A Villain's Way of Taming Heroines

Seraphina’s mind was, in fact, crystal clear. She was indulging unreservedly in the greed and ambition within her heart. The dragon’s body, pulsating with endless high-purity ether and flesh, was her perfect sustenance.

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This was not merely about feeding; more crucially, it was about using her wolf pack to sever or even destroy the dragon’s internal ether circulation, rendering it prey beneath her fangs and claws.

However, Seraphina, in her heightened excitement, surging desire, and bloodlust, had fallen into an old habit.

— How could she possibly believe that a dragon – an apex supernatural being at the pinnacle of the fifth tier, the ultimate monster unreachable by non-divine species – could be taken down by mere frenzied blood and confidence?

“Zah!”

A thick, sharp syllable erupted from the ice-blue dragon’s throat. In the next moment, the look of cruelty and ferocity on Seraphina’s face instantly froze. Both the Head of Wind and her innate supernatural instincts frantically warned her to evade, but as the roaring sound waves swept in all directions, stirring up a tempest, her body was already immobilized.

The colossal being, with wings spanning over a hundred meters, lowered its head. Its dark golden vertical pupils flickered with irritation and rage at being gnawed upon by an insect.

Seraphina, instantly restrained, could sense the wolf pack ceaselessly ravaging within the dragon’s body being gradually… obliterated.

Penetrating the dragon’s natural ethereal membrane was already an inconceivable miracle, but to imagine disrupting the dragon’s internal ether circulation with a ravenous, murderous wolf pack was pure delusion.

This creature predated human history, reigning as the continent’s sovereign for hundreds of thousands, if not millions of years. Its evolution over eons had pushed it towards unparalleled perfection. The internal ether circulation within the dragon, unfathomable to human warriors even after lifetimes of study, was merely an innate gift.

This gift, honed through ages of trials and refinement, had reached near invincibility at the apex of the fifth stage.

Slaying a fifth-stage dragon required enormous resources, representing a earth-shattering hunt and battle. Even the Devouring of the Beast King, even the power that could challenge the Dragon King in the future, couldn’t breach this draconic mountain at mere peak third-stage.

And subduing Seraphina? Subduing this third-stage ant, whose destructive power, though astonishing, was ultimately limited – what challenge did that pose?

The ice-blue dragon’s vertical pupils reflected the tiny being it had restrained. In moments, the rage in its eyes dissipated.

None would invest much emotion in an ant. As the anger from being gnawed upon faded, only indifference remained.

It didn’t even bother to summon the shockwave capable of shattering mountaintops and demolishing cities. Instead, it simply raised its claw, descending like collapsing heavens towards the immobilized Seraphina.

The best way to deal with an insect, naturally, was to crush it underfoot.

Seraphina raised her head, watching the massive claw about to crush her alive.

In her seemingly mindless, frenzied dark red snake eyes, a glimmer of light flashed.

*

Today I realized something big. The trouble with those mean people isn’t really about them, it’s about the stuff behind them.

Grown-up things are way more complicated than they look.

Like, if I help regular folks too much, they might rely on me too much. And if I only look for nice people to work with, I might miss out on the ones who can actually get things done. But if I’m too picky, I might end up with nobody to help me at all.

There are so many not-so-nice people out there, and only a few good ones. Even the good ones who work hard to get to the top have their own wants. Most people don’t do things just to be nice. The Empire is like a big, stinky trash can, but without it, lots of people would be in big trouble…I’ve known about these.

Ansel taught me all this stuff.

But does that mean I was wrong? Should I have just kept quiet and bowed down to those mean people?

Was I wrong to help others when they needed it? Was I wrong to have to find kind and upright people to govern the city? Was I silly to think that everything would be okay if I just tried to help?

Am I… just a silly, stuck-up kid who can’t grow up and wake up from my fairy tale dreams?

No, that’s not right! I hate those big meanies who think they’re better than everyone else. I don’t want people to have such hard lives. I don’t think my ideas are wrong.

I only made one mistake.

I’m not strong enough yet. My power isn’t big enough. I haven’t eaten enough… stuff.

If I’m strong enough, then I’m right. That’s it.

Ansel is right, but all his criticisms only matter because I’m not strong enough yet. If I were super strong, even Ansel couldn’t find fault with me.

If I were strong enough, I wouldn’t let this stupid lizard mess up my fight with Ansel. I could show Ansel that I’ve already… already…

The thirst for power burgeoned wildly within Seraphina Marlowe’s soul, the beast fused with her innermost being howling incessantly. Yet, as she faced the specter of death once more, even in this state of ultimate bestial frenzy, with her yearning for strength at its zenith… the gates to the fourth stage remained stubbornly sealed.

Ansel could not discern the reason, nor could Seraphina herself.

Why? The threshold of power had been reached, her desire had surpassed all limits, and her mastery of bestial elements had transcended the constraints of her tier. She had already harnessed the breath of murderous devouring – a skill that should only be accessible at the fourth stage – commanding wolf packs that swept through all and devoured ether.

This proved her comprehension of the elements was flawless.

What precisely… held her back, preventing even the slightest advancement?

Ansel…What would Ansel do in this situation?

If it were Ansel, he would surely have found the answer by now. He undoubtedly knows it already but withholds it to allow me to breakthrough on my own.

He always thinks I have done well enough, but I never feel it is enough. If I have truly done well enough, if I have been good enough, many things wouldn’t have—

If it were Ansel, if it were Ansel, he would…

…Why, Ansel?

As the dragon’s claw was about to crush her like an insignificant ant, this thought suddenly surfaced in the wolf’s mind.

Why, at this moment, was my desire still connected with… Ansel?

After all, I simply want to become stronger.

*