I Kidnapped the Hero’s Women

Chapter 35 - The Great Earth Spirit (3)

‘Uh-oh. It’s angry.’

Rumble...

The roar of a dragon echoed across the mountain ridge.

I couldn’t see it, and I had no idea what they were talking about, but...

“Why are you getting angry? It was a compliment calling you cute!”

“...”

“Think about it from our perspective? If Aslan called me cute... Ugh. I’d hate that.”

“...”

“Still, cute is cute! What? Embarrassed about being seen like this? What’s there to be embarrassed about...!”

One thing was clear: Julia was making the Great Earth Spirit angrier.

Looking at Julia\'s drawing, it was understandable...

“Pffft.”

I had to suppress a laugh. The drawing was just that cute.

Julia’s amateur effort was endearing in itself, but the brown lump of a spirit looked ridiculously harmless.

It looked like something kids would love as a toy.

“Cute? Let me see.”

“Yeah, I want to see too!”

“Me too!”

A crowd gathered to look at Julia’s drawing.

Of course, they were curious. This spirit had been causing earthquakes and driving everyone to madness.

Just as people were about to see the drawing...

“Eek!?”

Rumble!

The mountain shook violently, causing the drawing to fall into the mud and become unrecognizable.

But the earthquake didn’t stop there.

It grew stronger, making it impossible to stand.

Damn it. This wasn’t just a tantrum; it was trying to kill us all...!

“Damn it. Everyone, evacuate.”

“Mister! Shouldn’t Knight Sylvia smash the spirit with a kaboom?”

“A spirit’s body isn’t affected by physical force or normal magic. You need a special power to interfere with it.”

For instance, my Touch of Death.

But it only worked on lesser beings, so it was useless here.

The only thing that could interfere with a spirit was...

“Aura.”

“Little flame?”

“Aura can cut through spirits, theoretically.”

“Then I’ll do it!”

“No. Even if you can attack, how will you fight an enemy you can’t see?”

I held back Charlotte, who was eager to jump in.

Aura could cut through spirits, but just because it could in theory didn’t mean it would work in practice.

Charlotte couldn’t even see the Great Earth Spirit.

Even if Julia provided real-time information, the spirit could still change its position, making it a tough opponent.

Fighting an invisible Great Spirit was practically suicide.

“So what now? People are going to get seriously hurt...!”

“We retreat. What else?”

If we continued to be reckless, a disaster was inevitable.

I quickly handed Charlotte to Sylvia and grabbed Julia.

With a firm grip on her waist, I lifted her easily.

Julia struggled and protested.

“Wait! I’m still negotiating!”

“If you keep negotiating, everyone will die.”

“Ah...”

Julia saw the panicked people, tripping over each other as they tried to escape.

If the earthquake continued, it wouldn’t be surprising if there were casualties.

“That spirit doesn’t seem to want to hurt people!”

“Probably not. If it did, it would have buried people from day one. But it’s clearly in a state of extreme agitation.”

“Just because it was embarrassed by its true form being revealed...! What a meanie!”

“Julia. Use it.”

“You mean my command? I didn’t want to use it, but if it’s behaving like this...!”

“...!”

Julia frowned deeply, clearly upset.

She took a deep breath and spoke forcefully.

To me, it just looked like she was opening her mouth, but in reality, she was using a language only spirits could hear.

It wasn’t just any language.

It was the Spirit Master’s unique ability: Command.

Would Julia’s command work?

Negotiation was off the table.

The question was whether Julia, a novice Spirit Master, could command a Great Spirit.

She had only used it on low-level spirits before.

...Could she do it?

“The earthquake stopped!”

The fierce rumbling ceased.

The ground, which seemed ready to crumble, stilled.

Julia had done something!

“Is it over?”

“Julia, what did you say with the command?”

“What? Oh... I just said, ‘Become cuter!’ I was annoyed...”

“...”

Become cuter?

What kind of command is that?

I was so dumbfounded that I froze for a moment.

Then, light began to gather in the sky.

The light coalesced into a familiar shape.

Round.

Stubby little arms...

Wait. This looks like the drawing Julia showed earlier?

[Noooo! What have you done to my body!?]

“...”

The light faded, revealing something brown.

It looked just like Julia’s drawing come to life.

But wasn’t it supposed to be gigantic?

Now, it was only the size of a human head.

This is certainly...

“Cute. Is this the Great Earth Spirit’s true form?”

[Kyaaaaah! No! Don’t look! This isn’t me...!]

The Great Earth Spirit tried to cover its huge face with its tiny hands.

But it couldn’t.

It even tried to burrow into the ground, but Charlotte grabbed it, holding it up as it struggled.

‘Is it completely powerless?’

I worried it might cast some spell.

But the shrunken Great Earth Spirit could only flail in Charlotte’s arms, unable to use any power.

It didn’t even seem strong.

‘No, wait. How strong is it if Charlotte is struggling to hold it?’

Charlotte, who had easily lifted her Super Strong Sword, was barely managing to keep hold of the spirit.

So Sylvia would be the only one who could handle its strength?

[Let go! Let go of me!]

“Julia, you draw so well. It looks just like the drawing...!”

[Nooo!!!]

“Mister, what do we do with it...?”

[Don’t hug me! Don’t hug me like a doll!]

Charlotte hugged the Great Earth Spirit tightly, looking at me with pleading eyes.

She wanted me to spare it.

‘I’d rather eliminate any future threats here.’

Frankly, I didn’t care about the Great Earth Spirit, whether it had absorbed the mountain’s spirit for a thousand years or not.

All that mattered to me were Charlotte, Julia, and Yuri.

I didn’t care what happened to anyone else.

Even though it was small and cute now, it might seek revenge once it regained its power.

The best option was to kill it.

Spirits weren’t even human, after all...

‘Damn it. Have I been corrupted by Aslan’s body?’

I snapped out of it.

Was I really starting to think like a villain after pretending to be one?

Killing it wasn’t the best solution.

Even if I was merciful to Count Arient, who had been incredibly rude from the start, I had to be merciful here too.

“I’ll take care of it, Mister! I’ll feed it, bathe it, and clean up after it.”

[I don’t eat! I don’t need baths! I don’t poop! I’m not like you humans!]

“It said it doesn’t need any of that. Please, Mister. I’ve always dreamed of having a talking doll!”

“Julia. What do you want?”

“Me? I want to get along. I used to hate spirits for keeping me up at night. But once I learned to talk to them, I realized they’re pure. This spirit is just rough because of its circumstances. I believe its true nature is kind and pure.”

If Julia felt that way, I couldn’t say no.

I nodded slightly, and Charlotte cheered, jumping up and down.

The Great Earth Spirit seemed to get dizzy, not enjoying it at all...

“Alright. The incident is resolved. We can finish paving the road and start operations soon.”

“Resolved... just like that...? So ridiculously...?”

Count Arient stood, mouth agape, staring into space.

He looked terrible, having been tossed around by the earthquakes multiple times.

Even though they said the road was complete except for the paving, paving a mountain road was no simple task.

If it were just a road in front of the mansion, Sylvia could finish it.

But this was a massive road through the mountains.

If Sylvia did it, she’d have to work day and night for over a week.

She could do it, but who would guard me if she was busy?

“Count, the road construction is only at the paving stage. I’d like to subcontract Arient Construction. In exchange, I’ll waive next month’s interest. How does that sound?”

“A job! You’re giving us a job! Thank you! This means we can manage for another month! I don’t know how to thank you, Lord Vermont!”

“Hahaha. Please, rise.”

Count Arient grasped my hand, sobbing with joy.

It was ironic, giving back the job they originally had while charging for it.

But it was a heartwarming scene nonetheless.