Located on the far border of the Aster Kingdom, Beryn Village was a peaceful place. The streets were paved with dirt and small, wooden homes housed families, but the people were content. A river ran through the middle of the village, providing the kind people with fresh water that would suit all their needs. They farmed and traded for their livelihood. There was nothing extraordinary about the village at all except, perhaps, just how peaceful it was. No bandits ever attacked. No storms ruined the crops. No murderers ever entered the town. It was just… peaceful.
Of course this as because every single resident was secretly a criminal. Each one a thief, mass murderer, or occasional jaywalker. It was here that they could live free from the law’s prying eyes. Any bandit that came was killed. Dark magic protected the crops. Ever murderer knew better than to enter. Such was the true face of Beryn Village. Everything was evil. The dogs, the cats, and even the crickets. Oh, the crickets… the crickets were the cruelest.
Vlan grew up in this pit of villainy, yet he had been, perhaps, the most innocent of them all. Even children younger than him had stolen from adults in the capital. Harner, his best friend, was from a family of assassins. He never spoke of what he did for training or anything work-related, but instead supported Vlan with his quiet demeanor, following the leadership of the future villain loyally.
It was here that Vlan grew up. It was here that his desire to be the most evil entity in existence was birthed. He wanted to be more than them. He wanted their eyes to stop looking at him with scorn and disgust. More than anything, he wanted them to fear him. Now, after having achieved everything he desired and then losing it all, Vlan found himself back here. It was overwhelming.
“Harner,” Vlan said as he wiped tears and snot away, “I became the Archfiend, died shortly after, and ended up back here.”
“If it’s you, then it’s possible,” Harner answered. That was all the explanation needed. Harner knew Vlan was too bad at lying to pull one over on him. Besides, there was something special about Vlan. Something stupid.
“Oh, Harner, you believe me?! Hurray! Let’s go kick a puppy to celebrate!” Vlan exclaimed joyfully. However, when he looked at a nearby puppy plodding along, the small creature glared at him as if to say, “Try it and die, bitch.”
“That’s not a wise course of action, Vlan,” Harner warned. Vlan felt inclined to believe him.
----------------------------------------
The two eventually parted ways with the onset of night and Vlan headed towards his home . As he walked, he confirmed what abilities he currently had through his [Status].
StatusName:VlanRace:Human (Archfiend)Age:11Alignment:Bad at being bad.Level:-1Gender:MaleSkills:Infinite RegenerationMonster Control EXDarkness Magic: FCrying EXLockedLockedShit's locked, my friend.
‘What’s with this? Is it mocking me?! I do not cry that much!’ Vlan thought with teary eyes. As for his level… it had dropped exponentially low. Before, his body had been strong enough to be over level 600. However, his childish body did not currently have the strength or ability to even be considered level 0. Most villagers that never fought a day in their life ended up in the negatives. It was only through violence that one raised their level. Hence why kicking a puppy, while wrong and evil, wasn’t unreasonable or even uncommon in his village. Then again, his village encouraged wrong and evil.
Unfortunately, almost every skill related to attack was still sealed. The Archfiend was an overwhelmingly powerful existence that appeared every fifty years. When one gained the Archfiend’s staff, Vilucerin, it transformed them from their outer appearance to their very soul. If it was his soul that was sent back in time and was currently possessing his younger self, then the restrictions at least made sense. First things first, he needed to obtain Vilucerin once more. After that, he could plan on how to deal with the heroine as well as how to recruit new boss monsters and get revenge on the ones that betrayed him.
Some monsters never betrayed him, even until the end. If he found them early on and trained them, then they could easily reach new, more powerful heights and surpass those that used to be known as their superiors. Those bosses he thought to be his allies… how could they betray him like that?!
----------------------------------------
In the Past That Was the Future
----------------------------------------
"We're going to betray you, boss."
"Oh, sure. By the way, have you guys seen Mecha Dragoon X? I want to drive him again."
----------------------------------------
...He probably should have payed more attention than that, so this was on him.
Reaching his home, Vlan took in the powerful vision of darkness. It was a hut. An EVIL hut which he knew was his because he painted EVIL on it in thick red lettering. Vlan sighed as he entered. He'd been so childish growing up. Enraptured with stories of kidnapping princesses and fighting heroes, Vlan had never truly know what being a villain truly meant. Perhaps he still didn't.
If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
He kicked off his shoes and stopped in front of the mirror, the one precious thing he owned. Rather than a six and a half foot tall, menacing creature of darkness, he possessed a small, frail body with black hair and black eyes. Rough, black pants protected his legs and on his top he wore a black shirt with a red vest over it. He sighed as he moved and collapsed into his bed.
Tomorrow would be another day.
----------------------------------------
The Next Day
----------------------------------------
"Harner, no! I shall be the one to take on this beast!" Vlan cried as he stood in front of his minion. They were on the grassy plains just outside their village. Monsters spawned here, beasts of unimaginable cruelty. Before them was the greatest evil ever known... the slime.
The cute, little, green orb of jelly bounced in happiness as it slid along the ground towards the two of them. Harner's short brown hair was covered by a black hood and he wore light leather armor that protected his vitals. In his hands were two knives that he'd been trained to use for his entire life. Vlan was just wearing his normal clothes. The reason for this was because of his skill...
Monster Control EX.
"You are now my slave," he commanded. "Thy name I choose shall be... Jeremy."
The cute little orb jumped towards him happily, landed on his arm (which then entered its body) and then passively began digesting him with its acidic body. Of course, he could regenerate faster than it could dissolve him, so all was well.
"Look, Harner! He likes me!" Vlan squealed in delight. Harner walked towards him and put a hand on his shoulder, gripping him tightly.
"...How did you become the Archfiend? More than that, what exactly happened?" Harner asked quietly. Vlan looked at him and smiled. There was no joy to be found in his eyes. His plastic smile faltered only once as he began to speak.
"Four years from now, I found the Archfiend's staff. After that, I grew an army. War broke out between Aster Kingdom and the Celsior Empire, so I was ignored. Even the Church of Lan was preoccupied with a crusade of some foreign, far off nation. So I grew my forces, stole weapons, and eventually grew powerful enough to create my own castle. After that, I kidnapped the princess of the kingdom and demanded their submission, so the kingdom pulled the Hero of Light away from the war effort." Vlan clutched his fist in anger.
He was just a disturbance, right? Was that it? They never attacked him with their full forces.
They never took him seriously. They had no reason to.
He never made them.
"She blew through every obstacle I put up against her. She beat and befriended my boss monsters and then used my power against me. Her party and her broke into my castle, destroyed my last defenses, and then sealed my power before ending me. I had never killed anyone. I just wanted to be the best villain I could, so I stole the crown princess. I never thought about what I would do after that. I never once..." Vlan gulped as he came to the realization. "I never once was a real villain."
Harner gave Vlan a one-armed hug.
"You can do better, right?"
Those words were all he needed.
He could do better. Raise a more powerful army, commit more atrocities, regain his previous power and then surpass it. Turn the heroine to darkness, kill the ones who would betray him before they had a chance to. Hit the world where he knows it will hurt. Become an object of fear, respect, perhaps even worship.
Screw kidnapping the princess.
He'd take the whole world as his prisoner.
"Harner... thank you," Vlan said as he broke free from the hug. "Now, let's go. The Chrix Dungeon should have a plethora of monsters inside. More than that, if we keep a steady pace, we may encounter the first, new boss I shall uplift."
Harner nodded.
Dungeons were the source of all monsters. When Mana in the air became extremely dense, whether from a natural phenomon or from an extremely powerful mage, it reached a solid state in the form of a dungeon. Beryn Village had one such dungeon hidden beneath it, far away from prying eyes. The magic used to create it was so overwhelmingly dark that it was possible that it not only attracted the most terrifying of monsters, but even the criminals living above it. It was in this hellhole that Vilucerin was tucked away.
With an ability that granted him control over almost any monster, Vlan would be able to walk right in. He didn't need to search around for keys or solve puzzles.
Vlan was the villain, and he'd do a damn better job of being one this time.
----------------------------------------
A/N: Last chapter was just a warm-up. This is me getting more into the groove of it.