Mylora had hacked off one of her own fingers to free herself from the system.
Torina stared at her, speechless.
The protagonist in the original story was ruthless toward others.
The protagonist before her was ruthless toward herself.
“...Didn’t it hurt?”
“I found a doctor right away. The bleeding stopped without trouble, and there was no infection.”
“But... Uh... Er...”
Such a delicate, lovely girl had severed her own finger...
Just looking at it made Torina’s heart ache.
“More importantly—please let me rejoin the team! I’ve made a clean break with it. Literally.”
“I want to apologize to you. I’ll apologize to Ji Xue once she wakes up too!”
“If you’re still angry, you can punish me however you want. I did something wrong, so I deserve punishment.”
“You can do anything you want to me!”
“A-Anything I want... meaning?”
“I know! Y-You’re one of those, aren’t you?!”
Even the tips of Mylora’s ears turned scarlet. Her voice trembled from overwhelming embarrassment.
Yet to prove the sincerity of her apology, she shouted it out anyway.
“I know you’re a fetish-loving, lustful, sadistic, carnivorous exhibitionist! A silver-haired, party-crazed lesbian witch!”
“But it’s fine! I’m mentally prepared!!!”
“Is that really what you think I am?????”
“Uh... aren’t you?”
“I’m not!!! I-I haven’t even—”
The words “I have zero experience” almost slipped out.
Torina stopped herself just in time.
Being single across two lifetimes was hardly something worth bragging about.
What mattered now was calling Naji over to examine Mylora’s severed finger. Everything else could wait!
“Ahem!”
With that thought, Torina cleared her throat with feigned nobility.
She spoke in the tone of a villainous young lady.
“You tell me to have my way with you, and I’m supposed to obey? Who’d be enjoying that, you or me?”
“I’m a great noble of House Dewell. Other people serve me, never the other way around!”
“So put your clothes on and go have Naji look at your fing—”
“...You mean you prefer being passive?”
“Huh?”
“I-I’ve only read about it in those... books I found in the trash.”
“But I understand a little... Fine. If that’s what you want... I’ll do my best!”
“Huh???”
Holding back her shame, Mylora pounced like a hunting cat.
Before Torina knew what was happening, she’d been pinned underneath her.
Riiip!
Her gauzy nightgown was torn open.
Before she could resist, Mylora reached out—
Boing~
“...”
“...”
“......”
“......”
“...Why aren’t you reacting? The girls in those books started howling after one little touch...”
“You actually believed that nonsense...?”
Poke, poke. Her stomach.
“Nothing?”
“No.”
Poke, poke. Her waist.
“Still nothing?”
“No.”
Poke, poke. Her thigh.
“Still nothing?”
“No.”
Poke, poke. Her collarbone.
“Still nothing...?”
“Nope.”
Torina didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
She’d read a few gender-bender stories in her past life too.
The protagonists who became girls always had paper-thin defenses. Two random touches made them howl like someone had pressed a detonator.
Reality wasn’t like that at all.
Torina knew her own body best.
However—
“What about here?”
Poke, poke. Her butt.
“Eek?!”
“Huh?”
“Ah...”
“...”
“...”
“...You twitched just now, didn’t you?”
“...No. You imagined it.”
“...”
Poke.
“Eeeeeek!!!!”
“You definitely twitched...”
“I didn’t! I absolutely didn’t! I would never—”
Poke, poke, poke.
“Nyah?! Stop poking! Stop, stop, stop, stop!”
“What an unexpected weak spot... Your butt should have the thickest layer of fat and the fewest nerves. How strange...”
“I told you, you imagined it! Now—get off me! Stop pinning me down!”
“I haven’t even said I forgive you—”
“Th-That’s exactly why I need to compensate you!”
“I’ll prove how sincere I am!”
“Stop! Yamerooooo!”
————————
Early the next morning, Annawiel entered the inn’s kitchen.
Like an overbearing housekeeper supervising the staff, she forced the cooks to prepare a lavish breakfast.
Her heart was in turmoil.
Her emotions kept bouncing between hesitation and eager anticipation.
Without a doubt, Torina and Mylora had fallen out.
And without a doubt, Torina had kicked Mylora out afterward.
For Annawiel, that was incredible news.
Yet Torina had looked utterly dejected last night. It had been heartbreaking to see.
So the opportunity had arrived.
She could launch an all-out offensive while Torina was vulnerable.
She could soothe Torina’s disappointment while raising her affection at the same time.
For the awkward and contrary Annawiel, that was nearly impossible.
But she had to try.
She couldn’t keep cowering forever.
Annawiel put on a beautiful dress and personally carried the breakfast tray upstairs.
Outside the door, she cleared her throat and knocked softly.
There was no answer.
That woman was probably still asleep, right?
Then Annawiel would surprise her.
D-Don’t misunderstand!
She wasn’t taking advantage of Torina’s vulnerability!
She was merely concerned about their leader. If their leader stayed depressed, it would negatively affect the entire team!
While muttering excuses inside her head, Annawiel pushed open the door.
“How did your butt get so big and your thighs so soft, while your calves stayed this slender...?”
Knead, knead, knead.
“D-Don’t say my butt is big! I’m really self-conscious about it! Waaaah...”
“But it’s the truth...”
Knead, knead, knead, knead.
“I told you to stop! Waaaah, yamerooooo!”
Mylora was sitting on Torina’s back, unleashing a barrage of kitty punches on her rear.
“................”
Annawiel fell silent.
She must have opened the door incorrectly.
She closed it, placed the tray by her feet, and rubbed her eyes.
Then she opened it again.
“Mm, my hands are getting sore... But I’ll keep trying until you’re satisfied!”
Rapid-Fire Kitty Butt-Massaging Combo—with Cleave!
“$#@￥+^@&+%$#&!”
Torina let out a muffled, inhuman shriek.
“What the hell are you two doing?!?!”
““Ah.””
...
...
...
...
Half an hour later—
“Mm. It was severed cleanly, and the cut is neat. The bleeding was stopped quickly too.”
“I’ll add a blessing to reduce inflammation and prevent infection. Be careful not to get it wet when you bathe.”
Naji examined the now-dressed Mylora’s wound.
There were no major problems.
Torina, whose rear had been kneaded swollen, watched from the side and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Then Mylora solemnly apologized to the newly awakened Ji Xue.
“I’m terribly sorry! I was desperate for quick results, listened to malicious advice, and did something foolish!”
“Huh...? It’s fine. All’s well that ends well.”
Ji Xue truly had a wonderful temper.
Everyone was safe, and the boss had been defeated.
So she readily accepted the apology.
“Hold on. What exactly happened?” Annawiel demanded. “At least explain everything from start to finish!”
The way she glared at Mylora made it seem as if she were staring at a r*pist.
Mylora straightforwardly explained everything.
She’d trusted the wrong person, listened to malicious advice, and then all sorts of things had happened.
However, she didn’t explain the ring or the system in detail.
She merely said she’d “encountered a swindler.”
After all, an ancient talking ring sounded far too ridiculous.
Mylora now seemed to view the system as an evil spirit that tempted people into corruption.
Torina couldn’t be bothered to correct her.
In essence, it really wasn’t that different from an evil spirit.
“And... I know this may sound shameless, but I sincerely hope I can return to the team.”
“I hope everyone can... accept me.”
Her face reddened.
She lowered her head and spoke cautiously.
“Sure! Just be more careful from now on!”
“Oho, welcome back.”
“No objections here.”
Ji Xue, Lachesis, and Patti naturally had no objections.
“Huh? You still want to work as our errand girl?”
“That depends on the boss.”
“Whatever...”
Naji, Ranifi, and Lindas seemed to find it a little awkward, but none of them openly objected.
“Well, I’ve already seen her sincerity.”
“Personally, I also admire the potential she possesses. So I agree to let her rejoin the team.”
Torina had no reason to object.
This outcome was already an enormous surprise.
The protagonist had severed her connection with the system of her own accord.
Now she was cuddling up to Torina, the malicious young lady, instead.
Whether Torina considered the bigger picture or her private desires, the whole situation felt amazing.
“I object!”
The only dissenting voice came from a visibly displeased Annawiel.
“Forgive me for being blunt, but won’t rejoining us feel awkward?”
“If you want to remain an adventurer, wouldn’t joining another team be better?”
“You shouldn’t have many pleasant memories of our team, should you?”
Annawiel asked a question that struck straight at the soul.
Her words weren’t pleasant, but they made sense.
Naji, Ranifi, and Lindas nodded in agreement.
Mylora fell silent for a moment.
Then—
She slowly reached out and hooked her little finger around Torina’s wrist.
“Because Torina is my benefactor.”
“I feel safe when she’s around...”
As she spoke, her voice grew softer.
Her face also became redder and redder.
Even Torina felt embarrassed by the atmosphere.
What was with this little-girlfriend vibe...?
As for everyone’s beloved Miss Annawiel, she was already overheating.
“Will you two stop flirting right in front of me?!”
——————
——————
——————
Several hours later—
The system was still cursing beneath the earth when it suddenly sensed vibrations overhead.
After a burst of noise, sunlight abruptly fell upon the ring.
Someone had dug it up.
The system was instantly overjoyed!
There was always a way out!
Wonderful! Wonderful!
Now, who was the lucky person who’d discovered this perfect strategic support system—
“You buried it pretty deep.”
“Deeper is better, just in case.”
“But there’s still a risk that a large monster might dig it up. Let me add some insurance.”
Huh?
The system looked up.
Torina was peering into the hole with a wicked grin.
The system’s world went dark.
【Torina Dewell! You goddamn—】
“Bye-bye~”
An ice rune flashed.
A massive block of solid ice froze the ring and severed finger together.
A lightning strike followed, blasting them even deeper underground.
Torina filled the pit with earth.
Then she soaked it with a water rune and froze it with an ice rune, turning the ground as hard as stone.
“That should do it. Let’s go, let’s go~”
“I’ll have a prosthetic finger custom-made for you tomorrow~”
“Okay~”
The two left happily.
As for the system—
【TORINA!!! DEWELL!!!】
【KILLING YOU!!! A THOUSAND TIMES!!! STILL WOULDN’T BE ENOUGH!!!!!!!!】
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Banished Villainess Wants to Cuddle with the Phoenix Overlord
Volume One: Lady Torina Doesn’t Want the Protagonist to Absolutely Destroy Her
—End—
Next Volume: Lady Torina Wants to Raise a Phoenix Overlord
