I Reincarnated as a Noble Bastard, So I'm Seducing All the Villainess
Chapter 47: Testing the Powers of Shadows

Chapter 47: Testing the Powers of Shadows

What a strange feeling being near her. The ritual itself went well, and now my dear Ravenna is here practicing magic in a room normally used by mages for study, but there’s something very, very wrong.

She seems to have calmed down, or perhaps, become less violent. Is it a phenomenon similar to having some kind of enlightenment where she just becomes wiser? I’m not sure, but that’s what it looks like.

The elf Illonar left early, saying his duty was done and he intended to return to the elf kingdom. I asked for an escort to accompany him. I might be a son of a bitch, but I won’t be ungrateful for someone’s help.

With that resolved, we need to check the firepower Ravenna gained after the ritual, which in itself is making me a bit anxious.

If she really got stronger, does that mean she can go head-to-head with Leonhardt? No, I don’t think so. That guy’s cheats are too absurd for just a power-up like this to solve.

Anyway, let’s get straight to the point, better to inform myself than beat around the bush.

"Hey, can you tell me exactly what happened in there?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because it’s intimate and very personal. you don’t need to understand."

Seriously?! The thing most portrayed as dark, edgy, and all that is going to be rubbed in my face like this? Go to hell, I finally wanted to satisfy my curiosity, and now I’ll have to do it myself to find out?! Hah, honestly, what a shitty novel.

"Then can you at least show me your... thing? What was its name?"

"It doesn’t have a name. It’s a shadowy spirit that saved me a few months ago, that’s all."

"Damn, your sense is ridiculous, you won’t even name a friend or pet?"

"It’s not a pet."

"But you said it was when you first showed me..."

Hah. I give up trying to understand this woman.

Ravenna proceeded to explain exactly what happened to the contract with the creature and how they were able to ascend to the next level. First, the Silver Scar ritual functions as a spiritual reconstruction for those who perform it, allowing them to perceive nuances in magic and the spiritual world.

The nameless shadowy spirit, previously a bone serpent, maintained the same appearance, only it became much larger, to the point that she preferred not to summon it in that room because it was quite cramped. Wait, are we talking about a huge beast? Wasn’t that thing tiny?

"Hey, clear something up for me, when you summoned it to fight the handsome guy there" I point to Leonhardt behind us, "wasn’t the serpent a tiny little animal?"

"Not necessarily. The spirit has an undefined size, but now it refuses to change when summoned."

"And is it possible for it to refuse things like that?"

"Common spirits don’t have egos, so it’s usually impossible, but... after completing the ritual, my spirit acquired a kind of consciousness. Sometimes we talk mentally, and its manner is very... annoying."

This is new. I mean, conscious spirits exist in Sword of The Iron Maiden, but they appear alongside elves or very powerful characters in the story, and I’ve never seen one "become" a conscious spirit.

Still, Ravenna’s eyes are brimming with curiosity to test her new spells. You can see static flowing through her fingers at a crazy speed from pure eagerness.

You really can’t hide it, even with that poker face, huh?!

I step back a few paces, using Leonhardt as a human shield to make sure I don’t get fried just by watching.

The particular room in the palace is usually where the big-shot mages from the Magistracy of Sages come to test new spells or theories when they can’t just detonate acres of land. In other words, this place is like a bunker designed to survive nuclear explosions.

Since the king’s not around, Duke Moonlight runs everything, so I asked to use the room, and we got in no problem. The thing is, I’m starting to regret that choice.

Ravenna raises her hands, that silver-blue glow engulfs her back, revealing a series of white lines pumping her body with enormous magical energy.

Leonhardt stiffens his stance and rests a hand on the sword at his waist, gesturing with one hand to conjure a golden barrier over us. Oh, crap, this is serious, we’re definitely going to die here!

The witch snaps her fingers, and dozens of fireballs with black flames erupt into the air, moving back and forth at high speed, only to smash against one of the walls, causing a series of tremors on the floor, followed by a curtain of purple smoke. Honestly, what worries me most is the cost of destroying one of these walls.

Ravenna doesn’t stop at just fireballs, with another snap, the static running down her arm converges into a series of deafening lightning bolts zigzagging through the room as if on remote control.

"Interesting...", she murmurs to herself, apparently impressed with her own power. "It’s a strange lightness, but I feel it wasn’t the evocations themselves that improved. Of course, they’re much more potent than before, but I feel I can use my pact’s powers for something else..."

Stop mumbling to yourself like a lunatic! It’s gross to see you nibbling on your fingernail in excitement and looking at things with such fascination!

Ravenna takes two steps forward. The room lights flickered as if the entire space was about to be swallowed by some anomaly, but it was just the way energy flowed from her now, bending the laws of space around her.

With a single gentle gesture of her hand, the shadows on the floor began to stretch into shapes that seemed erratic at first glance... until they gained symmetry.

Before us, small, meticulously detailed structures rose, all made of pure solidified shadow: pillars, bridges, twisted columns, a tower with spiral stairs, a huge mansion, a village descending a hillside. It was as if she were building a miniature city, a functional fucking model made of darkness. How does that work? I have no idea, it’s magic!

"What are you doing?"

"A reproduction of my parents’ mansion within the Galbraith marquisate. It’s based on my memory, might be a bit off considering it’s been a good few years since I last visited the place."

Suddenly, Ravenna dissolved. Literally. Her body crumbled into black mist and slid through the shadows of the room. Where did she go? As I looked around, I found Ravenna walking with her feet stuck to the wall, defying the laws of gravity.

"Quite useful, indeed."

Before I could react, she vanished again. Another Ravenna emerged from the other side of the room, an exact replica, except for her pitch-black skin and eyes burning with purplish hues.

"Clones now? That gives me some cool ideas now..."

"They are just temporary projections", replied the original, who was sitting atop the miniature model, her feet swinged as if on a playground. "They don’t have a mind of their own, but I can swap places, teleport or use them as a shield if necessary."

She raised her hands again. The ambient light was swallowed by a thick mist, reducing visibility to almost zero. It was so bad that you couldn’t even see the magic lamps hidden beneath the glass panels.

I’m a coward, I’ve never liked horror games, and this scenario is just like one.

A figure crosses the mist. Hey, hey, stop! You stop this bullshit!

Ah, she seems to have read my thoughts, because the figure disintegrated... Hmm?

"KWAAAAA!!"

My God, that’s why I hate horror games, I just screamed like a little girl! Reflexively, I jumped back and hit Leonhardt’s back, and from then on, everything went wrong.

The inquisitor moved in a blur. His sword glinted in a golden arc and only didn’t take Ravenna’s head off because she dissolved into mist faster. The cut passed through the illusion as if slicing through a veil of smoke, making everything disperse with the force of the blow.

"Are you crazy?!" I yelled, finally brave enough to deepen my voice and kicking the idiot’s shin.

"I thought it was an assassin..."

Assassin my ass, you jerk! Are you trying to ruin all my effort for nothing?!

Ravenna reappeared on the other side of the room, now without the same curious sparkle as before. Her expression was neutral, perhaps slightly annoyed. Not irritated nor offended, just disappointed.

"It was just a scare, idiot", she murmured. "I wanted to see if your heart was still working."

"If you try to touch me like that again, I’ll show no mercy", Leonhardt warned, without lowering his sword.

Ugh, what a heavy atmosphere. The room, once full of static and excitement, was now plunged into an almost unbearable tension. I try to take a deep breath, but I feel my chest tighten, a consequence of my heart still disoriented from the fright.

"Enough. Ravenna, stop this bullshit. Leonhardt, lower that sword before someone dies."

Both stared at me. Hey, stop staring at me so much, I’m not an exhibitionist with rippling abs to get so many looks!

The inquisitor finally lowers and sheathes his weapon. Ravenna crosses her arms and jumps off the miniature model, dissolving the construction into a vapor.

"Test concluded, then. It’s enough, I’ll come here alone a few times to practice myself. I need to get used to these new uses."

"And I almost saw my life flash before my eyes, so do it far away from me."

She smirked. That mischievous little smile, similar to the ones I received when my life was hanging by a thread in the Scorn. Hah, I’m betting my chips on the biggest chance of failure in the world...