Reincarnated as the Final Villain's Vessel

”Could you move aside a little, big boy?”

Garon turned toward the source of the voice, new lines forming on his face.

Of course, it was none other than Emeris, who had just arrived, heading straight toward me. She smiled playfully at Garon as if preparing to say something else, but at that moment Ivan leaned over and whispered into my ear.

”You may not know this, but on the first day Emeris provoked Garon until it turned into a fierce fight, and you won’t believe what she did after that... Emeris actually— mm...”

The next moment, a strip of blue light formed around Ivan’s mouth, sealing it shut like a muzzle. At the same time, Garon stepped aside slightly, allowing the two of them to stand there with their eyes fixed on the surprised Ivan.

He reached for his mouth, touching the light and trying to remove it without success, a few pleading sounds escaping through it. ”Mmm... mm...”

Emeris smiled as she clasped her hands behind her back.

”How about you stop right there, Ivan?” Her tone was gentle, but cold as well.

He nodded, causing the strip over his mouth to break apart and fade away as he took a deep breath.

At the same time, Emeris’s smile became gentler again as she walked over and sat on my other side, then nudged me in the ribs with her elbow. ”It’s nice to see you following me here. Should I take this as your initiative?”

I pushed myself up to my feet. ”Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m not here for you.”

”Cold as always.” She puffed out her cheek as she said that.

At the same time, I felt everyone’s eyes gathering on us, whether it was Garon, who had folded his arms while looking at me with a strange frown, or Ivan, who leaned back on his chair, smiling until his white teeth showed.

”You guys seem pretty close. Did you know each other before? Or maybe you two are...”

”Just shut your mouth.” I shot him a threatening look, finally making him fall silent.

He waved his hand nervously as he stood up, pointing toward the gate to change the subject.

”I know you guys want to sit around and chat, but the last member has arrived, and it’s time to go too. You know, we don’t want to be late like last time... oh, Caius, you weren’t with us. That’s fine, I’ll tell you what happened...”

I walked past him, ignoring his words as nothing more than background noise... seriously, how could he turn a simple sentence into an entire story?

At that moment, the gate manager’s voice echoed as he called out to everyone.

”Come on, students. It’s time to depart.”

Garon moved forward, followed by Ivan, as well as Emeris, who came to my side. At the same time, the other five approached from the opposite side, along with the last person to arrive, a girl I didn’t recognize.

Ignoring Ivan’s voice that continued in the background, I reached the gate and stepped through it.

A few seconds passed while I was engulfed in blinding white light, until it gradually faded and revealed a new place before me.

...

”This always makes me feel sick,” Ivan’s voice echoed as we walked out of the building that housed the teleportation gate.

A wide street stretched before us, buildings rising on both sides with beautiful yet simple facades in shades of gray and white, without being excessively tall.

People moved along the sidewalks, while the tram system ran through the streets, carrying people everywhere.

This was Valimont, the city governed by the Marquis, and also the city that bore his family’s name. It was located in the eastern part of the Empire near a long mountain range... I’d forgotten its name.

Valimont was a large city that relied on trade as the driving force behind its economy, attracting countless merchants and visitors alike, whether to sell their goods or search for rare items of every kind.

So shops and advertisements could be seen everywhere the moment we stepped out of the teleportation building, all of them practically screaming at us to fall into the trap and spend our money... of course, I wasn’t going to fall for that.

But someone would.

”We arrived early, guys. Why don’t we take a look around before heading to the auction hall? These shops really look amazing... there’s even a fifty percent discount over there.” Ivan pointed excitedly at an electronic sign above one of the stores.

I sighed. There was no one here to receive us this time, so we’d have to find the auction hall ourselves... not that it was difficult. We were told it was nearby, and there were maps on our phones, of course. The challenge lay elsewhere.

”Yeah, I agree with this chatterbox. The old Marquis can wait while we take a quick look around.” Emeris added, making Ivan smile happily.

”Although I don’t think chatterbox suits me, I’m glad you agree with me.”

At that moment, it was as if they had opened the door for everyone else. The first to speak was Naira as she stared at a certain shop. ”I think I need some new clothes...”

Another girl added, ”Taking a walk outside the Axis would be nice, wouldn’t it, Jin?”

The latter answered quickly, as if surprised to be asked. ”Ah... yeah.”

The others whose names I didn’t know added similar comments, and the place filled with voices until a new one interrupted us.

”Could you move aside? You’re blocking the entire way.”

It was a wealthy man who had just come out of the teleportation building, his head held high and dressed in formal clothes.

Only then did we realize we were blocking the path, so we stepped aside.

That was when I found nine people staring at me. I raised an eyebrow in confusion. ”What?”

Ivan coughed, placing a fist in front of his mouth. ”It’s just... we haven’t chosen a leader for the group yet, so I assumed it was you. So did everyone else.”

”So, Caius, are you going to be boring like the Princess and have us head straight to the auction hall, or... you know, be a little freer and a little less boring?”

I suppressed the urge to sigh... how did I end up as the leader? Well, this wasn’t so bad.

After thinking for a moment, I spoke.

”Alright. Just make sure you’re at the auction hall before evening.”

Everyone nodded. Ivan was the first to disappear so quickly that I suspected he had a teleportation ability, followed by Garon, muttering something about drinking even though it was only nine in the morning.

A girl grabbed Jin and dragged him away with her, while the rest split up as well after exchanging a few words.

Everything happened so quickly that I was left somewhat stunned. Had they been tortured or something over the past few months... then again, maybe I was the one who had been tortured. Anyway, as Ivan said, the Marquis could wait. There were still a few days left before the auction.

The next moment, I activated my ability, my perception spreading through the city around me.

I sensed tens of thousands of souls moving everywhere, making me feel as though I were solving twenty mathematical equations at the same time.

Anyway, enough nonsense. Let’s get to work.

My perception already covered a large part of the city, both above and below ground, where the tunnels forming the sewer system stretched in every direction... they seemed normal, nothing suspicious... well, I hadn’t actually seen them.

Maybe I should walk around near his mansion at the edge of the city.

”So, where are we going?” The cheerful voice interrupted my thoughts as I turned toward the only person who had stayed behind.

Of course, Emeris... I knew this would happen, but I still asked.

”Why don’t you go with your friends?”

”Oh... and leave you wandering around here all alone with that face? Just forget it.”