I Am The Game's Villain

"Ugh..." I groaned, my voice hoarse as I forced my eyes open.

The last thing I wanted was to get up. Every muscle in my body protested, begging for just a little more sleep. But the cruel reality remained—I had to drag myself back to that hellish academy life.

I barely got an hour of sleep last night. My mind had been a chaotic mess, constantly circling around Elizabeth's situation… and then there was Alicia.

What the hell was I supposed to do?

I wanted to help them both, but how? The more I thought about it, the more I realized I had no answers—only frustration.

With a heavy sigh, I finally rolled out of bed and trudged toward the bathroom.

The cold water did little to clear my mind as I stood under the shower, letting it run down my face. Cyril had been right. If I acted too aggressively, the other Heads would use it as an excuse to push me out of Sancta Vedelia. And Claudia? She'd be the first to pounce on that opportunity.

They couldn't exile me outright—I was still royalty, after all—but they were waiting, watching, ready to twist my every move into a mistake.

Yet, if I didn't show any force, I wouldn't be able to stop Lazarus and Cyril.

Another sigh left my lips as I stepped out of the shower and dressed in my academy uniform. Another day of walking on a tightrope.

I groaned again as I left my room.

Living in a hotel was the worst.

Sure, it was a luxury suite—five-star, worthy of nobility—but that didn't change the fact that it wasn't home. It was nothing more than a glorified cage.

As I adjusted my uniform, a thought crossed my mind.

"By the way, Cleenah, do you know Merithra?" I asked, half-expecting a straightforward answer.

[<Well… yes.>]

I frowned. "What's with the hesitation?"

[<It's just… been a long time since I last saw her.>]

Something about Cleenah's tone felt off. She clearly didn't want to talk about Merithra. I could push for answers, but I wasn't in the mood for another round of evasions.

Instead, I grabbed my belongings and stepped out of the hotel.

As expected, the moment I hit the streets, stares followed. Some curious, others wary. It was annoying, but honestly, it was still better than the glares I got in the academy.

My pocket vibrated.

I pulled out my device and saw a flood of unread messages.

Most of them were from Christina.

Even with her responsibilities—handling the kingdom, keeping up with my mother—she was still trying to contact me. Call after call, message after message.

And yet, I ignored them all.

I had already lost whatever hope I had concerning Christina and Alea.

Our relationship could never go back to what it was, and honestly, I didn't want to pretend otherwise. I knew exactly what they thought of Nyrel Loyster—of me—and if they couldn't accept that, then I wouldn't accept them either.

Unlike them, there were a rare few who had embraced both sides of me—Cleenah, Nevia, Persephone, Layla, Anna, Samara, and John. They knew the truth and still chose to stand by me. For that, I was grateful.

But I wasn't naive.

As time passed, I knew fewer and fewer people would stay by my side because of who I was.

And I wouldn't beg them to.

That was fine. I had long since accepted it.

Even now, I knew I was still capable of being loved. My lips curled into a small smile as my thoughts drifted to Alvara.

That sadistic, racist weirdo.

She had never cared about my past, never even blinked at the thought of me betraying Sancta Vedelia. To her, none of it mattered. She accepted me completely, though I still planned to tell her everything when the right time came.

Before I knew it, I had arrived at the academy, though my focus was elsewhere.

My phone buzzed, drawing my attention to the messages I had received.

One, in particular, caught my eye.

[Thank you, Senior.]

From Alicia.

I frowned. Why was she thanking me?

Because I had spoken against her brother?

My expression grew even more complicated.

How could I not get involved when she sent messages like this?

Shaking my head, I scrolled to the next unread message.

Rodolf.

[Let's meet at the cafeteria.]

I groaned. I had to see him sooner or later, and now seemed to be the time.

A while ago, he had refused to talk about Connor's death despite clearly knowing something. But now… now, he was finally willing to speak.

I locked my phone and let out a slow sigh.

Why was I even bothering?

By Kleines' words, I wasn't even supposed to be an Olphean.

So why was I forcing myself into Connor's death?

Maybe… maybe I just wanted to know the truth. The mystery still lingered in the back of my mind, refusing to fade.

The day was starting with Mana Theory, a class taught by Priscilla Tepes. At the very least, that was reassuring.

Unfortunately, all three classes were merged for this lecture, which was not reassuring—just an annoyance.

As expected, the moment I stepped into the classroom, I was met with the usual reaction. Dozens of gazes landed on me, whispers spreading like wildfire.

I ignored them.

Without a second thought, I strode toward the front of the room and took a seat. The farther I was from the others, the less chance I had of losing my temper.

Students trickled in one by one, all of them stealing a glance at me before carefully choosing a seat as far away as possible.

Then Celeste arrived, accompanied by Cylien and Amelia.

Unlike her usual energetic self, Celeste was quiet today, her expression subdued. The conversation among them was mostly carried by Amelia, with Cylien responding in short replies while keeping a smile.

She was definitely Marlene.

Celeste flicked her eyes toward me for a brief second before quickly looking away and settling into a seat with her two friends.

Next came John, chatting with Victor, with Selene trailing behind them. They seemed caught up in a discussion of their own.

Rodolf entered shortly after, but rather than walking to his seat like a normal person, he leaped over John and Victor, landing dramatically right behind Cylien.

"Rodolf…" Cylien sighed, exasperated.

Rodolf smirked, puffing out his chest. "Oi, I'm your boyfriend," he declared as if he had been waiting his whole life to say those words.

"More like a monkey than a boyfriend," John muttered as he dropped into the seat beside Rodolf—not because they were friends, but because this way, Amelia was right in front of him.

Rodolf narrowed his eyes. "What did you just say?"

John scoffed. "What are those big ears for if you can't even hear properly?"

"You're lucky you're Nyr's friend. Otherwise, I'd have already beaten you up," Rodolf smirked, cracking his knuckles.

John's expression twitched. "I don't need your pity. I can beat you up whenever you want."

Victor, watching the exchange with amusement, grinned. "Sounds good to me. But if you two are going to fight, at least wait until after school."

"Victor!" Amelia scolded, turning to him with an incredulous look before pouting at John. "And you! What did I tell you?"

John groaned and averted his gaze.

"John?" Amelia furrowed her brow, staring at him expectantly.

With a grunt, he muttered, "Not to pick useless fights and to be polite."

Amelia's lips curved into a pleased smile. "Exactly! You're a Duke's son—you have to set an example now."

Damn, John. What have you become…

I grimaced at the sight of him acting so meek in front of Amelia. This was the last guy I'd expect to care about setting an example as a noble.

[<You as well.>]

'My case is different!'

Meanwhile, Cylien turned her attention to Rodolf. "Rodolf, you should also try to stay calm."

"Huh?!" He blinked at her, clearly offended at the mere suggestion.

With a sigh, Cylien simply turned away, ignoring him.

And just like that, both John and Rodolf were successfully silenced.

These guys…

At least Victor seemed more composed—until I glanced at him and saw him grasping Selene's reached out hand from behind, his fingers lacing with hers.

I grimaced.

Well, I guess it must be nice, but do these guys have no shame when it comes to public affection?

[<You kissed Alvara in public.>]

'That was different! And she kissed me first.'

[<Aren't you ashamed to say that?>]

'That's… yes.'

Anyway, since my so-called friends had chosen their girlfriends over friendship, I was left sitting alone. A noticeable gap remained on my left, right, and back, as if I carried some kind of plague.

If Anna or Samara were here, I would've asked them to keep me company, but they were nowhere in sight.

So, in the end, I sat there, arms crossed, waiting.

A bit annoyed.

Then, suddenly, the chatter around the room died down.

I heard footsteps approaching before stopping right next to me.

Someone took a seat beside me.

I turned to my right.

Elizabeth was smiling at me.