Villain Hiring: Help! Author Wants Me Dead-Chapter 101: Screwed

"I told you taking her back was a bad idea."

"Shut it, Damien." Although I worded that out, even I was speechless.

Wiping my face off with Pixie's sleeve, I barely comprehended what she just asked me.

For a boy like me who had lived most of his life like an exile, I did not even know extensively about it.

Hell, I did not have a Hollow myself —

Pixie's words… stopped both me and Damien in place.

For a second, the room turned awkwardly silent.

Even Damien, who always had something to say, just… shut up.

And then—

I laughed.

It wasn't loud or forced.

It just slipped out, shaky and broken between my leftover sniffles, but real.

A short chuckle, followed by another, until I was half-laughing, half-crying into my hands.

"You… you what?" I barely managed to choke out, looking at her through blurry eyes.

Pixie tilted her head, her expression serious. "I want a hollow," she repeated, as if she had just asked for a candy or something.

Damien finally snapped out of his stunned silence.

"I TOLD YOU SHE WAS A BAD IDEA!" he shrieked inside my head. "She's a whole menace, Noah! A fourteen-year-old menace! You see this?! This is what happens when you pick up strays!"

I ignored him, still wiping at my eyes as I let out another breathless laugh. "Pixie, do you even know what a hollow is?"

She nodded eagerly. "Of course! It's basically a dead Kalki's remains, right? If I integrate with one, I'll become stronger!"

I just… stared at her.

"Okay," I said, my voice still hoarse from crying, "but why do you want one? You're already strong enough to break into my room at night and steal my mana potions."

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She had the nerve to grin. "Oh, you knew about that?"

"Of course I knew, you little kitty cat! My potions don't just disappear into thin air!"

Pixie waved a hand dismissively. "Anyway, I need a hollow because I want to get stronger faster. Your potions ain't helping this lady, hmph!"

Damien made a strangled noise in my head. "Oh, sure! Just faster! Because a fourteen-year-old with a murderous weapon like a hollow is such a fantastic idea!"

I sighed, rubbing my temples. "Pixie, hollows aren't toys. They're dangerous."

"I know that." She puffed up her cheeks. "But I also know that if I had one, I could be more useful! I could help you more."

I blinked, my amusement slowly fading.

She wanted to get stronger… for me?

The weight in my chest twisted into something uncomfortably warm.

"Pixie…" I hesitated, unsure how to respond.

But she wasn't done yet. "You're always fighting so hard for everyone, Noah," she said quietly. "But who's fighting for you?"

I flinched.

Damien, for once, didn't say anything.

The room felt too quiet.

The broken pieces of my earlier breakdown still lingered in the air, yet here she was, standing in front of me, looking so damn sure of herself.

She wasn't scared of me.

She wasn't disgusted.

She just… wanted to help.

I let out a slow breath, shaking my head with a small smile. "You're insane, you know that?"

Pixie grinned. "I live with you. Of course I am."

Another laugh slipped out of me. Damn it.

I exhaled, wiping my face one last time before leaning back in my chair. "Fine," I muttered. "I'll think about it."

"Yay!" Pixie clapped her hands, bouncing slightly.

Damien groaned. "Congratulations, you've officially adopted an unhinged child."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, shut up, Damien."

But even as I said it, I felt… lighter.

The weight on my shoulders was still there. The nightmares, the fear, the Book of Sin—none of it had disappeared.

But at least, for this moment…

I wasn't carrying it alone.

Then, just as I thought the conversation was over, Pixie plopped onto my bed, folding her legs underneath her.

"You know, the first humans to integrate with hollows were during The Great War."

I frowned. "The what?"

Pixie looked at me weirdly as she asked again, "You really don't know?"

Damien clicked his nonexistent tongue. "Oh, great. History lessons from a child thief. This day just keeps getting better."

I ignored him. "A long time ago, an alien race called the Kalki invaded Earth. They were insanely strong and looked just like us, except for the 2 horns atop their head.

At first, humans thought they were unstoppable.

But then, someone killed one and found out something weird—when the Kalki died, their abilities didn't just disappear.

They got stored in parts of their body. Like a crystallized power source."

I sat up a little straighter. "And that's… what the hollows are?"

"Yup!" She nodded enthusiastically. "People started harvesting them, using them, and eventually, some figured out how to integrate with them.

It was dangerous, obviously, but those who succeeded became monsters in battle. The first hollow users wiped out the Kalki almost completely."

"Almost?" I echoed.

Pixie's smile dimmed. "Well… some say a few Kalki survived. They might still be out there, hiding. Maybe even waiting."

I let that sink in, my fingers tapping restlessly against my knee. "And you want to integrate with one of these things?"

The 14-year-old girl grinned again. "Yup!"

Damien let out a high-pitched whine. "She's insane. Actually insane. I knew it. I KNEW IT!"

I sighed, leaning back against the chair. "You really don't make my life easy, Pixie."

She laughed. "You love me for it."

I groaned. "Yeah, yeah. Just… let me think."

Hopping off my figure, she skipped towards the door. "Alright! But don't take too long, Noah. You know I'll do it with or without your help."

I groaned louder. "Damien, remind me why I let this child stay?"

"Because she's somehow more unhinged than you and you secretly like it?"

Pixie shot me a wink before darting out of the room, leaving me to collapse back into my chair, hands over my face.

Damien sighed, equally as worried as I was. "Noah…"

"Yeah?"

"You're screwed."

I laughed bitterly.

"Yeah, I know."

***