The Male Lead Has Gone Mad Over the Troublesome Villainess - Chapter 26

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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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The Male Lead Has Lost His Mind Over the Villainess — Episode 26
The expedition departed the following morning.
Lilia’s fever hadn’t broken since last night, so they finally loaded her onto a supply cart. They shoved aside sacks of grain and laid out two blankets to make a narrow space for her to lie down, but the small figure stretched across it left an uneasy knot in my chest.
I climbed onto the cart with her.
I couldn’t leave Lilia alone in that jolting wagon in her condition.
Lilia didn’t come to until well past noon. We’d stopped to fill our bellies with simple rice balls and dried meat.
“Sister……”
“Ah, you’re awake? How are you feeling?”
I set down what I was eating and carefully raised Lilia’s upper body. After giving her a few sips of water, the child murmured in a small voice.
“My head hurts. And I’m cold.”
Watching her sip the water, I felt some of my worry ease at last.
Lilia wrapped the blanket around herself and fell back asleep. I’d thought we might rest a while longer, but the whole party seemed to be hurrying. After checking that the child was asleep, I climbed down from the cart.
“Why are we pushing so hard? Has a Monster appeared?”
I grabbed Register’s arm, my face tight with concern, and he answered with an uncomfortable look.
“The tents are damaged. We’re trying to reach a village as quickly as possible.”
“Until we get there?”
Register glanced up at the sky once, then trailed off.
“We can only hope the rain holds off.”
I looked up at the sky as well. The clouds that had hung low since morning seemed even thicker than before.
No. Surely not.
* * *
It seems the old saying holds true anywhere: tempt fate and fate comes calling. My grim premonition became reality.
The wounded were ushered into what remained of the intact tent first, while the smaller children and Lilia found shelter in one corner of a supply cart for the night. The rest of the party was packed as tightly as possible into the spare tents, yet dozens were still pushed outside.
“My lady, please move inside.”
I waved off someone trying to surrender their space to me. The inside of the tent was already so packed with bodies that no one could roll over, and besides—if I went in, someone would have to sleep outside.
I was used to sleeping rough. During my service with Special Forces, there wasn’t much I hadn’t done.
The problem was that this body was different from what it had been then. Still, I’d trained this much already—surely I’d grown stronger. I flexed my forearms, feeling a bit more muscle than before.
Good! That’s right—a person needs muscle.
* * *
Then, deep into the night, the rain began.
At first it was only drizzle. But as midnight passed, the drops grew heavy, and soon it was pouring in earnest.
Once the earth began to drink, the rest happened in an instant.
Within an hour, every step sank ankle-deep into the mud. The soil had loosened to a paste, and with each step, the earth clung to our shoes and stretched them. There was nowhere to lie down, of course.
The blankets were soaked through long ago. People donned rain cloaks made of Waterproof Cloth and hunched on top of the supplies with their faces buried in their knees. Some sheltered under trees. Those beneath the tents fared somewhat better, but the driving rain still made conditions miserable.
I checked inside the supply cart.
“The rain isn’t getting in, is it?”
The most vulnerable—the small children—sat huddled together in the cart. They nodded their little heads.
I crouched down with my back against the wheel.
My wet clothes clung to my skin. Each gust of wind felt like the sodden fabric was stealing my warmth, bit by bit.
In my past life, I’d endured nights far worse than this during training—though I’d been twenty then, pushed hard for six hours every day with a body built like iron.
“Achoo.”
I sneezed quietly and rubbed my nose. This weakened body really isn’t made for this.
“My lady.”
A voice came from beside me, accompanied by the sound of chattering teeth. It was Vanessa, crouched against the wheel just as I was.
“Aren’t you asleep?”
“Who could sleep in this?”
“Someone is.”
I gestured with my chin toward a knight who lay sprawled over a supply sack, snoring with his face buried in it. Vanessa laughed at the sight, but the laugh soon faded.
Vanessa and I talked in hushed tones as we waited for the rain to stop. Seeing her pallid face, I grew worried. She’s definitely going to catch cold.
* * *
Kael was also awake. He studied the night sky. This was no ordinary rain. A acrid, sticky smell had mixed into the scent of it.
Kael’s eyes narrowed. Scouts returned and reported to him.
“The toad clan has been confirmed moving in this area, just as you said.”
Kael let out a heavy sigh.
“In which direction? Rain this heavy usually means something’s happened. What’s driving them?”
“It appears to be their Spawning Season. There were beast bones scattered all around the area. They seem to be moving with the scent of prey and causing the rain as they go. We’ve confirmed their movement toward the southeast.”
Kael stared up at the night sky. They were clearly moving in the same direction as the expedition. They were heading for the village.
Kael clenched his jaw.
“As soon as dawn breaks, get everyone moving. Those who can prepare should do so now.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Kael was about to issue an order and catch his breath when it happened.
“Aha ha.”
A soft laugh reached his ears. It was quiet, as though mindful of those sleeping, but unmistakably Rosana’s.
Kael drifted toward her as if entranced.
She was sitting beside Vanessa as casually as if they were taking refreshments together, both of them laughing about something that seemed to delight them endlessly.
“……I really wish I could have a warm cup of hot chocolate right now.”
Rosana picked up on Vanessa’s complaint.
“I’d want marshmallows floating on top too. And I’d have two cups instead of one. Ah…… but I’ll be able to drink it soon enough.”
“How can you be so sure? Last night, seeing those monsters, I realized I might actually die!”
Vanessa’s voice trembled as she spoke. Except for those with combat experience, everyone here was seeing a Monster for the first time yesterday. That was true not just for Vanessa, but for Rosana as well.
Kael found himself absorbed in an inexplicable emotion, watching Rosana in breathless silence.
Vanessa’s face had gone pale.
“Wasn’t it truly horrible? Rosana, I was so frightened. We can succeed, can’t we? They say Gracestone has so many of those things…….”
Rosana smiled softly.
“But at least they’re tangible enemies. And there are people here who’ve fought before. Vanessa, if you start doubting, fear will consume you. Don’t feed your own fear needlessly.”
He saw Rosana pinch Vanessa’s nose gently as she spoke.
“I see your body’s gotten a bit more comfortable lately, thinking idle thoughts like that. I’ll need to train you harder. Oh, oh.”
Rosana prodded and felt Vanessa’s arms this way and that.
“You’ve actually built some muscle! Goodness, even your calves!”
“Eek!”
Rosana burst into laughter.
“Wow. Your survival odds just went up by 20 percent, Vanessa!”
Vanessa asked with a smile, as if that wasn’t bad news.
“What were they before?”
“……0 percent?”
“That’s too much, Rosana…….”
Watching the two of them bicker, even Kael found himself smiling. It was as though the immediate crisis didn’t matter at all. Rosana possessed an ability to find brightness even in the darkest circumstances.

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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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