I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain Chapter 52

After Jayden suddenly disappeared, I ran straight to Yohan.

 

“Yurika?”

 

I whispered to Yohan, who was slightly surprised to see me.

 

“They disappeared onto the balcony together, right?”

 

“Yeah. It seemed like it was because of me.”

 

Yohan answered with satisfaction.

 

“But why do you have such a satisfied face?”

 

“I’m satisfied that I’ve gotten them away from me for now. Just being in the same space as them was annoying.”

 

Regardless of Yohan’s answer, everything about this situation seemed suspicious.

 

No matter how I thought about it, there was no way they disappeared together just because their leather business failed or because their plan to get rid of me didn’t work.

 

There had to be something much more important, something I definitely didn’t expect.

 

“I need to eavesdrop on what they’re talking about.”

 

I whispered to Yohan.

 

“As a squirrel.”

 

“What? A squirrel?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Here was my plan:

 

First, we both move to a balcony close to the one they disappeared onto.

 

Second, I use Runart’s potion to transform into a squirrel and sneak onto their balcony.

 

Third, I safely listen in on their conversation and then return to Yohan, who will help me turn back into a human.

 

As I explained the plan, counting on my fingers, Yohan furrowed his brows in concern.

 

“It seems dangerous, Yurika.”

 

“But I have to do it anyway.”

 

Yohan stared at me for a moment before quickly nodding, as if agreeing to cooperate.

 

“Then you have to be careful. Don’t overdo it.”

 

“Of course.”

 

And just like that, we became the second couple to fall for each other in an instant, following Theodore and Rivena.

 

“Yurika.”

 

Yohan finished whispering and started acting, caressing my cheek.

 

After I left the dance with Jayden, there were already a lot of people looking at me and Yohan.

 

“Did you miss me that much?”

 

“Yeah. I want to dance the second dance with you too.”

 

“Hmm…well….”

 

Yohan spoke in a slightly lower voice, yet loud enough for everyone to hear clearly.

 

“I want to do something else.”

 

Even though he was just acting, his urgent tone made it sound like he was completely lost in love.

 

“If you want to dance, let’s go somewhere private and dance there.”

 

With that, we hurriedly embraced each other as if we couldn’t bear to be apart, then moved to the balcony next to where Rivena had disappeared.

 

Of course, once we got to where we were alone, we had to move quickly.

 

I immediately took the potion that Runart had given me.

 

Not long after, I, who had turned into a squirrel, peeked my head out from under my clothes and shook my front paws firmly at Yohan.

 

“Kyung!”

 

It meant, “I’ll be back.”

 

It was the farewell gesture we always used when parting ways at the duke’s residence.

 

“Be careful.”

 

Yohan, whose ears had turned red, stroked my tail and said,

 

“I’ll wait for you.”

 

While Yohan waited on the balcony, I scurried across and clung to their balcony in my squirrel form.

 

* * *

 

‘Really…. Why is this person so weird?’

 

Although Rivena was internally feeling all sorts of annoyance, she kept her head down without letting it show to Theodore.

 

After all, everything she had planned had failed.

 

Her engagement news had been completely buried, so there was no point in securing Theodore as her fiancé, and the luxury leather goods she had stockpiled were now useless.

 

In a way, it was no different from a miserable failure after involving Theodore.

 

‘But still… why is he making such a big deal about talking in private right now? It just makes people suspicious.’

 

Rivena was a rather cool-headed person.

 

Even though her plans had been ruined because of Yurika, she wasn’t stupid enough to show it openly.

 

She knew that if she wanted to seize another opportunity, she had to act like nothing had happened.

 

Even though she had such a calm expression, Theodore kept repeating, ‘Come to the balcony quickly, there’s something I need to talk about.’

 

‘Of course, he wants to blame me, but why the rush? He didn’t bet his entire fortune on this. There’s nothing we can do about it now, so why is he making such a fuss?’

 

In the end, Rivena had no choice but to follow Theodore’s words.

 

Even though he was an illegitimate child, Theodore was still the prince of the empire. He was even a wizard who was aiming for the throne.

 

Regardless of her inner thoughts, she had to remain polite toward him.

 

Of course, he was going to hold her responsible for all this, but Theodore just stared at Rivena with his arms crossed before opening his mouth.

 

“Rivena.”

 

His blue eyes no longer carried their usual kindness or warmth.

 

Instead, under the moonlight, his gaze held a hint of madness.

 

After maintaining the heavy silence long enough to pressure Rivena, Theodore slowly continued.

 

“I’m talking about Yurika Medes.”

 

“Ah, yes.”

 

Rivena rolled her eyes and answered quickly.

 

“If you mean the lost second daughter of Medes—”

 

“No, no. I mean the Yurika who’s attending this banquet right now.”

 

For a moment, it seemed like they heard the footsteps of a small animal, but the wind was blowing hard at that moment, so they both ignored it.

 

“I’m talking about the woman who managed to make fools of both of us at once.”

 

Rivena was slightly surprised.

 

Theodore was not questioning her about what had happened earlier, but rather brought up a completely different topic—one that she had hoped he wouldn’t mention.

 

“W-Wait a moment.”

 

Rivena was startled and stopped him for a moment.

 

“If this is an important conversation, wouldn’t it be better to discuss it later, Your Highness? Someone might overhear.”

 

“Here? Rivena, you underestimate the imperial palace.”

 

Theodore scoffed as if Rivena had said something ridiculous.

 

Then, completely ignoring how Rivena was glancing around anxiously, Theodore continued with a voice filled with near certainty.

 

“Yurika—she’s not a fake like people say, is she? She’s actually the real one, isn’t she? The second daughter you guys took away.”

 

‘How did he know?’

 

Rivena desperately controlled her expression.

 

Even though she had no choice but to work with Theodore, she had never intended to tell him everything.

 

Especially since wizards are famous for their obsession with the calming power possessed by divine beasts.

 

‘But why…? The calming potion I developed is perfect. It surpasses divine beasts in terms of effectiveness!’

 

Based on its effects, her potion was indistinguishable from a divine beast’s ability.

 

In fact, didn’t Yohan Hyrad end the war in one fell swoop thanks to the potion?

 

However, Theodore surprisingly expressed his opinion that ‘A divine beast is different’.

 

If his reason was simply “a feeling,” then Rivena had nothing to say.

 

‘I really didn’t want him to find out…’

 

Rivena had never planned to reveal Yurika Medes’s identity to Theodore.

 

Not for any specific reason—she just believed that the fewer people knew the secret, the better.

 

As she remained expressionless, Theodore licked his lips before speaking again.

 

“Be honest. If you lie here, I will stop cooperating with the temple right away.”

 

He even smirked, his sharp eyes glinting menacingly.

 

“You know better than anyone who’s in a more desperate position right now.”

 

Since Crown Prince Roymond had started clashing with the temple, it was only natural for Theodore, who was after the throne, to ally with them.

 

Up until now, Rivena had only told Theodore, “Medes’s adopted daughter is a nuisance to the temple. I think we need to get rid of her somehow.”

 

Not knowing the temple’s deeper motivations, Theodore had nodded indifferently.

 

To him, the temple’s massive financial support was all that mattered.

 

“That damn Yohan Hyrad is watching us the whole time, so this is the only way we can talk in secret.”

 

Theodore clicked his tongue.

 

Thinking about Yohan’s wary gaze made him annoyed.

 

Originally, strong wizards instinctively hated each other. That was also the reason why wizards could not unite.

 

And Yohan was absurdly powerful, so Theodore naturally found him irritating.

 

“But I’m so curious, I can’t wait until the banquet is over. When it comes to divine beasts, you know wizards can’t help themselves.”

 

Rivena was on the verge of losing her mind.

 

‘I had created the perfect calming potion to eliminate this obsession, but this weirdo…’

 

Anyway, the wizards were the worst.

 

‘And why did Yohan have to make things worse by openly watching and monitoring Theodore?’

 

“You, who only liked to stay locked up in the lab, went so far as to have a fake engagement with me to get rid of that person….”

 

Theodore folded his arms and continued in a slow, deliberate tone.

 

“Then why… does she remind me of the divine beast I once encountered?”

 

“…..”

 

Rivena’s mind raced.

 

One wrong answer, and she could end up making an enemy of Theodore.

 

“Is that divine beast from Medes’s direct bloodline?”

 

His intuition was annoyingly sharp.

 

Rivena sighed faintly inside.

 

* * *