Ascension Of The Villain

Iyana stepped into the waiting room of the headquarters, her expression cold and unreadable. The sterile light did little to warm the atmosphere, but the flash of dark pink hair caught her eye. A woman with bright yet weary eyes turned toward her, her face lighting up in an almost unnatural burst of joy.

Iyana blinked and barely had a second to brace herself before the woman sprang up from her seat, rushing toward her with a fervor that seemed to fill the entire room.

"Iya!" Countess Darren's voice was a mix of elation and relief, carrying the weight of long-missed familiarity.

Before Iyana could react, she found herself engulfed in a tight embrace.

Iyana's body stiffened immediately, caught off guard not just by the sudden warmth but by the unfamiliar nickname.

Iya? The name felt alien on her ears, tinged with a kind of intimacy she wasn't accustomed to. No one had ever called her by a nickname, not even her family. She felt weird… good weird.

Her arms awkwardly hung at her sides, and she forced herself to give Leila a hesitant pat on the back, unsure of what else to do. "Uh, yes, it has been a long time, I suppose," she managed, her voice stilted.

As quickly as it came, the excitement in Leila's eyes flickered, dimming into a shadow of sadness. She pulled back, her face softening with regret. "I am so sorry, Iya. I should have visited you sooner, but—" she sighed heavily, her shoulders slumping, "You know how things have been for me."

Iyana frowned, confusion knotting her brow. "No, I-I don't…?" The words left her mouth before she could stop them.

Leila's brows furrowed, her eyes narrowing in confusion. "What do you mean? I wrote to you about my condition." Her voice tinged with disbelief, as if the very idea that Iyana hadn't received her letter was impossible.

"No, I didn't receive any—" Of course, it was them. Her family had likely intercepted it on her behalf —yet another one of their subtle manipulations to control her as a puppet back then. They must have been afraid that Leila would reveal their truth to Iyana.

"Oh, the letter must have gotten lost in the mail," she lied smoothly because she didn't want to get into the complexities of it all with someone she was just meeting for the first time.

Leila huffed, rolling her eyes. "Stupid mail system. At this rate, even pigeons would be better than those incompetent fools."

A wry smile tugged at Iyana's lips as she asked, "So, what was it? Your condition?"

"I was pregnant, girl," Leila revealed, almost too casually. "And thanks to my overbearing mother-in-law, I wasn't allowed out of the house for months." She rolled her eyes, kind of fondly. "But hey, she is sweet, in that overprotective kind of way, and I love her. It's just that this body," she gestured vaguely at herself, "is way too frail for all that pregnancy business.

After giving birth, I was on bed rest for three whole months! Can you believe that? I swear, if I had known, I would have never let Derek put a baby in me and told him to find a second wife to handle all this heir nonsense."

Iyana shifted uncomfortably, her eyes darting to the door at Leila's frankness. That was… blunt. She wasn't sure how to respond, so she simply nodded, hoping Leila wouldn't notice her awkwardness.

"And don't even get me started on the Monster Hunt Festival!" Leila continued, her voice taking on a fatigued whine. "I got out of the house for the first time in forever for that festival, and even then, I spent most of the time trapped in a tent with a screaming baby. I mean, hey, I love my little boy, but dear God, a single wink of sleep would have been heaven. I was supposed to meet you there!

The whole point of me going to that stupid festival was to see you, and I didn't even get to do that!"

Iyana's awkwardness softened into sympathy. The exhaustion in Leila's voice was unmistakable, and as brash as she was, Iyana could sense the weariness beneath it all. "I am sorry to hear that," she murmured, feeling a pang of guilt for not having known any of this. She tried to piece together how they were supposed to be so close, but the memories simply didn't exist.

But before Iyana could offer any more words of comfort, Leila's eyes sharpened, her demeanor changing in an instant. The exhaustion gave way to something far more dangerous—anger.

"Wait a minute," she growled, her voice low, "Why am I the only one who tried to reach out to you? Why didn't you reach out to me? It's been over a year!"

Iyana instinctively took a step back. Leila's sudden anger was like a slap in the face, and even the renowned 'monster' didn't want to anger a sleep-deprived mother on the verge of a breakdown.

Leila's voice took on a melodramatic edge, her hands flailing in the air as if performing for an audience. "Let's say you didn't know about my pregnancy, even though the entire nobility knows. But did it ever cross your mind—just once—'I wonder what my cute, pretty, and lovable best friend is doing? Is she okay? Is she alive?' I mean, I came to see you in that godforsaken warzone!"

Iyana blinked, her confusion deepening. "You… you came to visit me in Ganlop?" Discover wonders at m-vl-em-py-r

"Obviously!" Leila planted a hand on her hip, her eyes wide with exasperation. "Don't you remember?"

Iyana shook her head slowly, feeling more lost by the second. "No, I don't."

Leila groaned, rolling her eyes to the ceiling as if pleading with the universe for patience. "Seriously? How far into the dumps were you? That man seriously wrecked you."

Iyana's stomach twisted, unease bubbling up inside her. "What…?"

"What what?" Leila snapped, her irritation flaring as she glanced back at Iyana, her mood swinging again.

"I don't remember anything," Iyana admitted, her voice soft, unsure. She was walking on unfamiliar ground here, completely disconnected from whatever history Leila was talking about.

"Okay, great. So new lesson learned: depression makes you forget about the time you were depressed," she huffed dramatically.

"No, no," Iyana interrupted, desperate to correct her. "It wasn't because of depression. I had memory loss. And truthfully... I don't even remember you. That's why I never reached out.

I had no idea I even had a friend, let alone a best friend."

Leila staggered back, her face blanching. The dramatic air dropped from her entirely, replaced by a stunned silence.

Her hands trembled as she lifted them to cover her mouth, eyes wide with disbelief. "Oh… my God. You really went through with it, didn't you?" she whispered, her voice barely holding together.

"Went through with what?" Iyana's pulse quickened, anxiety creeping into her chest.

"You erased your memories yourself!" Leila's words were barely audible, as if the very thought was too painful to speak aloud.

Iyana's heart skipped a beat. "What? Why would I do that?" But her question hung in the air, unanswered. Leila was no longer paying attention, pacing the room like a caged animal, biting her nails furiously.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck." Leila muttered under her breath, clutching a fistful of her hair in frustration. "This explains it. The whole damn storyline must have changed because of this variable."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Iyana demanded. She felt like she was trapped in someone else's conversation, lost in a story she didn't know.

Leila stopped, her eyes locking onto Iyana's, a devastated expression washing over her features. "Oh, Iya… where do I even begin?"

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