Villain’s Favorite 240

Chapter 240 Not a Coward Anymore 

“You’re the one who’s lost their mind.” Maya didn’t cave under pressure. “If I’d gotten there any later, George would be dead. What then?” 

“That has nothing to do with you,” Toby said, wanting nothing more than to reach through the phone and shake some sense into her. “Everyone has to face the consequences of their own choices. Do you understand that?” 

Maya said nothing. 

She listened to his impassioned lecture, jaw hanging open. 

There were countless moments she felt Toby was less of a brother and more of a second father. 

“Dad said something similar once,” she offered carefully. “But the thing is, rational judgment can’t measure how a person feels. 

“If it actually happened, I’d still be devastated. 

“Toby, you used to tease me for being a coward. But I was brave this time. Can’t you at least say something 

nice?” 

She was practically begging him to stop the sermon. 

Toby pressed a finger to the corner of his mouth. Two seconds of silence. His voice softened. “Did you do it because of what I said before? To prove yourself? 

“Forget what I said back then. 

“I had issues. Don’t use that as a reference.” 

His tone was somewhere between coaxing and apologizing. 

“I get that you wanted to save someone,” Toby said, voice slow, straining to maintain a gentle-older-brother persona. But the thought of her running around alone in the middle of the night blew his cover instantly, and he snapped right back to his true self-furious and frantic. “But couldn’t you have brought someone with you?! I swear you’re going to be the death of me!” 

And there it was again. 

Maya sighed. 

She said nothing for a while. 

The system had told her-during a reload sequence, she couldn’t bring anyone along. 

But she could never tell Toby that. 

Maya sat obediently in her chair, feet swinging, looking to change the subject. “What are you doing right 

now?” 

“In a meeting.” The background noise on Toby’s end was particularly chaotic. People were debating 

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something in a mix of languages. 

Maya clutched her head, not wanting to hear another lecture, and mumbled offhandedly. “Are you really that busy? Did the World League invite you or something?” 

“How did you know?” He sounded surprised, then oddly excited, like a kid who’d discovered something fun “Want to see? I can send you a video. Someone’s actually fighting over here. There are so many people 

Toby hadn’t cared about this kind of thing before. 

But ever since Maya came into his life, whenever he saw something interesting, his first instinct was to record it and show her. 

What the hell?! 

He’s actually at the World League? 

“No thanks.” 

Maya-deeply offended by the existence of trust fund kids-hung up without a second thought. 

Three calls down. Maya reviewed her contact list to see who was left. 

Alfred and Lawrence could both be ruled out. 

Which left Edric. 

The call connected quickly. 

“Edric, I killed someone.” 

“Hm?” A brief, soft laugh on the other end. “Is that so? Want me to compliment you?” 

Maya hesitated. “Actually… no.” 

Getting praised by Edric felt like it would be vaguely terrifying. 

He didn’t exactly radiate “loving big brother” energy. 

“I’m a little surprised, actually. Edric stared up at the fluorescent light. He hadn’t expected this sister- whom he’d barely interacted with-to call him, of all people. 

Since the call had already been made, he figured he might as well chat. 

“Maya, when you and Alfred enter the island after the new year, your safety falls under my responsibility 

“I expect you not to be a liability.” 

Maya replied, “I’m not a liability.” 

“Really? You just killed someone, and you’re calling people for comfort. In three sentences, he’d nailed the exact reason for her call: she was looking for reassurance and validation. 

“Needing comfort isn’t a flaw,” Maya fired back without blinking. “If you ever need comfort, you can call me 

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too.” 

“Besides, Mom told me you used to be a total crybaby, Edric.” 

Edric was stumped. 

His calm was the kind that came before a storm. “I never cried. Mom is lying to you.” 

Detecting the hairline crack of tension in his voice, Maya pounced. She rolled onto the bed, hugged the pillow, flipped over, and her voice turned positively gleeful. “You really never cry? Really? Really?” 

A moment of silence. 

“Antagonizing me brings you joy, does it, Maya?” 

They hadn’t spent much time together, but he could already read her core personality. 

At her core, she was a brat. Environment had warped her instincts toward self-preservation-she was quick to grovel, fast to apologize, slippery as an eel. But underneath it all, still a brat. 

Without discipline, she’d push every boundary until she was standing on your head. 

“Why are you getting upset again?” Maya grumbled. “I wouldn’t laugh at you.” 

“Maya, provoking your brother with pointless taunts will only make things very unpleasant for you later.” His tone was neither hot nor cold, yet somehow dripped with a very specific flavor of “you’d better not fall into my hands.” 

Before, he’d thought she was simple but obedient. 

It took until this phone call for the truth to dawn on him. 

Turns out, those days of good behavior had all been an act. 

Maya was speechless. 

In many ways, Edric was just a younger version of Philbert. 

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