I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain [EN]: Chapter 116

My mother remained unconscious from the sleeping pills, and my father stared at us, his eyes filled with regret.

“You’ve been through so much,” he said.

Meriel said she had no memory of our father, just like me.

All sorts of emotions flickered across our father’s face, which bore a resemblance to both of ours.

“I’m too late.”

His words were fragmented, and a hint of moisture welled in his eyes.

“Now, your father will protect you.”

Both Meriel and I had well-known lovers in the Empire.

And we had heard such promises countless times before.

Besides, Meriel and I were strong enough to protect ourselves. Medest was steadfast, and we had both cleverly navigated all sorts of traps to get here.

But the reason his words resonated so deeply was probably because he was the first guardian we had ever truly had.

“I’ll make your mother well again, too.”

My father continued, slowly approaching us.

“And I’ll take revenge on those who made our family like this.”

Hearing my father’s words, tears welled up in my own eyes as well.

“I’ll cherish you endlessly, to make up for being so late.”

Meriel and I stood up and hugged our father without a second thought.

My father held us tightly and said,

“Thank you. For saving me.”

Outside the open door, the maids’ sobs could be heard intermittently.

“For letting me see you like this.”

And so, we hugged our father and cried for a long time.

* * *

While we were talking with Renat, Johan explained what had happened in Trevor’s room.

With Paul’s help, Trevor brought the jewel to Medest’s seal, which was engraved on the tiger statue, and the jewel was absorbed into the tiger.

Then, with a bright light, the tiger transformed into our father.

Johan, who was guarding the place, ordered the servants to dress our father and briefly explained what had happened so far.

After listening to Johan’s explanation, our father immediately grasped the situation and came to our mother’s room to see us.

“I see.”

Afterward, in the drawing-room where everyone had gathered, my father stroked his beard and muttered in a low voice.

“It was the day the supplies came from the temple. It rained heavily. There was even a local war going on, so I was completely distracted. In the meantime, a red-haired woman wearing a priest’s robe gave me water… I don’t remember anything after drinking it.”

Certainly, my father and I had very different experiences when we transformed into beasts.

I still had consciousness even in the body of a squirrel, but my father didn’t.

“Anyway…”

My father said with sunken eyes.

“The temple is the one who kidnapped Yurika… And even the ones who made Sienna like that…”

In the end, the temple was the one who ruined our family.

“I can’t bear not being able to break Patr’s neck with my own hands.”

My father’s voice was seething with rage.

And apart from that… frankly, even if my father woke up, it wouldn’t necessarily solve the problem.

Because he didn’t remember anything about being a tiger.

However, hearing him mention the ‘red-haired woman’ earlier, I could confirm that Rivena was involved.

“Well, I’ll have to slowly catch up on everything I’ve missed. And…”

My father slowly turned his head toward Johan.

“Duke Hyrard, thank you.”

Johan’s eyes, who had been quietly observing, widened. My father patted him on the shoulder and continued.

“I heard you helped Yurika a lot? That’s why I’m here with my family like this.”

My father laughed softly.

“To be honest, my daughter’s lover is a bit… well, I feel a little strange about it… but I’m still grateful. I’m truly grateful that you were on my daughter’s side when I wasn’t here.”

Johan stared at my father for a moment, then smiled.

“It’s nothing. I did it because I wanted to.”

It was nice to see that.

Clearly, nothing had been completely resolved just because my father had woken up, but I felt a little warmer inside.

“Well, then.”

My father said in a dignified voice.

“It will take a long time, but let’s start by organizing what we can do as a family, step by step.”

In the drawing-room, there were now me, Meriel, Johan, and my father.

My mother was still asleep, and Jayden had gone back to the earldom because of pressing matters concerning his territory.

“First of all, Meriel, thank you for taking on the role of head of the family. Do you want to continue to hold the position?”

My father asked Meriel gently.

It was a seemingly trivial change of topic, but Johan and I were slightly surprised and exchanged glances.

My father had clearly said ‘as a family,’ and the fact that he was discussing such an important matter here implied that he considered Johan as part of the family.

Seeing Johan’s surprised expression, my father smiled kindly.

“He’s the man my daughter joined hands with to save the family, so I think he deserves to attend the family council.”

Johan and I weren’t even engaged yet.

So, it was a fairly unconventional acknowledgment. I couldn’t help but remember my father growling when he was a tiger.

“Father…”

And Meriel wiped away her tears and muttered.

“I… actually, I’ve always felt burdened by the position of head of the family. To be honest, I’ve often wanted to pass it all on to Yurika. I’m a bad sister, but…”

I could well imagine how difficult the leader’s position must have been for Meriel, who had trouble saying no to people.

And there was another problem.

“Besides, in order to become a member of the imperial family, it’s also difficult to maintain the position of head of the family… Frankly, I’m not a complete head of the family anyway, Father.”

Meriel had not been told the story that was only passed down to the heads of the family. Therefore, Meriel didn’t seem to feel any pressure about relinquishing the position of head of the family.

Besides, as Meriel said, there was no precedent for a member of the imperial family to also hold the position of head of a high-ranking noble family. In fact, the rise of in-laws was the thing the imperial family hated most.

Meriel wiped away her tears and continued.

“So, I would be very happy if you could become the head of Medest again, Father.”

“…I see.”

My father nodded as if he had expected this and stroked Meriel’s head.

“You’ve been through a lot.”

With that, all the agreements were settled.

It was at that moment.

A pink light in the shape of a circle bloomed above Meriel’s head and was absorbed into my father’s hand.

It seemed to be the way the position of head of Medest was transferred, a process I wasn’t familiar with.

Perhaps with that power, you could stamp the Medest seal and perform other unknown duties.

Anyway, Medest had thus regained a complete head of the family: Oscar Medest.

Perhaps by combining the information I obtained from the imperial family and the information my father knew, we might uncover a new truth.

“Father, you know…”

I said, my eyes sparkling with excitement.

“There’s a book I saw in the imperial family. It’s a book about the curse of noble families… Did you know that magical power is being interpreted as a curse? That we were also a family of wizards [individuals born with the ability to use magic].”

My father’s face showed a hint of embarrassment. And seeing that expression, I immediately understood.

It seemed that the heads of the family, including my father, had known that fact for generations.

“The book said that Hyrard and Eliyah could also be given a way to live like ordinary humans. Then maybe…”

I asked earnestly, holding Johan’s hand tightly.

“Do you know that method too, Father? Johan doesn’t really like being a wizard. He doesn’t want to raise his children as wizards either.”

My father remained silent for a while. He seemed to be struggling with something.

And he said to Johan with a calm expression.

“Giving up being a wizard means giving up power. Is that your sincere wish?”

Johan stared at my father for a moment, then answered.

“Even without magic, I have enough power to protect the people I love.”

My father’s eyes scanned Johan’s solid physique and well-defined muscles. In fact, Johan was uniquely strong among the knights of the Hyrard Knights, even without using magic.

My father frowned even more and said.

“Duke Hyrard, this is not a problem to be decided impulsively. Once you decide, you can’t turn back, so it would be wise to consider it further.”

I was about to open my mouth to say something, but I stopped.

It was only today that my father had met Johan for the first time. So, from my father’s point of view, he had no choice but to be cautious.

At the same time, a strange hope began to blossom within me. As I had suspected, my father clearly knew something more that we didn’t.

“How about trying to live without using magic for about a month? It might be more uncomfortable than you think, so I think it would be good to discuss it again then.”

It was a thoughtful piece of advice in its own way. In fact, Johan used magic quite often.

Johan and I had no choice but to nod.