Please Bully Me, Miss Villainess!

Chapter 259 : Garuda 2

300 years—

It's been 300 years!

300 years have passed since that accursed human called Oz sealed me away!!

And now—I've finally obtained this opportunity!

Garuda gazed at the intensifying golden light before her, a result of absorbing the human girl's magical power. Thinking of the impending freedom, an uncontrollable joy spread to every feather.

After being sealed by the human hero—Oz, Garuda's soul had been entombed in the treasury of the God's Tower.

She had thought she would remain imprisoned in darkness forever, but unexpectedly, it was human greed that ultimately helped her break free from her shackles.

Shortly after Oz's death, those avaricious nobles began dividing the treasures left behind by the great human hero.

The orb containing Garuda's sealed soul eventually fell into the hands of Prince Oren.

Garuda had thought her chance to break the seal had arrived—but unexpectedly, Prince Oren was cautious by nature and merely kept the Wind Thunder Pearl as a showpiece, never truly using it directly.

His overly indulged son Baron was different—excessive self-expectation and impatience for success led this immature boy to rely on power that didn't belong to him, providing Garuda the opportunity to break through her seal.

『Hehe... it seems the gods still favor me after all.』

Watching the continuously shrinking golden sphere before her, Garuda was in high spirits.

After waiting patiently for so many years, good fortune had finally come her way.

Who would have thought that immediately upon breaking the seal, she would stumble upon such a windfall!

According to her original plan, she would have needed to absorb many souls to fully revive, but now it seemed unnecessary.

Next, she just needed to devour this human girl's soul—and everything would be accomplished.

And at that time—she would be reborn anew!

『Strange... something doesn't seem quite right?』

Just as Garuda was planning how to feast after her revival, she suddenly noticed that the sphere formed by her feathers had gradually slowed its shrinking process, finally coming to a complete halt as if stuck.

!!?

A crack suddenly appeared on the surface of the golden-winged container.

"Although I'm not quite sure what's going on... it seems I've been underestimated?"

An eye peered through the torn gap, followed by the girl in the cage tearing apart the interconnected feathers that had attempted to trap her.

Though initially confused about the situation, in terms of magical comprehension, Elsa was second to none—in that tightly enclosed environment, Elsa quickly grasped the key to using her power under these circumstances.

In a spiritual state, since the soul and body are separated, one doesn't feel pain. With sufficient magical power, one could become a formidable mage.

Elsa felt extremely annoyed.

She had finally gotten a chance to see Evie, even if just from afar. Such an opportunity was invaluable to Elsa in her current state.

She had been watching the exciting part, imagining how Evie would perfectly cooperate with Sphinx through sheer determination, overtaking on the curves, and finally winning the training race championship, impressing everyone—

And now—this damned creature had ruined everything!!

Thinking of this, she felt an inexplicable anger burning in her chest.

What... what's happening—?!

Although Garuda couldn't understand why the human girl before her was so angry, when their eyes met, Garuda felt fear for the first time in ages.

Moreover... this girl had just crushed her prized confinement feathers with one hand—

Was this something an ordinary human could do?!

Realizing she had underestimated her opponent and that in her current weakened state, Elsa was not someone she could contend with, Garuda sensed danger and attempted to flee.

"Trying to run?? Not so fast—"

Elsa grabbed hold of Garuda's tail feathers as she attempted to turn and flee.

She still had many pressing questions she wanted to ask this little golden bird and couldn't let her fly away just like that.

『St-stop—I am a descendant of divine messengers!! Mere human—you'll face divine retribution for this!!』

"I don't care if you're some divine messenger—ultimately, Evie got hurt because you caused trouble here! I'll pluck all your feathers and make you into roast chicken!!"

Recalling the horrific wound on Evie's hand, Elsa's anger surged.

She reached out directly, grabbing Garuda's golden feathers before her.

Through her recent experience, she had confirmed—while in a spiritual state, one cannot affect physical matter in the mortal world, but can interfere with other spirits.

In this state, it came down to who had the greater strength—clearly, she had the upper hand now.

Although she knew she was strong now, Elsa finally gained a new understanding of "just how strong" she was.

Elsa tried to mobilize the power within her body. She directly crushed the glowing golden feathers that had just been entangling her, attempting to absorb her. Quickly, the light penetrated into her body.

『St-stop! Stop it right now!!』

Seeing the other party begin to devour her instead, Garuda's expression changed drastically.

After being caught, Garuda transformed into a palm-sized, round golden canary. Based on her years of experience, she knew that pleading in such an adorable form would increase the chances of being accepted.

Garuda, having lived for over 500 years as a magical beast, had encountered various types of people and was quite familiar with human culture. She had never met a human who could crush her spiritual form with one hand—

A wise bird knows when to yield! Garuda chose to immediately submit:

『Great Mage, please show mercy! It was my fault for acting rashly—I sincerely apologize to you!』

"Isn't it a bit too late to apologize now?"

Elsa's gaze gradually turned cold, her palm slightly tightening.

She had indeed heard legends about Garuda, but seeing her today, the image seemed completely different from what was described in textbooks.

『I'll do anything as long as you spare me!!』

No matter what, survival was the most important thing.

After all, if a spirit dissipates into nothingness, then truly nothing remains!

"Then answer a few questions for me."

『Please ask! As long as it's within my knowledge, I'll answer truthfully!』

"...Why can you see me?"

Although she wanted to administer some punishment, there were more pressing matters on her mind now.

Elsa grabbed Garuda, now only the size of a sparrow, startling her.

"Speak—why can you see me?"