Taming The Villainesses-Chapter 355: D (3)

「My moon. My star. My eternal flame. —Beatrice」

Beatrice.

That was the name attached to the portrait.

A woman with chestnut-colored hair.

She appeared to be in her early to mid-teens.

Her wide, exposed forehead resembled a full moon, and her radiant blue eyes sparkled like stars embedded in the universe.

Her lips and cheeks were so vividly red, like living flame, brimming with such youth and freshness that she seemed not only young—but unripe.

Even someone like me, who lacked any real knowledge of art, could tell this was a portrait drawn with exceptional care and talent.

It was a name I had never heard before, but I could still tell who this Beatrice woman must have been.

She was Solomon’s nymph.

Solomon’s nymph, Beatrice.

"Sir Teo, this painting..."

Mirna stood beside me, gazing at the portrait along with me. I wondered—what did this painting look like in her eyes?

"Beatrice... She must have been Solomon’s nymph. This is also my first time hearing her name. I can’t believe such a painting was hidden in the Hall of All Gods."

I understood why Mirna reacted this way. Anything related to Solomon—be it stories, documents, or artwork—had all been systematically destroyed. A full record-extermination sentence.

So it was astonishing that this painting still existed. Could it be connected to the fact that a dimensional gate of Solomon’s was active here?

Then Mirna gently touched the painting and added,

"This woman... looks very much like you, Sir Teo."

"Do you think so?"

"Yes. Quite a lot. Is it just coincidence? Or..."

I thought the same.

A face with a mischievous, youthful charm. A slender nose and jawline. Thick chestnut hair and blue eyes. Except for the length and volume of the hair, she looked very much like Teo Gospel.

A coincidence?

Or the hand of fate?

━There’s an intruder in the Hall of All Gods!

━Seize them, now!

Startled by the distant shouts, we snapped out of our daze. We had known we didn’t have time for reflection, and yet we’d wasted several seconds. The pursuers had caught up.

"......"

As I hastily moved to leave, I felt a piercing gaze on my back. I turned my head—and once more locked eyes with the portrait.

Beatrice.

That intense gaze looked as though it were trying to speak to me. Take me with you. That was the clear message conveyed by the will sealed inside the painting.

The approaching footsteps and the portrait—I had to make a decision standing between them.

Tch. Whatever.

"Hup!"

"Sir Teo, what are you doing?! We don’t have time!"

Scrape.

I was struggling to pull the painting off the wall when Mirna shouted. The rising footsteps must’ve rattled even the usually composed Mirna.

Creak, creak—

I was getting anxious too. The frame seemed nailed into the wall and wouldn’t budge no matter how hard I pulled.

"Just a moment, please! I’m almost done!"

Creeeak!

"...Grghhh!"

"Sir Teo, I’ll help! Step aside for a second!"

Seeing me struggle, Mirna reached out and pulled the frame with me.

At that moment, the whole thing suddenly popped free—and I was flung backwards.

I landed flat on my back, but in my hands was the portrait.

Like I had done with the hand mirror, the Karma Changer, I safely stored the painting inside my inventory 《Squirrel Storage》.

━They’re stealing the treasure!

━Over there!

I could see armed monks swarming in from the distance. They wielded chains, swords, talismans—an intimidating sight.

"They’re elite ascetics. This won’t be easy, Sir Teo—prepare yourself!"

At Mirna’s shout, I snapped to full alert.

"I’m always prepared."

Swish.

I took her extended hand and stood up. Our goal was to break through and get to the dimensional gate—then activate a teleportation spell and escape.

━They’ve taken the portrait!

━No! We can’t let them escape with that!

Fwhoosh! Thwick!

Sharp spears and arrows flew toward me.

They weren’t aiming to subdue—they meant to kill. Even with Mirna at my side, they didn’t hesitate. Their ruthless discipline gave me chills.

I’d heard the eastern people were strict about rules and doctrine—but I never imagined they’d point blades and arrows at their own lady to enforce them.

"Sir Teo! The entrance is blocked!"

Panting, Mirna pointed to the mouth of the cave. She pulled out something like a bamboo tube from her robe and popped the lid.

"It’s your turn!"

━Grrrrrr...!

"I know we woke you ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) up—but this is urgent!"

━Nnnnyaaaang.

Out of Mirna’s tube popped a bizarre creature that looked like a floating cloud. It was a rare monster called a Cloudling, and it was the Draco sisters’ companion—

━Grrr...!

No—not a pet. A partner. I hadn’t seen it lately, but it seemed it had been resting comfortably inside that narrow container.

Anyway, the creature charged at the guards.

━Kreeee!

━Aaack, a flying cotton candy monster! Eeeaaaaahh!

━Watch out! Don’t get struck by lightning!

Yingying is strong.

Thanks to the chaos Yingying created, we managed to escape the cave of the Hall of All Gods. But even outside, armed guards were everywhere—we couldn’t afford to let our guard down.

So we ran.

***

"I know I’m not one to talk, but this really is endless."

When we ducked around a corner to avoid a wave of attackers, Mirna spoke, trying to catch her breath. She looked like she was gasping, but she might’ve smiled briefly.

Shing.

She drew her sword.

"Just around that bend is the dimensional gate. They’ve probably figured that out and stationed troops there. We’ll have to break through."

Her voice was calm, but I noticed the tip of her blade trembling ever so slightly.

Even if this place felt unfamiliar, it was still her homeland. It must have hurt to fight and knock down her own retainers. She likely felt some guilt.

As if reading my thoughts, Mirna admitted it openly.

"Stealing, lying, knocking down innocent people... This is the first time I’ve done so many bad things. I’m trembling all over."

"I’m sorry."

"I was prepared. I chose this path myself—no need to apologize. More importantly, let’s get moving again."

Fwoosh!

Mirna dashed out from the corner. I activated Fairy Footwork and followed quickly toward the dimensional gate.

As expected, a crowd of people was waiting. It made sense—they’d want to block the entrance and catch the thieves.

Shing.

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Elder monk Eliesel stood at the center with a long crescent blade, slowly shaking his head.

"Miss Mirna. Even if you’re a lady of this house, you must answer for breaking the rules. Come atone for your sins with Lady Narmee in the spring water of Mount Yeong."

I then noticed Narmee bound tightly in ropes, seated among the monks.

"Sis, Teo! They caught me!"

Now they had a hostage too. This was not an advantageous position. If I’d been my old self, I’d have been troubled. But now—I had the power of magic.

The 7th-rank Soma King.

Should I show them what that means?

Just as I began gathering mana to push back the people closing in, I felt the paper spider inside me stir.

━Hiiiooong...

Something’s wrong?

My mana won’t gather?

━Hiiiooong...

Bael was acting strangely. She drooped like a soaked paper crane and couldn’t assist with the chant. I had to perform the complicated spell calculations myself.

—Deploy chant.

Crackle.

But soon, I realized something was wrong with the mana flowing through my body. As I stared at the sparks crackling in my hands, the old monk spoke.

"Teo Gospel, the wicked monk. We’ve already looked into you. They say you’re a brilliant mage. But within our Anti-Magic Formation, you’ll find spellcasting difficult."

Anti-magic formation, huh.

Looking down, I saw strange runes etched on the floor.

The monks forming a perimeter and the chanters beyond them were very suspicious.

Fwoosh—

As a gust of wind blew away the veils covering their faces, I realized—they weren’t alive. They were something like mummies.

"You’ve figured it out? These are priests who attained nirvana at the end of the ascetic path. Living buddhas. You could call them... liches."

Liches.

I knew well the power of those mighty undead—thanks to the bruising I got from the Draco sisters’ father, Alastair.

Ten—no, twelve undead spellcasters. Each one weaker than Alastair perhaps, but together, their synergy seemed twice as deadly.

"...I didn’t think this was possible."

I had underestimated House Draco. That they had stockpiled this much hidden power here on their mountain base was beyond anything I’d imagined.

Maybe I should report this situation to Queen Ayra and Chancellor Reinhardt.

While I was seriously considering that, the monk kindly explained.

"We learned much from our war with Solomon, the fallen ascetic. We devoted considerable time to studying grand magic. Within our formation, even Solomon would be reduced to a mere mortal."

An anti-magic array that reduces even Demon King Solomon to an ordinary man.

Is that really possible?

I didn’t have time to determine whether it was bluff or truth. But one thing was clear—it was interfering with my magic.

It felt like trying to build a sandcastle while waves kept crashing over it.

Gathering mana right now was like trying to fill a bottomless jar.

「Calm assessment of the situation!

Talent 《Calm Thinking》 grants you experience.

+5 to all job EXP.」

I see.

Understand the mechanism, and it’s easy to break it.

"You think you can stop me with just a formation like this? You’ve underestimated me. Magic isn’t about rules. It’s the art of making the impossible—possible."

Clap.

I clapped my hands and maximized the flow of mana through my veins. My heartbeat pounded like an engine, drawing life from my whole body.

The way to fill a leaky jar?

Pour in more water than leaks out. A river, a dam, a sea—if you flood it with overwhelming volume, that’s enough.

Crackle! Crackle-crack!

Electricity surged through my body. I felt like a living reactor, or a human lightning rod. My cells screamed.

Yet I’d never felt more alive.

Finally, I reached my hand toward the sky.

"Come—Meteor—"

Fwip.

Just then, someone grabbed my raised arm.

"Sir Teo. You can’t."

It was Mirna.

"That spell... you can’t use it."

Her expression was serious—almost sorrowful. Why was she stopping me?

Maybe she had read my mind.

"Sir Teo. Spells that powerful shave away your lifespan."

"......"

I knew.

But in this situation, I thought we had no other choice.

Mirna shook her head. Then, she smiled.

"Try leaning on us a little more. We’re family. And with that—Narmee, how long are you going to sit there? Activate contingency plan D."

At her words, the bound Narmee smirked.

"D. Excellent. Sis—you’ve finally decided to show the world what we can do."

Narmee sprang to her feet.

"━━─."

As she began chanting something under her breath—

Kuuuuuum—

A deep tremor rocked the temple buildings atop this mountain.

━What the—what’s going on!?

━I don’t know! But this eerie feeling—!

The people who had been closing in on me halted, looking around in panic. Only Elder Eliesel shouted in dismay.

"No—it couldn’t be! Plan D...!?"

Narmee shouted back proudly.

"D stands for Strong! Invincible! Supreme! The loyal servant who inherited our pride and spirit—Arise, blue-eyed...!"

──!!!