Although a Villain, My Wish is World Peace

I slowly advanced towards Seol Rok-jin, my hand holding the dagger lowered to the ground.

Before I knew it, I was standing right before Seol Rok-jin’s nose. It was fortunate I had the mask on. Without the mask, he might have seen through my expression.

—Calm down!

My heart was pounding furiously. No matter how many times I had envisioned this situation while waiting here, I still couldn’t stay calm.

I resented Seol Rok-jin. Countless times, I had wanted to kill and eliminate that bastard. But in the end, I had succumbed to him and lived bearing the humiliating title of his lapdog.

But this life would be different.

I would make it different.

With my head bowed before him, Seol Rok-jin whispered to me:

“Plunge that dagger into your own throat.”

Of course, this was the Seol Rok-jin I knew. He had enjoyed having people take their own lives directly with his own hands. And in the end, he liked to release the brainwashing and savor their reactions.

Truly, he had the worst tastes imaginable.

Following his command, I raised the hand holding the dagger. And right when Seol Rok-jin was about to smile, I lowered my stance and charged straight at him.

With the dagger in my hand, I stabbed – or tried to stab – at Seol Rok-jin’s nape. Unfortunately, my dagger stopped just 1cm short of his neck.

Damn it, well, a cowardly bastard like Seol Rok-jin wouldn’t have come here without any artifacts to protect his body.

But I wasn’t the same as my former self either. I began squeezing the mana throughout my entire body into the dagger. Bit by bit, the distance between the dagger and that bastard narrowed.

Seol Rok-jin, startled by my actions, exclaimed:

“How?”

“I don’t know what petty trick you’ve used, but it won’t work on me.”

I threw back the exact words that bodyguard had used to call my actions ‘petty tricks’ earlier. It felt immensely satisfying.

Just seeing Seol Rok-jin’s startled expression seemed to dissolve years of pent-up frustration.

Seol Rok-jin’s eyes trembled, his previously composed facade shattering.

But it was short-lived. Seol Rok-jin’s pupils began turning yellow once more.

“So my ability doesn’t work on you.”

But this time, Seol Rok-jin’s ability wasn’t aimed at me.

Tackled by a bodyguard who had charged in from the side, I was sent tumbling across the ground.

“Damn it.”

I tried to swing the dagger in my hand to fend them off, but they clung to me like leeches despite being injured. In an instant, my body was covered in blood.

Those who had lost all reason and mindlessly charged at me moved solely to restrain me, without any attempt at defense.

—Wh-why are they suddenly acting like that?!

‘He triggered the fail-safe implanted in their brains. When the trigger is activated, they’ll mindlessly attack anyone in their line of sight.’

This was the method Seol Rok-jin used when disposing of pawns who had outlived their usefulness. Damn it, I should have anticipated this too. I plunged the dagger into the nape of the man who had piled onto my body.

“Gur, guruk.”

Even as his breath was cut off, the man’s hands still clung to me, trying to restrain me no matter what. This irrational response sent chills down my spine.

—Truly horrifying.

After pushing away the corpse, I flung my wire towards the fleeing Seol Rok-jin, but my dagger struck the body of another bodyguard who had blocked his path instead.

Damn it.

Again?

There was no time. I gathered mana at my fingertips. Small sparks of static electricity crackled between my palms. I charged at the bodyguard and gripped his nape. The tingling electric current that surged from my hands zapped his brain.

Even as his collapsing body fell, the only thought in my mind was to capture Seol Rok-jin.

Seol Rok-jin, who I had thought was out of reach, was now within my grasp.

Just one inch more, and I could have cut off Seol Rok-jin’s breath. Just one inch more, and I could have erased that bastard from this world.

Then perhaps all those countless victims wouldn’t have come to be!

But by the time I had dealt with all the leeches that had piled onto me, the boat Seol Rok-jin had arrived on had already departed from this island.

Damn it.

“He really is a slippery cockroach when it comes to clinging to his life.”

In my previous life where I had died, he must have survived like a cockroach too. I wiped the blood off the dagger and sheathed it back into its scabbard.

Holding the radio in my hand, I spoke:

“Aah, can you hear me? Situation terminated, situation terminated.”

[Cleaning up over here.]

Hearing the screams behind those words, I shrugged my shoulders. At least the owners of those screams didn’t seem to be on our side?

“Let’s regroup after resting a bit.”

My body was still aching.

* * *

By the time I trudged along and rejoined Baek Do-san’s group, the situation had already been resolved.

“That poison awakener was quite troublesome, wasn’t he?”

“But he couldn’t dodge bullets.”

Well, even for awakeners, getting shot was usually fatal unless they possessed a physical enhancement ability.

Thanks to my prior warning, any awakeners whose talents were unconfirmed had been engaged from a distance with guns. This minimized casualties on our side, with only a single fatality. In contrast, all twenty of the enemies had been killed.

“You didn’t leave any survivors?”

“Since they were that brainwashing bastard’s subordinates. I figured it would be unsettling to leave any alive, so I cleaned them all up.”

It was a resolute yet thorough cleanup. Professor Geum, beside Baek Do-san, had his mouth covered with a pallid expression.

“Ugh, I think I’m going to throw up.”

“You’re just too weak-stomached.”

“You’re too strong!”

Professor Geum plopped down on a plastic chair with a sickly face. I looked at Baek Do-san and spoke:

“While Seol Rok-jin triggering their fail-safes would have been troublesome, he can only perfectly brainwash one or two at most. The rest have limitations – needing to see him or hear his voice.”

If not for those conditions, there would have been no need to worry about Seol Rok-jin’s brainwashing.

Which was why he had come here in person this time.

“I owe you one this time. Honestly, I still don’t fully trust you, but listening to your words doesn’t seem like a loss.”

So he had gained some trust after I had exposed that traitor earlier? But he was still harboring suspicions.

Well, it would have been creepy if that guy had readily believed my words without any doubts. Maintaining a certain business-like distance was ideal.

“Since you helped me, I should repay you. What do you want?”

Those words came from none other than Baek Do-san himself. I could likely obtain anything. But it wasn’t time yet.

“If I ever need something, I’ll convey it through Professor Geum.”

At my words, Professor Geum, who had been silently watching, pointed at himself and asked:

“Me?”

“Got it.”

“Hey, you two can discuss without me. I don’t really want to get involved.”

Ignoring Professor Geum’s words, Baek Do-san and I exchanged glances. Finally, Professor Geum gave up.

“Alright, fine. Use me however you want.”

Well, since the matter was settled, I suppose I should take my leave now.

Before departing from Sendo Island with Professor Geum, I suddenly remembered something crucial I needed to say to Baek Do-san. I had almost forgotten.

“Are you planning to continue importing drugs through this route?”

“I didn’t mention that the goods traded today were drugs. Well, for you to know, it wouldn’t be too surprising. But why are you asking?”

“If you plan to change the route, I can provide useful information.”

Continuing to use a route that had already been compromised would be foolish. Even if I didn’t say anything, he would undoubtedly change the route, but then what benefit would there be for me?

“Bringing them in through a portal from China wouldn’t be an issue, but the problem is receiving them on this side. As you probably know, the portal division is extremely strict, you see.”

Portals were a new technology that allowed instantaneous transportation of objects by consuming mana stones. They had the advantage of being able to instantly move any object, although living beings would die in the process, so they couldn’t transport lifeforms.

But there was a reason they were resorting to cargo ships instead of utilizing such a convenient mode of transportation.

“While there are plenty of illegal portals on the Chinese side, it’s difficult to evade the government’s eyes here in Korea.”

The Korean government managed the portals, and they cracked down hard on any smuggling attempts. The initial merchants who had tried smuggling through portals were likely all in prison by now.

But there was a way.

Although not fully corrupted yet, I already had a list in my mind of those who would become corrupt. Among them was an official from the portal management division.

“Look for Division Head Oh Jun-seok from the portal management division. His youngest daughter will soon develop a rare disease, so he’ll do any job for money.”

Until this incident, Division Head Oh Jun-seok had been renowned for his impeccable integrity and trusted by those around him, making him perfect for such matters. In fact, I had never heard of any issues arising after Seol Rok-jin had recruited him.

“As long as we can keep the child’s rare disease a secret from the outside world, it should be problem-free for at least ten years.”

In reality, the child’s rare disease wouldn’t be discovered until about a year from now, but since it was a congenital condition, the symptoms might already be present, albeit too mild to be recognized as an illness.

“And if the deal goes through that route, I want a cut of the profits.”

“A cut?”

“Not for free, of course. I also want to invest some capital.”

I would be getting involved in the drug trade. Some might point fingers at me. But I needed money. An astronomical amount of money.

For someone like me who couldn’t conquer gates, this route was the most reliable way to earn substantial sums periodically.

I would have to put my foot in the door through this method.

“Well, if that route really is viable.”

Baek Do-san readily nodded. While profit-sharing could be a sensitive matter, he still owed me for saving his life.

After finishing my final words, I left Sendo Island along with Professor Geum.

“Where should I drop you off?”

“Just here is fine.”

After arriving in the downtown area, I parted ways with Professor Geum. From now on, I had many tasks ahead of me.

Still, I had truly gained a lot from this single day.

—The most satisfying part was landing a blow on that miserable bastard.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget it.”

Seol Rok-jin fleeing from me in panic – it felt like something that had been tightly bottled up within me had finally been released.

“Well, Seol Rok-jin isn’t a god either.”

A bitter realization also crossed my mind.

—Think positively! This is just the beginning, isn’t it?

“You’re right.”

As I exchanged those hopeful words with Ray and started walking along the street, it happened. My face was displayed on the electronic billboard installed atop a building.

[Murder Suspect: Public Wanted Notice]

Ah, damn it.

It seemed that miserable bastard also wanted to land a blow on me.