Taming The Villainesses
chapter-246-1

(EP-246.1) Caged #1

246 – A Caged Bird #1

The great malice, Demon King Solomon.

A Rank 10 Archmage so powerful that he could even break the rules of this world.

Solomon’s advance, thought to be unstoppable, was met with unexpected difficulties.

The entire world united as one force against a great enemy, and the Demon King’s schemes collapsed as it got thwarted.

The Demon Monk Vassago described the situation at that time as follows.

━But we didn’t consider it a big deal. After all, they were a disorganized rabble. They’d been fighting amongst each other for so long that an internal strife was due at any minute.

Vassago’s prediction was reasonable.

Although they temporarily managed to repel the black army with desperate measures, their hastily concocted plan was like a rickety shack, destined to fall even in the slightest of breeze.

However.

Contrary to the Demon King’s army’s expectations, the shack did not easily collapse. Four great pillars stood firm and supported the entire roof.

The four pillars.

In the distant future, people would come to praise them as great warriors or heroes.

Opal Von Bellhawk was one of them.

Opal the Free.

The fairy swordsman of the hero party that sought out the Demon King Solomon’s castle located North of the barrier. His sword’s edge cut through the enemies’ heads as gracefully as flowing water.

Professor Balan, who was a confidant of the Demon King at the time, evaluated him this way.

━Opal the Butcher. He was famous. His presence on the battlefield alone caused the morale of the Demon King’s army to rise and fall. I, too, almost died several times….

Balan shuddered as if the terror of that time still lingered.

━B-but, in the end, he died. And I am alive. So, isn’t it my victory, the victory of Balan de Sabrnak, who survived…?

… That barely made any sense.

But, it no longer held true.

“… Opal is alive.”

Hearing those words from Stella made my vision blur for a moment. Opening my closed eyes, I listened to her explaining the whole story in detail.

“Everyone knows that the ends of those called heroes weren’t all pleasant.”

“Were they?”

I think I’ve heard something like that before.

Most of the four heroes who tore Solomon to pieces met unfortunate ends in their later years, suffering from illness or accidents. Some called it a curse.

It was safe to say that the Demon King’s curse eventually swallowed the heroes, turning them into tragedies. Of course, I didn’t know if that was true or not.

“Opal was the same. Having overexerted himself in the war, his lifespan had reached its limit, which is unusual for a long-lived elf…. To extend his life, the family took drastic measures.”

“So, you got your hands on the Lion’s Scroll, the Demon King’s treasure.”

“Yes. Everything was conducted in secret. Because of that, the Bellhawk family had to neglect Angmar’s affairs. We had to avoid everyone’s eyes.”

‘Indeed.’

If the fact that they used the Demon King’s resurrection magic was known, it would have caused quite a stir. Especially the Draco family, who was sensitive to matters of life and death, wouldn’t have stayed still.

‘I see.’

The reason why the Bellhawk family was so quiet and unassuming in the original story was that they were hiding their actions.

「You have calmly judged the situation!

You have gained experience points through the talent 《Calm Thinking》.

All job experience +5」

With my Calm Thinking triggered, I was able to reach my own conclusion.

“So, the person currently controlling the Bellhawk family is Opal, who was declared dead. And Professor Stella is pretending to be a fool for some reason?”

“Yes. You could say that the revived Opal is very different from the Opal of the past. It’s hard to explain in detail but… even as his sibling, the current Opal wouldn’t care.”

“I get the gist of it.”

I understood.

And it felt like I shouldn’t have.

Stella was clearly entangled in some very troublesome and complicated mess. Now that I had heard the story, I couldn’t say I was unrelated anymore.

“Given the situation, Theo-kun, won’t you help me? Knowing this secret means your safety is also at risk.”

Stella’s point was valid.

A great hero who was thought to be dead had been resurrected for some reason and was now manipulating the family from behind the scenes.

I didn’t know what schemes the resurrected Opal was plotting, but it was clear that no good would come of it if even his own sister, Stella, was in such trouble.

“If you help me, I’ll give you 750,000 gold regardless of this ridiculous live-in son-in-law contract. And I’ll answer any questions you have.”

Oh!

“That’s a very tempting offer. But, do you have any plans to oust Opal?”

“No. What can I even do from here? But there is a way. Opal spends most of his time alone, without any contact. We can seize an opportunity to take him down quietly.”

“By ‘take him down,’ you mean physically?”

“Yes. There’s a saying in the teachings of the church: Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Life must return to the earth upon death. Opal’s current state is…”

Stella stopped and placed her index finger to her lips. I wasn’t so dull as to not understand what that meant.

Stomp, stomp-.

The sound of heels ringing outside was distinctly out of place in this cheap inn.

Someone knocked on the door.

━Young Lady, I’m here to escort you.

I wondered how they knew we were here, then a sudden thought struck me like lightning.

Were we being watched?

Now it made sense.

Stella Bellhawk wasn’t living freely like a bum.

She was living under strict surveillance and control, much like those who got confined or exiled.

I thought she roamed the skies, but she was just a bird in a cage.

To avoid the eyes of her watchers, she had no choice but to play the fool who wasted her life away. If her resentment towards Opal was discovered, who knew what would happen?

Seureuk-.

Suddenly, Stella handed me a small note and left the room first.