[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-villain-s-pov":3,"chapter-the-villain-s-pov-the-villain-s-pov-chapter-186":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","THE VILLAIN'S POV",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},336873,598,"Chapter 186 186: A Quiet Night","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-186",186,"\u003Cp>- Day 22 since the Island Trial began -\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We didn't sleep that night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa stayed awake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for me, it had become a habit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jessica Thivenin still hadn't returned. Other than that, our day was rather uneventful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sometimes, I'd go out and kill any Nightmare creature that got too close.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa always accompanied me, quietly watching from behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then we'd spend the rest of the night chatting about trivial things...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Conversations the princess deeply cherished. Ever since I stepped onto the island's lands, I found myself speaking more and more—like a sealed well had finally found its lid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ding!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rankings had been updated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa and I stared at the new board:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>10 - Raegan Zenen: 2500 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>9 - Ragna Cloud: 2900 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>8 - Dawn Polaris: 2980 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>7 - Magnus Grell: 3000 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>6 - Ghost Umbra: 3100 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>5 - Danzo Smasher: 3160 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>4 - Frey Starlight: 3450 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>3 - Seris Moonlight: 3500 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>2 - Snow Lionheart: 5200 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>1 - Daemon Valerion: 5250 points\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both of us stared silently at the list…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The situation had completely flipped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was still ranked fourth, even after spending 500 points to find Sansa. Not to mention, I'd done nothing ever since staying with her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I wasn't the only one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Magnus and Raegan—third-year students—had both dropped drastically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A clear sign they were actively searching for me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was only a matter of time before they reached my location.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa was smart too. She had probably figured that much out already.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Day 23 was right around the corner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'll have to start moving soon…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn't stay by Sansa's side forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A single week could flip the rankings completely, especially with the narrowing point gap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know… but we have to wait for Jessica now,\" Sansa replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To gather points efficiently and properly deal with those targeting me, I needed help from the second years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don't worry. She'll come at the right time.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa reassured me. But as I glanced at her, I noticed the dark circles under her eyes too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The atmosphere was completely silent—the rain had stopped some time ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I know it's a bit late to ask, but… don't you sleep?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even I needed rest every now and then, let alone Sansa, whose body was relatively frail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The princess shook her head at the mention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can't sleep… not when we don't know what might happen.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her words carried many meanings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You could take it as staying alert in case of a sudden attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I vividly remembered that day—when she sleepwalked in that white dress…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just… what is the princess sitting next to me hiding?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had no answer to that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What about you, Frey? How long are you planning to keep playing this staying-awake contest with me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I don't know. It's just become a habit.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Being on my own for so long had made me constantly alert.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the current situation wasn't something I was used to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can sleep if you want. I'm always awake anyway.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's fine. No need for that.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No… you need to, if you want to keep going later.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa pulled my head gently and placed it on her lap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hadn't seen that coming at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With my head resting on her thigh—much softer than any pillow—I stared up at her with a blank expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What are you doing right now?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She looked a little disappointed at my flat reaction… but she didn't seem too bothered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It takes more than that to rattle me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead of focusing on that, she answered my question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'm helping you fall asleep.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This doesn't help at all…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Just close your eyes…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With her hand gently covering them, everything turned dark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her touch was ice cold… yet unbelievably soft—enough to send a chill through my entire body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lying there like that, the whole situation felt oddly surreal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the first time I'd been in such a position here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I told you… this doesn't help.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then stop talking already.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seconds passed. Then minutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa never moved her hand. I couldn't even tell what kind of expression she was making anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Adriana had been asleep for a while, so she hadn't seen any of this. If she had, she probably would've intervened by now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My thoughts started to drift…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Victoriad. Aegon. The third years. The Moonlight family…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was still so much I had to deal with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So much I needed to do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn't allow myself to rest like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I couldn't…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But little by little… everything fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa smiled softly as she lifted her hand from my eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hadn't even noticed when I lost consciousness… resting on the princess's lap.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That night… I had a dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I saw him—my father. He used to come home exhausted every day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I remembered how he supported me in everything I ever tried to do, no matter how pointless it seemed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when I decided to write a completely fictional novel, he never mocked me for it. Instead, he would ask me to tell him about the story I was writing. Even if he had no real interest in it… he always pretended to care.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Little things like that… meant the world to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Behind him… my mother… my siblings… everyone I'd ever known…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Suddenly, they all began to fade away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I ran after them in a panic—but my legs felt heavy… like I was running through mud. I kept trying to catch up… again and again…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Don't go…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Please…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slowly…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I returned to reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…Sansa.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My memories began to resurface—how I'd fallen asleep on her lap…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was looking at me, eyes wide in surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn't understand why—until I felt the dampness at the corners of my eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Frey, you…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I sat up quickly, wiping my face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa stared at me for a while.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had I… been crying?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn't want to be seen like that…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I tried to brush it off as best I could.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How long was I asleep?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was still night… I didn't think I'd been out for long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's dawn now. You've been asleep for about three to four hours.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That long?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I frowned, annoyed at myself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could I let myself fall so easily?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's fine… at least you look a bit better now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The princess smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And just a little… the bags beneath my eyes had eased.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I touched my face, trying to get a grip on myself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sansa stood up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She hadn't slept at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's still early. You can go back to sleep if you'd like.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shook my head instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No… I've had enough.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any more than that, and I'd be crossing a line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was about to say something to the princess standing before me, but I stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She, too, seemed unsettled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They're here...\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1145,"2026-05-30T03:41:22.346Z","2026-06-01T04:30:13.202Z",1,"novelbin.me","84467da75312ff3132f39e4390c8e247fd2c3e804ab13fd6e4e78fcf1159354c","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-187","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-185",866,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-villain-s-pov-cover.jpg"]