In This Play, I'll Be the Villain
“Heh.”
Marquis Fred covered his mouth, struggling to hold back a laugh.
“Hahahaha!”
In the end he could not contain it any longer and it burst free.
“Do you even realize what you’re saying right now? You’re standing here telling the lord of this territory that you intend to become the boss of its red-light district! What a ridiculous farce!”
He slapped the armrest of the sofa again and again, roaring with laughter.
So much for aristocratic dignity.
“There’s a reason that filthy name has been passed down through four generations. Karma is the idol and the backbone of every lowlife in District 6. He’s the one they truly recognize. It isn’t just any strong brute who becomes Karma…”
“It is a farce.”
“Hm?”
“As you said, what I intend is a performance.”
I lightly clapped my hands to recapture the marquis’s attention.
“This is an excellent time for you to strike the red-light district, Marquis. If you commit your full forces, the odds of Karma’s guild—Houndry—prevailing drop to nearly zero.”
“Mmm…”
“When they’re driven into a corner, I will side with Houndry and bring the situation to a close. Yes—exactly like a carefully scripted play.”
Yes.
A play.
In this life I had decided to take a role with real weight.
“…So you mean to become a false savior and inherit the name of Karma?”
“Precisely.”
Snap—
I flicked my fingers and continued.
“I doubt complete extermination is what you truly want, Marquis. Let us say we kill the hopeless addicts and the irredeemable thugs. The able-bodied ones, however, still have their uses if left alive.”
“And you propose to manage them.”
“If possible, yes. Even if I become Karma, I have no intention of making money through filthy means. It holds no interest for me, and I’m the sort who prefers peace over pleasure. Well… I might keep a tavern or two around for the rare occasion when I feel like getting drunk.”
I finished speaking and slowly leaned back against the sofa.
“How does that sound? Once I become the fifth, you will have cleaned up District 6 and gained a cooperative administrator into the bargain.”
“Ahem…”
The marquis nodded. He did not seem opposed.
“Very well. You manage the shadows of my territory… So what do you gain out of this?”
He folded his arms and tossed the question out casually.
“You don’t appear to be getting anything. Why go to the trouble of joining hands with me for such an inconvenient partnership?”
“In truth, something happened at the Subjugation Festival. Karma targeted my family. When I looked into it, it seemed a follower of the Necromancer had put Houndry up to it.”
The moment the words left my mouth the marquis’s eyes widened in shock.
“I intend to reverse-engineer how they became entangled with Houndry. That sort of information can only be reached by someone who is Karma.”
“Revenge… You don’t exactly look the type for that sort of talk.”
“Revenge alone is not the whole of it.”
“If it had been money or power, I would have understood at once. But… the Necromancer?”
The marquis crossed his arms more tightly.
“The Death God Cult is an enemy of the Goddess Church, yes, but dragging up people who vanished a hundred years ago lacks any sense of reality. How am I supposed to believe that?”
“You are mistaken.”
“What?”
I slowly raised my head and surveyed the marquis’s chambers.
Above the door a statue of the Goddess stood with arms spread wide; a custom-made altar occupied a sunny spot.
Marquis Fred was no ordinary devout believer.
“This is not a matter of who believes whom.”
“What do you mean—”
Hum—
Before he could finish, the halo that had appeared behind my head slowly unfurled.
“We already place our faith in the same one, do we not?”
After concluding my conversation with Marquis Fred I went straight to find Laward.
The Academy training grounds.
Even during the holiday he practically lived there, training with tireless diligence.
I relayed everything I had discussed with the marquis and the decisions we had reached.
“Talks with the marquis are finished. When I move on Houndry’s side, you will strike them together with the marquis’s soldiers.”
Laward’s eyes wavered as he looked at me.
“I… I see. But Master, I cannot do something like that.”
Until now Laward had never once opposed me, yet this time his refusal was firm.
“I am sorry.”
I could understand the rejection.
What he would have to do from now on lay far beyond Academy level.
He would have to take lives and trample others underfoot.
Even if he was the protagonist, he was still only a student.
Hesitation was only natural.
“Ah, no matter how much of a performance it is, how could I ever stand against you, Master! I… simply cannot do it. To meet you as an enemy… that is impossible. I truly am sorry.”
…So that was the reason.
I had been wrong to think, even for a moment, that I understood him.
“If I go in half-hearted it will show, yet if I face you with everything I have it will feel as though I am committing an unforgivable sin…”
“You will only cross paths with me for a moment. Your task is to deal with Houndry’s rabble.”
I exhaled a sigh and pressed on.
“So let’s settle this clearly here and now. Laward, does this operation feel too heavy for you?”
“Not… at all. I promised you I would surpass Academy standards. Honestly… I am glad the chance to prove it has come.”
“Good attitude. Steady your heart. Even without Karma, Houndry will not be an easy opponent.”
“I am not afraid.”
“Does killing give you pause? Once you cross that line there is no going back.”
“No, Master. It is not killing.”
Laward thought for a moment—two seconds at most—then answered with a face as bright as sunlight.
“…It should be called purification.”
He even added, “Because it makes the world the Goddess created cleaner still.”
This little…
He was turning into an ever more dangerous fanatic…
“I am simply overjoyed to receive the honor of purifying evil!”
“…Is that so.”
Unaware of the complicated feelings stirring inside me, Laward smiled brightly.
“Your role in this is large. For now we are borrowing the marquis’s forces, but we must also demonstrate that my side has strength of its own. You will be the one to show it.”
“Trust me. I will see it done.”
Laward already looked as though his resolve could not be shaken no matter how many times he repeated the words.
“May I ask one more thing?”
“Anything. Ah, if you have further questions about the operation—”
“Is Ester going as well?”
“Hm?”
“Is Ester… coming with us?”
“…No.”
“I see!”
The corners of Laward’s mouth shot upward.
“So Ester will be sitting alone in a corner of the dormitory, lonely!”
“Well, I wouldn’t put it quite like—”
“I am definitely the more useful one. Play or not, I will do far better.”
“No. Ester offered to help as well, but I refused. The reason is simple. This time there is no one to save.”
Only people to kill.
“Excellent!”
Laward clenched a fist and showed his determination.
An Academy student being thrown into a criminal-organization purge during the holidays was of no concern to him, yet Ester’s participation had clearly mattered more than anything else.
“Laward, you must become the protagonist.”
Everything began with this operation.
Tomorrow.
Starting tomorrow, Laward would show the world that he was the protagonist of this world.
“In this play I will be the villain, I suppose. The one who stands on the opposite side must, without question, be the hero.”
“Th-that is absurd. No matter the stage, the only one who can be the protagonist is you, Master.”
“Do not let the marquis’s soldiers outshine you. You will take the front line.”
I put force into my voice, and Laward reluctantly nodded.
“…I will bear it in mind.”
If this went well, Laward would gain fame and reputation.
The Holy Knight Order would take notice, of course, and eyes from every corner of the kingdom would turn toward him.
And when that happened, I—his sponsor—would naturally step into the light as well.
“So give it everything you have, Laward.”
Laward would become the light.
I would remain in the shadows.
While he piled up great deeds, I would inherit a name of wickedness.
Sunlit places and dark places.
I would extend influence into every corner so that I could respond no matter who or what came, no matter when.
That was the full script.
The day of the Houndry purge.
Eight in the morning, when the red-light district still lay deep in sleep.
The marquis and his soldiers formed ranks and marched into District 6.
We deliberately chose the morning, yet…
At the center of the formation, Marquis Fred sat astride a sturdy horse and gazed out over the red-light district.
I would rather not shed blood if I can help it. Wasting soldiers on a battle whose outcome is already decided is… a pity.
He had brought the bulk of his forces simply to create overwhelming pressure.
Shops remained shuttered; homes had barred their doors and drawn the curtains tight.
With the empty streets packed full of the marquis’s troops, he already considered the victory his.
Karma is dead and the disparity in strength is absolute. Any rational mind would surrender at once.
Then came the sound of people stirring.
When the marquis turned his head, Houndry men came pouring out from every direction, shouting at the top of their lungs to rouse their comrades.
Yes… if there is one thing that still bothers me…
These were men who lived only for the day.
Contrary to the marquis’s hopes, the guild members hastily armed themselves and spilled into the streets.
Whether it was because their leader was gone and they could not agree on a single decision, or simply because they had no fear, they showed no intention of quietly withdrawing.
So it comes to this after all.
The marquis smiled thinly and looked over his soldiers.
They too gripped their weapons tightly, faces already anticipating the clash.
Among them one man stood out.
The man Daywin had attached to him, claiming he would prove useful.
…I expected someone from the knight orders.
Marquis Fred’s gaze settled on Laward.
Short black hair, sun-darkened skin that somehow carried a sharp edge—
He’s just… a kid.
After examining Laward’s youthful face the marquis shook his head.
Does Daywin Hasgard take Houndry so lightly? What in the world is he thinking…
His head was beginning to ache when he decided to stop thinking about it.
“Coming in force while everyone’s still asleep… what, planning a massacre?”
One man stepped forward, hand resting on his sword.
Before anyone realized it the alleys were packed with Houndry members.
“Karma’s gone, so you think this is your chance?”
The face was familiar.
The marquis searched his memory and concluded the man had been roughly second-in-command under Karma.
“You stupid bastards. You think anything changes if we disappear? Wipe out Houndry and another Houndry will just take over these streets. There’s already a few candidates lined up, aren’t there?”
He jerked his chin toward the marquis.
A question: don’t you know the rival organizations of Houndry?
“District 6 has been a resource of the marquis’s domain for ages. All the rich young masters come looking for this place.”
He gave a short snort of laughter and continued.
“I figured the marquis’s house understood that, but maybe I was wrong. You’ve looked the other way this whole time, so I thought that was the deal. After all, you took our money just fine… and now all of a sudden we’re an eyesore. Kind of strange, don’t you think?”
The man shrugged and locked eyes with the marquis.
“Is it because of the Academy and the Church? Putting on a clean face this late won’t help. District 6 is filth you created yourself—no one else.”
“Silence.”
With that single word the marquis signaled his soldiers.
They advanced as one body, closing the distance with Houndry.
“Go ahead and try. But if you’re going to kill us, you’d better kill every last one. Leave even a single man alive and tomorrow morning you’ll find your wives and children missing their heads.”
The soldiers flinched at the words.
The mad gleam in the man’s eyes hardened every face among them.
I had hoped they would back down… but it cannot be helped. We have to clash before the soldiers’ morale breaks. There is no turning back now.
Just as the marquis reached that conclusion—
“Thus spoke the Goddess.”
Laward clasped his hands and walked forward.
Between the marquis’s soldiers and the Houndry guild members he advanced alone, murmuring.
“Seek not mercy. The scales of judgment have already tipped; burn the blasphemous flesh until only ash remains to prove the sin.”
Before long Laward had pushed into the very center.
Enemies and allies alike rolled their eyes in blank astonishment.
“What the hell is that?”
“Where’d this brat come from…”
Laward paid them no mind and kept walking.
“Cut away the rotten branch and tear out the diseased root. Grant no peace to the unrighteous, for what rests in my hand is not forgiveness but the iron rod of punishment.”
Shhhk!
In a single heartbeat he drew his blade and cleaved the man at the front from crown to groin.
“What fills my eyes is not compassion, but the purifying flame.”
The blood-soaked blade flicked away a single red droplet.
At the same time—
Blink, blink—
Above his head a faint halo flickered like a warning light.