Otome Game Mob Villain

Chapter 725

"Ughhhh... I feel sick..."

"I told you not to read 'Flowers and Love' inside the moving vehicle, didn't I?"

Inside the towed vehicle heading towards the Rabbit Tribe chief's residence, I was rubbing the back of Vene, who was slumped over from carsickness.

Since I'm usually the one being rubbed, this feels a bit fresh.

Well, the reason she got this sick is probably because she got too excited during her first ride.

After joining our group at the checkpoint, she tested the comfort of the seats during the journey, inspected every corner of the vehicle's facilities, and then found Cookie, the Shadow Cougar in the form of a black kitten curled up on a seat, which made her eyes sparkle.

'Wow, Rid. Is this a monster?'

'Yes, it's a Shadow Cougar that inhabits Renarute's Demon Forest. By chance, it stays by our side. By the way, his name is Cookie.'

'Huh, so this is the monster said to inhabit Renarute's Demon Forest. This is my first time seeing one. Its presence is definitely different from dungeon monsters. Rid, is it okay to touch it?'

'Uh, yes. It's fine, but please be careful because Cookie will get angry if handled roughly.'

'Okay, got it.'

Vene happily held Cookie and stroked him all over.

Soon after, Cookie scrunched up his face, hissed 'Shah!' in warning, and dove into my shadow as if escaping.

'Haha, how cute.'

'Oh dear, sorry about that, Cookie.'

As I apologized to him hiding in the shadow, she approached the car window, opened it, and leaned out.

'What are you doing!? That's dangerous, please stop.'

'Okay. Then I'll try climbing onto the roof.'

'Huh...!? Wa-wait...!?'

When I cautioned her, Vene relaxed her mouth into a grin, shook off my attempts to stop her, climbed from the window onto the vehicle roof, and spread both arms wide.

'Whoa, the wind feels great!'

Despite facing the wind head-on on top of the vehicle, she didn't budge an inch, thanks to her trained legs and incredible core strength.

The sight of her long, straight ears and long black hair flowing in the wind was very picturesque, but that doesn't make it acceptable.

'Vene, that's even more dangerous, please stop.'

Having no choice, I also leaned out from the window and called out to her in a stern tone, at which she peeked her face over.

'Don't be such a spoilsport, Rid. You come up too, the view is amazing!'

'Eh, really? Then I'll also... wait, that's not the issue.'

I almost got swept up by Vene's bright tone and light manner, but I quickly shook my head and retorted.

'Haha, Rid. You're quite an interesting guy, aren't you?'

'If you can't ride quietly, we'll have you return to the chief's residence alone.'

'Tch, fine.'

Pouting, Vene came back inside and quickly spotted 'Flowers and Love' placed in the vehicle.

'Oh, there's a book that looks interesting. Rid, can I read this?'

'It's fine, but reading books in an unfamiliar vehicle can make you sick.'

'Sick... you mean like seasickness or carriage sickness?'

'Yes, that's right. Similar symptoms can occur in the charcoal car too. By the way, I get carsick quite easily, so I always carry anti-nausea candy.'

I took out a candy from my pocket and offered it to Vene, who tilted her head.

'Huh, candy. But I don't need it. We Rabbit Tribe often go out to sea, so we don't get sick from something like this.'

'Is that so? Well, if you say so.'

'Yeah, then I'll read it.'

In the end, Vene ignored our warnings and started reading 'Flowers and Love' inside the vehicle.

While I was worried if she'd be okay, she lowered her eyes to the book and continued reading.

After a while, Vene furrowed her brow and looked up suspiciously.

'Hey, Rid. Do imperial young ladies really prefer men with such meager faces and bodies?'

'Well, I think that depends on the person. First of all, that's just a fictional story. It's not something to seek reality in.'

'Fiction, huh...'

She seemed dissatisfied and pouted her lips.

'Speaking of which, what kind of man is your ideal, Vene?'

When I asked, she showed her sharp double canine tooth.

'Well, it's definitely that. A warrior's face with a toned body, and if they're smart too, that'd be perfect. Oh, right.'

As if remembering something, Vene looked startled, then looked at me and smiled fearlessly.

'If I had to say, Rid's father, Liner Baldia, whom I met at Gales's funeral, is my type.'

'Eh... What!?'

My eyes widened at the sudden mention of Father's name, and she crossed her legs while sitting on the seat, crossed her arms, and groaned as if reminiscing.

'We only exchanged a brief greeting, but the aura and countenance of a battle-hardened warrior. The living muscles trained in martial arts evident from his movements. That was undoubtedly a fine man. Rid, you need to become a man like your father in the future. I'm counting on you.'

After saying that, Vene started laughing cheerfully.

'Ahaha, indeed. I'll do my best.'

So it was just a joke.

Although she's a chief, Vene is a young woman.

And there's no doubt she's an exceptional beauty.

Being told by such a person that 'Father is my type' makes me happy on one hand, but I also feel a bit confused and struggle to react.

As I smiled wryly, Tink, who was nearby, muttered quietly, 'Certainly...'

'Lady Vene's words have a point. Lord Rid is the one who will eventually succeed Lord Liner. Everyone has great or small expectations of you.'

'W-well, I'll do my best to catch up to Father.'

Being looked at with expectant eyes by everyone present, I felt embarrassed and scratched my cheek.

Then, Vene looked at Tink.

'Say, you're from the Empire, right? What about this content?'

'Well, since the young ladies in the imperial capital are unrelated to gritty adventures and battles, this level is probably just right, I believe. Since reality is harsh in all things, it's fine for books read for enjoyment to be just about glamour, I think.'

'Huh, is that how it is...'

Tilting her head, Vene continued reading Flowers and Love.

And now, she has her face buried in a paper bag.

"Here, put this anti-nausea candy in your mouth."

"Ah, sorry about this..."

All her earlier energy was gone.

Meekly, she took the candy, tossed it into her mouth, and leaned her body against the seat back.

"If that's the case, the only thing to do is sleep. Please rest like that until we arrive at the residence."

"Yeah, that's right. Sorry, but I'll do that..."

I slowly reclined Vene's seat and secretly put on an eye mask cooled with ice attribute magic.

"Whoa, it's cold and feels good."

"Yes, please rest slowly."

When I replied gently, she nodded slightly and began taking deep breaths.

Good, she seems to have calmed down a bit.

Quietly standing up from my seat, I moved to a seat a little further away in the front.

"Rid, good work."

"If you think so, you could have helped too."

As soon as I sat down, Amon, who was sitting in a nearby seat, spoke to me.

"I'm, well, in the same position as Vene as a tribal chief. I thought she probably wouldn't want to show her weak side to me either."

"Is that how it works?"

I shrugged and gazed at the scenery outside the window.

The Rabbit Tribe territory faces the sea across its entire northern region and is a territory with thriving fishing industry.

While there are small woods within the territory, no mountainous areas are visible, and a great plain stretches as far as the eye can see.

Looking at the attire of the people I saw in the town we stopped by, both men and women wore one-piece dresses with slits.

However, it seems women go bare-legged, while men wear long trousers underneath.

Their clothing is similar to the Fox Tribe's, but as a difference, the Rabbit Tribe seems to have more exposure on arms and legs, I feel.

In the town we visited, they were selling fresh fish and dried fish while butchering them, and at street stalls, they were grilling and selling seafood.

The people in the town were mostly Rabbit Tribe and other beast tribe members.

I didn't see many humans, only occasionally passing what seemed to be human merchants and adventurers who looked like guards.

'The sea in the Rabbit Tribe territory is calm and abundant with seafood, but it's raw after all. We can sell dried fish to other territories and countries, but they're not very popular. For now, it's the poorest territory in Zubera.'

Before getting sick and falling asleep, Vene said that while looking at the town's scenery.

And she also said, 'That's why I have high hopes for you, Rid and Amon.'

If seafood is abundant, the sea is calm, and there are hardly any competing merchant houses entering the market, it's advantageous for us.

If we can then actually see the sea and proceed with 'that plan,' we might be able to generate enormous wealth.

However, to do that, we need to persuade Vene and Shia, her assistant.

Vene is friendly, but how she'll be in negotiations is unknown.

Shia, with his background as former chief and his extensive experience, probably won't be an easy negotiation partner either.

But if the talks succeed, the plan starts moving, and gets on track, it might solve Baldia's financial situation at once.

I will absolutely make these talks succeed.

Listening to Vene's sleeping breath from the back seat, I quietly made my resolve.