Struggling as a Villain

Maybe that\'s the reason why she allowed Lilia\'s inclusion in her son\'s life in the first place since she already knew one day, she would be abandoning Richard.

...however, that assurance still didn\'t lessen the heavy sadness she felt at the thought of never seeing him again.

His smile, his anger, his sweet words, his beautiful eyes....everything had been such a prominent part of her life that parting ways from them gave birth to an awful pain in her heart.

But there was nothing she could do to return back to him. After all, she chose to be with him for as long as possible, and because of that greed, she chose to receive the blessing of a Demon.

Did she regret her decision? Not even once.

If she hadn\'t gone on that side of the world, she wouldn\'t have been able to see a different side of Richard...someone who behaved more maturely and showed his brotherly side to his sister.

She enjoyed those days when the hardest part of life was spam calls and door-to-door salesmen. But now, everything was returning to where it was. She was, once again, going to get separated from her beloved.

...or what she thought.

"Ah!" Her consciousness snapped back to life, as she parted her eyes and instantly straightened her back.

"Richie?!" She asked; her voice hoarse because of prolonged sleep.

It took her time to register where she was and who was in front of her.

"Professor?" She asked, groggily. Squinting her eyes, she found there was a young man currently lying down on the floor, with his arms spread apart like he had melted at his spot.

Looking to her left, she found her daughter lying there. On her right, there was the familiar heiress of Hawkbridge house.

Turning her attention back to the Professor, she asked, "Where is my bab-*TREMBLE*".

Her eyes widened, and so did Marcus\' as they heard a deafening cry resonating so vividly that it made it seem that the being was just beside them. The intense anger and pride in that roar ceased any of those words which were about to escape Marcus\' lips.

He was as stunned as Bellarine.

Bellarine came back to her senses once the war cry subdued, before, with her eyes widened, she hopped off the bed.

"You should stay-" Despite the warning, the redhead didn\'t pay heed to the older one and made her way out of the room as fast as her wobbly legs could bring her.

Her ether was not working as it should have been however, she didn\'t pay attention to it and reached the ground floor. Bursting through the half-broken gates, she saw the burning figure of her beloved, currently facing a being she never wanted to witness again.

Seeing Richard in that state, she was terrified. She knew exactly what that form was....the eternal flame that had overtaken her beloved\'s consciousness. The same flames which have taken the lives of several descendants of the Flame Warden.

And now....because of her, her son was enshrouded in the same flames.

Her body moved on its own as she yelled at the top of her lungs, "RICHIE!!"

Just as the flaming form of Richard turned around, Bellarine jumped into him.

"Ah...." A soft gasp escaped his lips as the flames that had been covering his entirety until now withered away just upon the first contact with Bellarine.

The never-ending flames were no longer existent, just as Richard experienced the familiar warmth from the lady, signifying that his efforts paid off.

She...she is back.

"M-Mom..." Richard\'s voice shook as he stood there in his naked form, hugging the lady as close as he could.

Bellarine wailed silently while caging her son as tightly as she could in her thin arms.

The pure dread Richard has gone through in these months at the thought of what if something goes wrong and he couldn\'t save his family...all that concern, sleepless nights, battles he went through, and experiences he lived finally showed the only result he could have accepted.

"Such a heart-warming reunion~~" Hearing the fake fondness in that voice, Bellarine snapped her eyes open and instantly she shielded her baby behind her, and threatened the Demon,

"If you dare hurt him again, I will butcher you Hell dweller."

Richard grinned seeing his lovely lady being so protective of him as soon as he woke up.

However, despite how nonchalant Richard looked, he actually was on guard against the Demon, who has shown quite unpredictable traits.

"First, you should be thanking me. Second, I have no interest in feeling those burns again. Seriously, those undying flames hurt like a bitch." The Demon scratched its fiery mane as it moaned in complaint.

"What are you going to do now? I can\'t let you escape and wreak havoc." Richard threateningly stated as he stepped forward; making Bellarine worried.

Vornyx heaved a sigh, "I will be returning to the Dark Star, dear hot-blooded sir, given my Lord won\'t let me be here until the war."

Richard frowned upon hearing that last word; however, he didn\'t pay attention to it for now and asked, "If you still fear Zulcriz that much, why did you attack me?"

The Demon\'s lips stretched in a grin, "Because he asked me to."

Richard frowned....if the Demon was telling the truth then Zulcriz...was assessing his strength through this battle? Or was there something more?

"Well, I admit that mid-way, I became frustrated with how he bosses around all the time and began beating you up for real. But know this kid, my intention was never to fight you; otherwise, "Touching the handle of his sword, he added, "nothing would have stopped me from using this sweet little thing."

Richard narrowed his eyes, and Bellarine extended her arm to keep it in front of Richard so she could move in between them if things escalated.

However, the bone-chilling staring contest came to a pause as Vornyx informed, "Now that I have liberated your family, I will be off."

His figure was dissolved into fragments of snowflakes, and the last thing Richard saw was that sickening smile on the Demon\'s face, which surely was going to make him nauseous every time he recalled it.

Bellarine\'s shoulders relaxed as she turned towards her baby and held his face, "Why do you look so thin? And why did you shave your hair? Are you hurt somewhere? Did you miss me?"

Richard hugged her softly and whispered, "I missed you. A whole lot...so now, don\'t you dare do anything stupid again."

Bellarine smiled in relief and elation as she held him back and allowed her racing heart to attain some much-needed peace.

Suddenly, Richard had a thought that he didn\'t hold back from asking, "Mom...you did know at what time I returned to this world, right?"

Bellarine hummed in confusion, being asked about it so suddenly, nevertheless she responded, "Ah, yes. I did. After all, I wouldn\'t have stayed silent seeing so many changes in my son\'s personality."

Bellarine was the closest being to Richard in the two timelines; as such, it was natural for her to know when his personality took a massive drift.

Richard, with a strained smile and eyes closed, parted from her and asked in a stiff voice,

"So since you knew that I have returned to my body without regaining my memories....why did you ask things like \'Why your ether is not working\' and \'Why aren\'t you relying on your magic?\', huh?"

Bellarine turned stiff hearing that and with a dry laugh, she stole her gaze, "Who knows~~"

Under Richard\'s stern gaze, she pouted and complained, "I like to watch my Richie\'s troubled expression and how he makes up lies. Is it wrong for me to be selfish from time to time?"

Seeing her crossing her arms and turning her face away made it seem that it was Richard who did something wrong.

However, before he could have said anything else, Richard realized something.

Bella...why hasn\'t she come out?

"Mom, did you check on Bella?" He asked anxiously.

Bellarine slowly shook her head, "I was worried about you so I ran away instantly."

Richard picked Bellarine in his arms instantly and dashed toward the mansion at an astonishing pace.

Pulling a curtain, he wrapped it around his naked form once he settled Bellarine on the ground.

Climbing the stairs as fast as he could, Richard entered the room and was met with a sigh that melted his heart.

Bella, while sitting on the bed, had her eyes puffed, and hair dishevelled, raised her hand and flailed it slowly, as she muttered,

"Brother....carry...."

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A/N:- Thanks for reading.