Transmigrated as the Villain Between the Heroine and the Villainess

Zagan raised his hand, shadows twisting together. A jagged sword of darkness formed in his grip, its edges dripping with black energy.

He pointed it at Azrael's chest.

"This is where you end, boy."

The blade came down like a guillotine.

But frost erupted in front of Azrael. Selvara's ice shield.

The black blade smashed against it. Cracks split across the surface, each strike louder, deeper, more final.

Azrael couldn't see Zagan through the thick ice, only the fractures crawling wider with each blow.

His chest heaved. His thoughts screamed.

'This is it. My death. Right here.'

The shield shattered.

He braced for the final strike.

But instead of cold steel piercing him, he felt a sudden shove.

He stumbled back, eyes wide.

The sword was buried in Selvara's chest.

She had stepped in front of him. She pushed him away. The shadow blade pierced through her body, jutting from her back. Blood streamed down, staining the frost black and red.

Azrael's heart froze. "Selvara!"

Zagan pulled the blade free, grinning like a predator.

"You wasted your life for him? Pathetic. Even at the end, you are nothing."

Selvara staggered, coughing blood, but turned back to Azrael. Her eyes trembled, but there was peace in them.

"Don't… don't look at me like that," she whispered. "This… this is what I wanted."

Azrael caught her, holding her against his chest. His hands shook. His jaw clenched until it hurt. "Why?! Why would you do this?!"

She coughed again, red staining her lips. But she smiled faintly.

"Because… you gave me something I never had. You gave me a choice. A reason to want tomorrow. Even when I hated myself… you made me want to live."

Her cold hand brushed his cheek.

"I was always waiting for death. From the moment I was born. I thought I was cursed, a mistake. But then you… you told me fate isn't fixed. That I could rewrite it. Choose my own story."

Her voice trembled, but her eyes stayed on his.

"For the first time… I wanted to be selfish. I wanted a dream."

Azrael held her tighter. "Don't say this is the end. Don't—"

She cut him off with a weak laugh, tears spilling.

"No, listen. Please."

Her words slowed, painting a fragile dream.

"I wanted a house. Small. Simple. A roof that leaks when it rains. A garden with crooked flowers because I don't know how to care for them."

Her trembling hand pressed against his chest.

"I wanted to wait there… for you. Every night I'd sit by the window, waiting to see you return. When you walked in, tired from the madness outside, I'd smile and say, 'Welcome back.'"

Her tears fell, black against her pale skin. Her lips curved in the faintest laugh.

"And maybe… we'd have a son. Stubborn like you. Reckless. Loud. I'd scold him, but secretly I'd be proud. Every time you fought, every time you endured… I'd think of that family and know I wasn't a monster. I was someone who lived. Someone who loved."

Azrael's breath hitched. His violet eyes burned. His lips parted, but no words came.

Selvara leaned up, her lips brushing against his.

It was weak, soft, barely a kiss, but it carried everything she couldn't say.

When she pulled back, her voice cracked.

"I love you, Azrael. I'm sorry this is all I can give. Thank you… for giving me hope, even for a little while."

Her smile was faint, fragile.

"This is the end for me. But not for you. Live. Keep walking. And know… I'll be watching from above."

She turned to Zagan, forcing herself upright though her body shook violently.

Zagan sneered. "Touching. Dreams of families in the dirt. Did you think tears could rewrite fate?"

Selvara's gaze hardened. "No. With this."

Her body began to glow. Frost and shadow leaked from her skin, crawling across the arena floor.

"I knew this day would come," she whispered. "So I prepared. A skill I built for this one moment. My ace… against you."

Zagan's eyes narrowed. "What trick is this?"

Her voice rang out, steady and clear despite her broken body.

"This is my finale. Cocytus Finale."

Her demonic essence erupted.

The black frost spread in jagged lines, devouring the ground. The air froze instantly, breath turning to mist. Shadows fused with ice, forming a storm of frozen darkness.

Her wings cracked. Her horn split. Her body convulsed as the power tore through her. Her very soul was burning.

Azrael shouted desperately. "Selvara, stop! You'll die!"

She smiled faintly, tears freezing on her cheeks.

"We'd all die without this. This is my choice."

And then it began.

[Cocytus Finale]

Selvara poured every shred of her being into the skill. All her demonic essence, all her life force, every drop of her soul.

The black ice roared outward in a tidal wave, erupting into pillars of frozen shadow. The cold wasn't just temperature it was death itself, absolute and final.

Skeletons and wraiths were caught instantly. Their forms froze solid, their life force ripped away. The ice consumed them until they shattered into dust.

Zagan stood in the middle of it. His crimson eyes widened as the storm swallowed him whole. His body froze in place, encased in jagged obsidian ice.

Selvara screamed as the power consumed her too, her body cracking, her wings breaking, her soul unraveling. Her voice echoed, then was cut off.

And then silence.

The arena was still.

The floor was covered in midnight frost, a perfect, thin layer that silenced even the wind. The air carried no warmth, no sound. Only silence.

And then the frost began to fade.

Selvara's body fell limp in Azrael's arms. Her horn crumbled into dust. Her wings dissolved. Her once-bright eyes dimmed, their light gone.

Azrael clutched her close, shaking. His chest heaved with ragged breaths. "No. Please. Don't leave me. Don't you dare."

She opened her eyes one last time, weak and fading. Her trembling hand brushed his cheek.

"Thank you, Azrael… for letting me live… for letting me dream."

Her hand fell. Her body went still.

Azrael pressed his forehead against hers. His violet eyes burned with grief, rage, and helplessness. He held her tight, as if holding her soul in place.

The arena was silent.

Then cracks split the black ice.

Zagan stepped forward, his body scarred but alive. His crimson eyes blazed brighter than ever.

"You thought you could kill me with that?" His voice dripped with contempt. "All you did was destroy the soul that once resided in this vessel. The true spirit is gone. This shell is dying."

He laughed, low and cruel. Pss.

"This body will rot in minutes. But before that…"

His eyes locked on Azrael, crimson fire burning.

"I will take you. Vessel."

He stepped forward, each pace heavy with killing intent.

Azrael clutched Selvara's lifeless body tighter. His violet eyes burned as he met Zagan's glare. Grief, rage, and something darker twisted inside him.