I Don’t Want to be a Villainess

_spending money is fun._

Actually, it’s not really my money.

Well, I didn’t get to spend money in my previous life either. I liked swapping out computer parts, buying game consoles or cameras I barely used, and traveling abroad occasionally. It might only happen once in a few years, but spending money on my hobbies and enjoyment was truly enjoyable.

“Uh, um….”

After the Disciplinary Committee was over, a girl cautiously approached me outside the classroom.

Still wearing an expression that said, “Is this okay?” she was firmly clutching a thick paper bag in her hand. Inside was a bunch of yellow envelopes.

“What are we supposed to do now?”

Having received money, she was asking how we should act in return.

“Well, I guess…”

I raised my gaze slightly and thought blankly.

I didn’t know how to answer someone asking how not to ignore others. Sure, we may not have ignored each other to that extent in school, but we didn’t exactly greet each other as strangers. Even if Ye Sara lived an ordinary life without being ignored, if someone wasn’t close to her, there was really no reason to say hello.

Especially considering Ye Sara’s wealth, it’s not like she would have much opportunity to become friends with new students.

I simply shrugged and said, “Just greet if you bump into each other.”

“…U-umm?”

“No need for a friendly greeting or a forced smile. Just wave your hand if you see each other walking in the hallway or at the cafeteria… or even outside school, just a little wave.”

To be honest, I didn’t expect anything more than that. There was no need for someone, like a subordinate, to follow behind me for money during an ordinary and happy school life. Just not ignoring Ye Sara would be enough to call it normal.

…and it took all this to achieve just that.

“Well, of course, if I say something to you, at least respond, and… I don’t really expect anything beyond that?”

I tilted my head and asked.

“Are you short on money?”

“Uh? N-no! That’s not it at all! It’s really fine!?”

Well, I never thought I’d be short on money. Believe it or not, I’ve worked with a small company getting less than 2 million won in salary. In my student days, I had jobs that paid minimum wage and even served in the military, where my salary was well below that.

A few hundred or thousand won might seem trivial to the rich, but for someone in need, just holding onto a 10,000 won bill can make life a lot more comfortable. If there’s someone ill at home, it might even be money they urgently need.

One thousand bills weighing less than a gram only amounts to one kilogram when you have a thousand of them.

But that one kilogram of weight is not just… one kilogram.

“Really?”

I shrugged my shoulders again and turned my body.

“Uh, um…!”

As I took a few steps, I heard someone call me urgently from behind.
Turning around, another girl was calling for me. There had been about seven kids who came as shields in the earlier committee. Still, they must have tried to avoid piling everything on one person due to the special nature of “group bullying.”

Among them, one girl trembled slightly and hadn’t said a word during the committee.

She was extremely plain-looking, honestly, her hair color was not unique for a dating sim character, and she had a plain black bob that looked roughly cut along with round glasses.

This girl was probably never going to be a main character. To be honest, her impression was even more bland than the non-existent Jin Sori.

However, that also made her oddly reliable in a way.

She ran up to me and immediately handed me a paper bag.

“…Huh.”

I let out that sound without realizing it.

It seemed like her personality was just as plain as her appearance.

What that action meant was easy enough to guess, but I deliberately crossed my arms and tilted my head slightly.

“What does this mean?”

Ye Sara is pretty, but frankly, her looks are quite sharp. And while poking her might make a weird sound, that’s something you wouldn’t know until you actually poked her. If she wasn’t in my class, I probably wouldn’t have seen her like that.

Narrowing my eyes to look at her, she made a small “Eep!” sound.

But she didn’t take back the paper bag she held out in front of me.

“I…I can’t accept this money…!”

“What do you mean ‘this money’?”

“U-um…”

I purposely sighed loudly and spoke.

“Do you think this is bribe money?”

“….”

It seemed she couldn’t bring herself to say those words directly to someone who gave her money, as she quietly lowered her gaze.

“Then let me ask you something. What does it take for something to be termed ‘bribery’?”

“Well, that would be….”

Exactly. How does ‘bribery’ get established?

When looked at very broadly, any money given to make someone like you could be considered bribery. If wealthy parents offer food to school kids to get them to befriend their child, that could be seen as bribery too in a broad sense.

“Well, if you gave me money, it becomes bribery. Technically, I’m the victim, and you’re one of the perpetrators. You could give me money to ask to be taken out of the incident or something like that. However, you aren’t the one giving me money here. Is there any way I can say I ‘bribed’ you in this situation?”

A victim of school bullying hands thousands of won to a perpetrator. Anyone can see how weird that sounds. Frankly, if you don’t understand the context, it’s a story that would make headlines on the news.

It’s not just the issue of handing over thousands of won. The problem here is that ‘the richest teenager in the world’ is the one handing it over.

“She, the heir of Yujin Group, could not endure the school bullying and ended up paying the perpetrators thousands of won!”

This isn’t something that can be termed ‘bribery.’

But maybe since she understood my reasoning as a new student, her face turned pale.

“Well, you don’t have to worry about that. I’m not going to report anything like that.”

“B-but still….”

“If you think this money is dirty money, then there’s no need to worry. It’s just ‘my money.’ I went through some trouble to sneak it out so that I wouldn’t get taxed, but it’s completely my money. Right?”

I looked up at Team Leader Han Garam, who had come close, and asked. She smiled warmly and replied.

“That’s right! This is money from your account and vault. And we’ve deducted the gift tax cleanly in advance, so you don’t have to worry about it. The issue is not paying taxes while giving money, but whatever the reason for giving money, it doesn’t matter at all. As long as taxes are paid correctly and not illegal money, they won’t care at all.”

In fact, there are cases where they don’t care about money that’s illegal without tax… but I decided to put that aside for now.

I pressed down on the money she held out with my hand and pushed it back toward her once more.

“And what happens to those kids over there if you return the money to me? Doesn’t that create a weird picture?”

The other six kids behind her were looking our way with anxious expressions.

Whatever the reason, it seemed they all wanted to keep this money intact for their own reasons. Perhaps not because of family but because they wanted to use it themselves… well, it doesn’t matter anyway. It’s already given money, so.

“So, just take it as it is.”

“…….”

Given how much I said that, there was no longer any reason not to accept the money, and in the end, she silently nodded.

I turned around and started walking again. Sohee, Ha Neul, Sua, Son Ah-reum, and Team Leader Han Garam followed behind me.

“Did you see the teachers’ expressions?”

Sohee asked, completely excited.

The teachers had kept their mouths shut since Sohee kicked the desk, not saying a word. To be honest, just my outburst was enough to disrupt the class, and if Sohee, who had already been fed tens of billions to get into the school, started causing a ruckus, someone would surely see blood.

“Now, no one in this school will ignore you.”

Ha Neul said, sounding relieved.

Indeed, other students were looking at us as we walked down the hallway. They all stared with slight fear in their eyes. They didn’t know what was said at the committee, but seeing us come out with bright expressions, they must have realized something significant had happened.

At the very least, it would be hard for them to ignore me from now on.

“That’s good, right?”

When Sua smiled softly, I returned her smile.

Well, for now, they wouldn’t be able to ignore me out of fear… but there’s still time.

By the time Ye Sara returns, I should probably clear up that fear to some extent. We need to be able to live ‘ordinarily.’

“But… is it really okay to resolve this with money…?”

It’s only natural to feel worried, even though Son Ah-reum was the one who set this whole thing up.

It was a valid concern. Relationships built on money tend to break off as soon as the money runs out.

So this time, with that much money, I aimed to make this a mere “Don’t ignore me” situation. A minimum condition to build a relationship. With just that, it should be possible to connect and build relationships in other ways without money afterward.

“……”

Dragging along her half-empty travel bag, Team Leader Han Garam followed me for a while, wearing a serious expression, before finally speaking up, “Excuse me, if it’s not too intrusive…”

As if she was about to say something utterly ridiculous again.

“Well, I’ll give you a success fee.”

Of course, not 50 billion won.

“Think about ways to minimize the tax beforehand.”

“Thank you very much, dear customer! Please continue using our services! I beg you!”

Team Leader Han Garam was overjoyed as if she could jump.

…Is money really that good?

I mean, I also like it.

…So, I can only hope Ye Sara doesn’t wake up and just ask me to pay her back again.

---