Although a Villain, My Wish is World Peace

There’s a saying that a nobleman’s revenge, even if it takes ten years, is not too late. I may not be a nobleman, but someone who has lived my whole life as a villain, yet even so, I’ve been able to take my revenge after a decade.

—Were you a returner?

I considered beating around the bush a bit, but since Ray and I were in the same boat anyway. Besides, it wouldn’t be strange to hide my circumstances after revealing Ray’s situation to me.

“If I wasn’t, how could someone like me with no abilities have found you?”

—So you knew the one who obtained me in your previous life. I see. I was wondering how a worm like you became connected to me.

“Have a little consideration for this listening worm too, would you?”

Making such remarks in front of someone listening. I thought it had opened up to me a bit, but it seemed some resentment still remained.

Tsk, inwardly clicking my tongue, I continued speaking.

“The one who possessed you in my previous life had no interest in saving the world. He only used you to satisfy his own selfish desires.”

The Park Se-woon I had witnessed was far too far removed from being a savior.

He was someone who never even considered sharing his luck with others. Just look at how closely he associated with Seol Rok-jin – wasn’t that enough of a giveaway?

Didn’t it pour out endless nagging about how I was an S-rank awakener? How vexing.

“It just means rank alone isn’t everything.”

Perhaps sensing my disgruntled mood, Ray haltingly spoke.

—Well, I can’t know my own thoughts from the previous life, but I must have had some intentions, right?

“Intentions, my ass. Just watching how that guy carried himself for three days was enough to get a read on him.”

Park Se-woon was someone utterly unfit to become this world’s savior from the start. And to have chosen such a guy and still talk so big.

—And what’s your assessment of yourself?

I was well aware of my own abilities. That I was far too lacking to call myself this world’s savior.

But I knew better than anyone how to deal with the bad guys. Because I was someone who had peered too deeply into the abyss and become the abyss itself.

Even so, wasn’t I still trying my best somehow?

“I’m the stock that’s going to explode in the future.”

—What stock?

Forget it, what was the point of talking to this dimension-hopping bumpkin? As I inwardly sighed, Ray’s voice echoed in my head.

—In any case, as you said, you are my master now. Whether I like it or not, I have to go forward with you from now on.

“Yes, I hope that thought doesn’t change moving forward.”

Since I couldn’t separate from this thing, we were in the same boat, no, the same body. It would be better for us to get along amicably.

—By the way, what did you experience in your previous life to hold such a grudge?

Although I was barely maintaining my composure, Ray, who could read my mind, must have realized it.

How many times I had suppressed the urge to lash out in front of Im Hyeon-su.

“It was a horrific experience, so horrific I don’t even want to explain it.”

—Hmm.

After those words, Ray fell silent. Having truly not wanted to talk about the past, I was grateful for Ray’s silence.

After briefly settling my emotions, I double-checked the information I had received from Im Hyeon-su.

Bupyeong Station, 3 PM today.

“Do you know what’s most important when dealing with bad guys?”

—You’re asking me because you know I can read your mind anytime?

“Well, it’s more fun to have a conversation, isn’t it?”

—Sheesh, fine. What’s most important?

Although there wasn’t much entertainment value in our back-and-forth, it was something at least. With a wry smile, I spoke.

“Timing.”

The moment you touch one side, they’ll be ready to fold and scatter everywhere.

So this one strike had to properly pluck everything. Information, money, whatever.

—Trying so hard to act cool when there’s no one even around to see.

I deliberately ignored Ray’s mocking voice echoing in my mind.

* * *

I arrived at Bupyeong Station. After checking the items I had purchased from the black market beforehand and buying a skewer of fish cakes from a street vendor, the timing was perfect.

What was parked in front of me was an old Sonata that looked about ten years old. A man with a soot-stained face stuck his head out from the driver’s side and asked me,

“Your name?”

“Kang Yi-sin.”

“Get in.”

Nodding my head, I got into the Sonata and wrinkled my nose. The stale scent of cigarette smoke and the lingering odors of the people who had spent time in this car were enough to numb my senses.

—What a dreadful stench!

Ray cried out like that.

Having had a weak stomach for the past few days, I was about to die too. Seeing my contorted expression, the man in the driver’s seat opened his mouth with an awkward look.

“Sorry about that, I just dropped off some guys working on site. You know how it is, no matter how much you air it out, the stench just won’t go away. Plus, the place is a bit far, you see?”

The Chilseong County gate was indeed located in a remote area. Which was probably why illegal mining was possible there. Since they had to travel that far distance with those stinking people, the stench was unavoidable, the man babbled on, to which I just nodded vaguely and shut my mouth.

I had no intention of wasting energy by flapping my gums unnecessarily. The man, who had repeatedly glanced at me through the rearview mirror, focused on driving once he saw I had fallen silent, looking tired.

After dropping me off, the man immediately disappeared elsewhere.

“Is it okay to leave a witness like this? Didn’t you say you planned to kill a lot of people there?”

Ray, aware of what I intended to do at that illegal gate, asked me with apparent unease.

“The important thing is that this person is a witness. I plan to discard the identity of Kang Yi-sin today.”

Professor Geum could only conceal my identification tag’s signal for a maximum of two weeks. So Kang Yi-sin had to disappear in a natural way, somehow.

“There’s no place more natural for someone to go missing than at a gate.”

Today, I had brought the GPS that Professor Geum had given me. I planned to throw this GPS into the gate.

—How will you close the gate? You can’t properly conquer it, can you?

“Originally, the gates that miners go to are all ones that have already been fully conquered. They’re just being kept open with a gate maintenance device.”

—There’s such a thing?

“Yes. So all I have to do is take care of business and then remove that maintenance device. Then the gate will close, and all evidence will disappear from this world.”

—Aha, I see your plan now.

“Yeah, so I have to properly show my face.”

To prove that the disgrace of Babel, Kang Yi-sin, had come here and failed to escape.

Well then, shall I get to work? I approached the green gate shining in the middle of the mountainside.

* * *

“You’re back again.”

Damn fools. Kim, the one in charge of the site, spat on the ground. It had come at a rather convenient time, as they were severely shorthanded.

Hopefully this one coming today would last a decent amount of time.

With that expectation, Kim raised his gaze.

But looking at the shabby appearance and emaciated figure, it didn’t seem likely this one would even last until tomorrow, let alone for a long time.

‘He looks like he’ll drop dead if you so much as poke him.’

The circumstances that led these people to flow in here were obvious, but still, to send someone like that. Kim inwardly cursed Im Hyeon-su. At least let him replenish his strength a bit before sending him. What was this? At best, he might last three days. No, two days? They were already being pressured from above to meet their quotas, and this would only make things more difficult.

But for now, an extra pair of hands was still an extra pair of hands. Nothing could be done about it.

Kim approached the man.

“You’re here to work?”

Normally when Kim spoke like this, the other person would nod tensely. With full-body tattoos and a stature nearing 2 meters, the hulking Kim was an intimidating presence that would make anyone nervous.

But this man before him was different.

The moment Kim’s words reached him, the man’s demeanor changed. Just by squaring his shoulders and straightening his waist, the shabby impression completely vanished. When the man raised his head to meet Kim’s gaze, Kim unknowingly gulped.

Could an atmosphere really shift so instantly like this?

“Yeah, I’m here to work.”

In that moment, Kim didn’t even realize the man had dropped formalities and spoken informally to him.

He was different from the ordinary people. The man exuded an aura unique to those in high positions.

What was this? The man’s scrawny body, which had looked on the verge of collapse just moments ago, now felt as imposing as a mountain.

Unable to utter a word before the man, he leisurely continued speaking.

“The higher-ups sent me to check if things are running smoothly here.”

“Wh, what’s that supposed to…”

Kim froze at the abruptly dropped term. The higher-ups? The moment those words came out, Kim bit his lip. There was no way some small fry like him would know those people, he wanted to say, but the moment he met the man’s eyes, those words remained stuck in his throat.

No matter how much the man looked like a vagrant from the outside, Kim couldn’t bring himself to dismiss him.

‘Could the higher-ups really have sent him?’

But Kim still harbored doubts. While people from above did occasionally show up, they had never sent someone looking so shabby like this before.

Full of suspicion, Kim asked the man:

“It’s not even an inspection day, is it?”

“Well, I heard there were some secretly skimming off the quotas among you guys. So I’ve got to check things out secretly.”

At those words, Kim gulped and rolled his eyes. Now he understood why the man was in such a sorry state.

‘Those bastards! They told us to skim off just a reasonable amount!’

A long tail gets stepped on, as the saying went. No matter how carefully he had tried to be, it seemed they had been found out in the end. Damn it, he hadn’t expected things to turn out like this.

“You’re not in on it too, are you?”

The man’s upturned lips and piercing gaze sent a chill through Kim. Gulping, Kim replied,

“No, I’m just the one who brings people in and out from outside. I have no idea what goes on inside.”

After scrutinizing Kim from head to toe, the man said:

“Alright, I’ll believe you for now.”

Whew, Kim inwardly let out a sigh of relief at the man’s words. If he had been on that man’s bad side, who knew what would have happened.

“Open up the gate first.”

“You’re, you’re going in?”

“Yeah, the higher-ups want me to thoroughly inspect the inside. I’ll be staying for a few days to observe the situation.”

Were they really going to root everything out this time? How could he escape this situation? Or perhaps, if he took care of this man first?

For a moment, that thought crossed his mind, but Kim immediately shook his head inwardly. No matter how shabby the man looked, if he had been sent by those people, he was undoubtedly a highly skilled expert far beyond Kim’s level.

Kim had no confidence he could win against such a skilled person.

Obediently, Kim opened the gate. Just as he was about to turn around and address the man with a subservient expression, it happened.

“Thanks for the guid-“

Immediately followed by immense pain, and then darkness.