The Villain's Story

Chapter 660: [660] Past Memories, Glimpsed Future.

‘Since when Askolt have such…fine air?’

Arken’s thoughts were muddled as he walked through the streets of Askolt, in the city square. It was a weird feeling.

He was being hit with waves of nostalgia he…honestly would have liked if he had forgotten. Life had changed, but he was still the same man. The place where he was standing on used to a war zone at first, filled with the macabre sight of corpses and blood, the stench of rotten meat and the occasional crows and rats eating dead bodies.

It was a pleasant change, but to one who remembered the day’s before, it was simply chaotic.

The war was still fresh in his mind, his horrific youth was gnawing at him as he roamed the streets he used as a place to dump bodies back in the day, of both demons and humans.

But now, it was a thriving area, skyscrapers everywhere, and small café’s and other shops. It was… unprecedented change to him. It may be memories of a past long forgotten by the city that brought him here, but there was still reason behind it.

He had left the car because he had sensed the presence of a few demonic humans following them. In reality, it was just gang members that were after Alan’s family, he got to them before Twilight’s agents did. T

He had come here to dispose of their bodies, but unfortunately, they had to remain in his spatial storage.

‘What an idiot I am…’

He really was, expecting there to be no change for decades. He hit his head and continued his walk, observing the city. Watching couples walking on the street, children holding the hands of their parents, even the teenagers who couldn’t walk without music being blasted in their heads all the time.

It was nauseating, but welcome.

Askolt had changed a lot since the days of the war, it was merely Oliver’s hometown back in the day, but now one could say it was humanity’s second capital city, right behind the fortress that was the Capitol.

It had the headquarters of the awakened association, twilight, and Shield’s main campus towards the side as well. It was a thriving…metropolis, as weird as the word was to him, it felt right.

Going over to one of the café’s, he ordered a cup of coffee and was almost about to pay with a mana crystal out of habit, but managed to pull out Oliver’s card in time. His unique attire garnered some attention, but most of it was dismissed once they realized how old he was. They thought he was a celebrity.

Well… he was a celebrity, but not the kind they were expecting to see in this area. Arken left the area quickly, and was planning to take a stroll around the city’s underground public transport system as he enjoyed his coffee.

His life was strange, he was too old for his own good now. He had witnessed the coming of the dungeons, the arrival of the demons, the war, and the current, fragile stalemate. Even before that, the great depression, the world wars, and a lot of other wild stuff.

The great awakening had given the older awakened their youth back, after all. He had even spent a majority of it slaughtering demons on Terra Damnum, consumed by rage.

‘Ptui!’

He spat out the expensive cup of coffee he just bought, lamenting.

“Olivia brews much better coffee…”

He really was missing that annoying squad, Lucas was the only one accompanying him, and even that lad was going to go to his family after some time, for business.

He didn’t mind it, but sensing the tensions of the world right now and the increasing number of wrinkle’s on Oliver’s face, he hoped he would be able to go on a trip with them before hell broke loose.

Sitting down on a public bench, he clenched his abdomen with gritted teeth and sighed.

Where would that trip even be? He had just the right idea, on Gigantium, of course! The planet was still new, and fresh. He would love the idea of him and his students, as rowdy and reckless as they were, going on a little camping trip.

They could hunt monsters they had never seen before, train, and enjoy. He would even bring Oliver in, even if his old friend had business to take care of, he would drag the man there for the fun of it.

Oliver had a tendency to go along with whatever he said after Hiro’s death, so he hoped he wouldn’t have to resort to the last measure. Still, he was sure it would be fun.

“How do people even drink this?”

He threw the cup of coffee in a waste bin, and continued on, breathing heavily for a moment before regaining his composure. He toured Askolt, leisurely, at his own pace.

The fields of flesh, blood, and misery were gone, replaced with high rise apartments, parks, and other nice things he didn’t bother listing.

Slowly and surely, Arken had to realize one thing.

Maybe he should have taught the rowdy bunch something other than fighting, maybe even handing them over to Oliver and making sure they actually studied. He didn’t have to worry about Olivia, but Alexander, Alan, and Lucas were different.

Lucas would survive, his training as a Huddleston and his familial connections would pull through, and Alan was pretty much the same, his connections to Twilight, and his superb skills would give him a good spot as well. If he got tired of fighting, he could always work at the café managed by his grandparents, or take care of his sister.

Alexander was the issue, he would have trouble…

‘Eh, I’m sure something would work out.’

The world had changed, it didn’t need killers at the moment, but rather people with creative minds to rebuild it, to make something new of the rapid changes and ruins it came from. Alexander wasn’t incompetent, he would find something to do. But Arken? All he knew was how to kill, and he was far too old to learn something new.

He was useless in the human world, for now.

‘Ah, here it is.’

Arken found the entrance to the subway, and just as he was about to walk down, he noticed something in the corner of his eye.