I Am The Game's Villain

"Zestel."

"Zestel?" Celeste echoed, surprise flickering across her face. It wasn\'t often that someone voluntarily chose to visit the capital of her country.

"Yeah, I need to see Randor," I replied.

Celeste froze slightly, her eyes widening. "You don\'t mean Randor Ironbeard?"

"What a strange last name..."

"Answer me first!"

"Of course it\'s him. Why else would I go to Zestel? Your mother is the one who saved him and gave him safety in her city, right?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah... Mama saved him, but he wouldn\'t want to see anyone. I don\'t know why you want to see him, but he will refuse you..." Celeste shook her head awkwardly.

"Of course he\'ll refuse me. But there\'s no way he\'ll refuse the daughter of his benefactor, especially when the daughter looks exactly like her mother," I said with a sly smile.

Celeste\'s expression shifted to one of realization and then to irritation. "What? You called me for that?" She grumbled.

"Why else would I call you along?" I asked, genuinely puzzled.

She had been acting quite spoiled lately.

"I don\'t know, maybe for something interesting?" Celeste replied ambiguously.

"Whatever, just call someone to get us there," I said to her.

"Yes, yes," Celeste muttered as she summoned someone to teleport us directly to Zestel. She couldn\'t manage it alone and needed proper preparations.

After a moment of waiting in front of the academy, an old man arrived. It was August, the man who had practically babysat Celeste.

"Princess, you..." Upon seeing me with Celeste, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh, Uncle, you\'re finally here. Take us to Zestel," Celeste said.

"Of course, Princess, but this is Amael Idea Olphean? Is he perhaps your boyfriend?" he asked.

What\'s wrong with this old man? Is that an appropriate question to ask his princess?

"H—He is not. Just a friend," Celeste corrected, thankfully.

It was because of people like this old man that I was labeled a scumbag, someone who thought only with his lower half, throughout the entire academy! Am I Jayden?

"I see." August gave me a suspicious glance before leading the way.

...

...

It didn\'t take long to reach Zestel.

"You can leave, August," Celeste said as we arrived.

"Princess, I should stay with you. We are in Zestel…" August protested.

Celeste was undeniably famous in Zestel. Unlike other princesses, she often ventured out to enjoy life and connect with her people. August was understandably cautious, fearing an incident similar to Manuel from Ante Eden.

I had no idea why Celeste didn\'t want August to accompany us, but she must have had a good reason. Perhaps Randor despised him? Regardless, I chose to support her.

"Don\'t worry, old man. As long as I\'m here, no one will touch her," I assured August.

August looked at me, surprised, before glancing at Celeste, who was avoiding his gaze, her ears tinged with red, clearly embarrassed by my words. To be honest, I was also embarrassed.

Seeing Celeste\'s reaction, August smiled faintly, seeming to understand something, and then looked back at me. "Do you promise it? Lord Connor never betrayed his promises," he said, referring to my brother.

My brother was well-loved, and I felt a surge of pride knowing he was held in such high regard.

"Then I have something in common with him. I will keep her safe, I promise," I vowed.

"Then fine. Princess, please have a good day," August said before leaving us.

"Hmpf. What a show-off."

After he left, Celeste mumbled, slipping a ring onto her finger. As soon as she did, her white hair transformed to jet black.

"Wow," I murmured, taken aback.

"What?" Celeste asked, tying her hair into a ponytail.

She looked completely different now.

"Nothing, just black hair gives you a different vibe, I guess," I said.

"Well, I don\'t change my hair color every month like you," Celeste teased with a grin.

"Not like I do it on purpose," I scoffed. "Now, lead me to him."

"Yep, follow me!"

...

...

"A chocolate ice cream, please!" Celeste\'s voice was filled with excitement.

"A chocolate ice cream for the pretty miss!" The middle-aged man behind the stand grinned, quickly preparing the treat for her.

Celeste accepted the ice cream with shining eyes. After a few licks, she closed her eyes tightly, probably savoring the icy sensation in her mouth.

"So good!" she exclaimed before handing me her ice cream. "Taste it!"

I looked at the ice cream she had just tasted. Shouldn\'t she at least be a bit embarrassed?

In novels, girls were often sensitive about indirect kisses. But Celeste didn\'t seem to care at all about that. Well, Celeste was the tomboyish type, and it wasn\'t like she would look at me in that way. Her carefree attitude with everyone, including boys, made it hard to read her true thoughts. Many had misunderstood actions like this as signs of interest toward them. No doubt they were virgins.

"No, thanks. How much?" I asked the man.

"Aren\'t you lucky, my lad?" The man grinned at me, glancing at Celeste.

"Shut up." I flicked an Eden coin at his forehead, and he stumbled back.

"Argh!"

"Now, let\'s go," I said to Celeste.

"What did he do to you!" Celeste was shocked by my heartless action.

"He mocked me."

"He didn\'t!"

"Did you enjoy your ice cream, Celeste? Now, can you lead me to Randor Steelbeard?"

"It\'s Ironbeard!"

"Same thing."

"Ugh! Whatever! If you are that eager!" Celeste pouted before finally deciding to lead me toward my target.

We took two carriages before walking for about ten minutes through Zestel. At first, I thought she was leading me around for fun, but I soon realized she was purposefully changing routes several times. Randor Ironbeard was a priceless individual for Sancta Vedelia, and ill-intentioned people might want to kidnap him.

After another ten minutes, we arrived in an isolated street, facing a wall. Celeste looked around for a moment before placing her hand on the wall. The block around her hand pushed forward, and the whole wall twisted, revealing a hidden passage.

"This is so movie-like…"

"Come quick!" Celeste dragged me inside. Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn

The wall closed behind us. Ahead was a dimly lit tunnel, but far away, we could glimpse some light. I took a step forward.

"Wait!"

-CRACK!

Something flew at high speed inches from my eyes before stabbing into the wall beside me. It nearly pierced through my brain. The arrow was deeply gouged into the rocky wall, and the cracks spread, making me think the wall would crumble at any moment.

He set up some mortal traps, huh? Extremely deadly, even if they were made by Randor. Randor Ironbeard was the greatest smith of Sancta Vedelia and could be considered the greatest smith among mortals as well.

The reason I came here was because I wanted him personally to make me a weapon.