The Male Leads Are Trapped in My House-Chapter 77

Nox being here didn’t change the fact that the larger storyline seemed to be following its original course, even if some details had shifted.

Thinking along those lines, I finally spoke up.

"I’ve been generous enough to take you all in, but if you’re going to stay here, you’ll have to pull more than your own weight."

In times like these, just doing your part wasn’t enough—you had to go above and beyond.

Nox nodded, unfazed.

"I’ll teach you more about the Elphinus herb. You were curious about how to grow it, weren’t you?"

"I could’ve taught her that myself."

"Amy Wharton, don’t get ahead of yourself. You’re only staying here temporarily."

I scolded her as she bickered with Nox. She turned to me with wide, pleading eyes, looking like a kitten left out in the rain.

"Miss, are you really going to abandon me?"

"This little lady’s sharp. She knows exactly who to stick with to survive. Are you showing favoritism now, treating Miss Cherry differently from us?"

Nox smirked, clearly amused, and teased Amy. But Amy just stared back at him like he was stating the obvious.

"Of course. Survival instincts always make you bow to the strong."

While they continued their banter, I ignored them and focused on polishing the eggshells until they gleamed. Then I poked a hole in one and drank the raw egg straight from the shell.

The room went silent. All three of them were staring at me. I tilted my head.

"What? You want one too?"

I held out an egg, but they all shook their heads in unison.

"Did you just pull that straight out of the coop? Miss Cherry, you’re kind of ruthless."

"You ate it raw—right out of the shell...?"

Amy trailed off, and Nox, looking equally horrified, mumbled under his breath.

"I didn’t eat the shell. I poked a hole."

I showed them the tiny puncture in the eggshell, but Nox shook his head as if that wasn’t the point.

"You’ve never had raw eggs before?"

"Isn’t it weirder if you have?"

"You all clearly haven’t been hungry enough."

"Hearing that from the Sinclair heiress is downright bizarre."

Fair enough. I was Cherry Sinclair, after all.

Most nobles might have soft-boiled eggs for brunch, but eating fresh eggs raw like this wasn’t exactly common among high society.

"I’ve had one before."

Ethan walked over, picked up an egg, and looked at me for approval. When I nodded, he polished the shell, poked a hole with his nail, and drank it down just like I had.

Amy and Nox flinched, looking at Ethan like he’d grown another head. They even wore matching expressions—like a father-daughter pair, if you asked me.

Nox turned to Amy and said,

"Honestly, if we’re talking pure survival skills, Lancaster isn’t bad either. He’s not just good at shooting, you know."

Amy burst out laughing.

"Shooting? That’s how you put it? Wow. So lame."

Amy’s laughter earned her an irritated glare from Nox.

"Ugh... Do kids these days all talk like that? No manners at all."

He sighed, brushing his hair back in frustration.

I decided to side with Amy.

"To be fair, your phrasing was kind of lame."

"Miss Cherry, you wound me."

"You all seem awfully relaxed for people who might get attacked any moment."

Ethan cut in, his voice sharp, effectively ending our idle chatter.

I exchanged a glance with Nox, shrugged, and calmly placed the eggs in the basket by the coop before sitting back down to tie more bundles of firewood.

Nox was the one who responded to Ethan.

"Relaxed? Not exactly. We just trust Miss Cherry. She’s confident, right?"

"I’m only confident because Sir Ethan is here."

I glanced at Ethan as I spoke.

Amy was too young, and Nox wasn’t much help in a fight. That left Ethan as the only person I could rely on for combat.

Ethan tilted his head and asked,

"Speaking of which, didn’t you say there was someone you wanted to find?"

"Yeah, I did."

"It’s Harrison Howard, the lawyer, isn’t it?"

Nox hit the mark, and I didn’t bother denying it.

Amy, who had been listening quietly, suddenly gasped.

"Wait—You know a lawyer? Well, I guess it makes sense. This guy’s a doctor, after all."

Amy glanced at Nox with a fresh sense of awe. Nox, chewing on his lollipop stick, responded with a smug smile—the kind that said he was fully aware of just how impressive he was.

When Amy muttered that he was nauseating, Nox quickly dropped the smile and let out a sigh.

Amy ignored him and turned her gaze back to me.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing, really. It’s just... you all feel like people from a completely different world."

"Well, this one definitely lived in another world. Even nobles found her life fascinating."

Ethan gestured toward me with his chin.

"Which is why you kept chasing me around, huh?"

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

Ethan gave me a sour look, as if to defend his actions.

To be fair, I couldn’t blame him for that. Even I admitted I must’ve looked suspicious back then.

Suddenly, Nox leaned in slightly, as if about to share a secret.

"I figured Lancaster would’ve followed Miss Cherry. So, does that mean you already knew the axe-wielding woman at 61 Notium Street was Cherry?"

Both Ethan and I snapped our heads toward him.

"How do you know about that?" Ethan demanded.

Nox, who had been calmly sharpening his knife, froze for a moment before breaking into a sly grin.

"Oh. Is this one of those situations? Where I accidentally let something slip?"

"What’s with the grin? Are you a creep or something?"

I shot him a glare, but he only laughed, completely unfazed.

Ethan, however, wasn’t as patient. He stretched out his leg and kicked Nox.

"You bastard. I already know Cherry’s the axe-wielder from 61 Notium Street. What I’m asking is how the hell you know that."

"You really have no manners, do you?"

Nox brushed the dirt off his pants, throwing a glare back at Ethan. But Ethan wasn’t about to let it go.

"Listen, Ludfisher. I only found out recently, but judging by your reaction, you knew from the very beginning, didn’t you?"

"I saw her myself. I was in Notium Street when Cherry came out of that house. Honestly, if it weren’t for her, I would’ve confirmed the situation as a consulting physician and gone straight back to the capital. Do you think I’d stay in this backwater town otherwise?"

"As someone from this ‘backwater town,’ I’m feeling a little insulted right now."

Amy quipped, though neither Nox nor Ethan paid her any attention.

I frowned, replaying Nox’s words in my head.

So, the reason Love in a Ruined World’s secondary male lead ended up in Brunel was... because of me?

I had changed everything.

‘Could that be why the apocalypse happened sooner than it was supposed to?’

Honestly, it seemed plausible.

From here on out, some events might still follow the original plot, while others might change completely—or not happen at all.

‘...I can’t get too hung up on the original story.’

I needed to treat it like a study guide—useful but not absolute. Real life didn’t always follow the textbook.

The same went for Ethan. Just because he carried antibodies didn’t mean I should rely on him too much.

‘If I’m killed before we even develop a cure, none of it will matter anyway.’

Nox’s revelation left the room steeped in silence.

Amy, glancing nervously at the others, set down the last bundle of firewood and spoke quickly.

"We’re done. This should be enough, right?"

A neat pile of ten bundles sat beside her. It was more than enough.

For direct combat, Ethan’s guns, crossbows, and my axe were the better options.

"Looks like we’re ready."

Nox sheathed his freshly sharpened sword and stood. I watched him for a moment before turning to Ethan.

Ethan had also risen and was carefully organizing his weapons.

"Sir Ethan."

"What is it?"

He looked up at me, and our eyes met.

As he stood, his cloak fluttered slightly in the breeze.

Even in a situation like this, he managed to look effortlessly commanding.