———————————————————————————
Today's the day……oh, how long I've been waiting for this! Hm……but how am I going to pull off the first stage of my plan?
The third key player I need to involve, and arguably the most important one to ensure that my plan works.
He's another Reincarnator, still only eight years old, on the outside anyway. He speaks in an abrasive and unintentionally rude manner, so most of the villagers really dislike him.
In other words, he's the perfect person for me to frame for what I'm about to do……in fact, he's the only one. Because, like me, his Extra Magic is the Devour ability.
The ability that lets you gain the powers of someone by eating their hearts……that part, I'm not too thrilled about, but I'll just have to power through it. It's the only way to take their abilities for myself, after all.
"Hey, we're missing some of the fruits we just harvested, what's going on!?" Suddenly exclaimed one of the villagers.
Oh, speak of the devil……here comes the kid I just mentioned, Scipe Toge. He's got straight blonde hair, blue eyes and a scowl on his face. With the way he's been treated, naturally, he dislikes the villagers just as much as they dislike him.
"Was it you again!? How many times have we told you to keep your hands to yourself!?" One of the villagers snapped at him, startling him.
"Huh? Whatever you're accusing me of, I didn't do, you jackass!" He snapped right back, anger in his eyes.
"And why the hell should we believe you!?"
"Yeah, you do nothing but cause trouble for us!"
"Worthless little shit!"
Heh, wow, they sure can be nasty when they want to be, huh? A total 180 from how they are with me. Also, there's no way he could've been the culprit, because I happened to see a monkey show up and steal some of the harvested fruits a while ago.
I didn't really care, so I didn't say anything, since no one else seemed to notice. And right now, I'm so glad that I kept quiet.
"Um, I don't know if this helps, but……earlier, I saw him walk past the barrels. Though, um, I didn't actually see him steal any-," I spoke up timidly.
"That's all the proof we need!"
"Good eye, Damien, now we know for sure that it was this damn brat!"
Yes, yes, go on, praise me more.
"Wha……that's a fucking lie! I was nowhere near this area till just now!" He defended himself indignantly, before glaring at me.
Oh, I should act scared. I then flinched in response, irking the others even more……
"Hey, don't you pick on him just because he saw you!"
"You must think you're real sneaky, don't you?"
"Hah, thought no one noticed him, and then lashes out because someone did! How pathetic!"
Yikes, take it easy, he's just a kid. I mean, yeah, I plan to frame and kill him myself, but hey, I'm a mass murderer. Well, not that they know that. It's not like I've killed anyone in this world……though, that's about to change soon.
"I hate you……all of you. You think I'm pathetic? And maybe I am, but I can at least say that I'm not as pathetic as a bunch of grown men yelling at a kid!" He snapped, before racing off with tears of frustration in his eyes.
Bingo. I know exactly where he's headed. The ideal spot for me to secure his involvement in my plan.
"Um, I think I'll go after him," I volunteered, as the adults began muttering to themselves.
"No need, just leave him alone."
"Yeah, he's not worth the trouble."
"Well, um……I know he can be a handful, but, well, he's still very young, so……he should be given the chance to redeem himself, right?" I pointed out timidly.
"You're a kind soul, Damien……almost too kind, you should be careful to never let anyone take advantage of that kindness!" Grinned one of them, patting my shoulder.
"Th-thanks……but, um, I don't know if that's true, I just……feel sorry for him, I guess," I responded awkwardly.
After letting the praise and compliment me a bit more, I chased after Scipe, a rising sense of anticipation welling up inside me.
This is the busiest time of the day, which means that pretty much everyone will be away from the houses and in the fields. There shouldn't be anyone there to interrupt my plan.
Here we are……the woods behind the village. I've noticed that, whenever he's yelled at, he always comes here to be alone. I managed to follow him a couple of times, so I know the exact spot he's going to be in.
I'd secured some potent sleeping pills from the house I lived, from the people who are biologically my parents in this world.
Maybe I'll get around to killing them one of these days too. But for right now, I'll strictly stick to my current plan.
As I made my way through the forest, I couldn't stop a smirk from spreading out across my lips, outwardly breaking my facade for the first time since coming to this world.
"Huh? What the……what the hell are you doing here?" He growled defensively, as I found him.
"Well, um, I realized that I shouldn't have done what I did," I replied apologetically, as I approached him, "They were so awful to you, and since I didn't actually see you steal anything, I should have stayed quiet. I'm sorry."
Good, he's not backing away. Let's get as close as possible before striking……
"Tch, whatever. They'd already made up their minds even before you chimed in. But I didn't even get close to that area, so whatever you saw, you were mistaken!" He snapped angrily, stepping forward and grabbing my collar……or at least, he tried, but due to the height difference, he ended up grabbing the middle of my shirt.
"Oh, but I wasn't mistaken. I just lied," I smirked, as I swiftly grabbed him by the throat and raised him up, tightening my grip with a smirk.
"Wh-what the hell……!?" He sputtered, a look of shock in his eyes, before I crushed the sleeping pills in my fist and jammed them down his throat.
As he inadvertently swallowed the crushed up pills, I calmly let him go, dropping him onto the grass as he coughed and clutched at his neck.
"You should see the look on your face right now……delightful," I sighed contentedly……I've missed that expression, that gloriously horrified and confused expression……
"What did you……just do……to……me……?" He gasped weakly, before his eyelids drooped shut, his body collapsing onto the ground.
Now, then……I fired out a lightning bolt at a nearby tree, before gritting my teeth and zapping my left shoulder, wincing in pain as I injured myself. Ow, that really hurts……but it's a necessary pain.
I then reached down and picked him up, putting him over my shoulder, before using one of my Support Magic abilities……invisibility, on both him and me.
I then headed out of the forest while carrying him, silently making my way towards the houses, keeping a close eye out to make sure that no one was around.
Sweet, the coast looks nice and clear. I made my way towards Isla's house, at which I'd made sure to leave the kitchen window unlocked after I stopped by yesterday for a bit after working the fields and had a glass of water, so that I could sneak in. Hope they didn't notice it and lock it up again.
Should be fine, there's virtually no crime in this village, so there's no such sense of urgency. People leave their doors unlocked all the time here.
Since all the houses here are built close together, the walls have been fitted with soundproof padding, to ensure privacy. And Isla's father happens to be the chief of this village, so their house is a bit farther away from the other houses. Still within sighting distance, but far enough for any commotion to go unnoticed, especially at night.
Great, the window is unlocked, just as I'd left it……I glanced around to make sure no one was in sight, before slowly swinging the window open and climbing into the kitchen.
Looks like no one's home, excellent. Hm, the invisibility I've placed on this kid will wear off in about an hour, so I should hide him somewhere they won't look.
I've tested the sleeping pills on myself, and with the quantity I stuffed down his throat, he should be well and truly out cold for at least thirty hours. And he doesn't have any Support Magic ability that could nullify the effects.
He's got a goat Anima, which shouldn't interfere either.
I hid him in the living room, where the floorboards were loose, I lifted the rug in the middle of the room, removed a couple of the loose floorboards, stuffed him down inside there, and then closed it back up.
Alright, guess I should head back now. I'll tell them that I tried to talk him down, but he lashed out and fired his lightning at me, before running away. Ooh, maybe I'll tell them that he threatened me too, for ratting him out. Yeah, that'll make framing him all the more easier……
_____________________________________________
Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!
Also, check out my Instagram account @aimdaqs for posts relating to this book.
Join the Discord server, I plan to tease upcoming chapters and future story arcs here, and you can also discuss or ask me any questions about the story and characters. Use the invite link to join:
https://discord.gg/sRbx9VbTVP