Although a Villain, My Wish is World Peace

—Ahem, so there was such a story. I thought you were…

‘I was what?’

—Well… that you had a thing for older people.

What are you saying, you old artifact?

‘It’s technically true that I like older people, which makes me even more annoyed.’

—You did like older people?

‘If I had to say, my ideal type is someone understanding… no, is this the time to talk about such things?’

I suddenly came to my senses. I almost fell for Ray and wasted time with useless talk. I turned my gaze back to John.

If I hadn’t met John, I might not know, but having met John here, there was no option of just leaving him behind.

Because I’m the kind of person who knows the grace of a teacher. That I should somehow save your life.

So say it. Please, save me, get me out of this hell.

—You’re talking as if there’s a choice, when you’re fully intending to take him out even if he doesn’t say anything.

‘…I want to rescue him, not kidnap him.’

Just say one word that you need help, that you need saving.

John looked at me with a bitter smile and said:

[Honestly, I don’t know. If my sibling really ended up like that, I wonder if a person like me is even worth living.]

Having already lost the job he loved, and also lost all the people he loved… He might not want to live anymore.

But I couldn’t leave John like this.

[Is there some madman brainwashing you? Like, threatening you by killing people in front of you if you don’t listen…]

[Pardon?]

[I’m asking if there’s a stalker who tightly grips your windpipe so you can’t die even if you want to, shaking up your life.]

[That’s not the case, but…]

[If that’s not the case either, why are you so afraid? Just live. Let’s live and think about it.]

I put my hand on John’s shoulder and said:

[You’ve gotten a chance to live freely, doing what you want to do. Are you thinking of just letting this chance go?]

[B-but…]

[John, you’re too good a person to die.]

[Me?]

There was doubt towards my words on John’s face. Right, my words aren’t very credible. I know that even if someone you just met today says ‘You’re worth living, you’re a good person,’ it won’t really resonate.

But still.

I want you to live.

I want you to be very happy in this life, unlike the past.

[Well, if it doesn’t seem so right now, prove it as you live on. That you’re a good person.]

At my words, John laughed with an incredulous face.

[So you’ll save me first, and tell me to prove it?]

[I’m generous, I give a lot of credit. So pay me back by living later.]

At my words, John shook his head and said:

[I just can’t win against you with words. Alright. For now, let’s try living. It’s not like I’m here because I want to be…]

Good, I’ve succeeded in pulling my past teacher out of hell.

Now it’s time to save the people here.

[First, we need to move the people here.]

[A-all these people?]

[Yes. Is there any safe place?]

Leaving John deep in thought at my words, I first checked the condition of the people. Though they weren’t regaining consciousness, fortunately everyone seemed to be in no danger to their lives.

[There’s a villa a bit away from here, it should be safe there.]

Good, we’ve secured a safe space. Now the problem was how to move these unconscious collapsed people there.

Just in case, I asked if there were any transportation means available, but Diana who was worried he might escape had removed everything from cars to even bicycles.

Damn it.

Does this mean I have to carry all these people on my back all the way there? Usually I could just subtly push such dirty work onto Han Seo-hyeon or Kim Jae-ho.

—Are you thinking of using kids who aren’t even here?

Right, I’m an adult of a new country, so I should take care of my own work…

“Ah, I wish someone would move all these people for me.”

But I couldn’t help such a mutter coming out without realizing. Ah, I wish someone would do my work for me…

As if hearing my muttering, with a strange ‘Hiyah’sound, a skeleton dropped from the ceiling.

“Wh-what is this!”

[Aaaaah!]

John fell backwards again at the sudden appearance of the skull. It was such a refreshing back tumble that I worried if he might have cracked his skull.

Anyway, if there’s a skeleton here, that means…

I put my hand on my face.

“Seo-hyeon?”

“Yes.”

At the voice coming from above, I slightly raised my head.

I saw the Weltschmerz members and temporary native English teacher stuck to the window in the warehouse ceiling.

“Didn’t I clearly tell you not to follow?”

“Yes, you did, but it seemed like someone said they needed help. So I flew over, swoosh.”

That doesn’t make sense! How did you come so quickly! No, even if you really flew over by teleportation, that means you were eavesdropping on my words!

I wanted to argue like that, but seeing their confident expressions, I’d only lose if I argued.

John who got up from the floor pointed at the skeleton with a trembling finger.

[Wh-what is th-that?]

“Ah.”

I should introduce them first.

[Don’t be surprised, these are my subordinates.]

[B-but it’s dead?]

[Ah, that’s a skeleton summoned by my subordinate, and my subordinates are up there on the ceiling.]

[Eek!]

John who looked up at the ceiling sat down unsteadily while making a strange sound.

“My neck hurts, come down.”

At my words, the members hanging from the ceiling all came down to the floor. As soon as he came down to the floor, Han Seo-hyeon subtly pointed at John with his eyes and asked:

“Who on earth is that person?”

“My English teacher.”

“What?”

“I learned English by watching his broadcasts in the past.”

I made that excuse. At my words, Han Seo-hyeon examined John’s face and gaped.

“He w-was a celebrity? Then that’s fan…”

“Huh?”

Before I could answer Han Seo-hyeon’s words, Kim Jae-ho shouted with an excited face:

“Celebrity!”

Kim Jae-ho who hurriedly took out a notebook and pen from his pocket ran straight to John.

“What are you doing?”

“They said to get an autograph when you meet a celebrity.”

John who had a surprised expression at Kim Jae-ho’s request soon happily gave Kim Jae-ho an autograph.

[My goodness, to think I had another fan.]

And Kim Jae-ho who received John’s autograph smiled brightly and said:

“How much can I sell this for?”

Hmm…

I hurriedly turned my gaze away.

I should bury the truth.

* * *

With Han Seo-hyeon’s help, I succeeded in moving the people and John to a safe area.

[Do you know anything?]

Since he had been staying here, I thought he might know something well. But at my question, John shook his head with a troubled face.

[I don’t know much either. Diana never talked about work in front of me. She, she just told me to stay pretty…]

[Urgh.]

For reference, it’s not me making that vomiting sound now. It’s Edward. I lightly hit Edward’s side. Edward barely composed his expression.

[Sorry, I have a habit of vomiting when I hear disgusting things.]

He managed his expression, but couldn’t manage the words coming out of his mouth. While I was stepping on Edward’s foot, John scratched the back of his head and said:

[I can’t understand her taste at all either. What does she like about an old man like me…]

The way he actually said that looked like a lover who had received plenty of love to anyone watching, so I was at a loss for words.

Even Edward who had been frowning while getting his foot stepped on by me lost his words, making a sound like [Wow…].

No, what’s with that expression? Did you really live well here, warm and well-fed?

Huh? Didn’t you say you lived as a lover! Shouldn’t you live resolutely, burning with revenge towards the person playing with you while smiling on the outside!

—Why are you getting immersed?

‘…That’s right.’

I barely came to my senses at Ray’s words. Anyway, what’s important now isn’t whether John lived well here as a beloved lover.

But the more I tried to dig for information, the more it became clear John didn’t know anything.

[You really don’t know jack shit.]

You know nothing, John…

John’s face reddened at my wistful words.

Though I failed to get help from John, it wasn’t like I gained nothing.

First, I found out that the one operating that casino was a gang, and second, I found out that the gang leader’s name was Diana.

Well, it would have been even better if I had found out how big their scale was, where their base was, things like that…

Unfortunately, John didn’t know anything.

I said to John who somehow looked more deflated than before:

[Stay here until the work is done.]

[What? Here?]

[Or you can leave with this if you want.]

I took out the cash ticket I had won from my pocket and handed it to John. John’s eyes widened as he looked at the ticket I handed him, at first wondering what it was.

[This is too much money!]

[I believe you’ll use it well.]

I got on the back of the sand eagle Han Seo-hyeon had summoned, leaving John who was trying to say something. The eagle carried all of us and rose into the air. Han Seo-hyeon asked me:

“What are you planning to do now?”

“We need to find the missing Nikki.”

That was the top priority. So…

“I’m counting on you, Seo-hyeon!”

Han Seo-hyeon pouted his lips.

“You looked like you were asking why we came all this way just earlier.”

Honestly, it’s not like I didn’t think that at all, but since we’ve come all this way, we should make proper use of it.

—What a trashy thought.

‘Then should I tell the kid who came all this way to just go back? Huh?’

Anyway, at my words, Han Seo-hyeon pouted his mouth but spread sand in all directions. With rat and bird skeletons moving too, Nikki’s location would soon be revealed.

I told Han Seo-hyeon all the information I knew.

“Hmm, it’s definitely strange. That they took only that person separately.”

“Right.”

There must be a reason they deliberately separated Nikki from us.

‘The most worrying thing is that August is a mental ability user.’

His suggestion was clearly at a pathetic level, but he could greatly boost that level momentarily by resonating with surrounding artifacts.

It’s a method that’s burdensome to the caster so he doesn’t seem to use it often, but if necessary, he can produce an effect comparable to brainwashing for a moment.

And if there’s an artifact that can amplify that ability even more…

“Do you not know exactly who this Nikki person is?”

“I searched earlier, but no one came up with the name Nikki.”

At Cha Song-jin’s words, I stroked my chin.

I thought it was strange too. Even if I’m not interested in American hunters, still. If it’s a large guild with over a hundred affiliated hunters, I should know about it.

“Nikki is probably not her real name, but an alias or nickname.”

“Well, it makes sense she’d hide her real name since she came to gamble.”

Well, whatever. Whoever Nikki is, is that important?

“Let’s just save her first.”

“And after we save that person?”

“…We need to find out what that gang is doing behind the scenes.”

If they were scamming people while involving a mental ability user, well.

“We can’t just leave guys like that alone.”