Villainess X Villain: They are obsessed with each other!-Chapter 28 -: 27 Bravery or Stupidity?

Julius let out a low, amused chuckle as he watched Cillian step down from the arena.

Cillian waved cheerfully at the roaring crowd, that same silly, embarrassed smile still on his face, red eyes sparkling under the lights.

He looked completely relaxed, like he hadn’t just flattened a guy with a giant headless monster.

’Look at him... playing the humble hero already.’

Julius leaned back on the bench, arms crossed, eyes narrowed with a mix of excitement and something darker.

"This academy arc had two big reasons in TST," he muttered under his breath, voice barely audible over the cheers.

"First..the hero builds his country-sized harem. All those pretty girls falling over themselves for him."

He paused.

His gaze locked onto Cillian again.

The boy was now shaking hands with a few excited first-years, laughing softly at whatever they were saying.

Julius’s eyes lit up with pure greed.

"Second reason..." He licked his lips slowly.

"Companions who worship him like a god. Guys who’d die for him without a second thought. Loyal dogs who think he hung the moon."

He smiled.

"And out of all of them... Cillian was the very first. The one who looked at the hero like he was some kind of divine being. Blind devotion. Total fanboy energy."

Julius’s fingers tapped against his knee.

"So right now...I am a bit confused."

He tilted his head, considering.

"Should I just kill him?"

A dark little laugh escaped him.

"Or... should I turn him into my loyal subject instead? Make him worship ’me’ the way he was supposed to worship the hero?"

He let the thought hang for a second, savoring it.

"In truth, my first priority is still the same: let them all get close to the hero. Let the harem form. Let the companions gather around him like flies to honey."

His smile turned colder.

"And then, I will kill them one by one, so he could feel what I felt when my Rose died."

He shrugged casually, like he was talking about stealing candy.

"Now you might ask... what about the original plot? What about ruining everything the story was supposed to be?"

Julius’s eyes gleamed.

"Truthfully? I don’t give a fuck."

He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, staring straight at Cillian across the arena.

"My only real goal here is to make the hero’s life as miserable as possible. No happy ending. No glorious rise. Just pain, loss, and watching everything he loves slip away."

He chuckled again.

"And if turning Cillian into my personal dog helps with that? Even better."

Julius stood up slowly, stretching his arms over his head.

"Time to start moving."

"Let’s see how easy it is to steal a god-worshipper before the hero even knows he exists."

Meanwhile, the professor climbed back into the center of the cleared arena.

Dust still hung in the air from the last fight, but the crater had already been smoothed over by magic.

"Now the first duel is over," he announced in his booming voice. "The winner, Cillian Reeve!"

The crowd cheered again, still buzzing from the giant fist finish.

"Let us move on to the second duel of the day."

He paused for effect, then read from the glowing screen.

"The second duel is between Alia Ruth and Kyra Zake!"

The moment her name was called, Alia looked around with a bright smile.

Everyone near her burst into encouragement.

"Good luck, Alia!" a boy shouted, grinning wide.

"You’re definitely going to win!"

"I know, right? She’s Alia Ruth, after all!"

Alia’s cheeks turned a little pink. She bowed politely to the group.

"Thank you, everyone."

She waved once more, then started walking toward the arena steps.

Her steps were light and confident, brown hair bouncing with each one.

On the far side of the waiting area, Rosalina stood alone, arms crossed tight.

"Hamph!"

She snorted loudly enough for a few nearby students to glance over. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Trying to lick up all that support... foolish bitch."

Rosalina’s eyes narrowed into slits as she watched Alia smile and wave at her fans.

Ever since this peasant girl appeared, Rosalina had hated her deep in her bones.

And the reason was simple: Alia’s whole attitude.

Always so nice, so friendly, so... perfect. It made Rosalina get cringebumps all over her body.

"I hope you win, Peasant!" Rosalina muttered under her breath, voice dripping with venom.

"Reach the later rounds. Get to me. Then I’ll show you exactly what—"

Her words cut off.

Her gaze drifted across the arena... straight to where Julius stood, leaning against a pillar with his usual relaxed look.

Rosalina blinked.

"Come to think of it..." she thought, tilting her head. "I still haven’t cleared up that whole ’date’ thing with him."

She remembered his words clearly: something about going out together if he lost to her. A silly bet. A stupid promise.

She chewed her lip for a second.

"Ah, whatever," she decided with a small shrug. "He already knows I’m way stronger than him." She let out a quiet sigh.

"I should just pretend to be dumb about it. Act like I didn’t notice and ."

Her eyes flicked back to Alia, who was now stepping onto the platform.

Rosalina’s lips curled into a tiny, dangerous smile.

’Win your little fights for now, Peasant. I’ll deal with you later.’

Meanwhile, on the arena floor, the professor stood between the two girls with his arms raised.

"Are you two ready?"

Alia gave a short, confident nod.

In front of her stood Kyra Zake, just an ordinary-looking girl with straight black hair and clear blue eyes.

Nothing flashy. Nothing scary. But her hands were already shaking a little.

"Then begin!"

The professor stepped down quickly.

The second his foot left the platform, both girls moved.

Kyra took one hurried step back, eyes wide.

Alia mirrored her exactly, one calm step back.

Kyra panicked. She raised her hands fast, trying to form an Infinite Theorem spell.

Sweat poured down her face. Her fingers trembled. She clearly wasn’t good at quick casting under pressure.

Alia didn’t rush.

She simply lifted both hands.

Two pure white circles shimmered into existence right in her palms, glowing softly like moonlight trapped in glass.

She knelt slightly and pressed both circles flat against the stone floor.

"Infinite Cast: Summoning."

Her voice was quiet. Almost gentle.

The moment the words left her lips, the arena floor rumbled.

Cracks of white light spread outward like spiderwebs.

Then, with a burst of wind and fur, a massive wolf rose straight up from the ground.

It was enormous, easily ten feet at the shoulder, silver-white fur rippling like liquid metal, eyes burning bright gold.

"Hawl!!!"

The howl exploded across the stadium, deep, bone-shaking, powerful enough to rattle teeth and make weaker students cover their ears.

Kyra’s concentration shattered instantly.

Her half-formed spell fizzled out in sparks. She stumbled backward, legs giving way.

She dropped to her knees, staring up at the towering wolf in pure terror.

"Th... this... summon!"

The giant wolf lowered its head toward her, hot breath washing over her face. Its teeth gleamed like swords.

Alia stood perfectly still, one hand still raised in control.

Her voice cut through the stunned silence, calm, almost kind.

"Give up."

But if anyone looked closely... Alia wasn’t really staring at Kyra.

Her eyes were locked past the girl, straight at Julius, standing in the waiting area behind her.

Julius met her gaze. One eyebrow raised slightly.

Kyra didn’t even hesitate.

"I... give up!"

She raised both hands in surrender, voice shaking.

Alia flicked her finger once.

The giant wolf dissolved into white mist and vanished like it had never been there.

The arena went dead quiet for half a second, then exploded into cheers and gasps.

Alia turned slowly.

She gave Julius one last long look, eyes narrowed, lips curled in a tiny, angry snort.

"Hamh! Wait for me, you arrogant trash."

She walked down from the platform with her head high, ignoring the crowd shouting her name.

Meanwhile, Julius leaned against the pillar, arms crossed, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest.

"You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that," he muttered to himself, still watching her go.

"Messing with the final boss when you’re just a beginner...I don’t know what it is, bravery or stupidity?"