Third-Rate Villain Of Fantasy Novel-Chapter 51: Night Walk

I wondered if moving even a little would make things better.

With that thought lingering in my mind, I left my room.

I wasn’t heading to the training grounds to swing my sword until my arms went numb.

I just needed air.

If I stayed still any longer, my thoughts would keep piling up, one over another, until I couldn’t breathe under them.

A slow walk around the main building of the Castle was usually enough to calm me. The night air was cool, brushing gently against my skin. The corridors were quiet, the torches dim, the world reduced to nothing but the echo of my footsteps and the distant rustle of the wind.

By the time I circled back and was about to return to my room, a single bright light caught my eye.

It wasn’t a torch.

Looking up, I saw Elena standing on the balcony.

She was gazing at the night sky as if it held an answer only she could see. Her pure white hair shimmered faintly under the moonlight, almost as though it carried its own glow. Against the darkness, she looked unreal. Untouchable.

I had heard that she went to bed early to prepare for the next day. Had she woken up in the middle of the night? Or had she never slept at all?

She stood there in her nightgown, the thin fabric swaying lightly with the wind. For a moment, she didn’t look like the composed and capable Elena everyone knew.

She looked... fragile.

"Ele—"

I almost called her name.

But the word died in my throat.

The way she stood there, looking up at the sky, she felt like a star that belonged to a different world. A world far from where I stood.

If I spoke, I might shatter the quiet around her.

So I turned away.

However, I didn’t make it more than two steps before her voice drifted down from above.

"Why are you just staring at me without saying a word, Damian?"

I froze.

Slowly, I looked up again. She was leaning slightly over the balcony railing now, her eyes fixed on me. There was a faint curve to her lips, but her gaze was sharp.

"I wasn’t staring," I replied, though I knew that was a poor excuse.

Her eyebrow lifted. "Oh? Then what were you doing?"

"Walking," I said. "And accidentally looking up."

"Accidentally?" she repeated, the corner of her mouth twitching. "You must accidentally look up for a very long time."

I sighed quietly. "I didn’t want to disturb you."

"Disturb me?"

"You looked... occupied."

"With the sky?"

"Yes."

She rested her chin lightly against her hand, studying me. "And you thought speaking to me would ruin the stars?"

"It might have ruined your moment."

Elena was silent for a second. The teasing look in her eyes softened.

"Damian," she said more gently, "if my moment can be ruined that easily, then it wasn’t worth much to begin with."

I didn’t know how to answer that.

"You could have just said hello," she added.

I let out a small breath. "Hello, then."

She laughed quietly, the sound light and warm in the night air.

"You’re strange tonight," she said. "You look like someone who lost a battle only he knows about."

"That obvious?"

"Very."

I ran a hand through my hair. "I just needed to clear my head."

"From what?"

"From everything."

She tilted her head. "That sounds heavy."

"It isn’t," I said automatically.

"Liar."

Her response was immediate, almost casual.

I looked up at her again, and this time I didn’t look away. "You’re awake late," I said, changing the subject. "I heard you sleep early." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

"I usually do." She glanced back at the sky. "But sometimes... I can’t."

"Nightmares?"

She hesitated. "Thoughts."

I understood that answer more than I wanted to admit.

The wind picked up slightly, brushing her hair across her face. Without thinking, I took a step closer to the balcony.

"Be careful," I said. "You’re leaning too far."

At that, she suddenly placed one foot on the railing.

"Elena—"

"What?" she said innocently. "You’re down there. If I jump, I’ll reach you faster."

"Don’t be ridiculous."

She smiled, but she didn’t step down. "You worry too much."

I knew better than anyone that Elena was an excellent magician.

A genius who had reached the 5th Rank, Tiphereth, at the age of sixteen—there had been no one like her in magical history except Richard Ertuwen himself.

Logically speaking, jumping down from the third floor would have been nothing to her.

She could have landed without a scratch. She could have floated down as lightly as a feather.

But logic didn’t matter in that moment.

Maybe it was the pale moonlight spilling over her thin, airy pajamas. Maybe it was the quiet of the night, too fragile and suffocating at the same time. Maybe it was the way she stood on the railing, her silhouette swaying ever so slightly against the dark sky.

Whatever the reason—

I couldn’t think rationally at all.

And before I even realized it, my body moved first.

With a single leap, I reached the railing where Elena was standing. My hand shot out instinctively, wrapping around her waist. I pulled her firmly into my arms and pushed off, landing back onto the balcony below.

The moment my feet touched the flat stone floor, my heart—beating wildly as if it would burst out of my chest—slowly began to calm.

Only then did my thoughts start working again.

I should scold her.

That was the first thing that came to mind.

Climbing the railing in the middle of the night? What if she slipped? What if—

But as I looked down at her, safe in my arms, those sharp words faded before they could even form.

Instead, heat crept up my neck.

I felt ridiculous.

She was a 5th Rank magician. She could probably carry me down instead.

I told myself it was only because I was worried. That was all. There was nothing embarrassing about being concerned.

Even so, my face refused to cool.

"Damian..."

Her voice was barely more than a whisper.

It wasn’t the shy, hesitant tone she usually had—the one that trembled and tripped over her own words.

Her breath was slow and warm against my chest. When I looked down, she was smiling faintly.

Not nervously.

Not awkwardly.

Just... softly.

For a fleeting second, I wondered if this was truly the same Elena I knew.

I tried to set her down.

"Elena, you—"

But she clutched the front of my shirt tighter.

Her fingers twisted into the fabric as if letting go would make her drift away.

I froze.

"...Elena?"

She didn’t answer immediately.

Left with no choice, I sat down on the balcony railing, still holding her. Her body was so light it felt like she might disappear if I loosened my grip even slightly.

How long did we stay like that?

A minute?

Two?

The night breeze brushed past us gently, carrying the faint scent of night-blooming flowers.

Eventually, Elena’s fingers loosened. Slowly, reluctantly.

I lowered her to the ground with care.

Finally, we stood face to face.

Up close, I could see the moonlight reflected in her eyes.

"You scared me," I said quietly.

She blinked. "Scared... you?"

"Yes." I exhaled. "Climbing the railing in the middle of the night. What were you thinking?"

Elena tilted her head slightly, as if genuinely considering the question.

"I wasn’t going to jump," she said softly.

"That’s not the point."

Her lips curved faintly. "You moved before you thought."

I stiffened.

"...What?"

"You didn’t hesitate," she continued. "You didn’t calculate the height. You didn’t analyze whether I could handle it. You just... came."

Her gaze dropped briefly to my chest, where her fingers had wrinkled the fabric of my shirt.

"I liked that."

My throat tightened.

"Elena."

"I know I could’ve come down on my own," she said. "I wasn’t in danger."

"Then why stand there like that?"

She looked past me, toward the moon.

"It was quiet," she murmured. "Too quiet. I couldn’t sleep."

There was no drama in her voice. No theatrics.

Just honesty.

"When it’s this quiet," she continued, "my thoughts get loud."

I frowned slightly. "About what?"

She hesitated.

"About expectations. About ranks. About the future everyone keeps talking about for me."

Her fingers curled at her sides.

"They all say I’m a genius. That I’ll surpass Richard Ertuwen one day. That I can’t afford to fail."

She let out a small breath that almost sounded like a laugh.

"But when I’m alone at night, I wonder what happens if I do."

The words lingered in the air between us.

I had never heard her speak like this before.

"You won’t," I said instinctively.

Elena looked up at me again.

"Not because you’re a genius," I added, more firmly. "But because you work harder than anyone I know. And even if you did fail—"

I paused.

"—it wouldn’t change the fact that you’re Elena."

For a moment, she just stared at me.

"Damian," she said slowly, "that might be the most reckless thing you’ve ever said."

"Why?"

"Because that’s more dangerous than jumping from the third floor."

I blinked. "How is that more dangerous?"

"Because now," she said softly, stepping a little closer, "I’ll rely on you."

My breath hitched.

She smiled again—small, but real.

"You caught me tonight," she continued. "Not because I needed saving. But because you wanted to."

Her hand lightly grasped my sleeve this time, gentler than before.

"So if my thoughts get too loud again... will you come without thinking like you did just now?"

I looked at her hand, then at her face.

"...If you’re standing on a railing again, I’m definitely scolding you first."

She laughed.

A clear, quiet sound that blended with the night.

"And after that?"

I sighed.

"After that, I’ll come."

Her expression softened.