Stone Mage: Revenge of the Villain System

Ronin looked at the ruins that he created with his own hands. There was an odd sense of calming feeling to it.

Satisfaction was the closest he can compare it too. But also something more than that.

It was like the feeling you get when everything was in the proper place, the way it was always meant to be.

It was always meant to be like this. The world with no buildings and changes by humans, only chaotic nature.

He breath the air and stretched his limbs, He can feel Cermin still staring at him with worry from behind, his gaze boring through his skull.

“Your Highness. How did we get here?” He asked in a very calm tone that it was almost eerie.

Cermin could tell that something changed about him besides the physical changes. Yes, he was taller, and his body felt a bit harder and tougher now, not to mention all those Lichtenburg figures…

But besides that, Ronin doesn’t look and act completely human right now. There was a carefree and assured air to him that shouldn’t be how normal humans react to chaos.

So he asked first. “What did they to you, Ronin? When I passed out?”

Ronin could read all his thoughts. Since it has gone to this point with all his doubts…..

“They struck me, Your Highness. Changed something in me. I… I don’t think I’m the same Coal Commoner anymore. I feel stronger, but something’s wrong…”

He deceived as easily as he breathed. It was a moving performance, and Cermin wholeheartedly believed it.

Because all lies were better if there were some truth to them.

“I may have been turned partially into a daemon because of them.” Ronin told him regretfully. “They forced me to change.”

Cermin shook his head, tearing up a bit. “No…..”

He went to hug Ronin again. “We will fix this! Maybe the gods cam find a way to turn you back into a full human again! I won’t let you keep suffering because they made you into a daemon out of your will!”

Ronin did not react at the hug at all, staring into space.

This transformation was the worst thing that happened to him in Cermin’s eyes. But in his eyes, it was something to rejoice for.

Cermin went to tell him about what he woke up to. The world in disarray, his parents trying to escape to the Edge in a carriage.

“They are willing to abandon the people… And if they had known the truth, they would have…” Cermin gulped.

Ronin understood. “They would have abandoned me too, or worse.”

Cermin bit his lip. “I don’t regret staying here at all! I will never leave you behind!”

He looked at the lightning flowers growing around Ronin’s neck, and asked.

“Do you feel it….. Spreading? Are these lightning flowers a sign that you are becoming a daemon?”

Ronin was legitimately surprised by how he could easily deduce these things now by himself. His intellect had really improved.

Ronin nodded. “It still keeps on spreading. I can feel it. So, Your Highness, maybe one day….”

He acted scared. “You might leave me behind once I… I…..”

Cermin grabbed his shoulder. “No! Even if you become a full daemon, I will never leave you! I will still find a way to fix it!”

Ronin smiled, shedding fake tears.

“Thank you.”

But even when his tears were fake…..

There was still this odd stung in his heart.

For someone to say that, and you can tell that they truly mean it. That they will accept you no matter what, that they would never abandon you…..

It really was an odd feeling for Ronin.

He shook off the sting, and wiped his crocodile tears away. “What should we do now, Your Highness?”

“We must stop the daemons and save as much people as we can. Then, we’ll try to reach out to the gods for help. There’s a bigger threat beyond all this, the daemons are working for someone.” Cermin said.

His eyes were filled with determination, and his Main Objective showed up in front of him.

“We need to get them to admit who it was and bring us to their master. Then, we will defeat whoever it was.”

He gripped Ronin’s shoulder. “You and me. Together.”

Ronin smiled, but not because he was moved by his speech.

It was so ironic that he really thought that he would be sidekick when in fact, he was the villain by his side all along. Thinking that brotherhood and friendship can fix everything.

A very Min Cheng thing to say.

“We should ask the locals if they have seen any of the daemons. Pavone, Volken, Rabuka… That strange plague doctor.”

Cermin nodded. “From last I checked, we’re at the Kingdom of Himmelgard right now.”

“Right. Just beside Sephyrine.” Ronin scanned his surroundings.

Himmelgard was a kingdom known to experience a long of thunderstorms. Lightning attacks were not uncommon to the natives, but what they had experienced was amplified because of Ronin’s control of the Core.

They actually have a Mushroom Festival to celebrate the harvest of mushrooms, as of course where there’s lightning and thunderstorms, there’s always mushrooms..

They past by a large clearing full of them, large puffballs that stretched on and on. It wasn’t like this earlier, and the puffballs were not this large either.

“Be careful.” Cermin hold on to his hand. “I think there’s a nearby town overhead that’s still intact. I hope we can find a place to stay there too before night comes.”

Ronin nodded, but yanked his hand away. They avoided the mushrooms and made their way to the nearby town.

A part of the forest was burning, and they can see some figures trying to stop it. But no one was using water powers to douse it.

These were mostly Commoners after all. Many nobles hitched a ride on Griffons to selfishly escape to the Elementi and Mecha Realm below.

Ronin grinned. They can escape all they want, but Celestus was just the beginning.

He didn’t attack the lower realms yet because he would like to watch them run and have false hope. Having a false sense of security will make people more susceptible to mistakes and sleep contented, only for monsters under their beds to grab their feet while their asleep.

As they walked to the town, Ronin communicated to Kai telepathically.

‘I have a new skill, right?’

Kai responded with. [Thought you’d never ask.]

It showed his hologram screen, which Cermin could not see. Cermin was too busy scanning threats with his Sword of Solaire on hand anyway.

[Magmatic Rage

You now have the ability to increase you body temperature at will up to the point of boiling water. This is just the passive aspect of your skill.]

Ronin nodded. ‘Good, because that would have been really underwhelming as my first skill as an Anthracite. I’m guessing my active skill would be related to magma and lava?’

[Yes. You would be able to increase the temperature of the ground beneath you, and bring up earthquakes, geysers or break the ground itself to have magma rise.

However, this will bring you to a fit of rage and your sanity will drop during the activation of this skill. You would not be able to control where to bring out the geysers and fault lines without strong willpower, which would also cause a strain to your mind.

To activate it, simply draw the symbol of ‘eruption’ on your palm. Your body temperature automatically becomes at boiling point when you activate this skill.

At Level 50, you can only use this skill’s active status once per day, at the range of 50 meters. The passive skill, however, is indefinite and can be used whenever you please simply by focusing on your Flame. ]

Ronin was thrilled. It really was a much more powerful skill compared to what he had before.

But it was high risk too, with the aspect of going into blind rage whenever he activated it.

It was likely that his skills from now on as Anthracite will be like this too. In order to balance the power.

When they reached the town, the people were thrilled to see men dressed in fine clothing, assuming the were nobles here to help them put out the fire on the forest.

“Thank the heavens! Please, you must help us!” An old woman begged to them.

Cermin looked at the fire, and to his sword.

It was out of his power to fix this kind of issue. It was simply the need for sunlight…

“Everyone back away from the trees. I will take care of it.”

They suddenly heard a tall person in a blue dress spoke in a deep tone, and raised his hand…..

And crushed one of the beads he was holding.

“Blessed Demetri, grant this town a Minor Downpour.”

He threw the bead’s shard into the air…..

And a raincloud soon appeared over the area, dousing the Flame.

Cermin and Ronin did not have to see his face to guess who he was even with his back turned to them, talking to the townspeople that thanked him endlessly.

“Zeriav—“

As Cermin was about to call him, out…

Ronin pulled him into a narrow alley, pining him against the wall and covering his mouth.