From Trash to Villain Master of Card: With Harem of Evil women-Chapter 47: Valeria The Butcher

Not with Naporia’s explosive speed. Not with Adelheid’s precise technique. Valeria moved like an avalanche—slow at first, then unstoppable, gaining momentum with each step. The earth didn’t just tremble under her feet; it sank, leaving footprints ten centimeters deep in the rock.

Eldric, operating on pure instinct, raised his sword to block. His muscles, enhanced by his aura, screamed under the tension.

Valeria’s axe struck.

CRAAASH!

The sound was apocalyptic, a physical thunder that struck eardrums like a mallet. The shockwave, visible as a ring of dust and pressure, burst the ears of the nearest soldiers, who fell to their knees with blood dripping from their ears. Cracks, thick as snakes, spread from the point of impact, devouring the ground.

Eldric’s sword—forged by Avernor’s best smiths, blessed by priests—didn’t simply break. It exploded. Shards of blessed metal embedded themselves in Eldric’s own arms and face, while the hilt stub vibrated in his hands, numbing him up to his elbows.

Eldric was hurled backward like a ragdoll. His back absorbed the impact against a rock formation with a wet, crunching sound: CRACK! The blow was so violent that the rock spiderwebbed with cracks, and he was embedded in it for a moment, the air expelled from his lungs in an agonizing wheeze.

Valeria didn’t pursue immediately. She stopped where she was, raised her axe, examined the blade with a critical expression. A small notch, barely visible. She frowned for an instant, then nodded with satisfaction, as if approving the quality of the enemy’s steel.

Then she began to walk.

Each step sank into the earth.

There was no hurry. Nor any emotion.

Only the certainty of the inevitable.

Eldric propped himself up, spitting a thick gob of blood and saliva. His sword was a useless memory. But his crimson aura still burned, fueled by desperation and pure fear.

"I... I won’t fall to a monster...!" his voice was a broken growl, stained with blood.

Valeria stopped exactly five meters away.

"Monster. How curious that you call me that." Her voice was an icy whisper, without inflection. "When you’re the one who has killed the defenseless."

Eldric roared, a cornered beast, and charged. He activated Line Breaker at maximum. His body not only blazed with crimson flames; the skin on his arms smoked, blistering from overexposure to his own energy. He became a living projectile, a meteor of rage.

Valeria didn’t dodge.

She only raised her axe.

Waited.

CRASH!

The impact was a miniature cataclysm. The ground beneath them sank half a meter into a crater. Dust and rocks flew, blinding everyone. The shockwave ripped the grass from the earth in a twenty-meter radius.

When the dust cleared...

Valeria stood motionless.

She hadn’t taken a single step back.

Her axe had stopped everything. Eldric’s blade, on the verge of disintegrating, pressed against the handle, but didn’t advance.

Eldric trembled. Every muscle in his body vibrated at the limit of collapse. The veins in his neck and forehead seemed about to burst. But he didn’t advance a single millimeter.

Valeria tilted her head slightly.

"Is that all?"

Eldric growled, fury transforming into terror, and spun around in a desperate movement. He executed a spinning slash: three strikes in one second.

Valeria moved her axe once.

A single movement. Three blocks.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The sparks weren’t fireworks; they were blinding explosions. Each impact sent such brutal vibration up Eldric’s arm that he felt the bone in his forearm microfracture.

Eldric stumbled back, gasping like a wounded dog. His arms hung at his sides, shaken by uncontrollable spasms. Blood from his broken knuckles spattered the ground.

Valeria lowered the axe.

"My turn."

She didn’t run. Didn’t accelerate.

She simply took a step.

A step that covered five meters as if space itself folded to her will.

The axe moved in a descending arc. It didn’t whistle; it roared as it split the air.

Eldric rolled right on pure survival instinct.

The axe didn’t split the rock where he’d been. It pulverized it. Stone exploded into a thousand fragments that acted as shrapnel, cutting Eldric’s cheek and arm as he rolled.

Eldric counterattacked from the ground, a wounded snake. He aimed for her legs with the remaining blade stub.

Valeria didn’t even look. She felt the movement as a vibration in the air. She spun her axe and blocked.

CLANG!

Eldric’s weapon rebounded as if it had struck a diamond wall. The impact dislocated his shoulder. A wet pop that he himself heard clearly.

Valeria stepped on the broken blade.

She pinned it against the earth.

Eldric pulled with all his strength, a scream of pain and frustration tearing from his throat. The metal didn’t move an inch.

Valeria lifted her foot.

Eldric rolled back, his dislocated shoulder striking the ground and tearing another cry from him.

The axe fell where his head had been.

CRACK!

The rock, where his skull had been a second before, split into two perfect halves, like a watermelon.

Eldric staggered to his feet, the world spinning around him. With one last act of desperation, he threw his broken blade like a javelin. A dirty, surprise attack, the last cartridge of a hopeless man.

Valeria caught the blade in mid-air.

With one hand. Without looking.

The fingers of her gauntlet closed around the steel. The impact didn’t even make her arm move.

Eldric froze, his breath catching. She held his weapon. Like one holds a dry leaf.

Valeria clenched her fist.

CRUNCH!

The steel groaned, a metallic lament, and twisted. It folded in on itself, splintering, turned into a useless cylinder of scrap. She dropped it to the ground with a dull thud.

Eldric looked at the remains. Then looked at his empty hands. He saw his own death reflected in those twisted fragments.

He took a deep breath.

And charged one last time.

No weapon. Just his fists.

A direct punch to the face.

Valeria didn’t even move.

The fist struck her cheek. The sound was THUD, a dull impact against a stone wall.

She didn’t blink. The skin on Eldric’s knuckles split instantly, revealing white bone for a second before blood stained it red.

Eldric screamed, a gut-wrenching sound, and struck again. And again. And again.

THUD. THUD. THUD.

Wet impacts. Blood spattering Valeria’s armor. Eldric’s knuckles were already ground meat. The pain was a white nebula in his brain. His knuckles, then his forearms, collided against a wall of living steel.

Valeria’s armor didn’t even dent. Not a single scratch.

She looked down at him from above, her head slightly tilted, like a scientist observing an insect.

"Are you finished?"

Eldric gasped, his chest burning. Tears of rage, frustration, and absolute pain fell down his cheeks, dirty with blood and dust.

Valeria raised her axe.

She struck with the flat side.

A dry blow, straight to the chest.

CRACK!

The sound of ribs breaking was like dry branches under a press. Not one, not two. A dozen. The sternum gave way.

Eldric flew backward, a thin stream of blood bubbling from his mouth as the air escaped him in a mute wheeze.

He crashed against a tree.

CRASH!

The tree, a thick pine, split in half with a groan of torn wood.

Eldric fell among the broken branches, sprawled like a broken doll.

He tried to get up.

His legs wouldn’t respond. One of them was bent at an unnatural angle. His vision was blurring.

Valeria walked toward him.

Heavy steps. Measured. Inexorable. STEP. STEP. STEP.

She reached where he lay.

He tried to crawl backward, clawing at the earth with his shattered fingers.

She stepped on him gently. The boot of her armor pressed against his broken chest. Just enough to immobilize him, to make him feel every gram of her weight, every beat of his own heart crushed against his back.

She raised the axe.

Aimed directly at his neck.

The sunlight reflected off the blade, blinding him for an instant.

Eldric closed his eyes.

The blade stopped a millimeter from his skin. He felt the cold of the steel, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end at death’s proximity.

But nothing happened.

One second. Two seconds.

"Wait."

A weak voice, barely a thread. But in the sepulchral silence, it thundered like a roar.

Everyone turned.

Kaito was standing.

Held up with difficulty by Lilith, who gripped him tightly to keep him from collapsing. He was pale as death. Cold sweat ran down his forehead. He trembled like a leaf. But his black eyes, feverish and determined, were open and conscious.

His eyes met Valeria’s.

"Don’t kill him."

Valeria didn’t move the axe. The blade remained there, promising death.

But neither did she press down.

The wind blew between them, stirring the dust and the smell of blood.

No one breathed.

Eldric opened his eyes.

He looked at Kaito, the "demon" he had underestimated. Then he looked at Valeria, the true beast in warrior’s skin.

She remained impassive. But her eyes... her eyes no longer looked at Eldric. They looked at Kaito, waiting.

Valeria didn’t move the axe.

But neither did she press down.

The wind blew between them.

No one breathed.

Eldric opened his eyes.

He looked at Kaito. Then at Valeria.

She remained impassive.

But the axe didn’t fall.

The silence weighed like a mountain.

Valeria didn’t lower the axe immediately.

"Why?"

Kaito breathed with difficulty.

"Because... we’re not like them. We don’t execute prisoners."

Valeria studied him for several seconds.

Then, to everyone’s surprise...

She lowered the axe.

"As you command... Commander."

The obedience was instant. Absolute.

No questioning. No hesitation.

Simply... obeyed.

Naporia, watching from where she was being treated, blinked.

"What the hell...?"

Valeria grabbed Eldric by the collar of his armor.

Lifted him with one hand.

Walked toward where Kaito stood.

Threw Eldric at his feet.

"Prisoner. As you requested."

Kaito looked at the unconscious Eldric.

Then at Valeria.

"Thank you."

Valeria nodded once.

"Function fulfilled."

And she walked away to clean her axe.

-++

Silence fell over the field.

Avernor’s troops, seeing Eldric defeated, panicked.

Some tried to rescue him.

They were stopped by Neudämmerung soldiers.

Others simply fled.

They ran toward the horizon without looking back.

Marcus was unconscious, being guarded by Drake.

Selene had fled long ago.

Drake approached Kaito, still in semi-dragon form.

"What do we do with the prisoners?"

Kaito looked around.

Fifteen Avernor soldiers on the ground.

Wounded. Disarmed. Terrified.

"Treat them. Same standards as our wounded."

Drake nodded.

"Understood."

Gorman approached with the report.

His face was somber.

"Commander... final count."

Kaito waited.

"Sixty dead. Eighty wounded, twenty of them critical."

Kaito felt something heavy settle in his stomach.

"And Avernor?"

"One hundred ten dead. Fifteen prisoners."

Gorman paused.

"Including Eldric and Marcus."

Kaito slowly nodded.

Sixty.

Sixty families destroyed.

Sixty names he would never forget.

"Organize burial teams. Full ceremony for everyone."

"Yes, Commander."

---

The medical tent was full.

Wounded soldiers on makeshift cots.

Medics running between them.

But Kaito went directly to a separate section.

Where Adelheid lay.

Surrounded by medics working frantically.

The wound in her abdomen had been cleaned and stitched.

But she had lost a lot of blood.

Too much.

Her skin was pale as paper.

Breathing shallow.

Kaito knelt beside her cot.

Took her hand.

It was cold.

"Adelheid..."

Her eyes opened slightly.

Focusing with difficulty on his face.

"Co... commander..."

Her voice was barely a whisper.

"I lost... again..."

Kaito shook his head, kneeling completely at her feet.

He held both her hands between his.

"No. It was my fault."

His voice cracked.

"I asked you to hold back. And when you were winning, Eldric used me as bait."

He squeezed her hands gently.

"But I’m very happy you’re okay. Because you’re still alive."

Adelheid smiled weakly.

With enormous effort, she raised one hand.

Touched Kaito’s cheek.

"Commander... there’s something..."

She pulled him slightly downward.

Kaito leaned in, thinking she wanted to whisper something.

Instead, Adelheid pressed her lips to his.

The kiss was soft. Weak. Trembling.

But unmistakable.

Kaito froze completely.

His eyes went wide.

When Adelheid pulled back, she was smiling genuinely.

"Thank you... for seeing me..."

Her eyes closed.

Her hand fell.

Kaito nearly panicked.

"Adelheid!"

But a medic calmed him.

"She just fainted. The effort was too much."

Kaito exhaled shakily.

His face was completely red.

He touched his own lips unconsciously.

She... she kissed me...

Despite everything—the death, the destruction, the horror—he smiled faintly.

"Rest well, Adelheid."

---

Naporia was in another section of the tent.

A medic was trying to bandage her ribs.

"Commander Naporia, you must stay still!"

Naporia pushed him away.

"I’ve fought with worse injuries. I’ll be fine."

She stood, wincing in pain.

Her left arm hung at an odd angle.

"Someone relocate this."

A medic sighed and relocated her shoulder.

POP!

Naporia grunted but didn’t scream.

"Better."

She limped out of the tent.

Began organizing troops.

Giving orders. Checking positions.

As if she didn’t have three broken ribs and dozens of contusions.

Valeria, cleaning her axe nearby, watched.

"Tough."

Naporia looked at her.

"And you’re strong."

Valeria nodded once.

"Functioning adequately."

Naporia smiled despite the pain.

"I like you. You’re direct."

"Efficiency is all that matters."

Naporia laughed, then winced as her ribs protested.

"Yeah. I think we’ll get along."

---

Lilith sat on a distant rock.

Holding her head in her hands.

Blood dripped from her nose.

Her vision flickered between clear and blurry.

Using so much mental power had a cost.

She had pushed beyond her limits.

She tried to discreetly wipe away the blood.

But Kaito saw her when he came out of the medical tent.

He approached.

"Are you okay?"

Lilith looked at him and smiled weakly.

"Of course. Just tired."

Kaito sat beside her.

"You’re bleeding."

Lilith wiped her nose.

"It’s just... a minor side effect."

Kaito said nothing.

He just stayed there.

In silence.

Lilith finally sighed.

"Using my power on so many at once... it burns. Like fire in the brain."

She looked at Kaito.

"But it was worth it."

Kaito touched her shoulder.

"Rest. You’ve done enough."

Lilith nodded.

For once, she didn’t argue.

-++

Kaito found Valeria inspecting her axe.

Checking every centimeter of the blade.

Looking for damage.

"Valeria."

She looked at him without expression.

"Commander."

Kaito approached.

"Why did you obey so easily? The others... took time to accept me."

Valeria set down her axe.

"Because I saw your eyes when you summoned me."

She turned to face him completely.

"You didn’t want power. You wanted to protect."

She paused.

"That is worthy of respect."

Kaito frowned.

"That’s all?"

Valeria shook her head.

"The others were summoned with ambition. Desire to conquer. To change the world."

Her dead eyes studied him.

"You summoned me with desperation. Pure. Selfless."

"The desperation to protect others... is the purest of reasons."

Kaito processed that.

"And if I summon you to attack? To conquer?"

Valeria shrugged.

"Then I will obey. I am a tool. You decide how to use me."

She paused.

"But I prefer to be used for protection. It’s... simpler."

Kaito slowly nodded.

"Thank you. For stopping Eldric."

Valeria nodded once.

"Function fulfilled."

And she returned to inspecting her axe.

---

Kaito walked alone through the field.

Watching the cleanup teams work.

Bodies being covered with sheets.

Blood being washed from stones.

Broken weapons being collected.

Sixty Neudämmerung dead.

Their names echoed in his head.

Rolf. Mirena. Johann. Petra. Marcus—not the hero, another soldier. Elena...

Too many.

He stopped in the center of the field.

Where the battle had been fiercest.

Where the ground was completely soaked with blood.

"Is this what it means to be king?"

He spoke aloud, though he didn’t expect an answer.

"Sending people to die. Carrying their deaths. Asking myself every night if it was worth it."

Aria appeared from the shadows.

Still wounded, but walking.

"No."

Kaito looked at her.

Aria approached, limping slightly.

"This is what it means to survive."

She pointed at the battlefield.

"You fought. You lost people. But you saved more than you lost."

She stopped beside him.

"Being king... comes after. When you rebuild. When you honor the fallen. When you use this victory for something better."

Kaito looked toward the horizon.

Where the sun was setting, painting everything red.

Like blood.

"Sixty families will hate me."

Aria shook her head.

"Sixty families will mourn. But they will also remember that their loved ones died protecting something worth protecting."

She touched Kaito’s arm.

"That’s what sets you apart from Avernor. They die for kings’ pride. Yours died protecting their home."

Kaito closed his eyes.

"It still hurts."

"It will always hurt. If it stops hurting... then you’ll have lost what makes you different."

Kaito slowly nodded.

He opened his eyes.

Looked toward Aschenfall Fortress.

Where his people waited.

Alive. Thanks to him.

Thanks to the villains.

Thanks to the price he paid.

"Then I move forward."

Aria smiled.

"That’s what true kings do."

---

Aschenfall Fortress — Night

Kaito called an emergency meeting.

Present were:

Lilith (exhausted but functional).

Naporia (bandaged but standing).

Valeria (no apparent damage).

Drake (now officially part of the council).

Aria (sitting due to her wounds).

Gorman and the remaining captains.

Adelheid absent—still unconscious.

Kaito spoke.

"We won. But at a terrible cost."

He looked at each one.

"Sixty dead. Eighty wounded. Resources depleted."

He paused.

"And now we have four villains. Two hero prisoners. And all the neighboring kingdoms watching us."

Naporia spoke first.

"What do we do with Eldric and Marcus?"

Kaito considered.

"We keep them alive. As bargaining chips."

Drake nodded.

"Avernor will want to negotiate eventually."

Lilith added.

"And in the meantime... we turn them. Like we did with you."

Drake looked at her.

"It won’t be easy with Eldric. His pride..."

"It will break," Lilith interrupted coldly. "Everything breaks eventually."

Kaito raised his hand.

"No torture. We’ll do it properly."

He looked at Valeria.

"And you... what do you need?"

Valeria looked at him without expression.

"Nothing. Just orders when necessary."

Kaito nodded.

The meeting continued for hours.

Discussing reconstruction. Defenses. Future.

When it ended, Kaito remained alone.

Looking at the map of Neudämmerung. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

His kingdom.

Bought with blood.

Held by villains.

Growing... but at what cost.

He touched his chest.

Where he felt that something was missing.

Something the fourth summoning had taken.

"What have I lost?" he whispered.

No one answered.

Only the night wind.

And the weight of decisions yet to come