I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain Chapter 116

Because of the sleeping medicine, Mother didn’t wake up.

 

Father simply looked at us quietly, his eyes filled with regret.

 

“You’ve been through a lot.”

 

Mariel also said that she had no memories of her father, just like me.

 

All sorts of emotions were written on my father’s face, which was similar to ours.

 

“I was too late.”

 

Moisture began to swirl in the words that were falling apart.

 

“Now, Father will protect you.”

 

Both Meriel and I had lovers well known throughout the Empire.

 

And we had heard countless words like that before.

 

Also, Mariel and I were strong enough to defend ourselves.

 

Medes was resilient, and we both cleverly escaped all the traps and made it this far.

 

And yet, those words carried a deep resonance—perhaps because this was the first time we had ever truly had a guardian.

 

“I’ll make sure your mother recovers, too.”

 

My father approached us slowly and continued speaking.

 

“I will take revenge on those who did this to my family.”

 

When I heard my father’s words, tears welled up in my eyes too.

 

“I will show you all endless love since it is so late.”

 

Without saying who should go first, Mariel and I got up and hugged our father.

 

My father hugged us tightly and said,

 

“Thank you. For saving me.”

 

From beyond the open door, we could occasionally hear the maids quietly sobbing.

 

“And for letting me see you like this.”

 

And so, for a long while, we clung to Father and cried together.

 

* * *

 

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

 

With Paul’s help, Trevor pressed the jewel against the Medes crest engraved on the tiger—and the gem was absorbed straight into the tiger’s body.

 

Then, amid a brilliant light, the tiger transformed into Father.

 

Yohan, who had remained there the entire time, ordered the servants to dress Father and gave him a brief explanation of everything that had happened so far.

 

After hearing John’s explanation and immediately grasping the situation, my father came to my mother’s room to meet us.

 

“I see.”

 

Later, in the living room where everyone was gathered, my father stroked his beard and muttered quietly.

 

“It was the day supplies arrived from the temple. It rained heavily. There was even a local war going on, so I was completely out of my mind. In the midst of all this, a red-haired woman in a priestess’s uniform offered me water.… I don’t remember anything after drinking that.”

 

Indeed, Father and I had been very different, even after being turned into beasts.

 

At least I’d retained my consciousness in the body of a squirrel—but Father hadn’t.

 

“Anyway…”

 

My father spoke with sunken eyes.

 

“So it was the Temple that kidnapped Yurika… and the ones who turned Siena into that state as well…”

 

In the end, the Temple was responsible for tearing our family apart.

 

“It’s a shame that I can’t break Patre’s neck with my own hands.”

 

Father’s voice simmered with rage.

 

And yet—separately from that—truth be told, Father’s awakening didn’t immediately help resolve anything.

 

He remembered nothing from his time as a tiger.

 

Still, the mention of a “red-haired woman” confirmed Rivena’s involvement.

 

“Well. There’s still much left to say—and plenty of time for it and….”

 

Father slowly turned his head towards Yohan.

 

“Thank you, Duke Hyrad.”

 

Yohan’s eyes widened as he stood there quietly.

 

Father patted his shoulder and continued,

 

“I heard you helped Yurika a great deal. Thanks to that, I’m able to stand here now—with my family.”

 

Father let out a low chuckle.

 

“To be honest, hearing that you’re my daughter’s lover makes me feel a bit… hm, complicated. Still, gratitude is gratitude. Thank you, sincerely, for standing on my daughter’s side when I couldn’t.”

 

Yohan looked at my father quietly and then smiled.

 

“It was nothing. I did it because I wanted to.”

 

That sight was just nice to see.

 

Nothing had truly been resolved yet—Father had merely awakened—but my heart felt warmer all the same.

 

“Okay, then.”

 

My father spoke in a deep voice.

 

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

 

In the living room now were Mariel, Yohan, and my father.

 

Mother was still asleep, and Jayden had returned to his county to attend to affairs in his territory.

 

“First—Mariel. You’ve worked hard, bearing the burden of headship all this time. Do you wish to continue as head of the family?”

 

Father asked Mariel gently.

 

It seemed like a casual change of topic, but Yohan and I exchanged glances in surprise

 

Father had said “as a family,” and discussing something this significant here meant he already considered Yohan part of that family.

 

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

 

“He’s the man my daughter joined hands with to save the family. I think he has every right to attend a family meeting.”

 

Yohan and I weren’t even engaged yet.

 

All things considered, it was a remarkably bold acknowledgment—though the memory of Father growling at Yohan back when he was a tiger kept resurfacing in my mind.

 

“Father….”

 

And Meriel wiped away her tears and muttered.

 

“I… to be honest, being the head of the family was always a burden to me. If I’m being completely frank, I often thought about pushing everything onto Yurika instead. I know I’m a bad older sister.…”

 

It was easy to imagine how difficult the leadership position would be for Mariel, who couldn’t say no.

 

And there was another problem.

 

“Besides, maintaining the position of family head would be a burden if I were to become part of the imperial family… and honestly, I’m not even a complete head of the house, am I, Father?”

 

Mariel had never been told the knowledge passed down only to the heads of Medes.

 

Because of that, she showed no hesitation at all about relinquishing the position.

 

Moreover, as Mariel said, there was no precedent for a member of the imperial family to concurrently hold the position of head of a high-ranking noble family.

 

In truth, the imperial family detested nothing more than the rise of powerful in-laws.

 

Mariel continued, wiping away her tears.

 

“So, if my father becomes the head of the Medes family again, I will be very happy.”

 

“I see….”

 

Father nodded as if he had known this would happen and stroked Mariel’s head.

 

“You’ve had a hard time.”

 

That concludes all agreements.

 

That was the moment.

 

A circular pink light appeared above Mariel’s head and was absorbed into her father’s hand.

 

It seemed to be a method of transferring the headship of the Medes—one I was unfamiliar with.

 

Perhaps that power was necessary to seal the Medes’ crest, and do other unknown things.

 

In any case, Medest had regained a complete and rightful head in the form of Oscar Medes.

 

It was possible that by combining the information I’d obtained from the imperial palace with what Father already knew, we might arrive at an entirely new truth.

 

“Father, you know.”

 

I said with sparkling eyes.

 

“There’s a book I saw in the royal family. It’s about the curse of a noble family.… Did you know, Father, that magical powers are interpreted as curses? We, too, come from a magical family.”

 

Father’s face filled with surprise. And from that expression alone, I immediately understood.

 

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

 

“That book said the same method could be shared with the Hyrad and Elijah to allow them to live as ordinary humans. Then maybe…”

 

Clutching Yohan’s hand tightly, I asked earnestly,

 

“Do you know how, Father? Yohan doesn’t particularly like the idea of being a wizard. He doesn’t want his children to be raised as wizards either.”

 

Father fell silent for a long moment, as if struggling with the decision.

 

And he spoke to Yohan with a calm expression.

 

“Giving up your magic means giving up your power. Are you serious?”

 

Yohan looked at my father quietly and then answered.

 

“Even without magic, I have more than enough strength to protect the person I love.”

 

Father’s eyes swept over Yohan’s solid build, his well-trained frame lined with lean muscle.

 

In truth, Yohan was exceptionally strong among the knights of the Hyrard Order—even without relying on magic.

 

Father’s expression grew even more conflicted before he finally spoke.

 

“Duke Hyrard, this isn’t something you should decide on impulse. Once chosen, there’s no turning back. It would be wise to take more time to think.”

 

I opened my mouth to say something but stopped myself.

 

It was practically the first time Father had seen Yohan. So, from his perspective, he couldn’t help but be cautious.

 

At the same time, a strange sense of hope swelled within me.

 

Just as I suspected, Father clearly knew something we didn’t.

 

“For now, how about trying to live without using magic for a month? It may be more inconvenient than you expect. We can talk again after that.”

 

It was thoughtful advice. Yohan truly did rely on magic quite often.

 

Both Yohan and I had no choice, but to nod.

 

* * *