Chapter 16: Mirabelle, the Witch of Judgment
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 16: Mirabelle, the Witch of Judgment
Like any good tycoon game, TOS had its fun in watching cute little chibi characters scurry about their work.
But the process of developing those characters was also an absolutely essential element.
This process offered a high degree of freedom, allowing a slave’s personality, skills, traits, and more to change depending on how I raised them.
And among them all, Mirabelle boasted an exceptional degree of freedom.
An unawakened witch.
Apprentice Witch Mirabelle.
Like an Eevee evolving based on which elemental stone you gave it, she could awaken into various types of witches depending on her development path.
Each path came with different stats and available magic, and the most powerful build was [Harbinger of Ruin: Mirabelle, the Witch of Calamity].
Befitting the name 'Calamity,' she could wield magic powerful enough to destroy an entire nation single-handedly. That’s what she became if you focused on developing her evil alignment.
The weakest build, on the other hand, was the Witch of Aegyo.
A one-trick pony who was all about being cute.
Useless in combat, but a supporter-type with insane buffs for the tycoon side of the game. Since you could just leave dungeon-clearing to other characters, it wasn't a bad path, all things considered.
'But what is this?'
[Hand of the Death God: Mirabelle, the Witch of Judgment]
The Witch of Judgment? I’d raised Mirabelle through every possible build, but I’d never seen anything like this.
With every step Mirabelle took, thunder and lightning struck from a clear sky, and birds fell from the air.
And in the center of this chaos, Mirabelle walked with an unhurried grace.
“What in the world did you teach her?! More importantly, is she even an ordinary mage?” Myra shouted beside me, but her words didn't register.
My head was spinning just trying to figure out what had gone so wrong.
Whatever the cause, I had to stop her rampage first. At this rate, she was going to be subjugated.
Delphine’s mages fired spells at her, but with a simple trace of the Heavenly Covenant in the air, their magic vanished like smoke.
The grimoire in her other hand flipped open. An ominous, indigo magic circle materialized above it, and then, something like pure white puffs of light was pulled from the heads of the mages.
They looked just like souls.
The mages collapsed, slumping to their knees.
I immediately pumped my fist in victory.
“Haha! Did you really think our Mirabelle would go down so easily?”
“Who are you cheering for?!”
Ah, force of habit. I forced my thoughts back on track.
Mirabelle's sudden rampage. The cause was likely that grimoire. I had to get it away from her.
“We need to get that grimoire away from her. You’re mostly to blame for this, so you’d better cooperate.”
“How am I more to blame? You’re the one who gave her the grimoire, so it’s your fault!”
“This wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t chased us. Besides, didn’t you say you were going to retrieve the grimoire? Go on, take it.”
“Ugh, we can argue about who’s to blame later. She’s your slave, isn’t she? Don’t you have a contract or something? Can’t you just order her to stop?”
“How could I possibly force my adorable slave… just kidding. It’s not working.”
Mirabelle was resisting my command.
To control a slave at will, my skill level needs to be sufficiently high.
It works fine on common slaves, but not on Mirabelle, who has now awakened.
Furthermore, Mirabelle’s magical ability is now world-class. In other words, her magic resistance is also top-tier.
Since my own skills are classified as magic, I have a terrible matchup against her.
'That's why, for slaves who are difficult to control, you're supposed to place every possible restriction on them.'
Shackles. Piercings. Brands. And on top of that, a seal that only allows them to use mana when their master permits it.
There is one slave I’ll have to brand eventually, but I could never do that to Mirabelle. As a connoisseur of slaves, how could I possibly do such a thing to her? I just can’t.
“What a messed-up relationship. Anyway, we just need to get rid of that grimoire, right?”
“No violence, please.”
“My, you’re so devoted,” Myra said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
A golden circle appeared at Myra’s feet. She stomped down hard—Thud!—and a disc of light shot up, encircling her like a hula hoop.
The ring shattered like glass, and the golden shards seeped into her body. A faint golden radiance began to glow on her skin.
“Julius!”
“Yes, Priestess.”
“I’ll handle her. You focus on minimizing casualties.”
“As you command.”
The Holy Knight named Julius departed to join the Lord’s Knight Order.
“Hooo…”
Myra let out a long exhale. For a moment, she seemed to savor her body, now enhanced with divine power. Then, she bent her knees.
BOOM!
She launched herself forward like a cannonball.
“Gak!”
The shockwave sent me tumbling across the ground, covering me in a thick layer of dust.
In an instant, Myra was upon Mirabelle, her body colliding with the girl’s protective barrier and sending golden sparks flying in all directions.
“Is that what she calls holding back…?” I scrambled up from the ground and dusted myself off.
I may have haphazardly passed the responsibility to Myra, but I knew she wouldn’t be able to stop the awakened Mirabelle.
Besides, it’s not right to leave a slave’s problems to someone else.
'A master must solve his slave's problems himself.'
*
Mirabelle savored the unparalleled euphoria.
The spells of veteran mages, honed over decades, vanished into dust before her.
The clergy she had once feared so much were rendered helpless by a single spell. The priestess, Myra, was putting up a fight, but she was hardly a threat.
After all, her punches, imbued with the power of a god, couldn’t even scratch the protective barrier.
Ah, what had she been so afraid of all this time? This, too, was all thanks to her master’s grace.
“This is your punishment for daring to grab his arm.”
The Heavenly Covenant glowed. Hundreds of indigo streaks of light carved out just as many trajectories as they surged toward Myra.
It was a barrage so dense that dodging was unthinkable.
Myra compressed her divine power and released it in a single burst, blocking the attack. Mirabelle’s magic shattered against the divine explosion.
“Hah… hah…” Myra gasped for breath.
Karami had told her not to hurt Mirabelle, and Myra herself had no desire to strike the adorable girl, but that had been a completely pointless worry.
'Who was supposed to be worried about whom?'
Forget hurting her; it was hard enough just to get close enough to snatch the grimoire.
Worse, her own divine power was nearly depleted, yet despite spamming spell after spell, Mirabelle’s mana showed no sign of dwindling. Just what kind of reserves did that child have?
“Hey, kid, why are you even a slave? With that kind of power, you could kill your own master.”
Mirabelle’s aura turned chillingly cold. The sheer pressure weighed down the very air, forcing any living soul to bow its head to the ground.
“Kugh!”
Looking down at Myra, who was now prostrate on the ground and trembling like an insect, Mirabelle spoke in a placid tone.
“You would, wouldn’t you? Your kind—the clergy—always repays grace with malice.”
“What…?”
“You think you’re so superior, that the god you believe in is omnipotent. But all it ever does is stand by and watch.”
Mirabelle’s gaze and voice, directed at Myra, were honed to a sharp edge with blatant hostility, as if she were looking at something utterly loathsome.
What could have twisted this young child so? Myra couldn’t begin to fathom the darkness the girl held within.
“Compared to that, my master travels the world saving pitiful slaves. He is far greater than some god you believe in.”
“Hey now, that’s going a bit too far~”
“It seems you still don’t understand my master’s greatness. I’ll use this chance to make you see. You, too, shall find true liberation…”
As Mirabelle aimed the Heavenly Covenant at Myra, a figure entered her line of sight in the distance.
It was Karami, her master. He was calmly walking away from the disaster-stricken city.
“Master?”
Mirabelle called out, but Karami didn’t look back. He didn’t even slow his pace, as if he couldn’t care less what happened to her.
Forgetting she was in the middle of a battle, Mirabelle trotted cutely toward Karami, a bright smile on her face, fully expecting to be praised.
“Master! Where are you going? I’m almost finished, so please wait just a little longer!”
“…”
“Master?”
Karami remained silent. Even when Mirabelle popped up beside him, he didn’t spare her a single glance.
Sensing something was wrong, Mirabelle moved to block his path. Only then did Karami finally look at her. Her face began to light up, but it froze the instant she saw his icy expression.
“M-Master…?”
“When did I ever tell you to do this?”
“Pardon?”
“I have no memory of telling you to lay waste to the city, Miss Mirabelle.”
“I-I just sensed what you wanted and was trying to faithfully carry it out…”
“Haaa…” Karami let out a sigh thick with annoyance, and Mirabelle’s shoulders flinched violently.
“Because you acted on your own, it looks like I, your master, will have to take all the blame. At this rate, any public activities will be impossible, and I’ll have to postpone the liberation of the other slaves.”
“What?”
“It’s all your fault, Miss Mirabelle. You are the reason countless slaves have been robbed of their chance at freedom.”
No words came from Mirabelle’s lips. Forgetting even to breathe, she looked up at Karami, her eyes trembling with anxiety.
Karami stared back, his eyes filled with utter annoyance, before slowly reaching for her neck.
“I no longer see any value in keeping you as my slave.”
With a soft click, he unfastened the shackle around her neck and tossed it aside. It clattered across the ground.
“You are disqualified as a slave. From now on, live as you please.”