Being a Villain is My True Calling

“It’s quite chilly out today.”

“……”

I turned to gaze out the window.

While the new year had arrived, winter still lingered.
Snow fluttered gently outside the cafe.

‘It may appear beautiful from the inside, but sleeping out there in thin clothing would be impossible, wouldn’t it?’

Perhaps on a day like this, one could simply drift into an eternal slumber outdoors.

I shifted my gaze back towards Ga-yeon.

“Do you have somewhere to return to, or a place to sleep?”

“…No.”

She hung her head in apparent embarrassment.

Offering clumsy consolation here would be unwise.
These days, children are remarkably sensitive to such gestures.

Even well-intentioned sympathy can wound them.

So I acted as nonchalantly as possible.

“In that case, why don’t you spend the night here at our cafe?”

“!”

At my words, her eyes sparkled as she snapped her head up, silently questioning, ‘Really, I can?’ with her gaze.

“It’s gotten quite late, and the cold outside is unforgiving. I wouldn’t be able to sleep, worrying about sending a child out in such conditions.”

“……”

“There are plenty of rooms, so feel free to choose whichever you’d like. If you feel uneasy, you can lock the door, and I’ll provide you with blankets.”

“……”

As I spoke, Ga-yeon fidgeted with her lips.

“…Are you a hero, brother?”

“Unfortunately, I am not a hero.”

In response to her question, I removed my half-mask and smiled faintly at her.

“I am an utterly wicked villain.”

“……”

Ga-yeon stared intently as I made that declaration.

“My assistance today did not come free of charge. I fully intend to exploit you dearly in the future.”

So saying, I stroked Ga-yeon’s head.
Her matted, gritty hair felt like an old, worn-out broom, but I paid it no mind.

“For today, you may rest without any worries.”

“……”

“Just relax without a care.”

As I finished speaking, she finally burst into audible sobs.

…I had always enjoyed dreaming.
While dreaming, I never felt hungry, in pain, or weary.

And today, I didn’t want to wake up from this dream.

‘So warm…’

I was afraid that upon opening my eyes, this warmth would prove to be merely a dream.
That yesterday’s events had all been a figment of my imagination.

I couldn’t bear to open my eyes, yearning to bask in this warmth a while longer.

Knockknock

‘Ga-yeon, are you still asleep?’

A man’s voice calling my name.
Different from the other uncles.

Gentle, soft, and clear.

Hearing that voice, I slowly opened my eyes.
And simultaneously, I fervently prayed that this was not a dream.

“…I’m awake.”

When I finally opened my eyes.
Warm sunlight filled the room.

What a relief.

As I exited the room and descended, a delicious aroma wafted through the air.

“You’re awake?”

The man, Kang Yi-an, the ‘brother’ who had brought me here, smiled at me.

“Come, have some breakfast. I prepared something light so you won’t feel too full.”

He had made sandwiches generously stuffed with bacon.

“Is it tasty?”

…* Nod*

I diligently consumed every morsel he had carefully prepared, not leaving a crumb behind.
Brother laughed and stroked my head as he watched me eat.

“Ga-yeon, could you come over here for a bit?”

After I had finished the meal Brother had cooked and rested briefly, he called me over at his beckoning.

“Could you help me clean up this area?”

I nodded in response to his request.
If I could repay even a small portion of his kindness today, I would work diligently.

Swish swish

“Let’s have lunch, too.”

At his summons, we shared another meal together.

Swish swish I then resumed cleaning.

“Well done. Here’s dinner.”

Before I knew it, evening had fallen.
Brother had prepared another meal.

As I hastily began to eat like during lunch, I paused and looked at Brother.

‘…Is this the last time?’

I hadn’t properly repaid his kindness, yet I would end up merely eating and leaving.
However, I felt grateful despite my shamelessness.

‘I wish every day could be like this.’

But realistically, that’s impossible, isn’t it…?

Slowly, so as not to forget this taste. And because I didn’t want to leave this place, I ate slowly.
And as I finished eating while Brother watched with a smile…

“It’s quite chilly out today as well.”

“?”

“If you’re amenable, would you like to spend another night here?”

“?”

Before I knew it, I had entered a room and was lying down, staring at the ceiling.

And so, I welcomed my second night at Brother’s home.

The next day, Brother provided me with toiletries and a towel.
He asked if I wanted to bathe, but I declined and bathed myself.

The warm water enveloping my body after so long felt blissful.

The following day, he assigned me cleaning duties again.
Mentioning his intention to open the cafe soon, he even taught me how to prepare a few beverages.

“Is it tasty?”

“…Yeah.”

The drinks Brother made were incredibly delicious.

The day after that, I became Brother’s conversational companion.
He said he was bored while washing dishes, so I conversed with him.

“Are you listening?”

“Mm-hmm… listening.”

Brother laughed for some reason whenever I spoke, as if I were saying something amusing.
Later, he baked me cookies, praising me for doing well.

I savored the cookies with satisfaction.

And so, one day, two days.
Before I knew it, a week had passed, and then two weeks since I had started living at Brother’s home.

‘…Why hasn’t he kicked me out yet?’

Brother still showed no displeasure with my presence.
If anything, he encouraged me to speak up if I needed anything.

‘…I need to repay his kindness.’

He had saved me from those terrible men, provided me with food and shelter.
The debt of gratitude had piled up like a mountain, yet it only seemed to grow larger.

‘This can’t go on.’

At this rate, not only would I fail to repay his kindness, but I would only continue to burden him.

“Mm.”

With a firm resolve, I approached Brother.

“Brother.”

“Hmm? What is it at this late hour?”

In the dead of night.
Ga-yeon approached Kang Yi-an, who had been preparing to retire for the night.

Upon seeing Kang Yi-an, Ga-yeon fidgeted and averted her gaze.
After some hesitation, she finally mustered her resolve, looked at him, and asked,

“Is there… anything I can help you with?”

‘So she’s finally ready to earn her keep.’

While inwardly thinking this, Kang Yi-an outwardly feigned a puzzled expression.

“Help me? But haven’t I been helping you enough already?”

Shookshook

Ga-yeon vehemently shook her head in disagreement.

“…Not enough.”

Ga-yeon felt that her current efforts fell far short of repaying his kindness.
While she wanted to reciprocate his generosity, part of her also feared being cast out by him.

A lingering anxiety that her utter uselessness would make her unwanted.

“Hmm…”

‘Come to think of it, Ga-yeon hasn’t demonstrated her abilities yet, has she?’

In that case, how should he respond while still feigning ignorance?

A villain executive. Moreover, an exceptionally kind-hearted, gentle villain executive.
One who had rescued a young girl from a dreadful ordeal, providing her with food and shelter.

Under such circumstances, he would have no particular expectations of her.
While he had jokingly mentioned exploiting her at an exorbitant price, simply harboring any demands from her would be out of character.

‘He likely holds no expectations.’

She was simply an endearing child, inquiring if she could be of any assistance.

‘An utterly powerless child, offering her help.’

Kang Yi-an pondered whether he should tease her harmlessly for her naivete.

“Have you given any thought to how you might assist me?”

“…Anything?”

Kang Yi-an gestured for her to approach.
Ga-yeon obediently scampered over.

Stroking her head, Kang Yi-an smiled playfully.

“I mentioned before that I’m an executive of a villain organization, didn’t I?”

“Yeah.”

“How about working for our organization, then?”

Without any expectations, he casually tossed out the suggestion, seemingly in jest.

‘A calculated gambit.’

The crucial aspect was fostering a sense of self-determination.

‘My stance is one of complete ignorance, devoid of any intentions to exploit her.’

After nearly a lifetime of constant experimentation and exploitation, only narrowly escaping a horrific fate upon her break for freedom.
If the person who had rescued her now seemed to be using her for her abilities, it would be disastrous.

Rendering all his previous efforts meaningless.

Thus, Kang Yi-an chose a slightly more convoluted yet safer approach to minimize the risk.

Concealing his rising tension, he observed her.
And then…

“I’ll do it.”

‘Excellent.’

However, immediately accepting her response would be unwise.
Ultimately, her ‘ability’ was the necessary factor.

He couldn’t simply assign menial tasks without her revealing her powers.

“…Are you certain?”

“Yeah.”

“It will be quite arduous for a non-ability user in a villain organization’s subordinate role. An ability user might manage, but a powerless individual would only endure menial labor and hardship. It seems I misspoke earlier. Let’s forget I said anything…”

Here, Kang Yi-an introduced a negative remark to provoke a defensive reaction.
Eliciting thoughts like, ‘But I can do it,’ or ‘I can help,’ from her.

“It’s fine.”

Firmly stated, she extended her arm as if to manifest her ability, but paused.

“……”

‘It should be okay to show Brother.’

After a momentary glance at Kang Yi-an, Ga-yeon steeled herself and activated her powers.

“Hngh.”

Woooong-

Initially, only a small flicker of flame emerged.
Barely larger than a lighter’s flame.

“So you are an ability user. But with such limited power…”

“Not all. There’s more.”

Next came telekinesis, with its force strong enough to flutter papers even through the open window.

Then, a whirlwind swirled around Ga-yeon and Kang Yi-an.

Psychic, elemental, healing, manipulation, summoning, enhancement, physical, interference… and more.

Vastly diverse abilities, each with varying degrees of power and force, poured forth from her hands like a raging storm.
Until eventually…

Woooong-

…their location shifted to the rooftop, and she deactivated her abilities.

“Phew… phew… phew…”

“What in the…”

Panting heavily, as if drained from exerting too much power, Ga-yeon.
Kang Yi-an stared at her with widened eyes, stunned.

“Is… this enough… phew. Can I be a villain…? Brother… can I help…? Phew…”

‘You’ve already more than qualified, our little diamond in the rough!!!’

Watching her offer a faint smile in his direction, Kang Yi-an found her utterly endearing.

Yet, unable to outwardly express it, he simply gaped with feigned astonishment, restraining the upward tug of his lips.

In Astra’s office, exuding a chilly atmosphere.

“Phew.”

There, Astra quietly took a moment to rest.

‘Maker has gone to pursue his hobby, the Instructor is educating new recruits, and the other executives are attending to their respective duties.’

As the President’s secretary and de facto second-in-command, she was seldom afforded leisure time.

Having completed her mountain of paperwork, savoring this rare tranquility of idleness was her solace.

‘Ah, I should check in on Maker while I have the chance.’

However, the stillness soon became dull, so she considered contacting Maker to liven her mood. But at that very moment…

“It has been quite a while, Ms. Astra.”

“Kyaahh!”

Startled by the familiar voice suddenly behind her, she uncharacteristically yelped and jumped to her feet.

“Ah, my positioning was slightly off.”

“…Sorry, brother.”

“Not at all. For a first attempt, this level of accuracy is more than sufficient.”

Swishswish
Utterly ignoring the bewildered Astra, Maker affectionately stroked Ga-yeon’s head as she beamed with pride.

Astra gaped at them, dumbfounded.

“Ma, Maker? Suddenly, from where… and that child is…?”

“Ah, allow me to introduce her, Ms. Astra. This is Ga-yeon, my first subordinate.”

As Maker made the introduction, the girl bowed her head politely.

“Hello, chicken coop.”

“…Pardon me, what did you just call me?”

A vein protruded on Astra’s forehead at Ga-yeon’s remark.