I Am a Villain, So What?-Chapter 125 - 126: Shadow Stalkers

[NOTE: I messed up a little. I jumbled up the Chapter 125 and 126. I mistakenly published the 126th Chapter first. Please read the Chapter [Broken Clock] then read [Shadow Stalkers]

[I am really sorry. ]

BANG!

A crisp gunshot rang out.

The bullet whizzed past Kael’s ear and struck the shadow stretching out from his feet.

SKREEE!

The shadow screamed. A grotesque, black claw that had been reaching for Kael’s neck dissolved into smoke.

"Behind you!" I roared.

Kael spun around, slashing his sword at a second monster emerging from Elisha’s shadow.

Clang!

Elisha reacted instantly, drawing her bow and firing a flaming arrow at a creature trying to flank me.

It was perfect teamwork. Almost annoyingly so.

"..."

The three of us stood back-to-back—Kael with his sword, Elisha with her bow, and me with my rifle. Mariella cowered in the center, casting a protective barrier.

"We’re surrounded," I stated.

"Surrounded? I don’t see anything!" Elisha hissed.

"Use your senses, Ravenscroft. Not your eyes."

I could feel it. Countless killing intents emanating from the darkness. The shadows of the buildings, the trash cans, even the stones... they were all alive.

I fired a shot into a dark corner.

SKREEE!

Another shriek.

The cartridge ejected with a metallic ting, rolling on the cobblestones.

"I’ll admit it," Elisha said, sweat beading on her forehead. "Your instincts surpass those of ordinary people. It’s almost disgusting."

"Save the compliments for later. What’s the plan?"

"If we wait, the moment will come," I said cryptically.

"You’re awfully optimistic for someone about to be eaten. We shouldn’t have followed you here."

"Who told you to follow?"

"What did you say?!"

As Elisha and I growled at each other, Kael forced a strained smile.

"Both of you, calm down! Focus!"

Rustle.

The sound of shuffling paper cut through the tension.

"Southwest! Third floor window!" I shouted.

We all looked up.

Standing in the broken window of a dilapidated building was a short, stout figure with a white beard.

Merle.

He held a deck of cards in his hand. He shuffled them with the dexterity of a gambler, drew one, and tossed it into the air.

"Begone, foul things!"

FLASH!

The card exploded into blinding white light.

The shadow monsters shrieked, their forms destabilizing in the illumination.

"Everyone! Run this way!" Merle shouted, waving us over.

"Move!"

We sprinted toward the building.

As we ran, the shadows surged like a black tidal wave, trying to cut us off.

"Hm!"

Merle drew another card—Red. He threw it behind us.

WHOOSH!

A wall of fire erupted from the ground, blocking the pursuit.

"Hurry, while the barrier holds!"

We scrambled through the window of the ruined house, following the old dwarf through a hidden passage that led directly into his workshop.

****

[Merle’s Pawn & Trade - Back Room]

We collapsed onto the dusty floor of the workshop, gasping for breath. The screeching of the monsters faded away outside.

"To think such things were lurking in the heart of the capital..." Elisha muttered, biting her lip in frustration. "The City Guard is useless."

Kael stood up and bowed deeply to the old man.

"Thank you for your help, Manager Merle."

Merle wiped sweat from his brow, his hands trembling slightly as he put his cards away.

"No need to thank me, lad. I should apologize. I didn’t know it’d be this dangerous when I asked you to investigate."

"No, it’s fine," Kael said. "But... what were those things? They weren’t normal demons."

Before Merle could answer, a small voice piped up from behind the counter.

"Grandpa?"

A little girl with pigtails peeked out, holding a half-eaten stick of rock candy. Her eyes were wide with fear.

"Is it safe now?"

It was Irina.

My grip on the rifle tightened. She was alive. For now.

Merle rushed over and hugged her.

"Yes, sweetie. It’s safe. Go back to your room."

He turned back to us, his face grim, illuminated by the flickering light of a mana lamp.

"Those things... they are Shadow Stalkers."

"Shadow Stalkers?" Kael repeated, frowning.

"First I’ve heard of them," Elisha admitted, crossing her arms.

The two protagonists reacted calmly, treating it as just another unknown monster name. But I felt a cold sweat trickling down my back.

’Damn it! Why are those showing up here?!’

Shadow Stalkers were late-game mobs. They were incorporeal assassins that usually appeared only when a High-Rank Demon Gate was fully stabilized. Their presence in the slums meant the timeline was FUBAR.

"Manager Merle!" I stepped forward, my voice sharp. "Are you saying those are truly Shadow Stalkers? Not mimics or illusions?"

Merle looked at me, his bushy white eyebrows knitting together.

"Mr. Lucien... you know what they are?"

"Aren’t they the necrotic residue formed from summoning High-Ranking Demons?" I asked, cutting to the chase. "They feed on mana and biological material to stabilize a dimensional tear."

"...You never cease to amaze me, lad."

Merle looked at me with a mix of suspicion and respect.

"Most scholars at the Academy don’t even know that name. But you are correct."

At the mention of ’High-Ranking Demons,’ Elisha and Kael flinched. The memory of the Fern Kingdom was still fresh. They had seen the reality of such a monstrosity in Dr. Eldric’s lab—a Chimera that possessed the strength of a Count-Rank Demon.

"Let me... explain this pattern first."

Merle walked over to a cluttered desk and pulled out a photograph. It was a close-up of the symbol Kael had sketched earlier—the one drawn with brain matter.

In the photo, it was far more gruesome and vivid. The grey matter formed jagged, geometric lines that hurt the eyes just to look at.

"This symbol," Merle traced the air with a trembling finger, "is the crest of the Order of the Dawn."

He paused, letting the name sink in.

"An ancient organization that existed long ago, before they were purged by the Holy Nation. The current demon-worshipping cult, Infernus, bases their entire doctrine of ’Demon Supremacy’ on the fragmented teachings of this very Order."

"The Order of the Dawn!"

Elisha muttered aloud, startled. Being from a Ducal family, she had access to restricted history books.

"I thought they were a myth," she whispered. "After their fall, traces of them were completely erased from the continent."

"They were supposed to be," Merle sighed. "This... Hmm... I’m at a loss where to begin. The truth is dangerous."

He looked at Elisha intensely.

"Lady Ravenscroft. Before I speak further, please swear you won’t speak of this elsewhere. Not to your father, not to the Academy, not to the Emperor."

"Anywhere?"

"Anywhere. Or anyone."

Elisha’s violet eyes wavered. As a noble, keeping secrets from her family was difficult. But she looked at the terrified Irina hiding behind the counter, and then at the grim expression on Kael’s face.

She straightened her posture.

"Alright. I, Elisha Ravenscroft, swear on my name and my mana to tell no one."

The air hummed slightly as the oath took hold. The first condition of the protagonist party—Justice—was invoked.

Merle nodded, satisfied. He hopped onto a stool.

"So, do you guys know about the Lumeveil Empire?"

"Of course we know," Kael answered immediately. "That empire was the epitome of Magic Engineering. Even now, the inventions found in their ruins—like airships and mana engines—are the foundation of our daily life."

"Yeah, you are right," Merle muttered, picking up a wrench and turning it idly. "But you know... great inventions and discoveries often come with sacrifices."

He looked at me. I touched the Winchester on my back—a relic of that very empire.

"...The Lumeveil Empire may seem noble in the history books," Merle continued, his voice dropping to a whisper. "But in truth, it was a hub for numerous taboo experiments conducted in the shadows."

Elisha looked at Merle with shocked eyes. Information about the dark side of Lumeveil was practically non-existent.

"Was demon summoning one of them?" I asked.

"Correct."

Merle nodded.

"Well, the Empire itself wasn’t directly part of it. But researchers are curious by nature. They wanted to find the ultimate energy source. They wanted to research demons—how they function, their biology, their power systems which differ from our Mana."

"But," Merle gestured helplessly, "researchers were powerless. They were scholars, not warriors. They couldn’t capture a demon alive. So, they partnered up with the Order of the Dawn."

"It was a deal with the devil," Kael murmured.

"Exactly. The researchers needed subjects, and the Order needed funding and technology to open their gates. The Order’s goal was to summon a demon god anyway. It was a symbiotic relationship of madness."

Merle pointed to the photograph of the bloody symbol.

"It’s clear now. A survivor—or a descendant—of those experiments has infiltrated the Aurelian Empire. Based on the appearance of the Shadow Stalkers, they’ve already managed to summon a demon and are harvesting organs to stabilize its physical form."

The explanation was brief but necessary. Given Elisha’s personality, she wouldn’t act without understanding the full context. Now, she understood the stakes.

What comes must go.

Elisha naturally brought up their past experiences to gauge the threat level.

"There seem to be more demon worshippers than I thought," she said, biting her lip. "Manager Merle, during our Academy field training in the Fern Kingdom... we encountered something similar."

Elisha recounted the incident with Dr. Eldric and the Chimera.

Merle listened intently, his eyes widening.

"A Count-Rank strength?" Merle asked, looking between the three students. "That is... a disaster-level threat. How in the world did a group of first-years defeat such a thing?"

"Well..."

Kael froze. He couldn’t say, ’I used the power of the Demon King to obliterate it.’

Elisha looked away. She couldn’t say, ’Lucien did something mysterious.’

Their gazes instinctively turned to me.

I sighed internally. I decided to sprinkle in a little lie to protect our secrets.

"Instructor Samantha killed it," I said smoothly.

"Ah!" Merle slapped his knee. "The Platinum Knight Commander, Samantha? The ’Steel Rose’? That makes perfect sense. If she was there, even a Count-Rank would be sliced into sashimi."

Kael and Elisha let out visible sighs of relief.

"Yes," Kael nodded quickly. "She... arrived just in time."