I Enrolled as the Villain
Chapter 35: Before Fire And Rain Fall

Chapter 35: Before Fire And Rain Fall

Time passed. A few days had gone by.

And now... it was Stronghold Day.

I woke up to find my dorm in chaos a quiet chaos. Servants moved in and out like shadows, hands full of materials and equipment meant for the Valery students.

Their faces were slick with sweat, their eyes restless from lack of sleep... yet none of them spoke a word to me.

They stayed hidden in their work, as if my presence alone was enough to keep them silent.

If I tried to help now, I’d only make things worse. A single disruption could throw the staff into confusion and they couldn’t afford that, not today.

So I left them behind. And walked toward the training room alone.

Inside, the air was still. Heavy.

I raised a hand, palm outstretched toward the wall in front of me.

Mana flowed.

Not gentle — not calm.

I pushed. I imagined pushing everything away from me the world, the weight, the past.

Then—

Click.

A pulse snapped through my palm — invisible, but brutal.

Boom!.

The wall cracked with a deep, violent scar.

Splinters of stone flew out as pure force ruptured the surface, shaking the floor beneath.

I took a breath.

Then, I reversed it. Same mana. But different intent.

This time, I pulled.

Not outward but inward.

Toward the Eye.

A different kind of pressure formed, like silence bending in on itself.

Shhh.

A low hum whispered from my palm.

And suddenly the fractured wall, the broken stone, the debris still in the air all of it shifted.

Dragged.

Drawn back toward me. Like gravity had reversed.

Then I stopped.

Lowered my hand. And the room fell still again.

Alongside my projection-like ability the same one I used against the Elder Council I now had good control over my shrink-and-enlarge technique.

I picked up a small rock and enlarged it instantly. It hit the floor with a staggering crash, the stone expanding midair until it shattered the tile beneath.

Then there was Rejection — my power to push everything away from me, violently if needed.

And its counterpart, Acceptance — the force that pulled everything back with just as much intensity.

With these tools, I was ready.

My plan to win the Stronghold?

It’s complicated — especially with the rain and fire mechanics in play. But I’ve accounted for them.

And I can’t shrink modern technology or war-grade weapons — not because I lack the ability, but because it’s illegal to bring Class-A or militarized equipment into Stronghold events. The academy monitors all dimensional compression signatures above a certain mana threshold.

Even if I could slip it past detection, most tech-based weapons require calibration, external power sources, or neural syncing — things I can’t afford to set up under real-time pressure.

Besides... this isn’t a war. Not yet. And showing up with something that belongs on a battlefield would send the wrong message.

But what I could do... was help.

I stepped out of the training room and made my way toward the loading bay outside the dormitories, where several modern floating trucks were stationed engines humming softly, lights blinking in rhythm with system scans.

Too bad space storage was still so rare. Expensive, restricted, and monopolized by only the wealthiest organizations. Even Valery didn’t have enough to equip everyone.

A nearby student noticed me. "S-Sir Kael? You don’t have to come here, it’s—"

"It’s fine," I said, cutting gently. "I just want to help."

I approached one of the largest boxes a crate filled with gear, reinforcement tools, rations, and structural components meant to patch up our Stronghold. The broken Stronghold we’d inherited

I heard whispers behind me.

"Not only do we have to carry the bare minimum of food and weapons... now we’re dragging that thing, too?"

Another voice sighed. "What can we do? It’s for the House."

"Yeah, I get it... doesn’t make it any lighter, though."

I walked past them without a word. Calm. Focused. My presence cut the noise without effort.

I stopped in front of the largest crate.

Raised my hand.

My left eye pulsed the Mythrigan flaring purple.

And in an instant...

The crate vanished. Instantly

Then the next. And the next

One after another, the supplies compressed into invisible fragments stored within a layered fold of space and energy, anchored to my palm like an unseen gravity.

Gasps followed.

"Wh—"

One of the students stepped forward. "Sir Kael, not to offend but—"

"Don’t worry," I said calmly. "I’ll carry it."

And I walked past them silently, eyes forward, the weight of the house now tucked into my hand.

————

I stood at the podium inside the Velvet Eye’s private chamber.

Half of my students were here the ones selected to compete.

As they entered the room, their posture was perfect. Too perfect. Every step aligned, every motion stiff with discipline.

But then—

Thud.

One bumped into the doorway. Another stumbled into the student ahead.

A couple staggered slightly as if their legs weren’t fully steady.

Small mistakes but too many to ignore.

When they sat, their bodies dropped hard into the seats. Like they were holding it together just long enough to pass inspection. And even then, their expressions didn’t change. Still composed. Still trying to look perfect.

They didn’t want to admit how tired they were.

Because this house... it’s trained to fear weakness.

Its better to stay silent than risk disappointing a superior.

Now they sat, quiet, eyes forward waiting for me to speak.

Since they were so desperate to hold on to the illusion of perfection, I let them.

I pretended I didn’t notice.

I took a breath, gripped the mic lightly, and glanced at the piece of paper someone had handed me earlier.

The speech written on it was neat. Polished. Safe. The kind of thing a leader was supposed to say full of encouragement and empty words. Pleasant enough to hear. Easy to forget.

I scanned the opening lines silently.

"This world was not created equal. Some are born to follow. We were born to lead."

"As the Eye of Valery, we do not ask for permission. We do not explain. We endure, we execute, and we excel. The weak shall adapt or be forgotten."

"Do not fear the path ahead fear what stands in our way."

I stared at it for a moment. Then folded the paper once. Then again.

I didn’t tear it.

I just set it aside on the podium.

That wasn’t me. Not anymore.

My eye moved across the room. I didn’t glance — I saw them. Really saw them

Tired faces hiding behind pride. Eyes trained to stare straight ahead, not because they were ready but because they were afraid of looking lost.

I took a deep breath.

Gripped the mic. Let the silence stretch just long enough.

And then... I spoke.

"Back when I was a child, everyone said I was born to lead — to command Valery to the front of the world, to carry it all the way to the edge of history.

And then what?

We became the most powerful House. We saw everything — the past and the future.

But at what cost?

Like a mother so focused on the future she dreams for her child—

That she forgets to see the hunger in his eyes today.

She speaks of greatness, of legacy, of what he might become...

But never asks if he’s warm. If he’s safe. If he’s loved.

We became the same.

We looked so far ahead into time, into power, into glory—

That we forgot the ones right in front of us.

The child needed a hand, not a prophecy.

The flower needed water, not a monument.

We chased fate.

We tried to see the next century, read the stars, bend the world and in doing so, we forgot to live in the one thing we ever truly had.

Now.

This breath.

This floor beneath us.

This aching body and beating heart.

We don’t walk in prophecy. We walk in dirt, blood, and choices.

So no I don’t care what the Eye shows me ten years from now.

I care about you.

Right here. Right now.

You’re not machines. You’re not gods.

You’re mine. My blood.

And you’ve bled in silence long enough.

You’re still here with shaking hands and tired backs but still here.

The world will call that weakness. I call it loyalty.

And I’ll fight for that. Until the world learns who we really are.

We raised a sword so high, it cast a shadow over every blooming thing. Petals turned to ash beneath our pride. And in carving a path forward, did we cut down every soul that did not bear our name?

Even Valeheart?

Valeheart is the heart.

Drelvain is the hand.

Valkcross is the mind.

And us — Valery — we are the Eye. The ones who see the truth.

But even when we see clearly,

The heart refuses what the Eye reveals. The mind reshapes it into something easier to swallow.

And the hand... it just obeys.

That’s what we are.

What we’ve always been.

But maybe it’s time to change that.

There will be rain. Not water but something heavier.

And fire too not the kind you can ignore, but the kind that burn you down

But remember this

When the blue star rises over the golden body don’t look up.

The answer won’t be in the heavens.

It’ll be in the hands beside you.

That’s where you’ll find your truth."

And maybe just maybe — if we’re willing, we can become something more."

As i said that a beat of silence past louder than any thing i just said before

Their perfect, emotionless faces the ones they wore like armor began to falter. Not from weakness, but release. Like the weight of pretending had finally become too much.

The masks slipped.

Then slowly, almost hesitantly — someone clapped.

Not loud. Not dramatic. Just... real

And then another clap. Hesitant. Then another. And another. Not loud. Not for show. Just... honest.

Soon, the room was filled with the quiet rhythm of applause.

Not the kind you hear in a performance hall.

This wasn’t for show. This wasn’t to please.

It was honest.

It was their way of saying: We hear you.

We’re still here.

You can trust us to walk forward, too.

And for the first time... I felt like I wasn’t standing alone.

But as I stepped down from the podium and disappeared backstage...

I didn’t realize it yet.

That the cameras hidden behind the wall had been recording everything.

———-

I glanced at my watch. The Strongholds would begin in twenty minutes.

All the Valery students were gathered in the preparation grounds. Some clutched their velvet-bound books, murmuring lines like silent prayers. Others whispered to each other

Then my gaze shifted to the other factions.

Valkcross.

Draped in shimmering gold uniforms. Not subtle, not strategic but that wasn’t the point. They weren’t here to hide. They were here to send a message: We are the mind. We do not fear being seen.

Blue Star.

They stood in perfect lines, unmoving like soldiers in a machine. Their blue uniforms were crisp, badges and ranks neatly displayed across every chest.

Red Line.

A circle formed around her the Daughter of the Red Cosmos. A living flame at the center of their blood-colored sea. They didn’t speak much. They didn’t need to. Their silence felt like tension drawn taut.

Commoner Union.

Scattered, yet not disorganized. I could hear faint voices debating, disagreeing, refining. Among them sat a boy, calm and quiet, thumbing through a worn-out book as if the world didn’t need his attention just yet.

He didn’t command them with speeches or status but they still glanced at him between their arguments. Not for answers, but for grounding.

Then i turn my head and glanced at the four students gathered together. Elira sat in front, chatting with all of them like they weren’t just hours from battle.

As I approached, the group went quiet. Faces shifted. Postures straightened.

I placed a hand on Cendric’s shoulder and leaned in.

"Try your best," I whispered.

Then I walked away.

Behind me, I felt all four pairs of eyes lock on him.

"What did he say?" Elira burst. "Wait—did you get expelled? Did he tell you who’s gonna win the Strongholds?!"

"Worse," Cendric muttered, still staring at my back.

"Worse?!" Elira repeated. Selvis leaned closer. Maren said nothing, but cracked her knuckles.

A beat passed

"Explain. Immediately," Marlen said flatly.

Cendric opened his mouth. Then hesitated.

"I..."

"Yes?" they chorused like wolves.

"I... didn’t hear what he mumbled."

A long pause.

Then Elira groaned, throwing her head back.

"You absolute fraud! You had one job!"