Crushing flags and claiming the Villainess - Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Chapter 40- Catastrophe(End)
One of the Seven Tools of Destruction, a title given to Shiverfall, born when Valerie pushed her Shard beyond what any mortal should ever achieve.

A skill that defies all comprehensibility and goes beyond any rankings. There are numerous ice users, but none could be compared to the one who cannot only freeze the physical world but influence the soul of a being.

Having the ability to freeze time for eternity around a certain region was the mechanism of Stasis.

In the original timeline, Valerie used it after a lot of research and deliberate practice. However, in this life, the agitation she felt upon seeing the Shard of her beloved getting snapped…his Soul receiving the damage, forced her body and Soul to reveal her Godly side.

….

The air around Valerie turned heavy, an unnatural stillness spreading outward. Her eyes, cold and devoid of emotion, locked onto the Illusion Monkey.

The beast hesitated, its instincts screaming danger. Its illusions flickered erratically, unable to take form. It screeched, panic rising as if sensing an inescapable doom.

Valerie raised her Shard, her movements deliberate yet unnervingly calm. The temperature plummeted, frost creeping along the ground, crackling like brittle glass.

The monkey lunged, desperate to escape, but its body froze mid-motion. Time itself seemed to grind to a halt, the beast’s limbs suspended in the air, its terrified eyes wide and unblinking.

Austin, who was helping Rhea to stop her bleeding, had his eyes widened as he looked at the girl.

The mark of a snowflake spread across the whole forest, marking the wilderness within her range of influence as the Monkey was left nowhere to run.

Without a word, Valerie raised her hand. A circle of radiant frost formed beneath the monkey, spiraling upward with glacial precision. The light within the frost burned brighter, an aurora of gold and white that was beautiful yet suffocating, like the gaze of an unforgiving deity.

The monkey’s body contorted, frozen mid-scream as the frost encased it. Time itself bent around the creature, its movements slowing to an agonizing crawl until nothing remained but silence.

The frost reached its apex, encasing the beast entirely. A sharp crack split the air as the icy sculpture glowed brilliantly for one horrifying moment—then shattered into a million sparkling fragments, scattering like divine judgment.

There was no resistance since the S-rank beast was never allowed to retaliate against the immortal strength of the being who was supposed to become one of the strongest entities that could rival demigods.

Austin watched her in astonishment and admiration as Valerie ended the Catastrophe in just a few seconds.

‘The power that can make even a God envy…damn…she is strong.’ Austin was brought back to his senses as Valerie knelt before him, and asked,

“Do you feel alright, my lord? It doesn’t hurt anywhere, right? I will bring you to the church right away-” However, her words were interrupted,

“I…am dying…here…” Rhea groaned, unable to believe that she was being ignored even in her final moments.

Valerie narrowed her eyes and took out a potion. It was glowing with a cyan shade which she instantly poured over Rhea’s wound and said, “You will be fine now.”

Rhea indeed felt better as the warm liquid seeped inside her wounds, and healed her damaged organs. If not for her being awakened, the wound she received might have taken her life by now.

“Thanks…” Rhea muttered, “…well, you injured me so I guess there is no need to thank you.”

Valerie remained silent, however, she was frustrated to see the girl resting her head on her beloved’s thigh.

Austin, who was unaware of the reason behind her displeasure, said, “It’s okay now, Val, you have defeated the foe.”

A soft smile bloomed on her face, as Valerie said, “We defeated it…Austin. You protected me at that time, or I might have lost.”

Although Austin knew that Valerie would have been fine even if she had taken that hit, he didn’t say anything to correct her. It was a part of her, to appreciate his little efforts.

However, even though Austin wasn’t able to do much during the battle, he learned several things watching the two powerhouses fight.

He has a long way to go, and fortunately, he has someone who can guide him on that path.

**SHATTER**

Everyone turned their eyes toward the sky as fragments of the barrier fell but disintegrated into nothingness before hitting the tree.

“The barrier seems to be lifted…” Austin muttered. He was aware of who chanted that barrier and planned on harming the students today.

‘It’s time to bring that man into light…’

——-**——

The students were evacuated and were carried to the infirmary. Since there were not many beds, various students were getting treated in their rooms.

Thankfully, there was enough supply and infirmary staff to handle the situation. And upon the call from the Headmaster, the church workers also arrived to help Austin rebuild his Shard.

Laying on his bed, Austin was recovering just like any other student, and beside his bed was the familiar grey-haired butler.

“I feel so useless these days, my Lord…”

Hearing the man sigh and looking older than his age, Austin felt bad, “It wasn’t like you purposely chose to not protect me.”

Sebastian didn’t say anything but he still was quite disheartened to find his Young Master getting injured so regularly these days.

While Austin munched on the diced apples, Sebastian gave him, he asked, “What happened, Sebas? Why wasn’t there any interference from the teachers?”

Sebastian continued to apply cooling ointment to his master’s wound as he said, “For the initial few moments, no one noticed any chances, including me. However, the moment I realized the excessive serenity of the surroundings, I knew something was suspicion.”

“Then? Did you try to break the barrier?” Austin was aware of the person behind this barrier, but how they prevented the others from damaging the spell from the outside was not within his knowledge.

Sebastian explained, “It was an ancient spell that witches used to utilize at the time of war between civilizations. Since Witches have always been secluded beings, who did not ever want to meddle with others’ businesses, they always chanted these kinds of barriers around their town, which prevented any outside forces from disturbing them.”

Taking a pause, he added, “The distinctive feature of this kind of barrier is that the more one tries to break it from the outside, the stronger the barrier gets.”

Austin raised his brows, “Were witches peace-loving creatures.”

Sebastian smiled, a mocking one it seemed, as he said, “If you anger a witch, or harm someone close to them, even if that thing is trivial in your eyes, then there could be nothing more dangerous than a Witch. They are one vengeful creature.”

Austin was surprised to hear that, as he asked, “Are there still witches around?”

Sebastian nodded, “Witches can travel through space and time, and they age extremely slowly, compared to us humans. Some say that witches are nothing but myth. But I believe that they are still around.”

———-**———

A/N:- Thanks for reading.