How to Survive Against Villains Chapter 160

Chapter 160 – Control (2)

Kal left the lord’s hall and headed toward the underground prison.

As he walked through the castle, he observed the lingering chaos.

The walls, floors, and trees were still marred with scar-like bloodstains, stark against the surroundings.

The thick stench of blood still perated the air.

Though the castle’s people worked tirelessly to erase the traces, it seed the scent of slaughter would linger for quite so ti.

“Hurry before it rots!”

“That corpse goes in the next cart!”

Soldiers pulling carts stread in one after another.

Each cart was piled high with grueso corpses.

Two days had passed since the bloodshed, yet the entire territory was still overflowing with bodies—as if a war had torn through.

“S-Sir Kal!”

The soldiers halted their tasks and saluted as Kal and his group appeared.

So looked at Lyon and Rengua with fear, but their attitudes toward Kal were closer to reverence—as if greeting a savior.

The administrators overseeing the soldiers spotted Kal and rushed forward in haste.

Normally, it was the knights’ duty to command the soldiers.

But right now, there were hardly any knights left in the territory.

Most had either gone mad, died, or vanished.

Like the soldiers, the administrators bowed deeply to Kal, treating him with utmost respect.

The man who had driven out the madn and saved Etor.

Had he not arrived in ti with his forces, Etor would have fallen completely into the hands of the lunatics.

After all, the main force of the insane had been none other than Etor’s own knights.

Still, the administrators swallowed nervously whenever they glanced at Lyon and Rengua.

These were the monsters who had frozen or torn apart even their own allies in battle.

Their thods were brutal, but no one dared voice resentnt.

Because the situation had been hell itself.

“Where are you headed at this hour, my lord?”

“I have business in the underground prison.”

“Business…?”

“I need to examine the lunatics. They may hold clues regarding Viscount Tomzael’s disappearance.”

Kal’s gaze, voice, and presence carried a weight unlike anyone else.

The administrators couldn’t help but focus on him, drawn in like moths to a fla.

The sheer pressure of his aura was suffocating, yet the calm in his voice eased their tension, leaving them feeling strangely relieved.

“Allow us to assist you!”

Their master was missing.

The knight commander and the retainers had all vanished.

The domain lacked a clear leader.

They had disappeared as if swallowed by the earth itself.

So, naturally, the administrators turned to Kal, treating him as their new lord.

The soldiers felt the sa.

“Do you know where all these carts are headed?”

“Y-Yes, my lord. The underground prison.”

“A place overflowing with the corpses of lunatics is no place for ordinary people.

Remain here and focus on restoring the territory while awaiting the viscount’s return.

The shamans I brought will handle the investigation.”

“Understood!”

“And the viscount’s heirs?”

“The lunatics stord the estate all at once, and…”

“…They’re dead?”

“…Yes.”

“Damn. This is troubleso.”

The red mana stones had turned an entire half of the territory into madn overnight.

And the viscount’s bloodline had not been spared.

“We will do everything we can to find the viscount. Blyer will aid Etor.”

“Thank you! The people of Etor will forever praise the Lord of Blyer for his kindness.”

Hearing this, the soldiers shouted Kal’s na, chanting his title with gratitude.

Kal and his group followed the procession of carts toward the underground prison.

As they moved at a asured pace, Kal spoke softly.

“Well handled.”

Lyon and Rengua slightly bowed their heads.

Their rciless slaughter had included the viscount’s bloodline.

“Are you leaving those administrators as they are?”

“The common folk are easily swayed by enchantnt. Subjugation should be used selectively.”

Subjugation depended on the capacity of one’s soul.

The size of Kal’s soul vessel was influenced by his divine title, [Charisma Beyond Control].

Though the Mantle of the Dragon Fang had expanded his vessel, he could not subjugate too many powerful individuals at once.

If his vessel exceeded its limit, subjugation would no longer be possible.

The prison entrance was heavily guarded by Kal’s personal elite guards.

No soldiers were allowed beyond this point—only Kal’s forces were permitted to enter.

The guards themselves pulled the carts into the prison.

A long line of carts stretched endlessly, waiting their turn.

Kal surveyed the sheer number of bodies and nodded.

“An overwhelming number of lunatics.”

“Yes. The heavens are aiding you, my lord.

Given enough ti, we can supply every shaman with a Van Dyke.”

“Spread the rumor that shamans recruited into our ranks will receive an additional Van Dyke.”

“If they’re ordinary dark shamans, they’ll swarm here like flies.”

It had been discovered that the souls of lunatics, corrupted by red mana stones, could replace the blood-stained souls used in shamanic puppetry.

Thus, Kal had gathered all the corpses into the underground prison.

Upon descending to the first underground floor, Kal found Rengua’s shamans busily extracting souls from the corpses and sealing them into spiritual artifacts.

Scanning the surroundings, Kal turned to Rengua, the prison’s overseer.

“What about the captured lunatics?”

“They are contained on the second underground floor.”

“Lead the way.”

Following Rengua’s guidance, Kal descended to the second floor.

Inside the vast iron-barred cages, countless black silhouettes swayed eerily.

Under the dim torchlight, they twitched and trembled, staring vacantly into space.

These were the missing knights of Etor.

But not a single one remained sane.

Their glazed eyes and drooling mouths made that clear.

Shuffle, shuffle—

At the sound of footsteps, the knights snapped their heads toward Kal all at once, their expressions contorting like demons.

A sinister aura leaked from the cage.

Their aura-user energy, fused with madness, burst forth.

“KRRRRAAAAK!”

An instantaneously explosive situation.

But as Rengua chanted a spell and waved his staff, the knights’ twisted faces slackened and they cald down, swaying in place once more.

Seeing that the lunatics could be controlled, Kal nodded.

This was the power of Rengua’s artifact, obtained in exchange for Viscount Tomzael and two thousand sacks of grain.

The Blood Orc Staff.

Neither Viscount Tomzael nor Kal himself had anticipated that this single staff would decide the fate of Etor.

[Rengua Field – Heir of the Blood Orc Shaman (Madness)]

- [Madness Control]

- [Madness Infection]

- [Madness Explosion]

Using the Blood Orc Staff, Rengua had awakened to the madness attribute, granting him abilities related to insanity.

His ritual on Etor had been Madness Infection—a spell that amplified the madness accumulating within mana stone users and forcibly turned them into lunatics.

However, since Rengua alone couldn’t spread the infection across the entire domain, he had requested a special tool.

“Is this the ‘Stone of Madness’?”

“Yes.”

At the altar on the second underground floor, Kal found a fist-sized black stone, pulsing as if alive.

One of the artifacts acquired from the Black Market—alongside the Sigil of Enchantnt.

Tapping the Stone of Madness, Kal grinned.

“Fascinating, isn’t it? How easily Etor crumbled.”

“All thanks to your foresight, my lord.”

Two Days.

That was all it took for Etor to fall.

Viscount Tomzael had expanded his knight order by forcing mana stones upon his n—rookies, veteran knights, and even the knight commander himself.

But that very decision had turned into a blade against his own throat.

Though it was Rengua who set the stage, it was the knights of Etor, now turned into lunatics, who had truly destroyed the territory.

A frenzied force of at least Third-Class Knights and above—warriors who felt no pain, no fear, and who beca nightmares for their enemies.

Kal gazed at the berserk knights and smiled darkly.

With them, he had found the perfect force to replace the troops he lost at Corun River.

“Let’s head to the third floor.”

Now, it was ti to claim their leader.

Huuuuh…

A foul stench filled the air as they entered the third underground floor.

Two prisoners were locked in the reinforced cells.

An elderly man, frail and unkempt, had been left to rot.

His hair was tangled, and his body was covered in filth.

And yet, he was grinning ear to ear.

Viscount Tomzael.

Once a powerful noble, among the top three ruling figures of Tobaron.

“Ehehehe… I’m hungry.”

“Master. My lord is here.”

The shamans pushed aside the deranged Tomzael and stepped forward.

Kal briefly glanced at the broken man, then turned to the shamans.

“Is the brainwashing complete?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Then we no longer need him.”

At Kal’s signal, Lyon drew his sword.

Shlick.

Tomzael’s head rolled across the floor.

He had lost all power, all influence.

He was nothing more than an old, helpless man—kept alive only for the sake of another prisoner.

The Blade of Etor House.

A knight far too exceptional to have served Tomzael.

Wiley Gris—a Five-Star Blooming Talent.

Unlike the viscount, Wiley had been shackled in midair, his limbs bound by chains imbued with shamanic curses.

It had taken Lyon, Rengua, and five elite shamans an entire half-day to capture him alive.

Though there were no casualties, Wiley had been a nightmare to subdue.

"The Master of a Divine Title."

Kal had received Wiley’s divine title from Astrologer Arcane.

[Wiley Gris – The Blade of Support (Wind)]

- [Comradeship]

- [Beast’s Roar]

- [Instinct to Guard]

Kal reached out and gently stroked Wiley’s face.

His eyes were completely vacant.

A Five-Star Knight’s willpower was borderline superhuman.

And yet, Kal had broken it in re days.

[Instinct to Guard].

That was the weakness Kal had found in Wiley’s divine title.

The shamans had tortured Tomzael rcilessly, ensuring that Wiley witnessed every mont of it.

That was why the viscount had gone mad.

His knight, who was supposed to protect him, had been forced to watch him be torn apart—helpless.

“Wiley.”

“…I swear. I swear my loyalty. I swear—”

His voice droned on like a broken puppet, endlessly repeating the sa words.

A result of relentless ntal conditioning.

“Do you swear loyalty to ?”

Kal raised the Ring of Subjugation before Wiley’s face.

In the black sapphire, Wiley’s reflection shimred faintly.

And with that—

He submitted.

Though there was no will behind his vow, the Ring of Subjugation did not require it.

The mont it marked Wiley, his face darkened, and his soul beca bound to Kal.

Wiley stood upright.

A lifeless doll, void of expression.

“A toast.”

Kal handed Wiley a wine glass.

Leschapo Blanc.

The sa wine he had tasted when he first t Viscount Tomzael.

“Thank you, my lord.”

“Drink. Welco to Blyer’s knights.”

“…Yes.”

With a flat, emotionless voice, Wiley took the glass and drank without hesitation.

Kal’s smile deepened.

Three Masters of Divine Titles.

With this, Kal had completed one of his divine title’s conditions.

[Kal Blazer – The Greedy Lord Who Walks Two Paths (Ti)]

- [Charisma Beyond Control]

- [Insight that Pierces the Soul]

- [Mind Domination (Enchantnt)]

- [Subjugation Authority]

- [Leader of Blyer (3)]

Kal’s divine title had evolved.