Being a Villain is My True Calling

“An unfamiliar ceiling.”
“It shouldn’t be a familiar ceiling.”

The moment I regained consciousness, a voice reached my ears. I tried to get up, but for some reason, my body seemed fixed in place, unable to move.

“I figured as much. Maker.”
“Astra?”
“Yes.”

She responded in a somewhat subdued tone. The strained sound made a trickle of cold sweat run down my back.

“Could you please release me from this?”
“I cannot.”
Deureuruk.
“Astra is right, Maker.”
“This voice belongs to Doctor.”

After Astra’s firm refusal, Doctor’s voice followed. He approached my side for a moment, checking my condition.

“You’ve suffered from mana depletion, Maker.”

Mana depletion – the state ability users entered when overusing their abilities, akin to muscle strain for regular people.

‘It’s quite common among ability users, and some rest allows movement again once mana recovers somewhat.’

As I thought this and tried raising my head:

Uttuk.

Astra used telekinesis to restrain my body, preventing any movement.

“…Isn’t this a bit excessive for mere mana depletion?”
“Excessive? I’m just trying to let you rest properly after your arduous mission.”
“But I don’t recall giving my consent.”

While I had intended to rest for a while regardless, being forcibly restrained like this seemed a bit much.

“There are no major issues, but your overall stamina seems somewhat depleted too. A full day’s rest would likely be advisable.”

As I expressed my dissatisfaction, Doctor chimed in to support Astra’s stance.

‘Is that so?’

I examined my internal state. The once abundant mana reserves were utterly drained, the pathways through which mana flowed cracked like parched earth.

‘Hmm.’

If asked whether it was severe or not, it certainly seemed quite serious. Perhaps I should heed Doctor’s advice.

“I’ll stay put, so could you release the telekinesis, Astra?”
“……”

Despite my words, Astra refused to release her restraints. Truthfully, having my body immobilized like this would likely make me want to move around before long out of sheer discomfort.

Adopting a mildly dejected tone, I continued addressing Astra.

“Did I seem so untrustworthy?”
“……”
“I’m a little hurt, Astra.”

What had I ever done to warrant such treatment? I had accomplished every mission assigned, and since I took over overseeing operations, the rate of our members being captured by heroes had even decreased.

Not to mention how I had previously gone out of my way to gather intelligence for the Chairman’s sake, even smuggling crucial items!

‘It’s not like I’m blindly devoting myself to the point of coughing up blood like some fanatics…’

I had simply pushed myself a bit too far during that one research attempt. And even then, it had only resulted in mana depletion.

Wasn’t Astra being a tad excessive here?

“Haah…I suppose I was a little rash this time.”

Seeming unable to refute the grievances reflected on my face, she let out a resigned sigh before releasing her restraints.

“Thank you for your trust.”

As I carefully sat up, I was met with Astra’s disgruntled expression and Doctor checking my pulse.

“I’ll prescribe you some medication, but I recommend spending today resting in the medical ward before being discharged tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow, you say?”
“Yes. I heard your mission was complete anyway, so you were going on leave for a while.”

Well, that was true, but…I had intended to work until today before taking that break.

Regarding Doctor with a ‘what’s the problem?’ look for a moment.

‘…Oh well, whatever.’

Resigning myself to an abrupt hospital stay a day early, I let my body go limp on the bed.

“So why did you push yourself so hard?”
“It was for the Chairman’s sake, so please cut me some slack.”
“I heard everything from the Professor.”

Ah right, I had ended up like this from attempting to replicate that trace of mystery we obtained previously.
Astra glared at me with a slightly furrowed brow.

“Do you not trust us enough? So much that you felt compelled to take such drastic measures over that little branch?”

So that was her gripe.
I finally realized why Astra seemed so vexed.

‘She thinks I don’t trust Eclipse.’

Her pride had likely taken a hit, and she was also likely frustrated that I hadn’t consulted her. Perhaps Astra had already come to regard me as a trustworthy colleague, only for my actions to suggest otherwise.

In any case, a mixture of such sentiments seemed to fuel her irritation.
I should clear up the misunderstanding first.

“It wasn’t that I distrusted Eclipse or you, Astra.”
“No, it’s fine, it’s all fine…but you could have at least given me a heads-up.”
“You’re right, I should have reported it first. I simply didn’t think it warranted attention since it was such a trivial matter.”
“Trying to replicate a potential cure for the Chairman – how is that trivial?”
“It was merely a precautionary measure. But I didn’t do it out of concern that Eclipse might lose the trace to other organizations or heroes.”

If Eclipse was determined, we could undoubtedly protect a mere branch from other villain groups or heroes. The issue was a matter of quantity.

Could we produce a complete elixir using the World Tree branch and any future ingredients before depleting all available resources?

‘In the original storyline, a dramatic portrayal showed the last remaining scraps miraculously sufficing to create the elixir…’

But there were no guarantees such a fortuitous scenario would play out in reality. Without luck on our side, we might exhaust all ingredients without ever producing a viable elixir – a nightmarish outcome.

“I was simply practicing, so please don’t misunderstand.”
“What misunderstanding?”

As she questioned me, I began explaining before abruptly closing my mouth.

…This might be going too far.
Should I or shouldn’t I?

“……”

When in doubt, just go for it.
Grasping Astra’s wrist, I flashed her an amicable smile.

“Although I may have joined the executive ranks later than others, I already consider you all trustworthy colleagues.”
“……”
“I’m simply clarifying to prevent any misunderstanding that I might not have faith in Eclipse.”

Gently caressing her wrist in a ticklish manner, I smiled at her.
Meeting her gaze, her face gradually flushed red.

“…Ah, I get it…! Now let go of my hand…!”

Such a vehement reaction from merely holding her hand. She responded like an utterly inexperienced maiden who had never felt a man’s touch beyond her father’s.

Amused by her overreaction, I feigned ignorance and began teasing her hand further.

“In any case, have I cleared up the misunderstanding?”
“Y,yes, it’s cleared up, so…!”
“You won’t get angry anymore?”

I slipped my fingers between hers like inserting a wedge, gliding along the protruding knuckles.

“Ah…ahh…”

Astra’s face reddened further from my physical contact.

“Uuh…I’m leaving!!!”

Having reached her limit, the beet-red Astra forcibly shook off my grasp with telekinesis and fled.

“My, she left.”

As I waved regretfully at her departure, Doctor regarded me with an exasperated look.

“If you keep that up, you might get stabbed one day.”
“I’m prepared for such eventualities, so no need to worry.”

Wouldn’t he just have to patch me up then?
At my remark, Doctor frowned sternly and lectured me on the inappropriateness of such jokes until Ga-yeon and Irene arrived.

‘Kkyiiing…! Kkyiing…! Pyu, don’t die oppa…don’t die…!!’

Irene nuzzled my face with a look like she might burst into tears any moment, while…

‘Silly mutt. No one dies from mana depletion.’

…Ga-yeon visibly relaxed upon seeing my healthy state despite scolding Irene as an idiot.

‘Are you okay, big brother? I came after hearing you were unwell.’

Narin also greeted me, head bowed deeply.

“Hff…”

After weathering that stormy hospital visit, I finally had a chance to collect my thoughts in solitude.

‘What exactly happened there?’

A failure of creation. Truthfully, with my current mana reserves, I had thought such occurrences were nearly impossible.

And under normal circumstances, even if I failed to create an object, no more mana would drain from my body than what was initially expended for the summoning attempt.

For a single practice attempt at replicating one item to trigger full mana depletion – that was almost unprecedented.

‘Was it really because of the trace of mystery…?’

There were only two cases where such immense mana would typically be consumed:

Either my comprehension of the object was abysmally lacking, or an exorbitant amount of mana was inherently required to create it.

‘With only around 30 percent knowledge, that’s understandable, but I would normally still be able to force its creation through sheer mana investment, however inefficient.’

While efficiency would suffer, I should have at least been able to cobble together a crude imitation within my current mana reserves.
Judging from this debacle, unless the Professor’s research was flawed, the initial mana cost for creation must have been staggeringly high.

‘…So at present, I lack sufficient understanding, mana reserves, and mana recovery capabilities?’

I could either increase efficiency by fully comprehending the trace to minimize mana expenditure.

Expand my overall mana reserves.

Or accelerate my mana recovery rate to match the depletion pace.

“Hmm.”

Which approach would be ideal?

The first option depended on whenever the Professor concluded his research, an uncertain timeline. And even if I minimized expenditure, my total reserves might still prove insufficient.

The second was the simplest and the method I had relied on thus far – consuming a Life Force supplement would suffice. However, the potency of regular supplements had diminished due to my prolonged usage.

The final option, while more intricate than the second, offered the most definitive effects. And conveniently, I was already aware of something that could fulfill those requirements.

‘The third approach seems optimal.’

Artifacts – objects imbued with unique effects by enhancing traces of mystery.
I would need to track those down.

But first, a brief respite.