I Became The Villain The Hero Is Obsessed With
chapter-410

Chapter 410: The Paradox of Prophecy

[Post-assault highlights]

>Angel raids continue. They have tapered off, but are currently on a steep upswing.

>Cooperation between the Association and Cathedral has increased, centered on the Countermeasures Center. It is believed that their combined efforts to stop the Angels and Cathedral’s terrorism are the main reasons for this.

>Tens of thousands of underground shelters have been installed around the world. Angel death toll continues to decline. Total damage is being assessed and restoration efforts are underway.

>The public’s faith in Stardus is strengthening. The Citizen Reassurance and Social Normalization Team will conduct public opinion and public relations centered on Stardus.

>Successfully captured the power of the Sun God in a new substance called ‘Moon Ore’. Discussing future utilization and application methods.

***

“Phew…”

Still in the hospital, I read the report that was sent to me from there, and put it down with a sigh.

…It’s been over a week since I’ve been stuck in a hospital room like this. I’m almost getting used to it as I’m doing all my work from here.

Actually, I think I’m feeling better now, except for a little weakness… Well. The reason I was imprisoned was not because of my condition, but because of the condition I might come back in when I leave.

‘You look like you’re about to die. I’m begging you to stay here…’

I didn’t even know what else to say…

And then my powers became weird, and I couldn’t leave because one teleportation would cause me to vomit black blood, and I couldn’t get out, and there was no one to stand up for me…I was stuck in the hospital room, dealing with everything.

[Haha, these guys are never ending, okay…let’s see how far this goes, shall we?]

[I almost said, “I will destroy evil with a blazing purple flame…”]

[Phew… it’s never ending. I wonder how long they’ll go on].

[Kahahahaha, I will show you the power of Saint Petrius the Death Knight!!!]

I sighed, looking at the holographic screens floating in front of me.

I could see the status of each and every one of our members on the screens that floated in front of me in real time.

One person per screen.

Choi Se-hee, Seo Ja-young, Shinryong, Desik, Eun-woo, and even Seo-eun, who was somehow working for the Association, all of whom I can see in real time.

Naturally, this was a system that Seo-eun had organized.

She gave each of them a drone to track them, so that I could see them in real time through the drone’s camera.

…I said I couldn’t see what was going on with our members from the hospital room, so I convinced her that I should leave but she gave me that saying “You can see them in real time from here.”

No, being watched is better than me escaping confinement…

Anyway, I put the mask down and turned off the holograms for a moment.

“Egostic, what are you doing?”

The door creaked open, and Celeste, dressed in a white saint’s habit, strode casually into the room.

…Is there no such thing as my privacy?

“Just relaxing, I guess. The world seems to be holding up pretty well these days.”

…Celeste, the one who betrayed the Sun God she’d devoted her life to for me. Something tells me she hasn’t been in the mood to talk lately.

In fact, she’d seemed a bit precarious lately.

“Hmph… yes, it’s going well.”

She smiles faintly, flips her silver hair back, and sits down somewhat awkwardly in the chair next to where I’m sitting.

I stare at Celeste for a moment.

“…What are you looking at?”

“Oh… I’m sorry.”

I wonder if she felt my gaze, and Celeste bluntly turned her head away with a slightly embarrassed voice.

No. Her eyes were closed, so I didn’t notice.

She was still a little cranky, but I knew it. I knew that the reason she’d lost her temper, cooperated so readily with the Association, and created a giant protective barrier around the world was for my benefit.

Even her vengeance against the Sun God, after all, was something I had instilled in her.

After what happened to the Sun God, she became very dependent on me. She’d become unstable without me.

‘…More than that.’

As I thought of that, I noticed something strange.

In fact, when I collapsed, Celeste was the one I was the most worried about after I woke up.

But from what I’ve heard, it was Celeste who calmly reassured everyone that Egostic would be fine, while everyone else was panicking about what could go wrong.

‘And…’

Unlike now, when I was imprisoned by the Egostream and Stardus, who thought I was going to die before the Sun God even arrived.

…Celeste, alone, said it was not necessary.

As if she had some strange reason to believe I would be safe.

I wonder what that is.

Curious, I decided to ask her directly.

“Celeste.”

“Hmm. What is it?”

“…That time, when I was down. I heard you reassured people by telling them that I was going to be okay.”

At my words, Celeste, still smiling and crossing her arms, turns her head away and then stiffens.

Seeing that, I continued.

“That was very nice of you… but is there any reason why you thought that?”

And to my question.

“…It’s just that I thought you’d be okay. Why do you ask?”

Slightly flushed and embarrassed, she closed her eyes and told me firmly that it was nothing.

Ugh… I think there’s something there.

I’m not going to listen right now.

I stared at Celeste for a moment, thinking about it, and then decided to think about it later.

‘…Now, I should probably get going.’

I looked at Celeste for a moment and thought about destroying the Sun God’s holy relic.

The Sun God’s descent is just around the corner so it’s time to destroy them before it’s too late.

Especially now that the Sun God’s influence has grown stronger, and the holy objects are reacting…since I don’t know what they’ll do once the Sun God has fully descended.

However,

“…..”

I wonder why.

I kept having this strange premonition that I shouldn’t destroy them now, and that’s why I put it off until now.

But what the hell, if I don’t destroy it now, the Sun God will descend and everything will be ruined. It was time to do it now, before it was too late.

It’s time for reason to trump emotion.

With that, I turned my head and looked at Celeste, who was still wringing her hands, and made a decision.

It’s time to convince her to destroy the holy relic.

“…Then, when I was down, you reassured everyone by saying that I was going to be okay, which was very nice of you, but… is there any reason you thought that?”

Egostic asked.

At that, Celeste was taken aback.

‘…How can I say that…?’

…Because Celeste firmly believes that even if he falls down and doesn’t wake up, he will wake up. And why she firmly believes that even now, he will be safe.

~A room of bricks~

In it, a silver-haired woman dressed in saintly robes was pinned to the wall by a man in a black hat.

With her back to the wall, the silver-haired woman stares up at the man in front of her with golden eyes and opens her mouth to speak in a trembling voice.

“Wait…Egostic, calm down, we can’t do this here, okay?”

“I don’t think so. I can’t take it.”

“No, just calm down, okay? We can’t do this here…Ugh.”

“Uh… Pah, wait…! Ugh…”

“Hmph…”

It was because of the prophecy she had seen.

The scene where she was being picked up, forcibly held, and kissed…

The prophecy had convinced Celeste.

‘Egostic…Until he kisses me like that…he will never, ever die.’

Indeed.

She and Egostic will kiss someday…Or, to put it another way, she meant that he wouldn’t die until that kiss took place.

Using the paradox of time, you can’t kiss a dead man.

That’s why Celeste was so sure.

Until the kiss was performed, there would be no danger to Egostic…!

…Of course, the prophecy was more of a future possibility than a 100% certainty.

The oracle that made the prophecy had disappeared before the Sun God’s declaration, but she chose to believe it anyway because now she couldn’t imagine life without Egostic.

‘….’

…She wouldn’t admit it, but she’d been leaning heavily on Egostic ever since the Sun God incident.

More like obsession and submission than dependence, actually.

It was as if she’d switched her lifelong object of worship from Sun God to Egostic.

…Right now she was in such a state of mental and physical weakness that she would do anything he commanded with a serious face, even die if he told her to.

In other words, she was like a saint to him.

…Of course, she was twitching as much as she could to keep it from showing but that’s who she was.

“…Celeste.”

“Why?”

“…I’m getting a little bored of this hospital room. Do you think we could go outside for a while?”

“…No.”

“Just this once, Celeste. Just go to the church….I have something to do there, okay? Just the two of us, no one else around.”

“…..”

‘Eh, just you and me…’

He said with a slight smile and a serious face, and she couldn’t refuse.