The Villain Reborn as Game's Final Boss

My words were met with complete silence with the tension in the air rising with every passing moment.

I thought my words would enrage Damian, making him resort to the use of force or try to insult me in some way, but... neither of that happened as the duke simply stared at me, his mind processing everything within its small frame.

"Arrogance... you truly are a Frost... their arrogance runs deep within you."

Being compared to the Frosts didn’t sit well with me, but it wasn’t something to be offended over either.

I stood at the same place without moving an inch, waiting for the duke to express his true opinion.

His courage and the guts to take the risk would decide whether he would be given the chance to become my pawn and flourish in the greater game on the board.

"One... tell me one reason as to why I should believe you aren’t acting on the interests of the Frosts or the Veltran royal family to trap me in the game of my demise."

That... was a valid point put forth by the duke.

Even if my relation with the Frosts was broken, it could also very well be a trap to make the nobility believe that I was against my house, and then use it to destroy the enemies of the Frosts from within by siding with them.

But—

My principles still stayed the same.

"That is something that you would have to confirm for yourself, Sir Duke. If you are wrong in your assessment of my motives, then that would be your loss... nothing for me to extend my efforts for."

It was the Levaiths who needed a strong hand at the moment to save themselves from their current peril, and also to flourish in the chaos of the present times.

"You sure don’t care for the cooperation, do you? That nonchalant attitude of yours is making me lean towards believing in you, but at the same time... it’s also the only thing that’s making this entire situation feel like a trap."

Damian’s earlier cautious expression had now dissolved to a great extent, though he didn’t take any efforts to smile.

Fair enough.

"Alright... I will be direct then."

Saying the words, I took a step forward to close the distance with Damian, who stood at his place, observing me in silence.

"The Frosts would someday or the other fall victim to my blade, so here’s your chance, Damian Levaith... do you wish to gain from their downfall or be content with your current status quo?"

If Damian wanted a push to take the decision, then I could very well tempt him to be quick with it.

"And what’s the role of Syma in it?"

Damian didn’t answer my question, but responded with his own.

"Syma... my partners would stand with me."

That was all I had to say.

Now the ball was in the duke’s court, as I waited for his decision in silence.

***

"But why are you going out of your way to help me?"

Noah couldn’t help but ask the question after knowing what Victoria had told Alicia about their fight.

Victoria didn’t respond, at least not immediately as she thought over her decision once again.

This time... she wasn’t going to be hasty in her approach.

Alicia being the daughter of a duke had her own responsibilities to fulfill, and despite their father being lenient with them... they couldn’t decide for their life partner on their own whims.

Noah being a commoner wasn’t even qualified to be on the list of the men who could be married to Alicia in the future.

At least he wasn’t qualified, yet.

With his potential and talent, Victoria felt that within a year, Noah would indeed become someone who would be hard to ignore for the major powers in the world, not that he was a nobody at the moment.

Noah’s display in the academy, coupled with his ability to raise his mana core’s rank, even if it might have been temporary, wasn’t something that anyone with a sane mind could ignore.

It was only because they were in the academy that until now Noah hadn’t been besieged by the noble houses to recruit him on their own side.

A commoner had no allegiance to any particular house, so Noah was, at the moment, a free-for-all type of piece on the board, one that had the capability to achieve far greater heights in the future to come.

"I never said I was helping you. It’s just that there was no need to complicate everything and I am not petty enough to punish a junior for his misconduct."

Victoria lied with a straight face.

"Still, if not the academy, you had the chance to tell Alicia the truth. Why hide it from her?"

Though Noah was grateful for what Victoria had done, he wasn’t a fool to believe in free favours.

Being an orphan, Noah knew that nothing in the world was ever free, so why was Victoria siding with him?

"Tell me... do you like her?"

"What—?!"

Victoria asked the question out of nowhere, prompting a strong reaction of veiled denial from Noah, but clearly he didn’t have much control over his facial expressions, as his inner thoughts were clearly visible from the way his eyes had widened the moment Victoria’s question dropped like a bombshell.

"We are just friends."

Taking a deep breath, Noah quickly stabilised himself, as he uttered the words with a serious look on his face.

"So you don’t like her?"

"Huh? I... I mean..."

Victoria questioned once again, making Noah’s earlier bravado crumble in real time.

Victoria needed Noah to stand against Kael, but for that... she wasn’t going to threaten him with Alicia anymore.

On the contrary, keeping him by her side would allow her to understand the guy on a deeper level and see whether he was really fit to stay by her sister’s side.

Still, it wasn’t like Victoria had any authority to decide for Alicia’s future, as it would be her father who would judge Noah at the end.

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