Stealing Heroines’ Affections Is My Job as the Villain

[Ding! Rosemarie's affection for the host has gone up by an impressive 50 points!]

When this update screen appeared in front of Vritra, a sly smile crept onto his face.

This was the main reason he was going through all this effort, and now that he was starting to see some progress, it all felt very much worth it.

"Excellent…"

The young lord nodded proudly as he smiled.

"Oh, God Vritra~~ ♡"

Esmeralda softly called his name as she moved closer, wearing a strangely seductive smile… or maybe she always smiled like that.

"Oh?"

Vritra raised an eyebrow as he looked at her.

She held an expensive ceramic plate in one hand and an equally fancy fork in the other. On the plate was a piece of cake covered in sweet, melted chocolate syrup.

Looking at it made Vritra feel odd.

『I've always wondered how they have things they shouldn't. After the war between the Asuras and Devas abruptly ended, thanks to the dimensional barriers cast by Saint Melcius, the Central Continent finally had a chance to rebuild. During that time, the Education God was born, and with his brilliant ideas, he practically industrialized the entire nation. One of his creations was this chocolate syrup.

You'd think something like that would only exist in my world.』

He brushed it off and stepped closer to Esmeralda.

"So, I'm guessing this little treat is for me…"

"Of course~ ♡ Only the best for my lord~ ♡♡…"

Esmeralda giggled flirtatiously, cutting a piece of the cake with her fork and holding it close to Vritra's lips with a soft smile.

She just wanted to see him eat it.

For some reason, she knew it would make her feel happier.

"Hrmm…"

Vritra frowned at her actions.

"I'm the malevolent entity that consumed one of the great suns of this world, and yet you're trying to feed me cake like I'm some sort of child?"

"What? Of course not, God Vritra ♡…"

Esmeralda's smile grew as she playfully waved the fork side to side, teasing him with the cake.

"My lord should see it like this—I'm feeding you because I recognize myself as God Vritra's humble servant. Isn't it allowed for servants to feed their masters? Tee-hee~!"

"Well, when you put it that way…"

She made a good point. So good, in fact, that Vritra couldn't come up with a response. And why should he?

Just as Vritra was about to open his mouth so Esmeralda would feed him the cake, the sounds of galloping caught his ears and he immediately paused.

"Hm?"

He glanced to the side and smiled.

A group of knights on horseback arrived at the center where Vritra and his companions were staying.

The moment the commoners saw them, they quickly gathered their belongings, stashed their newly gifted goods into small sacks, and ran off.

"THE KNIGHTS ARE COMING!"

"Not just the knights…"

"D-, Don't you see Lord Arcellion too──?!"

"I'm not waiting around to find out!!"

Clearly, they didn't want any trouble from the knights.

The fact that they fled showed just how poorly they were being treated in this tower city. After all, what kind of protectors would have a problem with their people receiving gifts to help the community? None.

It was becoming obvious, if it hadn't been already, that these knights didn't want to help… not because resources were scarce, but simply because they didn't care to.

The horses stopped just a few meters from Vritra.

The knights were all clad in sturdy, shiny black and purple armor, much like the one from earlier.

However, the man at the center stood out.

Unlike the others, he looked more like a royal knight, with his helmet off.

This was Lord Arcellion Modeus Karsinov.

He had the appearance of a powerful young lord.

Well-built, with shoulder-length black hair styled in a wolfish cut that made his blue eyes stand out.

He was quite handsome, with a strong jaw and balanced features. His armor was jet-black, without any purple accents, and a thick purple scarf with gold trims was wrapped around his neck.

In his right hand, he carried a long, imposing halberd whose blade was stained with blood.

"Are you the one whose been sharing all these resources for the people of my city?"

Lord Arcellion's tone was cold and commanding.

He didn't seem interested in knowing Vritra on a personal level. All he wanted was for the young Asura to identify himself as the one handing out supplies to the people of Kaalen Tower City, without his, the feudal lord's, permission.

"…"

Vritra just stared back at Arcellion with calm red eyes.

There was no killing intent or any sign of aggravation, despite the arrogance in the lord's questioning.

As the silence dragged on, Lord Arcellion's patience greatly wore thin.

"Answer me, outsider…"

His grip on the halberd tightened.

At that moment, the knight Vritra had beaten earlier stumbled into the scene like a disoriented animal.

"L-, LORD ARCELLION! LORD ARCELLION!!"

He collapsed in front of the feudal lord and his horse, holding up his broken fingers, then pointed shakily at Vritra with his other hand.

"Those are the savages I was telling you about. They're the ones who attacked me!"

A mischievous grin appeared on his face right after.

The knight knew exactly what he was doing, and so did Vritra and his companions, their faces filled with shock.

The only ones who remained calm were Vritra and Neron,

They expected something of this nature to happen.

While all of this unfolded, Rosemarie watched from a hidden corner behind one of the small but sturdy buildings nearby.

『Hmm, that must be God Dionysus…』

She eyed Vritra and was immediately surprised by how regal and handsome he looked.

One could even say he was beautiful.

It was hard to describe this man's looks.

He had this perfect transition between rough, rebellious charm like Sadim, and the elegant beauty of a queen.

There were really no words to capture it.

He looked like an angel of death, the kind that made death seem less cold and more inviting, almost tempting.

『Erm, I'm gonna be honest… when I heard the name God Dionysus, I pictured an old man with gray hair and a beard. No offense to him, but this version is fine too… I guess?』

She felt a bit disappointed in herself.

Though she admired and respected Vritra, she found it hard to convince herself that Sadim was more handsome… because it simply wasn't true.

She had seen many handsome men in her life, whether as a noble lady in Gladius City or a nun in the Military Kingdom of Serathen, but never had she considered any of them more attractive than Sadim. He was, in her eyes, the most handsome man she'd ever met, even more so than Lord Arcellion, who came close.

But God Vritra's beauty seemed to throw all comparisons out the window.

He was simply too captivating.

It didn't make sense how someone could be this handsome.

『Ooop──!! Zoned out again…』

Realizing she had been staring for too long, she quickly shook her head and refocused on the scene unfolding before her.

『So, he's the guy who brought all those supplies for the people in this city. That's cool and all, but honestly, I kinda wish he was just some old man or something.

『Not that I have a problem with how he looks or talks, but I've gotta say it… he looks like a total asshole. Ugh, and I bet he's not even a real god or anything, probably just slapped that title on to stroke his own ego.

『Can you believe how disrespectful that is? Still… he helped out, so I guess that makes him a bit less of an asshole.』

Leaning forward a bit, her cheeks flushed red, and her large scarlet eyes grew curious about who this man really was.

[Ding! The "heroine" Rosemarie Althea Redwood thinks you're an asshole. Her affection for the host has gone down by a moderate 20 points!]

[She admires your beauty! Her affection for the host has gone back up by 30 points!]

[She has reinforced her belief that you're a good man. Her affection for the host is up by 20 points!]

[The heroine is now angry that you might by more handsome than her fated partner. Her affection for you is down by a marginal 20 points!]

Vritra immediately frowned at the recent notifications.

『Is this bitch confused or something…?』

He had half the mind to slap her.

『Make up your mind already!』