hand erupting from the ground.

”Kyaaaah—!”

Screaming in agony, the apostle collapsed again and quickly turned his terrified face back.

Behind him, a man and a woman were slowly approaching.

The woman’s golden eyes shone brightly even in the dead of night.

The man tilted his head, scattering black hands all around.

Like a grim reaper declaring death.

”Eek—”

A metallic scream burst from the apostle’s mouth.

Despair and terror filled his eyes.

”!”

”!”

Seolrang and Nangwon, who had been indifferent until just now, widened their eyes.

They froze in tension and stared beyond the apostle’s back.

”...?”

Puzzled by the sudden change in their attitude.

The apostle hurriedly turned his head at the grotesque voice coming from behind him.

”...Obsession with purity—no, I guess there’s no need to hide it anymore.”

”Wrath!”

As he turned his head, he found the apostle of Wrath standing there.

As always, the figure was shrouded in a black hood, making it impossible to discern their identity, looking down at him.

”Help me, quickly! Get rid of those two!”

Jealousy’s voice was filled with delight.

In contrast, Seolrang and Nangwon frowned at the being before them.

Both prided themselves as among the top ten strongest in this world.

And yet.

’What... is that thing?’

An unsettling doubt grew in their hearts.

Could they really defeat this unknown entity cloaked in a robe?

No, it was more than doubt.

They instinctively felt it.

If they rushed at this being now—

They might die.

Tension surged on Seolrang and Nangwon’s faces.

”I... I’ll start over again. I’ll kill them and start over! And this time, I’ll summon Him in perfect form~!”

Jealousy sneered at the tense pair as he spoke.

Fwoosh—!

”...Ah?”

A sound that should not have been heard echoed.

Jealousy let out a confused gasp at the strange noise.

Then looked down.

There, a hand had pierced through.

A delicate, blood-soaked hand bursting out of pure white flesh.

Confusion filled Jealousy’s eyes.

”What is this?”

Unable to believe it, Jealousy turned toward Wrath.

Of course, Jealousy could see nothing.

Only a black robe.

Not Wrath’s face.

Not Wrath’s emotions.

Not Wrath’s reasons.

He could understand nothing.

”Why...?”

Thus, endless questions flooded Jealousy’s mind.

And then, even with incomplete hearing, Jealousy heard it.

”Your role ends here.”

Wrath’s muttering.

And then.

Fwoosh—!

Jealousy burst apart.

Without even a scream, his body vanished without a trace like a bomb exploding.

The moment Nangwon and Seolrang wore stunned expressions.

”Sorry for stealing your prey. But I hope you’ll understand.”

Wrath’s voice reached them as he turned away.

”I wanted to kill him myself…..Because he irritated me a little.”

With those low murmured words, the apostle of Wrath disappeared.

As if he had never been there to begin with.