I Became a Dark Fantasy Villain

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Seated on the edge of the bed, Ian tightened the straps of his armor.

A frustrating sense of confinement that he hadn’t felt in days.

Taking a short breath, he looked at the items spread out in front of him.

Shoulder guards, gauntlets, arm bracers, and boots, along with various other equipment.

These had all been stripped of their tarnish and polished anew, as befitting the retainers of a knightly household. Oddly enough, he didn’t feel any satisfaction from it.

Suddenly, he recalled the morning of his reserve army call-up. Just putting on the military uniform had drained his energy and made him feel suffocated, even more than he had anticipated. It was the same now.

‘…More like a re-enlistment than a reserve call-up.’

And to make matters worse, he didn’t even know when his discharge date was anymore. Damn it.

Despite the complicated emotions within him, his body mechanically donned the equipment in precise positions.

Without anyone’s assistance, Ian had returned to his usual appearance in a matter of minutes.

Short knives and throwing daggers were secured along bands crisscrossing his body and around his waist.

These throwing daggers were newly acquired from Orundel.

After throwing the short knives a few times, he found that his accuracy was higher than expected. Though his agility wasn’t remarkable, his mental and focus attributes clearly played a supporting role.

After turning his body around to finish the inspection, he picked up the Sword of Condemnation that he had leaned against the head of the bed.

His preparations were complete.

‘Seems like I’ve gathered enough skill points to use. Once this is over, I’ll seriously…’

As he sat on the edge of the bed, lost in personal contemplation, a knock resounded, followed by the door opening.

Phillip stuck his head in.

“You can come out, Sir.”

Something familiar about the scene.

As Ian thought, he stepped out of the room.

Passing through the corridor with a view of the garden, he stopped in front of the office and knocked.

Phillip opened the door.

Meave sitting on the main seat, flanked by the table with men sitting on both sides, came into view.

“….”

“….”

Their gazes focused on Ian. Calmly, he entered the room.

With a clang as the door closed, Meave began speaking.

“Allow me to introduce. This is the ally I mentioned, Ian Hoff. He’s my most trusted mercenary and the true mastermind behind resolving the matters you’ve heard.”

The men’s gazes swept over Ian.

Emotions conveyed through their eyes became more overtly apparent. Familiar feelings to him.

Curiosity. Wariness. Arrogance and mistrust.

Meave’s voice continued.

“And over here are members of the Knight Guardians. Ian, they’re the ones from the personal guards, the most reliable people I’ve selected.”

Ian nodded and finally turned to face the men. Seven in total. Their reactions upon meeting his eyes were diverse, but none of them avoided his gaze.

“I’ve finished explaining the current situation. They will assist us.”

“Have you explained the plan as well?”

“Briefly.”

“Hmm…”

Ian nodded and shifted his steps.

He circled the guards’ vicinity at a slow pace. An odd tension arose. Glancing over each one with a leisurely gaze, Ian began to speak.

“You must absolutely protect the king you serve. That’s the only thing you need to do in this plan.”

“…”

“…”

Some eyes radiated overt discomfort.

Clearly, they didn’t take it kindly to hearing such words from a mere mercenary greenhorn.

Initially, they weren’t inclined to believe Meave’s words either. If Ian had the skills she claimed, then he wouldn’t have lived as a wanderer.

Though their inner thoughts were visible, Ian spoke unaffectedly.

“And don’t divulge the discussions held here anywhere. Not even to your families. You don’t have the right to refuse this.”

“What if we refuse?”

Someone blurted out.

A young man who had been sending arrogantly confident glances all along.

Tension arose on Miguel’s face behind Meave, and coldness settled in Phillip’s eyes as he blocked the door.

Ian smiled.

“You’ll probably die. Of course, you’re just asking the obvious question.”

“What… Did you say?”

The young man’s brow furrowed. He hadn’t spoken, but his countenance incited others too.

If it weren’t for Meave, swords might have been drawn immediately.

With an expression indicating that Miguel wanted to dissuade right away, he bit his lips.

Only Ian and Meave remained undisturbed.

Ian continued speaking.

“I won’t suffer if the plan fails. I’ll just leave the country. It’s not my concern then. The ones left behind will bear the pain. You or the citizens of this country.”

“According to the plan, can we prevent all those tragedies?”

The middle-aged member who had pressed on the young man’s shoulder spoke.

Ian shrugged.

“Well, who knows. But at the very least, we can prevent this nation from falling into the hands of the Fallen.”

“Are there truly so many hypocrites hiding in Agellan?”

The young man, barely suppressing his emotions, spoke as if spitting out the words.

Ian approached the table.

The man resting his hand on the back of the chair he sat in spoke.

“Yes, there are. Even here, one exists.”

“…?”

“Yes, step back.”

The young man’s furrowed brow and Ian drawn-out dagger were almost simultaneous.

Thunk!

The dagger wedged between the neck and shoulder of the man seated on the chair’s backrest.

“Ah- Ugh?”

Before the scream even subsided, Ian grabbed the young man’s hair with his left hand and slammed him onto the table.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Thunk-!

Blood sprayed, and in a matter of moments, the table was destroyed.

Ian held the young man’s head to the ground, pressing his back with one knee, while he drew the Sword of Condemnation.

The moment he clenched the sword with both hands.

Thunk-!

Someone knocked him aside in midair.

As he was slammed against the wall, he saw that it was the young man.

In a furious expression, the young man swung his fist at Ian’s face.

Dodging the flying fist with head movements and knocking aside the young man’s arm with his left hand, Ian briefly considered delivering a knife thrust to the young man’s abdomen.

Eventually, he decided against it and instead kicked the young man’s belly.

The young man was sent flying and crashed onto the ground, gnashing his teeth.

“This crazy bastard…! This son of a bitch Lawson! Look at this! This is truly…?”

His voice began to waver.

His gaze turned towards the surrounding members, all of whom stared at Ian with eyes full of life, but that was all.

Only then did the young member, Jonathan, who had been stopped by Meave, realize what had happened, his brow furrowing in shock.

“Sigh…”

Ian, rising to his feet, coldly uttered.

“I’ll say it again. Step back, all of you.”

In the moment when the atmosphere was becoming more hostile.

“Cough…! Cough, ack… Keu… Gruk…”

Lawson, now a mess, coughed up blood.

His anguished groans suddenly turned into eerie convulsions.

“Law-Lawson…?”

Confusion finally showed on the faces of the members.

Phillip’s expression had tensed at that moment.

“Step back, please. Right now.”

“…!”

Finally, they all took a step back.

Amidst this, Lawson stood up like a bow being flexed.

His eyes, bloodshot, turned upward, and veins that seemed ready to burst spread across his body.

From his outstretched fingertips, a bone-chilling cracking sound spread.

Swoosh-

A blue light emanated from Ian’s sword.

“Divine power…? How…?”

The astonishment spread again on the faces of several members.

Ian held the sword tightly in both hands and jumped at Lawson.

Extrem-

With a swift motion, Ian’s sword cleaved diagonally through Lawson’s body from his shoulder to his hip.

The severed upper body fell to the floor, and the lower body, spewing blood and entrails, slumped backward belatedly.

Just as the sword with a flicker of divine power was clutched in his hand, Ian turned to the members pressed against the wall.

“The lowest-level Corrupted like this guy, they sometimes involuntarily reveal their true forms during mutation. If you attack during this transformation, it’s easy to kill them. The simplest way is to sever their life.”

A calm voice that didn’t match the situation followed.

“And even the Corrupted with a higher level than him sometimes have to concentrate their minds to maintain their original forms during mutation. So if you notice anything strange, don’t panic; just strike them first.”

“….”

“Those truly deserving of the name Corrupted can freely change forms and possess means of defense. If you encounter them, flee. You’ll never be a match for them with your current abilities.”

Ian raised an eyebrow lightly.

“Did you all understand?”

“Yes, yes…!”

“…Understood.”

The members finally nodded their heads.

“Cough… Ah… Ahhh…”

At that moment, Lawson, who had vomited blood, groaned. Despite being torn apart and distorted as body parts were sliced off, he was still not dead.

That fact was unlikely to feel like a blessing to himself either.

“….”

Meave, looking down at him with cold eyes, drew the sword that had been placed on her desk. A red divine power emanated from her grip.

“….!”

The members’ eyes widened once again at her appearance. They all knew that her divine power was usually blue light.

However, this was a red light, and it even felt sinister.

In the meantime, Meave, who had stopped in front of Lawson, swung her sword without uttering a word.

Swoosh.

Lawson’s head was cleanly severed.

Meave, who turned her icy gaze without any emotion, looked at Ian.

“No integrity, huh? I thought I had concealed it well.”

“They must have considered the possibility and sent their minions. They had to keep an eye on the guild one way or another. They probably didn’t think I could distinguish them.”

Ian spoke nonchalantly.

He had requested this meeting to identify the possible Fallen hidden within their ranks.

Maeve turned to look at the members.

Her eyes were as cold as ice, unlike when she looked at Ian.

“As you can see, Ian is a Divine Knight recognized by the stern goddess. If he didn’t have the qualifications, the goddess wouldn’t bless him. Also, I am not an Apostle of Judgment. I am an Apostle of Vengeance, and all the Corrupted in Agellan are the targets of my revenge. So, if anyone still has doubts, speak up now.”

“I don’t have any doubts.”

Starting with the middle-aged member, the answers followed one by one.

“I don’t have any doubts.”

Finally, Jonathan, who answered last, lowered his head toward Ian.

“I sincerely apologize for the misunderstanding and rudeness. I will accept any punishment.”

A true knight in shining armor.

Ian smirked at the overly polite tone and expression.

“Follow what I said.”

“…Of course. Well…”

“Call me Ian.”

“Yes, Sir Ian. I will follow your orders faithfully.”

Not a knight title.

Ian chuckled and exchanged a glance with Maeve before nodding his head.

“Then let’s get back to the main topic. Once the meeting is convened, we need to discuss how all of you should move.”

The knights nodded their heads.

Each of their faces was serious, devoid of any signs of laughter.

Now, finally, they realized what they needed to protect the king from.

***

Ippotranslation

***

When the meeting was over, it was already past midnight by the time everyone left.

While Phillip and Miguel dealt with the bodies and the servants cleaned up the blood stains,

Ian and Maeve stood facing each other in the garden.

“If they do their part, things should become easier.”

“Now that we’ve confirmed the presence of the Fallen, at least they won’t betray us.”

Ian nodded, then his gaze suddenly stopped at the end of a corridor.

Lucia, who had been looking in their direction, turned around immediately.

“Oh, right. I haven’t introduced you to that child yet.”

Maeve, who followed Ian’s gaze, spoke.

Ian shook his head.

“I’ve already greeted her. She even came to find me.”

“She came…? For what purpose?”

“She asked me to protect you.”

To Maeve, this seemed unimaginable.

Ian smirked.

“She must have seemed rather vulnerable.”

“… It’s hard to imagine that Lucia did that. She’s a kid who rarely reveals her true feelings.”

“She thought that everyone she loves ends up dying as a curse.”

“Cursed…?”

“Yes. She said everyone she loves is cursed to die.”

Ian turned his gaze back to Maeve.

“Probably why she doesn’t reveal her emotions easily.”

“….”

A trace of sympathy and tenderness flickered in Maeve’s eyes.

Ah, here comes another long-winded story of tragic background.

Ian, sensing this, commented.

“Anyway, time is running out. At the very least, we need to start before The Duke discovers the link between Orundel’s rebellion and Sir.”

Maeve’s expression grew serious.

Ian added in a low voice.

“If there’s irrefutable evidence, we won’t know what he might do.”

“…That’s true. As soon as it’s dawn, we’ll begin.”

However, it was already two more days until the scheduled meeting.

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Translator; ippo

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