The Harvest Mouse Exits the Fairytale Together with Cinderella-Chapter 131

Daniel had no choice.

Gracia was not easy to deal with.

That girl has the Holy Hammer.

Not only could she use its healing abilities, but she could also escape to a safe location and even launch physical attacks.

So, the best option was to break the seal on her memories and reactivate the hypnosis to make her love him again.

She had to trust him completely, and there was no longer time to build an emotional connection from scratch.

But had it been a mistake?

He hadn’t expected that brat to have so many devoted fools hovering around her.

Damn it, every single one of them...

First, there was the second prince of Valkyrisen.

The moment he so much as saw Daniel, he would charge like a bull provoked by a red cape.

At first, he had pretended it was a mistake, even offering apologies—only for his attacks to grow bolder and more direct over time.

"Ah, so close."

Muttering things like that.

Daniel was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, never knowing when or where a blade might come flying at him.

And then there was the young duke of Valkyrisen.

A man who had inherited all of his father’s talent and was said to be unrivaled in swordsmanship.

When he happened to run into Daniel, he simply said:

"Lord Mouseton. People tend to overestimate my patience because Geno is always around, but I’m not as mature as they think."

“......”

"I’d like you to keep that in mind."

Only two sentences.

Compared to the second prince, he was endlessly polite—but that only made his words feel heavier.

Because Daniel knew he couldn’t win against that man in a fight.

And once the truth was revealed, his reaction was already obvious.

Then there was the third prince...

The Basilisk experiment.

"Number 32? If he hadn’t been unable to withstand his own poison, no one in the world would have been able to stop him. Unless, of course, the first head of the Ratson family were to be reborn."

Daniel knew what Karon was.

Nyx Basilisk had been desperate to reclaim Number 32.

His greatest masterpiece—but also his greatest failure.

A creation so deadly that it had become a curse on the family itself, leaving them with no choice but to let him die.

...But he didn’t die!

Not only was he alive, but his complexion was good.

Too good.

He looked almost too healthy.

Daniel had crossed paths with Karon multiple times.

And each time the man gazed at him, he felt as if he were teetering on the edge of life and death.

Because if Karon so much as pressed a single claw into his skin, that would be the end.

Have you ever been walking along, only to suddenly be struck by an insect falling from the sky?

Have you ever stepped on grass and watched it instantly turn to ash, as if all its life had been drained away?

Have you ever seen the world around you suddenly lose its light, turning to an eerie shade of gray?

Daniel wiped the cold sweat dripping down his face and turned around—

Only to realize that there wasn’t a single person nearby.

He was utterly alone.

“......”

Perhaps it would have been better not to know anything at all.

"Can you even imagine? A poison so strong it could reduce an entire village to ashes. Not a single ant left behind."

Daniel had heard all about Karon’s past as Number 32 from Nyx himself.

Far too much about it.

"If someone could control that poison properly, imagine the possibilities. It’s the perfect weapon for assassination."

And that wasn’t an exaggeration.

Daniel had witnessed it—how the mere one-meter radius around Karon became a land of death.

A small area, yes.

But that only made it more terrifying.

Because it was a warning—a message meant specifically for him.

Did he undergo treatment from the Ratson family and learn to refine his poison’s range?

If so, that meant he could make a person disappear entirely, without leaving a single trace.

It meant he could reduce only Daniel to ashes in an instant, and no one would even notice.

That night, Daniel barely slept.

Even the rustling of leaves outside his window made him flinch.

And that paranoia continued.

Every day. Every night.

Just what kind of people are these?!

What had Gracia Ratson done in Terranolia to gather these kinds of people around her?

Zenovia Valkyrisen.

A rabid dog foaming at the mouth.

Edmund Valkyrisen.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Slow to ignite, but the most dangerous of them all.

Karon Valkyrisen—no, Basilisk.

A monster that wouldn’t be out of place in a horror novel...

Tormented by the three Valkyrisen princes, Daniel grew more and more gaunt with each passing day.

Time dragged on—until, finally, the day arrived.

The three princes of Valkyrisen had to return to Terranolia.

Finally!

Watching their carriage fade into the distance, Daniel felt an overwhelming sense of relief.

Now, only one thing remained.

Using Gracia Ratson to get rid of Seraphina Bluewood.

***

"You’re here?"

As the door to the prayer room opened, the child who had been staring blankly out the window suddenly brightened.

Daniel smiled gently.

"Did I keep you waiting long?"

"No? You got here quickly."

As soon as Daniel sat beside her, Gracia fidgeted with her fingers as she answered.

They always met in the same place.

The "place" that Daniel had prepared.

A small prayer room in a branch of the Grand Temple.

After the Holy Kingdom was sealed off and other beastfolk could no longer enter freely, spies had ensured this location remained accessible.

Those born in the Holy Kingdom could always come and go as they pleased.

The High Priest should have focused on controlling the harvest mice more than any other beastfolk.

Father and daughter—both such fools.

Even after being cursed into rodents, after falling to the very bottom, they still couldn’t imagine that a harvest mouse might be a spy.

And that is why the Ratson family is doomed.

Daniel was satisfied.

The Valkyrisen princes had drained him both physically and mentally, but despite that, the plan was progressing smoothly.

The hypnosis had worked perfectly.

Just like when she had fallen under his influence before, Gracia acted dazed and clearly showed her affection for him.

It’s all set.

Daniel instinctively knew it was time to bring the plan to its conclusion.

First, lure her underground.

Once inside, the Holy Hammer’s power would be temporarily neutralized.

Subduing a powerless child would be easy, and ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) in that moment, he would take the hammer.

Gracia Ratson would be handed over to him and declared missing.

Traces of an attempted abduction had already been spread throughout the Holy Kingdom.

And when that human girl realizes what’s happened, she’ll stop working to break the Ratson curse and start chasing ghosts instead.

Desperately searching for a child who was locked away beneath the very place she had been standing.

Daniel let out a sigh, as if he had made some great, difficult decision, then finally spoke.

"I actually have something I’d like to say to you today, my lady."

"What is it?"

"Would you take a short walk with me?"

He reached out a hand, his face flushing as if he had steeled himself for a confession.

"If... you wouldn’t mind."

"I-I wouldn’t mind at all!"

Elodie stammered and took his hand without hesitation.

Lowering her head, she didn’t see the victorious smile curling at Daniel’s lips.

At first, she was cautious...

But ever since her memories and hypnosis had been reawakened, she had been lost in love, no longer thinking rationally.

"Come a little closer."

Daniel led Elodie deeper into the prayer room.

He ran his fingers along the cracks between the bricks before pressing against one in particular.

Suddenly, a half-circle crack formed along the wall, and with a creaking sound, it began to rotate open.

A secret passage.

"What is this?"

"I discovered it while exploring as a child. I’ve been wanting to show it to you, my lady."

Holding a magic torch from the wall, Daniel led the way inside.

By the time Elodie might have sensed that something was wrong, her escape route was already blocked.

They went deeper.

And deeper.

Then, breaking the silence, Elodie spoke.

"Daniel, how long are you planning to keep calling me ‘my lady’?"

Hah.

She was still spouting nonsense.

Daniel almost laughed.

Even in this eerie place, was she still expecting some kind of heartfelt confession?

Had the hypnosis stripped her of her sense of danger as well?

To finish his act, Daniel played along.

"What would you like me to call you?"

"I don’t know. You should think of that yourself."

"Then..."

"Before that, shouldn’t you get on your knees and beg for your life?"

Before he could even ask what she meant, Daniel realized—there was a blade at his throat.

A familiar sword.

One that had haunted his nightmares.

One that had tormented him daily.

"Ah, finally over? I was about to die of frustration."

Zenovia Valkyrisen.

Sweat poured down Daniel’s face as he frantically swung the torch to light up his surroundings.

And then—

A pair of crimson eyes, as vivid as the flames, curved into a sharp grin.