Taming The Villainesses-Chapter 366: The Tournament of Princes (2)

There were many in this world who fought against magicians.

Some among them even developed effective skills and techniques, going on to establish schools and lineages.

For example, the black magic of the Draco family was exactly that. Unlike magic that manipulated internal or ambient mana, Draco-style black magic dealt with soul and spirit.

There were few in the world who could match them in sealing or suppression.

“Shadow Binding Spell.”

I dropped the dagger and stabbed it into Ayra’s shadow. According to Narmee, a shadow was the aspect of the soul revealed by the sunlight cast down upon it.

Honestly, I didn’t fully understand it, but it was enough to know that by stabbing this dagger—imbued with a special incantation—into her shadow, I could seal Ayra’s movements and magic.

Did it work?

Sssssss.

The black arms coiled around my neck, arms, and legs dissolved. Thanks to that, I was now free to move and stretched my hand toward Ayra.

I didn’t need to defeat Ayra—just touching the crown would mean I’d won. That was the rule. So I reached toward the tiara atop her head, about to grab it—

Shnk.

The fingers of my right hand were sliced by something sharp, spraying blood. I was startled, but I quickly realized—it wasn’t real.

“......”

My hand was intact.

But I had a distinct premonition that if I had grabbed Ayra’s crown, my fingers truly would’ve been severed. Yes—what I had just seen could rightly be called a form of “foresight.”

Then Ayra spoke.

“So you saw it too.”

“‘Saw it’?”

“The same vision I did. Look deeper into my eyes.”

At her words, I stared more intently into her pitch-black pupils. And then I saw not just my fingers getting cut off.

I saw myself casting magic toward Ayra—and Ayra counterattacking in response.

The peculiar part was that the vision seemed to be from a bird’s-eye view, as if from another’s perspective. As though someone from above was looking down at me.

“This is...”

“A scene only those with Eyes of Clairvoyance can see.”

“...Clairvoyance?”

“Sight that pierces walls and boxes. And further still—those with eyes that can pierce the barriers of past and future... they can perceive this too. Teo, in your current state, you can surely be invited.”

Woooooooong—

The space around Ayra began to darken. Like ink waves spilling across white paper, it rapidly engulfed everything.

Before I knew it, Ayra and I were standing in midair—not in the tournament arena, but in a void.

The black space looked familiar.

“This place...”

Then my sensitive instincts made me realize I had recently been here before. The bruise on my ankle—if you could call it that—began to throb.

It was the same place.

Where someone had grabbed my ankle.

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When my mind had briefly slipped during the explosion of the Teo-Nova spell—the one cast with a hundred years of lifespan—this was the space I encountered.

To be back here now—I didn’t know how to explain it. The queen before me probably had the answer. I asked,

“This place is...?”

“Beyond time. Only those who can see the past and future can reach it. Here, past, present, and future are the same. Time doesn’t flow, so change doesn’t exist.”

To understand, I activated 《Calm Thinking》.

From what I could gather, this was a space governed by rules outside the flow of time.

Ayra’s Clairvoyance—《Chunlian》—was such an eye.

Not just peering through coins in the palm or objects in a cup—it pierced the wall of time and perceived this space beyond it.

That’s how she could reach this bizarre domain.

“I like to call it the Observatory.”

With a wave of her hand, the darkness around us began to clear. Then, scenes played out—like the day Ayra and I first met, or the day Elga scratched my eye.

“My eyes see detailed pasts. From this Observatory, I can witness the pasts of all things.”

She continued.

“But seeing is all I can do. In this place, only souls exist. We cannot interfere in the past. No matter how I tried, I couldn’t.”

“Still... if this is possible—”

“You’re about to say, ‘Then anything’s possible,’ aren’t you? But I don’t like coming here. Because he is here.”

“He...?”

“You’ve met him too, Teo Gospel of Angmar. The man who grabs your ankle—he dwells in this eternity, where time and space hold no meaning.”

***

From a certain point, the girl began to see strange things.

Flowers and trees she’d never seen before.

Giant beasts and fairies.

Being a wise and clever girl, she quickly realized these were visions of the distant past. She had eyes that could glimpse the past.

She scoured old memories and realized the name of this gift: the divine blessing of the Eyes of Clairvoyance—《Chunlian》.

━How fascinating.

Through those ancient-seeking eyes, she learned and honed herself. And she discovered that her eyes could see—not just the past—but a sliver of the future, too.

Of course, she couldn’t see her own future.

Just small things—like knowing it would rain after lunch today.

But just as someone holding a mirror naturally wants to see their own reflection—

She wanted to see her own future. And so, she scoured the past for a method. Until one day, she met eyes with someone.

The girl—Ayra—knew at once he was of her kind.

The only difference: while Ayra’s eyes looked into the past, his looked only into the future.

━Coordinate acquired.

He was an utterly chilling presence.

“From that day, I came under that man’s attacks. He sent many assassins from the past to destroy me—pouring all effort into it.”

That man—Solomon—was said to possess eyes that could see the future.

“It was effective. He pushed me to the brink of ruin. I was sinking.”

The Demon King met Ayra’s gaze as she stared into the past—and in that vast sea of time, he locked onto the precise coordinates of Ayra’s world.

“I assumed you were just another wraith of the past sent by him. Teo Gospel—I knew that an assassin by that name would eventually come for me.”

Ayra’s words reminded me of the demon monk Vasago.

Perhaps the original “Teo Gospel” was meant to act under that name—as an assassin sent from the past by the Demon King Solomon, just as she said.

“But Teo, I couldn’t see anything from you. No voice from your heart. No painful past. So for a moment, I... I let myself dream. That maybe, if I stayed with you, I could live like a normal person.”

Ayra’s pitch-black eyes looked just a little... lonely.

“Someone must have hidden you—from people like me. From people like him. But now, he knows you too.”

Shfft.

Ayra pointed at my ankle.

“He left a mark on your soul. Now the pursuers from the past will come for you, too. Maybe you’ve already met one.”

“Andromalli...”

It felt like a tangled thread in my head was starting to unravel. They were assassins—literally sent from the past to the future.

“He wants destruction. He gave up everything and staked even eternity itself as payment. When all things—past, present, and future—are destroyed, only then does he believe he’ll get what he desires.”

After this long explanation, one question popped from my mouth.

“Ayra—why didn’t you tell me all this before?”

“Because no one would believe it. And for... various reasons. It’s hard to explain.”

Fair enough.

Even I, seeing this with my own eyes, could barely process it as real. If Ayra had said this to the public, they’d have dismissed it as a mad queen’s nonsense.

I probably would have too.

“So Teo, I don’t want you involved in this anymore. The Demon King’s target is me. If I die, the Barrier will collapse.”

“And if the Barrier collapses, the future is lost too?”

“Yes. As expected of the second-smartest man in the kingdom. So don’t get too close to me. It’ll only put you in danger.”

Ayra looked quietly sorrowful.

I answered.

“You know I can’t do that.”

It was a message to myself too. Long ago, I’d considered whether I should leave Ayra behind.

But I couldn’t. Because I kept imagining her—sitting alone, isolated among countless people.

“If I could leave, my life would’ve been a lot easier. But even if I can’t see the future—I know this much: I can’t leave you, no matter what.”

“Teo, you really are the kingdom’s dumbest man.”

“I know. But still, there must be a reason you invited me here and told me all this. Ayra—you want to live, don’t you?”

At my words, Ayra whipped her head away.

“It’s because you keep pestering me. Because of you... I started wanting to lean on someone too. Teo Gospel, you’ve made me weak. You’ve made me soft.”

“Then I’m glad. If that made you weak—then that’s how I won this tournament. And by now, your automatic defense spell must’ve worn off.”

Snap.

I snapped my fingers, and the surrounding vision melted away like soap in water. What I saw now was the chaotic arena, the crowd, and the people collapsed across the floor.

“Gh.”

At that moment, my eyes stung—like they were hit with pepper powder.

I could vaguely tell they’d been overstrained. Trying to hold more than they could... must’ve pushed them past their limits.

But I didn’t close them.

With eyes wide open, I looked toward Ayra—frozen, a dagger embedded in her shadow.

“I’ll be taking this.”

Shfft. My hand reached toward the victor’s crown on Ayra’s head. And just as my fingers brushed those delicate gemstones—

Ayra spoke softly.

“There’s no turning back.”

To which I gave the simplest answer:

“There’s no need to.”

Crunch.

At last, Ayra’s crown was in my grasp. It was light and thin, yet heavier than any object I’d ever held.

“There’s not a single thing I need to take back.”

Carrying something that heavy on your head—it’s no wonder people go mad. Ayra, Solomon... maybe even I will.

Shfft.

I slowly raised the heavy crown above my head.

“─I am.”

I felt eyes on me. When I turned, I saw countless gazes locked on me.

All of them waiting for me to speak.

What do I look like in their eyes?

No matter what I become—

From today onward, the way people look at me will never be the same.

“Hear me, all people! I am Teo ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Gospel of Angmar—grandson of Solomon Angmar, son of Isaiah Gospel! I stand here now!”