The women I set free are obsessed with me

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Karami, who had heartlessly thrown away Mirabelle's shackles, began to walk past her indifferently.

Mirabelle, who had been standing in a daze as if struck by a hammer, barely managed to gather her senses. She ran towards Karami—

But first went to pick up the shackles that had been thrown far away.

She needed to pick up the shackles, but none of her hands were free.

Her right hand held the staff.

Her left hand held the grimoire.

As she hesitated, Karami was getting further and further away.

Mirabelle tossed the grimoire behind her and grabbed the shackles. Then she hurriedly caught up to Karami, who was still walking away.

"Master? Master?"

No matter how many times she called, he didn't stop.

Even when she tried to block his path, he just walked around her.

The dream of liberation was slipping away.

The anxiety of being alone again.

The small spark of fear grew uncontrollably, consuming her soul. All color drained from her face, her already pale skin turning corpse-like.

As her vision darkened along with her fading consciousness, Mirabelle finally realized that the situation had gone terribly wrong.

"Master─!"

She tried to run again but fell flat on her face. Mirabelle scrambled to her feet without even bothering to dust herself off. Throwing aside anything that got in her way, she clung desperately to Karami's waist with all her might.

"Master, I'm sorry! I won't do it again!"

"No. From now on, live as you please. You are no longer my slave."

"I don't want that! I want to be your slave! I'll be a good slave! I'll listen well from now on!"

But Karami did not stop.

Mirabelle, being dragged along, pleaded with tears and snot running down her face.

Was this truly the same girl who had been wreaking destruction just moments ago?

Even those whose lives had been threatened clicked their tongues and looked on with pity, as if watching a child being abandoned by their parents.

"I was wrong! I just wanted to be praised! I won't overstep my bounds again!"

"…"

"Please don't abandon me! I don't want to be alone again!"

Finally, when those words left Mirabelle's mouth—

Halts.

—Karami stopped walking. He turned his head to look back. Mirabelle, who had been dragged along, was hanging at a 45-degree angle, looking up at him from that position.

Their eyes met at an angle.

"Will you really listen well?"

"Hic… Yes, sniff. I-I'll listen well."

"You won't use magic recklessly?"

"I won't."

"Do you promise?"

"I… Hic… I… promise."

Karami made Mirabelle stand up straight and then knelt down. He held out his pinky finger.

"Promise."

"P-Promise."

"Stamp."

"S-Stamp."

"Sign."

"Sign…?"

Only after going through all of that did Karami seem satisfied, smiling slightly.

"Since you're begging so much, I suppose I have no choice. Very well. I will put my trust in Miss Mirabelle one last time."

"Th-Thank you…"

Karami waved lightly to Myra, who was watching from afar. Myra stared blankly, as if in great shock.

Meanwhile, Karami let out a sigh of relief that others couldn't hear.

Wow, that actually worked.

***

Mirabelle awakening as a witch at this point was completely unexpected. Because of that, it was practically impossible to stop her rampage.

If this had been the game, it would have been game over right there.

But now this was reality.

Our actions weren't limited to predetermined scenarios, unlimited interactions were possible without restrictions.

If something happened that didn't occur in the game, all we had to do was use methods that were outside the box.

What I came up with was Mirabelle's defining trait itself.

[Mirabelle, the Abandoned Witch]

Having been abandoned before, Mirabelle developed a dependence on her master which was as powerful as a drill that would pierce the heavens.

It usually took considerable time for affection to reach that level, but for some reason, Mirabelle's affection for me was already maxed out. So I took advantage of it.

Operation Name:

—Mirabelle Live Here, Master Is Leaving.

As soon as I put the plan into action, Mirabelle reacted immediately. When she fell, it really felt like my heart was being torn apart.

I almost couldn't resist hugging her. It was a miracle I held back.

I examined Mirabelle's condition. Her maid outfit was dirty with dust in various places, and her face was covered in bodily fluids. I smiled bitterly as I dusted her off.

Next, I took out a handkerchief and held it to Mirabelle's nose.

"Blow."

"Hnnng!"

"Good. Now the other side."

"Hnnnk!"

Wipe, wipe.

I folded the used handkerchief neatly and put it in my pocket. I'd have to wash it later. If I threw it away here because it was dirty, how hurt would she be?

Finally, I wiped away her tears, and only then did Mirabelle start to look more like her usual self.

Her eyes were still bloodshot and red, and she was still sniffling, but well, she was such a pretty child that even these weren't flaws. They only stimulated my desire to protect her.

Now I need to deal with the aftermath…

Though it was overwhelming to figure out where to start, I just had to tackle it step by step. I was about to return to the people who were still wary of us.

Tug, tug.

Mirabelle pulled on my sleeve.

"What is it?"

"Th-This…"

Sniffling, Mirabelle held out the shackles, her hands trembling. She seemed to have wiped off the dirt, as they were now shiny.

She wanted me to put them back on. I had considered getting rid of them at this opportunity, but since Mirabelle treasured them so much, I couldn't bring myself to do as I pleased.

In the end, I put the shackles back on Mirabelle's neck, and she felt around to make sure they were properly fastened. Only then did her trembling stop.

After calming Mirabelle down, I took her to apologize to everyone. Mirabelle bowed deeply at a 90-degree angle.

"I-I'm very sorry. I won't cause trouble again."

"Trouble…? This…?"

People looked stunned, then turned to look at me. Their eyes seemed to ask if this was really okay.

Well. This much counts as trouble. Originally, an entire city would have disappeared, but only a few buildings were destroyed, so…

Although Mirabelle had apologized, her cuteness alone was far from enough to resolve the situation. They all glared at us with hostility.

Well, this is where I, as her master, need to step in.

"Wow~ I've never dreamed my slave would have such a talent for magic."

"You call that an explanation? How do you intend to clean up this mess?! Even if you forfeit your lives, it won't be enough!"

The lord of Delphine shouted, spittle flying.

I reassured Mirabelle by patting her head when she shrank down as if trying to crawl into an anthill.

"Let's first assess the damage. Then we can discuss how to resolve this."

"Ugh…"

The lord left a small number of people to watch us and sent the rest to assess the current situation. Soon, people returned with their reports.

"From what we have confirmed, most of the damage is to property, and there's virtually no loss of life. It's truly a miracle."

Mirabelle must have exercised some control even during her rampage.

It fits her mindset that innocent people shouldn't be harmed. But it's okay to kill daddy, mm-hmm.

"The problem is with the mages… They're not improving even with treatment. Their soul appears to have departed from their body."

So earlier, they really were souls.

I told her to learn magic to communicate with souls, but she learned how to extract them? They say kids grow up fast, but she always exceeded my expectations.

I would like to praise her, but unfortunately, now wasn't the right time.

"Miss Mirabelle, what did you do with their souls?"

"I-I have them. I was going to liberate them if Master ordered…"

Soul liberation means death, doesn't it?

This child's saying such brutal things so casually.

I wonder who taught her this way, geez.

"Can you return them to normal?"

"J-Just a moment…"

As Mirabelle moved her hand, souls popped out of thin air and flowed back into their respective bodies.

Oh…?

With just that, can I also TS into a beautiful young girl?

Should I ask her to try it on me?

While I was pondering this once-in-a-lifetime dilemma, the collapsed people began to regain consciousness one by one. They still seemed a bit out of it, looking around with dazed expressions.

"What… just happened?"

"I… was flying in the sky. Soaring freely like a bird…"

"Ahh, all the knowledge I've been cramming in my study room was meaningless. I need to start my studies anew. The subject will be… yes. Liberation."

The mages had expressions like enlightened immortals. Some were even shedding tears.

Then suddenly, their gazes all turned to Mirabelle at once. Their eyes widened to the point of almost popping out, and they knelt before her.

"Child, where did you learn such magic?"

"Little one, won't you cast it on me one more time? If you want money, I'll give you as much as you want!"

"Me too! N-No, twice as much for me!"

These magic-obsessed lunatics. I should have made them experience astral projection permanently.

Still, thanks to this, it seemed they wouldn't scold Mirabelle just for extracting a few souls.

Clap.

In this chaotic situation, I clapped my hands to draw attention.

"Now, all that's left is the property damage."

***

Clunk.

I placed a pouch of gold coins in front of the lord.

After checking the contents of the pouch, the lord looked back and forth between the pouch and me so quickly it left afterimages.

"W-What is all this?"

"Two thousand gold coins. This should be more than enough to compensate the victims and have some left over."

My remaining points were 21,000.

I think I had about 27,000 when I left the kingdom, but after buying items, staying at expensive inns, and eating good food, it disappeared in no time.

Item performance is good, but they're certainly expensive.

Spending 20,000 points in this situation was a painful expense, but being stingy here would be foolish. Trying to haggle would only make the situation worse.

By giving an amount far exceeding the compensation, I was forcing a settlement.

When a child does wrong, it's the guardian's role to take responsibility. I would get a lot of points when I liberated Mirabelle anyway, so if I thought of it as an investment cost, there was nothing to regret.

I'd just have to be a bit more frugal until then.

"W-With this much… hm, it should be enough to repair the damage and then some…"

The lord trailed off.

It seemed like he wanted something, but did he think I couldn't see through him?

"I believe you can use any leftover gold coins as you see fit, Lord. I'm sure someone like yourself would use them appropriately where needed."

"Hoho, you seem to know your stuff. Well, if you insist, I won't refuse. I'll make sure to put it to good use."

The lord chuckled, stroking the pouch of gold coins as if cradling a baby.

With this, 95% of the cleanup was done.

A little time to catch our breath.

I took a stroll around the lord's castle with Mirabelle.

Perhaps feeling guilty about me spending money, Mirabelle walked with her head hung low like a criminal.

"I-I'm sorry. Because of me…"

"Haha, it's fine. What's a few coins? Your value is far higher than that, Miss Mirabelle."

"But it was two thousand gold coins…"

"Hmm, I said it's fine."

Mirabelle couldn't shake off her sense of guilt easily.

As I was thinking about what to do, sighing, a brilliant idea came to me.

"Miss Mirabelle, haven't you ever wondered while staying with me? Surely there's nothing there, yet somehow a pouch of gold coins appears out of nowhere."

Mirabelle nodded, realizing that was indeed the case.

"This is a secret I'm telling only you… The truth is, I know how to use money duplication magic."

"Money duplication magic?"

"Yes, watch closely."

I showed Mirabelle my empty hand, then clenched my fist. When I opened it again, a gold coin had appeared in my previously empty hand.

"Wow…!"

"Did you see? I have magic that allows me to create gold coins at will. So—"

I threw the gold coin as far as I could with all my might.

Fuck, that was my lifeblood.

But I had to endure it for Mirabelle's sake.

"This means there's no problem even if I throw them away into thin air. So Miss Mirabelle doesn't need to blame herself either. Smile. I like seeing slaves be liberated with a smile."

Mirabelle nodded. Thanks to the gold coin's heroic sacrifice, her expression became much more relaxed. She smiled shyly.

I memorized where it flew off to.

Before I went to pick it up, I needed to take care of one last thing.

I retrieved the grimoire Mirabelle had dropped. It looked exactly like the Soul Grimoire, but…

When I opened it to check, there was a picture of some goblin-like creature manipulating thunder and lightning from atop a mountain.

"Do you know what kind of book this is?"

"It's a book that explains how to harvest Teacher Go's soul."

What?

Hold on, what book are we talking about?

As Mirabelle explained further, the book's information became more detailed. The name that had been [Goblin Shaman's Grimoire] changed to something about Teacher Go.

Teacher Go?

Who are you?

Is it Go…blin Teacher?

It was a completely different item with the same appearance. So this was why Mirabelle awakened as the Witch of Judgment.

It was my responsibility for telling her to read it without properly checking. I'll buy her two bags of slime fritters later.

I almost really messed things up. I should leave this dangerous trash in someone else's pocket. If I gave it back to Mirabelle, she might go berserk again.

"Oh, Esteemed Priestess Myra. Here's the grimoire you were searching for."

I immediately went to find… not a pocket, but Myra. She was in tatters after being thoroughly beaten by Mirabelle.

"Well, Priestess. You've been through a lot because of my child. I don't believe one meal will be enough to make up for this, do you?"

I addressed Myra in my usual rogueish sincerity. And Myra who would normally play along, had an extremely serious expression.

Why did this feel ominous?

I needed to go retrieve that gold coin before someone else picked it up.

"Priestess?"

"You…"

Myra glared this way with narrowed eyes. More precisely, she was looking at Mirabelle beside me.

"You… were a witch?"

Looks like I could forget about finding that coin.