I Woke Up as the Villain

After the deal was made, Helen Mirren immediately headed to the hospital with Jin Yu-Ri to treat Jin Do-Yoon. She returned less than an hour later because she hated procrastinating.

"I kept my first promise."

Yu-Seong looked at Jin Yu-Ri, who gave a subtle nod. The slight hint of excitement on her face and the redness in her cheeks clearly expressed how she was feeling.

'Impressive. As expected of the Miraculous Alchemist.' 

Helen Mirren's skills were far more effective than Heal-type players when it came to regeneration.

“It costs a lot to recover a lost foot. To heal him, I actually lost 50 of my personally crafted Homunculus.”

Helen Mirren approached the creation of miracles in a somewhat alchemical way.

'Miracles from sacrificing artificial life forms and achieving equivalent exchanges...' 

Generally, an extremely talented alchemist could create around 1000 Homunculus in their lifetime. That was the average for creating low-grade artificial life forms that had no ego or self. In fact, a properly made Homunculus that appeared to be alive… Not even the world's most respected alchemist Helen Mirren could create more than ten in a lifetime.

"Thank you," said Yu-Seong sincerely.

He slowly stood up. Now that Jin Do-Yoon’s problem was solved, it was time for him to head to Pyongyang together with Helen Mirren. Of course, he wanted to receive something else before starting the journey.

"Can I ask for three Return Stones first?" Yu-Seong asked.

Helen Mirren had her own plan for infiltrating Pyongyang. However, coming back was a separate matter. It was wise to come up with a rough plan for returning to Seoul first.

Helen Mirren looked a bit dissatisfied, but she knew there was no point in arguing anymore. She handed over the three Return Stones to Yu-Seong.

As Yu-Seong used mana and Chakra on the Return Stones, a message appeared alongside a burst of blue light. The return point had been set.

'Is this how the Return Stone works? It’s pretty interesting.' 

In that short time, Helen Mirren also copied Yu-Seong and set the same return point. When Yu-Seong looked at her in surprise, she simply said, "What? Is there a reason I can't return to this house too?"

"Not really, but..."

"Hmph." Helen snorted before looking around the room. She asked, "So, who will be joining us?"

Before going to treat Jin Do-Yoon, Helen Mirren had specified that one more person should join them on their trip to Pyongyang. Even if Yu-Seong was a hunter in C-rank with overwhelming abilities, he needed a reliable companion in hostile territory.

There had been a small commotion earlier on, but the decision was made now.

"I'll be coming along," said Kim Do-Jin with a slightly raised hand.

Jin Yu-Ri furrowed her brows. “You’re the one joining them in the end?”

Helen nodded as if she had expected this decision.

‘Jenny has many responsibilities as the Hidden Team’s leader, and she's also making great progress in the retrieval of ancient relics. It would be a shame if she left with us.’

As for Jin Yu-Ri, she managed the affairs of the house when Choi Yu-Seong wasn’t around.

‘She also should stay behind since Jin Do-Yoon will be returning soon too, and we have to take care of Chae Ye-Ryeong and Yoo Jin-Hyuk as well.’

From a report that Jenny had given, Chae Ye-Ryeong was supporting Yoo Jin-Hyuk's growth in various ways, such as going on hunts together. Thanks to that, Yoo Jin-Hyuk was growing quickly, already entering the D-rank promotion examination.

‘The Titanic Growth skill is giving him great help… By the time I finish my work in Pyongyang, he may have entered the C-rank like me.’

If his colleagues could match his level of power, Choi Yu-Seong only stood to benefit even more. However, for now, he believed it best that Yu-Ri remained at home.

‘Since Jin Yu-Ri has the authority to operate my property.’

Jenny could take over Yu-Ri’s responsibilities, but that wouldn’t be ideal at all. Yu-Ri could never be overlooked within the household.

Most importantly, Kim Do-Jin had risen to B-rank. This meant that his power would be closer to the level of A-rank.

'Based on the fact that he also uses magic…’

Even compared to S-rank players and hunters, who were known as superhuman, Do-Jin would have impressive abilities.

‘He’s not a returnee for nothing.’

Ultimately, as long as he did not change his mind, Kim Do-Jin was a reliable insurance for Choi Yu-Seong. That was why Yu-Seong had made the suggestion for Do-Jin to come along, and Do-Jin did agree after some thought.

Jin Yu-Ri and Jenny also had some concerns, but they trusted Yu-Seong. They did not express any major dissatisfaction.

***

Helen's infiltration plan for Pyongyang was somewhat simple.

‘I didn't even imagine directly contacting the President of Russia.’

Currently, the only countries that shared a somewhat friendly relationship with Pyongyang were China and Russia.

‘But, unofficially, there are more countries involved with the Demon King Worshipers.’

In any case, Russia and Pyongyang had a pretty alright relationship.

Helen had been active for a long time and had performed many miracles through alchemy. Not only was she called the Miraculous Alchemist, but she also had a connection with the President of Russia, Smirnova Valentina, who was also known as the Iron Blood Empress.

‘The original novel didn’t mention much about it, so I am not too sure… But if she can directly contact the Iron Blood Empress, it's not a casual relationship, I suppose.’

Anyway, Yu-Seong, Do-Jin, and Helen took a plane and crossed to Vladivostok. Then, with the Iron Blood Empress’ help, they were able to be transported directly to Pyongyang.

Upon safely arriving at Pyongyang, Choi Yu-Seong wiped the sweat from the mask that Helen Mirren had given him. He breathed a sigh of relief.

‘Why are there so many monsters in the sky? I am tired to death.’

This was not a joke. During the flight to Pyongyang, they had been attacked more than ten times. Fortunately, with Russia’s special hunter squad composed of at least A-rank hunters guarding their transports, none of the attacks had resulted in casualties.

However, whenever giant monsters appeared in the sky, Yu-Seong couldn't help but feel his heart pounding and his body trembling.

The trio had only managed to reach Pyongyang’s only lodging, the Pyongyang Hotel, safely because of the protection of the Russian special forces.

"Whoa..."

Once he entered the room, Yu-Seong attempted to remove his skinsuit, the mask that was made of animal hide covering him. However, Helen Mirren stopped him by grabbing his wrist.

Helen said, “The skinsuit will look weird if you take it off now and attempt to wear it again later. It may be uncomfortable, but you must endure it. Given that both of you are well-known figures, this was an unavoidable decision.”

Yu-Seong put his hand down. He wanted to cry.

Meanwhile, Kim Do-Jin walked towards the hotel window with a relaxed expression and gazed out at the city of Pyongyang.

"The kid over there appears to be quite apprehensive, but you seem to be quite composed," commented Helen.

Flying monsters constantly attacked from the sky. At the same time, there were hordes of ground monsters on the blackened ground. This area was certainly called a death ground.

Since he had infiltrated the dangerous city of Pyongyang, Yu-Seong couldn't help but feel tense.

Kim Do-Jin looked back at Yu-Seong and Helen calmly. He said, "It’s familiar to me.”

"Oh... I thought you’re just another rookie from South Korea, but it seems like you have quite a bit of outside experience. Were you originally a soldier or a mercenary?" asked Helen.

Kim Do-Jin turned to give Helen Mirren a cold smile. "I've certainly done a lot of killing."

"That's what I thought. I can smell the blood on you, just as I can on myself. It's very strong and pungent... Haha," Helen laughed. She then slicked her hair back and looked at Yu-Seong again. She said, "Tomorrow, we need to go out and confirm the exact location at lunchtime. We can start prepping tonight. Make sure to rest and conserve your energy as much as possible today.”

"...Thank you," replied Yu-Seong.

Find the original at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

Normally, Helen's impulsive nature would have prompted her to immediately start running an investigation with Yu-Seong. This meant that she was trying to be considerate by offering both Yu-Seong and Do-Jin a day of rest.

"It's nothing. I’m giving you a break because I don’t want you messing things up,” Helen said. With a snort, she left the room.

The hotel room fell silent, with only Yu-Seong and Do-Jin still hanging around. Finally able to relax, Yu-Seong lay down on the bed. He closed his eyes and was lost in thought.

‘I'm really in Pyongyang.’

Just three days ago, Yu-Seong had made the deal with Helen Mirren. Then, today, he was already in Pyongyang. In terms of distance alone, he could have arrived in just a day if he had traveled alone. However, as a South Korean, he couldn't have imagined that reaching Pyongyang would be so easy.

‘Whether in a past life or present life…’

Yu-Seong had thought that Pyongyang had no relationship to him, but he found the place familiar. He didn’t think it was strange at all.

‘In fact, I never even imagined I would end up in a novel.’

While Yu-Seong slowly regulated his breathing, Kim Do-Jin looked out the hotel window and said, "You sure seem comfortable. Are you really planning on sleeping like that?”

"Why? Is there a problem?" Yu-Seong asked as he opened his eyes. He was surprisingly at ease with the dangerous returnee nearby.

"That woman is a dangerous person," said Do-Jin.

"I know."

"She has a strong smell of blood."

"It's the same as yours."

"I had no choice in the matter."

"Everyone has their reasons. You didn't come chasing after me for pointless talk, did you?" Yu-Seong asked. Feeling curious, he continued, “Anyways, why did you say you were following me? And why did you come to my house?”

Despite the fact that Kim Do-Jin's assistance had greatly facilitated things for him, Yu-Seong was bound to have some questions.

"Do I have to answer?" asked Do-Jin.

"You're just a brat," Yu-Seong said. He then closed his eyes.

Kim Do-Jin sneered. He turned to look out of the window again, thinking that he only had one reason for going to Yu-Seong’s house.

'Because I am now a B-rank hunter.' 

Do-Jin had also received a pretty good reward after passing the promotion examination. Thanks to that, he was now at a level where he wouldn’t be afraid to battle a moderate S-rank hunter.

'Is the guy a returnee like me or...does he have another secret?'

Also, Do-Jin had to know what Yu-Seong was hiding. He thought that might be the reason why Yu-Seong was constantly on his mind and bothering him.

Earlier on, Do-Jin had gone to Yu-Seong’s house only to find out that some kind of commotion was going on. He had spotted Helen Mirren, who spoke in a manner that he didn’t like. The woman gave off a similarly dangerous vibe as himself, and that made him dislike her. And due to that sense of dislike, Do-Jin had decided to tag along on this trip.

‘It doesn't feel good in many ways.’

Do-Jin had Sixth Sense skill. It was almost like his intuition, but he couldn’t just ignore it. The problem was, he couldn’t tell who would be encountering this upcoming crisis.

‘Me? Or Choi Yu-Seong?’

Truly, Do-Jin didn't know why he felt that sending Yu-Seong alone to North Korea was a bad idea.