Chapter 22
Yuurai places her right hand on the man's abdomen and first activates Spirit Sight. It seems Spirit Sight is necessary to extract a soul.
With a living human, the body and soul appear properly aligned. Also, though the details are unclear, the state of the soul can be discerned.
State: Tainted. Responsible for the killing of over ten people.
(Over ten killings, huh. Depends on the circumstances, but that's easily death penalty level. Well then, no need to hold back. I'll drag out just the soul with Soul Extraction...)
"Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
"Oh? I've only pulled a little, and it's already this painful for you?"
Despite the influence of Marionette magic making it hard to even make a sound, this scream is something else. It's no ordinary cry.
"More painful than having your nails or skin peeled off? That's pretty painful too, you know. I feel for you."
Though not defeated by the man's screams, Yuurai temporarily stops the soul extraction and returns it to its original state.
The man is breathing heavily, his entire body drenched in sweat. However, his consciousness seems hazy, and it's unclear whether he even recognizes Yuurai.
(Extracting the soul causes intense pain. If I stop midway, the soul returns to the body. But can I fully extract it and then put it back?)
"Alright, one more time."
"Guaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
Ignoring the state of the man's face, which is somewhat unfit for children to see, Yuurai pulls the soul out completely. Though a thin thread still connects it to the body, the man stops moving.
(So this is what it looks like when the soul is pulled out. Since it's still connected to the body, does that mean I can return it?)
Yuurai tries to push the soul back into the body, but the soul simply passes through it.
"Ah, my power only works to extract it. Once it's fully pulled out, I can't put it back..."
If she used Undead Creation magic, she could probably return it. However, she has no intention of letting this man live on as an Undead.
"Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to kill you or anything, but since I can't put it back, there's no helping it, right? I'm curious to see what happens if I just leave it like this... but leaving a corpse unattended isn't great either. So, how about I eat it?"
Upon activating Soul Devour, the man's humanoid soul transforms into an apple-sized wisp.
"Oh, this is convenient. If it stayed in its original shape, it would've been really hard to eat."
Yuurai takes a bite of the wisp.
GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Though it's not audible as a sound, Yuurai can clearly hear the soul's screams. The wisp thrashes violently, and it seems even in this state, it can feel pain.
"Ahaha. Pain's no fun, right? Well, you've caused plenty of pain to others, so I guess it's fine, huh?"
ITAI ITAI ITAI ITAI ITAI ITAI YAMETE ITAI ITAI KURUSHII ITAI TASUKETE ITAI ITAI ITAI ITAI...
"Souls are pretty lively, huh. But the taste isn't great. It's like eating plain, unseasoned mochi. I could use some side dishes."
Yuurai takes another bite, savoring the soul slowly.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.
The screams are somehow oddly pleasant, but anyway.
As she swallows the soul, a warm sensation spreads through her body, and Yuurai feels her power growing.
(Eating souls makes me stronger... Talk about going full villain mode. After killing so many, it's not something to worry about now, I guess. But this time, it's hard to call it an accident...)
Having finished consuming one soul, Yuurai takes a breather. There's a sensation of something thrashing inside her stomach, but it soon fades.
"If it had been tasty, I might've eaten everyone's, but with this flavor, I don't think I need to go that far. You guys should be glad you didn't get eaten by me, right?"
She releases the Marionette magic on the man's empty shell. The corpse collapses to the ground, motionless.
The remaining four people grimace at the sight.
"Next up, I really want to try out Magical Remodeling properly."
Approaching another man nearby, Yuurai pats him on the shoulder.
Since he looks like he wants to say something, she temporarily allows him to speak.
"W-Wait! From now on, I'll do anything for you! Just spare my life!"
"Oh, don't worry, I never intended to take your life in the first place."
"Th-Then, what exactly are you...?"
"Just gonna tweak your body a little."
Yuurai smiles brightly.
(Before Magical Remodeling, let's do a quick Spirit Sight check.)
State: Tainted. Responsible for the killing of five people.
(Yup, out. If you weren't a killer, I might've considered otherwise, but whatever. I don't care about this one either.)
"Hey, do you have a favorite animal?"
"Huh...? Favorite animal...?"
"Dogs, cats, birds, monkeys... there are lots of options, right? What do you like?"
"...Uh, wolves."
"I see, I see. That's pretty boyish of you."
(Wolves, huh... Something like this image, maybe. Alright, Magical Remodeling.)
"Gigyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
The man's body begins to transform rapidly. Gray fur sprouts all over, and his skeletal structure shifts from human to wolf.
In just a few minutes, the transformation is complete, and the man has become a wolf. A splendid gray wolf, about one and a half meters long from head to tail.
"Nice, nice. Isn't this cooler than when you were human?"
"W-What!? What's going on!? What's happened to my body!? Why am I walking on all fours!?"
"I didn't mess with your brain, so your human consciousness is still intact. It's nice that you can still talk normally, right?"
Releasing the Marionette magic, the wolf frantically checks its body. Yuurai, as part of her maidenly habits, pulls out a hand mirror she recently started carrying and lets him see his reflection.
"So, how do you like this look?"
"D-Don't mess with me! What is this!? Turn me back! I'm human!"
"There's no way you're human. Humans don't, you know, shoot arrows at girls they've strung up."
"Shut up! Turn me back! Change me back! I don't want to live as a beast!"
"This look suits you better, don't you think?"
"I don't care if it suits me or not! Just turn me back already!"
"Nope. You can stay like that for the rest of your life."
"Hey! You damn Monster, don't get cocky!"
The wolf charges at Yuurai, attempting to bite her, but it's overwhelmingly slower than the Monsters she fought in the Dungeon. Yuurai catches the wolf by the neck with her right hand and stops it.
"I don't want to hurt people unnecessarily either, you know. If you'd shown some remorse, I might've shown a bit of mercy. But if you can't repent for your actions, then you don't need that kind of heart anymore, do you?"
"What the hell are you... ngh!"
"I've been wanting to try this too, so it's perfect. Mental Manipulation."
Make him forget he was ever something like a human.
And make him believe he's a real wolf.
However, unlike a wild wolf, ensure he never attacks humans.
"So, how's that?"
Yuurai releases the wolf.
As if the earlier resistance was a lie, the wolf lies down in front of Yuurai, showing its belly. It wags its tail and whimpers pitifully, "kuun, kuun."
"Oh, good boy, good boy. This is more like a dog than a wolf, huh. But isn't this better? I didn't set it to be obedient to me, but it's kinda attached to me anyway?"
Yuurai crouches down and rubs the wolf's belly. The wolf looks delighted.
"Ahahaha. ...Now, what should I do with the rest of you? Oh, no need to look so scared. I'm not a bad person, so I won't turn you into something so hideous it's unthinkable in this world and make you live as beings scorned by humans... or at least, I'm just thinking about it. Hmm, but making a beast with a human face or turning you into a human-shaped plant could be fun, right? You could be pampered as a sideshow. Let's test the potential of Magical Remodeling with you guys."
Yuurai stands up and smiles at the remaining three.
"I'm not gonna kill you guys. Brace yourselves."