BJ Villainess Chapter 337

Lilia, with a startled expression, embraced Clyde. “Oh my, Clyde must really be feeling unwell.”

 

His father, Lenox, also hugged Clyde tightly, gently patting his back. “We’re here with you, Clyde. A nightmare is just a dream. It can’t harm you.”

 

“You don’t need to worry about dreams. Mom will take care of everything.”

 

Such childish behavior. Though he knew it was ridiculous, he couldn’t hide the joy of feeling loved.

 

“Oh right, this isn’t the time for this.” At that moment, Lilia spoke in a concerned voice about why she had come. “Princess Squire will arrive soon. What should we do about this?”

 

Who is Princess Squire again? Clyde tried to search his memory, but nothing came to mind. She must not be that important. After all, he had recognized Lenox and Lilia as his parents immediately. Since he felt no particular reaction to the mention of Princess Squire, she probably wasn’t someone worth worrying about.

 

While Clyde brushed off this new information indifferently, Lenox spoke to Lilia. “We can’t send the sick boy to meet her, so why don’t we meet her alone while Clyde rests?”

 

“Dear, the other party is from the Squire family. Do you think those lunatics, I mean, those warlike people will believe what we say? This marriage proposal barely made it through.”

 

Wait, marriage? Clyde stopped acting like a child the moment he heard something unexpected.

 

“Marriage? I’m getting married? To that Princess Squire?”

 

“Yes. This marriage alliance is meant to end the long-standing feud between the two families.”

 

“But…” Clyde was speechless, utterly stunned.

 

Marriage? He had never even considered the idea before. Besides, he couldn’t marry anyone else. Because he was already…

 

Already?

 

At that moment, a servant arrived. “Princess Squire has arrived.”

 

Lenox then told Clyde to rest while he and Lilia prepared to meet Princess Squire alone. But Clyde, on impulse, spoke up.

 

“I’ll meet her myself.”

 

* * *

Clyde followed the servant to the garden. It was tradition to stroll through the scenic garden with the prospective bride, spending time together.

 

Along the way, Clyde gathered some information about Princess Squire. Her name was Theresa, and she had been his classmate at Valhalla. And she’s also the president of my fan club? The thought that the person he was to marry was the leader of such an insane group momentarily made his mind go blank.

 

The idea of marrying that girl as soon as he graduated the next year made his future look bleak. Even before meeting her, Clyde’s impression of Theresa was terrible.

 

Marrying such a strange girl? Absolutely not. Determined to put an end to this marriage, he arrived at the garden.

 

Is that girl Theresa?

 

Theresa was holding a white lace parasol, so her face was obscured. Clyde stopped at a suitable distance and called out to her. “Theresa.”

 

Their eyes met.

 

“Hello, Clyde.”

 

The moment Clyde saw Theresa awkwardly greeting him, he was overwhelmed by a strange urge. He wanted to hug her. He couldn’t bear the desire to hold her tightly.

 

I must be out of my mind. Clyde clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

 

Something was wrong with him. There was no other reason for these disgusting feelings.

 

Calm down. Just calm down.

 

At that moment, Theresa closed her parasol and approached him on her own. The ribbon decorating her neatly tied hair fluttered with her steps. He wanted to pull that ribbon, imagining her hair cascading down. He wanted to run his fingers through her long, black hair and…

 

“Damn it.”

 

Clyde’s curse made Theresa flinch and stop in her tracks.

 

“W-What’s wrong? I didn’t do anything.”

 

“It’s not you, it’s… ha…”

 

The problem was himself.

 

Clyde, with a troubled expression, stopped Theresa from getting any closer. “Don’t come any closer. Stay right there.” If she came within arm’s reach, he felt like he would do something reckless. No, he would surely do something reckless.

 

Clyde had lived a long life from the moment he regained his full memory, but he had never experienced anything like this, which left him utterly confused. Fortunately, Theresa didn’t approach further. But that didn’t ease the overwhelming sensations he was struggling with.

 

I’m going crazy. It felt like he was drunk as if his body was out of his control, which was deeply unsettling. This wasn’t him. Until now, Clyde had never been interested in the opposite sex, nor had he ever been ruled by desire. But here he was, reduced to such a ridiculous state.

 

In his frustration, Clyde made a suggestion. “…Shall we take a walk?”

 

He needed to figure this out.

 

Theresa hesitated at his proposal. Just as he wondered why, she spoke up. “Is it okay if I come closer?”

 

Was that what she was worried about? It was a simple question, but for some reason, it unsettled him deeply. He felt an urge to break something.

 

“You can come closer.”

 

Clyde didn’t just stop with words. He stepped toward her and extended his arm, offering an escort.

 

Theresa carefully placed her hand on his arm.

 

“…”

 

For a moment, Clyde felt dizzy but stubbornly suppressed the urge.

 

They began to walk slowly across the fragrant, beautiful garden. There was no friendly conversation to get to know each other better. Only silence. A suffocating stillness weighed heavily on them both.

 

Clyde was silently recalling every prayer he knew, trying to fend off the inner demon, while Theresa remained quiet, seemingly waiting for the right moment to speak. Finally, she made up her mind and spoke first.

 

“You know, maybe there’s another way for our families to reconcile without us getting married.”

 

Clyde abruptly stopped walking. “What do you mean?”

 

“I think it might be better to cancel the marriage proposal.”

 

“Why?”

 

Clyde pressed on, feeling something boiling up inside him. Before coming here, he had planned to call off the marriage himself, but now that it was actually being suggested, he felt betrayed.

 

Theresa, sensing his reaction, looked confused. “Because I thought you hated me…”

 

“Why do you think I hate you?”

 

“Isn’t it obvious?” Theresa opened her mouth to speak but held back, her expression frustrated, as though she was hiding something. “Anyway, I know I’ve done some wrong things. I don’t want to bother you anymore.”

 

This was an excuse. Theresa was hiding something from him.

 

Why is she hiding it? Does she not trust me? Thinking that far, Clyde was overwhelmed by unexpected feelings of disappointment and emptiness.

 

He tried to explain himself angrily. “I don’t hate you.” He should have stopped there, but feeling like he had been rejected, he blurted out more than he should have. “You’re the one who probably wants to reject me, using some excuse.”

 

The moment the words left his mouth, Clyde regretted how petty he sounded. Damn it. At this rate, even if Theresa decided she couldn’t marry him, he wouldn’t be able to argue. But Theresa frowned and let out a small laugh as though she had just heard something ridiculous.

 

“How could I hate you? That’s impossible.”

 

With just that one sentence, all of his anxiety vanished.

 

“Liking you is just so natural to me.”

 

Clyde stared at Theresa in a daze. It felt strange as if he had heard these words before. Then, a scene from his forgotten memories overlapped with the present. In a library, with sunlight streaming through the window, Theresa spoke.

 

“I love you like destiny.”

 

“I love you like destiny.”

 

“!”

 

Suddenly, Clyde snapped back to reality as though waking up from a dream.

 

Splash! In his rush, water spilled out of the green-tinted bathtub.

 

“Haa, haa…”

 

Thump, thump, thump. His heart pounded as he recalled Theresa confessing her fated love for him.

 

Why had he woken up from that memory just at that moment?

 

Clyde wanted to go back to her, but his actions halted when he met Hardy’s gaze. Both had flushed faces, heavy breathing, and trembling pupils. Though no words were spoken, it was obvious what kind of deep abyss they had both experienced.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

Without a word, they awkwardly got out of the tub.

 

Clyde now understood why the gods never spoke of the abyss. It was like a secret diary filled with forbidden desires that could never be shown to anyone.

 

Hardy wiped his face dry, trying to sound casual as he suggested, “Now that you’ve awakened, shall we get to work?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

The two of them quickly left the container.