It's Overwhelmingly Convenient That the Female Lead Has Darkened - Chapter 21
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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A darkened female lead is overwhelmingly convenient.
#21
In an instant, Daisy slipped free of the pristine Seymour forest.
No sleeping rough tonight!
Before the thought could fully form, she tore through the gathering darkness like wind itself.
There was no guarantee the polar bear would stay confined to the trees.
Despite hours of walking and running, her teenage legs felt light as air.
Daisy, if you’d had legs like these, you should have escaped ages ago…
She muttered a curse at the original Daisy even as her feet never slowed.
If she looked back, she was certain she’d see the polar bear—bloodied from being smashed by Elementary Swordsmanship Theory, nose streaming—lurching upright with massive paws primed to strike.
Crack.
Daisy gripped Felix’s hand more tightly.
The hand that had been cool moments before had warmed to match her own temperature.
Within that warmth, some heartbeat—she couldn’t tell whose—hammered erratically.
It wasn’t strange.
She’d seen a polar bear inside the academy; if your heart didn’t race, you weren’t human.
Without thought of letting go, Daisy passed through shadowed courtyards and colonnades, down empty corridor after empty corridor.
And then, at last.
Daisy spotted a door with pale chandelier light spilling from its edges.
It was the entrance to the Bear’s Labyrinth dormitory.
“Gasp—huff—ha! Finally……”
Daisy came to a halt and straightened her spine.
There was no need to look back.
At some point, the only footsteps she could hear were their own.
“Good Lord, I’m dying.”
After catching her breath for a moment, Daisy suddenly realized she was still holding Felix’s hand.
“Oh.”
She let go.
The released hand was strikingly pale.
Watching him massage the hand that had been gripped with his other hand, Daisy’s gaze drifted upward of its own accord.
……
Felix Arderon was not looking at her.
He had turned his head away, gazing out through a window cut into the corridor.
Half-hidden in the shadow of a pillar, his expression was difficult to read.
Only his gray eyes shone brighter still in the darkness.
“…That’s strange.”
Without thinking, Daisy murmured the words aloud.
All through the forest she’d believed herself alone.
Yet someone had been there all along, so close beside her.
As if waiting—just waiting—for her to notice him.
“Ah! I understand now.”
In that instant, realization flickered through Daisy’s mind.
“You got lost too!”
……
Felix, regarding her with an expression that clearly said *did I*, pursed his lips in embarrassment.
Never mind……
* * *
Felix Arderon was bewildered.
Too many incomprehensible things had occurred.
That he had been following Daisy Seableheart.
That a massive polar bear had emerged behind her.
And……
……
That he had not let go of Daisy Seableheart’s hand when she grabbed his.
Already before escaping the forest, Felix had realized the polar bear was no longer pursuing them.
So he had meant to release her hand.
His heart had been racing far too quickly, and her hand had been far too warm.
…!
But he hadn’t let go.
It wasn’t a matter of some emotional shift.
He simply couldn’t push her away with brute force.
Squeeeeeeze!
Every sound from behind made her grip tighten incrementally, and it was genuinely remarkable how strong it became.
Of course, if he exerted his full strength, he could break free.
But then Daisy would be badly hurt.
No—he found it unbelievable that he needed that much force just to shake off such a small, thin person’s hands.
‘Where does all this strength come from….’
Felix rubbed his still-tingling hand and studied Daisy.
As if the amount of force she’d used was nothing at all, Daisy cleared her throat with a bright expression—a soft “ahem”—and asked.
“So why were you there?”
“….”
Ah.
In that moment, Felix nearly let slip a twisted laugh without meaning to.
You’re the same as me.
Why had he thought Daisy Sablehearts would be any different?
Felix Arderon in the forest.
A son seeking out a mother consumed by madness.
Felix Arderon being consumed.
Someday you’ll kill someone too.
Repulsive.
Monster.
“Why were you there?”
Felix’s voice turned cold.
He was curious how Daisy Sablehearts would react to his answer.
“Because it’s a forest.”
In the empty hallway, Felix’s low but still youthful voice sounded quietly.
“As you know, I’m…”
An Arderon.
Felix’s grey eyes settled on Daisy’s red lips.
Would she run?
Or would she despise him?
Or something else…?
“Aha! So you like forests!”
“….”
“I like the sea.”
“….”
“Forests have mosquitoes, you know.”
“….”
“The sea has… fish.”
“….”
“Pair that with soju… bitter drinks, and wow.”
“….”
“Man, why do I keep thinking about food? Oh right, I skipped dinner, damn it….”
“….”
“That dog of a Blight bastard….”
The last words tumbled out almost like chewing in his throat.
And now Felix was genuinely bewildered.
What kind of conversation was this?
While Felix tried to make sense of talking with Daisy, Daisy herself was fighting desperately to keep her eyelids from falling shut.
So Felix Arderon likes forests.
Once she’d satisfied her curiosity, exhaustion crashed over her like a wave.
Add hunger to that, and Daisy had become incapable of anything beyond stream-of-consciousness rambling.
So she just said whatever came to mind.
“That bastard’s going to die by my hand someday, I swear it….”
To be honest, the fact that the person in front of her was Felix greatly lowered her guard.
It was because she held a certain faith that someone like him wouldn’t take advantage of her vulnerability.
The greatest villains were always solitary operators, after all.
Besides, he’d even helped her once when she was lost in the maze.
This was, in a sense, an exchange of favors.
Daisy looked up at Felix, who was the same age but towered over her, and spoke.
“We’ve helped each other once, so let’s call it even.”
“…….”
“You worked hard today, and don’t go into the forest again.”
“Why.”
When the talk of settling debts came up, the child had kept their lips sealed. But at the mention of avoiding the forest, their mouth fell open in protest.
Daisy found the sight endearing and let out a soft laugh.
You really love that forest, don’t you.
“Didn’t you see before? The polar bear!”
“……Oh.”
“I get that you like the forest, but don’t go too deep into it.”
“…….”
“Right, I’m heading out. Ugh, I’m exhausted.”
Daisy let out a massive yawn, turned on her heel, and made for the dormitory entrance.
I should wash off with hot water first, then search for that chocolate the peddler dropped…….
That thought had just crossed her mind when it happened.
Daisy caught sight of an upperclassman standing askew at the dormitory entrance, blocking the way with his arm.
“Ha! Finally here. This time, there’s no way you can ignore me,”
Ah.
Daisy’s eyes were already drooping with fatigue, but she nodded.
So Felix Arderon was the one holding a grudge…….
She should have known.
Every proper villain created an enemy on their first day at the academy, after all.
In any case, why block the path like that.
Without even looking at the upperclassman’s face, Daisy squeezed her small frame through the gap beneath his arm.
And without a backward glance, she slipped into the labyrinth.
Living in a dormitory full of villains was turning out to be rather tiresome.
Well, it wasn’t her concern…….
And so Daisy disappeared.
“…….”
“…….”
In the corridor remained only Felix Arderon and the upperclassman, whose handsome features had twisted into a scowl.
“Daisy Sablehart.”
The boy ground his teeth.
How dare she ignore me twice……?
And in front of a newcomer, no less?
The humiliation and fury washing over him were indescribable.
Bang!
The upperclassman slammed his fist against the door frame he’d been leaning on, his electric-blue eyes boring into Felix as he spoke.
“Hey, go fetch her right now.”
“…….”
Felix bowed his head and looked at the upperclassman’s crimson badge.
【Chester Sablehart】
Chester nodded pointedly.
Yes, now that he’d confirmed who it was, of course he’d understand the order…….
“…….”
Whoosh.
The newcomer pushed his tall frame through the empty space on the left where Chester wasn’t blocking and vanished into the labyrinth.
Just as Daisy had.
“Huh.”
Chester found himself exhaling sharply.
“What.”
The dormitory entrance, now empty, fell silent.
Chester stood there with a vacant expression for a moment, then found himself looking up at the nameplate hung above the entrance.
[The Bear’s Labyrinth]
“Lunatics…….”
His hollow voice echoed faintly through the empty corridor.
Chester Sablehart.
Day two of his failed attempt to dock with the younger sibling he’d thought would be easy prey.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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