[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-villain-s-pov":3,"chapter-the-villain-s-pov-the-villain-s-pov-chapter-539":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},337092,598,"Chapter 539: Crimson Chains of the Father","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-539",539,"\u003Cp>Snow roared, striking without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the first time in history... a human had laid eyes on the Cosmos’ true form.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In stark contrast to its towering, monstrous shell, the real Cosmos was eerily human-like—barely two meters tall, with a twisted frame and unnaturally long limbs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It looked... almost ordinary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its long hair fell over its face, but Snow could still make out the raw fear carved into its features.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Cosmos instantly tried to flee, its body flaring with chaotic aura in an attempt to drive him back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Snow dodged with ease, coating his blade in the last reserves of his aura.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"One-Sword Style: Supreme art...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Concentrating every element and every scrap of his strength, Snow’s body vanished for a heartbeat, and time itself seemed to halt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he reappeared, he was already behind the Cosmos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For an instant, it seemed as though he hadn’t done anything ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the Cosmos believed that lie.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But without warning, the world before it inverted, and its upper half slid away from the rest of its body, collapsing to the dirt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Silent Rend.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A single strike that transcended time itself, tearing apart everything in its path in the span of a heartbeat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow had cleaved the Cosmos clean in two, its upper body toppling from the rest, staining the ground beneath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It began to scream at once—howling in manic, grief-stricken wails—but Snow appeared before it in a flash, driving his sword into its mouth and forcing it into submission.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Your real body is far weaker than your former shell. No wonder you hid it in the fog—so no one would ever know just how pathetic you truly are.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was said that the Cosmos was one of the Nightmare Lords of the SS+ rank... but in truth, that was a lie.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reality was far less impressive—it was merely a nightmare creature that had been gifted an SS+ class ability.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its actual self... was pitiful. But almost impossible to find.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one had ever defeated it before. Its other form could not be touched, and so the world had trembled at its name for years unchallenged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I lost... and lost... and lost again,\" Snow murmured, exhaling at last.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But today... I won.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gathering what little strength remained, the Hero of Humanity prepared to end the wretched nightmare once and for all—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—when his enhanced senses screamed a warning from nowhere, forcing him to whirl around toward another monster targeting his neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were far from the battlefield now ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Which was why Snow had never expected the accursed Ludwig to appear before him, swinging his massive scythe straight at his throat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With no time to spare, Snow was forced to redirect his blade—pulling it away from the Cosmos at the last instant to intercept Ludwig’s scythe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Steel met steel with a deafening clash, Snow barely deflecting the weapon so that it whooshed past his head by a hair’s breadth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He immediately stepped back, ready to reengage ..\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to his surprise, Ludwig didn’t even bother to attack him again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instead, the Hollow scooped up half of his mother’s remains and bolted away without a word.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed he’d heard her final wail and rushed here, abandoning everything else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow’s mind swirled with questions at the Hollow’s sudden appearance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Does this mean Ghost and the others—?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thought chilled him to the bone... but he forced it aside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Summoning what strength he had left, Snow lunged after the fleeing Hollow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re not going anywhere.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ludwig wasn’t in his best shape—beneath his plague-black garb, blood poured freely, proof that his previous battle had been far from easy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was the perfect chance to kill him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow sought to crush him in a single, overwhelming strike—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the instant he tried to unleash the Warlord Form again, a ripping agony tore through his entire body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That brief hesitation was all Ludwig needed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He vanished from sight, using some unknown skill that rendered Snow completely unable to track him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Damn it! Have I already reached my limit?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, the Warlord Form was nothing but a living hell—every extra second in it threatened to shred his very soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, Snow endured, relying on his enhanced senses to search for Ludwig... but it was useless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Hollow was gone—taking the last remnants of his mother’s body with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the Cosmos... Snow had left it on the brink of death, but he hadn’t dealt the killing blow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether it would live or die—he had no answer, and that uncertainty burned him with frustration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"They all run from me in the end... haha... what a pathetic sight I am.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow’s words dripped with bitter self-mockery, but he didn’t stand idle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gripping Vermithor’s Blade, he channeled holy power into his battered body and began dragging himself back toward the battlefield where his allies fought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The battle’s not over yet... I have to return.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But despite his words, his pace was sluggish—reduced to nothing more than a walk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the very start, he had fought against the Cosmos’ impenetrable form and the Nightmare Army for hours, draining himself to the brink.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, his only hope of returning to fighting condition lay in Vermithor’s healing power, praying it would restore him enough to fight again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I wonder what happened to the others...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ghost, Dawn, Selina... all of them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I doubt anything could take Dawn down... but the others... Ghost...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow drew in a sharp breath, forcing himself onward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I have to go back... I have to help them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Step by step, he closed the distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted to give more—what he had achieved so far was nowhere near enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted to prove something—both to himself and to everyone else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pushed harder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted to shed his weakness... to change his fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t want to be cast aside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted to stand at the very front—right where he was meant to be.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, where people like Frey Starlight stood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow no longer wished to linger in the shadows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A blazing fire had ignited in his chest, fueled every time he’d been thrown aside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had never understood this feeling—only that it was far from pleasant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It hurt him every single time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chains still coiled around him like snakes, and he had yet to find the key to break them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But until he did...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had no choice but to keep moving forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Even knowing full well you’re nothing but a filthy, deformed monster... you still try to play the hero?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The voice came like a devil’s whisper in his ear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow froze mid-step, shock and hatred twisting his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Slowly, with eyes wide open, he turned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And there he was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tell me, runaway son... do you see yourself as a hero?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From nothing, the man appeared, walking toward him at a measured pace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A well-built figure, with long reddish hair and tanned skin...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reading glasses balanced on one side over his right eye...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the same simple, fatherly clothes as always.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that unexpected moment, Snow came face-to-face with the man he had searched for so long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was certain—this was no hallucination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not another illusion born of the fog.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man before him was real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Real enough to look exactly as Snow remembered him from his childhood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The orphanage director.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man responsible for the Yosefka tragedy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Hollow... Smough.\u003C\u002Fp>",1223,"2026-05-30T03:41:39.413Z","2026-06-01T04:30:13.202Z",1,"novelbin.me","bd4b443fce76d4dee7f23167fa07f2ffeb51699b34a543ad447165fd797cb03c","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-540","the-villain-s-pov-chapter-538",866,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-villain-s-pov-cover.jpg"]