Please Bully Me, Miss Villainess!

Chapter 204 : Can You Hear It_ 2

The lake water rushed into the ears under unreasonable pressure, emitting a painful buzz.

The brain seemed to be frozen by this cold lake water, unable to think about anything.

It felt just like being dead.

...No.

This feeling was even worse than death.

If one were dead, wouldn't they be unable to hear anything, unable to feel anything?

The tragic thing was that this pain she felt was proof of being alive.

Powerless as time passed, leaving only deep regret.

So lonely... so very lonely...

......

As soon as she opened her eyes, large teardrops rolled down her face.

"What's wrong? Do you feel unwell somewhere?"

A warm hand was placed on her forehead.

"...Mama."

After waking up, Bebe threw herself into Elsa's embrace with a tearful voice.

"That person... is crying."

"Did you hear that voice again?"

The little one nodded with a choked voice. Lying on Elsa's shoulder, she looked up at her surroundings, only then realizing that she had somehow been moved inside a tent.

From the temporary reception room just a wall away came the sound of adults discussing.

"I apologize... Lady Yvonne, this was originally an internal matter of our tribe, yet we've involved that child..."

Mondo expressed deep apologies to Yvonne.

"There's no use saying these things now, right? Thinking about how to solve the problem is the most important thing."

"You're right..."

"Is this all of it?"

"Yes..."

With only a few sheets of text inscribed on animal skins left from hundreds of years ago, and the description of the Lake God being a mere cursory account of no more than 50 characters in total, Yvonne found it very headache-inducing.

Beastfolk did not have the habit of recording their history in writing like humans.

For past events, they relied more on stone carvings or handicrafts to record.

The problem was that after so many years, with daily exposure to wind and sun, even the stones had weathered. Items made of plant fibers like linen and handicrafts had long since rotted and decayed. Myths had been continuously exaggerated through oral transmission. Trying to find clues from these broken remnants was like fishing the moon from water or seeking fish in trees—completely impossible to start.

Since the voice continued to reach that child's ears, it proved that the 'Lake God' would not give up.

A drowning person, if they grab onto a straw, will certainly try desperately to hold on.

It was still very early outside. Yvonne took a sip of the coffee Elsa had brewed with boiled snow water, forcibly suppressing the drowsiness about to surge forth, and lowered her voice:

"...This should be the plot of a high-difficulty event."

"'High-difficulty event'? What's that?"

This was the first time Elsa had heard this term. But now she could identify new vocabulary from 'that world', because basically all of them sounded utterly nonsensical.

This was undoubtedly the plot of the winter high-difficulty event in "Wings of the Heart", the "Tears of the Ice Lake" storyline.

"So-called high-difficulty events are about defeating powerful bosses to obtain rewards—we've had them before, right?"

"Ah... There was a strange giant crab that appeared in Emerald Port before, was that also..."

A strange blue giant hermit crab had once appeared in Emerald Port, able to spew highly corrosive acid from its mouth to dissolve foam. Its strength was also frighteningly impressive at first glance, but because its arms were short and couldn't reach its back, as long as one jumped on its back, they could continuously output damage to its weak point. So after mastering the hunting techniques, the local seafarers cooperatively caught it and happily ate it.

Inside the large shell the hermit crab inhabited were water-attribute magic stones of quite good quality. As part of the strategy group that ate... no, defeated the crab, Elsa also received quite a few fragments, which she still hadn't used up.

"That's right. That was the content of the summer high-difficulty level."

That blue tidal wave crab was the monster to be subjugated in the summer event, and the magic stones were the drop rewards.

"I see..."

Elsa quickly understood,

At that time, it was also Yvonne who told everyone about the monster's vital points and weaknesses, and everyone quickly cooperated to defeat the giant crab.

"What about this one? It seems a bit more troublesome..."

"I remember Dorothea once said that all threatening magical beasts in this world had already been eliminated by her own hands."

"Indeed, the giant crab of that level certainly couldn't be considered a threat."

It was even quite delicious.

Yvonne believed in the little witch's judgment,

"The 'Lake Goddess' is the same... so there must be some way..."

Just as she was deep in thought, someone suddenly tugged at her clothes

"Mama Yvonne..."

"Hm?"

Bebe looked at her anxiously,

"...Are we going to defeat Lady Gagar?"

Yvonne crouched down and patted Bebe's head,

"Don't worry, Lady Gagar is not an enemy."

What they were looking for was a gentle method that could be resolved without resorting to force.

"But before that, is there anything you want to tell me? Hm?"

Yvonne pinched Bebe's face, pulling it slightly to both sides.

"Ow—"

"You bad child who sneaked out alone at night without telling your parents—as punishment, for one month after we return, all the meat in your lunch will be replaced with boiled eggs and vegetables—and no snacks, understood?"

"Mama, I was wrong~~"

Seeing her beg for mercy with unclear speech, Yvonne finally let go.

"Uu..."

Rubbing her sore cheeks, Bebe returned to the inner room, only then realizing that Rako had also come over. She was holding her fish spear and looking in her direction. Bebe happily wagged her tail and bounced over.

"Rako~ Did you bring me back?"

However, upon seeing her, Rako turned her face away huffily.

"...Hmph."

"...What's wrong?"

"I'm very angry!"

At that time, no matter how she tried, she couldn't pull Bebe back, and it almost scared her to death.

What truly made Rako feel sad was realizing just how weak she was.

If grandpa and the other tribe members hadn't arrived in time, relying on herself alone, would she really have been able to protect her?

"Hey~"

"I said I'm angry—you...!!"

"Then this can be our make-up hug~"

Bebe gave her a fluffy bear hug,

"Mama says that people who are really angry won't say they're angry—If they say it, it means they want the other person to comfort them."

"...What on earth are they teaching in your family?"

"Rako... listen to me, I can hear Lady Gagar's voice... That person seems very lonely... Maybe she just wants someone to talk to..."

"That doesn't mean you can go with her!!"

Rako's tail fur bristled with anger.

"If I hadn't grabbed you, you probably would have jumped into the lake—What if you were really taken away?!"

"Mm, Rako protected me."

She blinked and leaned closer,

"Then I should do something to repay you—"

"Hey, wh-what are you doing—"

Bebe's hand went under her clothes.

Her hand was warm and fluffy, stroking Rako's belly.

"When I used to wake up scared from nightmares with my heart racing, mama would stroke my belly like this. It feels very comfortable, you know?"

"Only you Pelo enjoy being stroked!! We Felis don't fall for this...!!"

Excellent hunters must always remain vigilant—Rako, who grew up as a Felis, had been taught this since childhood,

The belly is a vulnerable part of the body, one shouldn't easily expose it to others—

If a vital area is touched, as a qualified hunter, one should feel on high alert and nervous.

It should have been like this,

But... why did it feel so comfortable when she stroked it?

"Don't be angry... don't be angry."

"Purr purr purr..."

An undignified sound came from Rako's throat, the little cat straightened her back, entrusting her body weight to her

"Hehe, do you feel at ease now?"

Rather than at ease... it was more like excitement in another sense.

"But I never thought Rako's belly would be smooth like a human's, so soft!"

Rako pulled down her clothes with a red face,

"It's like this because I'm half-beast... Just to be clear, this isn't hair loss, okay?"

Looking at the paw pads on her hands, Bebe savored the recent sensation, falling into deep thought

"Wh-what's wrong? Is it so strange to not have fur on the belly?"

"I've thought of a way!"

Bebe excitedly clapped her hands together,

"We just need to make Lady Gagar feel at ease!"

"Wait, are you thinking of rubbing the Lake God's belly?"