The Villains Must Win-Chapter 108: Valerian Cross 28

"Ambush!" one of the hunters shouted.

Figures emerged from the swirling snow, their eyes glowing crimson against the pale light.

Vampires.

They were fast—inhumanly so. In an instant, they were upon them. Valerian’s sword was already in his hands as he met the first attacker, his blade slicing through the air with lethal precision.

The vampire dodged, fangs bared, but Valerian was quicker. He drove his weapon forward, piercing through the creature’s chest before twisting the blade and yanking it free.

The vampire crumpled, its ashes staining the ice.

Another came at him, but before it could strike, Evelyn flicked her wrist, and the air crackled with dark energy. A gust of shadowy force slammed into the vampire, sending it flying back into a jagged ice formation with a sickening crunch.

"You’re welcome," she called over her shoulder, smirking.

Valerian didn’t respond, already cutting through another enemy. The hunters fought with all their might, their weapons clashing against the vampires’ claws and fangs.

But the longer they fought, the more vampires appeared.

"We need to move!" Valerian shouted. "Now!"

Evelyn was already ahead of him, tracing a glowing rune in the air. The ice beneath them trembled before suddenly splitting apart, forming a deep crevasse between them and the remaining vampires.

"That won’t hold them for long," one of the hunters panted.

"It doesn’t have to," Evelyn said. "Come on!"

They pushed forward, the towering silhouette of the vampire castle finally coming into view through the blizzard. The dark forest loomed in the distance, its twisted branches stabbing into the sky like jagged fangs.

Stephany was inside that castle.

And Valerian would tear through every last vampire if that’s what it took to get her back.

The moment they stepped into the dark forest, a violent force, cold and unrelenting, ripped through them like a storm. The darkness around them howled as if alive, swallowing the hunters in its suffocating embrace.

Valerian barely had time to register the sudden pull before the world twisted, yanking him away from his men. The last thing he heard was their startled shouts before everything turned black.

When the shadows lifted, he was no longer in the snow.

Instead, he stood in the middle of an endless, dark forest—its trees twisted and gnarled, their bark blackened like charred corpses.

A thick mist coiled between them, curling around his boots like hungry fingers. And beside him, the only other person who had been dragged here by the cursed magic, was Evelyn.

"Well, this is just fantastic," she muttered, dusting herself off as she took in their surroundings.

Valerian clenched his jaw, trying to fight back his rising frustration. "We’ve been separated. Damn it."

"No kidding, Cross," Evelyn said dryly. "At least you didn’t end up alone. You have me."

"You should have detected the magic protecting this place," Valerian muttered, his frustration barely contained.

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "I may be a century-old witch, but even the great I cannot break every magic array. Some spells are meant to keep even the most powerful away." She paused, then added with a grin, "But relax, this is just another deterrent. As long as you follow me, we’ll be inside that fortress soon enough."

Valerian crossed his arms. "The problem is the other hunters."

"They all have enchanted tomes," Evelyn said dismissively. "If their lives are in danger, those books will get them out of this dimension. You don’t have to worry about them."

That bit of information made Valerian relax—if only slightly.

Evelyn exhaled, turning her gaze toward the looming darkness ahead. "The Blood’s Castle is north of here. We need to head that way."

Valerian raised a skeptical brow. "And you’re sure about that?"

She shot him a look. "I don’t guess directions. I know them."

A dry, humorless chuckle left his lips. "Right, because you’re never wrong."

Ignoring his sarcasm, Evelyn started walking, her confidence solid. But when she glanced back, Valerian hadn’t moved. He stood there, arms still crossed, watching her with a mixture of amusement and stubbornness.

She scowled. "Are you coming or not?"

With a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips, Valerian finally stepped forward. "Lead the way, oh great and all-knowing witch."

Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Try to keep up, hunter."

And with that, they disappeared into the shadows of the forest, the air growing colder with every step.

A few minutes later, Valerian paused, his gaze flicking toward the deeper part of the forest. There was something about this place—something unnatural. The air was too still. The shadows stretched too far. And every now and then, he swore he heard whispers slithering through the mist.

Something was watching them.

"You feel that, don’t you?" she murmured.

Valerian frowned. He did.

It was a predator’s gaze. Something hidden in the dark, lurking just out of reach.

His grip on his sword tightened as he stepped closer to her. "Stay close."

Evelyn tilted her head at him, a slow smile playing at her lips. "What, worried about me?"

Valerian’s jaw tensed. "Worried you’ll slow me down."

"Liar."

He didn’t respond. He just grabbed her wrist and started walking, his pace quick but careful. Evelyn didn’t resist, falling in step beside him.

The deeper they went, the more the forest seemed to shift around them. The trees twisted, their branches reaching like skeletal hands. The fog thickened, making it impossible to see beyond a few feet. And the whispers—those damn whispers—grew louder.

It felt like walking through the belly of some ancient beast, waiting to be devoured.

Then, just as Valerian was about to suggest stopping to reassess their path, Evelyn suddenly grabbed his arm.

"Wait."

He stilled. "What is it?"

She didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she slowly lifted her free hand, pointing ahead.

There, barely visible through the mist, was a figure standing in the path.

A woman.

Pale. Beautiful. Her gown flowing as if caught in an invisible breeze. And when she lifted her head, her eyes glowed red.

Evelyn cursed under her breath. "That’s definitely a ghost." The Evelyn of the past might not have feared ghosts, but the soul now inhabiting her body was a different story.

Valerian stepped in front of her, shielding her without thinking. "No. It’s not."

The woman smiled—a slow, eerie thing—and took a step forward.

Then another.

And with every step she took, the forest grew darker, colder.

Evelyn prided herself on being composed, but when the ghost suddenly materialized in front of her—its hollow eyes staring straight into her soul—she let out a sharp, involuntary scream. Every hair on her body stood on end, her breath caught in her throat, and before she could think, she staggered back in sheer panic.

"Evelyn—!" Valerian barely had time to react before she grabbed onto him in blind fear.

The ground beneath them trembled, as if sensing her distress, and without warning, it gave way. A deafening crack echoed through the forest as the earth beneath their feet crumbled, sending them plummeting into darkness.

Evelyn barely registered the rush of wind past her ears, her scream swallowed by the abyss, before she landed with a painful thud—right on top of Valerian.

A groan escaped him as she scrambled off, heart still hammering in her chest.

"Damn it, Evelyn," he coughed. "What the hell was that?"

She clenched her fists, trying to steady her breathing, but the tremble in her voice betrayed her. "I—I hate ghosts," she admitted, her face burning with a mix of embarrassment and lingering terror.

Valerian stared at her for a moment before letting out a breathless chuckle, wiping dirt from his brow. "Of all things . . . the great Evelyn Night, a century old witch, is afraid of ghosts?"

She shot him a glare, but he only shook his head. "You better pray there aren’t more down here," he added, glancing around the pitch-black cavern.

Evelyn swallowed hard. Suddenly, falling into a hole didn’t seem like the worst thing—being trapped down here with more ghosts, however, would be enough to wish that she would die instead to escape this world.

She had very few weaknesses, but ghosts were at the top of the list. She could handle them just fine in a game, but in real life? That was a whole different nightmare.

"Can you navigate from here to the castle?" Valerian asked as they moved cautiously through the cavern, the dim light barely illuminating the jagged walls around them. Their footsteps echoed, the sound swallowed by the overwhelming darkness stretching ahead.

"I can feel the magic of the castle, so it’s no problem," Evelyn replied, keeping close to Valerian—closer than usual. She was fine with monsters, fine with grotesque creatures that sent others screaming. But ghosts? That was an entirely different story. She shivered just thinking about it. "We should reach it within a day or two."

Valerian abruptly halted. Evelyn, lost in thought, walked straight into his back with a soft "oof." She scowled, rubbing her nose.

"What? You said it wasn’t far."

"Oh, right," she said, as if suddenly remembering something important. "I forgot—time is different for me than for you mortals."

Valerian frowned. "And?"

Evelyn turned her head slightly, her ashen eyes gleaming with amusement. "When I said ’not far,’ I didn’t mean an hour or two. I meant not a week far, but more like . . . a day or two far."

A dangerous silence stretched between them. Then, Valerian exhaled slowly, rubbing his temples as if physically restraining himself from strangling her.

"You. Absolute. Menace."

Evelyn stifled a laugh, clearly entertained by his frustration.

"I thought witches were good with time perception."

"Oh, shut up before I hex you," she chortled, marching ahead of him.

Valerian shook his head as he sighed over the ceiling.

This was going to be a long, long day.