I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain Chapter 63

That definitely sounds like he is implying some intense physical contact.

 

I cleared my throat a few times and said with a sour look on my face.

 

“You mean I’m going to calm you down later by turning back into a squirrel, right?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Yohan nodded leisurely, as if I was the only one feeling awkward. I quickly added with a casual tone,

 

“I’ll do it for you every day while I’m at Duke Hyrad’s house.”

 

No matter how much I think about it, it’s really incredible that Runart developed a potion that can turn me into a divine beast again.

 

Instead of engaging in awkward “intense physical contact” as vaguely mentioned in old texts, all I had to do was touch him with my paw to absorb his magic.

 

I quickly shut him down before he could say anything more and changed the subject as I looked around.

 

“Oh, you left that tower as it is?”

 

The remote tower where Yohan had once been imprisoned was there.

 

When I asked in surprise, Yohan frowned and tilted his head.

 

“Left it as it is?”

 

“I thought it would have been destroyed a long time ago, as it symbolizes a time of pain and suffering.”

 

The sinister aura that had clung to his face earlier was now gone, replaced with a gentle expression.

 

At my words, he smiled faintly and responded like it was nothing.

 

“Why would I get rid of it? It’s a precious place to me.”

 

“Huh?”

 

I frowned slightly, wondering if his suffering really meant that much to him, when he whispered,

 

“It’s the first time I’ve met you.”

 

“Ah….”

 

At that moment, without me knowing, my ears turned red.

 

‘When someone as handsome as Yohan said something like that… well, it was hard not to feel flustered.’

 

The atmosphere had been strange for a while now. Even though nothing particularly intense had happened, the back of my neck felt hot.

 

While I was hesitating, Yohan continued speaking.

 

“How could I destroy the wall of the tower you used to climb with those tiny feet?”

 

‘Uh?’

 

“I plan to treasure the window you knocked on with your acorn forever.”

 

‘Er…..’

 

“I even found and displayed the blanket you used the first time you managed to take human form.”

 

‘ah….’

 

“I still go up there once a day.”

 

‘Hmm…’

 

“And every time I do, my heart races.”

 

“Ahahaha…”

 

I laughed awkwardly and thought to myself:

 

‘Where did the gloomy, dangerous man from earlier go? Only this weird, overly sentimental guy remained.’

 

‘Our sweet and gentle Yohan… he definitely grew up a bit strange.’

 

We ended up strolling around the Duke’s estate for quite a while.

 

Come to think of it, this was our first time roaming around the place so freely, just the two of us.

 

Being able to laugh while talking about such a difficult past was, in itself, an amazing thing.

 

When I vividly recalled the time when I threw an acorn at Tezen in the form of a squirrel, Yohan let out a small laugh, mixed with a sigh.

 

“This is bad,”

 

Yohan said with a chuckle.

 

“You’ve done so much for me, how can I ever repay you?”

 

“Aren’t I the one who should be feeling sorry these days?”

 

I widened my eyes in protest.

 

“Honestly, at first I was going to shamelessly demand you pay me back, but now I feel like I’ve just been a massive burden to you…..”

 

“If you really feel sorry, then be a burden only to me.”

 

Yohan tilted his head and whispered,

 

“That’s my condition for letting you use me however you want.”

 

‘W-was that something that needed such a grand “condition”?’

 

His voice, low and slightly hoarse, oddly made my heart flutter.

 

Until now, I’d felt like I was the one asking Yohan for help and just doing what needed to be done.

 

But when I actually came here, things were different from before, perhaps because there was nothing to do other than kill time.

 

‘Being in his domain, the Duke of Hyrad’s estate, it was like I was carried away by Yohan’s pace…’

 

And while we were spending that peaceful time together—

 

“Excuse me, Duke.”

 

A dignified-looking older man came walking briskly toward us from a distance.

 

“Butler?”

 

‘Ah… he has a new butler.’

 

I looked at Yohan’s new butler curiously, and he politely greeted me before speaking.

 

“There’s an urgent matter I must report.”

 

The short letter he handed over bore the imperial seal.

 

‘The royal family? And something this short… isn’t that usually just a visiting notice?’

 

‘But why would the royal family send such a sudden letter to Yohan?’

 

Before I could ask anything, Yohan opened the letter and his expression instantly hardened.

 

* * *

 

The servants of Duke Hyrad’s mansion watched Yohan and Yurika from a distance, their mouths agape in shock.

 

‘Isn’t Lady Yurika Medes coming to Duke Hyrad’s residence for the first time today?’

 

‘How can she move around the duke’s mansion so easily like she knew every corner?’

 

The servants of Duke Hyrad’s mansion have been replaced once with Yohan’s return, so none of them knew the ‘old Yohan’.

 

All they knew was that Yohan was a very cold and indifferent man, and that he had an eerie expression on his face every day, except when he climbed the remote tower at night.

 

Though Yohan was rational and capable—an easy master to serve—his appearance alone made him intimidating.

 

Even these days, he barely took his calming potion, so the air around him was constantly cold and heavy.

 

Some maids whispered things like, “That icy, sharp expression is actually kind of hot.” or “A handsome man who is always sick and sensitive is an attraction in itself, isn’t it?”

 

Of course, those things were only said behind his back—no one dared speak freely in front of him.

 

That was how overpowering Yohan’s presence had always been.

 

But now? What was with that face?

 

Smiling so slyly at her—at that adopted daughter Yurika, who didn’t exactly have the best reputation in the capital.

 

“Wasn’t she supposed to be the fox?”

 

“Clearly, the Duke is the real fox here.”

 

That seductive expression Yohan wore now was one the servants had never seen before.

 

Truthfully, the servants didn’t have a great opinion of Yurika.

 

After all, rumors in the capital said that Yurika had completely seduced the once innocent and cold-hearted Yohan.

 

“It’s the Duke who’s doing the seducing….”

 

“Why does it feel like an innocent woman has walked into the wild beast’s habitat on her own two feet….?”

 

In truth, not many had seen Yurika in person before.

 

This is because Yurika was concerned about her own safety and rarely left the Medes’ house.

 

So the servants couldn’t help but be confused when they saw Yurika, who was so different from the image they had in mind.

 

Contrary to the rumor that she is the witch of the century, she is actually very cute!

 

And that natural, sincere expression—everyone can tell that she really feels sorry.

 

“And if you’re sorry, then stay longer.”

 

The person who said that with an overly dramatic expression of remorse was Yohan.

 

On top of that, Yurika looked around the place with a familiar face, as if she had visited the Duke of Hyrad’s estate before.

 

The servants who did not know the history of the Duke of Hyrad’s house could only guess that there must have been some kind of connection there in the past.

 

And while the two of them strolled around, the servants observing from a distance came to a conclusion:

 

Though it’s dangerous to judge too quickly, Yurika didn’t seem like the villainess from the rumors.

 

Rather…..

 

“Wow, this swing is still here. Back when Tezen was really into me, he used to push me on this all the time.”

 

“Aha. So it’s a swing filled with memories of Tezen.”

 

Yohan responded cheerfully to whatever Yurika said.

 

However, the moment Yurika turned around, the swing suddenly collapsed.

 

Anyone could tell that it was Yohan’s magic that had caused such tremendous destructive power.

 

“Oh, this is the bench Tezen used to sit on whenever guests came, just to show me off!”

 

“I see. I didn’t know that.”

 

As Yurika looked away, the bench quietly collapsed.

 

“Oh my, this is the ugly statue Tezen said looked like me and used to laugh at!”

 

A statue of a rat reading a book crumbled without a sound.

 

“And this chestnut tree—Tezen used to have the maids pick chestnuts and throw them to me from here!”

 

As soon as Yurika turned onto another path, the tree slowly fell down.

 

And just like that, while Yurika kept walking around without a care in the world, half of the Duke’s garden disappeared.

 

By then the servants had come to a conclusion.

 

‘If that strange duke doesn’t end up with Lady Yurika, we’ll all be doomed.’

 

If Yurika were to leave the house, the house itself might not survive.

 

‘Witch or whatever she is, we’ll do our best to support that relationship! For the sake of our peace!’

 

And while that oddly peaceful-yet-not peaceful stroll continued…

 

The butler arrived, holding a letter addressed to Yohan from Theodore.

 

It was a short message saying that he would come to the Duke’s house right away.

 

* * *