The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella-Chapter 148

About two weeks had passed.

And yet, even after everything had settled down, Karon still hadn’t returned.

The artifact’s completely silent too.

No matter how many times she tried, there was no response.

It was only reasonable now to assume something had happened to him.

She didn’t even want to imagine it...

Elodie shook the jewel she’d exchanged with Karon, pressing it to her ear.

“Karon?”

“Karon...”

“Hey! I don’t know who you are, but if something’s happened to Karon, I swear—you’re dead!”

Still nothing.

As if the artifact was broken.

Maybe he threw it away or destroyed it altogether.

Fortunately, with Valkyrisen’s resources, they’d be able to track it either way.

Even if the artifact had been destroyed, they could at least pinpoint the last known location.

And from there, it wouldn’t be hard to follow Karon’s trail.

Grandpa, Ed, and Geno went out, so they should be able to find him soon.

Elodie anxiously tried to calm herself as she waited.

She wanted to go search for him herself, but Eisen had practically pried her off the doorframe, insisting they couldn’t risk losing her too.

How long had she been waiting like that?

“Hey! We found the kid!”

Geno came rushing in.

“But the thing is...”

“Did something happen to him?!”

Elodie cut him off before he could finish.

That’s how worried she was.

But Geno just made a face—like he wasn’t sure how to explain it. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

“Something did happen. He made contact with Nyx Basilisk and was apparently dragged to that lab we saw before...”

“W-What?!”

“But he came back safe. Just waltzed back into the Holy Nation like he’d gone out for a walk.”

Geno scratched his head, clearly still baffled. He admitted he hadn’t expected Karon to come back completely unscathed.

“Grandpa, my brother, and I were ready to start a full-scale war with the Basilisks, you know.”

Elodie’s reaction, however, was different.

“No—just looking fine doesn’t mean he’s fine. Do you have any idea how good he is at pretending?!”

It was a habit from his days as a test subject—Karon acted completely normal even when he was on the brink of death.

He could be bleeding out with a knife in his gut and wouldn’t even flinch.

“He cut off contact for two weeks! There’s no way he’s okay!”

Just the fact that Nyx had gotten hold of him was enough to guarantee something terrible had happened.

Of course, knowing Nyx, he’d probably imprison Karon before ever thinking of killing him—he was too useful.

He probably didn’t kill him, but...

Just imagining what that bastard might have done was enough to make her blood run cold.

She bolted toward the entrance, scolding Geno the whole way.

“You’re so dense. Don’t you know anything about your own brother?!”

“How would I know? That arrogant brat won’t even show his face if you’re not around.”

Geno grumbled. Karon had been cooped up in the detached palace his whole life—he was finally coming out now, so what more did they want?

Ah.

Elodie paused for a moment.

Karon was like that.

Even back in the Long-Long days, he followed her around like a baby chick imprinted on its mother...

“Well, I guess I can’t blame you.”

She kindly explained to Geno what Karon was really like.

“With Karon, it’s obvious. He probably escaped after getting all beat up, then forced himself to hang on without treatment because I told him not to get hurt. He must’ve waited it out until he recovered, then came back pretending everything was fine.”

“...No, that’s not what happened.”

“Huh?!”

She jumped and spun around in shock.

“Karon!”

The child blinked in surprise for a second, then rushed over to check his condition.

“Are you okay?”

“As you can see.”

Yeah right. She could tell he was lying.

After all the years she’d spent with him, Elodie knew him inside and out.

“What’s this about getting dragged off by Nyx?”

“I wasn’t dragged. Almost was—but I escaped right away.”

“That’s not what I just heard.”

“Guess His Grace misunderstood.”

Grandpa misunderstood?

...No way.

Elodie turned her gaze to Eisen, who appeared behind Karon.

His expression was complex—like he had way too much to say but was holding it all back with saintly patience.

Yep, that’s the classic “I want to lecture you until you cry but I’m keeping it together” face.

She’d seen him give Geno that exact look more than a few times.

Eisen sighed.

“There were signs he was knocked out and carried off. Fortunately, he woke up midway and managed to escape the lab on his own.”

“I told you—I wasn’t dragged anywhere.”

“Don’t give me that. I was trying to go easy on you, but you just have to keep pretending, don’t you?”

Eisen rapped him lightly on the head.

Then, leaving behind a curt suggestion to rest, he left with Geno.

It was true—Karon did look a little tired. But as Geno had said, he was too clean.

Like he’d gone on a nice afternoon stroll.

She even caught a faint, pleasant scent on the air.

He changed clothes and bathed?

After being kidnapped and escaping?

This damn brat...

Of course she was angry.

When she told him to come back safe and unhurt, she didn’t mean act like you weren’t hurt after getting wrecked!

But Elodie held back—for now.

He had come back alive, after all.

This must be what Grandpa felt too.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Wanting to yell until your voice went hoarse—but knowing you had to wait until he was okay.

“You said you didn’t drink any healing potion?”

“Nope.”

“Prove it.”

Karon rummaged through his clothes, then placed the exact potion Elodie had given him in her hand.

...Yep, I made this.

The number matched exactly, too.

So he must’ve gotten captured without being hurt, waited for a chance, and escaped.

“You remember what I told you, right? Not to get hurt.”

“...”

“So you didn’t get hurt. What, now you want me to praise you for it?”

You made me worry sick!

“And what was with the bath?!”

“...Because I was dirty...”

“I don’t care! You could’ve gone a year without washing and I wouldn’t have said a word, as long as you were alive!”

Instead of wasting time bathing, maybe try coming back sooner! Or at least send word so I wouldn’t worry!

She was still fuming when Karon suddenly looked at her.

“...”

Elodie flinched.

His vivid red eyes suddenly filled her entire vision.

The same eyes that always followed her—but for some reason, they felt unfamiliar today.

His expression...

Something happened.

Something she couldn’t even begin to guess at.

She always thought Karon’s eyes were opaque and unreadable—but today, they felt even more so.

Then Karon raised his hand and gently brushed her cheek with his fingers.

Elodie held her breath, unsure how to react, eyes darting around in confusion.

The touch was barely there—a ticklish pressure that made her eyelid twitch.

“What... What’s with that look...”

He was the one who’d disappeared for two weeks.

So why was he looking at her like she had vanished without a word?

Like she was some kind of mirage.

“...I thought I wouldn’t make it back.”

“...”

His hand, as delicate as if he were handling glass, cupped her cheek.

He whispered softly.

“You’re warm.”

Of course she was.

Her body ran hot.

And his—being a cold-blooded creature—was always freezing when she wasn’t around.

So something did happen.

There’s no way someone who went through nothing would act like this.

Especially not Karon.

He was the type who could shrug off almost anything.

You better believe I’m not letting this go.

She wasn’t going to let him out of her room tomorrow until he told her everything, top to bottom.

Why is your hand like ice...

She gripped his hand tightly against her cheek, trying to share her warmth.

“You’re going to tell me what happened—later. But for now, just rest.”

At least until he calmed down.

That was what she was thinking—until her eyes shot open.

Because through the touch of their joined hands, she suddenly sensed the condition of his body.

“Hey! What the ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) hell happened to you?!”

The words burst out before she could stop them.

So that’s why he looked exhausted.

Karon was good at hiding things. Too good.

Which meant if he looked tired—something was really, really wrong.

“Wh-What the... How is this even possible?”

How could someone’s body deteriorate this much in just two weeks?