The SSS Ranked Villain's Return-Chapter 101: One Second

"Hello, little lamb," the blue dragon-headed man’s voice rang out, sending shivers down both Neraxis’s and Elara’s spines.

"W-Who are you? What do you want from me?" Elara questioned while slowly backing away.

"There is no point in running, little lamb. Everyone is already dead," the man affirmed with an ominous chuckle before continuing, "As for why I am here, it’s simply because your brother’s progress no longer meets our criteria. Therefore, we decided to nudge him a little."

As his words fell, he began walking over to Elara, who had begun using her mana affinity to conjure flames.

An S ranked Soul Flame affinity—much like the heroes—her future was basically set.

But alas, Neraxis was witnessing its end as the masked man merely flicked his fingers, dispersing the flame and sending her flying toward the other side of the classroom.

"I do not wish to inflict any more suffering upon you, little lamb. Just know that we, the Sovereigns, appreciate all the help you have provided in nurturing Neraxis into what he is now," the man said and towered over her.

"After all, with someone like you, we can finally give him one last push and make him remember his task. We will descend soon, little lamb, so be not afraid, as this world will soon see balance once more."

"S-Stop!" Elara’s panicked voice rang out as she scrambled to her feet, attempting to escape.

But before she could, the man stretched out his hand, immediately snapping her neck.

That was when he looked to the side before humming, "I wonder how he would have reacted if he had seen me? I wonder, would it have brought back the fun memories we had together?"

As the last of his words, laced with amusement, fell, the man walked back to the courtyard, taking one last glance at the academy.

This time, with a mere breath, the building began collapsing gradually until eventually, only a land of rubble was left.

And before long, another zap of thunder struck the ground, taking the man alongside it as he finally disappeared.

Yet Neraxis could do nothing but watch as his sister was killed before him by some masked being who called himself a Sovereign.

[Are you alright?] Evangeline questioned in a worried tone.

No. He simply replied, going up to where the rubble had collapsed onto Elara and lifting it all up.

Yet what greeted his sight was not something he wished to see—ever.

Pained gasps resounded as she tried her best to breathe, her awakened regeneration just barely able to keep her alive.

But that did not last long, as eventually, she ran out of air before being suffocated to death.

Just then, hurried footsteps rang out, lifting the boulder up immediately and pulling Elara out.

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"Elara! Elara!? Wake up!"

The man before him was Neraxis—a tad bit older and riddled with a few scars—but that was not what had caught his attention.

Instead, it was one simple fact.

One second... If I had arrived just one second earlier, she would have lived. he thought as his heart began practically beating out of his chest, watching his past self sob while holding Elara’s dead body.

One second, one single fucking second! Neraxis exclaimed inside his mind, sending a punch at a nearby piece of rubble, demolishing it in an instant.

Yet his anger could not be relieved, and not blaming himself seemed impossible.

After all, if only he had walked faster, if only he had left his house a second or two earlier, Elara would still be alive.

[Neraxis...] Evangeline called out with clear sorrow in her voice. [I am sorry you had to go through that, and I know nothing I say will change what happened, but keep in mind, self-blame won’t bring the past her back to life. So please, cherish what you have, and rely on me and the other girls some more too...]

Her words managed to bring him some clarity. However, he began recalling the events that happened while he was on the way to the academy.

Neraxis took a detour to the supermarket, buying himself an energy drink—one he did not even need.

Furthermore, on the way over, he kept being sidetracked by random people bumping into him—even a single person who accidentally spilled their coffee onto him.

Who would drink coffee while walking out in the rain? The people bumping into me did so on purpose too... That blue dragon bastard set this all up, didn’t he?

It made sense, since if the reason Neraxis could not see himself back in the house meant that he had already left, then he was constantly being held up by the ’random’ occurrences.

The timing was so comical—it was almost like that masked Sovereign had predicted Neraxis would see something like this eventually.

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I’m going to kill each and every one of them. Neraxis resolved himself with an unusually clear mind.

Evangeline was right—as much as it pained his heart, he could not bring the past Elara back.

Since if his hunch was right, making it to her in time would have been impossible, even if he had sped up his pace and avoided all the obstacles.

But his thoughts were still in turmoil. I... Why me? Why do I have to go through such bullshit on a daily basis?

However, before he could ponder further, the tragic sight disappeared from before his eyes, morphing into a completely new image, and what replaced it was some sort of graveyard.

Barely a moment passed before he realized this was the day Elara’s funeral was held.

But this time, Neraxis hadn’t stood by the grave. Instead, he was right by the graveyard’s gates.

He could see two individuals—both with white hair—who were sobbing on each other’s shoulders.

My parents? They were here? he thought with widened eyes and approached closer, making sure he wasn’t hallucinating.

And to his shock, he wasn’t. Tears were falling as they called out Elara’s name several times.

However, just as they steeled themselves and took a step forward, a skinny, mysterious man appeared before them, wearing a hyena’s mask.

"I apologize on behalf of the remaining Sovereigns, but you puny ants have served your purpose. Disappear."

As his cold words fell, Neraxis’s parents’ bodies suddenly twisted at weird angles, their bones being noticeably crushed.

Lastly, the man sent a kick, dissolving them into complete nothingness and taking one last glance at the Neraxis who was still crying over Elara’s grave.

"Serve us well, pup," he muttered before sinking into the ground, disappearing.

[...] Evangeline was as equally speechless as he was.

Neraxis could only tremble in place—not out of fear, but purely out of anger.

Two key events in his life—his sister’s death and the dismissal of his parents—were both orchestrated by these Sovereigns who wished to descend.

Soon, the surroundings began morphing to familiar starry surroundings, until eventually, what stood before him was a single grandfather clock, with the number 2 grayed out.

The main hour hand soon traveled to the number 3, and that was when the notifications descended.

[Astral Tower - 2nd Floor: The Reflection of Truth - Complete]

[Climber: Neraxis Valen]

[Current Progress: 2/12 Floors]

[Note: Each trial increases in difficulty exponentially.]

[Astral Tower - 3rd Floor Hint: Mask]

Neraxis stared at the notifications but didn’t jump to conclusions like last time.

The hint was ’mirror’, but instead of fighting a clone of myself, I had to sit in a mirror world watching my family die at the hands of people I didn’t even know existed. he thought, heaving a deep breath as his body sunk into the water.

Soon, he found himself back in his room. However, his mood was completely sour, with his heart rate not decreasing in the slightest.

Yet despite the pain and denial, his only coping mechanism was—

I need to get stronger...