I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain Chapter 46

Yohan had already suffered a great loss once when he ignored his adjutant’s advice not to mistreat the Medes family.

 

So, no matter how unpleasant the words might be, he made sure to listen to his adjutant until the end of this time.

 

“Never assume that you and the young lady are the only ones in the picture. Letting your guard down would be a mistake. You never know what kind of man might try to intervene.”

 

The more Yohan thought about it, the more unsettling those words became. With a wary expression, he scanned the banquet hall.

 

“Yohan.”

 

Without even guessing what he was thinking, Yurika whispered cautiously again.

 

“As I said, I won’t be of much help to your reputation at this banquet.”

 

Ironically, Yurika deliberately dressed herself in a lavish and eye-catching way, thus attracting everyone’s attention.

 

Yohan smiled broadly, lifted a strand of her hair, and pressed a light kiss to it.

 

“Don’t say that. I’m honored to be able to be your partner.”

 

“Ah… Ahaha…”

 

The way his alluring violet eyes overflowed with affection left no doubt in the minds of those watching. Everyone now fully believed the rumors of their relationship.

 

Everyone was looking at them as if to say, ‘The rumors were true,’ perhaps because similar rumors had been spreading for a few days.

 

“But still, look at me with an indulgent gaze, as if you’re completely mesmerized.”

 

“That, I can do with confidence.”

 

Yohan smiled gently, his sharp eyes softening.

 

“And don’t worry too much about my reputation. It’s already in shambles. So, you can do whatever you want. Even if you act recklessly, people will just say we’re a perfect match.”

 

“I think the rumors have already spread very strangely.…”

 

Yurika sighed slightly and rolled her eyes.

 

Even before the banquet, negative rumors about Yurika had been spreading through social circles.

 

People whispered that she was cruel, cunning, and completely unaware of her place.

 

She was accused of being ignorant and extravagant while pretending to be a fake daughter.

 

And by the time Mariel realized what had happened, it was already too late.

 

“Who dares to spread such vile rumors about my sister? I won’t let this slide!”

 

Even Mariel was furious and angry.

 

“I’m going to tell them straight to their faces that Yurika isn’t like that at all!”

 

Considering Mariel’s personality, this was already an aggressive response by her standards. Of course, it didn’t work.

 

“It’s okay, Sister.”

 

But Yurika just smiled leisurely and drank her tea.

 

“Just leave it as it is. I’m fine. Rather….”

 

Her expression seemed to indicate that she had a rough idea of the situation.

 

“There’s plenty I can use to my advantage.”

 

Anyway, that’s why Yurika showed up at the banquet without responding to the malicious rumors.

 

She even appeared in a flashy outfit that befitted the phrase, ‘She’s extravagant without knowing anything,’ and was confidently escorted by Yohan.

 

Yurika grinned and muttered.

 

“In that case, I guess I should make this rumor into something worthwhile.”

 

As they were talking, the servant standing at the entrance rang the bell loudly.

 

“His Royal Highness Crown Prince Roymond Roellaine has arrived!”

 

The noisy banquet hall became somewhat quiet.

 

Usually, the more important a person is, the later he or she appears.

 

This meant that with the crown prince’s arrival, only the emperor remained.

 

“Princess Mariel Medes has arrived!”

 

The door opened, and Crown Prince Roymond entered with his partner, Mariel.

 

With his beautiful silver hair and blue eyes, Roymond looked like a noble prince to anyone, and next to him, Mariel was incredibly beautiful.

 

Mariel smiled and waved at Yurika.

 

Though they had left the house together earlier, it was still a friendly greeting.

 

Soon the Emperor and Empress entered, and the first splendid banquet since the victory finally began.

 

* * *

 

Before the full-scale banquet began, a series of tedious procedures followed.

 

First, there was a ceremony to celebrate the achievements of the war hero, Yohan. In a way, it was natural, since it was a victory banquet for Yohan.

 

So Yohan had to go to the front and listen to His Majesty the Emperor’s very long speech.

 

In other words, it meant that I was alone without a partner during that time.

 

Mariel was seated at the head table with the Crown Prince, so I stood quietly in a corner of the banquet hall, gently fanning myself.

 

A small vial rattled inside my sleeve.

 

It was the potion I received from Runart that allowed me to change into a squirrel by disrupting my magical power.

 

I was planning to use it in case of an emergency.

 

‘That person must be Rivena Sevs…’

 

Of course, I had already memorized my target’s face.

 

The woman named Rivena, who was next to Prince Theodore, was a very slender and beautiful woman.

 

At the head table were only the Emperor, the Empress, the Crown Prince, and Mariel.

 

Even though Theodore was a prince, he was an illegitimate child and according to custom, he could not sit at the head of the table.

 

And Theodore and Rivena were standing quite close to me, whether it was a coincidence or not.

 

I snorted inwardly as I watched Theodore smiling so kindly.

 

‘He puts on such an innocent face, but inside, he’s brimming with ambition. In the original story, he allied with Yohan only to betray him first.’

 

Come to think of it, Yohan, with his sharp and cold appearance, was at least straightforward in his actions.

 

‘I don’t have much information on this man since he wasn’t involved with Mariel…’

 

Anyway, Theodore was someone who had nothing to do with me, and the problem was Rivena.

 

This character doesn’t appear in the original work, so it’s suspicious in many ways that she suddenly appeared as such an important character.

 

‘If she really was sent from the temple because of me, she would have definitely approached me first.’

 

It was something that could be guessed from the rumors that started… but I had another step planned to be sure.

 

All I needed was the right opportunity, so for now, I decided to wait.

 

And then, as the Emperor’s long and boring speech continued on,

 

“I was late, so I missed it. Is that the cunning little fake orphan? She came dressed up so extravagantly?”

 

“Yeah. She dressed up like a real Lady of Medes. I don’t know why she is trying to act real when everyone knows she is fake.”

 

I heard a voice behind me, clearly whispering on purpose, as if telling me to listen.

 

“Obviously. I heard the Duchess of Medes has been recovering a lot thanks to her new doctor. Wasn’t it because of her delusions that she took in that girl? Once she fully regains her senses, she’ll be thrown out. Maybe she’s already looking for a new place to run to.”

 

‘That Doctor… was someone I had brought in.’

 

“Well, she was never like the other adopted noble daughters. Lady Mariel was just too… lenient. She gave the family name to an obvious fake. And using the exact name of the missing noble lady of the Medes family.”

 

Despite the absurdity of their words, I couldn’t help but smirk.

 

I already knew such rumors were circulating, but hearing them directly was still irritating.

 

‘Even though I’m using Yurika’s name, isn’t it too much to call me a ‘fake’?’

 

It wasn’t as if I was pretending to be the real one.

 

‘And to think, these people, who never dared to stand up to Mariel in high society, were picking a fight with me like this?’

 

‘Anyway, it turned out well.’

 

I folded the fan I was holding with my eyes shining.

 

In fact, I could tell who it was just by hearing the voice. It was the entourage of Lady Ella, the Marquis’s daughter.

 

I had already heard that they reacted sharply to the rumor that I was becoming Yohan’s partner.

 

‘You guys. You have to be my bait.’

 

My goal tonight was to confirm whether Rivena was truly connected to the temple and prepare accordingly.

 

One of the strategies was to become a prominent figure in social circles.

 

In that sense, this was a pretty good opportunity.

 

I had a good idea of what the temple was trying to do by setting up this trap… but I had already calculated for that.

 

‘Normally, ignoring them would be the proper etiquette…’

 

However, if Rivena was indeed from the temple, then before infiltrating it, I should have given her a similar amount of trouble.

 

‘You have no idea, but I’m not here to deal with small people like you—I’m here to face the temple itself.’

 

Compared to that, Ella’s little group—who did nothing but gossip behind people’s backs—was nothing more than a convenient tool.

 

‘Gossip behind my back won’t have much of an impact on me, who’s risking my life right now.’

 

Deciding to make a move immediately, I raised my hand and gestured to a servant passing by with several glasses of champagne.

 

“Ahem.”

 

As soon as I coughed slightly, the servant came over to hand me champagne.

 

This was how drinks were usually served at banquets, so my behavior was quite natural.

 

I naturally drifted closer to Ella’s group while reaching for a glass of champagne.

 

* * *