I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain

Have you heard that? Yohan Hyrad…”

 

“I heard he’s a total troublemaker.”

 

“Well, at least he ended the war…

That alone is something. We should be grateful and do whatever he wants.” 

The murmuring of servants could be heard from outside.

 

Jayden closed the merchant newspaper he was reading inside the carriage. 

 

Then he looked out the window with a faint sigh.

 

He was on his way directly to Duke Medes’s estate from the eastern region where he had been staying for business.

 

Everything happened in an instant.

 

Suddenly, a calming potion was invented and distributed in the temple, and after that, Yohan Hyrad, who had been suffering from the side effects of magic, ended the war with great magic.

 

Duke Hyrad was also praised as a great wizard, but it was said that he was nothing compared to his eldest son, Yohan Hyrad.

 

It was said that enemy troops, upon witnessing Yohan’s magical power, immediately shouted,

“We surrender unconditionally!”

 

Yohan Hyrad, who had become a war hero, immediately headed to the capital.

 

Jayden also left for the Medes’s estate right after the sudden end of the war.

 

The end of the war was certainly good news, but for the Medes family, it was an enormous turning point.

 

Now, Mariel’s fate rested in Yohan Hyrad’s hands. And there was no reason for him not to take her as his wife.

 

Mariel was so beautiful and kind-hearted that the Emperor had blatantly offered her as a prize of war.

 

Moreover, the Medes family was a grand noble family deeply rooted in the imperial capital’s high society.

 

Though they had briefly faced ruin five years ago, they had since rebuilt their foundation, reclaiming the full glory of the high nobility.

 

And Jayden knew better than anyone where that glory had come from.

 

‘Yurika….,I’m so glad that girl showed up.’

 

A mere child had stepped in to guide Mariel, who was being used and was being manipulated without any adults to give her proper advice at a young age.

 

Despite that, she skillfully highlighted Mariel’s strengths, positioning her at the forefront while quietly retreating into the background.

 

So, other people didn’t know that the reconstruction of the Medes family was thanks to Yurika.

 

‘My sister’s condition has improved significantly, and our wealth is steadily growing again.’

 

It was almost a miracle that a genius doctor sponsored by Yurika came to Duke Medes’s house.

 

Not to mention, she even saved Jayden’s life when he was just an easy target, being used like a fool.

 

Jayden never forgot that fact.

 

‘It felt like my brother-in-law had come back to life for the past five years.’

 

Jayden sighed slightly as he recalled the Duke of Medes, who had light brown hair like Yurika.

 

In fact, Jayden had often wondered, ‘

Could Yurika really be that lost child?’

 

She was supposedly from an orphanage, but what if she was actually the kidnapped child?

 

They said she was adopted because she resembled the child, but what if she had been the same person from the beginning?

 

He had cautiously asked Mariel about the possibility, but she had firmly denied it.

 

She even warned him not to say anything that might hurt Yurika.

 

Jayden had tried to investigate by asking which orphanage Yurika came from, but Mariel had stubbornly refused to tell him.

 

He also asked the butler of the Duke of Medes, but he also said he didn’t know anything about Yurika.

 

He even added,

“There has never been a case of finding the missing children of the Medes family.”

 

It seemed that Yurika herself never thought of herself as the biological daughter of the Medes family.

 

Eventually, Jayden gave up on that thought, thinking

, ’I guess she’s a kid with a solid background.’

 

‘Regardless… I just hope both of them will be happy.’

 

By then, the carriage had entered the capital, and Jayden anxiously glanced at the newspapers.

 

Every page was covered with reports about Yohan Hyrad’s unpredictable actions.

 

It made sense—he was the hottest topic right now.

 

Jayden had rushed to Duke Medes’s house to meet Yohan in person and ask him to take care of Mariel. After all, Yohan was definitely going to marry her.

 

But as soon as Yohan arrived in the capital, he canceled his victory celebration and stormed into the Medes’s estate to demand a breakup.

 

The news had made headlines.

 [Yohan Hyrad broke off his engagement with Mariel Medes as soon as he arrived in the capital]  [A Man Who Doesn’t Go Back on His Word?] 

Jayden shook his head.

 

Judging from the fact that the kind Mariel described him as rude, he must have been a real piece of trash.

 

The phrase

“A man who doesn’t go back on his word”

was probably the only good thing people could say about him.

 

‘Anyway, it was fortunate that he broke off the engagement.’

 

And the news that followed was even more shocking.

 [Yohan Hyrad Becomes Duke – The War Hero’s Betrayal]  [Duke Yohan Hyrad imprisons his stepmother and half-brother in the dungeon]  [Why Did Duke Yohan Hyrad Dismiss All His Servants?] 

‘He’s a guy with a very complicated family.….still, I don’t know what the truth is.’

 

From what Jayden knew, Yohan had been sickly since childhood, and his stepmother, the Duchess of Hyrad, had assigned him a personal doctor.

 

Even temporary servants testified,

“There was no abuse; we just followed the doctor’s orders.”

 

But the truth could not be known.

 

Who knew if that doctor was in cahoots with the late Duchess?

 

One thing was certain—Yohan Hyrad was an unusual man.

 

Every news article that followed was about his bizarre actions.

 [Duke Yohan Hyrad holds a victory celebration at the temple]  [The Duke Who Contradicts Himself – Requesting an unnecessary event from the temple]

 

 

Jayden clicked his tongue and read the newspaper.

 

It is said that Yohan Hyrad, who had refused to attend any ceremonies, immediately demanded that a grand victory celebration be held at the temple after becoming Duke.

 

‘With this, it has been revealed that the good thing that Mariel found was also false. He speaks two words with one mouth.’ 

 

Jayden desperately hoped that that strange man would stay away from the Medes family.

 

Even though Yohan had broken off his engagement with Mariel, Jayden was extremely anxious. 

 

The other content that followed was also very strange.

 [Duke Yohan Hyrad visits the Duke of Medes’s house every day.…Why on earth is that?]  

‘What could he possibly want from the family he just broke ties with?’

 

Jayden gritted his teeth, thinking that he had to take care of that as soon as he got there, and ordered his coachman to drive the carriage faster.

 

* * * 

 

“Next month, the temple will hold the victory celebration, Yurika.” 

 

Yohan sat across from me, calmly reporting the news with a gentle smile.

 

“I asked for it to be sooner, but next month was the best they could do. The Emperor’s official event has to come first, apparently.”

 

“I see. I guess there’s nothing we can do.”

 

I nodded as I sipped my tea, then smiled.

 

“Sorry, Yohan. I turned you into a troublemaker.”

 

Ever since I asked to enter the temple, Yohan had officially become a ‘troublemaker’.

 

After all, he had rejected a victory celebration at first, only to suddenly demand one at the temple.

 

Even after he finished breaking off the engagement at the Duke of Medest and met me, he immediately returned to the Duke of Hyrad’s mansion to deal with Ella and Tezen.

 

Naturally, the public saw this as ‘betrayal’.

 

Not many people knew about Yohan’s past abuse, and to most outsiders, it simply looked like

“The Duchess was just following the doctor’s advice.”

 

 

Yohan himself never tried to explain.

 

Anyway, he immediately took over as Duke of Hyrad and just as I had wanted, requested the victory celebration at the temple. 

 

So it was only natural that his image became a mess.

 

Still, there was nothing I could do. 

 

The temple was not open to the public unless there was a special occasion. 

 

And it was too dangerous for me to sneak in alone in squirrel form.

 

Even if no one knew about Runart’s experimental potion, I had to assume the temple was my enemy and act cautiously.

 

“Everyone will misunderstand you. You are a strange person who causes trouble at the temple for no reason.”

 

“They’re wrong.”

 

Yohan replied nonchalantly, smiling softly.

 

“If it weren’t for you, I would’ve destroyed the temple already.”

 

“……?”

 

“They tried to kill you. It’s better to eliminate future threats.”

 

‘Umm…. that wasn’t something he should be saying with such a sweet smile.’

 

“My original plan was to take care of Ella and Tezen first, then the temple. Thanks to you, they’ve been given extra time to live. If I had wiped out the temple too, I’d probably be called a tyrant. So, it’s not your fault. It’s not even a misunderstanding.”

 

I nodded my head hesitantly.

 

‘There was no denying it…. Yohan might not be a troublemaker, but he was definitely a strange person.’

 

As I was laughing awkwardly, Yohan changed the subject.

 

“And when I asked for the victory celebration to be held at the temple, the imperial palace would hold a victory celebration too.”

 

He gently placed his teacup down and looked straight at me.

 

“Have you chosen your partner yet, Yurika?”

 

* * *