I Became a Dark Fantasy Villain

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“Sir…!”

As Philip lifted his gaze, Maeve looked up at Ian.

“I didn’t know you were skilled in healing… Thank you, Ian.”

“It’s not that deep. I only did what I’ve seen before.”

As if considering it a joke, Maeve weakly smiled.

“Well, if you say so, it must be true.”

Maeve clenched the hilt of her sword.

Struggling to stand, she added,

“Put the protective gear back on, Philip. I’m going to fight.”

“What…?!”

Philip jerked his head in surprise.

“Please reconsider, Sir!”

“……?”

“You haven’t fully recovered yet. Your wounds will worsen.”

“I can wield a sword with just one hand. I’m fine.”

“But-“

A faint laugh escaped Ian’s lips.

I can’t believe I’m witnessing another comedy like this.

Maeve turned to him at that moment.

“What do you think, Ian?”

“Well… what you’re saying makes sense.”

Ian scratched his chin as he spoke.

Philip’s expression brightened.

“You’re absolutely right!”

“…Is that what you think too?”

While disappointment laced Maeve’s voice in return.

“Well, there probably won’t be another skirmish tonight anyway.”

Ian’s words weren’t finished yet.

Maeve’s helmet tilted.

“What are you saying? If you mean you’ll handle it alone again-“

“It’s already over.”

“It’s ultimately the same words—what…?”

Maeve stiffened, and Philip, who had opened his eyes simultaneously, spoke.

“So, the commotion earlier was caused by you fighting against the source of contamination, not demons?”

Ian shrugged.

Maeve swayed just after that.

“Again… it turned out like this….”

She pushed away Philip’s attempt to support her and raised her visor.

Her red hair cascaded down.

Maeve looked at Ian without wiping the bloodstain from her mouth.

“Can you tell us what happened?”

“It’s impossible, but…”

I’m too lazy to do everything.

Ian turned his gaze and quickly spotted a suitable person.

It was because the man’s expression showed he wanted to join the conversation.

“…You might find it more convenient to hear the details from him.”

Miguel came running.

“Where would you like me to start from?”

Maeve replied with a serious expression.

“From right after I fell.”

“You understand my thoughts. Please sit down; there’s much to tell.”

Miguel gestured and gestured with his hands and continued the story.

As Maeve’s expression grew heavier, Miguel paused in his speech and turned to Ian.

“At the end, we heard cries and saw columns of fire. Only he knows what it was.”

Doing well until the end, then acting spoiled.

Daylight dawned in Ian’s eyes.

Quickly closing his mouth, Miguel changed the subject.

“He must have heard the cries of the entity of contamination fighting. Not demons.”

Ian casually replied.

“He must have heard them, so he brought torches.”

“Was it a fire for the oil? But the flames were too big for that. Isn’t that right, Miguel?”

“Of course, it’s not just-“

Miguel stopped in his response, gauging Ian’s reaction before continuing.

“…something one could think of. But it could be plausible. Thinking about it, brother has resolved requests by setting things on fire before. It was impressive then.”

“Is that so…?”

“It’s not important, Philip.”

Interrupting Philip’s skeptical expression, Maeve spoke.

She looked at Ian with a gaze even imbued with guilt.

“What’s really important is the fact that Ian defeated such a dangerous creature alone. …Once again.”

“Well, from my perspective, it wasn’t a complete failure.”

Ian shrugged, taking out something the size of his palm from his pocket.

“Since I got the spoils.”

Miguel frowned.

“Seeds…?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s the first time I’ve seen such large seeds.”

“Probably.”

Ian gazed at the object in his hand.

“Because it’s the seed of an ancient creature.”

An information window appeared before him.

It was like the information in a game.

Gaining additional skill points when consumed.

But the reason he didn’t consume it immediately was that this seed held a hidden chain quest.

This option was a kind of bait.

He had bitten the bait in the past, but this time, he wasn’t going to.

‘I don’t know what the quest reward is, but it’s probably better than just eating it.’

Philip said uneasily.

“If it’s the seed of an ancient creature… wouldn’t it be contaminated?”

“It doesn’t matter. It’s just a seed until it’s planted in the ground. Nothing will happen until then.”

“Hmm…”

Between Philip’s contemplation and Maeve’s silence.

“Now, haven’t you seen enough here?”

Miguel interjected.

The group’s attention naturally turned to him.

“Didn’t you come all the way into this damn forest to eliminate the source of contamination? Since that’s taken care of, you should be able to go the way you originally intended… Or so I thought…”

Looking increasingly uncomfortable, Miguel finished speaking, burying his neck like a seedling.

Philip clapped his hands immediately after that.

“An excellent point! There’s no reason to stay in this cursed forest anymore! Isn’t that right, Sir? …Sir?”

Philip turned his head.

Looking at Maeve’s face, he blinked with an expression that seemed to convey, Could it be?

“Sir…?”

“Not incorrect.”

Maeve eventually spoke up.

“But if we investigate the source, we might be able to find out what caused these events to happen.”

Philip’s mouth was left agape. Miguel also covered his face with his hands as he muttered a prayer.

The only one not flustered was Ian.

Instead, he was looking at Maeve with the expression of someone who had just found a fallen gold coin on the road.

Maeve averted her gaze.

“But this time, asking for permission seems to be the order. What do you think, Ian?”

Amidst Philip and Miguel sending desperate glances, Ian replied.

“Removing the culprit doesn’t mean the forest has been cleansed. It implies that there are still monsters beyond.”

Hope filled the faces of the two men.

Ian added nonchalantly.

“So, let’s camp here tonight and leave at dawn tomorrow. It would be more convenient to investigate that way, don’t you think?”

“No, Sir!”

Philip shouted with a look of disbelief.

Miguel closed his eyes tightly.

This time, instead of finding Lou Sola, he resigned himself and let out a sigh.

“That’s a sensible suggestion. Understood. That’s what we’ll do.”

Maeve nodded contentedly and immediately turned to Philip.

“Prepare the camp, Philip.”

“I understand.”

Philip’s voice, which seemed to be crawling, responded as he moved hesitantly.

Ian turned to Miguel, who was now dejected.

“You stand night watch.”

Miguel’s eyes snapped open.

“Me? All night?”

“Either that, or you fight.”

“…I meant we’d take turns. Philip! You stand behind me!”

Miguel rushed over.

Finally seated on the ground, Ian let out a sigh of relief as he removed his mace.

Now I can relax a bit.

Inhaling deeply, he muttered to himself.

“…It would have been fine to just go back.”

Maeve, sitting beside him, suddenly spoke.

“You were planning to come back later anyway. It’s more efficient to go together.”

Though her words felt a bit like a reproach, her suggestion was warmly welcomed by him.

Time was pressing, and he had fled after grabbing the seeds.

He might be able to find more loot later.

Unaware of his true feelings, Maeve sighed as if impressed.

“Tomorrow, I’ll take the lead. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Do as you please.”

Since there probably wouldn’t be much fighting anyway.

After swallowing his retort, Ian closed his eyes without saying another word.

He really didn’t want to move a finger anymore.

***

Ippotranslation

***

The next day. The journey back was smoother than Ian expected.

While the forest hadn’t been cleansed, most of the remaining monsters were hiding from the sunlight, making progress relatively easy.

They spent about an hour occasionally dealing with carnivorous trees.

“Unbelievable…”

The group arrived at the center of contamination.

Ian didn’t need to inform them of that fact.

“I knew it would be a mess, but… I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”

Translator; ippo

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