Taming The Villainesses

Flash!

Stella lifted the lightning hazelnut high with both hands.

I could only gape at her steady and strong posture, like that of a torchbearer.

“How did you do that?”

The lightning hazelnut, as its name suggests, was a fruit surrounded by lightning. It’s like a cursed item that would drain your stamina if you touched it carelessly.

Yet she had lifted it so easily. Stella herself seemed as startled by the situation as I was.

“Why is this working? It’s so strange. Wow, is this what it feels like?”

It seemed like she wasn’t entirely sure how she had done it either.

Despite the lack of certainty, she had attempted to grab the electric hazelnut again. She truly has that adventurer’s spirit.

Then it happened.

Crackle!

“Ah-!”

Stella recoiled as if she’d touched something hot. The hazelnut tumbled from her hands, rolling across the ground.

“Are you okay?”

“I guess you can’t hold it for too long. I’m starting to get a feel for it.”

Rustle, rustle.

She brushed her hands off.

I asked her how she did it. She hummed for a few seconds and then said.

“You have to, like, feel the tingling sensation in your hand. Then it’s like this wave flows through your body.”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying. Is that the best explanation you can give?”

“Ah, it’s hard to explain since it’s more of a feeling. Physical actions don’t always come with clear theories.”

Fair enough.

I understood Stella’s feelings.

With math problems, there were clear formulas to explain and follow like the four arithmetic operations. But physical tasks often rely on instinct and individual experience.

Stella, with her flexibility and exceptional physical abilities, likely had some natural aptitude for this.

“It’s like how Theo-kun can’t really explain how you hear animals. I also find it difficult to describe this.”

“Hmm.”

“It might be like the difference between nymphs and elves. If we study this, we might be able to discover the secrets of the fairy races that have been divided since ancient times.”

Stella chuckled while rubbing her palms together. The way she smiled reminded me of a villain plotting something, so I changed the topic.

“Then, I think it would be better if Stella-nim could carry this fruit. I’d like to, but as you can see, I still don’t quite understand how it works.”

“Alright, leave it to me.”

Seuuk.

Stella moved the lightning hazelnut, taking a break every few seconds.

One thing I noticed as I watched from the side was that the time she could hold it increased gradually—5 seconds at first, then 10, and then 20.

“I think I’m getting the hang of it.”

When we returned to the area where the white wolf was, we found a commotion unfolding before us.

━Keheng-!!!

━Geyaayaa-!!!

Wolves were fiercely battling a group of corpses that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. Fortunately, the fight was almost over.

━This is the last one.

The huge Kubilai swallowed the hollow skull in one gulp. The way it got chewed was quite terrifying. It was like watching a monster movie.

━Ah, you’re back.

Kubilai noticed our return, his large eyes landing on the lightning hazelnut in Stella’s hands, and a grin spread across his long muzzle.

━It seems the talent for the rigid body art lies with the long-eared fairy. For a beginner, I suppose that was impressive. Very well, let’s head inside.

A talent and beginner in rigid body art.

These keywords caught my attention, and I mentally noted them as I followed Kubilai into the cave.

Inside, the white wolf lay sprawled out completely unfazed of the chaos outside.

━It’s mother’s favorite lightning hazelnut.

When Stella placed the hazelnut in front of the wolf at Kubilai’s signal, the white wolf lazily opened her eyes and used her claw to split it open.

As the small nuts inside tumbled out, she bit into them. Her body trembled as if in pain, and her fur stood on end.

━Mmm, that certainly wakes you up. Now then, who are you?

At the white wolf’s question, I calmly explained who we were and what had brought us here.

After listening for a while, the white wolf nodded a few times before opening its mouth.

* * *

Tasagan, the elder of the forest and the white wolf, seemed more clear-headed as she reminisced about the past.

She recounted that about 30 years ago, a small fairy appeared and went around disrupting the order of the forest.

━She was just a little one. Thin and frail, like a child abandoned by her pack. But she was more curious and passionate than anyone else. Like a little squirrel.

Her face was painted with mud and pigments in fierce patterns. Bone and tooth ornaments clinked on her arms and legs, and she wore a wolf pelt over her head that swayed like real fur.

━She was a mischievous troublemaker. Her antics were amusing to watch.

With everyone’s attention, the young nymph girl grew rapidly.

Of course, her childlike appearance didn’t change; but she became as strong as the forest masters through continuous challenges.

A nymph, a childlike being, was strong enough to fight the forest masters?

It was as unbelievable as a squirrel fighting a tiger and winning.