Chapter 24: The Villainess Has Returned
"Long time no see, Lucian."
The voice slid through the classroom like smooth cloth over a sharp knife—soft and girly on top, but with something heavy and twisty underneath that made the air feel tight. Lucian stopped dead halfway in, his hand still on the door. For a second, everything else faded out—the low talk of other kids settling in, the scrape of chairs on wood, even the soft buzz of mana in the walls turned down to nothing.
He looked where it came from.
There she was—Serene Veronica Le Ardenia.
Her red eyes looked sharper than he remembered, her smile all put-together and calm, but her whole vibe hit different, like she owned the room without trying. She sat easy, legs crossed, chin on her hand, looking right at him with that quiet power that said she could break things without raising her voice.
Lucian didn't say a word back. He just gave a small nod and headed to his seat, the sound of his chair pushing in echoing a bit too loud in the quiet. The space between them stayed heavy, like no one else was breathing right.
Class started quick after that, the teacher's voice droning on about basic mana flows and history stuff, but Lucian's head wouldn't quiet down.
'How...?' he thought, his fingers tapping light on the desk edge. 'As far as I know, only Ninth-Class powerhouses can aim their killing intent at just one person like that. Yet she...'
He snuck a look at her from the side. Serene sat perfect, back straight, eyes up front like she was paying full attention, but under that nice-noble look, he still felt it—that push, like a cat playing with a mouse, testing if it would run.
'In my second life... and even in the original game's timeline, Serene was only Sixth-Class at the start,' he figured. 'So how in the world...?'
He let out a small sigh, barely there.
'You know what? No. I shouldn't care.'
He leaned back in his chair, shutting his eyes for a quick second.
'There's no point in overthinking it. Whatever happened to her, whatever she's become… it's not my concern anymore. I'm tired of caring in this life.'
The teacher's words kept going, filling the room with talk of old battles and mana types, but Lucian's mind stayed off on its own. His eyes stayed half-open, but his body stayed alert—always knowing that heavy feeling behind him, like eyes that wanted to own you.
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Serene's POV
At the back of the classroom, the Villainess of the North—Serene Veronica Le Ardenia—sat with her chin resting light on her fingers, eyes half-shut, a small smile on her red lips.
Her look never left Lucian.
'My dear Lucian…' she thought, her eyes going soft in a way that felt too sweet, too needy. 'The same as before. The same face, the same voice, the same way you sit when you're lost in your head… Ah~ you haven't changed at all, my beautiful, broken boy.'
The picture of his death flashed quick in her mind—the blood warm on her hands, the cold coming fast, the way his body went still in her arms while her heart broke into sharp bits. Even now, thinking it made her eyes burn.
Her smile got deeper, shaking a little with that mix of crazy want and need.
'I can't forget it—that day when your heartbeat stopped under my hands. I couldn't take it… so I went against the heavens themselves.'
She closed her eyes just a second, remembering the bright light—Chronos, the God of Time, shining down, and the hurt of turning back time ripping through her soul.
'I used the Eye of Chronos,' she thought, her hand squeezing light on the desk. 'I turned time back—all for you. I thought only I got that chance. But then…'
Her eyes narrowed a bit, looking quick to the front where Celestia Van Lumina's white-silver hair caught the sun through the window.
'Celestia regressed too.'
Her teeth pressed together light, but her face stayed calm, like nothing touched her.
'So what if she did? She can't take him from me this time. She won't.'
She remembered seeing it yesterday—Celestia standing quiet outside the music room, staring at Lucian with that deep want that almost brought tears.
'Poor Celestia,' Serene thought, a mean little smile in her head. 'You looked so weak, so sad—like a girl reaching for a ghost who won't hold her hand anymore.'
Her red eyes shone a bit, hot with feeling.
'You can't have him. He's mine. This time, in this life, I'll make sure no one touches him—not even you, princess born from gods.'
A soft giggle stayed inside her, so quiet the kids next to her thought it was just a breath.
'Ah~ Lucian, my sweet boy. If you only knew how bad I want you again. To touch you, to feel your warmth that I lost once…'
She moved a little in her seat, crossing her legs, a small pink flush on her cheeks. Her heart beat faster, and she bit her lip to keep the wild smile down.
'Should I take you now? Lock you away in the northern villa I just bought? No one would find you there. I could keep you safe… keep you mine.'
Just thinking it sent a shiver down her back, good and bad all mixed.
But then, she pulled herself together, making her smile back to that nice, noble one.
'No… not yet. Patience, Serene. You must wait. Just like before, Silvan will fall for Amelia again—history always repeats, doesn't it?'
Her eyes went soft as she watched Lucian take notes quiet up front, not knowing the storm behind him.
'Once that happens, I'll go to Father. I'll talk him into breaking my engagement with Silvan… and then, I'll make him set one with you.'
Her fingers touched the small locket hidden under her uniform—inside, a piece she stole from Lucian, his old diary she'd taken before his death in their past life.
'Ah~ Lucian,' she thought, shaking a little. 'I can already picture it—your face when you see you belong to me alone.'
She breathed in sharp, her lips curving into a sly, almost crazy smile.
'For now, I'll wait… but not too long.'
Her red eyes shone with love and madness mixed.
'You can ignore me, you can act cold—but in the end, you'll remember, my dear. You always do.'
Her laugh stayed quiet—only the bend of her mouth showed it, caught in the classroom window's faint reflection.
And up front, Lucian shivered quick, like feeling eyes on him—a hunter's eyes—locked just on him.