An Important Villain

The End & the Beginning

The sun was setting with a blood red hue. The water in the river was trying it's best to reflect the sun's beauty.

Once in a while, a fish would jump out and then dive back in. The gentle breeze blowing above the water was creating small ripples in the river.

Thick lines of trees on both side of the river were bending their branches trying to reach out to the water in the river. Their reflection in the water in contrast to the setting sun made the water look more mysterious and charming.

Like the sunset after an apocalypse. Dangerous but breathtaking.

Noah was standing near the railing of the bridge. The gentle sunshine hitting his face felt almost heavenly.

It was so comfortable that it almost made him forget all his worries.

Usually in comics, this was the type of setting where he'd meet his long lost lover or soulmate for life and start their very own journey.

'But why am I jumping down the bridge in such a nice atmosphere? The weather's so good it almost feels like the world is happy at my decision.'

His favorite playlist was playing in his phone. All sorts of weird thoughts covered his mind as the promised time was approaching.

'Should I leave my phone behind? It was rather expensive after all. But who would I even leave it for?'

'Pfft...Ahaha...Really, what am I thinking at a time like this... I’m really going crazy.

Ahhh. It was a pretty okay life... Well then, here goes nothing!'

BAM!

'Ugh! That hurt like a bitch!! Who knew it’d hurt so much... And it’s cold!!!'

He wondered why he thought jumping down the bridge in the middle of winter would be a good way to end his life. At that moment, he regretted his choice very much.

'Ah, I'm drowning.' 

There was no air. It was suffocating. As he felt life someone was taking away all the air in his lungs, he managed to open his eyes slightly. The scenery in front of him was way prettier than before. The world from under the water was very different. He was glad it was not raining. 

'Am I losing consciousness?

If I get another chance at life, I'll definitely die in a less painful way next time.'

He swore as he felt his consciousness slowly fading away while the suffocating pain in his chest kept growing more and more to the point of numbness.

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For a long time everything was quiet. But the silence was oddly comfortable. All his pain and worries became non-existent. It felt like nothing else mattered.

'I don't want this silence to end, this comfort to disappear.'

Who knew death would feel so freeing. All his shackles were broken; all those broken parts of him became whole.

'I want to stay like this forever.'

Deep inside death's embrace, very few could find the comfort he was feeling. To most others, it was a horrifying feeling that crept all over their body and made them suffer for an insurmountable amount of time.

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But nothing lasts forever. After staying in that dark place for an uncountable amount of time, fate decided to let him go. His intentions didn't matter.

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Waking from his peaceful slumber, he started to hear human voices again. Voices that felt unfamiliar to him.

.

"An.....Ian...wake.....please..."

Sniff. Sniff.

'Huh? Someone's crying? Lady, can't you see I'm trying to die here? Please go somewhere else.'

"Don't worry, honey. He'll be fine." A man spoke with a heavy tone.

'Yes, I'll be fine so please leave me alone. Wait... I'm trying to die so why'd I be fine?!

Don't speak so thoughtlessly old man!'

.

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'Hmmm...They're finally quiet... Something is weird. Can people think even after they die? Should I open my eyes?'

After contemplating over whether to open his eyes or not, he finally decided to give in to his curiosity.

'Whoa! So bright... Where am I? 

It looks like a mansion. But isn't it too shiny?'

"Huh? Ian? IAN!!! You're finally awake! Oh my god! Doctor! Bring the doctor quick!"

The first thing he saw after his vision became clear was a blond woman sitting beside him.

'A celebrity? Foreigner? Wait, where exactly am I? '

"Honey, calm down now. See, I told you he'll be fine. Here, use this handkerchief."

'......So handsome. Is he also an actor? '

An Extremely handsome man, probably in his early forties was standing beside his bed. His hair was a deep blue like the ocean. 

'Did he dye it? Such a pretty color. But where am I right now? And why are they crying? This room looks pretty luxurious. Like a historical palace.'

'Wait. Historical palace? And people wearing medieval clothes with different hair color? Is this still Earth?'

He suddenly felt a chill down his spine. 

'No way, right?'

"Umm... Excuse me, where am I?"- He asked looking towards the gorgeous couple in front of him.

The woman in her late thirties looked at him with a bit of a surprise, as if she wasn't expecting that question. 

'What do you want me to ask then? About the weather?'

 "Oh my, look at me... I was so relieved that I almost forgot you're still very weak. This is your bedroom of course, don't you remember? Wait a little bit, the doctor's on his way."- She finally replied with a gentle smile.

'Wow! So freaking pretty. Is this even legal? '

He tried to sit up while admiring her dazzling smile. She looked ethereal, like an angel. He could literally see the wings behind her.

"Careful now! Your body is still in the process of recovery after the fall. Here, let me help you."

The handsome man said while helping him sit straight. Although his tone was somewhat cold, the concern and care in his actions clearly showed what type of person he was.

"Honey, didn't we decide not to talk about that before he's fully healed?!"-the woman looked shocked as she said that.

"Ah, I'm sorry."

'Hmm... They were so beautiful that I almost forgot! Why is my point of view so low? Huh? What? Whose body is this??? 

A kid? No... A teenager... Really, what the fuck's happening right now? And why do I feel like I know them? I definitely don't know such beautiful creatures.'

Noah decided to try and figure out as much as he could about his situation without revealing his identity.

"I'm sorry; my memory is a little hazy. I can't seem to remember anything. Where exactly is this? And who am I?"

Gasp!

The servants around them gasped as they all looked at him with a shocked expression.

'Uh... Should I not have done that?'

He regretted his actions slightly as he looked around. There was not a single familiar face anywhere around him.

"It's fine if you don't remember. It's only normal to have a hazy memory after being unconscious for so long. Your name is Adrian. The only heir to the Dicarious household. I'm your father, Miller. And she's your mother, Olivia."

Miller also had a gentle expression unlike his rough build when he finished answering my question. 

Miller...Olivia...and Adrian? Is this a coincidence? They sound like the characters of a novel I used to read from time to time. 

'Anyway, it's pretty clear that I'm not me right now. So being inside a novel is nothing out of the question.'

'Did I really get isekai'd? This is hilarious.

Don't you usually get transmigrated after being hit by a truck? Did they change the settings or something?

What should I do now? Can I go back?’

His expression darkened as he thought about his world, a world he had no attachment to.

‘Do I even want to go back?'

"Son? Are you okay?"

Miller had a worried expression on his face as he called out to him.

"Yes, I'm alright. Please don't worry." -He answered absentmindedly.

".........."

".........."

".........."

'Hm? Why's everyone so quiet all of a sudden?'

He looked up only to see this Adrian's parents looking at him with shocked expressions.

"Is everything alright? Why are you making that expression?"- He asked impulsively since they looked too shocked.

After a long silence, Olivia finally managed to control her expression as she replied to his question.

"Everything's fine, dear. You don't know how worried I was these days. I feel like I can finally breathe now. "- her eyes teared up as she expressed her worries for her son.

Throb.

"Ugh..." Noah let out a groan as he felt a sharp pain in his chest.

"Son? What happened? Where does it hurt?" Miller asked with a worried expression as he examined is body.

"Where are the doctors?! What's taking them so long to come? Where are the healers?! Do I pay them to let my son suffer like this?"

He burst into anger as he tried to leave the room to find the doctors.

"I'm fine. Please don't worry." He said with a bitter expression.

'Was that guilt? Did her worried face remind me of my family?' 

The pain was there only for a second before it disappeared. 

'This won't do. I need to clear my hea-'

"My lord! We're here, my lord. Please forgive us for our delay." -An old man in a white coat and several other people entered the room in a hurry.

'Are they the doctors and the healers? Hmm.. Will I be able to see magic right in front of my eyes? '

With Miller's permission, the doctors started checking his body. At the same time, the healers used their magic. 

"What are you doing?"

He asked curiously.

'Wait. Is he scared? Wait wait wait. Why are you turning pale all of a sudden?'

Seeing him too scared to reply, He felt a bit wronged. He was a pretty gentle person, normally.

'I should calm him down somehow.'

"I was just curious, it's fine if you don't want to answer. I don't bite."

But instead the healer started trembling more. Sweat drops were forming in his forehead as his expression turned paler.

"P-please f-forgive me, young master. I-I was just t-trying to check if you had any internal injuries w-with my probing magic. " The healer almost turned purple from pale in fear as he answered Ian’s question.

‘Why is he so scared? Oh!’

Noah realized where the problem was. The Adrian from the novel was a ruthless bastard. He had serious anger issues and had the habit of getting rid of things that he deemed useless. He didn’t seem to care whether it was people or property.

‘Am I actually in the novel right now? It's so hectic that I can't even think properly.’

He decided to use memory loss as an excuse till he figured things out properly.

"Alright. Thanks."

He answered shortly since he didn't want things to get too messy.

"I-I'm sorry, young master. P-please don't punish m-huh? Excuse me?" The healer was in a daze as if he couldn't comprehend what bullshit he was spewing.

'Dude, I'm just saying thanks. Why are you reacting like that?

This is difficult. I need time to think. I need to organize my thoughts.'

"Mother."

He felt weird calling an unknown woman ‘mother’ but the word flowed out of his mouth very naturally unlike his worries.

"What is it, dear? Does it hurt anywhere? Do you need anything?"

"I'm fine. It doesn't hurt anywhere. But I'm tired. I want to sleep."

Noah said with an expressionless face.

"Are you sure, honey? Won't it-"

"That's okay. They can come at another time." After saying that to him, Miller looked towards Olivia.

"Honey, let our son rest for a while. He's not in any danger now. We'll come again later. Everyone, leave. "

"Call me if you need anything, dear."

With that, Olivia and Miller left the room.

Noah was finally alone. He still couldn't believe what was happening.

‘Is this a dream?’

Pinch.

'OUCH! That definitely hurt. This isn't a dream. That's crazy.'

"Ha..haha.."