STVWDTD Chapter 11

Eyes Front!

"Rodrick, are you hurt?"

The massive man practically had drooping ears and a tail she could see. A predator playing puppy. This sinful bastard. Her heart almost skipped a beat.

If he'd shown up at the Gilded Circle, noble ladies would've been dropping like flies with nosebleeds.

"Let go of this. I need to wash up and sleep."

Whatever had pissed him off, his brow furrowed deeper as his grip on her wrist tightened. Ease up on the strength, would you? My circulation's dying here.

"Come with me."

"Fine. No one's going to show up, but keep watch."

She didn't know why he'd suddenly developed separation anxiety, but Diana shook her captured wrist as she spoke.

As she'd predicted, after a short walk following the ravine, water came into view.

The flow was abundant—plenty for washing.

"I'm going first."

She positioned Rodrick at a distance, then peeled off the robe she hadn't changed in days and his shirt she'd been wearing.

Finally. God, I can breathe.

Even if the sweat-soaked clothes were disgusting, she couldn't complain surrounded by knights in full armor.

She stripped off her nightgown dress and undergarments, then stepped into the frigid water.

Goosebumps erupted from her toes to the crown of her head. She bit her lip hard against the cold.

Ugh, freezing. Wash fast and get out.

Diana pushed through the ice-cold water until it reached her waist.

She wet her long, winding hair while keeping alert to her surroundings.

She'd even pulled up cleansing herbs to work up a lather. No soap meant improvising.

At least there were normal plants here. She'd expected nothing but bizarre vegetation in a place crawling with fiends.

Though their size was pretty damn bizarre.

Everything in this forest seemed oversized. Big trees, big monsters. The ravine they'd found was wide and deep enough that if a monster emerged from underwater, you'd be dragged down without anyone knowing.

At least the water was clear and the moon cast enough light that she didn't have to worry about missing her footing.

"Hm?"

Her hand paused mid-scrub, eyes narrowing on one spot.

Something was floating downstream.

A corpse? She'd been watching for monsters. Hadn't expected people in a place like this.

Face-down, floating along—definitely human.

"R-Rodrick!"

At her call, Rodrick burst through the brush and stopped dead.

Uncharacteristically flustered, it seemed. What's with him?

Straight pink eyes and wavering blue eyes collided in midair.

Then, following his gaze downward, she let out a shriek.

"What are you looking at?!"

The female form under moonlight was blindingly beautiful.

She turned away, but her image had burned itself onto his retinas and wouldn't fade.

Rodrick exhaled heavily, like a sigh, dragging one large hand down his face.

"What did you call me for—"

"Look, there's a man over there!"

A man? The word drained all expression from his face. The temperature around him plummeted.

He'd been so focused on Diana's appearance that he'd missed the other presence in the water.

He strode into the water.

Before the floating man could drift closer to Diana, Rodrick grabbed him by the scruff and hauled him out.

"Pwah! Gack. Cough, cough."

Remarkably, the man was alive. After gasping harshly, he steadied himself, tears and snot streaming down his face.

"Hah— I don't know who you are, but thank—"

The man spitting out water locked eyes with Diana.

"A fairy...?"

"...Felice Schwartz?"

What the hell are you doing here? The sub-male lead they'd been searching for had appeared.

At the familiar name, Rodrick swiftly spun Felice around.

"Wha— B-Brother?!"

"Felice Schwartz."

The viciousness felt dragged up from the bottom of hell. At the stabbing killing intent, Felice broke out in cold sweat.

"Why are you here?"

Veins bulged on the knuckles gripping his collar.

The runaway—why the hell was he floating down a ravine?

Rodrick bit down hard on his molars to keep from spewing curses.

"Brother, did you come to save me?"

"Answer."

"It's a long story... urk."

His grip tightened—the drama was excessive.

"No, I left home for you. I wasn't trying to cause trouble. Do you have to be this angry? No, no, I'm sorry!"

As Rodrick's face grew increasingly rigid, Felice rubbed his swollen, waterlogged hands together pleadingly.

"I was wrong... Brother. You're scaring me."

Diana watched the brotherly squabble from a distance through bleary eyes.

"..."

Great, the brotherly love is overflowing. I get it. But I'm freezing, you know?

"Excuse me, gentlemen?"

Like true brothers, both men's gazes snapped to her simultaneously.

Male instinct, maybe. Their eyes traveled down her wet hair, following the curves of her body.

"Eyes front!"

Flinch. Both men jerked hard.

"These men, seriously! Even with my back turned, I can feel everything, you know?"

"Brother, the fairy is talking? Mmph."

Rodrick clamped his black-gloved hand over his brother's face before more nonsense could escape.

"Get out. Now. So I can get dressed!"

Diana covered her full chest in an X with her arms, biting her trembling lips against the cold.

Behind her, water sloshed as the men waded out with splashing footsteps.

"Sorry."

At the apology from behind her, Diana blinked her pink eyes wide. Rodrick actually apologized.

Left alone in the water, only quiet silence lingered.

Diana wrestled her grimy clothes back on and returned to where the group was gathered.

She'd have to ask Noel if there was a spell for cleaning clothes. Even washing her body felt worse when the clothes were still filthy.

"Waaah. I missed you all! I thought I was going to die!"

"Kahahaha. Still disgusting as ever, Young Master."

"Why the hell did a weakling like the Young Master come into a demon realm? Hm? You were planning to kill us, weren't you! Right?!"

"Hey, hey, the Young Master's really going to cry."

Could one person's arrival really change the atmosphere this much?

The men gathered around the campfire were chattering away noisily.

Apparently the thought of finishing the mission and going home had put them in the best mood.

The very person at the center of the mission was acting spoiled with a crying face toward the knights.

Was he always like this? She'd thought the sub-male lead was always serious and taciturn. His image had just shattered completely.

Rodrick wasn't joining the group—he leaned against a distant tree, watching his brother with a sullen expression.

"Not happy to see him?"

"He's a headache."

Despite his words, his expression looked considerably lighter. She smiled, pleased at the sight.

"You care about him a lot, though."

"He's the next family head. Of course I do."

Thwip— Was that the sound of his fist clenching? Is this what brothers are like?

"Are you going north now?"

"Have to."

"Can I come to the north too?"

"Yeah."

She'd fully expected Rodrick to refuse. To readily agree like that.

Rodrick's condition really is off. This is when I should strike.

"Um, Rodrick."

'Maybe I should propose now.'

"Sister-in-law!"

Called out by the sub-male lead, Diana closed her mouth and turned her head.

Felice waved enthusiastically with a bright smile. Swept along, Diana sat down next to him.

His sharp nose bridge and jawline boasted the handsomeness befitting a sub-male lead.

If Rodrick had black hair tinged with blue, his younger brother Felice's was fully sky blue.

His face, shadowed by the firelight, was deep enough to fall into.

If Rodrick exuded masculinity, Felice had a friendly face radiating puppy-like charm.

Come to think of it, Felice was the younger, decadent-atmosphere type. Though it was impossible to overlay that image on him right now.

"Noel, why are you out here?"

"Haha, too noisy, I guess."

Insane charisma. Noel, who'd been sleeping separately, was now lying on Felice's lap—when had he been won over?

Noel, your sister is disappointed. Flopping onto a stranger's lap like that.

"Sister-in-law. Sister-in-law."

Blue eyes brighter than Rodrick's sparkled.

"Um, Young Master."

"Yes! Sister-in-law!"

"When exactly did I become the Young Master's sister-in-law?"

The sub-male lead and she were definitely the same age. Why did he look so young? She wanted to pat his head.

If Rodrick was like a sleek black panther, Felice was like a tail-wagging puppy. How could brothers be this different?

Felice lowered his eye corners and tilted his head.

"Aren't you? You were stuck close to my brother."

That's all circumstantial, kid. We're pretending to be lovers, your brother and I. Too many eyes watching to say that honestly.

Sigh. Just go along with it for now. If she was going to keep sticking to Rodrick anyway, she'd have to propose to him and become the sub-male lead's sister-in-law.

"Yes! That's right. You figured it out perfectly."

"Right? Wow, to take such a beautiful person as his wife—no wonder he's been avoiding women like they're monsters all this time. I thought you were a fairy, I swear."

This talkative, cheerful young man would change 180 degrees and become devastated.

His family's death must have been an enormous shock. Especially since his brother's death changed his entire life.

She intended to prevent that fate. I'll survive, and I'll keep your brother alive too. So don't turn dark.

"My, our Young Master speaks as beautifully as his face."

Rodrick's face crumpled as he approached to shut Felice up.

"Our Young Master?"

Rodrick, about to add something, simply watched them before sitting down next to Diana.

Suddenly sandwiched between brothers, Diana smiled even more brightly to hide her true feelings.

The knights couldn't help but admire the sight.

"Hehe. Right, Sister-in-law?"

"Of course, Young Master. When I meet Father later, please put in a good word for me."

"Uh. Um. I'm too scared for that, though?"

The knights sent looks of awe toward Diana, who conversed so calmly with both brothers.

Don't be fooled by that face. No matter how cheerfully Felice smiled, his roots were Schwartz.

Felice Schwartz.

In the north, they called him the Mad Dog—friendly-faced but once he bit down, he never let go.