I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain

Theodore had never personally escorted a noble lady before. Everyone was whispering, saying things like, ‘Rivena? Who is that lady?’ or ‘Where is the house of Count Sevs?’ Because of the long war and the lack of social activity, no one had extensive knowledge of provincial noble families. As a result, no one could answer. Soon Theodore came in, smiling brightly and escorting a lady. She had voluminous red hair elegantly pinned up, mesmerizing green eyes that shimmered, and a graceful stride—yet no one recognized Rivena. Rivena smiled leisurely under the pouring gaze and looked around confidently. “Yohan Hyrad is a war hero, and that young lady, Yurika Medes, is Medes’s adopted daughter. Didn’t they say that Mariel, the head of Duke Medes, is fiercely protecting her?” “There’s no choice. If suspicions arise, we can’t just sit back and watch… I’ll have to step into the world and find out for myself.” Rivena, who had been engrossed in research in the temple’s underground laboratory, has finally come out into the world. Because she was so concerned about the divine beast who had somehow escaped and the mysterious adopted daughter who had taken its place. ‘I never expected Yohan Hyrad to be such an outstanding wizard. If I had known, I would have dealt with him sooner.’ That adopted daughter had been living quietly under the Medes family’s care, not attracting much attention. So far, Rivena had merely observed. But now, she deeply regrets it. ‘Besides, if she becomes actively involved in social activities as Yohan’s partner, it could become a threat to the temple.’ Dealing with Lady of Medes would be a bit troublesome, but if she wanted to eliminate future risks, she had to step forward and handle it herself ‘If you’re still alive….’ Rivena scanned the room, searching for Yurika Medes, but it seemed she had yet to arrive. ‘You will be my biggest mistake.’ As the High Priest had said, the chances of Yurika having truly transformed into a human and entered the Medes family to become their adopted daughter were nearly nonexistent. Nevertheless, Rivena thought that she should be wary of ‘Yurika Medes’. ‘I need to put an end to my mistake to finally rest easy.’ Even if Yurika Medes wasn’t actually the divine beast, Rivena had no intention of letting that girl be. Anyway, there is no need to keep the suspicious risk factors alive. Rivena was meticulous by nature, and she had both the temple and the prince as her backing. So, she had already done a lot of work in advance. One of them was to gradually ruin Yurika’s reputation before the banquet even started. Rumors had already been spread everywhere that the adopted daughter of the Medes family was an arrogant, insolent disgrace who didn’t know her place. If eliminating her in one move was difficult, Rivena planned to slowly bring about her downfall from the Medes family over time. “I hope this action will have results.” Theodore spoke coldly next to her. “I mean, I even got engaged.” “I appreciate it. I will resolve it quickly.” “Well, I also owe a lot to the temple and you.” Rivena smiled slightly as if to say that was true. In fact, Theodore was a wizard, but he kept that fact a secret from everyone. If this fact became known, he could be drafted into the battlefield. Leaving the capital to the crown prince and heading off to an indefinite war was a nightmare he refused to face. And the temple had secretly been suppressing his magic all this time. Thanks to that, he had managed to live without revealing that he was quite a powerful wizard. “I feel so much better now that the calming potion has come out. I no longer need to visit the temple.” Theodore was a young man with soft silver hair and blue eyes. At first glance, he seemed very kind-hearted and his eyes were always crescent-shaped, but in reality, he was a man dark with ambition. Clicking his tongue as if disappointed, Theodore licked his lips and murmured, “Still, it was good to be calmed down by a divine beast.” “Is there a significant difference in function? I’m not a wizard, so…” “Well, there wasn’t much of a difference in functionality, but there was something indescribable about it.” “Ah….” Rivena inwardly thought, ‘If it’s indescribable, then it’s just your imagination. Stop being annoying over something that’s just in your head.’ But she didn’t let it show. “It’s nothing compared to the divine beast I kept asking for.” Theodore’s round blue eyes narrowed. “The more I think about that squirrel divine beast, the more bitter I feel. I wanted it so badly, yet it ended up with another noble.” “That was just… just because it was Your Highness’s first calming experience. There was no real difference from the other divine beasts.” Rivena thought, ‘Here we go again.’ but spoke politely. “And besides, that divine beast was unconscious back then. For various reasons, it was far more unstable than the others. I couldn’t possibly give it to Your Highness.” “But isn’t it too much that you didn’t even tell me where you sent it?” Theodore complained in a low voice. “Ever since I started using the calming potion, I’ve wanted that divine beast even more. Not just for its calming effect, but for something beyond that.” “You just don’t remember clearly. Lately, even the experiments I conducted yesterday feel vague to me.” “That squirrel was definitely different from the other divine beasts…” “Well, in any case, there’s the calming potion now. People don’t even use the term ‘divine beast’ much these days.” Rivena fiddled with her nails halfheartedly, trying to quickly change the subject. ‘It’s surprisingly sharp? That squirrel was infused with Duke Medes’s magic, making it quite a powerful divine beast.’ Yet, she inwardly took back what she had earlier dismissed as just a ‘feeling’. Theodore often used words like “intuition” or “just a feeling,” which Rivena, who was accustomed to precise experiments, found frustrating. But at moments like that, she had to admit—his ‘feeling’ might actually be right. Seeing her disinterested response, Theodore clicked his tongue regretfully and murmured, “I wish I could feel that feeling just once more. For a wizard, a great calm is like a miracle.” Rivena swallowed back the words: ‘You’ll never experience it again because I personally got rid of that divine beast. And If I couldn’t destroy it then, I would have found a way to do so today.’ Their secret conversation was cut short as people started gathering around them. “Your Highness, it’s been a long time.” More and more people approached Rivena and Theodore. “You must be Lady Sevs? It’s my first time meeting you.” Riven smiled and began to leisurely mingle among the curious people. Time passed, and soon, the chime of a bell echoed. A servant loudly announced, “The Duke of Yohan Hyrad has arrived!” Everyone’s eyes turned straight to the entrance of the banquet hall. Although his actions after the victory were somewhat strange, Yohan Hyrad was a war hero and the main character of that banquet. As for his partner, everyone had their guesses. These days, there are rumors that Yohan has been visiting Duke Medes’s residence every single day and that he has been seeing Yurika Medes, not Mariel, for the past few days. “Lady Yurika Medes has arrived!” Soon after, Yohan Hyrad, with the happiest expression on his face, entered with a confident Yurika. ‘So that girl… is Medes’s adopted daughter.’ Rivena narrowed her eyes at Yurika, who held her head high. Wearing a dazzling dress and flashy accessories, she immediately caught people’s attention. Light brown hair and round pink eyes… It definitely looked similar to the missing Yurika. ‘The more I research and investigate, the more I feel that the divine beast was actually Yurika.’ ‘If that’s the case… it would be better if you left quietly rather than prolonging the matter.’ Theodore, not knowing what Rivena was thinking, crossed his arms and looked at Yohan and Yurika with interest. “Hmm…” Theodore muttered, tilting his head to the side. “That light brown hair… reminds me even more of that squirrel.” * * * Entering the banquet hall, Yurika looked around with a calm expression, though she felt the weight of the many gazes upon her. She had her own thoughts too. ‘Even as a Medes lady, my position isn’t solid yet. I feel a little bad for Yohan…’ ‘But I need to survive first. Later, I’ll make sure everyone knows that we broke up because of me, so at least Yohan’s reputation won’t suffer.’ Now, it is unclear how the life of Yohan, the villain obsessed with Mariel, will turn out, but it is true that he had a difficult childhood. So, Yurika hoped that he would live a proper life from now on. It was a bit unfortunate that Yohan had become known as the ‘troublemaker’ because she had requested an event at the temple. And now, Yohan had to be her partner at the banquet, she felt even worse. Yurika whispered to Yohan and apologized again. “I’m sorry for asking you for so many favors regarding this banquet. I feel bad that this won’t help your reputation either.” “Nonsense.” Unlike the anxious Yurika, Yohan was overjoyed just to be attending the banquet with her as his partner. Before coming to the banquet, the adjutant said something rather irritating. “Don’t assume everything will go smoothly just because it all worked out well for now, Duke. If banquet partners always ended up together, love-driven conflicts wouldn’t exist.” His adjutant cautiously advised Yohan. “Be careful, you might meet a powerful rival at the banquet. Unexpected betrayals often come at moments like these.”  * * *