The Return Of The Exiled Villain

The atmosphere at the table instantly shifted.

All the girls, Maelis, Selene, Selina, Claire, and even Lira, slowly turned their heads toward Gray. Their gazes were sharp, suspicious, and filled with dangerous curiosity.

Lyra, who had been happily nuzzling into his chest just seconds ago, suddenly stiffened.

The flush on her cheeks completely disappeared as she slowly lifted her head. Her emerald eyes, which had been soft and loving, now carried a chilling intensity.

”...Who is that bitch?”

Her voice rumbled low, filled with a suffocating killing intent that made the air feel heavy. Even the drunk Ronan shivered.

The golden strands in her ponytail seemed to glow faintly.

The entire table froze.

Except Gray, who remained perfectly calm. He gently cupped Lyra’s cheek with one hand, turning her face so she was forced to look directly into his eyes.

”I only love you, Lyra.”

The words were spoken softly, but clearly.

Shine...

The truth spell flickered slightly... then glowed silently, confirming that his words were completely true.

Everyone at the table stared in shock.

Before anyone could react or ask further, Gray continued calmly.

”That happened because Ronan’s magic power is a lot lower than mine, causing random fluctuations when I speak. Since I automatically circulate my mana in every action I make, it interferes with weak spells like this.”

He raised his finger and traced a few simple letters in the air.

A faint glint of his powerful mana appeared, clearly visible to everyone. The difference in control and density was obvious even to the drunk group.

”So don’t mistake me, Lyra,” he said gently, still cupping her cheek. ”If I liked anyone else, I would have told you already.”

Lyra stared into his eyes for a long moment.

The suffocating killing intent slowly faded from her expression. The golden glow in her eyes dimmed as she bit her lower lip, then slowly nodded.

”...Okay,” she whispered, her voice much softer now. She buried her face back into his chest, clinging to him even tighter than before.

”I believe you... but if you ever lie to me, I really will chain you up...”

The tension at the table eased slightly, though the girls were still watching Gray with suspicious eyes, especially Maelis and Selene.

”Man... I thought we were about to witness a murder for a second there.” Ronan scratched his head, smiling wryly.

”Same...” Selina laughed nervously.

Adrian just sighed deeply, looking done with the entire night, while Leon silently clicked his tongue, turning his head away from the group.

But surprisingly... the one that was the most confused was undoubtedly Gray.

Of course... the words he just said were a complete lie, but just viable for them to trust him. The question was...

’...Who do I like besides Lyra? Probably Selene... right?’

If Gray said that he was completely aware of his feelings, that would be an obvious lie since Gray had only fallen in love a few times.

And only by direct confrontation was he able to realize that he actually had such a mundane feeling.

Before the atmosphere could grow any heavier, Gray spoke up calmly.

”Maybe we should stop the game here,” he said, gently stroking Lyra’s hair as she clung to him.

”Any more questions and Lyra might actually erupt.”

The table fell silent for a beat, then burst into nervous laughter.

”Haha... yeah, good call,” Selina said, forcing a smile while glancing at Lyra warily.

”She does look like a ticking bomb right now...” Maelis nodded quickly.

Even Ronan, still half-drunk, raised both hands in surrender.

”I don’t wanna die tonight!”

They all understood.

When Lyra was with Gray, she became extremely possessive, almost like a different person.

And after being forcibly separated from him for nearly half a year, her emotions were running dangerously high.

Gray stood up, effortlessly lifting Lyra into a princess carry. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled into his chest with a contented sigh, already half-asleep.

”Night everyone,” Gray said with a small nod before heading toward the exit.

He then directed himself towards the girl dormitories, and since the dorm girls at the entrance already knew Lyra was his girlfriend, none of them tried to stop him even when they saw him carrying her.

A few of them, however, gave him suggestive looks.

”Gray~ If you’re feeling lonely tonight, we can extend your stay here, you know? We have plenty of empty rooms...” One bold senior smiled playfully.

Another girl leaned against the wall, batting her eyelashes.

”Or you could stay with one of us... we don’t mind sharing~”

Gray shook his head politely, smiling lightly.

”Thank you, but I’m fine. Have a good night.”

He continued walking without stopping, carrying the sleeping Lyra all the way to her dormitory room.

Once inside, he calmly laid her down on her bed, pulling the blanket over her gently. He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

”Sleep well, Lyra.”

With that, he turned and quietly left the room, closing the door behind him.

The moment the door clicked shut, Lyra’s eyes slowly opened.

She touched the spot on her forehead where he had kissed her, a soft, longing smile blooming on her lips as her emerald eyes shimmered with affection.

”...Why didn’t he stay?” she mumbled quietly, turning over in her covers and hugging her spare pillow tightly.

She stayed silent for a long moment, then waved her hand. A soft glow enveloped her body as she dispelled the drunkenness with ease, instantly clearing her mind.

Her thoughts returned to the truth spell from earlier.

Although she had been drunk at the time, she could still remember every word clearly.

Gray’s statement, that he only loved her, had been confirmed by the spell... but something about the double flash still bothered her.

Although his words could be true... they could also be a lie, but since Ronan was the one who made the spell...

”...He might be telling the truth,” she whispered to herself, nodding slowly as her lips curled into a faint smile.

”But if I find out that he isn’t...”

Her eyes narrowed dangerously, the smile turning into something much more sinister.

”...I can always~ chain him to me~”

She giggled mischievously, hugging the pillow tighter as she buried her face into it.

Honestly, if Gray had been anywhere close enough to hear those words, he would have probably shivered.

Lyra was indeed becoming scarier by the day.

...

After leaving Lyra’s dormitory, Gray walked out of the academy grounds and stopped in the open courtyard just beyond the main gate.

The night was quiet, and the air felt cool and crisp. He stood there alone, hands in his pockets, tilting his head back to look up at the sky.

Countless stars shimmered softly above, scattered like diamonds across a vast, dark canvas.

For a long moment, he simply stared at them, letting the gentle night breeze brush against his face.

Then, he closed his eyes.

A faint sigh escaped his lips as he reached into his dimensional storage and pulled out a thick, weathered book.

Its cover was dark leather, with bold, bold letters etched across the front.

”Demons To Kill.”

Based on the vast knowledge he had absorbed from Dantes, Gray now knew the precise locations, strengths, and future movements of every troublesome demon currently active in the world.

He wasn’t a hero.

He didn’t particularly care if the world burned, as long as his friends and lovers remained safe.

But it was precisely because of that selfish desire that he needed to start moving.

Some demons were too dangerous to leave alive. Their existence could one day threaten the people he cared about.

Of course, slaughtering them openly would undoubtedly draw Hell’s attention... but after already attracting the interest of the Abyss, Gray found that he no longer cared much about Hell’s opinion.

”...Unfortunately, I’ll need to leave a few of them alive,” he mumbled quietly to himself.

”They’re the ones who’ll give my dear friends their ’enlightenment’ moments.”

It was one of those classic tropes. His companions, on the brink of death, suddenly gaining a massive power-up and dramatically defeating the demon.

The problem was that Gray couldn’t trust those moments anymore. The difficulty of the world had increased dramatically because of his interference.

Even though Lyra’s power had grown exponentially, far beyond what she should have possessed at this stage in the original story, it still wasn’t enough.

”If she uses God’s Descent, she can handle High-tier demons,” Gray muttered.

”But in her normal state, she can only reliably fight Mid-tier ones. Against Low Nobles, Mid Nobles, or High Nobles... even Gloria herself wouldn’t be able to do much.”

He paused, then asked inwardly.

”And according to you, my old professor was at the level of a lower god, right?”

Jasmine’s voice echoed calmly in his mind.

[That is true... but also not really. For some reason, the concepts themselves have deteriorated over time. His power would not even reach 1% of a true low god.]

She continued after a brief pause.

[From what I’ve observed... I’d say the Early Sovereign Realm is roughly 60% of a Low God’s power. The Peak of the Sovereign Realm should be around 75%.]

”...That means an Early Monarch should be the full power of a Low God?” Gray asked.

[If that’s the name of the next realm, then yes. But I’m not entirely sure, since I’ve never seen a Monarch Realm existence yet.]

Gray nodded thoughtfully.

The existences in the Monarch Realm only appeared in the mid-stages of the original novel, when Gloria Academy suffered a devastating attack from a Low Noble demon.

The academy had nearly been destroyed, only to be saved by Gloria’s Master, an existence at the Peak of the Monarch Realm.

He was the first ever character to be introduced as an existence in the Monarch Realm.

Deep in thought, Gray flipped open the book and slowly ran his finger down the list of names.

He stopped on one particular entry.

”...You’ll be my first target.”