Taming The Villainesses

(EP-360.2) #5

360 – Protagonist #5

“Yggdrasil. That’s our name. A thousand years since the Gwangyeom God descended upon the world. Now, we shall extend our roots toward a new era with the power of magic. Toward the next millennium.”

“……”

“You must have wondered too, haven’t you? Where our immense magic truly comes from. We are not like the others. We were born to rule. Born to reign!”

“Rule?”

“All the stars, the sun, the moon, and even time itself are heralding a new age. Deny it all you want, but the world is about to change. To evolve! And I, the one who realized it first, am destined to become king. For everyone’s sake—it must be so!”

“……”

Conversations with archmages had always left me with some kind of insight, so part of me had been curious to hear what this one had to say.

I wondered if the way I acted, having been born with a bit of Angmar’s bloodline and recently becoming quite skilled at using magic, was reflected in others’ eyes as he was reflected in mine.

The saying—a stone from another mountain can still sharpen your blade—felt especially fitting right now.

Clap-.

I clapped my hands.

“Swamp of Despair, False Hell.”

With that, the ground of the arena quaked violently, and the boiling earth began to slowly sink downward. False Hell was a binding spell I had used before to subdue an ogre and also to seal Reinhardt.

“What!?”

Roland, who had been rambling on and on, couldn't react from the collapsing ground beneath him. He plunged deep, leaving only his shocked face visible above the surface.

“Collapsing the earth itself…! That’s the great magic of persistence mages…! You bastard, weren’t you a mage from the Blue Magic Tower!? Wielding two types of great magic… I’ve never heard of such a thing!”

“I guess that's just the level of your ‘Order.’ And I have never once introduced myself as a mage from the Blue Magic Tower.”

His limbs were sealed.

All that remained were his lips and tongue. But as a mage, even with his limbs sealed, as long as he could move his mouth, he could use his skills to escape this crisis.

He was insane, sure—but he had skill. That was why I intended to end it properly.

“You… you saw what was beyond that door more clearly. What does it look like? What's in there? Answer me! I want to know!”

The guy seemed to feel more exhilaration at meeting a mage on a higher level than himself than despair at losing. He was even more of a pervert than I’d thought.

If lunatics like him were gathering together to form a secret organization, plotting to overthrow the world, then calling them a threat to the world would be putting it lightly.

Wondering if these guys were the reason for Bael’s and Gargar’s unease, I quietly asked him before sealing his mouth.

“Are you planning something beneath this martial festival?”

“Heh heh, well. I can’t exactly say yes… but I can’t say no either.”

It was an ambiguous answer. Well, I didn’t really expect him to give a straight one anyway. So, I extended my finger to his forehead and sent a light current through it.

Bzzzt.

With that, I read his memories. It was a magic similar to the brain-scanning spell Mirna used from time to time. I wondered if she’d get mad if she found out I’d copied it without permission.

As that thought crossed my mind, a flood of memories stored in his body and mind poured into mine.

Zzzzt.

He had been born into a fairly prestigious noble house in the West and, thanks to his outstanding magical talent, had been the subject of great expectations from a young age.

Later, when he grew older, he served on the Western front, witnessed countless deaths, and began clinging desperately to magic.

It was from there that a strange sense of elitism had formed. His whole life flashed before my eyes.

Of course, what I wanted was only his recent memories.

But even after rummaging through them, I couldn’t find anything about a scheme being carried out beneath the martial festival. Was it just my assumption?

━The winner of Group G is…!!!

Ignoring the noisy commentary behind me, I headed toward the winners’ waiting room.

I wondered if the winners of the previous six matches were already there. It might be a bit awkward.

Creak.

It was when I opened the door to the winners’ waiting room, thinking that.

Fsshhh—.

The spacious, comfortable room was surprisingly empty. Where had everyone gone? The place was eerily deserted… no, wait. Now that I looked closely, there was one person.

“Come out. You can’t fool my eyes.”

Rustle.

I reached out and grabbed the empty air. As if pulling down a stage curtain, the surrounding space slowly warped, revealing a thick, overwhelming stench of blood.

“You noticed that? Amazing. Well, I guess it was the same for the others too. Looks like those who made it to the finals and won their matches are different.”

I saw five people sprawled across the floor. I couldn't tell if they were alive or dead, but the blood pouring from their bodies had long surpassed a lethal amount.

Were they the ones who had arrived at the winners’ waiting room before me?

Seated atop a chair, with their corpses at his feet, was a man with long, dark ash-gray hair.

His body was covered in blood. There was no need to even ask who had done this.

What I was curious about was the reason.

“… Why?”

“The matches were too boring. The top 16, top 8, top 4… It’s all so dull. So, I held the main tournament matches here in advance. These guys lost, and I, Andromalie, won. Simple, right?”

Andromalie, the magic swordsman who had won Group A.

Did he ambush and kill the other winners as they came in? As I frowned at the blood soaking the floor, he reached out his hand.

Suk-.

Staring leisurely at his fingernails, the man's expression was endlessly calm. A slight chill ran down my spine at his attitude, as if he had merely “cut in line because he didn’t feel like waiting.”

I maintained my composure and gathered my mana. At the same time, to draw his attention, I asked.

“There should’ve been organizers overseeing the matches. How did you manage to pull this without getting caught?”

“The organizers? Well, they’re not really in a position to explain anything right now. More importantly, have you heard of the sword demon Andromalie? I'm pretty famous, you know.”

“……”

Now I could say for sure.

The red mage Roland was just a babbling madman.

The one I needed to be wary of wasn’t him or that secret organization.

The one who had been raising Bael’s wariness… was this guy.

Edit by: faker