A Villain's Way of Taming Heroines

Chapter 81  The End of Childhood - One (I)

Just as Saville had said, Seraphina, upon returning to the village, was faring well, having obtained what she desired most.

She had acted solely for her own benefit in Red Frost territory, yet here, she had now returned to her once simple and innocent demeanor, for she no longer needed to consider anything. Those terrifying things that had caused her sorrow, even despair, were now far away.

The young girl, who was gulping down her food with loud, snoring-like sounds, swallowed the fresh meat and raised her smooth plate, loudly declaring, "More!"

"Has Seri's appetite grown so much?"

Rhiannon, with her hands propping up her cheeks, exclaimed, "You weren't this voracious before you left!"

"Is that so?" Seraphina scratched her head, "I don't have much of a concept of it."

In reality, the girl was well aware of her own appetite. If she were to eat without restraint, her family would have nothing left to eat. Therefore, she had always consciously controlled her appetite from a young age. Although she was never fully satisfied, compared to causing her family to suffer, the so-called hunger was not a big deal.

"Eat more, eat more." The woman brought another fragrant roast, looking at Seraphina with eyes full of joy and tenderness, "We owe our present to Seri, eat as much as you want."

Seraphina blushed a bit at the compliment. The usually confident and arrogant her would never feel overwhelmed by praise. What moved her was the genuine affection in Rhiannon's mother's words.

That was what Seraphina had lost in Red Frost territory. She had lost the people who loved her, and she had lost the people she loved. Therefore, she cherished everything she now had.

Upon returning to the village, the only thing Seraphina felt was boundless loneliness and desolation. But after only three days of returning to life, she let go.

The village had changed, the people in the village had changed, but what of it?

In these three days, everything Seraphina heard, saw, and felt was proving to her tha: everything she cherished had never betrayed her.

Each and every one of them loved her. This village, which had borne her for sixteen years of life, even if it had undergone many changes, was still, at its root, the same place that had always embraced and protected her.

"Seri, Seri, shall we go hunting?"

Rhiannon excitedly tugged at Seraphina, who was wolfing down her food, "I haven't seen you hunt in a long time!"

The great cold wave posed an immeasurable threat to humans, but not so for animals.

The reason was simple, the beasts that could still survive in this northern land, their species, must have a way to survive the great cold wave. If not, they would have been eliminated and extinct long ago.

But now most of the wild beasts were in hibernation, going out hunting was more like a leisurely hike, finding animals was an unexpected joy.

But Seraphina was different, she who could support a family of four could always bring back game every time she went out. Only those who had been hunters knew how remarkable this ability was.

"Well..." Seraphina chewed on the roast, speaking unclearly, "The cold wave just passed, there shouldn't be many animals to find. My parents go hunting just for fun."

Her father, who had once been saddened by his injuries and illnesses, now picked up his bow and hunting knife not for survival, but for pleasure. When Seraphina first realized this, she felt an indescribable sorrow, but in the end, it was released along with the complexity and entanglement in her heart.

Life had become better, why should she care so much about the past?

"Um... you're right, no, no, it's different in the Darkwater Forest."

Rhiannon first nodded her head, then shook it vigorously, "A while ago, two or three days before you came back... I forgot, but because of an earthquake, a lot of animals ran out of the Darkforest Forest."

"…Hmm?"

The wolf paused in her tearing and biting of the meat, looking confused, "Earthquake... ran out?"

"Yeah, even the super big wolf that you couldn't handle ran out, it scared everyone! Luckily there was a sorcerer from Darkwater City at the time, who killed the wolf on the spot."

Rhiannon laughed as she said, "After selling that wolf, everyone got a lot of money!"

The girl stopped eating, and said thoughtfully, "This is not a good sign. That big guy is the boss of the Darkwater Forest. A simple earthquake wouldn't make it abandon its territory."

"Uncle Orin and my dad said the same thing, but people from Darkwater City came and didn't find the reason."

Seraphina's best friend stuck out her tongue, "But I think there must be some treasure there! The people of Darkwater City want to swallow it alone and won't tell us."

"If they don't tell us, they don't tell us." Seraphina looked indifferent, "After all, the Darkwater Forest is not ours, we just live close to it. And if there really is such a thing, it would be a lot of trouble for our village to get it."

"How could it be!"

Rhiannon immediately refuted Seraphina, "Seri, you are Lord Hydral's person! If you take those treasures, who dares to say anything?"

"…" Seraphina opened her mouth, feeling a phantom pain in her neck.

She didn't say what she originally wanted to say, but just kept silent for a moment, then laughed and slapped Rhiannon, "Well, so you've been talking for so long, you want me to go get that treasure?"

"Hey, Seri, you're so powerful, and you're Hydral's person, what's the big deal if you take it!"

Rhiannon swung Seraphina's arm, she wasn't being unreasonable, but in her eyes, and in the eyes of many villagers, Seraphina was just that kind of person.

— The Seraphina I know would never let the nobles take those things away!

The girl who also knew Seraphina very well thought so.

Rhiannon wasn't really greedy, she just wanted Seraphina to be greedy. This simple girl wanted more than anything to have a long-awaited adventure with her best friend, who she hadn't seen in over a month.

Seraphina thought for a moment, then laughed heartily, "That's true, then let's go later! Hmm... bring along Will, we can also call Gleipnir and Kavan, Laura can also come!"

"Great!"

This was exactly what Rhiannon wanted, a real adventure with her best friends, how romantic that would be!

And she didn't have to worry about causing any trouble, those nobles, how dare they disrespect Lord Hydral!

Seraphina looked at her friend's happy face and suddenly felt an indescribable emptiness.

She quickly understood Rhiannon's true intentions, but before she could feel much moved by her friend's enthusiasm, that emptiness swept over her.

Because Seraphina knew very well what was the basis for her best friend to think of all this, what was the basis for her to be so "fearless".

[Seraphina is Hydral's person]

She had heard this sentence countless times in these three days.

Even if she let go of everything, even if she let go, every time she heard this sentence, she would still feel an uncontrollable numbness and sadness. Nôv(el)B\\jnn

This not only made her decision to give up everything a big joke, but also plunged her into the only pain she couldn't escape from at the moment.

Yes, her family, her friends, everything she cherished, they all loved her.

This love, despite the change from poverty to wealth, did not mix with anything impure, at most it was just pure gratitude.

But Seraphina, the powerful hunter who made the village and every villager proud, no longer existed.

What was alive in their eyes now was only "Hydral's Seraphina".

[Lord Hydral's]— this prefix had become a heavy, cold shackle, a chain that strangled Seraphina, every time it was mentioned, a light pull was enough to make Seraphina feel suffocating pain.

And Seraphina... seemed to never be able to break free from it.

Because she absolutely did not want the smiles on the faces of her family and friends to disappear. Their lives were so beautiful now, this beauty should not be destroyed because of her willfulness.

This is what Hydral owes me, why should I refuse all this because of that boring pride?

The wolf could only use this reason to bite hard at this twisted pain, as well as the emptiness and resentment born from this twist.

-->