I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain [EN]: Chapter 106

Eurica leaned in, lightly kissing his ear.

“Well, I’m embarrassed, so I’ll be going now. See you later.”

Then, without looking back, she primly ran off.

Johann remained in the barracks and let out a sigh.

He could still vividly feel her touch on his hand.

Eurica’s scent still lingered in the barracks, and he didn’t want to leave.

“You… how can you be like that?”

Johann chuckled to himself.

Eurica had a knack for sending him to heaven with the simplest words.

When he was with her, he felt strangely like a normal human being, not a mage.

Many of the things he thought were sad became trivial, and he was filled with love and joy.

He even had a strange certainty that everything would be alright.

It was truly paradoxical.

To feel this way with the Divine Beast, of all people.

It was true that he had thought of Momo throughout the war.

It was also true that he had liked her as a woman for a long time. So, he had dreamed of staying with her at the Hyland estate forever.

He didn’t care about power or being the heir to Hyland; he just wanted to hold onto that squirrel and live on the estate for the rest of his life.

However, after the war, when he faced her as an adult, different emotions began to surface over time.

He was happy just to look at her, yet his heart felt bittersweet, and he wanted her to be happy.

When she smiled, the world seemed to stop, and when she was sad, the world seemed to sink.

It was definitely a different feeling from the vague longing he had felt on the battlefield.

Johann sighed softly.

How… how can I be so desperate as I get closer?

As he was thinking about Eurica, he sensed someone outside and quickly came to his senses. A maid from the Medest family was cleaning in front of the barracks.

In any case, this was Medest’s barracks.

He couldn’t stay long in someone else’s barracks after the owner had left.

As he slowly walked back to the Hyland barracks,

“Excuse me, Duke.”

The adjutant cautiously reported at the entrance of the barracks.

“You have a guest waiting.”

“A guest? Who is it?”

Johann asked casually.

Although he hadn’t been very active other than chasing after Eurica, he was a very influential high-ranking noble in the capital.

Of course, there were plenty of people who wanted to meet him.

From nobles who wanted to work with him politically to merchants who wanted to do business with him, and even rebels who wanted to quickly create a force to counter the imperial family.

Of course, Johann was not interested in any of it.

“It’s…”

Johann, who was planning to have a minimal conversation and send them away, frowned at the unexpected name that came out of the adjutant’s mouth.

“Lady Rivena Sevs, Countess.”

* * *

After Rivena caused a stir in the imperial family’s barracks, the next person to cause a stir was the Empress.

The Emperor was still young, so the Empress was naturally a central figure in society.

Therefore, she had many visitors and prior appointments.

The Emperor looked at Meriel and Theodore, who were still there, with a puzzled expression.

“Are you two planning to stay here?”

Meriel was the first to answer.

“Yes.”

She said with a smile.

“It’s right after the engagement announcement. I think it would be too tiring to be among people right now. I think a lot of people will suddenly approach us.”

It was an answer that pleased the Emperor.

He had allowed it because Roimund liked her, but he didn’t think the Medest’s princess was a suitable candidate for the Crown Princess position.

He was even uneasy when Roimund asked to enter the secret library a few days ago.

From some point on, the imperial family had not married high-ranking nobles.

Because the imperial family’s authority was strong enough without allying with high-ranking nobles, there was no need to take such risks.

However, the existence of the Duke of Hyland, who appeared after a long war, was enough to make the Emperor nervous.

Moreover, the Duke of Hyland was infatuated with the second princess of Medest.

An alliance with a high-ranking noble family was not a welcome thing.

So, with various political calculations, he had recognized Meriel as Roimund’s partner.

In particular, Meriel was kind and virtuous, so she would not exploit Roimund, who was blinded by love.

‘But the growing power of the maternal relatives is not a good thing. I just hope she lives quietly.’

In that sense, Meriel staying in the barracks was a pretty good situation.

“It would be nice to become close to His Majesty the Emperor on this occasion.”

The Emperor couldn’t help but smile as Meriel said with a bright smile.

After smiling contentedly for a while, his gaze turned to Theodore.

“And you?”

Theodore made full use of his kind face and answered obediently.

“Well… I’m under house arrest. His Majesty has shown great grace in allowing me to come out and watch today, but I don’t want to do anything else because there are eyes watching.”

That was also an answer that pleased the Emperor.

The Empress, who regarded Theodore as a thorn in her side, was not present, so the Emperor smiled slightly and said.

“Well, it’s best not to do anything that could be held against you. Why don’t you watch with me how many beasts your brother catches.”

Theodore narrowed his eyes and replied softly.

“I’m very worried. My brother is an excellent warrior, but I’m still worried that he might get injured if he encounters a wild beast…”

“Someone will save him. There are many knights around him, aren’t there?”

The Emperor said casually.

“But the knights probably value their lives just as much…”

The Emperor frowned slightly at Theodore’s worried words.

“So why… I think there was a clause that if someone saves the life of a member of the imperial family during the hunting competition, they will receive a reward…”

“Ah, that’s right. There is. I remember seeing it.”

Theodore said quickly.

In fact, that clause was inserted by a government official who had been instructed by Rivena.

It wasn’t a problematic clause, so no one found it strange. Besides, the clause itself was vague.

“So don’t worry and let’s enjoy it.”

The Emperor smiled and raised his champagne glass.

* * *

“Your courage is commendable.”

Johann sat in front of Rivena, crossed his legs, and said with a chilling expression.

“I guess you don’t value your life. Coming all the way here.”

It was the first time Rivena had faced Johann so closely.

So she could tell right away.

This man had a similar aura to Theodore, but the sense of intimidation he exuded was incomparable.

He possessed far greater power than ordinary mages.

It was astonishing that such a beast-like man could wear such a docile expression in front of Eurica.

His eerie purple eyes shone sharply. A chilling aura filled the entire barracks.

“I came because I value my life.”

Rivena took a deep breath and answered.

“Many people saw me enter the Duke of Hyland’s barracks. If you don’t want to be branded as a murderer and embarrass your fiancée, you should let me leave unharmed.”

Unfortunately, that was true.

The fact that Rivena, who had been desperately hiding and avoiding him, had openly come to his barracks meant that she had already calculated everything.

“Killing someone is a very difficult thing, Duke.”

At Rivena’s words, Johann chuckled and sneered.

“Really? Isn’t it an easy thing for you guys?”

“Not really. The temple collapsed completely at an unexpected time. Many of the drugs we had been researching were discarded by the priests to prevent them from falling into the hands of the imperial family.”

Rivena brushed back her red hair and paused to clear her throat.

No matter how much intimidation Johann was exuding, she had to say what she had to say. Otherwise, there would be no point in coming all this way.

“Duke, let’s make a deal. This is a proposal that even Prince Theodore doesn’t know about.”

Johann looked at Rivena as if she were crazy and clicked his tongue.

That was because, until now, they had been openly hostile to each other, even if it hadn’t been outwardly expressed.

Johann was about to tell her to stop talking nonsense and leave immediately.

“As I said, almost all of the drugs have been discarded. Except for this one vial that I brought to the Sevs estate, just in case.”

Rivena took out a small vial from her bosom.

Rivena smiled as she saw Johann’s face become serious.

“It’s a drug that turns people into puppets. There are many subtle things you can do with it. For example…”

Johann’s purple eyes, looking at the vial, coldly sank.

Rivena lowered her voice seductively and continued.