The Male Leads Are Trapped in My House-Chapter 165

“A storm is coming. I’m sure of it.”

Victor’s resolute voice echoed through the hall.

Late in the evening, as I wandered the corridors after waking from a nap, I overheard Victor and Emma’s conversation and made my way to the banquet hall.

“When will it arrive? I’d rather it hit sooner than later. The waiting is worse,” Emma said.

“Ah, my lady, you’re awake,” Emma greeted as she and Victor rose from their seats.

“Sit. I came out because I was feeling cooped up in my room,” I said, joining them at their table.

The two-day trek through the underground passage must have taken its toll. While everyone had claimed to be fine, they had promptly collapsed upon arrival and had yet to wake.

As a result, the residents of Happy House were enjoying an unusually quiet day.

“Most likely within two days,” Victor replied to Emma’s earlier question.

“The wind and rain are already worsening,” I said, glancing toward the window. “We should reinforce the house. The windows might shatter, and I’m worried the tower might collapse.”

Victor and Emma exchanged a glance before grinning at me.

“You’ve got plenty of strong helpers now, my lady,” Victor said.

While it was true I was the strongest of us all, I smiled along with them, catching their implied enthusiasm for putting our new guests to work.

“Indeed, we’ve gained some excellent workers,” I replied with a laugh.

It seemed preparing for the storm wouldn’t be an issue.

“Thanks to all of you, Happy House continues to run smoothly. I’ll be counting on you as always,” I said warmly.

The three of us shared a moment of camaraderie before I began organizing my thoughts. Then, I decided to call a meeting in the banquet hall to explain the current situation to everyone before discussing things further with Theodore.

Follow curr𝒆nt nov𝒆ls on fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com.

Emma and Susanna brought in hot tea and placed steaming cups before each of us. It was a rare luxury, one we could afford only because of the heavy rain. By collecting rainwater and running it through a rudimentary filtration process, we had clean water for tea—a small blessing amidst the chaos.

As everyone sipped their tea, they cast frequent, curious glances my way. It was clear they were eager to know more about the new arrivals.

Breaking the silence, I began to speak calmly.

“The passage to the capital has been cleared.”

“What?!”

“Is that true?!”

“Yes. The people who arrived this morning include His Highness, Crown Prince Theodore of Graydon, and his royal guards.”

The room erupted into murmurs. Everyone exchanged astonished glances, the disbelief evident on their faces. I waited for the noise to subside before continuing.

“It seems it takes about two days to reach the capital from Happy House on foot,” I explained, recounting the path Theodore’s group had taken.

The distance between Brunel and the capital, Benton, was roughly equivalent to the distance between Seoul and Cheonan—about a two-day walk if my calculations were correct.

“An underground passage connecting Brunel to the capital... What could this network possibly be?” Jose muttered, propping his chin in his hand.

“If it connects Brunel to the capital,” Vanilla mused, “then it might extend to the northern regions of Graydon as well. Could it also link to the central and southern regions?”

“We can’t say for certain yet,” Harrison replied, “but it’s worth keeping all possibilities in mind.”

I nodded in agreement. The real question was how we could leverage Happy House’s connection to this vast network of passages to our advantage.

For now, my goal was clear: survive. I would secure supplies, develop a cure, and ensure we were prepared to outlast this crisis until Aurora’s story reached its conclusion.

“First, I’d like to accompany His Highness to the capital,” I declared.

“My lady,” Harrison interjected, adjusting his glasses, ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) “you should know that while the capital might offer greater supplies, it also comes with greater risks. There will be more monsters than we’ve ever encountered, and possibly other dangers beyond just the monsters.”

“I understand. But there are things we can’t obtain here in Kintenet that the capital might have,” I replied firmly.

Nox’s head snapped toward me, his sharp gaze locking onto mine. He knew exactly what I meant: materials for developing the cure.

While those unfamiliar with the cure looked puzzled, I avoided explaining further. It was too sensitive a subject to discuss openly.

Nox spoke up, his tone serious.

“It will be dangerous, no doubt. I’d prefer not to put our Cherry in harm’s way, but there are things that must be done. The world is what it is now.”

“So, the purpose of this meeting is to organize the team that will travel to the capital?” Amy asked cautiously, glancing at us.

Harrison nodded.

“I’ve drafted a preliminary team. The group heading to the capital will include the lady, myself, Sir Ethan, Ludfisher, Lady Ruskin, Jose, and Amy.”

This effectively meant that aside from Victor, Emma, and Susanna, everyone else was enlisted. None of the chosen members seemed surprised, their faces calm and resolute as if they had been expecting this.

“If anyone has any objections, now is the time to voice them,” Harrison said.

As expected, no one spoke up.

Nox, as before, would pack emergency supplies to prepare for any unexpected situations. Before departing, we’d also need to further explore the passages Theodore had mentioned.

*****

For several days, we hadn’t been able to descend to Brunel Village due to the monsters surrounding Happy House.

I need to ask the village chief about Ludbelt, I thought.

The Ludbelt family had owned Happy House before Baron Ruskin acquired it. I had no idea what kind of family they were. Maybe the village chief would know. I had planned to ask, but with the mutant monster incident and everything else, I hadn’t had a chance to return to the village.

And now there was another problem.

The storm was closing in fast.

Worried about the crops in the garden, I opened the front door of the mansion to take a look.

Whoosh—

Whack!

A thick tree branch, carried by the fierce wind, struck me squarely on the forehead.

“Ow!”

Clutching my forehead in pain, I bent over, already soaked from the lashing rain.

I tried to close the door, but the wind was so strong it wouldn’t budge easily.

“Tsk, tsk.”

Behind me, I heard Ethan click his tongue in irritation. He stepped forward, easily shutting the door in my place.

Thud. With the door closed, a profound silence enveloped the room.

When I came to my senses, I realized Ethan was standing so close behind me that it felt like he was holding me. As soon as this dawned on me, I quickly pulled away from him.

My heart was pounding erratically. Pressing my hand to my chest, I tried to calm it.

What was this? It had been happening lately—my heart would race like a broken machine every time I saw Ethan.

“Are you okay? Does it hurt?” Ethan asked, looking at me curiously.

I hesitated for a moment before shaking my head.

“I’m fine.”

Ethan straightened up and stepped back, seeming unconcerned. As he moved away, I found myself staring after him, feeling a strange sense of loss.

Then I caught Nox’s gaze from across the room.

Leaning casually against the clock console in the lobby, he was sucking on a lollipop, watching us with an unreadable expression.

How long has he been standing there?

As if he could hear my thoughts, Nox smirked.

“Cherry, do you have a moment to talk about the materials for the cure research?” he asked in a tone that sounded almost flirtatious, like a man casually approaching a woman on the street.

Even as he spoke to me, Nox kept his eyes fixed on Ethan, twirling the lollipop in his mouth with an air of mischief that didn’t quite suit him.

I glanced at Ethan before walking over to Nox.

“Sure. This isn’t the best place for a conversation, though. Should we go to my room?”

It wasn’t a topic that needed to be kept secret, but neither was it something we wanted to discuss openly where Theodore’s group might overhear.

As Nox and I headed to my room, Ethan followed us without a word. Nox raised an eyebrow at him, clearly annoyed.

“Lancaster, why are you tagging along?”

“You said you were talking about materials for the cure. Since I’ll be helping collect them, I need to hear this too,” Ethan replied matter-of-factly.

Nox sighed and threw up his hands in mock surrender.

In the end, all three of us sat around the round table in my room to discuss the matter.

“What’s going on? Have you made a list of the materials you need?” I asked.

Nodding, Nox pulled a small notebook and a fountain pen from his jacket pocket—items I had given him for the research.

“Exactly. The research is complex, so there are a lot of supplies we’ll need. First, we need the corpse of a monster. That’s where the research begins. By dissecting the body, I’ll be able to determine what other materials are necessary.”

As he spoke, he tore a page from his notebook, handing me the list.