Although a Villain, My Wish is World Peace

We descended the staircase into a corridor where even light could scarcely penetrate, potentially three floors underground.

A small, singular door came into view.

Unlike the upper floor housing only the drugged children, numerous presences could be sensed here.

Undoubtedly, this was their central base of operations.

Without hesitation, I opened the door. Simultaneously, a blinding white illumination assailed our eyes – a stark contrast to the absolute darkness pervading the secret passage. Under this harsh, overbearing light, Kim Jae-ho breathed raggedly as his shoulders trembled minutely.

As if revisiting past memories.

No, ‘nightmare’ would be the more apt term. After opening the door, Kim Jae-ho strode forward with heavy steps.

—Are you truly going to let him proceed alone like that?

“It’ll be fine. He’s not the type to harm innocent people, so even if Kim Jae-ho does attack someone…”

It would only be against those deserving of it.

“Well, I suppose so.”

Not even five seconds had passed after I spoke those words when-

“Aaaagh!”

A scream echoed from the distance.

—It seems your friend’s rage has been considerably provoked.

“He has ample reason. Consider the atrocities he must have endured here.”

As I took a step forward, my body suddenly faltered.

“Huh?”

Furrowing my brows, I tried again – just a single step, yet some unseen force weighed me down heavily.

Infusing my eyes with mana, I activated my one-stroke Clairvoyance talent.

This area utilized a unique spatial distortion. Now I understood why even monsters like Kim Jae-ho had been unable to simply ‘escape’ from this place.

While appearing planar to the naked eye, when perceiving it through mana, this space progressively warped inwards towards the center.

The immense pressure exerted by the artificial mana emanating from the mana stones embedded in the walls actually bent the surrounding space itself.

—Quite an anomalous spatial construct.

“Ah. Not entirely unfamiliar, though. I’ve heard future prisons for awakeners were designed utilizing similar principles.”

The reasoning was obvious – to restrain those with ‘abilities.’

Certainly, even just remaining upright would be immensely challenging under such pressure. Despite only reaching the periphery where the effects were relatively mild, my body still faltered unsteadily.

“To proceed further inside, I’ll need to disable the control mechanism first.”

While Kim Jae-ho’s monstrous physique might allow him to move about unimpeded, my own body couldn’t withstand these spatial stresses.

—Hmm, that could prove difficult.

“Why is that?”

—The device controlling all these phenomena is located at the absolute center, where the gravitational forces peak. If you attempt to reach that now, your bones would be pulverized. No, you likely couldn’t even approach that far to begin with.

“Uhh.”

But I couldn’t simply leave Kim Jae-ho to proceed alone. Without disabling that gravity mechanism, even he wouldn’t be able to advance towards the center.

Having made my decision, I took a step forward.

—What do you think you’re doing?

“Didn’t you hear that scream earlier? There are likely dead administrators nearby. I’ll just appropriate whatever artifacts they were equipped with.”

—Hua. As if you can even properly step forward in your current state.

Wordlessly, I drew upon the mana stored within my bracelet. Hashh– the sizzling sound of searing flesh, but I paid it no heed. There was no pain.

Enveloping my entire body with mana fortified its durability.

—You reckless fool.

Ray chided my actions, but there was no surer method. Slowly, I advanced one step at a time.

“Hhhuuh.”

It wasn’t easy. Even reinforcing my body with mana didn’t negate the oppressive weight bearing down – it only enabled me to endure it. Enhancing my physical durability to withstand the pressure, yet still subjected to the agonizing strain compressing my very lungs.

One grueling step after another, my back soon became drenched in perspiration.

Ahead, a blood-splattered office came into view.

—They certainly went all out in here.

A headless corpse entered my field of vision.

—There’s the artifact over there!

Moving in a crawl-like gait, I inched forward on all fours – the mounting pressure had rendered bipedal movement impossible. Sluggishly advancing like a tortoise, I finally snatched the artifact secured to the corpse’s waist.

Equipping and activating that artifact instantly dispelled the immense weight pinning me down.

“Phew.”

Only then could I properly exhale in relief.

How peculiar, having overcome that gravitational force. I sprang upright from my previous prone position.

Now I could properly follow the path Kim Jae-ho had undoubtedly blazed ahead. Stepping over the corpse, I proceeded onward.

But after taking just a few more steps, I couldn’t help but gape in shock.

Everywhere was awash in crimson.

This space, which should have been pristinely white, was now devoid of any other color but red.

The farthest outlying male seemed to have been alone, but within the offices, bodies were strewn about in groups – none had survived.

—Quite the inelegant approach. To accomplish all this through sheer physical force alone, without any technique whatsoever.

This was Kim Jae-ho – the human weapon I had known.

Passing another headless corpse, the next corridor greeted me with a body slumped over, ribcage blown open while still seated in a chair – they likely hadn’t even had time to react properly.

—The control device is over there.

Following Ray’s indication, I headed in that direction. Before pursuing Kim Jae-ho, I needed to first disengage the control mechanism.

The control room entrance was locked, but such a simple barrier proved trivial to bypass.

Channeling electricity into my hands, I easily deactivated the lock and proceeded to demolish the control device itself. Despite its outwardly intricate and complex appearance, my mana-reinforced fists swiftly reduced it to scrap.

As the saying goes, brute force has always been machinery’s weakness.

Hmm. With the control mechanism disabled, I began following the trail Kim Jae-ho had left behind.

It was like some twisted version of Hansel and Gretel – scattered bits of flesh and blood splatters eventually led to a corpse, with fresh bloodstains radiating outward from its vicinity.

As I traced this grisly path of cadavers, an unsettling sound reached my ears:

“Kkeuhuhk.”

Unmistakably, the agonized groans of a survivor.

—It seems there’s still a live one.

Following that noise, I steadily advanced step by step.

Tak, tak.

My approaching footsteps momentarily silenced those groans, but they didn’t cease entirely. For the unfortunate soul making those sounds, that was bad news – in this eerily quiet space, no lifeform could evade Ray’s and my detection capabilities.

None whatsoever.

I flung open a cabinet door.

“Good day to you.”

“Aaaah!”

The man who had been hiding inside screamed and shoved past me, fleeing in terror.

Run, if that’s what you wish to do.

But he soon tripped over a corpse and tumbled to the floor. Such a pitiful sight, I couldn’t even muster laughter.

Catching sight of the body, the man shrieked again and thrashed about on the ground.

“Hhuuhhuukk.”

Narrowing my eyes, I scrutinized him closely.

This man appeared completely unharmed – he must have been fortunate enough to avoid Kim Jae-ho’s notice.

‘Well, ultimately being discovered by me means his luck has run out.’

So why had he been groaning like that in the first place?

No matter, this too was his fate.

“P-Please spare me!”

The man began begging for his life as I gazed at him with narrowed eyes.

What this person did here, whether he had killed anyone – such details held no interest for me.

His mere presence in this place was sufficient reason to execute him.

“Why should I spare you?”

It was the same question I posed to the evildoers inhabiting this world.

Was there any valid reason to spare such evildoers?

Trembling violently at my query, the man forced out a reply:

“I-If you spare me! I’ll never commit such deeds again, and for the rest of my life, my entire life, I’ll atone through penance and regret!”

At those words, I couldn’t help but scoff derisively.

Live and atone, you say?

Why should I believe that, why should I wait and indulge such claims?

“Have you ever personally saved even a single life with your own hands?”

Slowly, I approached the man.

“I’m asking if you’ve ever tried to rescue even one of the children you’ve mutilated and stitched together into monstrosities, of your own volition, even once. Have you?”

The man’s mouth opened and closed wordlessly – his expression had already given me the answer.

Glancing around with a disgusted scowl, I continued:

“You are filth, deserving of no forgiveness whatsoever. Scum that defiles and ruins this world. Living on would only taint and corrupt it further – such is the nature of your vile existence.”

Why grant perpetrators any chance for redemption?

When their victims are afforded no such opportunity.

“So die.”

As the man began blubbering some retort, I swiftly struck his neck. His head rolled away with a dull thud.

In truth, this was hypocritical of me.

By the very standards I had espoused, I too was someone who should have perished and vanished from existence long ago.

But what could be done? I was a sinner who had somehow begged this world for a second chance, unlike that man.

—Rather merciless, aren’t you?

Flicking the bloodied dagger to cleanse it, I shrugged nonchalantly.

“Allowing them to live would only breed further harm. A leaking dipper won’t become watertight just by changing locations, after all.”

—True, they would likely continue such atrocities anywhere they went.

“Well, let’s go find Kim Jae-ho now.”

The delay in disposing of Kim Jae-ho’s leftovers had cost more time. Slowly, I traced the blood-soaked, flesh-strewn path he had carved.

And before long, I located him.

Hunched in a corner, wheezing heavily.

“Hhuuhkk, hhuuhkk…”

Kim Jae-ho’s shoulders shuddered uncontrollably.

Though this outcome had been expected, judging by the progressively mangled state of the corpses I had passed.

Even Kim Jae-ho couldn’t remain completely unaffected by these pressures.

Had it not been for the Vampiric Lord’s Ring I had provided, he might have sustained truly grievous injuries here.

—What a foolish creature he is.

Ray clicked his tongue disapprovingly within my mind. This time, I agreed with his assessment.

Simply approaching this interior had likely subjected Kim Jae-ho’s body to hundreds of kilograms of pressure.

And upon reaching this central area, that pressure would have escalated to tons. The indentations in the floor where he had trodden were evidence enough.

Yet Kim Jae-ho had persisted, stubbornly forcing his way all the way here regardless.

The reason eluded me. Perhaps someone from his memories here had been someone he desperately wanted to kill. Or maybe sheer rage had propelled him to this point.

In any case, Kim Jae-ho had indeed made it here and smashed someone’s head to pulp. Whose face this woman had worn, what name she had carried – those details were now lost.

Only her torso remained.

But Kim Jae-ho must have had ample justification for reducing her to this state.

To turn this person into a corpse had exacted a considerable toll on Kim Jae-ho as well – the woman’s hands still clutched twin shotguns.

Kneeling beside Kim Jae-ho, I assessed his condition.

Kuughhh- Spitting up blood as he registered my presence. Gently, I placed my hand upon his body. He had taken both shotgun blasts at point-blank range, but…

—He won’t die from this.

As Ray had said, the injuries weren’t fatal.

To endure two point-blank shotgun blasts and still survive. I force-fed Kim Jae-ho a potion I had prepared in advance. While he wore the ring, additional healing supplements couldn’t hurt.

His regenerative abilities would naturally expel the residual bullets. Hmm, or perhaps not.

—There are no bullets remaining in any vitally threatening areas. It will proceed as you intend.

Laying Kim Jae-ho down, I found myself strangely discomfited by his seemingly peaceful, faint smile with closed eyes.

“So, are you happy now?”

Even after killing dozens upon dozens to reach this point.

If you’re happy, then I suppose that’s enough.