I Became A Squirrel Seeking For The Villain

 The upcoming schedule, determined by Yohan “troublemaker”, was as follows: The first event was the imperial banquet, and the second was the victory celebration in the temple. In fact, the imperial banquet was hastily arranged after the victory celebration in the temple had been decided. There were some complicated political circumstances involved. The temple’s influence within the empire was considerable, with its vast wealth and control over potion. Of course, the temple was an extremely closed-off organization with only a few priests, so ordinary people did not attach much significance to the temple. However, upon deeper examination, the temple was not only deeply involved in politics but even the imperial family had to be mindful of its authority. ‘Now His Highness the Crown Prince is someone who thinks that the authority of the temple should be reduced as much as possible.’ The Crown Prince, Roymond Roellaine, was the male lead of the original story and Mariel’s lover. He is a character who harbors resentment toward the weak emperor who has spent his life under the temple’s watchful eyes. As befitting the male lead, he also possessed the qualities of a wise ruler. Now that the war is over, he wants to take the initiative in the newly reorganized political situation. The original story focused on how Roymond defeated the Second Prince, who had allied with the temple, and how he overcame the political marriage between Mariel and Yohan. ‘Well, at least their love story will go smoothly thanks to me.’ In any case, under these circumstances, Roymond had determined that he would not let the temple monopolize the victory celebration. Yohan had demanded the temple hold the event simply because of me, but to outsiders, it could appear as though even the war-ending celebration was being hosted by the temple. So, Roymond contacted Yohan first, saying that he wanted to hold a victory celebration banquet before the date he requested for the temple. ‘Up to this point, everything was according to my plan.’ Of course, I already knew that Roymond would act that way, so I had instructed Yohan to accept if a banquet was proposed. Yohan smiled and asked softly. “Since you expected the victory banquet, you’re going to attend, right?” “Well, I should attend.” I nodded slowly and answered. “Even as an adopted daughter, I am still the Lady of Duke Medes’s family.” So far, I have never actively participated in social circles. Because it was wartime, there weren’t many large social gatherings, and I was concerned that the temple might discover my true identity, I had remained cautious. But now, I had the perfect opportunity to infiltrate the temple from within, so there was no need to hold back. No—on the contrary, I needed to solidify my position. “And for my partner…..” I narrowed my eyes and muttered, “I’m still thinking about it. I’m considering a few guys I’m close with as candidates.” I had already prepared several options, calculating different possible outcomes. As I put on a serious expression, Yohan slowly raised an eyebrow and spoke. “Who are they, the guys you are close with?” A cold glint flashed in his violet eyes. “They must be pathetic—” “The first candidate is you.” At my calm response, Yohan’s face froze. Then he quickly became serious and continued speaking. “Of course. An excellent choice. Very well-picked…” Before I knew it, his ears had turned red. I nodded coolly. “I did choose well. The advantages are as follows: If I attend the victory banquet as your partner, I’ll immediately gain the attention of high society. Plus, since Mariel is likely to be the Crown Prince’s partner, the position of the Medes Duke’s family will be solidified.” I counted on my fingers as I continued explaining. “Moreover, if I become a prominent figure, the temple won’t be able to easily eliminate me. The death of a well-known individual is always a burden to those responsible.” “I can sweep away the temple in an instant..…” At Yohan’s sullen remark, I immediately shook my head. “No. There are things I need to confirm within the temple. If you destroy everything, I won’t be able to uncover the full truth. Besides, we don’t even know yet who should or shouldn’t be eliminated.” Of course, if Yohan destroyed the temple and killed everyone inside, I might become safe. But innocent people would likely die in the process, and merely killing the High Priest might not be enough—there could be other forces working behind the scenes. Even if that did make me safe, I would have to live forever giving up on the truth. ‘Why did the temple try to kill me, and Why was I, unlike other divine beasts, so obsessed with becoming a human from the very beginning?’ ‘And… If I’ve really gotten into a novel story, why were my past life’s memories so vague and unclear?’ “But there’s also a downside. You already visit Duke Medes’s house every day, which is enough to create the same effect.” “Hmmm…” “And since you’re bound to become the center of the empire anyway, having a different partner might be more beneficial for you. I already appreciate you asking the temple for the victory celebration, so you don’t need to accommodate my needs for the banquet as well.…” I was explaining my thoughts when— Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. A polite voice followed. “This is Runart, lady. May I come in for a moment?” “Huh? Oh, yeah! Come in.” The door to my room opened, and Runart entered. He looked at Yohan with somewhat wary eyes, then came over and sat down next to me. “I need to check your condition.” “Uh… sure, but I feel fine.” “Still, I must check.” Runart has been examining me every day since I overreacted to the potion that disrupted my magic. Even if I said I was fine, he had to check for himself whether I really was. Well, considering Runart’s sense of responsibility, it was only natural, especially since I had even asked him to prepare more potion. Recently, Yohan had been visiting me quite often, and strangely, every time he did, Runart would insist on a simple medical check-up. Since it didn’t take long, I had no reason to refuse. After all, Yohan wasn’t coming to see me for anything particularly urgent. Still, Yohan always made sure to say something to Runart. “Isn’t it rude to provide medical treatment when a guest is present?” “Well….” Runart answered nonchalantly. “I don’t believe someone who showed the least amount of courtesy to the Medes family should be the one saying that.” Since Yohan had barged in and demanded to break off the engagement with Meriel, Runart’s words had a point. Anyway, my conversation with Yohan was interrupted for a moment because Runart came in. Actually, my second partner candidate was Runart. The pros and cons of choosing Runart were the complete opposite of Yohan Hyrad. While he wouldn’t be a prominent figure in high society, our pairing wouldn’t raise any suspicions either. A noble orphan partnering with a viscount of commoner origins was a perfectly reasonable choice. Besides, Runart was the Medes family’s doctor, and I had been supporting him for a long time, so it wasn’t difficult to explain our connection to others. ‘And most importantly,… Runart doesn’t necessarily need a political position. He’s the kind of person who wouldn’t even attend a banquet unless I asked him to, so he wouldn’t be a burden.’ While I was lost in thought, Yohan and Runart continued their subtle battle of nerves. “Well, our important conversation was interrupted.” Yohan muttered, crossing his long legs and resting his chin on his hand. “But one thing’s clear, Yurika. You really never stop thinking.” “The situation leaves me no choice….” I shrugged my shoulders and answered. “It also suits my personality. It’s really exciting.” Hearing that, Runart, who was in the middle of the examination, tilted his head in curiosity and asked. “What were you two talking about?” “Oh, about a partner for the victory banquet.” “What?” Runart’s eyes widened in shock, and he froze in place. Clicking my tongue at his reaction, I said, “Why are you so surprised? It’s just a partner. You just enter together and dance the first dance. It’s nothing more than a public display at the first official event.” “That’s not ‘just nothing’ at all.” Runart continued speaking with a face that looked as if he might have trouble breathing. “It’s because you are someone who plans a lot of things, but usually, the most important thing at a banquet is the partner.” Runart, who had been watching over me all this time, was right. I was actually more busy making plans than caring about things like partners. Realistically, if I ever had to go up against the temple in the future, there was no way I could handle it alone. I had to set up as many traps in advance as possible. At that moment, the hallway suddenly became noisy with hurried footsteps. “Yurika! It’s me!” A loud, grumbling voice was heard. It was Jayden. So, my third candidate was a good mix of the strengths and weaknesses of Yohan and Runart. ‘But… Why on earth was he suddenly showing up now?’ Just as I was about to rise from my seat in confusion, Jayden burst open my door and shouted. “That damn arrogant war hero is clinging to you?!” * * *