The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella-Chapter 136

Bluewood. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

I had not expected this at all.

No, it would be more accurate to say I hadn’t even considered them at all.

‘Was I looking down on them too much?’

The most recent member of the Bluewood family I had encountered was Rose.

She had tried to put on a disgusting act to manipulate, but honestly, she only left me with the impression of being pitiful.

It was pathetic, how easily she was swayed by the prince’s sugary promises to make her his princess.

I didn’t even feel like she was worth dealing with, so I remembered that Sera had only issued a warning to Rose and didn’t take any further action against her.

‘But now, I think Rose might have been a decoy to make Sera drop her guard.’

She might have used her apparent weakness and harmlessness to put Sera at ease.

And meanwhile, behind the scenes, she could have been steadily planning to eliminate Sera.

Elodie fell into a deep train of thought for a moment.

During this time, the two commanding knights, who had been standing guard like sentinels to protect Elodie, dealt with the spies from the Mouseton family.

“Where do you think you’re looking, keeping your eyes on the young lady like that? Can’t you remove your gaze right now?”

The commander of the Silver Order, the gray wolf beastfolk Howlf, spoke up.

The spies immediately flinched, like they had been burned, and lowered their eyes.

“Did you not hear the young lady’s direct question and yet act like you’re pretending not to notice? How dare you bow your head?”

Then, Leopard, the commander of the Golden Order and a lion beastfolk, shot back.

The spies trembled and lifted their heads, startled.

Howlf, crossing his arms, growled menacingly.

“Straighten your necks and look me in the eye, if you have the courage. Does that seem like an attitude of remorse to you?”

“......”

“What's with that look of unjust indignation?”

“Wow, a traitor is upset. Who do you think should be the most unjust here? It’s the young lady, who lost her family and name at only three years old and has been wandering in a foreign land. Haven’t you been punished enough yet?”

“Why are you looking at us with your eyes wide open? Are you asking for more?”

“No, no!”

“Hmm? A traitor is talking back?”

“But......”

“A traitor has a sense of self, does he?”

“......”

“Your posture is unacceptable. Get down on the ground right now, this instant.”

Normally, these two hated each other intensely and would start fighting at the mere exchange of a glance. But at times like this, they were perfectly in sync.

‘They both look so full of life.’

In these peaceful times, there was little for the Valkyrisen knights, symbols of peace, to do.

Whether it was participating in a swordsmanship tournament, hunting monsters, or engaging in bloody battles among knights, those were the only outlets for their excess vigor.

Even on escort missions, combat rarely broke out.

Who would dare challenge the Valkyrisen family’s insignia?

Thus, Valkyrisen knights often struggled to keep their boiling bloodlust in check.

The reason they always bickered over trivial matters was likely because of this.

So, the conclusion is...

‘I’ve gotten caught up in something serious.’

They probably thought that surrendering would end it all.

But hell was only beginning now.

Elodie, while letting the knights of Valkyrisen deal with the Mouseton spies, continued her train of thought.

‘So, Bluewood was involved all along?’

Nyx Basilisk of the Basilisk family.

The Queen and Prince of the Silvaria Kingdom.

The Emperor of the Terranolia Empire.

‘These three were supposed to be the masterminds behind everything, right?’

When did Bluewood slip into the picture?

Could it have been from the beginning...?

‘No, that’s not it.’

The Bluewood family, having lived as mice all this time, would have known better if it were true.

The Bluewood family couldn’t have been unaware of Elodie’s existence either.

‘Then, they must have joined after I returned to the past, but why...?’

Elodie glanced at the Mouseton spies, now bound and being punished, and immediately understood.

‘Well, it seems like their strategy is to recruit and use the closest people.’

So, Bluewood Count and his wife were involved, huh?

Honestly, that wasn’t even surprising at this point.

Compared to the moment Elodie realized that the Ratson family had spies, this wasn’t shocking at all.

‘It must have been incredibly easy to sway them.’

As soon as they heard the offer, they must have agreed and joined the conspiracy.

In truth, they didn’t have much of a choice.

Sooner or later, they would either lose their title to Sera or rebel until they were crushed ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) and destroyed.

The Bluewood family wouldn’t have been satisfied with merely surviving, thinking they were lucky to escape with their lives.

‘But to go this far...’

Family loyalty? Of course, I never expected that.

At the very least, I thought they would uphold the minimum decency of being human.

But here they were, crossing continents to try and kill their own daughter.

‘When they speak and act like humans, I had hoped they would at least behave like humans.’

But I was wrong.

From the very start, I should have twisted the neck of the beast in human disguise like a chicken.

Elodie sighed and glanced toward Sera.

Perhaps she was hurt...?

‘...No, she doesn’t seem to be.’

Sera wasn’t even angry.

She seemed beyond the point of anger, almost as if she had anticipated this outcome from the Bluewood family.

“So, it’s come to this.”

Sera spoke.

It seemed like the moment had arrived.

“I’ve been too lenient.”

She then declared to everyone.

“It’s about time to inherit the family title.”

“...Oh, what do you mean by that?”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

At Sera’s words, Bearik, the bear beastfolk knight who had been tormenting the spies with every complaint, lit up with excitement.

Other knights shared the same look.

They had expected this expedition to be a failure, but now they had the chance to finally show their skills.

“Are Bluewood family knights strong?”

Sera paused for a moment, recalling the past before answering.

“Well, I remember seeing the young lord’s strike sending leaves flying in the air.”

“Ha, I could do that too. You should compare with someone more formidable.”

Maybe it’s the light exercise after a meal.

Bearik hummed a tune, pulling out a sharpening stone from his pocket to prepare his sword.

How much was he anticipating this?

“Well then, let’s find out the exact plan by interrogating these spies. I’ve set up the perfect stage for us. We might as well use it instead of ruining it.”

“Yes!”

The knights answered, excited like children at the end of the year.

Elodie left the remaining interrogation to the knights and Sera and stepped away.

Listening to the piercing screams echoing in the distance.

***

"Young lady!"

It was Squirrel.

Why was Squirrel here?

"Why did you come all the way here so recklessly?"

Elodie couldn’t help but voice her frustration at the unexpected appearance.

At that, the round eyes of the squirrel, which she had always thought were simple, became sharp.

"Did you know it was dangerous, and yet you came here like a hero?"

"No, I...”

That wasn’t it.

Elodie, at a loss for words, rolled her eyes and mumbled.

"There was no one else to lead them besides me."

She hadn’t expected there to be a trap, after all.

"I’m not blaming you for being here. If it’s something that needs to be done, it has to be done. But what I’m trying to say is, if you were going to stay here this long, you should have called for me, of course!"

Elodie felt even more at a loss for words.

She hadn’t contacted Squirrel in the past month.

The reason was...

‘I was too stupid to fully trust a Valkyrisen beastfolk.’

It had been a cold, calculated decision, not to be swayed by emotions.

But now, having neglected to trust the harvest mouse due to the same race, was that really a "cold" decision?

It was just a foolish judgment.

Just as she was blaming herself for it, Squirrel suddenly grabbed Elodie’s cheek and started fussing.

"Look at how much thinner your cheeks have gotten in the last few months. Do you have any idea how long it took me to fill this pouch up!"

"Did you really go through all that effort?"

Elodie could only ask back in disbelief.

Her cheeks didn’t even have pouches.

She wasn’t a hamster...

"Where’s the kitchen? I need to go there right now and make something."

"If it’s the kitchen, it’s at the end of the first-floor hallway, but the oven is probably rusted."

"What, what did you say!"

At that moment, the kitchen staff, Taurus, who had been rummaging for ingredients, was horrified and rushed toward the kitchen.

Soon, a piercing scream echoed through the building.

Oh no, they saw it.

The kitchen that had been neglected for seven years.

Karon had chased away the insects, but couldn’t bring himself to touch the mess and simply closed the door.

As a result, they had been forced to use a temporary location for the kitchen.

‘Ugh, this is chaotic.’

Elodie couldn’t help but reflect.

How could I have thought to doubt them?