The Villainous Me Turned the Losers into Blackened Bosses-Chapter 0 - Prologue: I’ll Raise You Like I Raised My Dog!

“Fate is inevitable.”

Snowflakes drifted softly through the air.

Under a birch tree in the desolate northern backyard of the Hysterm Duke’s estate, a small makeshift grave stood—a pile of stones clearly arranged by a child. A brown-haired boy with fogged-up glasses knelt before it, holding a rare bouquet of white chrysanthemums for the season. His voice was heavy as he spoke.

He didn’t cry, but his reddened eyes betrayed his emotions.

“No matter the method, no matter the effort, no matter how meticulous the plan… in the end, death awaits you at the finish line, ready to claim your head when you think you’ve given your all.”

Though he looked no older than ten, his words carried a maturity and weight far beyond his years.

“Young Master Will… Are you okay?”

The maid beside him, who looked about his age, called out softly. Her short brown hair just grazed her shoulders, and a pair of wolf ears stood upright on her head. They twitched slightly from the cold.

“Oh, my dear Eir, don’t worry about me. I’ve long foreseen such a cruel fate. From the moment I was born into this world, I knew this day would come. I’ve prepared myself for it.”

He glanced at the crude gravestone. Snowflakes had already begun to settle on its surface, forming a thin, delicate layer.

The wind rustled through the birch trees, carrying the sound of falling leaves.

“Uh… Young Master, may I ask a question?”

“Ask away, Eir. I imagine you, too, have seen through the helplessness of fate—”

“Young Master, just to confirm… it really was just a dog that died, right? You didn’t bury… anything else in there, did you? The way you’re talking is so scary—”

“……”

Will Hysterm, a noble young master who appeared no older than ten, found it hard to admit that he was, in fact, a reincarnated soul.

The first thing he heard upon opening his eyes in this world was the joyous celebration of the Hysterm family welcoming their newborn heir. His heart sank immediately.

Wasn’t this the infamous villainous family from the popular trashy light novel “After Being Kicked Out of the Party, I Was Taken In by the Dungeon Empress”?!

And he…

He was the poor soul who had suffered through that god-awful novel in his previous life.

It was a painfully cliché, cookie-cutter story about betrayal and revenge. To make matters worse, the novel had exploded in popularity after its anime adaptation, becoming a massive hit. So much so that his boss in his past life had bought the rights to the IP and told him:

“Will, this IP is now ours to turn into a mobile game. You’re in charge of the system design, balancing, and quest planning. Good luck! The company’s annual report to the shareholders depends on you!”

Ah, karma was real. In his past life, he had turned that trashy novel into a cash-grab mobile game, and now, in this life, he had reincarnated as the villain destined to be beaten to a pulp by the protagonist.

Thankfully, the game hadn’t launched yet. From his observations, this seemed to be the novel’s world, not the game’s world. At least he still knew the general plotline—he didn’t trust the junior writer who had penned the mobile game’s story.

Why?

Because none of the absurd, money-grabbing upgrade materials he had invented for the game had shown up here.

Thank goodness. The sacred, pure, and (for now) untainted original story remained intact.

Will Hysterm was the main antagonist of the novel’s early Chapters. The protagonist, Hugh Polrol, had been kicked out of the adventuring party “Morning Star,” a party that Will himself had founded. Oh, and Will had also played a significant role in Hugh’s expulsion.

After Hugh was kicked out, the party members slowly realized their mistake, regretted their actions, and went on a desperate “chasing after the protagonist” arc. However, Hugh, now allied with the Dungeon Empress, thoroughly trounced them. Emotionally and physically defeated, the female leads became nothing more than pathetic losers—crying, whining, and achieving absolutely nothing.

Wow, so tragic (monotone voice).

As for Will, he ended up alone, abandoned by everyone. His story concluded when he was crushed to death by a giant slime on the first floor of a dungeon.

—His boss had once said that this part of the story was a fan favorite and must be included as an event in the game. Maybe even make the slime a boss.

Fortunately, Will still had about eight years before his fated death-by-slime. Plenty of time to figure out a way to avoid it.

But…

Had it already begun?

No, it was already over (laughs).

Today marked the end of his “Fate Resistance Test.”

In the original story, the timid maid Eir had a flashback where she recalled being beaten by Will at the age of ten because his pet dog, Sanqi, had frozen to death after he forgot it outside.

Current Will had tried to alter this fate.

As a former system designer, he knew exactly how to manage resources and “raise” characters.

He had carefully selected the best dog food—not just the most expensive, but also the kind that boosted resistance to freezing!

He had personally trained the dog, running three kilometers with it every winter morning to build its cold tolerance!

He had constructed a luxurious doghouse and spent three years reminding Eir to check every night that the dog was safely inside with enough firewood!

After three years, Sanqi had become a local legend, capable of single-handedly taking down packs of ice wolves.

Will thought the dog might even survive being crushed by a slime.

And yet…

This day still came.

On a snowy winter morning, the once-robust dog lay in a narrow grave.

“Eir, this is truly a pitiful life.”

“Uh… I don’t know what to say, Young Master. Please accept my condolences! If you want to cry, just let it out. I’ll wipe your tears so they don’t freeze on your face. Don’t hold it in like this; you’re scaring me.”

“Fate is the only explanation left.”

Though Will had repeated “It’s all fate” to console himself countless times…

Whenever he remembered…

That Sanqi had died because it stepped out of its warm doghouse, slipped on the ice-resistant dog bowl he had prepared, tumbled five times, slid onto the frozen ornamental lake, and spun thirty-seven times before crashing into a tree…

He couldn’t hold it in anymore!

Wasn’t this way too forced?!

Even if fate was fixed and tragic…

Did it really have to be this absurd?

The mental image alone made the corners of his mouth twitch upward.

“Y-Young Master, don’t worry about Sanqi’s spirit! If you want to laugh, just laugh! Maybe… maybe it’ll make you feel better… Pfft…”

“Hahahahahahaha! Stupid dog, your death was too damn funny—”

“Hahahahahaha!”

Eir and Will burst into laughter in front of Sanqi’s grave.

The snow fell harder.

But this gave Will a new idea. It was time to execute Plan B.

Eir’s personality had grown much brighter than in the original story. She no longer feared him and even joked with him. This was thanks to the care he had shown her over the years.

Especially…

“Young Master, you must be tired and cold. Let’s head back inside for some hot tea. I’ve already prepared it for you.”

Thanks to his care, Eir had learned to make excellent tea—a stark contrast to the original story, where it was a running gag that she couldn’t brew tea to save her life. Even the head maid, Susan, now praised her tea-making skills.

And that dog, though its fate hadn’t changed, had at least grown strong enough to dominate the local monsters during its life.

In other words, while the ultimate outcomes remained the same, the characters’ personalities and abilities in this world could be “developed.”

Just like in a game system, they could learn new skills and gain new powers.

They could grow stronger!

And so…

Will decided it was time to put his delightfully twisted Plan B into action—

As the doomed villainous young master, he would raise the three pathetic, love-struck heroines from the original story—

The aloof and dismissive half-elf princess who constantly belittled the protagonist.

The foul-mouthed, hot-tempered, golden-haired loli witch who always hurled insults.

And the timid wolf-girl maid who never stood up for the protagonist.

He would turn them all into terrifying, blackened versions of themselves!

As the saying goes, “A redeemed villain is three times weaker, but a blackened one is ten times stronger.”

In the original story, they were weak, pathetic losers who couldn’t beat the protagonist or the bosses. They couldn’t even express their feelings properly and ended up crying on the ground after being thoroughly defeated.

But if they were blackened, it would be a whole different story.

They’d be strong, twisted, and terrifying—capable of tormenting the protagonist.

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They could tie him up, hang him, imprison him, and make sure he couldn’t go anywhere or do anything. His eyes would only see them, until his spirit broke and his body gave out, leaving him completely dependent on them.

As for Will, he could sit back and enjoy the show with a bag of snacks.

Life is short; why not have some fun while you can?

This was the resolve of a former game designer.

Torturing players was his specialty.

“Hahahahaha—I can’t take your life, but I can make you wish you were dead! Hahahaha—”

“Young Master, why are you acting crazy again?”

“Listen carefully, Eir. I’ve figured it out.”

He grabbed Eir’s hands and looked into her sky-blue eyes with a serious expression.

His glasses reflected the light, and though fogged up, they gave him an air of wisdom.

If he could turn a dog destined to freeze to death into a local legend, then surely he could “raise” these girls the same way!

“From today onward, I’ll raise you just like I raised that dog!”

“???”

Eir tilted her head, her wolf ears flopping in the opposite direction.

She thought to herself that her brain must not have fully developed yet, as she couldn’t grasp the young master’s meaning.

“Uh… Woof?”

—