Both Alex and Cedric fell silent for a few minutes, and Cedric spoke after leaning back on his chair.

"A dragon’s spoiled blood turns into a poison which shows symptoms similar to various mana diseases, but it cannot be cured... Glemora’s founder had collected the blood from the dragon’s corpse, and over time it spoiled and turned into what I call Dragon Resentment Poison."

Alex already knew about it because Cedric had blurted out all of this like a madman when the original Alex had come to feed his soul to his Demonic Soul Devouring Sword.

Alex stepped forward. An empathetic expression on his face, and he thought.

In the original story, he was used as nothing more than a slight power-up – however, I can achieve much more by making him an ally.

"When the civilians of Glemora searched for you, they found out about your relationship with Lady Heslera..."

Suddenly, the room turned cold. The chandelier’s soft light began to flicker, and visible cracks appeared across the table, shelves, and windows.

Alex felt as though someone was grinding a cold blade across his body.

Dammit! I have to calm him down! He cried inwardly and muttered through gritted teeth.

"Cedric cal—"

"They poisoned her."

Alex froze as death loomed over him.

Cedric was looking at him with extremely cold eyes while the flickering light and the shadows made him appear like a grim reaper.

"She was a kind woman. Regardless of stature, status, and ability, she cared for everyone. Yet just because of their own ego, those miscreants poisoned her. They killed Heslera, and with it they killed the last bit of pity I’ve built for them."

"Ha...haha...how amusing!" Cedric laughed loudly and said while pushing his finger tips into his face.

"I wanted them to feel the same pain she did. No, I needed it to be a hundred times worse than that! So I made a spell which allowed the ’Blessed’ to live as long as I do, and in return they were eternally bound to a single choice and a single desire... but being a civil person, I am. I made sure they didn’t cry or scream, not outwardly at least. Haha!"

The more Alex listened, the more he understood how Cedric had ended up in the Hall of Great Evils as a three-star villain.

Cedric rose from his chair and asked, "Do you want to see it?"

Alex frowned. "See what?"

He was momentarily left confused because nothing similar to this had happened in the Villain’s Ascension.

Cedric didn’t answer – instead, he flicked his right hand and all of the shelves, chairs, table, and other items disappeared from the room.

He pointed at the city visible through the broken window, and a grand magic circle appeared before him.

Blue light gathered an inch away from his fingertip, and the magic circle spun as though gears were shifting into place.

With a sharp buzz, the blue light flew towards the city, and just as it reached the center, it exploded.

Royal blue mana petals rained down.

Alex’s eyes widened, and he stepped closer to the broken window with a horrified face.

The grand Glemora City had changed. The buildings that once looked new were now covered in cracks, their windows were shattered, and marks of dried blood marred the outer settlements.

"This..."

Cedric stepped beside him and responded with a wide, ecstatic grin. "Yes, this is the Glemora I envisioned."

Suddenly, a purple screen appeared before him.

[Cell: Glemora — Prison of Neverending Sorrow and Misery.]

[Prisoner: Cedric Ivaxius (★★★)]

Alex’s eyes widened in terror, and the next Instant, deafening wails and screams full of horror and unimaginable pain filled the city, causing Alex’s heart to drop.

"Forgive me..."

"Please... kill me..."

"Let me die!!!!"

"Haaah..." Cedric took a long, deep breath and commented with a bright smile. "What lovely sounds. Don’t you agree?"

Alex clenched his hands so hard that his knuckles turned pale, and he mumbled in a low voice.

"It’s repulsive and extremely disgusting."

Cedric nodded. "I hope you feel the same forever."

Hearing those words, Alex’s thoughts turned complicated.

A mage with the greatest strength and noblest heart was given the prestigious title of Grand Mage, and that was who Cedric once was before his own people took his life away from him.

After a few moments of thought, Alex looked into Cedric’s eyes and dropped the bomb that he had been holding since the start of this conversation.

"Lady Heslera is still alive."

Cedric’s ecstatic expression cracked instantly. He swiftly twisted his head toward Alex and whispered, "What?"

"Do you remember how you ended up in here?"

Cedric opened his lips to answer, but he soon closed them because he had nothing to say. His expression turned extremely confused, and he muttered under his breath.

"I remember meeting a person who called himself acting Hall Master, and the next moment I was in here."

Alex nodded.

When the original Alex had killed Cedric, he had obtained a bit of his memories, including the ones that the Hall had hidden from him.

"When you met that person, he had given you choices. The first choice was to be imprisoned forcefully, and the other was to get imprisoned in return for a single wish."

"What?" Cedric was left speechless. How does someone so weak know this? He thought. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Do you know what you choose?" Alex asked.

Cedric shook his head. "I don’t. I don’t even remember such a thing happening."

"You chose the second option."

Cedric chuckled. "Why would I do that? I am the grand mage. I can already have whatever I want and need."

"You had picked the second option, and your wish was for Lady Heslera to be reincarnated with memories of her life with you."

With those words, Alex steeled his heart and got ready for whatever was to come next.

But to his surprise, Cedric didn’t turn berserk – instead, he gripped Alex’s shoulders and asked desperately.

"Are you saying that I can still live with my Heslera?"

"Huh?"