Chapter 16

As Tycoon gameplay goes, part of the fun is watching the cute SD characters scurrying about and working.

However, the process of raising and growing these characters is also an essential element that can't be overlooked.

That process is remarkably flexible, allowing the player to change many aspects of the slave characters based on how they're developed, such as personality, skills, and traits.

Mirabel stood out among them for having exceptional flexibility.

An unawakened witch. Apprentice Witch Mirabel.

Much like an Eevee that evolves according to the element stone it's given, Mirabel awakens into various kinds of witches depending on the chosen path.

Each path comes with different stats and usable magic, but the strongest build by far would be [The Bringer of Catastrophe: Mirabel, Witch of Calamity].

True to her name, she wields magic powerful enough to destroy entire nations by herself. This transformation happens when you emphasize her evil tendencies.

On the other end of the spectrum, you have something like the Witch of Affection.

Just cute, and that's it. While she's worthless in battle, she provides ridiculous buffs in the Tycoon side of the game. Not a bad path, considering you can rely on other characters to handle dungeon crawling.

‘But what is this?’

[Herald of Death: Mirabel, Witch of Judgment]

Witch of Judgment?

I’ve raised Mirabel using every possible build, but I’ve never seen anything like this.

As Mirabel takes each step, thunder roars from clear skies, and birds fall from the heavens.

In the center of this chaos, Mirabel walked calmly forward.

“What kind of magic did you teach her? And are we sure she’s still a normal witch?”

Myra yelled beside me, but I couldn’t hear her.

My head spun just trying to figure out where things went wrong.

Whatever happened, I needed to stop Mirabel first. At this rate, she'd be hunted down.

The Delofin wizards fired spells at her, but with a simple gesture of the Celestial Oath, her staff, the magic dissolved like smoke.

The spellbook in her other hand flipped open, revealing a sinister navy magic circle. As it activated, small, white, mochi-like objects—almost like souls—rose from the heads of the wizards.

They collapsed to the ground.

I pumped my fist in victory.

“Haha! Did you really think our Mirabel would go down so easily?”

“Who exactly are you cheering for?!”

Oops, that slipped out.

I refocused.

Mirabel’s sudden rampage... The source seemed to be that spellbook. I needed to get it out of her hands.

“We need to take the spellbook away. Since you’re more responsible for this mess, would you mind helping out?”

“Why is it my fault? You’re the one who gave her the spellbook!”

“If you hadn’t chased after us, this wouldn’t have happened. And didn’t you say you were going to retrieve it? Go ahead.”

“Ugh, we can argue about whose fault this is later. Isn’t she your slave? Don’t you have some kind of contract? Can’t you just command her?”

“How could I force my adorable slave—no, just kidding. It won’t work.”

Mirabel was refusing.

To control a slave freely, my skill level needs to be higher.

It works fine on lesser slaves, but Mirabel, who’s now awakened, is beyond my reach.

And her magic ability is one of the strongest in the world, which means her magic resistance is equally powerful.

Since my skill is classified as magic, it’s incompatible with her.

‘That’s why normally, slaves who are difficult to control are heavily restricted.’

Chains, piercings, brands, and seals that prevent them from using their magic unless the master allows it.

There are slaves I’ll have to brand in the future, but I could never do that to Mirabel. As a slave enthusiast, I couldn't bring myself to do such a thing to her. I just can’t.@@novelbin@@

“This relationship is such a joke. So, all we have to do is get rid of the spellbook, right?”

“No violence.”

“You’re so soft.”

A golden circle appeared at Myra's feet. She stomped down hard, and the disk shot up, surrounding her like a hula hoop.

It shattered like glass, and the golden fragments seeped into her body. A faint golden radiance shimmered over her skin.

“Julius!”

“Yes, Priestess.”

“I’ll handle her. Minimize any casualties.”

“As you command.”

The paladin called Julius left to join the lord’s knights.

“Hah...”

Myra let out a deep breath.

She savored the sensation of her body, now reinforced with divine power, before bending her knees.

Boom!

She shot forward like a cannon.

“Ugh!”

I was knocked off my feet by the shockwave, rolling several times and ending up covered in dirt.

In the blink of an eye, Myra closed in on Mirabel. She collided with Mirabel’s shield, sending golden sparks flying everywhere.

“Is that what you call holding back...?”

I crawled to my feet, brushing myself off.

Though I’d thrown the responsibility onto Myra, she wouldn’t be able to stop an awakened Mirabel.

And a master should always handle their own slave problems anyway.

‘A master must take responsibility for their slave.’

Mirabel reveled in her newfound power.

The spells of veteran wizards, honed over decades, vanished into dust.

Priests, once so feared, were helpless, falling after a single spell. Even Myra, a priestess, was struggling to hold her ground, but she wasn’t much of a threat.

Not even divine power could put a scratch on Mirabel’s shield.

Ah, why had she ever been afraid?

This, too, was thanks to her master.

“They are being punished for daring to touch his arm.”

With the Celestial Oath glowing brightly, hundreds of navy beams shot toward Myra from all directions.

Dodging wasn’t an option.

Myra compressed her divine power and released it in a burst, shattering the attack. Mirabel’s magic unraveled in the blast.

“Huff, huff...”

Myra panted heavily.

Karamir had said not to hit Mirabel, and Myra had no desire to hurt a cute girl anyway, but that worry was misplaced.

‘Who’s really worrying about who here?’

She couldn’t even get close to Mirabel, let alone snatch the spellbook.

With her divine power nearly exhausted, Myra was amazed at how Mirabel showed no signs of running out of magic despite her constant barrage.

“Kid, why are you even a slave? With this much power, you could kill your master.”

Mirabel’s icy aura descended.

With just that, the air seemed to solidify, and any living creature with a soul instinctively bowed down to the ground.

“Kuh!”

Myra, flat on the ground, trembling like an insect, heard Mirabel speak calmly.

“You would have, wouldn’t you? The clergy repays kindness with cruelty.”

“What...?”

“They think they’re the best and that their god is all-knowing. But all they ever do is stand by and watch.”

Mirabel’s voice and gaze, filled with unmasked hostility, bore into Myra as though she were staring at something disgusting.

What could have driven this young girl to become like this?

Myra couldn’t fathom the depths of the darkness within her.

“In contrast, my master travels the world, saving poor slaves. He’s far greater than the god you serve.”

“Oh, come on, that’s not true~”

“You still don’t understand my master’s greatness? Let me show you. You, too, can find true freedom—”

Mirabel’s gaze, previously locked on Myra, suddenly shifted to someone in the distance.

It was Karamir, her master, calmly walking away from the chaos.

“Master?”

Mirabel called out, but Karamir didn’t look back. He didn’t stop walking, as if he didn’t care what happened to her.

Forgetting she was in the middle of a battle, Mirabel dashed toward Karamir with an adorable trot, a bright smile forming on her lips as she anticipated his praise.

“Master! Where are you going? I’m almost done, just wait a little longer!”

“......”

“Master?”

Karamir said nothing. Even as Mirabel approached, peeking up at him, he didn’t glance her way.

Sensing something was off, Mirabel stood directly in his path. Only then did Karamir finally look at her, and though her face brightened at first, his cold expression quickly froze her in place.

“M-Master...?”

“When did I ever ask you to do this?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t recall ever telling you to turn this city into a wasteland.”

“I-I thought I understood your intentions and was trying to faithfully carry them out...”

“Ha...”

Karamir let out a sigh dripping with irritation, making Mirabel flinch.

“Because of your reckless actions, I’ll now have to take the blame for all of this. Public activities will be impossible, and the liberation of slaves will have to be postponed.”

“Huh?”

“It’s all your fault, Mirabel. You’ve robbed countless slaves of their chance for freedom.”

Mirabel couldn’t say a word. She stood frozen, trembling, barely able to breathe as she stared up at Karamir with wide, fearful eyes.

Karamir, his gaze filled with weariness and disdain, slowly reached toward her neck.

“I no longer see any value in keeping you as a slave.”

With a flick, he undid the shackles around her neck and tossed them aside, the metal clinking as they rolled across the ground.

“You are a slave disqualification. Live at will in the future.”