Hero Hack: Reversing Heroes and Raising Harem

The mage frowned and quickly raised her staff. "I won't let you humiliate me!"

She launched spell after spell.

She fired lances, lightning bolts, and shards of ice toward Velra.

Velra only smirked, her body twisting gracefully as she dodged.

Each step was light, almost like she was dancing.

Spells grazed her arms and shoulders, burning her skin, but she didn't even flinch.

Instead, she giggled. "Mmm… is that it? It hurts, but it feels so good."

Her eyes glowed brighter, enjoying both the sting of pain and the thrill of battle.

She flicked her whip forward. "[Velvet Demon Ether]!"

The whip stretched longer, covered in glowing pink poison-ether, hissing as it cut the air.

It snapped against the mage's barrier, cracking it with each strike.

The mage gritted her teeth. "Stay back!" She pushed her staff forward. "[Arcane Barrage]!"

Dozens of glowing spheres fired out, exploding on impact.

Velra spun her whip around herself like a shield. "[Velvet Coil]!"

The ether whip wrapped into a spiraling barrier, deflecting the explosions with sharp cracks.

Smoke and sparks spread out, but Velra walked through without slowing.

Her smile widened. "You feel fear already, don't you? Good… let me make it worse."

She lashed out again. The whip struck the mage's leg, cutting her robe and skin.

At first, it was pain, then it twisted into something else. The mage gasped, her body trembling.

Velra's voice purred. "Every lash, every cut, every burn. Pain becomes pleasure. Pleasure becomes weakness."

The mage shook her head, panic in her eyes. "No… this feeling… stop it!"

Velra smirked, pulling the whip back slowly. "Oh no, Master Mage."

"This is only the beginning. I'll make you beg just like your disciple."

Velra then raised her hand.

[Velvet Demon Ether] gathered and shaped into a spike chain.

"Try this," Velra said.

She snapped her wrist.

[Velvet Snare] shot out and wrapped the mage's ankle.

The mage swung her staff. "[Arcane Dispel]!"

The chain broke with a spark.

She jumped back and pointed forward. "[Arcane Barrage]!"

Dozens of glowing shots blasted toward Velra.

Velra stepped sideways, light on her feet.

Explosions tore the ground, smoke rising. Velra walked out of the smoke, smiling.

"Not bad. Next."

She spread her fingers. Ether shaped into barbed manacles and a thorned net.

The net spread wide. The mage planted her staff and shouted, "[Runic Wall]!"

A runic shield popped up.

The net hit, wrapped the wall, and tightened until the shield cracked.

The mage frowned, sweat beading. "Tch… [Mirror Scatter]!"

Dozens of glowing mirrors flew out and sliced the net to pieces.

Velra giggled. "Cute trick."

She flicked her hand and sent out thin, almost invisible threads that crossed the ground.

The mage stepped, caught, and stumbled forward. Her eyes widened. "—!"

Velra's whip cracked. "[Velvet Lash]!"

The ether whip hit the mage's arm.

Pain jolted her as her arm went weak and numb.

"What… what did you do?" the mage gasped.

Velra raised two fingers. "Poison and corrosion. Your nerves are overreacting now. The more I hit, the worse it gets."

The mage gritted her teeth. "[Arcane Nova]!"

A pulse of force blasted Velra back a few steps.

Velra slid, heels scraping, then smiled and rolled her shoulders.

"Good. Make me work for it."

She spread her arms.

Ether bloomed into a barbed cage, spiked cuffs, and hooked tethers that hung in the air like tools on a rack.

The mage inhaled sharply, then slammed her staff down.

"[Mana Anchor]!" Runes locked onto her body, steadying her stance and clearing her head.

Velra's eyes brightened. "You stabilized your senses. Smart. So I'll break them again."

She snapped her fingers.

A pink shockwave rippled out.

The mage flinched as her nerves fired all at once.

"Nn—!"

Velra stepped in. The hooked tethers shot forward.

They latched onto the mage's sleeves and belt, yanking her sideways and off-balance.

The mage swung her staff one-handed. "[Chain Lightning]!"

Bolts forked toward Velra.

Velra twisted her whip into a spiral shield.

The lightning skittered off the coil and grounded into the dirt.

"Down," Velra said, and flicked her wrist.

Manacles snapped onto the mage's wrists mid-cast.

The cuffs tightened with a hiss of ether. The mage tried to pull free, but it was useless.

"Get… off!" She stomped. "[Gravity Bind]!"

A sudden weight pressed down on Velra. She bent her knees, then straightened through it with a grin.

"Nice weight. My turn."

She pointed at the mage's feet.

Short ether spikes shot up, pinning the mage's boots in place without piercing skin.

It was just enough to lock her stance.

The mage's eyes flashed. "[Blink Step]!"

She tried to teleport, but the manacles flared, canceling it.

Velra wagged a finger. "Ah-ah. No running."

The mage bit her lip, then drew a tight circle with her staff. "[Focus Sigil]!"

Her casting sped up. She thrust her palm. "[Arcane Spear]!"

A spear of light streaked at Velra.

Velra tilted her head and let it graze her shoulder. She shivered, not with fear. "Mm. Sharp."

She answered with three quick lashes. "One, two, three."

Each strike landed on a different spot: the forearm, thigh, and hip.

It left glowing pink wounds that reacted and throbbed together.

The mage winced, breath hitching as her stance wavered. "Hah… stop…"

Velra snapped her fingers. "[Velvet Sensory Seal]."

Tiny ether pins set along the mage's nerve points lit up, amplifying every sensation.

"Now every touch will multiply," Velra said, walking around her. "And you're already marked by my ether."

The mage tried to raise her staff again. "[Sever Rune]!" A cutting rune flew at the manacles.

Velra whipped it out of the air with her whip.

"Let's add one more toy."

A tall iron maiden of ether formed behind the mage, its inner spikes shifting in and out.

The mage's eyes widened. "No—!"

"Relax," Velra said. "Training mode."

The iron maiden closed halfway, spikes pressing just enough to trigger the [Velvet Sensory Seal] without tearing.

The mage gasped, knees buckling, staff clattering.

Her casting rhythm shattered. "My spells… I can't focus—"

Velra leaned close, voice light. "Because focus needs calm. And I took that from you."

The mage tried one last push, eyes blazing. "[Overcast: Meteor Lance]!"

A blazing lance formed overhead—

Velra, already moving, flung hooks to yank the staff aside, then slammed her palm to the ground.

"[Velvet Spikefield]."

A field of short ether spikes erupted around the mage, each contact sending a jolt up through the Sensory Seal.

The Meteor Lance flickered, broke apart, and faded.

The mage sagged against the half-closed maiden, breathing hard, fingers numb.

Her senses misfired; pain and pressure rolled through her in waves.

Velra lifted the whip one more time. "Can you still chant?"

The mage tried to form a rune with shaking fingers. The lines wobbled and collapsed.

Velra smiled. "Thought so."

She tapped the maiden. It opened. The hooks lowered the mage gently to her knees.

Chains coiled loose around her arms and torso.

The mage looked up, sweat on her brow, eyes unfocused but still stubborn. "I… haven't lost…"

Velra twirled her whip and rested it on her shoulder. "Not yet. But you're close."

A final ether device bloomed over Velra's palm: a silencing ring of soft ether.

"Mute Seal," Velra said, and the ring hovered at the mage's throat, ready to close if she tried a big spell.

"Keep fighting," Velra added, almost cheerful. "I like it when they struggle."

The mage swallowed, tried to lift her staff again, but her arm shook and fell.

Her spells wouldn't form. Her breath came short. Her will was there, but her body wouldn't answer.

Step by step, she was losing.