A Random in Re:Zero

Loop 682 - Part 44

"Very well, let's see if I remember how the ritual was performed..."

I needed a little blood to draw the runes. I cut my finger and began rubbing it over different parts of my body, continuing until I had created all the required patterns.

The moment I closed the final stroke, the blood patterns ignited and the curse began to spread throughout my body: penetrating the layers of my skin, seeping between the muscle fibers, entering my bloodstream, and permeating my bones.

Of course, it wasn't a pleasant feeling at all, quite the opposite.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" I let out such a scream that it almost tore my throat.

I felt like I was burning in the flames of hell while simultaneously freezing in the coldest ice. Still, I preferred this to eating pineapple pizza or mint ice cream.

The whole process lasted only a few seconds, but the agony involved made it feel like hours. I thought about what I was trying to protect and the fact that if I died, I'd have to go through this all over again to have a chance against the swordsman.

When the effects had fully taken hold, my body had transformed significantly. It wasn't just that my muscles were more defined and my physique improved: the real change was internal.

My door's capacity, my reflexes... There wasn't a single thing that wasn't improved. The world seemed to slow down, and my body felt incredibly light.

"How terrifying." I said, clenching my hands, feeling the strength contained within them. "I wonder if I'd get the same results training with Reinhard."

I leaned out of the front of the carriage. Otto and Patrasche seemed intent on the road, but when they saw me appear, they both started firing questions at me simultaneously. Well, in Patrasche's case, they were unintelligible shrieks.

"What the hell did you do?! I thought you were dying and I couldn't do anything!"

In fact, Otto was right. I was dying, but very slowly, as this curse shortened my lifespan. In return, I gained the best physical condition I could naturally achieve.

"Let's just say I took a risky gamble. Speaking of which, I want to see how well it worked out."

I jumped out of the carriage and started running, injecting mana into my legs to match Patrasche's pace.

"Kuh!?" Patrasche made a noise of surprise.

"Absolutely not!" Otto grabbed his head, letting go of the reins for a moment. "Since when can you do that?!"

I winked at them and started jumping, increasing my speed until I left them behind.

Everything in my peripheral vision turned into a blurry, changing color as I strided up to fifty meters.

"Shooting Star ... It makes sense that it's called that."

I arrived at the mansion shortly after. Because of my early arrival, Elsa and Meili were still preparing for the attack when I showed up. That made things easier, because I spared myself the whole awkward scene and Frederica's injuries.

Once again, I offered the two women jobs and as always, they both rejected me, but then they implied that they would accept if I showed them that I was capable of protecting them from Capella.

Having said that, I took them inside the mansion as my guests and Frederica made tea for everyone while I analyzed the situation, thinking about how to proceed next.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Elsa raised an eyebrow.

I came to the conclusion that there was no subtle way to do what I was about to do. I picked up my cup and drank all the tea in one gulp (Echidna's was tastier).

"The guy who's coming to kill me." I barely managed to explain.

"Someone wants to kill you?!" Petra gasped. "And they're coming here?!"

"Why didn't you say so before, Master Leandro?" Frederica looked at me sternly.

I just shrugged.

"It wouldn't make any difference. It's my fight, and the outcome depends on me. However, there's something I need to do to maximize my chances of success, and for that, I need the cooperation of one of you."

"What do you mean?" Elsa looked at me suspiciously when I sat down next to her.

"I apologize in advance." I moved abruptly, holding her tightly.

She tried to reach for her knives to stab me, but I easily stopped her.

"Did you deceive us?!" Meili jumped out of her seat and I noticed she was trying to call Guiltylowe.

"Not really. By the way, your chimera friend isn't coming. I put him to sleep, and the hippopotamus too."

"Huh?! That's not fair! You're a cheater!" Meili complained.

But I couldn't hear her. All my attention was focused on the mark of Elsa's curse. Now I could feel her magic much more clearly. The spell's reach extended throughout her entire body.

Elsa resisted with a strength that would have far surpassed mine before I enhanced my body, but which at this moment felt like a trifle. I didn't like forcing her to do something she didn't want to do; however, this was necessary.

"Let me go...!" She struggled and tried to kick me, but it was useless.

I began to draw magic from the curse, slowly transferring it into my body.

"I'm sorry. I'll borrow this."

The tattoo crawled across Elsa's skin, carrying the curse with it. Once it was off her, I carefully manipulated the magic so it wouldn't accidentally attach itself to someone else.

With a swift and precise movement, I absorbed the curse and became a Cursed Doll.