Looking for the Villainess’s Contract Husband
Chapter 6
As evening fell, the hooting of owls began to echo from various corners of the forest.
Around the campfire, the knights sat gathered together, grumbling as they ate a simple dinner.
“Seriously, how many times has it been now?”
“If we’d followed the original schedule, we should have been almost out of the forest by now. Does it make any sense that we haven’t even reached the halfway point?”
“Sleeping rough is fine for a day or two, but doing it in this freezing forest is another story.”
Once someone opened their mouth, the others began to set down their wooden spoons one by one in agreement.
In their hands were crude wooden bowls and spoons, and inside was a thin, watery stew with barely two chunks of anything floating in it.
To maximize travel speed, they had minimized their luggage, which meant their meals were inevitably meager—either dry rations or this excuse for a stew.
Cold and hunger make men sharp.
As the knights continued to talk, their anger seemed to well up; their expressions twisted into scowls as their voices grew louder.
“At this point, isn’t she just faking it? I heard she was caught loitering nearby earlier.”
“The lady is one thing, but the daughter is the bigger problem. Her fever spikes five times a day. Every time it does, we have to stop the carriage, and that’s why we’re in this mess.”
“If the medicine isn’t working, wouldn’t it be better to just ignore it and head to the Capital as fast as possible?”
“It doesn’t look like she’ll get better anyway, and for all intents and purposes, the daughter is no better than a prisoner….”
Clack.
At that moment, the sound of a spoon hitting a bowl rang out loudly.
While the knights reflexively stopped talking, Paul, who was sitting among them, set down his spoon with a stern face.
“That’s enough. Regardless of the circumstances, they are the ones we are serving right now. Furthermore, I don’t think it’s right to speak that way about someone who is suffering from an illness.”
The knight who had been leading the bad-mouthing of Gretel and Laviella bristled at those words and moved to stand up.
“What? Why is this brat….”
“Hey, drop it, drop it. The mood is already ruined, and if this gets to the Captain’s ears, we won’t hear anything good.”
“Since when did this kid care so much about others?”
“Hmph, my appetite’s gone.”
However, the surrounding knights caught sight of Gilbert dining with others in the distance and held him back.
A few glanced at Paul and sneered, but they didn’t provoke him any further.
Paul did not pick up his spoon again until everyone had fallen silent and returned to their meal.
He was finally swallowing a sigh along with a mouthful of stew straight from the bowl when—
“Mister.”
“Pffft!”
At the sudden voice behind him, Paul spat out his stew.
He hurriedly wiped the stew dripping down his chin with his sleeve and turned his head to find a small child staring at him.
“I’m having trouble digesting, so I want to go for a walk, but Mama is asleep. Can you come with me?”
The girl was none other than Laviella.
‘Just how far is she going?’
Paul followed Laviella as if he were walking a path of thorns in tears.
When Laviella first mentioned going for a walk, the knights sitting around Paul had tried to stop her, fearing the girl might try to escape.
[You must not leave the carriage, little miss.]
[Go back inside.]
One might expect her to shrink back when large knights glared intimidatingly, but Laviella was steadfast, unlike a typical nine-year-old.
More accurately, she was sharp.
[If I get indigestion and the schedule is delayed again, are you going to blame me then, too?]
[…!]
[That….]
When Laviella spoke as if she had heard everything the knights had been saying moments ago, their faces turned pale.
Certainly, nothing they had said was factually wrong.
However, even if it were the truth, there are things meant to be said and things meant to be kept silent.
Especially when the subject was their employer.
[….]
Having been caught in the act, the knights could only hang their mouths open, unable to find words.
As they hesitated, unable to offer any defense, one knight glanced toward Gilbert and hurriedly stood up.
[Th-then, I will report to the Captain and come along as well. We can’t let Paul go alone….]
[Why? Because I’m a prisoner?]
[….]
[I think my stomach would knot up rather than digest if I walked with the people who were just insulting me.]
Hearing that sarcasm, the knights finally clamped their mouths shut, unable to even twitch their lips.
Then, Laviella added indifferently, as if she were reading the knights’ thoughts.
[I have no intention of doing anything foolish in this physical condition. I’m just going for a quick walk.]
[….]
[Is even that not allowed?]
Her pale blue eyes were strangely detached.
They were clearly the eyes of a child, yet at the same time, they resembled those of an elderly person.
There was even a peculiar sense of pressure felt from her that should not have come from a child.
If they followed their consciences, they should have nodded at her words, but the knights were also in a position where they had to follow the orders of the Marquis and Gilbert, so they could not easily give an answer.
The knights rolled their eyes anxiously, looking back and forth at each other as if searching for someone to shift the responsibility onto.
Watching that unsightly scene, a deep sigh escaped Paul’s lips. He stood up and said calmly.
[…I will be back before the Captain finishes his meal. There shouldn’t be a need to report it separately.]
Half of the faces looked relieved at those words, while the other half looked uneasy.
Since Paul had made such a declaration, the pressure to grant Laviella’s request was gone, which was a good thing for the other knights.
However, if Laviella were to run away because of this, the responsibility would fall entirely on Paul.
Knowing this, a faint sense of guilt filled the knights’ hearts.
Of course, that didn’t mean they had the courage to take responsibility in Paul’s place.
And so, Paul ended up accompanying Laviella on her walk.
He walked about five paces behind her just in case anything happened.
Contrary to his worries, however, Laviella showed no sign of trying to escape.
She strolled through the forest, the snow crunching under her feet, as if her only goal truly was to digest her dinner.
But now it was time to head back. He didn’t know how the Captain, Gilbert, would react if he discovered Laviella’s absence.
Paul cautiously parted his lips.
“Um….”
But at the same time he opened his mouth, Laviella came to a dead stop and whipped around to look at him.
“Mister.”
“Ye-yes?”
“Do you feel any presence nearby?”
Paul, who had reflexively jerked his shoulders in surprise, blinked at her words.
Though his fluster hadn’t faded, he followed Laviella’s lead and listened intently to sense the surrounding movements.
Whether it was a relief or not, he couldn’t feel anyone following them or the presence of any beasts.
Paul straightened his shoulders and shook his head.
“I don’t feel anything.”
“…Really? I don’t find you very trustworthy.”
Laviella furrowed her brow and scanned Paul from head to toe.
At that look, he felt a surge of indignation and raised his voice.
“You’re the one who asked me, little miss! I’m still considered quite something within the knight order…!”
“You’re right. I was just being a bit cranky.”
“….”
Paul was left speechless by Laviella’s sudden change in attitude as she nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders.
The sense of injustice that had filled his mouth instead choked his throat.
[I wish she’d just hurry up and die. Then we could go back to the Capital.]
Because he was a sinner in front of Laviella.
Paul didn’t say anything more and hung his head low.
Seeing that, the corners of Laviella’s mouth curled up slightly.
‘Hmm. As I thought, he’ll do.’
Soon, Laviella wiped the smile from her face, cleared her throat, and began to speak.
“Mister.”
“Please speak.”
“You know that if we return to the Capital like this, the Marquis will have your head, don’t you?”
“….”
Paul didn’t answer.
However, his fist, clenched so tightly that the veins stood out against his thigh, served as his response.
[Normally I would have dealt with you immediately…. But the Marquis ordered that you return to the Capital with the others first. Your punishment will be decided after that.]
The words Gilbert had delivered as soon as he arrived at the tower swirled in his head.
Recalling the Marquis’s freezing face, cold sweat broke out on his hands. He felt as if a blade were already pressed against his throat.
Even though he knew it was his fault and his responsibility, he couldn’t help but be afraid.
Paul closed his eyes tightly, his head still bowed.
Then, Laviella spoke.
“I’ll give you a chance.”
The moment those words pierced his ears, Paul reflexively snapped his head up.
As if she had been waiting, Laviella met his gaze and continued in a low voice.
“Think of it as the price for apologizing for the rude things you said, and help me just once.”
“….”
“Then you might be able to live, too.”
Paul’s expression went blank.
Seeing that stupid look on his face, Laviella added as if she had become a bit anxious, her eyes darting around.
“Of course, I can’t guarantee it. But rather than being dragged back like this and dying, wouldn’t it be better to bet your life on a hope for survival?”
“….”
“So—”
“No, little miss.”
“…Huh?”
It was at that moment that the light returned to the eyes of Paul, who had been staring blankly at Laviella.
Laviella let out a bewildered sound when she was suddenly interrupted.
However, she was horrified immediately after when Paul knelt and prostrated himself before her.
“What are you…!”
“I am sorry.”
“….”
“I spoke out of turn. What happened back then… I am truly sorry.”
