I Will Live as a Villain Obsessed Over by a Magical Girl

Chapter 2:  Meeting a Strange Man -2

Noa, who had walked over to the instant noodle aisle, began to mutter to herself.

“Ugh... a thousand won, seriously...? It used to be way cheaper back then... Prices are insane these days...”

She clearly wasn’t happy about the increase in cup noodle prices.

“...Should I be fighting a conglomerate instead of monsters...?”

...Hey, if you did that, you'd just end up being branded a terrorist.

A beautiful magical girl who defeats monsters turning to terrorism over cup noodle prices?

To someone who didn’t know the situation, it might’ve sounded like a joke or like she was just a bit unwell in the head.

But for someone like me, who knew a bit about Noa’s circumstances, it wasn’t something I could easily laugh off.

Because there were plenty of bad endings that weren’t about Iris, but about Nanoa.

If Iris met a bad ending due to an enemy, Noa usually spiraled into hers from mental reasons.

In other words, she often walked toward her bad ending on her own.

Selling her body for money and getting her magical girl license revoked, or in the worst case, committing suicide — things like that.

Noa didn’t have a particularly strong mentality. She only pretended to be strong, and the world mercilessly crushed girls like that.

“...Haa... Guess I’ve got no choice.”

Noa let out a deep sigh and picked up a cup noodle.

“I’ll pay for this.”

She placed the cup noodle on the counter.

“That’ll be one thousand won.”

To some people, that amount of money was nothing.

There were even those who wouldn’t bother picking up a thousand won bill if it fell on the street.

But Noa was different.

To her, that one thousand won must’ve been incredibly precious.

Her hand trembled as she handed over the bill. The change was returned.

“...Haa.”

Noa let out another sigh.

It made me feel sorry for her.

She risked her life saving others, and yet, in reality, she had to think twice about buying a single cup noodle.

I watched Noa shuffle toward the table and debated for a moment.

‘I really should help with her mental care, too.’

I didn’t want to see her hanging from a rope someday, so I had to do something for her.

Even now, before the main story had even started, she looked unstable.

If the story began like this, it was obvious things would only get worse.

‘What Noa needs right now is...’

Tap tap.

I tapped my fingers on the table.

I was recalling my memories. Not of the magical girl Iris, but of Nanoa.

What was it that lonely, pitiful girl named Noa wanted more than anything?

Suddenly, a word flashed through my mind.

...Yeah, what Noa probably wanted most was—

‘Connection.’

Perhaps, it was human connection.

From what I could tell, the girl named Nanoa was deeply lonely.

It wasn’t something that was deeply explored in the game, but it had been clearly stated: she lacked parental protection and was ostracized at school.

**Then how many people did she have that she could lean on — or at the very least, talk to?**

‘...None.’

She would go on to form connections with some magical girls, but that was in the future. For now, the only one comfortably with her in her pocket was the mascot, Kkyu-kkyu.

And then a line from the game’s Noa came to mind.

[Even though I’m working so hard to save the world... no one acknowledges me. Yeah, I know it’s something I can’t help. But still... it stings.]

A desire to be recognized.

Not as the magical girl Iris, but as Nanoa — she wanted to be praised, too.

‘She even got called emotionally starved.’

It felt like I was finally starting to get a sense of what needed to be done going forward.

I stood up and bought a triangle kimbap.

While I was at it, I also picked up some ointment and band-aids.

I wasn’t in a generous financial situation myself, but if this could give me a chance to approach her, it was a cheap investment.

“Excuse me.”

“...Yes?”

“Sorry to bother you while you're eating—”

“I’m a minor.”

“...”

“You’ve been hovering around since earlier... Do you want to end up in jail or something?”

Noa's gaze sharpened.

She must’ve thought I was some creep hitting on a minor.

I quickly waved it off.

“No, that’s not it.”

“Then what is it?”

As she spoke, Noa gave a subtle nod and raised her phone, as if to say she'd really call the cops if I said anything suspicious.

Sensing the threat to my life, I decided not to drag it out and went straight to the point.

I bowed deeply—

“Thank you for saving me earlier.”

With a proper and respectful bow.

+++++

A man suddenly bowing deeply.

It startled her.

‘What is he doing?’

Noa had met all kinds of people while working part-time, but this was the first time someone bowed to her out of nowhere.

Faced with a situation she’d never seen before, Noa was mostly just confused. Even Kkyu-kkyu, in her pocket, seemed startled.

“Uh... um... excuse me...”

What was she supposed to do in times like this?

As Noa hesitated with that thought, she didn’t realize something.

The initiative of the situation had already shifted to him.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Shin Hyun.”

“Ah... okay.”

“I’d really like to repay you for saving me earlier.”

Repay.

At that word, Noa’s eyes moved to the man’s hands. Triangle kimbap and various medical supplies.

The serious look on his face suggested this wasn’t a joke.

“...I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

“I know everything.”

“Know what?”

“You’re the magical girl, Iris, aren’t you?”

“N... no, I’m not.”

Noa forced herself to lie.

Shin Hyun gave a small smile at that.

“You’re not very good at lying.”

“Huh?”

“The corner of your mouth twitched.”

Flustered, Noa instinctively reached for her lips.

And realized—she’d been caught.

This was basically the same as admitting she’d lied.

‘How did he…?’

How he found out her identity was a mystery, but that no longer mattered.

**What mattered now was what that man would do, now that he knew her identity.**

A wave of fear welled up inside her.

Was he planning to use this as leverage to blackmail her?

Shin Hyun seemed to read Noa’s unease and gave her a bright smile.

“Don’t worry. I’m not planning to do anything bad.”

“...I’m just not good at trusting people.”

“Well, the world is a mess, after all.”

With that, Shin Hyun handed Noa the ointment and triangle kimbap.

“Still, there are always good people somewhere in this world.”

“...”

“I’m giving you this just because I’m genuinely thankful, so please accept it.”

Kkyu-kkyu, who had been observing from her pocket, whispered quietly enough for only Noa to hear.

“Noa-nim, I don’t think there’s any poison or anything like that.”

“Then what about that guy? Anything strange about him?”

“Nothing at all. He doesn’t even have a trace of magical energy, let alone being a monster.”

“So he’s just a regular person?”

“I can’t be certain, but... the odds are high.”

His weird behavior and speech patterns aside, Kkyu-kkyu was a fairly high-ranking mascot creature.

It could detect poison with ease, and no matter how much someone tried to hide their magic, it would usually pick up on it quickly.

Unless he was someone on the level of an executive of the Demon King’s army, there was no way Kkyu-kkyu wouldn’t notice.

In short, for Kkyu-kkyu to say something like that meant there was some truth to the man’s words.

How he found out her identity was still a mystery, though.

“I’ll take it, then.”

“Great. Please use it to treat your wound.”

A brief silence passed between them.

She didn’t know how to respond.

If she were in her Iris state, she would’ve accepted it lightly.

But right now, in the form of Nanoa, she had never met someone like this before.

Noa quickly stood up with her half-eaten cup ramen in hand.

She just couldn’t sit there any longer.

“Well, I’ll be going. My identity…”

“Yes, I understand. It’s a secret, right? Don’t worry, I’ll definitely keep it.”

“If my identity ever gets exposed, I’ll come straight here.”

“Okay.”

“You’re the only one who knows who I am.”

“Okay.”

“Don’t just say ‘okay’ over and over, answer me properly! If someone around me gets hurt because of this, I’ll come straight to you for revenge!”

“Our convenience store welcomes customers anytime.”

Where did that confidence come from?

Was he… no way, had some god suddenly dropped into this world?

He was so relaxed, it made Noa feel worn out just trying to warn him.

If she stayed around this man any longer, it felt like her life would actually get shorter.

Noa tried to quickly leave the convenience store.

And in that fleeting moment, she heard the man’s voice behind her.

“I’ll always be cheering you on.”

“...”

“Make sure to eat well, and you’re welcome to drop by anytime.”

“...”

**"Being a magical girl must be tough, right? If there’s anything I can do to help, I’ll do it. Whether it’s just listening to you vent, giving advice... I mean, I can’t actually fight or anything, but still."**

Noa turned her gaze toward Shin Hyun.

What appeared on his face was concern.

She’d met all sorts of people and had lived a life of constantly reading others. Because of that, Noa could guess—at least to some extent.

Ah, that concern is genuine.

How long had it been since she last heard someone speak to her like that, with sincere worry?

She should probably say thank you.

It was true she had her doubts, but it was also true that she’d heard words of encouragement.

"Um..."

"Yes?"

"Tha... tha..."

"Thaa?"

When it came time to say it, her lips just wouldn’t move.

Who knew saying thank you could be this hard?

"Ugh... uh... goodbye!"

"Sure, please come aga—"

"Waaahhh!!!"

Unable to finish her sentence, Noa chose to run.

Running away might be embarrassing, but it could be helpful too.

+++++

I stared for a while at the spot Noa had disappeared from.

Still, for a first meeting, this wasn’t bad at all.

She hadn’t completely dropped her guard, but that was to be expected.

Anyone would be startled if a stranger suddenly revealed they knew your secret identity.

“Phew.”

I sat down again and began organizing my thoughts.

First was Noa.

I wasn’t sure if she would come back, but she’d definitely be keeping an eye on me for a while.

To make sure I actually kept her secret.

If I treated her well during those moments, maybe she’d eventually open up. Friendship didn’t have to be anything special.

You just spend time together, feel at ease, and one day, you're friends.

The second issue was Iris.

“...I’ll have to step in myself, huh.”

It wasn’t a method I wanted to use if I could help it.

You know how in novels, sometimes there’s that character who willingly becomes a villain to help the protagonist grow?

I never imagined I’d end up playing that role myself.

But if she didn’t get used to battle or develop her abilities now, it would be a problem later.

Either way, in the great battle against the Demon King, she had to become a key figure.

So I’d become a villain.

And raise the magical girl myself.

“There’s no other choice.”

It was absurd, but luckily, there was a way.

I was someone who possessed knowledge from the game, and I knew just the right target.

“Bad Ending #18.”

A horrifying ending where Iris gets captured by a wriggling tentacle and becomes an egg host.

Before she ever reached that ending, I had to steal the abilities of the one responsible.