The SSS Ranked Villain's Return

"Liza, I'm the Oracle, and as I've said before, I can see some messages right before the round starts," Neraxis said calmly. "This time, I received a message stating that number 12 was the Whisperer, so I acted on it."

"S-So you got tricked... and then massacred all those people?" she asked warily. "I-I'm sorry, but I don't want to die here."

Liza tried pushing him aside, but Neraxis held her arms in place, letting out a sigh.

That was—

[Yep, you lost control,] Evangeline finished. [Drinking the blood of one person is fine, but when you had more than one, that's where it begins to get troublesome. It's especially the case for you since you don't have any mana, meaning nothing was blocking you from doing that.]

Seems like it, and now it's too late to kill the Whisperer. If I leave Liza unattended, she's just going to press the button and get me killed, Neraxis grumbled.

It was the first time since his Eclipse days that he had lost control and killed so many people.

Especially when the real enemy was right in front of him.

"You're not holding up so well, number 14," number 25 remarked, the same smile from earlier still on her face.

There was definitely one possibility he could try, and that was knocking Liza down and making a run for the Whisperer.

If he could kill her quickly, then the trial would be finished.

However, since the Warden couldn't be killed, what if the only way he could get rid of the Whisperer was by voting her out?

What a pain... Neraxis thought and glanced back into Liza's eyes.

"Whether you believe me or not, I want you to know one thing." He pointed at number 25. "Her appearance changed each round, and I only now remembered."

"Her appearance changed?" Liza tilted her head. "I can check the footage to see if you're right...?"

"Footage?" Neraxis's brows twitched. "You had access to cameras this entire time?"

"Only one." She pointed above the table, where a single metal beam stood.

Upon a closer look, Neraxis saw a tiny camera at its tip.

Then, he watched as Liza began tapping the air, and soon, a massive interface appeared in the very middle, showing the recording of all the rounds so far.

She trembled as she scrolled past his killing spree until eventually reaching the first round—right when everyone had first arrived.

It was full of people, but one thing did stand out.

Number 25, with her casual black hair and eyes.

She wasn't different, and as Liza noticed that, she flashed him an accusatory glare.

"Check the next round," Neraxis stated, not looking away.

And she did. She checked the next and the next until finally, they reached the present.

Of course, nothing stood out—not at first glance, anyway.

"Check round three," Neraxis said in a cold voice, making Liza flinch.

Nonetheless, she did just that—opening the round three recording again.

He paid attention to number 25, and it was just as he thought.

Her eyes were not black—they were gray, likely mimicking the person beside her who had gray eyes.

But as Neraxis glanced at Liza, he noticed she hadn't caught on.

"Liza," he got her attention, "pause the video and look closely."

She glanced back at him in confusion before doing just that.

Even after several minutes, she still found nothing.

If the timer hadn't been paused, I would've been fucked already, Neraxis thought with a sigh.

So, he grabbed her hand and, using her own finger, pointed straight at number 25—specifically, her eyes.

As he did, Liza flinched, glancing at both him and number 25.

"What if that's a camera glitch?" Liza denied. "You know, what if—"

Neraxis stopped listening to her blabbering and turned to number 25 before flashing a glare.

"Your eye color is different."

"So what?" Number 25 tilted her head. "Have you never heard of lens flare?"

"Sure, if that's really the case," Neraxis shrugged and decided to finally use his trump card.

On the monitor, there was a tiny mini-map showing the locations of everyone inside the prison.

Surprisingly, the red dot that should've shown her was nowhere to be seen.

Using Liza's finger earlier, he had also pointed to the map, making sure not to overlap so number 25 wouldn't notice.

But now, their suspicions were confirmed.

Therefore, Neraxis did the one logical thing and glanced at Liza one last time.

"I'm a vampire, not the Whisperer. My urges for blood are still uncontrolled, and if anything, what just happened now only happened because I couldn't use mana to restrain myself."

Despite that, he pressed on the air and selected number 25.

<Vote Cast>

The votes were now 1 against him and 1 against the Whisperer.

He could see the naivety practically begging Liza to press on his name, but instead, she glanced at number 25, a resolved look on her face.

"Are you the Whisperer?"

Number 25 shook her head. "No, dear, but I can assure you, number 14 is—"

Before she could finish her words, Liza pressed one button in the air.

In the very next moment, a few messages appeared.

<Congratulations, you've found the Whisperer!>

<Number 25, The Guardian of Stone's protection has been removed, and she may now be eliminated.>

<Solaris Tower - 4th Floor Elite Mode: Trial of the Twin Suns>

<Phase Three: Kill the Guardian of Stone>

"Tch," number 25 clicked her tongue, and as she did, her black hair turned into weird snakes, dancing around wildly.

Her previously well-proportioned body soon followed suit, morphing into weird shapes until finally, the only things that remained of her former self were her dull black eyes.

"I didn't expect you to find me out. Dear insects, you shall be killed in the honor of the Sun God."

"Is that so?" Neraxis replied nonchalantly and took a deep breath.

Being without mana for a while was more taxing than he thought.

And now that it was back, there was only one thing left to do.

He summoned his sword, pulled it back, and then, with a simple yet powerful thrust, he used {Expert Stab} and {Atomic Stab} at the same time.

As he did, the Guardian of Stone didn't even have a chance to react, as his Aura spread forward, cutting the snakes in two until eventually, his thrust reached her neck.

With a simple, soundless stab, a hole appeared in her neck.

Of course, it soon stretched into more, as her head began leaning sideways until ripping clean off her neck and dropping to the floor with a thud.

[1x (S- Ranked Chimera) Medusa, The Guardian of Stone Slain! Reward: Stigmata 82.17% → 83.17%]

<Role Distribution: 1 Warden; 0 Citizens; 1 Oracle; 1 → 0 Whisperer>

All that shit just to be so weak, Neraxis scoffed, as he could feel all his strength returning.

Yet as he turned back to Liza, he was met with her whimpering in a corner.

I really scared her, didn't I? he thought, scratching his cheek.

Nonetheless, she wasn't someone he cared much about, and soon, the clearing notifications appeared.

[Solaris Tower - 4th Floor Elite Mode: Trial of the Twin Suns - Complete]

[Climber: Neraxis Valen]

[Current Progress: 5/10 Floors]

[Solaris Tower - 6th Floor Elite Mode: Temple of the Sun God - Available]

[Do you wish to enter?]

[Yes/No]

What? The sixth floor? And it counts the fifth floor as cleared? Did I skip it somehow...?

Despite his concerns, Neraxis took one last glance around the bloodstained prison, before pressing "Yes."

It took a little longer to transport him this time, yet as he appeared, the sight of the massive sun in the sky emerged, followed by...

"H-Huh? Why am I here...?"

Liza.

You've got to be kidding me.