Ascension Of The Villain

It had been eight days. Just eight days since Vyan regained consciousness.

The green-capped man who had shot Vyan—the one who had hunted Adrian out of grief-twisted revenge—was finally behind bars. His name was Joshua Jackson.

No dramatic manhunt, no explosive standoff. In the end, it had been rather anticlimactic.

A face sketch and the clue of his romantic connection to the victim of Adrian's sexual assault case from two and a half months ago were enough to figure out his identity. It hadn't taken long after that.

Emma had caught him and got him arrested. She kept Vyan's involvement out of the official records. His existence, still an anomaly, couldn't afford to be scrutinized by the rest of her department. If it weren't for her own FBI badge, things could've taken a far darker turn. Vyan might have ended up in a lab, under fluorescent lights and sterile gloved hands… or simply deported into the void, thanks to his lack of an identity.

But for now… that danger had passed. That chapter was sealed.

And Vyan… he was learning how to live again.

He could walk now. Slowly, a little stiffly, but still, on his own two feet. Using the wheelchair had been frustrating. Physical therapy had pushed him to the edge, but his body had obeyed. He didn't complain. Pain was proof he was alive. And being alive was all he needed from this planet.

Running was still a far-off dream. Maybe he could manage it if he were chased by a bear, but it would hurt like hell.

A lot of his muscles had faded. He noticed it in the mirror. He had lost weight badly. He had already gone through a significant weight loss during the time when Iyana wouldn't wake up. But now, his health was worse.

Getting up from a coma was nothing like the daily soaps Elian and Julia watched in the evenings, where people woke up with full makeup and made dramatic runs.

No, reality was crueler. It was waking up and forgetting how to move your legs. It was falling during your first steps. It was a body that didn't move as swiftly as it used to, and hands that trembled when they should've burned with fire.

But he endured it all with quiet grit. Because he had something most of those daily soap characters didn't.

He had confidence in himself.

He could gain the muscles back. As much as he liked to be a lazy mage, he could pull off anything he put his mind to. So, getting back in shape would be no hassle. He could regain control. Everything he had lost, he could fight for it again. He just had to try. He could fall, so what? He could rise again.

Vyan stood quietly in the guest room. It was the same room he had stayed in at the Evans before he had fallen into a coma. He only got discharged yesterday and returned here.

It had been for the best that he was treated at the hospital during his coma. His condition had required constant care. Machines, medication, and trained professionals. That level of attention would've been impossible in the Evans household, especially with children running around.

Still, they never left him behind.

Emma, Adrian, the kids, Julia—at least one of them visited him regularly, without fail. Emma and Adrian always made sure he was being properly looked after. They had even managed to protect his identity through it all, telling the hospital he was Adrian's younger brother, that they had merely lost his driver's license and his previous medical files. It wasn't exactly the truth, but it worked. Seeing the similarity between Adrian and Vyan, nobody would doubt it.

And of course, there was the matter of the bills. Vyan hadn't had any insurance. But Adrian hadn't hesitated. He covered everything without a word of bragging or complaint. After all, Vyan had saved his children's lives. For Adrian, that debt could never be repaid. For Vyan, though… it still made him feel uneasy.

He'd already used up all the money he had when he first arrived. There wasn't anything left he could give. Nothing he could offer them in return.

But Adrian had simply told him, "Vyan, I might not be as wealthy as a Grand Duke of a big empire, but I'm quite well-off by the standards of this world, so don't worry about it. It barely made a difference in my bank balance, and even if it was a very big amount, I still wouldn't have hesitated."

It eased Vyan a little.

And then there was the trip, the summer vacation they never got to take. They were planning on going on a tour to another country while Elian still had his summer vacation, but it never happened. Because of him.

When he'd brought it up, feeling guilty, Emma had brushed it off with a smile. "It's alright," she'd said. "We can always go next year. Elian's school is starting in a week anyway."

Elian was going to be in first grade already. Time really did move fast.

Vyan sighed. The room around him was warm, but a quiet ache sat in his chest. His stay here had lasted longer than anyone could've predicted.

These people—kind strangers who had no reason to help him—had opened their home and hearts without hesitation.

Their kindness changed something within him. It softened parts of his heart that were cold and apathetic towards strangers. But after receiving kindness from said strangers, it made him see the world in a different light.

Perhaps, he'd try to be kinder in nature when he got back home.

Shaking his head lightly, Vyan reached for the clothes he had arrived in, folded neatly at the back of the closet. The jewel buttons were missing on it, but Vyan had sewn back some normal buttons on it. Yes, he knew how to stitch, thanks to Iyana; she had taught him back when he was still her personal knight.

He wasn't going to put those clothes on to avoid attracting any attention, but he was going to take them in his backpack to wear them later on. As he pulled the clothes out, something slipped from between the folds and clinked softly onto the shelf.

A mana stone.

The one Clyde had given him before Vyan had gone back in time in a desperate attempt to rewrite fate.

He stared at it for a long moment.

It wasn't that he had forgotten about the mana stone entirely. He'd tried using it after arriving here, of course. But it hadn't worked. And he was mostly sure that it wouldn't work in this world. There was no mana here to respond to it.

Still… he picked it up again and slid it into his pocket. Who knew? Maybe, somehow, it would be useful.

With a soft breath, he closed the closet, then turned and glanced around the room one last time. It had held him in a time of weakness. It had sheltered his silence and pain. Now, it was time to let it go.

He stepped out and gently closed the door behind him.

Ahead, he saw Emma in front of the entryway, holding Amy in her arms. Elian stood beside her. His amber eyes lit up the second he saw Vyan. Without waiting, the little boy ran up.

Vyan bent down to meet the hug, steadying himself against the ache in his healing body, and wrapped his arms around the boy.

"You have to be careful, Daddy's twin, okay?" Elian said seriously, his voice muffled against Vyan's shoulder.

A smile tugged at Vyan's lips. He rubbed the boy's back gently. "Yeah. I will."

Elian pulled back just slightly, looking up at him with a kind of solemn sincerity only children could manage. "When you get back home," he advised, "you should get married to the girl you love and live happily ever after."

Vyan chuckled softly, touched. "I'll be sure to do that."

The boy smiled, then stepped back with a tilt of his head. "Did I tell you that I was really happy to meet you? It was great having you around."

Vyan's throat felt a little tighter than he expected. He nodded slowly, smiling through it. "Me too," he said quietly. "Thank you for making me feel at home… even in a place that isn't my home."

Emma gave him a warm smile, and Amy reached out toward him with a babble. And something about it—about all of them—settled into a deep place inside him.

He hadn't even been with them that long. A few weeks, maybe. And the remaining time, he'd been unconscious in a hospital bed. But the bond he had with them, it didn't feel shallow or rushed. It felt real.

It was strange, wasn't it? Peculiar and wonderful. How deep a connection could be formed in such a short span of time.

And as he had been preparing to leave, Vyan realized… this place might not be his world. But these people and these moments had become a part of his story forever.

Footsteps echoed lightly down the stairs, and Vyan glanced up just as Adrian appeared.

"You ready to leave?"

Vyan gave a soft nod. He stood slowly, offering Elian one last head ruffle. The boy grinned up at him, and Vyan felt a pang tug at his chest. He didn't want to linger; it would only make leaving harder, but parting always had a way of stealing time, stretching moments.

He turned toward Emma, who held Amy snug in her arms.

Amy.

Her cheeks were a little fuller now. Her hair had grown in soft, wispy curls that framed her round face. Babies really grow so fast.

Vyan reached out and gently brushed a strand from her forehead. She looked at him, blinking slowly like she always did when studying someone, then surprised him by murmuring, "Dada… take care."

His smile came unbidden, touched by wonder and affection. She'd always known, somehow. Maybe not with words, but with instinct that Adrian and Vyan weren't the same. And yet, she called them both "Dada" with the same innocent love.

"I will," he said softly. "You too, okay? I hope you always stay healthy and never fall sick. You're already so amazing and so sweet... I hope you grow up to be even more amazing, and even sweeter, Amelia."

Amy's mouth curved in a wide smile.

Emma laughed gently at that.

Vyan looked at her and then sighed in a helpless sort of way, lips quirking upward. "And what do I even say to you?"

Emma chuckled through the shimmer of unshed tears and pulled him into a warm side hug. "Just take care. That'll be enough for me. You seem to have a tendency to get into trouble, anyway."

Vyan laughed under his breath. "Can't deny that."

He stepped back slightly, his eyes lingering on her face for a second longer. "Thanks… for taking care of me all this time. You're really far too kind."

Emma shrugged it off playfully, her eyes glinting through the wetness. "Well, I wouldn't exactly say I'm far too kind. You should just be glad you look like my husband. I've got a weakness for that face."

He grinned. "I guess I should thank my parents for that."

Then, after a small pause, he added, a little quieter, "Speaking of which… could you please tell Julia to not hate me? I won't be able to contact her again because you know…"

Before Emma could respond, Adrian's voice came in. "Don't worry about it. Mom will never hate you. She might be mad, yeah, but we'll make up something. Leave that to us. Her prayers will always be with you."

Vyan met his gaze and gave him a grateful nod. "Thanks."

His eyes swept over them all one last time—Emma still holding Amy close, Elian standing near with that earnest face, and Adrian just behind them, arms loosely folded.

Vyan let the silence stretch for a heartbeat, memorizing this little picture of a life that was never truly his, but had somehow carved a place in his heart anyway.

Someday… I'll have a family like that, won't I? A smile sneaked its way to his face at the thought. I'll look forward to that.

"That's it, then," Vyan said softly, almost to himself. "I should get going now. Goodbye."