I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain [EN]: Chapter 100

It was a book that even Roymond, the crown prince and his own son, couldn’t access.

Naturally, it wouldn’t be easy to get to that book.

“Paul is right.”

I said glumly.

“Medest lost even its identity as a family within a hundred years.”

Moreover, they had completely forgotten the vassal families that had once followed them.

Even if it wasn’t recorded anywhere.

So, I understood why Paul had kept his mouth shut to us.

At least Patr had saved them, so there was no reason to tell the untrustworthy Medest this and that.

If it hadn’t been for Johann this time, I would never have known any of this.

I tried talking to Trevor in the afternoon, but he was clearly out of it, so a normal conversation was impossible.

“According to Paul… the high-ranking noble families have power, and they also experience a reaction to it. The imperial family calls it a ‘curse’.”

“Hmm.”

“And I have a feeling that the secret… is hidden in His Majesty the Emperor’s secret library.”

If you connect the dots, many things fall into place.

The dissolution of the Senate, the strengthening of imperial power, and then the nobles who gradually lost their history.

“Yurika.”

Johann, who was staring at me, slowly opened his mouth.

“About that.”

“Even if you want to stop me because the imperial family is involved, I…”

“Whatever plan you’re making, can’t I do it with you?”

“……Huh?”

I looked at Johann with surprised eyes.

Until now, Johann had always been my helper.

With the attitude of ‘I want to help with whatever you do!’ silently and reliably.

But now his expression was a little different.

‘Well… his expression has been strange since the story of the curse came out earlier.’

It meant that this wasn’t just an action to gain my favor.

“The Hyrard ducal family doesn’t have many old documents either.”

Johann said slowly.

“I thought it was because I returned to the Duke’s residence only after I became an adult… but it’s suspicious that Medest is also like that.”

There were three prestigious ducal families in the Empire.

Hyrard, Medest, and Elijah.

The Elijah ducal family had lost almost all influence in the capital because the direct line had been cut off a long time ago.

Therefore, the only great noble families with significant power were Hyrard and Medest. It was absurd that both had such incomplete records.

“And it’s definitely strange that magic can’t be used only on the imperial family.”

Johann frowned and muttered.

“I’ve also looked through books related to it… the records say that it can’t be used only on the Emperor. But at some point, it was replaced by ‘imperial family’.”

I nodded with a serious face.

In fact, no one was paying attention to whether Hyrard could harm the Emperor or the imperial family.

That’s because not everyone in the Hyrard family was a great magician.

And the power of that magic was limited to physical things. How often would you directly attack the Emperor or the imperial family in your life?

Moreover, no one was interested in such things due to the long-lasting war. Not even the Hyrard family themselves.

“It would have been nice if the late Hyrard Duke was alive.”

I rolled my eyes and said carefully.

“You could have asked him something. It must be frustrating because you’re the only one in Hyrard now.”

“……Well.”

Johann crossed his arms with a nonchalant expression.

“I don’t think it would have been very helpful even if my father was here.”

“Why?”

“According to Ella, he was a bit crazy.”

His face looked more gloomy than ever.

I stared at Johann’s shadowed face and carefully took his hand.

Then, I smiled brightly and said energetically.

“Okay, let’s find out everything together.”

Johann had once said that the power of magic was more of a curse than a blessing.

Just as Paul said, a power that comes with a price.

It made sense to call it a ‘curse’.

“What kind of curse is on us?”

Johann stared at me, who was smiling shyly.

Then, he said in a somewhat subdued voice.

“Yurika.”

“Yes?”

“About the child plan I mentioned earlier.”

I, who was trying to strengthen my resolve with my lover who shared the same goal, was speechless at the sudden topic.

“Ah… uh.”

“Why do you have such a dumbfounded expression?”

“Isn’t it… obvious? It’s sudden.”

I blinked and said.

“I don’t think this is the right order of things…”

“Ah, was it? Um, if it’s the order…”

Johann’s eyes crinkled beautifully. He rubbed his heated eyes and leaned towards me.

“You were waiting for a proposal, Yurika.”

“What nonsense.”

It was obvious that he was trying to seduce me, so I glared at him and pushed his chest away. Of course, he didn’t budge.

“It’s not the time to think about that yet, is it? You don’t want to be bitten to death by a tiger at the wedding, do you?” (Referring to Yurika’s father who can transform into a tiger.)

“Well, that would be a bit difficult.”

Johann shrugged his shoulders with a face that wasn’t difficult at all.

“If my father-in-law is in a bad mood and attacks the guests…”

I said it as a joke because I thought I could find a way to bring my father back if I knew for sure about the curse, but he took it seriously again.

When I narrowed my eyes and looked at Johann, he laughed softly and wrapped his arms around my waist.

And when I leaned on him as if I couldn’t win, he sighed softly and started talking quietly.

“Actually, Yurika.”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know what you think… but if I’m being honest, I didn’t really want to have children.”

Hmm.

In fact, children were a topic that I had never seriously thought about before, so I could only blink blankly.

Johann smiled as if he noticed my thoughts and continued.

“It’s okay. You wouldn’t have had time to think about it.”

“Um… haven’t we been serious for a while? Aren’t you moving too fast?”

“Well.”

Johann hugged me tighter and whispered.

“I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. You and me living happily in the Hyrard Duke’s residence.”

“For a long time?”

“Since the battlefield.”

Oh my god. He had been dreaming of marrying me since then…

I blinked slowly and asked carefully.

“Then why didn’t you want to have children?”

Words like ‘Are you worried about them being born as a squirrel?’ were lingering in my mouth, but Johann answered slowly.

“What if that child is born as a magician?”

I had nothing to say, so I carefully buried myself in his arms. Johann continued.

“Pain is natural, and if he’s unlucky and born as a magician as strong as me, he’ll have to rely on the temple’s calming potion and live his whole life.”

It was something that only Johann, an unprecedentedly strong magician, could say.

Usually, strong magicians were objects of envy, and I knew that the Hyrard family’s tradition itself was for a strong magician to be the head of the family.

So, Tezen wanted to become a magician too.

But Johann, the strong magician, didn’t seem to like that fact very much.

He tilted his head and muttered in a low voice.

“I never want to pass on this pain to that child.”

“……”

“Just by being your and my child, I already love that child very much.”

I couldn’t help but understand that feeling.

I didn’t want my child to live in such pain either.

Rather than the family prospering based on such pain, I wanted them to be a little more ordinary and have no pain at all.

‘This is exactly… what the ancestors of Medest were thinking?’

As I quietly closed my mouth, Johann smiled and continued.

“But if there’s a way to break this painful cycle…”

He hugged me tighter.

“Then I can imagine a child who looks like us without worry.”

Strangely, my heart ached too.

When I think of the little boy on the tower I saw at first, I feel sad for some reason.

“In my opinion, Yurika, in the end, this is the Emperor’s decision… so you must involve the Emperor. I think you should plan with that in mind. The way to do that is to somehow make him feel psychologically indebted.”

“Ah, right.”

I pulled myself together and nodded firmly.

“And there will be someone who thinks like us. Someone who wants to make the Emperor indebted to them somehow and make them make private decisions.”

The stage was already roughly set.

Libena would probably be thinking similarly to us in order to lift Theodore’s confinement order.

We just had to use that a little.

“Let’s do well, Yurika.”

Johann kissed my cheek lightly and said.

“Let’s find out the secret of our family before we get married.”

Um, wait a minute.

I, who was blinking confidently, tilted my head inwardly.

Come to think of it, when did we decide to get married so definitely?

I think I got caught up in something again…….