Damien's life had undeniably changed from that day onwards.
No one in his gang knew what happened, nor did they dare to question the eldest young mistress of the Xaviers for an explanation.
All they did was thank their unlucky stars that they weren't born with a handsome face like this lad. After witnessing what happened to him, having a slightly unattractive face and body didn't seem so bad anymore.
Months soon passed by.
Despite not being forced to participate in violent gang wars or being chased by the local law enforcement officers, Damien still felt the time passing at an excruciatingly slow pace.
Getting involved with the rebellious eldest daughter of Xaviers had completely turned his life upside down. The man who had once dreamt of soaring into the vast skies like a dragon was now reduced to a mere shadow of his former self.
Thanks to a stroke of immense misfortune, he had ended up drawing the heated interest of a real madwoman. And even worse, he couldn't do anything to stop it anymore.
"...I can't accept it. I can't keep enduring this. I can't even run away."
The same person who absolutely abhorred consuming any kind of alcohol because of how unhealthy it was, now drowned himself in heavy drinking and rampant drug abuse to cope with his new, cruel situation.
Day by day, Damien felt his grasp on reality fade away. Little by little.
These days, when he looked himself in the mirror, he would sometimes see the wasted, pathetic crying face of the spectacle-wearing highschooler from his old hometown – the same one whose entire life he gleefully decimated two years ago – overlapping with his own haggard face.
"Am I....really starting to look like that loser?"
His heart chilled at the thought that his own reflection was starting to slowly resemble that loser.
Whatever positive reputation he had earned through his contributions towards securing the massive drug deal with the Xaviers slowly withered away with time, leaving behind nothing but the petty infamy of a roadside trash.
Because that was exactly what he was now — Damien the trash.
All thanks to the sadistic eldest daughter of the Xaviers 'pampering' him with her ever-increasing fondness, wanting nothing but to tame this wild animal and thoroughly 'domesticate' it for herself, no matter what methods were used in the process.
It was never in Damien's character to randomly screw around with any woman that caught his fancy.
But after his life was stifled by that Myra Xavier, that was the only remaining way for him to take out his frustrations, reveling in his deepest and darkest desires without holding anything back.
Unable to find a way to escape the mess he found himself in, Damien completely lost himself in wilful indulgence.
...In the end, he had finally adapted.
As for whether it was a good adaptation or a bad one, his future fate of being killed by the original protagonist of this story was evidence enough.
But this time around, I promised myself – that things would be different.
****
"Ugh..."
Feeling the faint light of sunshine falling on my face, I slowly opened my eyes.
There was a painfully familiar-looking ceiling above me, one that used to look completely unfamiliar to the same pair of eyes only a day ago.
Although it seemed illogical, I could vividly recall it being a part of my daily life for the last two years.
"...It's morning already?"
The constant stream of memories infusing into my consciousness had ended abruptly. It was like I was finally waking up from a long dream.
It felt a little anticlimactic...
I thought it would only take a single moment for all the memories to appear in my mind like in all the novels I read, but it actually took an entire night.
But maybe because of that, I felt no confusion about my identity right now.
My original name was Daniel Matthews, a typical white-collar corporate employee and a model citizen who had never committed a crime before — before I was suddenly dropped into this world by an unknown God, finding myself inside the body of an infamous and scummy villain character of the novel I read.
"...Heh. Infamous and scummy, huh."
And now, I was that same scummy character I had once vehemently cursed for being dumb enough to land himself in a terrible situation.
But the surprising thing was, my thoughts on that conclusion didn't actually change after merging with the old Damien's memories.
If I had to point out a difference, it would be that now, I could understand where things had gone wrong for him, and how the current me could properly deal with it.
...Yes, I was that same Damien Collins. But at the same time – much, much better than the original.
"Thankfully, my addiction problem was actually cured because of this transmigration. Otherwise, I would've never been able to escape that bitch's control."
Thinking about the biggest reason for my former self's devastation, the corners of my lips curled up a little.
"Myra, oh Myra.... Just how desperately did my old self wish to tear apart everything in your life, for an actual God to take pity on me and offer me this chance?"
Whatever feelings of discontent I had towards that God for dumping me in a dying character's body had already disappeared entirely, replaced by an intense feeling of excitement.
"Now, I can finally bring down that Xavier family! With my own two hands!"
Who cared about an alien invasion or two?
Who cared whether that original protagonist was an innocent guy who never did anything wrong to me?
If I could awaken my own supernatural bloodline by killing that protagonist guy, who cared if he lives or dies?
'I must have it!'
Things like morality and principle were nothing but empty words enforced by the powerful people in the world to chain down the weaker ones, meant to stop them from ever rising up against them without making everyone else your enemy.
Ironically, it was just like the unwritten rules of the underworld. You just had to know when to abide by them and exactly when to break them.
In both cases, exploiting the rules and restrictions was the ultimate key to success!
Since now I had a chance to actually become someone powerful enough to affect the entire world, what kind of absolute idiot would I be if I let go of this chance just because society deems it 'evil'?
If I can awaken my own bloodline, I would probably not remain as a human anyway. In that case, why should I even give a damn about the 'good' and 'evil' of this human society?
Thinking back, I wanted to laugh out loud.
The writer God who made (or manipulated) this world really gave me the perfect role in his novel!
"That's right, I am Damien Collins. And I.....AM A FUCKING VILLAIN!"
And as a villain, I had the obligation to do as I pleased.
...
"Uhm... just five more minutes, Mom. I promise I'll...get...up... Zzzzzz..."
...
"Oh, she was here too."
...In my excitement, I almost forgot that there was another person in this room other than me.
Sierra was currently curled up at the corner of my bed, covering her eyes from the sunlight shining through the window blinds using the quilt she took away from me.
"...She didn't hear all my ramblings, did she?"
Now that I think about it, when I asked her if she had dinner or not last night, she hadn't clearly answered me – which most likely meant that she had been starving for the entire night.
...And on top of that, I had basically forced her into a steamy night session after she went through a terrible experience in that dark alleyway, straining her tired body even more.
It was no wonder that even after my loud mumblings, she was still fast asleep.
*Sigh...*
Looking down at the half-erect member of mine slowly standing up in attention, I sighed in dejection. With just a single round of action last night, it was no surprise that this guy wasn't even remotely satisfied.
"...I should go and make some breakfast first. I'll tend to you later when she recovers her energy."
Now that I had her here with me, I couldn't allow her to leave my grasp that easily.
She would only be allowed to leave my sight when I completely made her mine. Both in mind and body.
Only when I was completely certain that my existence is firmly engraved on both, would I finally have some peace of mind to leave her alone.
Earning the toxic love of a demon like Damien was a difficult ordeal, after all. And for passing such a difficult ordeal, she had to be thoroughly rewarded.
This twisted personality of mine wouldn't allow otherwise.
"Now, what should I make for a nice, energizing breakfast?"