How the Villain Invests in the Female Lead

Chapter 18: Holy Church

I turned back and saw a muscular girl with tanned skin, dressed in a saintess outfit. She was two heads taller than me and glared at my wife and me with eyes full of disgust and anger.

I squinted because I had never seen this girl before. From the way she treated us, I could tell she was a high-ranking noble.

My wife sighed.

’’What are you doing here, Maria?’’

I frowned. I recalled some memories of the old Henry. Maria was a saintess of the Holy Church.

A powerful organization that served the Gods and acted as an intermediary for their divine revelations. Their role was very important to the world, as they warned humans and other races about the Demons, who served the Demonic Gods.

I couldn’t help but click my tongue.

’’It’s quite annoying.’’

I ignored the saintess and pushed the wheelchair away. No one was going to stop me from clearing the gate.

My wife was just as surprised by my sudden action. She glanced at Maria and said in a bitter voice,

’’Sorry. I’m not Arthea Pendragon anymore. Now I’m Arthea Albert.’’

Maria clenched her jaw in anger and pointed at me.

’’Blasphemy! I’m going to punish you at the academy for the sin of ruining the Gods’ chosen child.’’

When we entered the gate, a forest manifested before our eyes.

My wife lingered for a moment before speaking. Her voice carried a hint of anxiety.

’’Henry... She’s my friend. Even though she’s devoted to her faith, she’s a good girl. So, please... don’t kill her.’’

I replied.

’’Kill her? Why would you think I’d kill her?’’

My wife bit her lower lip before sighing.

’’Because you’re a murderer.’’

I responded lazily.

’’You know nothing about me, my wife... I don’t kill people just because they piss me off or mock me.’’

My wife glanced at me with uncertain eyes.

’’So, when do you kill?’’

I shrugged.

’’I’ll kill anyone who wants to kill me, steal from me, or harm what’s mine. Especially you. You’re my precious tool.’’

My wife just stared at me for a long moment before lowering her head, no longer wanting to talk to me. Yet, for some reason, I could see her ears turning as red as tomatoes.

’’Can you use another word instead of "tool"? Like "baby" or "wife"...’’ my wife groaned under her breath in resentment. Then her voice grew quieter.

"If you used those words, maybe... I’d really fall in love with you."

I had no words for her because I wouldn’t lie to her... I would never love her, even in the future. No one could change me, nor even the Gods.

A few minutes later, we encountered a group of goblins. They emerged from the bushes, revealing green skin and ugly faces just as the books had described.

With rusty swords in their hands, they began to approach us, forming a circle around us.

I glanced at my wife and said,

’’Use your sewing needles. They’ll be good practice for you.’’

My wife nodded and used her mana to wrap around three sewing needles, lifting them into the air. They floated in midair for a few seconds before shooting toward the goblins.

Because the sewing needles were so small and moved quite fast, the goblins barely noticed anything.

They simply pierced through a goblin’s skull, killing it with a single blow and leaving only a tiny hole in its forehead.

I smiled.

’’It works.’’

The goblins began to show tension and panic when they saw their companion die for no apparent reason. They glanced at each other and stood back-to-back, trying to find the invisible enemy.

I slightly shook my head in disappointment.

Painful screams echoed through the forest as my wife slaughtered them with her sewing needles.

Each one fell down, bleeding, a small hole in their head.

The scene began to turn chaotic as the goblins gave up fighting the invisible enemy they imagined.

They split up and fled the place in terror.

I glanced at my wife, who gasped for breath after killing the goblins. Her face turned pale after her mana ran out.

I walked over to my wife and gently patted her back.

’’You did well.’’

My wife smirked weakly.

’’So, you knew how to encourage your wife.’’

I just responded in a neutral voice.

’’So, now you accepted that you’re my wife.’’

My wife just pouted her lips before turning away. It was clear she didn’t want to talk to me anymore.

I smiled and pushed the wheelchair to another area to hunt monsters.

At this time, I would fight using the new manual I had just received from my father.

By recalling the manual, the runes began to appear in my mind. I simply performed the movements and slashes described in the manual.

However... it was just too hard to do, even if I knew how it worked. Now I fully understood my father’s warning – it was no joke.

As soon as I swung a downward slash at the goblin’s head, I should’ve executed it perfectly if my manual was a normal rank. But with the complicated movement of this technique, it became harder than ever.

The goblin easily deflected my blow thanks to the many openings in my attack, before delivering a sneaky thrust toward my abdomen.

I frowned before brutally swinging a kick at the monster’s head, shattering it into pieces of flesh.

’’That’s not the way I want.’’

My wife blinked for a moment, asking in curiosity.

’’Your swordsmanship seems worse than before. Is something wrong with you?’’

I said.

’’I just learned a new martial art. It’s hard to perform.’’

My wife smiled.

’’I can help you. Finally, I can do something for you.’’

She added,

’’You should just keep fighting the goblins. I’ll adjust your sword movements using my sewing needles. It will help you improve your technique. I have a manual arts skill to support beginners in sword training – PRIMAL SWORD MANUAL (SSS+).Although it’s useless for killing, it helps refine basic swordsmanship for people you train with.’’