I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain

“Everything will be okay, sister. Don’t worry.”

 

“Thank you, Yurika. I keep relying on you like this—what should I do?”

 

“What are you talking about? You’ve done so much for me.”

 

I gave Mariel a small smile and patted her shoulder.

 

Actually, the end of the war was a big deal to me, even though others may not know it.

 

‘Now the social activities will really begin.’ 

 

Even though the frontlines hadn’t reached the capital, it was still wartime. 

 

Naturally, the capital’s social circles were bound to become very depressed.

 

Most of the high-ranking noble families had already sent one of their heads, heirs, or direct descendants to war.

 

So, unless they were from a family as ruined as the Duke of Hyrad, the atmosphere couldn’t have been good.

 

Of course, extravagant banquets and grand tea parties were rare. Even when gatherings occurred, they were small and quiet—just a means to exchange news.

 

Just like before, when the Duchess of Medes and her daughter were invited to dinner at the Duke of Hyrad’s house.

 

In that environment, there was no way I, especially as an adopted daughter, could have actively participated.

 

But now that the war is over and even won, all sorts of official gatherings will begin to take place.

 

‘This might make it easier for me to investigate things.’

 

During that time, I never forgot the temple’s suspicious nature.

For some reason, just thinking about the temple gave me an instinctive sense of repulsion. I kept recalling how they had tried to kill me.

‘If they had discovered that I had become human… would they try to kill me again?’

But with the capital under such tight control, it had been impossible to investigate anything. The temple had shut its doors under the pretense of developing a “calming potion,” refusing to admit any outsiders.

 

They had even stopped distributing divine beasts.

 

‘But now, the temple can’t remain in hiding. Just like Yohan Hyrad, they played a crucial role in winning the war.’

 

On the flip side, this meant I was now exposed to the temple’s dangers. But there was no avoiding it.

 

* * *

 

After leaving Mariel’s room, I headed to the underground corridor.

 

I had asked Mariel a long time ago about Medes’s ancestors being beasts.

 

“Oh, you mean if I can turn into an animal? Wow, that would be so cool.”

 

Mariel answered my question playfully and giggled.

 

“It’s true that there’s a legend about our ancestor being a beastman, but I’ve never heard of anyone in our family transforming into an animal. Isn’t it just a myth that every family has?”

 

“Then, neither you nor the Duke can transform into an animal?”

 

“Well… I don’t think we would know how to change, even if we could.”

 

That was a sharp observation.

 

Come to think of it, even though I had once been a squirrel, I had no idea how to change back.

 

“Anyway, I know my own body best. Sadly, I don’t have any special abilities. Hmm… But it would be nice if I could turn into something that could fly.”

 

Mariel, who didn’t even know that she had a lot of magical power, was claiming she knew her body best.

 

In the end, no information could be obtained from Mariel either.

 

I even searched in the family’s archives, but all I found was a brief mention:

 

The ancestor of the Medes family is believed to have been a beast. Many were of the predator lineage, which is why the family has long been regarded as a prominent warrior clan.

 

Still, I spent a long time staring at a portrait of Oscar Medes, next to a painting of a tiger, lost in thought.

 

* * *

 

The war in the south, which had dragged on for years, ended in an instant thanks to Yohan Hyrad’s actions.

 

The moment the temple completed the ‘calming potion’, Yohan was able to use magic freely and released his immense power.

 

So his comeback to the capital is full of pride.

 

“Did you see that? Did you see that incredible magic?”

 

The soldiers were so excited that they repeated the same words over and over again as if they had cast the magic themselves.

 

“With a single explosion, everyone was annihilated. The Nine Kingdoms of Oriad immediately surrendered unconditionally.”

 

“That magic must have been so powerful that the enemy had no choice but to raise the white flag on the spot.”

 

“No one could escape the storm that struck from the sky.”

 

“Whoa….”

 

A village child who was listening to the story asked with sparkling eyes.

 

“So, is the vast southern forest completely destroyed?”

 

“huh?”

 

“Did no one survive? Is it all in ruins? Did all the animals in the forest die, too?”

 

“That is….”

 

The soldiers exchanged awkward glances before hesitantly answering.

 

“Uh… well, all the squirrels were left alive.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“After the magic was done, Master Yohan himself checked on the surviving squirrels who were running away. We don’t know why.”

 

“Why would he do that?”

 

“No idea. Oh, and the oak and chestnut trees were untouched, too.”

 

The village child was confused, but the soldiers had no answers.

 

Because no one knew why Yohan did such a strange thing.

 

Even when people asked him, he never explained.

 

Rumors spread that he was either an extreme animal lover or that he believed in the superstitious myth among soldiers that

“the Duke of Medes can transform into a beast.”

 

“Honestly, um… maybe because of his childhood? He was locked up for a long time, so… his personality is a bit…”

 

Yohan never let anyone get close. He spoke as little as possible.

 

His icy purple eyes were terrifying enough to make people shudder just by meeting his gaze.

 

Despite being a wizard, his swordsmanship is as good as any other swordsman and his physique was imposing.

 

So no one dared to ask, “Why did you only spare the animals? And why did you personally check on the squirrels?”

 

It was when the soldiers exchanged glances and shrugged their shoulders.

 

The protagonist of the story, Yohan Hyrad, receives a letter while riding his black warhorse at the head of the procession.

 

“Master Yohan, a letter has arrived from the Medes family.” 

 

“Medes?”

 

“It’s from Duchess Mariel Medes.”

 

Yohan frowned as he opened the letter. His expression was one of extreme displeasure.

 

The adjutant glanced at him for a moment and then asked after a while.

 

“Will you send a reply…?”

 

“No.”

 

Yohan answered coldly.

 

“B-But it would be proper etiquette to at least—”

 

“I don’t want to get nitpicked by saying useless things.”

 

‘Marriage? What nonsense.’

 

Yohan was well aware of the weight of that arrangement.

 

It was an engagement personally ordered by the Emperor seven years ago.

 

Of course, Yohan had no intention of paying attention to the emperor. 

 

There was only one person in the world whose opinion mattered to him.

 

All he was focused on was how to get this marriage canceled as soon as possible.

 

“Well… I suppose…”

 

The adjutant gave up trying to persuade Yohan.

 

Perhaps Yohan would soon be labeled as the rude man of the capital, but the adjutant knew that once Yohan made up his mind, nothing could change it.

 

‘It’s still a bit disappointing. He’s not as bad as people think. But since no one in the capital knows him, they’ll assume he’s just an arrogant brute.’

 

The adjutant was one of the few who understood that Yohan, despite his intimidating aura, wasn’t truly heartless.

 

He rarely smiled brightly, didn’t try to please others, and didn’t talk about himself much, but he was a fairly sensible and considerate superior.

 

But people remembered the tremendous magic that Yohan had shown them at once, and how great the magic was.

 

And Yohan had no intention of correcting that perception.

 

“We’ll arrive in the capital in three days. Where shall we go first?”

 

He thought Yohan might not want to go to the Duke of Hyrad.

 

Without hesitation, Yohan answered.

 

“The Duke of Medes. We’ll go there as soon as we arrive in the capital.”

 

The adjutant’s eyes widened at the unexpected answer.

 

And just in case Yohan didn’t know the etiquette, he spoke urgently.

 

“But visiting without notice would be incredibly rude—”

 

“I should show up when they least expect it and call off the engagement before they have time to react.”

 

he interrupted, raising his eyebrows. As if he’d been strategizing that situation for a very long time.

 

“Considering that she has already sent such a letter, it seems that Lady of Medes wants to marry a war hero.”

 

Completely at a loss, Yohan added coldly. 

 

“I will immediately build a wall to prevent them from saying anything else in the future.”

 

And so, three days later, without even stopping by Duke Hyrad’s house, Yohan burst into Duke Medes’ house with a fearsome look on his face.

 

* * *