After the Cannon-Fodder Villain Faked His Death - Chapter 3

The cramped cabin overflowed with a disorderly collection of magical ingredients: withered, lifeless plants, pale bones twisted into strange shapes, dull minerals of unnatural colors, and several large bottles of blood…

Wu Si’s gaze swept toward a corner. A small bed sat there, nothing but a thin quilt spread over old wooden boards. It looked painfully bare.

His lips pressed into a displeased line. “You live here?”

“Mm.” I looked at him. “Feel any better now?”

His face darkened further. The hand gripping my shoulder tightened, and only after pain drew a frown from me did he slowly murmur, “Don’t you have anything you want to say to me?”

I studied his expression for a moment. Then I suddenly raised a hand, pressed it to his arm, and said, “Wu Si. Kneel.”

It was not a request. It was an order.

A black mark surfaced on Wu Si’s neck. He released my shoulder and sank to his knees.

Even the system was stunned. [You… he… How can this be…?]

I lowered my eyes and touched the mark that compelled a slave’s absolute obedience to his master. Seven years had passed, yet it still had not been removed.

When the new episode went live, the comic’s readers exploded.

[What is the author DRAWING? The story’s almost over! The male lead rules an empire! He’s at the absolute peak of power, and the villain can still treat him like a slave?!]

[What do you mean the male lead KNEELS to the villain? What do you mean absolute obedience? Author, look at your own work and tell me this isn’t twisted!]

[Why is the vibe between the male lead and the villain so weird? Isn’t the Saint basically his canon love interest? He’s so cold to the Saint and so different with the villain. How does that make sense?]

[AAAAAH, stop shipping nonsense! The male lead obviously feels nothing but pure hatred for the villain!]

[I hate this so much. Can the villain please just die?]

[Where’s the Saint? Where’s the rest of the hero’s party? Somebody save him!]

The other members of the hero’s party found us three days later.

At the time, another failed experiment had put me in a foul mood, and I was taking it out on Wu Si. I flung my calculations and quill straight into his face.

The warrior carrying a greatsword and shield and the elf with a bow stared at the scene, wide-eyed. They exchanged a look that plainly said, *Just how strong is this guy?* Then, on guard, they raised their weapons.

Before they could advance, the man in temple robes whom they had been shielding stepped out first.

“…Brother?” he blurted in astonishment.

The readers never got the rescue they expected. Instead, I promptly started ordering every member of the hero’s party around.

“Big man, come move these for me.”

“Long ears, make these seeds sprout.”

“Bai Xi, clean the room.”

Chin propped in one hand, I sat atop a stack of wooden crates and issued commands to the lot of them.

The other three members’ arrival reminded me of the imperial capital’s library and alchemy chamber, so I shamelessly put them to work moving my belongings.

“Why should *I* obey you too?!” The bristling elf slammed a sack of skull-shaped dead leaves onto the ground, teeth grinding audibly.

I lifted my eyelids and drawled, “That’s fine. If you refuse, I’ll order Wu Si to kill himself.”

“AAAAAAAH—!” The elf stamped in fury, snatched up the sack, and hurled it onto the cart.

Once we set out, he retaliated in the most childish way possible: as the party’s cook, he handed out grilled meat skewers and grain porridge to everyone but me.

I did not care. I took a small piece of black bread from the pouch at my waist and began to eat.

Across the fire, Wu Si pretended not to steal another glance at me. He gave a cold snort, waited a while, then silently picked up his food and sat down at my side.

When I swallowed yet another small bite of coarse black bread, he finally muttered, “You never used to eat things like that.”

I looked at him but said nothing. I simply lowered my head and took another bite.

Wu Si shot to his feet. Scowling, he snatched the remaining half from my hand and thrust his own bowl at me without a word.

“He looks ready to forgive you, Brother.”

Bai Xi’s soft voice came after Wu Si had left. His brows drew together in sorrow. “Is it only because he doesn’t know how many beastkin you once killed?”

“If he knew you were responsible for so many deaths among his people, would he still feel the same?”

“Forgive me?” I looked up at Bai Xi. He stood over me, yet somehow it felt as though I were the one looking down. “I’ve never believed I was wrong, and I don’t need anyone’s approval.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

Firelight flickered across my face. Bai Xi clenched his hands.