Taming The Villainesses

A creature as formidable as the ogre Dordor, master of the central forest. It would be best to subdue it with a Rank 6 or higher spell.

━Great magic will eat away at your life.

At that moment, I remembered what Angala had told me last night.

She warned that casting large spells would drain my life. So I hesitated for a moment.

“Theo-kun, watch out!”

With Stella’s shout, something powerful slammed into my face.

━Beast Strike!

Thunk!

A flash exploded in my vision as if lightning struck before my eyes.

I felt my body lift off the ground, and a brutal impact forced all the breath I’d held in to burst out from my chest.

“… Gah!”

Breathing was difficult.

Was my diaphragm crushing my lungs? Even with 《Calm Thinking》 activating, my head felt like an overheated machine with a broken cooler.

━From now on, my strength and speed will continually increase.

In my eyes, I saw a slender body with red fur. A wolf that resembled a human. If you awkwardly combined a human and a beast, it would be exactly like that.

Right, I couldn’t find the right words at first, but that’s it—a werewolf. It looked just like a werewolf.

━Come on, there must be a reason Angala-nim sent you to me. Are you just going to sit there, strange mage? Surely this isn’t the end of your abilities?

It leisurely spread its arms wide. It was taunting me, but I wasn’t foolish enough to rise to the bait.

Instead, his arrogance gave me time to regain my breath and center my energy.

The giant centipede Angala, this creature—these massive beasts all seemed to carry an innate arrogance, looking down on anyone smaller than themselves.

Hu-.

Thanks to that, I managed to steady my breathing enough to control my body and use magic.

“Cough… Open chant.”

I could feel my blood vessels and mana circuit overheating throughout my body.

Every part of me felt hot and sore, though I couldn’t tell if it was from the Beast Strike or the backlash of using great magic—sapping away at my life force.

But it didn’t matter.

I couldn’t make a decision just now as I got clouded with emotions. But dying here would render all my time and efforts so far meaningless.

Better to lose some lifespan than to let that happen.

It was then that I resolved myself.

Bubble, bubble.

I felt the intense boiling of blood and mana just beneath my skin. At the same time, my body trembled as if I had been thrown into cold water.

My resolve to risk my life, to give up years of my life, had triggered a reaction within me.

Autophagy.

I could vividly feel my cells devouring themselves, releasing even greater heat and mana.

The sensation of chunks of my health being carved away, paired with a simultaneous surge of omnipotence.

Amidst these two conflicting sensations, I came to the thought that now, maybe, I could attempt what I once witnessed.

I envisioned a single-pointed spear, or rather, a bullet.

A magic bullet.

Rank 7.

“Tathlum.”

Finally, along with a short chorus, a ray of world-ending superheated light erupted from my finger. It streaked forward like a ray of death, piercing through the werewolf’s torso.

━…!!!

The beast’s jaw dropped wide open, yet it couldn’t even scream.

Whoosh—!

At the same time, the heat from the aftershock warmed my face.

My vision blurred as if I’d been sprinting for hours, and my joints creaked while the wounds from my previous clash with Kubilai began to throb even more.

But without pause, I approached the fallen wolf and pointed my finger at its head.

“I got one more shot in me.”

━… I yield.

* * *

Kubilai was fatally wounded.

Its belly was seared as if it had been welded by the superheated beam. Though I was the one who cast the spell, I could hardly believe its astonishing power.

Was this the 7th Rank?

I hadn’t intended to kill him, just to subdue him so he’d talk. But the spell’s power was far greater than I expected. At this rate, he might die from the injury.

━Gah, what a dreadful wound. It looks like it was pierced by fire.

The werewolf Kubilai sat cross-legged on the ground, forming intricate seals with his thick, lengthy fingers as if channeling some arcane power.

Watching those bizarre hand movements, something stirred deep within my mind.

Where had I seen something like this before?

A sense of déjà vu suddenly started came over me.

But I didn’t have time to dwell on it, as the next moment demanded my full attention.

━Yo’rrr….

As the wolf began muttering something that sounded like a chant, his numerous wounds started to visibly heal.

Both Stella and I blinked at each other in that bizarre situation. Then, Stella spoke up first.

“I saw a lot of surprises across the wall, so I was confident I wouldn’t be surprised by anything. But… I have no idea what this is.”

“I’m not sure either. His wounds are healing. Maybe it’s some kind of self-healing magic…”

Kubilai responded.

━Magic? Don’t compare it to that vile otherworldly thing. This is a more noble and natural immortal art. Unlike magic, it has no side effects.

No side effects?

That sounds like a scam from a drug dealer.

Was it real?

I was beginning to develop an interest in this immortal art that the wolf and centipede had used. But right now, what mattered more was the story behind the cabin.

“So, Kubilai, can you tell me about that cabin?”

━In truth, I don’t know much. But there is someone who might know about the cabin. Follow me.