Transmigrated as the Villain Between the Heroine and the Villainess

Azrael's mind went blank. The Ethereal Nexus Academy. The place where the real story began. The place where the threats became real, the stakes became life and death.

"I am not going there," he said, the words leaving his mouth before he could stop them. "Never."

Celestria's warm expression vanished, replaced by the familiar, chilling cold. "I didn't ask you," she said, her voice like ice. "I ordered you."

He could feel the tension snap back into the air between them, thick and suffocating. 'What do I do? What do I do?' his mind screamed. He needed a way out, a logical reason, not just a flat refusal.

"I am weak," he said, forcing his voice to remain steady. "I won't survive there." It was a logical answer. It was the truth.

She dismissed his concern with a wave of her hand. "That's not a problem. I have seen people there, weak ones. I think you won't be the last weakling to walk its halls. Maybe you'll even find a weak buddy there too."

He changed the topic, scrambling for another excuse. "But they won't accept me. No matter how noble we are, they have checks for outsiders, for their powers…"

A small, dangerous smile touched her lips. "You don't have to worry about that. I know someone who will surely help."

He was failing. Every argument he made, she shot down with ease. "But you know about the bullies," he tried, his voice growing more desperate. "I would be the weakest one there, between monsters. How can I survive?"

"As I said," she replied, her patience clearly wearing thin. "You don't have to worry about little things. You will have backing there. And, of course, a house as a shelter too."

He looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

She paused, a flicker of some old memory in her eyes. "Ilythia Halloway. She is one of the top professors there." She paused again. "And she was one of my good friends. Yes, she owes me a favor, too."

"If I tell her about your situation," Celestria continued, her voice full of a final, unshakeable confidence, "and of course, tell the council there about the demons and their pursuit of you, you will surely be enrolled."

He gulped. The panic that had been simmering in his chest exploded into a full-blown inferno. Ilythia Halloway. A villainess. A tsundere of a mother. And a monster of a fighter.

The dots in his memory, the panels he had drawn, began to connect with a sickening clarity.

'She and my sister fought Kaelen in the later act. Together. She was a good friend of hers, and after seeing Celestria's situation, she fought alongside her. She is even more powerful than my sister.'

A favor.

That's what Celestria had said.

It all made sense now.

The alliance between two of the story's most powerful female antagonists wasn't just a random plot point. It was built on a foundation of friendship and obligation.

And Ilythia Halloway was powerful enough to stand against Kaelen and all four of his companions. Yes, four. Aurelia, Seraphina, Elvara, and Selyne.

'Wait, Selyne,' he thought, a new wave of horror washing over him. 'I totally forgot about her. Selyne is the daughter of Ilythia. The one because of which their team lost. Because of her love for the hero, she let herself lose.'

He remembered drawing her. A sweet, innocent girl. Talkative and a little bit stupid. He never understood why the author had made her a heroine.

Celestria had said he would have backing, and a shelter. 'Does she mean the Halloways' home?'

'No. No, that's totally disturbing. I can't live in a tsundere's house with a naive heroine girl. Living with them, I will surely lose my mind.'

He had to do something. He had to drop this plan before it went any further. 'Maybe another bet? Maybe I can act like an innocent, love-seeking brother?'

He was scrambling for a new plan, a new performance, but Celestria spoke first, her mind already elsewhere.

"Today, I met her," she said casually.

"Who?"

"That girl you love. What's her name? Seraphina."

He scoffed. "I loved her. Once. Now, after knowing her, she is just for the streets."

Celestria's head snapped towards him, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Saying that to a girl? Have you forgotten you said you have changed?"

He sighed, the lie coming easily to his lips. "I have changed. That's why I said it."

She let out her own sigh, a sound of pure exasperation. "Anyway, she was not meant for you. She was trembling, scared. Didn't even try to protect her lover from me. She only tried to protect him with her trembling words, hiding behind him. Hahaha."

She gave him a sideways glance. "You have a great taste for girls, huh?"

He stopped walking. "Wait. What did you do? What happened while I was gone?"

"After your disappearance," she explained, "I got the news and rushed to the academy. I saw Elvara first. I forcefully asked her what happened. She told me about yesterday, your arguments, and the sudden anger from that blonde boy. She thought he was the one."

"So," Celestria finished, "I did what I had to do. And the rest was as I told you."

He processed her words. It took a moment for all the pieces to click into place. And when they did, a cold dread, heavier and more terrifying than any demon, settled over him.

His disappearance was treated as his murder.

Celestria's havoc at the academy. Kaelen becoming the prime suspect. Sebastian's death. The Headmaster's involvement.

It was all happening according to the plot. The original plot, where he was supposed to die at Kaelen's hands, triggering Celestria's rampage.

The story was the same. The events were the same.

The only thing that had changed was the reason.

'But how? How is it the same? It doesn't make any sense.'

And Kaelen's involvement as the hero… it wasn't there. He hadn't been built up. He hadn't been tested. The story was forcing its path, but it was leaving the main character behind.

This made one thing clear: he wouldn't follow this stupid script.

He wouldn't make Kaelen go down the same path, as there was no path.

He would not help him grow.

He had to figure it out for himself.