[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-villain-s-pov":3,"chapter-the-villain-s-pov-the-villain-s-pov-chapter-293":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},336630,598,"Chapter 293: Crownlands (1)","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-293",293,"\u003Cp>Slowly… the sky shed its crimson veil and donned the black cloak of night, marking the end of yet another hellish day—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>here, in Londor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As darkness settled, the only source of light for the three battered warriors came from the three colossal moons overhead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Exhausted, they dragged their broken bodies away from the lake of blood and corpses .. now a feast for the circling crows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The elegant armor that once covered their bodies had been torn to shreds, along with their flesh, leaving behind deep wounds and grotesque bruises.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were drenched in filth, as if they'd been rolling through mud for hours.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that miserable state, Frey and his companions climbed a hill—slightly higher than the surrounding terrain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment they reached the top, they collapsed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No longer able to move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They sat in silence, staring at one another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The only sounds were their heavy breathing, and the harsh caws of the crow-like creatures devouring the nightmare beasts below.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at each other now, Frey couldn't help but remember their first day in Londor—how they had arrived with excitement, in full strength, clad in vibrant armor…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, they looked worse than beggars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hehehe…\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey was the first to break the silence, laughing under his breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Pfft.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow followed, sharing the same thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They really got us, huh?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You said it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both of them burst into tired, bitter laughter ... a kind of mournful amusement at their pitiful state.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where's your usual charm now? That signature white hair and those golden eyes of yours… You look like a street rat. I bet the girls would run away the moment they see you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey mocked Snow, whose hair had turned reddish from all the blood that had soaked him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh, look who's talking,\" Snow smirked. \"One glance is enough to see you're the most pitiful one here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He lightly tapped Frey's leg, earning a groan in response.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can't even walk properly! How do you plan to keep going in that condition?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Laughing despite the pain, Frey bent his legs with effort, looking at Snow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Even when I can't walk… I'm still faster than you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bullshit. Look at yourself, oh mighty Champion of the Victoriad. If I were you, I'd bury my head in a hole.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You're no better, promised Hero of the Church. That so-called divine light of yours was pretty dim back there.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They exchanged jabs, mocking each other, while Ghost sat silently between them, eyes closed, not saying a word.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The laughter lingered a while longer… before fading into quiet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their loud voices slowly diminished as they sat in stillness, eyes fixed on the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We were completely defeated,\" Snow finally said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…Yes,\" Frey replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We overestimated our strength.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…Yes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We're just insects crawling in the dirt, beneath monsters that soar across realms and dimensions.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey stared at the ground for a few seconds before answering.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…Yes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Truth had a bitter taste.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A very bitter one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be weak in a world ruled by power .. was a curse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey and the others now understood just how painful it was to be powerless—so powerless that their lives meant nothing, mere toys in the hands of others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Lord of Graves had decided their lives would end. And there was nothing they could do to stop him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was luck and that blind old man who had saved them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And once again, it wasn't their will… it wasn't their choice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey slowly raised his head, fully grasping that cruel truth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…So what now?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What do you do when you finally realize your own insignificance?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do you turn back? Tail between your legs, burdened by shame and defeat?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do you accept the dark fate that awaits, and bow before those titans looming above?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frey and Snow looked at each other—then smiled at the same time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A weary smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No words were needed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow rose to his feet, gripping Vermithor, and walked with heavy steps toward the center of their small camp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, at that precise spot, he drove the blade into the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vermethor immediately released a wave of holy energy, enveloping the three of them in a circular dome that glowed with a soft green light—gently beginning to heal their wounds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite their shattered bodies, despite the blood, the pain, and the filth—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their eyes still burned sharper than ever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all… if there was one thing they had grown used to, it was despair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how many times it crushed them—slamming them into the dirt—as long as life still clung to their bodies,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>they would rise again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Again and again… until the bitter end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three of them sat there as their bodies slowly healed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>None of them slept.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fueled by fury, they turned that seething emotion into the fire that kept their broken bodies moving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>None of them looked back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Retreat was never an option.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if they chose to run… the Lord of Graves still waited beyond the barrier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And even if they somehow made it past him ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no road leading home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their path had remained the same from the beginning: the one the strange old man had pointed them toward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time passed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sky turned red… then black… then red again, three full cycles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>None of them knew how time worked on this wretched planet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they waited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Patiently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Until the soft green glow emitted by Vermithor faded—its light disappearing when there was nothing left to heal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That pure light had mended torn flesh and broken bone, restoring Frey and the others to a state where they could at least fight again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once healed, the three of them cleaned themselves up one last time before changing their armor and gear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he pulled his new armor from the dimensional ring, Frey realized something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking inside, he saw food and water—just enough to keep them alive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what caught his attention was the piece of armor in his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the last one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How long had it been since they arrived in this land?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He'd stopped counting after they passed the one-month mark…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was far more than that for sure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that moment, Frey realized ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were approaching their limits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whatever awaited them at the end of that dark path, they had to reach it—soon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let's move,\" Frey said quietly, before surging forward with the others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their bodies, now vessels of aura, surged across the land at speeds that left nothing behind but afterimages—blurs like bullets cutting through the wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The terrain ahead was wide open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A vast plain with nothing on it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It stretched out before them like a ceremonial carpet, as if welcoming them toward the main event.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the look of the land .. and the strange barrier they had passed .. Frey guessed this was Crownlands, the one spoken of by those whipped corpses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And despite their incredible speed, the scenery ahead never changed…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A testament to how immense this land truly was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They ran.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And ran.\u003C\u002Fp>",1165,"2026-05-30T03:41:22.346Z","2026-06-01T04:30:12.387Z",1,"novelbin.me","8901e7f8a362e57791cdad07dd4a6a214443de7ee72778350c304832d3a836e3","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-294","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-292",866,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-villain-s-pov-cover.jpg"]