I'll Be Villain to Everyone! Except for my Cat...-Chapter 45: To Fly

Kuronuma perceived the following events as if in a fog.

The wild, energetic sounds in her ears set her heart racing with an unfamiliar rhythm.

The incredible speed made her cling to the man in front, terrified and exhilarated all at once.

*Vroooom!*

The vibration of the motorcycle’s engine made the girl forget everything else.

All that remained was the music and the insane feeling of speed.

Against the backdrop of the desert racing past them... Kuronuma felt like she was flying.

"Ha... ha-ha..." Was it her laughter or just her excited breathing...

"Hahahaha...!" It was laughter after all.

The intense speed made her eyes water... But even that didn’t stop the little girl’s laughter from getting louder and louder.

"Hahahaha!"

*Vroom!* Picking up speed, the motorcycle launched off one of the sand dunes.

It was then that Kuronuma noticed the Scavenger’s reinforcements out of the corner of her eye, consisting of five desert bikes and one open-top SUV.

There were about ten people in total, and each of them was armed to the teeth.

’This is dangerous...’ flashed through the girl’s mind, and her carefree smile began to give way to an expression of alarm...

But before the smile completely disappeared from the girl’s face, her eyes caught Mr. Nobody’s gesture...

He gave them the middle finger while in the air.

How stupid! They’ll get angry and shoot us now! That’s what she would normally think, but now...

’Unbelievable...’ thought Kuronuma.

*Vroom!!!* The motorcycle landed right next to the punitive squad.

The Dirty Baals’ faces contorted with rage. They started to grab their weapons when...

"Come on! Show me what you’ve got, you piece of junk!" shouted Mr. Nobody.

*Vroom!!!* In an instant, the motorcycle accelerated at a truly insane speed.

In the next few seconds, it reached a speed four times faster than before.

"Hahaha, yes! A real need for speed!" Mr. Nobody shouted joyfully, but the girl couldn’t hear him.

"..." Right now, Kuronuma felt something truly special.

It was as if she had been given wings that could carry her wherever she wanted to go. The wings carried her away from a world steeped in loneliness, shame, and insecurity.

Thanks to them, she could even outrun her enemies, give them the middle finger, and laugh at them maliciously!

"Hahahaha!" the girl laughed wildly, unable to wipe away her tears.

’So that’s what it means... to fly.’

The Dirty Baals’ reinforcements didn’t even have a chance to fire even a couple of aimed shots.

*Vroooom!* The motorcycle, reaching speeds of three hundred kilometers per hour, left them no chance.

Soon, two laughing figures... and a cat escaped the chase unhindered.

...

Already in the vicinity of Concord, the motorcycle began to gradually slow down.

"Mr. Nobody, I’ve picked up an incoming call signal. Would you like to answer it?" Paymax’s voice cut through the fading noise of the engine.

"Who’s calling?" he muttered into his helmet.

"Your broker, Marcel."

"Hmm..." He stopped the motorcycle completely and turned back to Paymax. "Answer it."

A moment later, a simple hologram of old Marcel appeared from the bracelet. It didn’t look like Marcel had created it himself.

Most likely, it was a visualization from Paymax, rendered in real time.

"Hey, kid! So, how’s your gig going?"

"Everything went... More or less according to plan." He rummaged through his jacket pockets and pulled out the target item. "I’ve got this thing."

"Great jo... Damn, is that a bomb?!" Marcel’s improvised hologram exclaimed in shock, staring at the object.

"It’s possible... But for now, it looks more like some kind of strange puzzle," he said, thoughtfully examining the strangely shaped object.

"That’s strange... but oh well. What about you? Are you hurt? Need any help?"

"Nothing serious, just a couple of scratches."

"Really? You’re not lying?"

"Really." Of course, it was an obvious lie, and it would be best for him to avoid meeting the old man, at least until tomorrow...

"By the way, something unexpected has happened... When you get to the city, come see me right away," the old man replied in a rather strange tone.

"Huh? Something unexpected? Old man, what happened?"

"Better tell you in person, kid."

Receiving such a reply, he could only sigh heavily.

"I see."

He was about to end the conversation on that note when the old man hastily added.

"And one more thing...! I can see a dark cloud rolling toward the gate. You’d better hurry up and try not to get caught in the rain."

"Hah..." The old man’s strange fatherly tone made him smile. "As soon as possible."

"All right, then. Talk to you later, and take care of yourself, kid."

"Talk to you later... Wait, rain?" 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

"..."

There was only silence in response.

"The caller has ended the connection," explained Paymax.

"I figured that much without you... Paymax, what the hell kind of rain?" Didn’t you say the rainy season wouldn’t start for another week?

And indeed, looking up at the sky, he clearly saw a cloud flying across the sky toward the gate through which he was about to enter Concord.

It was strange, but it seemed as if the cloud was flying straight from the heavenly continent...

"A temporal anomaly? Did I really spend a week in the desert? The influence of higher powers, or maybe... Paymax was just wrong?" he thought, somewhat shocked.

"Confirmed. According to updated information, the rainy season will arrive in Concord in about six days."

"Really? Then what do you think that dark thing in the sky is?"

"In science, such things are called unforeseen variables."

Paymax’s remark made him let out a skeptical laugh.

"Hah... to hell with it."

A simple cloud hardly seemed like something that could cause trouble, so he decided not to worry about it. At least he tried.

He took off his helmet and took a deep breath of fresh air. Most likely, the next opportunity to breathe it in would not come soon.

Now Concord was once again before him in all its glory.

"It’s as if all roads lead there..."

"..." After these words, the cat on his lap also glanced at the city.

It was that subtle movement that reminded him he wasn’t alone.

"Kitty..." A smile involuntarily appeared on his face. "Was the ride too rough for you?"

"..." The cat did not respond, confirming once again that almost nothing could disturb its calm. Even after such a trip at breakneck speed, its fur remained as sleek and smooth as ever.

"I see..." Leaving it at that brief reply, his hand involuntarily reached out to that smooth black fur...

"..." The cat instantly turned around and looked him straight in the eyes.

"...God, what am I thinking?" He shook his head and withdrew his hand.

He was surprised by how easily this cat made him lower his guard and unconsciously show his feelings.

He understood that the reason was most likely that it was not a person, but... just a cat.

But if it was just a cat, then maybe it was okay if he...

"Okay, okay." He lightly slapped himself on the cheek. "Mr. Nobody stays nobody, don’t forget." He said to himself.

"..."The cat looked at him with the same uninterested gaze.

The slap on his face helped him come to his senses and remember that...

"That’s right, girl! Kuronuma, you..." His eyebrows rose incredulously. "Kuronuma, what are you doing?"