The Teddy Bear Sends the Insomniac Villain to Dreamland - Chapter 43

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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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Chapter 43
“Blake!”
The door swung open, and Blake’s eyes widened slightly.
His violet gaze drifted downward.
“Here, here!”
I stood before the doorway, waving cheerfully, and he bolted upright from his seat.
The fountain pen he’d been holding clattered to the floor.
“How did you get in?”
“Magic.”
Blake pressed his hand to his forehead, alternating his gaze between the door I’d opened with my dwindling magical reserves and me standing there with my belly thrust out confidently.
“Are you going to keep using magic like that? You said yourself you had no mana left.”
Though he grumbled about why I kept casting spells despite having no mana, his expression wasn’t unkind.
“Do you know how ridiculous I felt reading that report? The magic that made the Demon Beasts disappear—you did that.”
After holding it in all this time, a long stream of complaints poured from his lips now that we’d finally met.
I gazed at him for a long moment with half-lidded eyes, offering no response, until his lips pressed firmly together.
It was a beautiful moment—his already crimson lips deepening to an even richer shade.
“…Why do you just keep staring at me like that?”
“You locked the door for so long and wouldn’t show your face, so I thought you were being petty. But seeing you again anyway… I’m happy about it.”
Blake, pouring out such tender concern despite keeping his face hidden from me for all this time, was endearing.
“Were you worried because I used magic?”
“Worried? No. It’s just that if you keep causing trouble everywhere, I’ll have to clean up after you every time.”
“Those Demon Beasts were so grotesque. A lot of them were ugly too.”
“Then why did you get involved? You could’ve just ignored it. Whether they lived or died was the humans’ problem—you didn’t need to interfere.”
Easy to say.
Probably no one would want to deal with those grotesque Demon Beasts.
Yet my body moved first for one reason alone.
“The power I possess exists for a reason like this.”
It was the reason I couldn’t stop, even when scolded for being a busybody.
“I’m incredibly strong, and I know I’m the only one who is. It’s boring otherwise. I like saving people heroically and becoming a hero.”
Of course, if I considered my situation, Blake’s words might have been right.
If I hadn’t met Edwin wearing the Arcanum Ring in that alley that day, I might have suffered a serious wound saving that boy.
Though witches are far from death, a fatal wound sustained without mana could certainly threaten my life.
But if I never did anything because of that, how tedious and joyless would my life become?
The stronger the witch, the longer she lives.
As an exceptionally powerful witch even in the Demon Realm, I could say I lived nearly forever.
I’d already lived three hundred years since somehow being reincarnated as a witch.
And ahead of me lay centuries more—ages that would bury and re-bury those three hundred years behind me.
Yet to live so long without saving a kind man or a cute human boy?
Wouldn’t that be helpless and hollow?
Besides, thanks to my actions, I’d saved that kind human man, and I’d even heard the cute boy call me a beautiful fairy—so I was satisfied.
“And if you were in my position, Blake, you would have done the same thing. No matter what people around you said, no matter how they called you a villain, you would have done what needed to be done. Wouldn’t you?”
“….”
Blake’s dark eyes remained fixed on me, unwavering.
“Even if that situation happened again, it would be the same, but I promise you this: I won’t leave for anywhere until I break your curse. I will never betray a promise I’ve made to you.”
Multiple emotions swirled within those violet eyes.
“Don’t lie.”
Oh, that unexpected response caught me off guard, and I couldn’t hide my surprise.
I’d expected something harsh like “break that promise if you want” or “you’ll die if you do that.”
He sat back down in the chair and ran his hand roughly through his hair.
He was pretending it didn’t matter, but his fingers tapped anxiously against his thigh.
“You disappear the moment I let my guard down, and now you talk about promises? You slipped away while we had a guest.”
“I’m truly sorry about that. I had somewhere I needed to go. I should have told you beforehand.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Why didn’t I?
It wasn’t anything serious. I was afraid of being scolded.
I felt bad asking you to come along when you were so busy.
And I thought the rumors about you carrying around such a small, cute doll would become troublesome for you.
It was my way of being considerate, but it seemed Blake didn’t want that.
“The rumors about a military commander carrying around a teddy bear seemed odd, and since you were busy, I thought I’d handle it myself. Was my consideration misplaced?”
“I don’t care about that. Whether I carry a teddy bear or hold it in my arms—what business is it of anyone else’s?”
“What do you mean ‘what business’? You don’t want people thinking you’re crazy.”
“Why? I’ve spent half my life being called a blood-crazed maniac anyway. My reputation can’t get any worse.”
“Of course it can!”
This time, I was the one who snapped.
This habit of his—acting like he’d achieved enlightenment about life—was truly a terrible flaw.
No matter what anyone said, Blake was a kind person to me.
Both the Blake from the original story and the Blake standing before me now.
Even though he appeared coldly rational, he was a man who couldn’t help but reveal his warm heart in the end.
He had every right to be angry, yet he still managed to find and bring me exactly the gifts I wanted—so how could he possibly be a madman?
I was growing tired of hearing people carelessly badmouth someone like Blake.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: when people talk about you, deny it! Get angry, act scary instead. At least there are people who will take your side!”
Me, Ronald, Nix, and even Molly—though she’s a bit ambiguous since I haven’t paid her yet!
“Why are you…”
Apparently not expecting me to get this angry, Blake let out a bewildered sound from between his lips.
“I hate it when people talk badly about my fast charger. To me, you’re the best charger and my contractor. So have some confidence in yourself.”
It’s really not easy to earn recognition from Vivian, the great witch of the Western Territory.
I laughed and pointed to the red ribbon around my neck.
“And what kind of bad person buys something like this?”
“Really… you’re so simple-minded.”
“Living simply is good. If someone treats me well, I treat them well in return. But if someone treats me badly, then I’ll snap right back!”
“…What?”
“Just hit the back of my head. That’ll teach me not to act up again.”
I approached the desk and picked up a fountain pen, handing it to him.
Then I naturally spread my arms wide toward him.
When I swung my arms again, urging him to embrace me, he reluctantly pulled me close.
“You’re a good person.”
“I know you’re only saying that because I’m holding you.”
“Would it be too materialistic if I also counted the Arcanum you gave me as part of it?”
“Of course. You’re a materialistic witch.”
I giggled and leaned against his firm chest, and both comfort and magical energy flooded through me simultaneously.
He truly was the perfect charger.
“From now on, I’ll stick to you constantly. I’ll tell you everything, even if it’s annoying. Will that work?”
“…Do as you please.”
His docile response, so different from his initial instruction to wait quietly in the bedroom, made me suppress another burst of laughter.
“Oh, right. How did you end up buying the Arcanum?”
“I followed you immediately after reading your note, and that’s when I found out. Since you were looking for it at the Magic Supply Shop, the purpose was obvious.”
“Your tailing skills are impressive. I guess Nix didn’t notice.”
“She probably didn’t, but there’s no one to compare me to.”
At his confident words, my eyes sparkled.
However, Blake seemed a bit embarrassed by his own statement and quickly averted his gaze, changing the subject.
“More importantly, I heard from Nix about the magic circle. Who summoned you? Did you see their identity?”
“I was summoned, but there was only a Demon Beast there. It was a rather grotesque one—it was tearing into a human heart.”
“…Tearing into a heart?”
Blake’s eyes, which had been lazily resting against the chair, changed in an instant.
Recalling the Demon Beast standing atop a pile of corpses and consuming a heart, I continued.
“Yes. It was already eating the heart from a corpse. When I tried to attack, a magic circle suddenly appeared and both the corpse and the Demon Beast vanished at once.”
“That’s the first I’m hearing of this.”
His expression grew noticeably more serious, as if this was the first such situation despite having dealt with countless Demon Beasts.
“I’m curious about something—where did the Demon Beast first originate? I don’t understand why a species born from magical residue would be running rampant in the Human World.”
Moreover, that magical residue was emanating a distinctly foul aura.
Blake explained clearly in response to my question.
“The timing is roughly estimated, but it’s presumed to be around 200 years ago. The origin point of Demon Beasts is irregular. We’ve investigated extensively, but there’s little we know for certain—only that they hunt humans, that a bite causes death through infection, and that they don’t appear when offerings are made.”
Something felt deeply suspicious about this, so I shifted my position and stood directly on his thigh.
The “offerings” and “prophecies” that had bothered me since before seemed to hide the secret of the Demon Beasts.
“That doesn’t make sense, Blake.”
“What doesn’t?”
“Prophecies appear where Demon Beasts show up, and when offerings are made, they don’t appear in return? That contradicts the characteristics of Demon Beasts you described.”
It was as if someone were using Demon Beasts to obtain offerings.
“Think about it. When we first met, you said Demon Beasts have no ‘reason.’ Would a creature without reason understand the concept of offerings? It seems more likely they’d follow their instinct to hunt more humans rather than settle for limited offerings.”
The prophecies, the offerings, and the Demon Beasts—their connections formed a triangle, sketching out a faint clue.
Blake fell into contemplation, his expression growing serene, before he soon wrote a name on the report.
Rising onto my tiptoes to peek, I could make out what appeared to be “Ophelia” written there.
Blake steadied my swaying body, weighed down by exhaustion, and absently stroked the crown of my head with a gentle touch.
“It was worth giving you that Arcanum.”

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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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