Chapter 23

: There’s a quest you haven’t completed yet…

“I know.”

: Yes. [Perfect Memory] must be killed by any means necessary.

“I said I know.”

: Then, why did you bring forward the black market episode?

: That’s an action I didn’t instruct.

“You’re the one who said being moderately proactive is better than being a puppet without will.”

: That’s true, but…

This plan was one I was carrying out independently after quite a long time.

While it didn’t deviate from the overall framework of the plan the status window had suggested to me, it felt somewhat fresh for me, who had so far acted exactly as the status window dictated even in the details.

I’m stealing a connection that the protagonist should have had…

That fact alone made me unable to hide my excitement.

The protagonist, living so happily in this world!

He’s having something taken from him by me. And without even knowing it!

This was simple spite, jealousy.

I’m so unhappy, and because of the environment and society, and also because of the status window, I’ve become like this.

Why do you always wear a happy expression, and live in a perfect environment and society, with good friends?

So, wouldn’t it be okay for me to take just one thing?

Couldn’t I also have a precious connection?

I’ll rescue that girl from the black market and raise her myself.

Not you, but me.

“Is that for certain?”

: Yes. The main scenario is not that she’s rescued by Ryu Seong, but that she gets rescued.

: In other words, the subject who rescues her can change to you. This is not a predetermined story.

“Good.”

If I can rescue her, raise her properly and make her into a useful pawn, it would be helpful in the future.

There’s a gap of 1 year, but considering that the organization didn’t release her to the outside until she was fully grown and had commercial value… it’s possible.

She will be in the same place.

: Since you can use various abilities anyway, is there a need to increase your allies?

‘No, there isn’t.’

: Then, why?

‘Because I want to steal. Just because.’

When did my reflection in the mirror start to resemble the people who killed my family in the past? For now, I don’t know.

I cover the glass in the dormitory bathroom with cloth and wrap it tightly with tape.

There’s one thing I want to ask people with trauma.

Why do you embrace things that trigger your trauma instead of throwing them away or hiding them? You can just put them out of sight.

If there’s a person you dislike, kill them, and if there’s an object you dislike, throw it away—it’s simple, isn’t it?

So, I decided to cut away all the parts of my story that I dislike.

This is my way.

What I’ve decided.

Until I get the chance to undo everything.

‘Alright. Let’s review.’

The beginning of the plan is simple.

Since I’ve dropped hints to Hiyeon about an item called a love potion, she’ll visit the black market soon.

[Alchemy], who discovers a young and promising healing ability user in the black market, will immediately approach her and attempt a kidnapping.

The reason will be revealed during the story, but for now, there’s no need to worry about it.

After all, the protagonist is an idiot who reaches out to save others without any thought, as long as they don’t cross the line, even if they’re villains.

To the extent that he would reach out to someone who kidnapped his childhood friend.

Anyway, our protagonist, Ryu Seong, who realizes his childhood friend has been kidnapped, immediately takes action.

After inquiring, he notices that the last sighting of her was cut off at the black market, and he’ll ask the local merchants about Hiyeon’s description.

But why?

The black market merchants strangely avoid mentioning Hiyeon. Because [Alchemy], the operator of the black market, kidnapped her!

Something feels strange. There’s a sense of discomfort.

Ryu Seong notices something and eventually discovers that the traces of the missing Hiyeon lead to the tallest building in the black market!

Roughly, during the battle between [Alchemy] and Ryu Seong with their abilities, the villain’s sad backstory is revealed—fuck, I don’t care about the villain’s backstory.

After the fight ends, it’s more or less a happy ending.

In the final stage of the story, an ability user slave girl who escaped during the chaos caused by the battle’s aftermath coincidentally encounters the protagonist—from this plot.

I will steal that girl.

The girl’s name is Yeon (連).

She has no surname.

Her ability is…

♦♦♦

A problem has arisen in the plan.

The premise of this plan starts with ‘Hiyeon’ going to the ‘black market’ to get a ‘love potion’. These three elements were the core triggers of the story from the beginning.

But for some reason, Hiyeon was hesitating to get the love potion.

Was it that pathetic guilty conscience acting as a final brake of conscience? Or was it because the credibility of me suddenly recommending such a suspicious item was low?

Since she had strong traits of what’s known in the community as a “troublesome heroine,” I had no doubt and was convinced she would head to the black market.

Maybe because she doesn’t feel a sense of crisis?

Currently, the only female around him is herself, his childhood friend, and I already declared I had no interest and even gave her information to help them get together… she might be thinking of the love potion as a last resort.

‘I wish she would get kidnapped soon. No, she could even die for all I care.’

Hmm, after pondering briefly, I shook my head.

‘It would be troublesome if the protagonist awakens because of that. Let’s postpone killing people he cares about.’

Just sitting in the academy and listening to boring classes makes me feel like I’ll develop a mental illness. No, maybe I already have.

All I do is smoke cigarettes all day, replenish them at the convenience store when they run out, attend classes again, and at night, monitor whether academy teachers are wandering outside.

That’s all.

The academy’s security has been abnormally strengthened, and all teachers are hiding tightly within the buildings.

In this situation, I can’t complete the quest.

“Status window.”

: Yes.

“Why is 1+1 equal to 2?”

: …Are you aware that you’ve been calling me out for strange reasons lately?

“I know.”

: If you have nothing to do, develop your abilities.

“They’re already at the final stage. I just need to master abstraction and I’d be fine, but it’s not working at all.”

: That’s exactly what I’m saying!

The real reason I spoke to the status window wasn’t this.

It’s simply because my remaining conscience, weighing about 1mg, about 6 times lighter than the tar in the cigarettes I smoke, is hesitating.

Because no matter how much of a villain I am, it takes a certain resolve to kill someone with a backstory.

[Paper], I mean… was it Jisa? He’s just a minor character anyway, I don’t give a fuck.

A backstory I don’t know isn’t a backstory. I killed that bastard before even hearing his backstory.

The way to cleanly end a villain who gets mired in reminiscing about the past is to take them out before they even start their flashbacks.

Hmm, since he was an academy teacher… was he not a villain?

Anyway.

Even if there exists a future where I’m defeated and killed by the protagonist, I’ll die with a smile even at the end.

Ah, I might as well provide that service.

All the people who have died so far died because you were too late to save them. No, if you had noticed from the first time we met that I was coming from killing people, this wouldn’t have happened! Right? Friend!

I’ve come up with quite a villain’s speech.

Now, here’s the main point.

There’s one very important question.

“Status window.”

: If you’re calling me again to say something useless, don’t think about looking for me any more today!

“You said my ability is similar to Ryu Seong’s, right?”

: Similar but different in nature. You disassemble others’ abilities and reassemble them—a perfect upgrade! [Other-Killing] is many times more impressive than something like [Self-Sacrifice]!

“Anyway, if I kill a great ability user, I can reassemble it into a great ability.”

: Yes.

“And you either intervene in the middle when my ability activates… or you predict what the next reward will be and display it in the quest window.”

: For now, let’s put it that way.

“Then, if I kill [Alchemy] and a multi-ability user with several abilities… what can I receive?”

: It’s probably difficult to get something as impressive as [Resurrection] or [SAVE & LOAD], but it would be something that could be of great help.

“Hmm… that’s an ambiguous answer.”

: You…

“Yes?”

: No, never mind. Let’s try it your way once.

“You’re giving permission?”

The status window kept silent without saying anything.

I smirked, rolled around on the bed, and laughed loudly for a while.

So much that I worried it might be heard in the next room.

It’s the path I’ve chosen. I won’t regret it.