A Regressed Villain: Heroines, Villainesses and Me?

Inside one of the hotel rooms in the presidential suite, two individuals were seated as they dressed themselves.

One was a man with silver hair and striking blue eyes, who adjusted his suit while tightening his belt.

The other was a woman wearing a stylish white shirt and jeans.

Her undergarments were a mess, so she opted to wear her jeans and shirt instead, tossing the discarded items into a nearby dustbin.

"I see. What titles did you come across regarding me?" Avendial asked, nodding thoughtfully as he considered taking a bath after they finished.

He knew that Aecilia could arrive at any moment.

Meanwhile, Aria focused on gathering details about the unusual abilities she possessed.

"It was the Marquess, Regressed Villain, The Black Vessel, and the Cursed One," Aria replied.

Having regained some control over her mind and feeling much calmer now, she reflected on her physical condition, which had healed without discomfort.

However, she couldn't ignore the sensation of her clothes against her skin—the rough fabric of her jeans brushing against still-sensitive areas served as a potent reminder of the intensity of their previous night, in which her undergarments had become casualties.

There was a palpable hint of anger within her, but with her mind more settled, she recognized that all the secrets kept from her were not solely for mere pleasure.

Guilt began to wash over her; she felt selfish for not reciprocating his feelings, mirroring her own past actions with Lin, who had behaved similarly over the years.

Suddenly, a wave of recognition washed over Avendial as the mention of "Vessel" stirred memories rooted deeply within him.

He pressed his hand against his heart, exhaling slowly to calm himself.

'What the?!' Aria thought, her gaze snapping to Avendial as she noticed his heartbeat spike dramatically before gradually returning to a calmer rhythm.

Her eyes narrowed, settling on his face, which bore a familiar calmness, betraying nothing of the impact that the title had on him.

However, she knew from the rise in his heart rate that he was aware of what the term meant, and it clearly stirred emotions within him—feelings of fear, anger, and hatred.

"What did my abilities say?" Avendial asked, adjusting his collar as he took a seat on the bed to put on his shoes.

He was eager to learn what had been recorded about him.

"It stated NULL in that section... along with 'cursed'," Aria replied, feeling perturbed.

His apparent negative luck seemed to emphasize the notion of his villainous title, prompting a surge of empathy within her.

She recognized the similarities between their fates—both were devastated by circumstances beyond their control, trapped in destinies tinted black.

However, the implication of being 'cursed' weighed heavily on her, reminding her that despite calming herself after the events of the previous night, the memories lingered, filled mostly with the words he had spoken and her embarrassing moments.

At that moment, he seemed remarkably similar to her.

There wasn't much distinction between them; he, too, attempted to emulate the actions she would have taken towards Lynn, yet he would never have received any appreciation for it.

Now she found herself acting selfishly, even after he had extended so many favors to her, displaying the same resentfulness that made her loathe herself for not being able to genuinely reciprocate his feelings.

Deep down, she recognized that she had indeed fallen for him, yet she couldn't shake the feeling that no matter how hard she tried, her love would never measure up to his.

She was constantly aware that despite everything, he still chose to be with her, which left her feeling restless and consumed by self-doubt, questioning whether she truly deserved him.

"I see, so there hasn't been any mention of which curse, has there?" Avendial remarked, occasionally observing her body language as he tied his shoelaces.

It was evident to him that she was grappling with her thoughts, though he didn't particularly care whether her emotions were sincere or not.

All he needed was her loyalty—not a boundless, passionate love.

Even if he desired it deep down, he understood he could never love someone fully, constrained as he was by the curses inscribed in his fate.

What he required was her presence by his side, like a subordinate receiving slight care and kindness from its master.

"There is a 'see more' option, but whenever I click on it, it keeps displaying a message like—" Aria explained, her forefinger hovering over the touchscreen as she tapped on the status window in front of her.

╔─━━━━━━━━━░★░━━━━━━━━━─╗

Insufficient level of Synergy to check Curse awakening condition.

╚─━━━━━━━━━░★░━━━━━━━━━─╝

"Insufficient Synergy?" Avendial pondered her words as he stood, looking at her and realizing that her unique ability was not without its drawbacks.

The main issue seemed to be a lack of synergy levels, which impeded her ability to clearly communicate the awakening conditions or other vital information without sufficient synergy.

As he contemplated this, he kept his gaze locked on hers, noticing a strange change; her eyes, typically a natural black, were beginning to take on a reddish hue—specifically, her pupils were turning red.

Gagan Srivastava also observed this oddity, recognizing that after undergoing a double awakening, various changes occurred within the body.

However, he chose to focus on the more pressing problem at hand.

Unlike evolvers, who could synthesize Synergy at will, imperials with vacant abilities faced a significant challenge: they had no straightforward way to collect Synergy.

Their bodies were already bonded with their abilities, making it arduous for them to practice using Synergy effectively.

While it wasn't impossible for imperials to generate Synergy, the central issue was that until the tower arrived, there were no means to access a sufficiently dense amount of Synergy for one to feel its presence pulsating in the air.

In contrast, evolvers possessed heightened sensitivity; even now, in this current environment, they could easily sense the Synergy surrounding them.

For imperials, the scenario was different.

Although their bodies could draw upon Synergy when their abilities were activated, they still faced limitations.

The volume of Synergy they could utilize depended significantly on their surroundings.

For instance, when Aria activated her appraisal ability, it relied on the Synergy within a radius of perhaps 10 to 20 meters around her.

Given the scarcity of Synergy in her immediate area, she was naturally at a disadvantage, lacking sufficient resources to employ her appraisal ability at an advanced level.

Of course, there were solutions like those energy crystals developed in Croceaus territory, which could hold Synergy for a limited time.

However, these solutions were not permanent.

The complexity of the situation weighed on Avendial's mind as he heard the faint click of the door within the room.

Krrieeek

Soon enough, the door creaked open, revealing a woman with cold, piercing eyes — Aecilia, who had a master key to the room.

Behind her followed another woman who bore a striking resemblance to Aecilia.

Yet, while Aecilia epitomized the traditional allure of femininity with black lipstick and a nonchalant demeanor, complemented by her cascading black hair and dark purple nightgown adorning her curves, this second woman contrasted sharply with her tomboyish appearance: she had short, tousled grey hair and wore a confident smirk while dressed in a jogging coat and dress.

"Leave the room right now," Aecilia commanded as she stepped inside. Her golden eyes were cold, and her face showed no hint of expression as she looked towards Aria.