[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-became-the-patron-of-villains":3,"chapter-became-the-patron-of-villains-became-the-patron-of-villains-chapter-376":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Became the Patron of Villains",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},759666,1006,"Chapter 376 : A Birthday Without Memories (1)","became-the-patron-of-villains-chapter-376",376,"\u003Cp>“Marquis?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well, your expression doesn’t look very good.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mine?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah—usually your face doesn’t show much, but I can still tell a little.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While Alon was deep in thought, Evan spoke up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon paused for a moment before answering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s nothing.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...............Is that so? Strange.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh? Why?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Well, I just got chills for some reason.............”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“......Why am I being treated like this...............?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Penia immediately started bickering without missing a beat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Evan naturally replied, and the two began their usual squabble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon quietly watched them, lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘What on earth was that about?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the end, Alon never got an answer from the predecessor—or rather, from it—as to how it knew such things.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You’ll find out naturally. If you can truly reach the “Heavenly Law Creation” and become a god, that is.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the only answer he got.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He considered asking her another question, but soon gave up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason was simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no way to make her tightly sealed lips open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And more than that, there wasn’t much time left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Then how the hell did I become a Divine Blood in the first place?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, Alon asked her something else—how he himself had become a Divine Blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She simply shrugged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[I told you, didn’t I? No life born in this world can ever become a Divine Blood. This world was created solely for the incubation of gods.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[No matter how much faith or devotion one gains, they merely live longer or become half-formed imitations of the Divine Blood. But you’re different, aren’t you?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Of course, that alone isn’t enough to become a god. To become Divine Blood, one needs faith and belief. But by coincidence... you had everything.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if everything had been prepared in advance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her voice echoed in his memory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You had faith. You had followers who would blossom that faith into worship. And through your battle with One Who Bears It, you imprinted yourself as a ‘god’ upon the humans of this world—so smoothly it was almost perfect.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, with a faint smile, she added,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[That’s why you were able to become a Divine Blood.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was her answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Alon quietly listened to what came next—about the Creation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Let me tell you this first. It’ll take time for you to reach Creation.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Time?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[There are four stages of transcendence.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[The first is to witness all phenomena.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[The second is to harmonize within them.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[The third is to engrave reason itself.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[The fourth is to become providence incarnate.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[And the stage you must reach is the second one—Harmony.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Then… will I be able to reach Creation?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[You’ll be able to imitate it, at least.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She answered with a radiant smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘How do I train for that?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Don’t worry. Even if I don’t tell you, you’ll come to know it naturally. But honestly, that’s not what matters most right now.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Didn’t you say that was the most important thing?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Yes. But you need to survive until you reach the second stage, don’t you?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘.......’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Remember this. Raising your rank is important—but above all else, you must master your magic.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Mastery............... huh.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Yes, mastery. You need to fill in what you currently lack. Only then can you fight them. So I’ll say it again—remember, you do have potential, but—]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Until that potential blossoms, I’ll be dangerously fragile......... huh.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon sighed, recalling her final words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His mind was tangled with everything he had heard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What it had told him contained truths too great to ignore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But more than anything, after hearing those words, one name kept coming to mind—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eliban.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon recalled Eliban’s actions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the past, he might not have understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, with all the pieces in his hands, the picture was becoming clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The actions of Eliban, who had prepared everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Just what were you…?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon pondered deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet no matter how much he thought, no answer came.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn’t understand why Eliban had acted as though everything had been prearranged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so, his thoughts grew heavier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a long, long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>***\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Weeks later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon returned to the Palatio Marquisate to rest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……Though to call it rest might be an exaggeration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were still matters like the royal proclamation, Siyan’s meeting request, Divine Land’s affairs, and estate management.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But exhaustion forced him to take a break first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, that didn’t mean he was idle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, he had been clearly warned by it, and Alon wasn’t dull enough to ignore that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm… still no real progress.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Seems that way.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon was conducting magic research with Penia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More precisely, refining his spells as it had advised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But Marquis, honestly… isn’t this kind of impossible?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“......Is it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. You basically amplify your spells’ power to the extreme using ‘phrases’ and ‘incantations,’ right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Alon silently nodded, Penia continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But trying to cast spells of that same power level with almost no incantation at all… doesn’t that sound kind of absurd?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though polite, her tone practically said, ‘Isn’t that way too unreasonable?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon scratched his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wasn’t wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, his reason for pushing on was clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his view, if he wanted to improve his magic, this was the only path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon’s magic was powerful—perhaps unmatched among current mages.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet that immense power came with a price: phrases and incantations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that price was a major weakness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until now, he had managed to minimize it with the help of his allies and by studying the techniques of the Outer Gods and Sins he had fought before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But from here on, that wouldn’t be possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the Divine Bloods he would face next… didn’t appear in the game at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Phew—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon let out a quiet sigh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Using magic that becomes strong because of its risks, yet wanting to use it powerfully without any penalty—even to Alon himself, it sounded like the stubbornness of a child.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the problem was this: even if it was childish, he still had to find a way to make it possible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he scratched his head, seriously troubled, Penia—who had been quietly watching him—carefully spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Um, Marquis.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you really can’t give up, I do have a method... Would you like to hear it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There’s a method?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. Ah, of course it’s not guaranteed. It’s more like... something that broadens your creativity, you know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you mean?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing his interest, Penia hesitated for a moment, then slowly continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A moment later—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So you’re saying there’s a potion called the Regressive Elixir, and if you drink it, you temporarily return to a child’s state?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Technically only your mind regresses.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How many years back?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Somewhere around 10 to 13 years from now?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon thought about it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or rather—he tilted his head in disbelief and asked,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Does that really help?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I think it will.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Really?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But if my mind goes back ten years, wouldn’t I lose all my knowledge of magic? How would that help?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Alon asked this with a puzzled look, Penia answered as if to reassure him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You can leave an imprint.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“An imprint?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. You imprint it into your unconscious. Even if your ten-year-younger self can’t consciously understand it, you’ll retain the seeds—clues to magic concepts that your current self can’t even imagine. Simply put, you erase everything except your memories of magic.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...That’s possible?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes. Well—there’ll be some confusion for a day or two.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Penia let out an “Ah!” and quickly added,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For the record, I’m not just making this up.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“......You’re not?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course not...! The Red Tower Master and the Green Tower Master both used this method to reach the 8th Rank, you know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...With this method?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Penia nodded with firm conviction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Honestly, a moment ago he thought Penia was pitching yet another strange potion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if there were precedents like the Red and Green Tower Masters, it was a different story.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There’s no danger, right?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not in any case I know of. And if something goes wrong, we can reverse the effect. The duration is only about two weeks anyway.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Two weeks…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That much seemed better than doing nothing, so Alon nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When will it be ready?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I actually have one bottle already prepared to use someday. Once you learn how to imprint the knowledge, you can drink it right away.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Let’s try it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He accepted Penia’s proposal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>***\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>About a month later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yutia Bloodia was walking inside the Palatio Marquisate estate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was a pleasant smile on her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ordinarily, she should have been in Rosario, not here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the reason she was here now—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—was because tomorrow was the Marquis of Palatio’s birthday.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would have been best to appear on the day itself to offer birthday congratulations, but Yutia chose to arrive a day early.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was because of the people who would gather for Alon’s birthday.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rather than celebrating among a crowd, Yutia wanted to congratulate him alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The meaning behind celebrating alone was completely different from celebrating together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At least, for Yutia it was all the more so.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In addition, just before disappearing, Rine had once again broken Yutia’s brooch. And for two whole months, she had been unable to observe—no, protect—Alon. That too was a reason she had come early, silently, without informing even Alon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And so, Yutia secretly entered the Marquisate and opened the door to the office where Alon should have been.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And inside—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—as she expected, Alon and Penia were there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah—!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Penia gasped the moment she saw Yutia.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that response, Yutia was about to frown for an instant—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—but quickly replaced it with a smile, as she remembered Alon was watching.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My, it has been a while.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah, um—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Penia’s pupils trembled visibly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yutia found the reaction strange, but soon looked away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, Penia was not the one she cared about.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yutia smiled and turned to Alon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He met her gaze with a completely expressionless face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hello, Marquis.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Approaching him naturally, she greeted him lightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Alon responded—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—or rather, he did not respond at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Who are you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“......What?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yutia forgot to smile. She stared at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Penia let out another gasp, and silence fell over the office.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But only for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re... being mischievous, Marquis. That kind of joke isn’t funny, you know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yutia smiled, but her expression quivered with unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if begging him to stop joking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But instead of answering, Alon stood up from his seat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked behind Penia, who was seated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Yutia saw it—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon’s hands tightly gripping the back of Penia’s chair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in that moment, as she realized what that meant—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who... are you, really?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alon repeated, his voice serious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...Huh?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yutia’s heart shattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a sharp, cracking sound—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kwa-jik.\u003C\u002Fp>",1778,"2026-06-02T12:43:45.413Z",1,"novelbin.me","58222b398ae458289c9464b80b538a20bd696a7157f0ea3ae7a1be5507f176bc","became-the-patron-of-villains-chapter-377","became-the-patron-of-villains-chapter-375",479,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fbecame-the-patron-of-villains-cover.jpg"]