[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-villain-s-pov":3,"chapter-the-villain-s-pov-the-villain-s-pov-chapter-289":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},336626,598,"Chapter 289: The Lord of Graves (1)","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-289",289,"\u003Cp>The dragon's body collapsed .. its colossal form crashing down before gradually morphing into something disturbingly humanoid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Standing around the lifeless creature, Frey and his companions could barely resist the urge to collapse themselves. They had touched the edge of the world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were just ordinary humans .. born and raised on a planet they once believed to be the entirety of existence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Gate Cataclysm, centuries ago, had opened new horizons... but only slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For people like them, \"the world\" had always meant the land beneath their feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that land was nothing more than a black speck on a canvas far grander than they had ever imagined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After stepping foot on a new world and encountering beings beyond their understanding, they now stood before something that had existed only in myths.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'm not hallucinating, am I?\" Snow said, his voice unsteady. \"That was… that was a dragon, right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was still trying to grasp the impossible .. especially the part where the dragon had taken on a human-like form.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In truth, their kind is called the Pantheon,\" Frey replied, his voice steady. \"But yes… that was a dragon.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped forward to examine the black arrow that had felled the creature.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment his fingers neared it, Frey felt an intense surge of aura still radiating from the shaft. The arrow pulsed with raw power .. unfazed even after delivering a killing blow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just from that pressure alone, Frey could tell—the one who fired it had long surpassed SS+ rank. Possibly far beyond that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Which only raised more questions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who were they?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That strange group, the ones aligned with the blue-eyed Engineer...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey wanted to find them ... at least talk to them. He had a hunch they were nearby. But locating them at his current level was a fantasy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For now, all he could do was wait… and hope they'd be the ones to make the next move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pushing those thoughts aside, Frey returned his focus to his two traveling companions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow and Ghost were still processing the surreal sight, occasionally murmuring the new word that had left Frey's mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Pantheon…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They continued forward, making their way through the scorched forest. The flames hadn't stopped burning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey kept his gaze lowered, unable to meet their eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had no valid excuse for how he knew so much .. no story that would explain it all. When they'd asked before, all he could offer was: \"I'll explain when the time comes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what could he possibly say? That he was a reincarnated author with knowledge of the future?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It sounded laughable even to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unable to tell the truth… lost on a foreign planet with no way back… hunted by the most powerful being in existence...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Total, utter chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Frey was barely holding himself together .. walking a path carved out by someone else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In moments like this, he longed for the days when his only goal was returning to his family. and his world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, things had been cruel… but at least they were clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now? He was stuck in a maze he never chose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that strange sensation inside him .. an invisible pull ... was growing stronger with each step.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if countless hands were pushing him forward, urging him to move faster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We're close,\" he finally muttered. It was all he could say.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaving the inferno behind, the trio continued their journey, venturing deeper into the heart of the forest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then .. they stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They didn't mean to. Their bodies just… froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How many times had this happened during their journey?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey had lost count. But again, they stood paralyzed by the sight before them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ahead lay solid black earth. Above it, a blood-red mist churned, heavy with ominous aura that clawed at their skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And within the mist .. hundreds of glowing eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Twisted abominations drifted aimlessly. Hair floated unnaturally upward, and their forms were grotesque mirrors of the nightmare creature they'd once barely defeated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Frey… don't tell me that is the way forward,\" Snow said, voice tight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey nodded slowly, unease etched across his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It is.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The force guiding him pointed directly into the swarm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What now?\" Snow asked. \"We barely took down one. And now we're facing an entire horde?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was suicide. Even someone like Maekar Valerion would fall against odds like these.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fighting isn't an option,\" Ghost said. His tone made it clear—this wasn't up for debate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And neither of them argued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Normally, Ghost would've followed his instincts .. those instincts screaming at him to turn around and leave this cursed place behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that wasn't an option. Not when they'd already chosen to follow Frey to the very end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a heavy sigh, Ghost expanded his shadow and motioned for both Frey and Snow to step closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Our only option is to try and sneak through.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is that even possible?\" Frey asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stealth was a logical choice, sure .. but how, when they were up against hundreds of nightmare beasts that walked on four legs like monstrous warhorses?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ghost didn't sugarcoat it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"To be honest, our chances are slim… but that's the only shot we have.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Relying on his stealth abilities, Ghost was betting they could slip between the beasts and push through while the creatures moved ahead just enough to leave an opening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn't a perfect plan .. far from it. But it was all they had.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moving behind the towering creatures, the trio followed Ghost's lead as he spread his dark aura like a cloak over their bodies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His shadow field masked their presence completely—one of the many assassination techniques he had perfected over the years. But this wasn't like the others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, he was hiding three people—not one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And their enemies weren't human.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Step by step…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every meter they covered felt like miles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They pressed forward, drenched in sweat, the only sound echoing in their ears was the pounding of hooves against the hardened ground ...endless, thunderous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crimson fog thickened with every step, swallowing everything in a haze of blood and shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They couldn't even see the beasts clearly anymore ... only silhouettes, only hoofbeats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ready to sprint for their lives the moment they were discovered, they pushed forward, inch by painful inch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time passed—slowly, agonizingly—but it passed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And they weren't found.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rare stroke of luck, one they didn't dare take for granted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey allowed himself a flicker of hope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That hope vanished the moment his eyes locked .. briefly, unmistakably—with one of the monstrous horse-like creatures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just for a second. But a second was more than enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The beast had seen him. Of that, Frey was sure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Panic surged through his limbs. He nearly shoved Ghost and Snow to run.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The creature didn't attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, it turned its massive head and walked away—completely uninterested in their presence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey blinked, stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had it really seen him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ghost and Snow had felt it too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They're… ignoring us?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's hard to believe,\" Snow murmured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Carefully, Ghost withdrew his shadow aura.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Step by step, they approached the towering beasts again .. closer than before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They waited for something—anything—to happen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the monsters didn't react. Didn't even flinch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's like we don't exist to them…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Confused but unwilling to waste the opportunity, they continued forward—slipping unnoticed through a crowd of nightmares.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They walked for what felt like hours. The beasts didn't stop. The red fog grew thicker, heavier, as if bleeding from the sky itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There were thousands of them—each stronger than an S-rank creature. All wandering aimlessly through the haze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey found himself wondering the same question that was etched across Snow and Ghost's faces:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What would happen if an army like this descended upon Earth one day?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And worse…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This army had lost—utterly—to just a fraction of the demons' true power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey had come here searching for answers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So far, all he'd found was despair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was as if he'd been forced into a game where losing was the only outcome.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At some point, the ground beneath their feet changed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No longer solid, it turned soft ... sticky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their boots squelched against something they couldn't see. Something that resisted beneath every step.\u003C\u002Fp>",1367,"2026-05-30T03:41:22.346Z","2026-06-01T04:30:12.387Z",1,"novelbin.me","47586b0847067489626e434133171d17c44037c527596fb0b1b31454b01a5a44","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-290","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-288",866,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-villain-s-pov-cover.jpg"]