Becoming the Terminally-Ill Villain Who Torments His Disciples

“…This feels weird.”

Sol, sitting by the window, murmured to himself.

More than the bruises on his face, what bothered him was the strange, warm, and fuzzy feeling that had been blooming in his chest since earlier.

“Me too.”

Pielago nodded in agreement, letting his head drop.

Trust.

They didn’t know that one word could stir up such a ticklish feeling.

“…His hands were shaking.”

Pielago mumbled.

The moment Cielo heard the twins’ voices, he flinched like he was having a seizure. Throughout the conversation, he tightly gripped his own hands to keep himself composed.

Every little gesture like that clearly revealed what Cielo had thought of the twins all this time.

Now that the jealousy and resentment had faded away, things they had never noticed before started to come into view.

“…He was smaller than I expected.”

He wasn’t just small for an omega—he was even smaller than most other omegas around them.

“But… he looked stronger than anyone else.”

Stronger than Ryan or Oscar, who had stood by his side.

Anyone can hit or bully someone if they have bad intentions. But to embrace someone you once hated to the point of wanting to destroy, and to bring them to your side… that was not something just anyone could do.

Yet Cielo had done exactly that.

He had used words like “forgiveness” and “trust,” the kind of words they had always dismissed as naïve and weak.

“What do we do first if we feel sorry?”

“…How should I know? I’ve never felt like this before either.”

Pielago’s curt response was met with a nod from Sol.

“I don’t even know where to begin.”

“First, we need to fix the things we did.”

“…Yeah.”

Sol answered briefly, then lifted his head and looked out the window.

The evening sky, tinged with dusk, felt unusually warm today.

The next day.

Cielo lightly held his chest, where a faint pain still lingered.

“Why is this still hurting…”

He had assumed the pain would stop once the twins stopped summoning monsters. But strangely, the pain continued.

‘Don’t tell me they’re up to something again…?’

Just thinking that made his fingers tremble slightly.

The look in their eyes when they had faced him yesterday still lingered in his mind.

Even if Sol and Pielago were good at lying, it would be difficult to fake that kind of expression and gaze.

“…Because I said I’d believe them.”

He could suspect, but he shouldn’t jump to conclusions.

Still, not even a minute after resolving to trust them, a whisper of doubt crawled back into his mind—What if they are hiding something?

Eventually, while walking down the stairs for a meal, Cielo stopped in place and roughly ran his fingers through his hair.

Rather than spiraling in doubt, maybe it was better to just ask them directly. Sol should know a lot about monsters and sacrifices.

Turning around, Cielo climbed the stairs again and headed for the room at the far end of the hallway.

“Are you inside?”

After knocking on the door twice, he heard a loud crash from within.

The door swung open moments later, and Sol and Pielago poked their heads out, staring straight at him.

“…W-what is it, Cielo?”

“Do you need us?”

Startled by their sudden appearance, Cielo took a few steps back, his eyes wide.

But then, through the open door, he noticed piles of books stacked inside the room.

“…What were you doing?”

“Oh, that…”

Cielo stepped past them into the room and looked at the books they had been reading.

They were filled with information about monsters and sacrificial rituals. Scattered beside them were sheets of parchment covered in scribbled notes.

“A way to escape the fate of being a sacrifice…”

Cielo’s eyes widened as he turned toward Sol.

Still standing awkwardly at the doorway, Sol met Cielo’s gaze and replied with a sheepish expression.

“…I figured that’s probably what’s worrying you the most right now. I don’t know the exact method yet, so I’ve been looking.”

“Ah…”

“We decided the first thing we needed to do was fix what we’ve done.”

At Sol’s words, Cielo slightly parted his lips. He felt guilty for having doubted them, even for a moment.

“Actually, I came because I wanted to ask you something.”

“You wanted to ask something? What is it?”

Sol’s eyes widened with joy as he answered. Part of him wanted to get closer, but he kept his distance, worried that Cielo might be afraid.

“I thought the pain only came when monsters were being summoned… but for some reason, it still hurts.”

He could still walk, so it wasn’t unbearable, but the persistent stabbing sensation was bothersome. Usually, when this happened, the pain would suddenly worsen all at once.