Otome Game Mob Villain

Chapter 556

“Karmic retribution, huh? If you’re talking about beastman nobles, it’s not just the fox tribe—anyone would do the same.”

“Then, we’ll change that system.”

I attacked with thrusts and slashes from my rapier, while Gabriel focused on defense, skillfully wielding the wide blade of his greatsword.

When our sword techniques clashed, sparks flew between us, and the sharp, metallic clang echoed continuously around us.

“So, this is the extent of your strength, Zero?”

In the midst of our fierce exchange, Gabriel smirked arrogantly.

He hadn’t even beastified yet, so his smile was one of confidence.

“That’s my line. Your attacks are weak—is your greatsword actually a shield?”

“Shut up. Combat is about probing. I’m not foolish enough to reveal my hand from the start.”

“Then, why don’t you show me? Beastify and give me your best shot.”

I backflipped to create distance, then extended my left hand—the one not holding the rapier—toward him.

“Come on, hit me. Or do you not have the guts?”

Provoked, a vein bulged on his forehead, and he unleashed a surge of mana far greater than before.

“You’re getting carried away. You’ll regret that arrogance with your body.”

Gabriel spat out those words and instantly beastified, transforming into a black fox with four tails and dark fur.

He slung his greatsword over his shoulder and began pouring all his mana into it.

“With the combined power of mana, physical strength, and beastification, there’s nothing I can’t destroy.”

His words reminded me of *him*, and the face and laughter of that person flashed in my mind.

Furrowing my brow, I channeled strength and mana into the hand gripping my rapier.

“With this strike, I’ll obliterate you without a trace.”

Gabriel swung his mana-infused greatsword down with all his might.

Given the immense mana he had poured into it, a direct hit would likely cause an explosion along with the slash.

But I deliberately countered with a thrust from my rapier.

The next moment, a deafening metallic clang rang out.

Gabriel’s eyes widened in disbelief at what had just happened.

“W-what? You stopped my full-powered strike with a thrust?”

I had halted his descending greatsword with just the tip of my rapier.

By imbuing my rapier with powerful mana and combining it with Body Enhancement: Second Form, such a feat was possible.

Gabriel’s strike had been powerful, though—the ground around my feet was cracked and gouged.

But more than that, I couldn’t hide my irritation and glared up at him.

“Disgusting. What you just said—it’s utterly disgusting.”

I stepped forward and pushed his greatsword back with the tip of my rapier.

Gabriel’s eyes widened. “W-what?!”

I released my rapier, closed the distance, and drove an uppercut into his stomach with my left hand.

Gabriel groaned and doubled over, but I wasn’t about to let him fall.

I forced him upright with a knee strike to his chin, then followed up with a flurry of punches to his stomach.

“Guh—aaaaah?!”

Gabriel’s face twisted in agony, and he dropped his greatsword.

As the impact of my punches lifted him off the ground, I transformed my right fist into a hand blade.

“This is the end. The strike of judgment.”

I drove my mana-infused hand blade into Gabriel’s solar plexus.

I pulled it out immediately, but the mana I had left behind remained.

“Judgment.”

The moment I shouted, the mana in his solar plexus rapidly expanded and exploded, sending him flying.

“Gaaaaaah?!”

Wrapped in black smoke, he soared through the air before crashing to the ground and rolling violently until he hit a rock on the side of the road, kicking up a cloud of dust.

When the dust settled, Gabriel’s beastification had worn off. He was slumped against the rock, utterly defeated.

He wouldn’t be able to fight anymore.

“Yay! As expected of you, big bro—I mean, Zero Red!”

“Yes. You’re truly reliable.”

Zero Pink—Aria—and Zero Blue—Ramul—spoke those words, then turned to intimidate the mercenaries.

“So, what will you do? Your boss is down.”

“If you surrender quietly, we won’t rough you up.”

The mercenaries trembled, their faces pale as they backed away.

“W-what? The boss is done for…”

“What do we do?”

“W-what do you mean, ‘what do we do’? You…”

They exchanged glances, then looked back at us and gasped.

Step by step, they retreated, dropped their weapons, and shouted, “We’ve got no choice but to run!” before turning tail and fleeing.

For a moment, I was stunned, but then I shook my head in exasperation.

“You think I’d let you escape?”

I snapped my fingers and activated the spell *Vine Binding*.

Vines sprouted from the ground, entangling every single fleeing mercenary.

“W-what the hell is this?! Some kind of monster?!”

“N-no, it’s a tree attribute spell!”

“That’s impossible! I’ve never seen such an advanced tree attribute spell!”

The mercenaries were wide-eyed with shock.

In this world, magic itself wasn’t yet common, and according to Sandra, practitioners of tree attribute magic were especially rare.

Given that, their surprise was understandable.

In any case, dropping their weapons and running was their fatal mistake.

The vines I had just created with tree attribute magic weren’t particularly durable—they could be easily cut with a slash.

But against unarmed opponents, they were more than enough to restrain them.

By the time I had restrained all of them—including the unconscious mercenaries and the defeated Gabriel—a girl’s voice called out from the direction of the carriage group.

“L—I mean, Zero Red, are you alright?”

Turning around, I saw two figures dressed similarly to me, but with differently colored masks covering their eyes.

Zero Green—Dan—and Zero Yellow—Alice.

From the voice, it was Alice who had called me.

As the two ran over, I smiled softly.

“Thanks, we’re fine. Yellow, Green, are you hurt?”

“No. None of the mercenaries were skilled, so it was easy.”

Alice answered firmly, but I blinked in surprise at the sight of the mercenaries she had dragged along, bound with rope.

“Did you… bring all the mercenaries you defeated?”

“Yes, of course.”

She replied with a beaming smile, as if it were the most natural thing, but there were at least twenty of them.

Did she drag all of them here by herself?

As if sensing my thoughts, Dan sighed.

“I told her to just restrain them and leave them there, but she said, ‘What if they break free and escape? I couldn’t face Zero Red if that happened. Don’t worry, I can handle this much easily.’ She wouldn’t listen.”

“I-I see.”

As expected of a horse tribe member—even a girl possessed incredible strength.

“Oh, were these guys in the way?”

Alice looked dejected at our exchange.

“No, no, not at all. Thank you, Yellow.”

I reassured her and gently patted her head.

In my adult form, my height made it easy to do so.

“Ah, thank you.”

She blushed slightly, and Aria came over, pouting.

“Big bro, I worked hard too! Pat me, pat me!”

“Y-yeah. Pink, you did great too. Thank you.”

“Right? I worked really hard!”

Aria grinned proudly, but at that moment, I sensed an incredibly ominous presence and immediately turned around.

“…I won’t forgive this. I won’t forgive you.”

Gabriel’s eyes burned with intense hatred as he glared at us.

Was he still planning to fight?

But he was restrained by the vines and the rock behind him.

He shouldn’t be able to move easily.

Still, this ominous feeling wasn’t entirely coming from him.

As I scrutinized him, a small, jade-colored orb fell from his pocket.

The moment it hit the ground, a chill ran down my spine.