I'll Be Villain to Everyone! Except for my Cat...-Chapter 61: The Cursed Gambit

"Haha, damn it, it really was Ghost!"

Using his grappling hook, Mr. Nobody leaped from rooftop to rooftop, running for his life across rooftops.

The stolen cigarette dangled from his teeth.

"Rumors don’t even begin to capture a fraction of how cool and mysterious she is! She’s so cool... just staying silent?"

Pulling himself up to the next roof with his grappling hook, he took a running start and turned to Paymax.

"All right, jokes aside. Paymax, did you record that guy in the suit’s last words?"

"Yes." The conditions and distance from the target weren’t ideal, so it’ll take some time to process the recording.

"Hmm... What about the bodies? Were you able to identify them?" After running across another roof, he jumped down and grabbed onto the next one.

"Since you didn’t manage to get a single Neodeck, there might be some issues with that... According to initial estimates, only a couple of the bodies were in a condition suitable for identification by appearance. I doubt we’ll be able to figure out Ghost’s motives based on just these bodies."

"Well..., at least it was fun..."

*BOOOOM!!!* The building closest to that dark alley was completely leveled by an explosion of dark purple fire.

The shockwave was so powerful that it nearly knocked Mr. Nobody off his feet.

And even though this was the poorest slum in Como, and the buildings were empty and made entirely of scrap metal...

A chill still ran down his spine.

"...Is this the power of the Second Step?"

It seemed his stunt had seriously angered Ghost.

’Time to get out of here!’ his instincts screamed at him.

He hooked onto the ledge and pulled himself up to the next roof.

But after running barely ten meters across it...

*Click* The sharp sound of heels landing echoed behind him.

’Oh... So that’s what they all heard before they died.’

His smile turned nervous, and his heart dropped into his stomach.

"Ahem..." Swallowing the lump in his throat, he turned around. "Ah, there she is! Listen, you dropped something here, and I was just about to..."

He spoke these words as he slowly approached the edge of the roof, but his plan was cut short instantly.

"..." Ghost made a barely perceptible movement with the fingers of her right hand.

In an instant, the entire edge of the roof erupted in flames several meters high.

’Hot...’ he thought, stepping back from the fire.

And just like that, all his escape routes were cut off.

His eyes darted frantically from side to side in search of any way to escape.

Meanwhile, her heels clicking, Ghost strode toward him right through the blazing flames.

Only now did he see her full height.

"...Listen, I was just thinking about how to distract you and make a run for it, but I guess I’m too stunned to say anything useful," he said with an awkward smile.

"..." She said nothing. Not even a reaction.

Now there were barely five meters between them.

"Okay, looks like that won’t work either... Your cigarette? Maybe you need it?"

He waved the cigarette and tossed it to her.

"..." Ghost didn’t even glance at it. The cigarette hit her dark suit and was then crushed by a sharp heel.

Now there were barely a couple of meters between them.

"Yeah... I get it. You’re after my life. Classic."

And even though he said that, he knew that scenario wasn’t exactly realistic. After all, just recently she’d blown up an entire building, and nothing would stop her from blowing him up right now.

But she still hadn’t done it.

"Information? I hear you torture your victims pretty harshly... But just so you know, I’ve already been through fire torture. Besides, what could you possibly learn from Nobody?"

"..."

She stopped in front of him, an arm’s length away.

It seemed she really was more than half a head taller than he was.

"You know, you give off a pretty dominant vibe..."

"..."

And although her face was hidden from view, it felt as though she were towering over him, looking down from above.

Under such pressure, he unconsciously wanted to shrink back.

Nevertheless, she still hadn’t said a word, and that silence was driving him insane.

"..."

"..."

They stood face to face. Now all his tricks and tactics were useless...

Except for one.

’Well, when I decided to play with fire, I knew this would be my only way out.’

"Haa..." he sighed deeply.

At a stage where he could be burned with a single flick of the finger, figuring out his opponent’s motives had become irrelevant.

He was already about to raise his hand to his face and utter the cherished phrase... But Ghost was first.

She reached out toward his face and spoke her first words.

"You..."

However, at that moment, something else happened. A completely new voice rang out.

"Hey, fellas."

They both turned toward the voice. Another person had appeared on the roof, suddenly greeting them.

"..."

"..."

"Oh, did I interrupt your fun?"

"..." Instead of answering, Ghost gathered fiery energy around her hand.

"Does this look like fun to you?" exclaimed Mr. Nobody, keeping his eyes fixed on Ghost.

"Huh? Wait, brother, maybe you need some help?"

"You’ve already helped..."

The appearance of the strange stranger gave him a precious second. With a quick movement, he pressed his palm against his face so that his index finger touched his forehead, and the others touched other points on his face.

As if mimicking the shape of a constellation.

"..." Realizing something was coming, the Ghost turned back to him, but...

It was already too late.

"FOR I AM A FACELESS STAR!!!"

To wield the glow of the stars. When he thought about this ability, he never imagined that in his case, it would be exactly... like this.

Can the darkness shine? His case proved that it was possible.

After the constellation gesture and a desperate scream... Everything around him was engulfed in darkness.

Just him and absolute darkness. Nothing else.

...

Movement felt like a strange, slow-motion scene playing in reverse.

He ran through the darkness, barely feeling his own body and heavy breathing.

And although he associated himself with the darkness, being in such a space felt incredibly unsettling.

He knew he had to run.

Run. As fast as possible.

He feared not who might catch him, but what.

But even as he feared it, he understood that it was inevitable. That’s why he considered this ability cursed.

Cursed by himself.

Soon, voices began to reach him.

At first they were quiet, then joyful, then lively...

Then they turned into screams. Desperate sobs. Begging for help.

Begging for mercy.

Thousands of screams merged into a single, drawn-out howl that he could not escape, no matter how hard he tried.

At first, he thought these were the screams of those whose deaths he himself had caused...

But, upon reflection, a strange thought crept into his mind.

This ability definitely pertained to the Path of Dream.

Dreams... Many people associate this word with fantasies or unattainable goals for the future, so...

The Path of Dream definitely has a connection to the future.

If so, then what he hears...

Those horrors he sees when he enters this dark space...

Could they be connected to his future?

Could he be the cause of such a future?

He didn’t need to think about it for long, because soon the paralyzing horror of that future caught up with him.