A Villain's Way of Taming Heroines

"I, howl, how... roar! Roar! How could... woof!"

The man's pupils contracted violently. He lifted his trembling hand, only to discover that it had already... already begun to mutate! Mutated into a pair of decaying, sparsely furred... dog paws?!

After the euphoria of surging power faded, unbearable pain swept through his body, causing Hyena to let out a "howl, howl" of agony. His tall and robust figure began to shrink, twist, his legs atrophied and regressed, visibly transforming into similarly decaying, emaciated beast legs.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Hyena."

A light voice, very abruptly, appeared in this room where two black market leaders had perished.

The young nobleman wearing a mask stood in front of Mr. Hyena, whose face had already begun to mutate and twist, crouched on the ground, lightly tapping the ground with his scepter.

"It seems you've done a good job, only..."

He said, somewhat puzzled, "You don't look so well, is there anything I can assist you with?"

"Woof... roar... Faust..."

Curled up on the ground, the bizarre creature that was neither human nor dog muttered unclear words: "Help... help..."

"It seems you've been eroded by the essence of the redemption water... how unfortunate, alright, I'll help you."

Under the ecstatic gaze of those already deformed, murky eyes, the young nobleman pressed his scepter against its forehead. Then, Hyena could feel something... being rapidly... remodeled.

Was he going to turn back into a human? Could he escape this ugly posture? Wait...

No, that's not right! It's power... his power is disappearing! It's turning into something else, what is it... Faust!

Hyena began to howl wildly, at this moment it could hardly speak human language, it could only howl in a mad and mournful manner.

"Pfft... hehehe... hahaha…"

The young nobleman, who had withdrawn his scepter, laughed heartily: "You really should see what you look like now, dear Mr. Hyena, you're so pathetic and ridiculous that it's delightful."

"Let me guess, are you cursing me? Are you feeling utterly baffled? Do you think... I'm actually the person behind DappleSpider? I'm sorry, I'm not."

He shook his head, somewhat regretfully:

"I really like Marlina, she has come to understand me so well without me realizing it."

"To me, death is mercy, a gift, a release."

"As a reward for her excellent performance today, I've decided to let her win once, as for the condition, naturally it's your... inability to seek death."

Ansel smiled and said, "The extraordinary power within you has been completely redirected to the beast essence's 'adaptation', 'self-healing', and a tiny bit of 'immortality', which means... you're now just a vessel carrying these few essences, without any power to speak of. You'll wander the black market as an undying wild dog, if you're unlucky...

you might even be caught by a discerning sorcerer for experiments."

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"What? You're asking why I'm doing this? A fifth-stage extraordinary being like me targeting a nobody like you, isn't it beneath me?"

The young Hydral asked and answered himself, "About this, I need to correct two of your mistakes."

"First, I'm not a fifth-stage extraordinary being."

"Second, I'm not targeting you, I'm just giving you... the punishment you deserve."

"Look at me, Mr. Hyena."

He said so, slowly removing the mask from his face.

Ansel of Hydral looked down at the wild dog on the ground and smiled:

"Tell me, what do you see?"

...Devil!

It's the devil!

"Roooarrrrr!"

Hyena shrieked in terror, its limbs flailing in a futile attempt to escape, but its body was paralyzed by fear and despair.

"No, no, no... it's not time yet, this is not what I want to see."

"So... where should I begin? Ah, I don't want to waste my time on you, instead, let me show you this."

Ansel once again pointed his scepter at the hyena's forehead, and then—

Then, the terrified Hyena saw itself.

It saw its actions displayed on a screen, like a clown in a circus, being watched by others.

"Profit." "Division." "Conflict." "Power."

"Just... a coincidence?" "It's the simplest truth."

"I did nothing."

"I guess he... will beg for death, but won't be able to die."

As those words and images appeared in Hyena's mind, Ansel's voice rings in his ears again:

"Mr. Hyena, do you hate me?"

His voice, mixed with the images and conversation directly injected into his mind, made the world seem false and absurd to Hyena.

"I don't know what you're thinking, but, well..."

The young noble shrugged: "I think you shouldn't hate me, do you understand what I mean, after all, I told you—"

He smiled:

"This is all your 'choice'."

"..."

My... choice?

It was my choice to rely on Faust, it was my decision to complete his first task, I knew it was the best thing to do, I thought it was the perfect opportunity...

I was right, I was right? I was wrong... No, I was right! My choice... No, not my choice! This was not my choice!

But I was right... But this is... not...

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The man who once dominated the black market is now almost a mangy wild dog, convulsing and howling on the ground, his howls filled with such vivid madness and... terror.

He didn't know who was making choices for him, he didn't know why he was doing these things, he even... started to doubt his current reality.

What is this world? How did I become like this? Is this a dream? Is it the environment? Is it Rodent or Vulture's spell? Or is it the DappleSpider?

Is it DappleSpider!!

It's DappleSpider! It's her spell... Damn bitch, she still has this trick up her sleeve after being backfired by the contract, but it's okay, when Lord Faust arrives, I can be saved, I can become the lord of the black market, I can become a fifth-stage, I can...

There's... there's no Hydral here, there's no me turned into a dog, this is not my choice... He forced me to do this, he did it on purpose! I didn't make a choice... It's not me!

It's not me! Hehehe... It's not me, it's not me who turned me into this, it's Hydral, it's Hydral... Hehe...

Ansel looked down at the dog's eyes that were about to lose their sanity: "I remember telling you, I'm not in a hurry, Mr. Hydral."

"If you were willing to wait, if you were willing to lie low, if you were willing to admit your mistakes, if you could resist this temptation... Look, there are many ifs, these ifs, could have helped you avoid the current outcome."

"Look, everything is your choice."

Ansel snapped his fingers, and a mirror fell in front of Hyena.

In the mirror, it saw a mangy, ulcerated... wild dog.

The devil pushed the mirror forward with a smile:

"This is the fate I've arranged for you."

"Roarrrrr!!"

A desperate howl of despair exploded, the mangy wild dog on the ground howled and scrambled away, fleeing to anywhere that could get away from this devil.

"Hyena attacked Vulture and Rodent, but himself is nowhere to be found, only the severely injured Miss DappleSpider is left..."

The young Hydral turns around and smiles:

"So who should be the lord of the black market?"

*

In the depth of night, atop the manor of Hydral.

After lulling Seraphina to sleep, Ansel basked in the cool breeze, his gaze fixed upon the radiant moon suspended in the celestial dome.

His day had been filled with satisfaction, having disciplined the insolent who dared defy his will. In less than a day, he had cleansed the black market, now firmly within his grasp.

Yet, certain things… had taken him by surprise.

He had divulged too much to Marlina.

That clever girl could easily infer certain matters, and coupled with whatever she had discussed with her mother, Ansel found himself... somewhat uneasy.

The game had been a mere whim, at most a test of Marlina's abilities and faith. Yet, he had failed to maintain control. Ansel lowered his gaze to his own palm, murmuring softly:

"Is it that you refuse to let me go, even for a moment, or have I... become weak during this time?"

He had become weak.

Ansel felt that his display in front of Marlina today had been, quite frankly, weak.

He was like a child unable to bear hardship, using every means to convey his suffering, hoping others could understand his torment, his pain. He wished for someone to hold his hand and say they understood his feelings.

This was undoubtedly a sign of weakness.

It was precisely because Marlina would keep her lips sealed, precisely because Marlina had no power to change anything about this matter, that he might have committed such a ludicrous act of weakness.

Weakness... In their presence, he would become weak, so Ansel thought.

The sixteen-year-old boy slightly lifted his head, his azure eyes reflecting the moonlight, akin to the sea under the rising moon.

The sea and the moon, cold and tranquil.

But that was enough, Ansel, today's indulgence has been more than sufficient.

If you do not discard the useless, your tomorrow will be the next wild dog.

To conquer it, sacrifices must be made.

Ambition, ideals, faith, emotions, goodness, self.

Would Seraphina be disappointed? No... If I were unable to make a choice at that time, she would be the one disappointed.

The same goes for my father and mother.

With these thoughts, the young Hydral touched his own lips. The straight, indifferent line made him lose his usual warm and friendly demeanor.

Realizing this, a vibrant and brilliant smile quickly spread across his face.

Smile, Ansel, at least you had a joyful day.

*