I Want to Become the Worst Villain!

Other than her hair, the girl was covered in snowy-white fur from head to toe, with a pair of cat ears atop her head.

It was easy to see that she was a Cat Beastfolk slave from the Mink Tribe.

The Mink Tribe lived atop the giant elephant Zou. Put simply, they were Beastfolk. They were quite rare in the outside world, but to the Celestial Dragons, that merely made them a rarer collectible.

Her fur appeared neat, but beneath it were countless dense scars.

The moment she noticed someone approaching, all her fur stood on end like that of a startled cat. This was also one of the Mink Tribe's traits—they retained habits similar to those of the animals in their bloodlines.

When she saw that it was Oran, her puffed-up fur gradually settled. Perhaps because Oran had treated her wounds, she subconsciously felt that he could be trusted.

"Is something wrong, Kate? These are dried fish. You should be able to eat them, right?"

The Mink Tribe did not eat the meat of furry mammals. It was an instinct inherent to their race.

Although Shak, standing nearby, was a Sharkfolk, he had no qualms about eating fish. Kate was different. Making her eat furry mammals was no different from forcing a human to eat another human.

That was also the source of the whip marks on her body. The Celestial Dragons wanted to watch her eat food she did not want to eat, but even when she was beaten black and blue, she refused to take a single bite. Eventually, the Celestial Dragons lost interest and placed her on the cleanup list, turning her into one of the hunted.

To the Celestial Dragons, a Cat Beastfolk was no different from a house cat. A disobedient cat should simply be killed.

"You know the Mink Tribe well?"

"A little. If you feel I've offended you somehow, you can tell me directly."

Oran did remember a few things about the Mink Tribe, but even without that knowledge, he thought cats would not normally refuse fish.

"No. I just think you're very different from those humans."

In the Mink Tribe's view, humans were also members of the Mink Tribe—hairless monkey Beastfolk. Kate had thought so too, until a year ago, when her family left Zou and encountered a Celestial Dragon slave-catching squad. Reality had dealt her a brutal blow.

Life atop Zou was much safer, but Kate had been born with a heart condition. Zou's medical care could not solve it, which was why her family had gone out in search of a doctor.

Unfortunately...

Not long ago, her father had found an opportunity on the night of the full moon and tried to escape with his wife and daughter.

Under the full moon, the Mink Tribe could use an ability called Sulong. In that berserk state, they could gain power far beyond their usual limits.

Unfortunately, he had failed. He had completely lost control in the end, fought until his strength gave out, and died. Not long after that, her mother could not bear the blow and chose suicide.

Yet Kate had stubbornly held on. There had been some luck involved as well. During that period, the Celestial Dragons had wanted an obedient cat, so they had not simply starved her to death.

But Kate harbored thoughts of revenge. She could not forget the ugly smiles on the Celestial Dragons' faces.

Though she was the same age as Ginny, she was nowhere near as cheerful inside.

After all, Ginny had been sold into slavery from the moment she could remember and had no impression of her parents at all. Kate, on the other hand, had once had a happy family.

"I acknowledge the diversity of humanity. There are all kinds of people. If you're unlucky, the evil in human nature can leave you covered in wounds. But I need to correct you on one point: I don't acknowledge things like Celestial Dragons as human."

"Then what do you think I am? A person, a cat, or a monster?"

As she spoke, Kate remained slightly hunched over. It was a feline instinct in her body, protecting her soft belly in a dangerous environment.

It was clear that she had not let down her guard. Yet deep in her eyes, there seemed to be a faint trace of expectation.

Oran had seen that look many times. In Piltover, he had funded an orphanage that took in war orphans and people who had suffered misfortune from all across Runeterra.

It could cultivate some talented people, so it counted as an investment for Oran, though it was an investment that generally lost money.

Some people thought he was merely putting on a show, but Oran did not care about such opinions. In Valoran, he had the ability to do it, so he did. As long as it was within his means and did not affect him, he never minded showing kindness.

When Oran had first arrived in that city-state, he too had survived through the kindness of others. This was his way of giving back.

"If you want me to analyze it scientifically, I would classify the Mink Tribe as demi-humans—a branch of humanity. It's the same logic as you considering humans hairless monkey Beastfolk.

"But in practical terms, Kate, you need to understand that the body is only a shell. The soul and consciousness are what matter. So beneath the same appearance, humans can be all kinds of things.

"Set aside appearances, and we are equals. It's simply that everyone has different talents and abilities. We are all the same."

Cat was the label the Celestial Dragons had given her, while monster was the label given by fellow slaves.

Sulong was an ability the Mink Tribe needed training to control. Her father had not mastered it proficiently, and the price of forcing its use had been losing control.

Fear came from the unknown. Because they did not understand that power, the people around Kate had also become afraid of her.

They worried that the Celestial Dragons would vent their anger on them because of her, and they feared she might suddenly go berserk.

One's environment could change a person, and slave life could make someone collapse in a short time. A year of suffering enormous setbacks had made her somewhat extreme.

Like Bear, she had escaped slavery alone. The difference was that Bear had simply run away while still wearing his chains.

Kate, however, had snapped the thumb on her left hand under cover of night, slipped out of her handcuffs, and killed a guard before escaping. The bandages on her hand and the splint made of wooden sticks had been fashioned by Oran.

"Sidereal Auran, I think you're a good person. A different kind of human. Unfortunately, good people never live long..."

"It's not auspicious to say something so discouraging at a time like this. But that form of address... how do you understand grammar?"

Oran had noticed that the people he met lately especially liked giving him the good-person card. Bear had done it, Shak had done it, and now Kate was doing it too. The words Kate had used also struck him as strange.

"Sidereal Auran. Isn't that how your name is spelled? My father liked studying the stars, so I heard him talk about how to spell some words...

"He was a good person too, so he died... Mom was the same...

"But you don't have to be afraid. Dad and Mom both said that kindness must be repaid. Anyway, I won't live much longer. The full moon is in three days. If you're not as unlucky as other good people, I should be able to save you once. But after that, you'll have to rely on yourself.

"If you escape alive, then for me..."

Kate was not as taciturn as Bear had described. Her earlier question to Oran seemed to have merely been her attempt to receive an answer.

She knew her physical condition well. Her heart problem did not even leave her much time to prepare for revenge.

The Mink Tribe also had a tradition of never owing favors, and the answer she had accepted had prompted her to make this decision.

Her race was born for battle. With the boost from Sulong, she believed she could try to take revenge, or protect someone else. Once she had shone with her final brilliance, she could go find her family.

Seeing that Kate was still young yet putting on the air of an adult as she solemnly tried to leave her last words, Oran directly picked up a piece of dried fish and stuffed it into her mouth.

"Pause. You may have misunderstood something. I have many professions, including alchemist. And there is one basic principle in that trade, as well as in my life: equivalent exchange.

"Life is the most valuable thing there is. Only life can be exchanged for life. Your abilities and talent are important. You will be a very important part of our escape plan.

"You only need to trust my arrangements. I guarantee that I'll get all of you out of here alive. I'll show you how a 'good person' ought to do things."

After discovering that Kate was a rare member of the Mink Tribe, Oran had slightly altered his original plan. The natural abilities of this race would be very useful to him.

"Cough, cough... I don't want to be a good person! Good people are always bullied, while villains get away with anything they want. If I survive, I want to become the worst villain in the world!"

After taking the dried fish from her mouth, Kate seemed somewhat tempted, but she still restrained her appetite before making her "declaration of dreams."

"So you want to become the world's number one villain?"

"Mm... you could say that."

"Then what are you going to do?"

"I'll kill all the bad guys! Then I'll be the worst one!"