Reincarnated as the Villainess's Unlucky Bodyguard-Chapter 180 -

The air was thick with tension, the kind that clung to the skin like a second layer. Enara sat rigidly on the edge of her chair, her fingers gripping the armrests with white-knuckled force. Across from her, Daena stood by the window, arms crossed, her expression carved from stone. Ananara, for once, wasn’t making a sarcastic comment. He sat on the table, unnervingly quiet, his leafy form unusually still.

No one had spoken in several minutes.

They had escaped. Barely. But the memory of her—Liria, but not Liria—was seared into their minds.

"I still can’t believe it," Enara finally whispered, her voice raw. "She—" She swallowed, forcing down the lump in her throat. "She was going to kill us."

"She would have," Daena said flatly. "She wasn’t holding back."

Enara’s jaw clenched. "But that wasn’t really her, was it? I mean—" She glanced between them, desperate for something, anything that made sense. "She wouldn’t—"

"Wouldn’t she?" Daena cut in, her voice quiet but sharp. "Enara, that wasn’t hesitation you saw in her eyes. That was certainty."

Enara opened her mouth to argue but found no words. Because Daena was right. Liria hadn’t hesitated. Not once. Not even when her blade had nearly cut Enara down where she stood.

Her chest tightened.

"I refuse to believe she’s completely gone."

Daena sighed, rubbing her forehead. "I don’t want to believe it either. But what we want doesn’t change the reality of what we saw."

Ananara, who had been uncharacteristically quiet, suddenly let out a heavy sigh. "I hate to say it, but Tall, Dark, and Murderous looked like she was having the time of her life trying to kill us."

Enara shot him a glare. "Not. Helping."

He shrugged, his leafy crown twitching. "Just stating facts. And I gotta say, if she wanted to finish the job, she could have. She was playing with us."

That sent a fresh shudder through Enara’s body. Because deep down, she had felt it too. Liria had been toying with them, like a cat batting at mice before the kill.

It wasn’t just that she was stronger. It was that she was… different.

Colder. Crueler.

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And somehow, that hurt more than anything.

"She’s been with the Dark Sovereign for three years," Daena murmured, her violet eyes narrowing. "That kind of influence… it doesn’t just go away."

"So, what?" Enara demanded. "We just give up on her?"

"No." Daena’s voice was firm. "But we have to stop thinking of her as the same girl we knew."

Enara swallowed hard, hating how much sense that made.

"Then what do we do?"

Daena exhaled. "We figure out how to bring her back."

Enara straightened, determination flickering in her dark eyes.

"Then we better start now."

The abyss whispered in the silence, a lullaby of shadows curling around her like a second skin. Liria stood at the edge of the obsidian platform, staring down into the void, where black flames flickered with an eerie pulse.

Her mind was sharp, calculating. Every breath she took was measured, every thought refined into something cold and precise.

And in the back of her mind, the system stirred.

[You’re thinking something wicked, aren’t you?]

Liria smirked. "That depends. Define wicked."

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[Something that would make a morally upright person scream in terror.]

"Oh, then absolutely."

The system let out a slow, amused chime. [Let’s hear it, then. What’s going on in that beautifully unhinged brain of yours?]

Liria traced a finger along the handle of her blade, feeling the power thrumming beneath her fingertips. "I let them live."

[Yes, you did. How merciful of you.]

A chuckle slipped past her lips. "Mercy had nothing to do with it." She turned her head slightly, gazing into the distance where her former companions had fled. "They’re predictable. That’s their biggest weakness."

[And you plan to use that against them.]

She nodded. "Enara will try to save me. Daena will try to kill me. Both will fail, but the real fun comes in making them think they have a chance."

[You’re enjoying this a little too much, aren’t you?]

"Can you blame me?" Her smile sharpened. "They spent three years looking for me, and now they’ve found me, only to realize I’m something they can’t handle."

The system hummed in thought. [So, what’s next?]

Liria turned fully, walking away from the ledge, her cloak billowing behind her. "Simple. I give them hope."

[You mean crush their hope.]

She grinned. "Same thing."

The system gave a dramatic sigh. [You’ve become so much more fun to work with. I remember when you used to fight me on these things.]

Liria rolled her eyes. "I adapted."

[Oh, you thrived.]

Her footsteps echoed against the stone as she approached the inner chamber, where her throne—her rightful seat—awaited. The Dark Sovereign had not yet returned, leaving Liria to her own devices.

Which was dangerous. For everyone else.

"The plan is simple," she said, dragging a finger along the armrest of the throne. "Let them think I’m hesitating. Let them believe I’m still Liria."

[But you are still Liria.]

She smirked. "Not the one they remember."

[Fair point.]

She sat down, one leg draped over the other, her fingers tapping idly against the armrest. "They’ll come for me. They’ll try to reach me."

[And you’ll let them.]

"Of course." Her gaze darkened. "And when they think they’ve won…"

She closed her eyes, a slow exhale slipping past her lips.

"I’ll break them."

The system chuckled. [Delightfully evil. I approve.]

Liria opened her eyes, glowing embers flickering within them.

"Let’s get started."

Liria leaned back against the cold obsidian throne, exhaling slowly as she let her mind unravel the endless possibilities.

There was an art to destruction—true, meaningful destruction. Anyone could cut down their enemies, could turn a battlefield into a graveyard, but that wasn’t what she wanted.

No.

She wanted to ruin them.

And that required patience.

[You know,] the system chimed, its tone almost teasing, [this is an impressive level of villainous commitment. Most people would just kill their enemies and be done with it. But you? You’re going for the long game. I respect it.]

Liria smirked, tilting her head slightly. "You say that like I wasn’t always capable of this."

[Oh, I always knew you had it in you. But back then, you had things like morals getting in the way.] The system gave a faux-sympathetic sigh. [Now, look at you. No hesitation. No doubts. Just tactical malice. It’s beautiful.]

Liria let her fingers trail along the armrest of her throne, the smooth, cold stone grounding her. "They think they can bring me back."

[Of course they do. They’re idiots.]

She chuckled. "That’s why it’ll work."

[You’re going to make them believe it’s possible.]

She nodded. "Give them small victories. Little cracks in the façade. Let them think they’re getting through to me."

[And then?]

Her smirk sharpened. "And then I let them see what they could have saved—before I burn it down in front of them."

The system let out a delighted hum. [Cold. Calculated. Cruel. You’ve never been better.]

Liria stretched her arms above her head, feeling the raw energy thrumming beneath her skin. The power was intoxicating, but she had learned to wield it, to balance it with absolute precision.

"This isn’t just about them," she murmured. "It’s about me."

[Oh? Do tell.]

Liria tilted her head, her dark hair cascading over her shoulder. "I spent years pretending to be something I wasn’t. Pretending to be weaker, pretending to belong to their world. But the abyss doesn’t pretend. It consumes. And I was always meant to be here."

The system gave a thoughtful hum. [So this is… what? A final severance? A statement?]

Liria’s fingers curled around the hilt of her sword, her black flames licking hungrily at the edges. "It’s proof."

[Proof that you never belonged to them.]

She nodded.

The system paused before speaking again, its voice carrying an almost cautious edge. [And yet, if you were so certain, why play with them at all?]

Liria froze.

For a moment, just a fraction of a second, something stirred inside her. A whisper of something she had long since silenced.

Not doubt.

But something close enough to it.

She scowled, shaking it off. "Because I want to."

[Or because a part of you still cares?]

She clenched her jaw. "That’s not it."

[Oh, I believe you.]

She didn’t like the way the system’s voice lingered on that sentence, like it didn’t quite believe her at all.

Liria rose from the throne, pacing toward the abyssal balcony that overlooked the vast, endless void. The dark energies of this realm coiled around her like affectionate shadows, clinging to her like they knew she belonged here.

And she did.

She did.

Didn’t she?

[You’re hesitating.]

"I’m strategizing."

[Sure. Keep telling yourself that.]

Liria exhaled sharply. "They abandoned me. Three years. No one came for me."

[And yet, the moment they did, you hesitated to kill them.]

Her grip on her sword tightened. "I wanted them to suffer."

[Did you? Or did you want to see them again?]

Liria’s heart stilled for just a second.

The system let out a dark chuckle. [Oh, that got to you.]

She turned on her heel, glaring at nothing. "I don’t need them."

[No, but you miss them.]

She didn’t answer.

Couldn’t answer.

Because she didn’t know if it was a lie.

And that, more than anything, pissed her off.

The system, sensing her frustration, wisely backed off. [Alright, fine. You do whatever you want. I’m just here to provide sarcastic commentary and keep your stats updated.]

Liria exhaled, letting the tension melt from her shoulders. "Good. Because the next phase of the plan starts now."

[Oh?]

Her smirk returned, cold and confident. "I’m going to let them think they can save me."

[And then break them?]

She nodded. "And then break them."

The system chuckled darkly. [This is going to be so much fun.]

Liria turned her gaze back to the void, her golden eyes glinting with purpose.

No more distractions.

No more hesitation.

This was the beginning of the end.

And she was going to enjoy it.