"GHUGH...?!"
Without adding another comment, the boy pushed the knife's blade into Bernard's wounded mouth and had its edge cut into the inside of the man's cheek.
"If you treat her like that again, I will carve a wide polite smile in your face just in case you would have the honor of meeting her again... Am I clear?"
"GHMMM! MMMMGH...! Yh-yhesgh...!"
Bernard cried, nodding as much as he could without forcing the blade of the knife deeper into his mouth.
"Good. And remember. It was a cow's kick."
"!!!"
The black-haired boy nodded his head and cracked a friendly smile that sent chills down the spine of the round man.
"...ghhhhgh...!"
With that, the black-haired boy took back his knife and wiped it against the sleeve of Bernar's shirt, causing the round man to whimper in panic as if he expected that the boy would cut off his fingers.
"I'll be watching your performance, mister – you can keep your fingers until then."
The boy turned to the side, the knife had already disappeared from his hand, and he walked off, leaving the trembling man alone with a mountain of regrets.
---------
It was already night, and Zorivia was sleeping like a good kid – one would think that after being freed from the hardships of the modern world and rampant capitalism, she would no longer be bothered with something like a curfew, but no.
Being able to get to sleep early was one of the privileges that the now blond-haired villainess didn't get to enjoy in her past life, and she was reveling it to the fullest.
She was also quite the deep sleeper and didn't budge when a large commotion erupted outside.
"They're trying to steal the cows! Alarm! Sound the alarm!"
The farm workers were in a panic as an unknown group raided Crowhorn and chased the cattle out of the stables.
*WHAM*
"...fu-fueehh...?"
Suddenly, the door to Zorivia's room was kicked out, and the brown-haired servant entered, stirring the sleepy girl awake.
"At least be conscious when there is trouble. Benedict and I will guard both entrances, so stay here, young Miss. Do not follow anyone who isn't him or me, and do not hesitate to scream for help."
Kenneth scoffed and declared, naming himself and the coachman before closing the partially broken door the best he could and leaving.
"...eh...?"
The blond-haired girl was rubbing her sapphire eyes slightly out of it so she understood maybe half of the things that the brown-haired man said to her.
"...nnn... eh...? But there should be no trouble at the Crownhorn farm unless it's the backstory element when Theodore tries to kidnap the... Ah...!"
Zorivia got out of bed in her pajama and looked out of the window while murmuring to herself, accidentally jolting herself awake with a realization that completely escaped her attention.
She was so preoccupied with preventing the bovine epidemy from staring and spreading around that she didn't take the backstories of the six capture targets into consideration.
"...!"
Zorivia became pale and looked around for the place to hide.
The villainess in the game managed to outwit the dark-brow capture target, but the current Zorivia had neither the authority nor guts to stand up to the boy who wanted to join the gang by kidnapping the daughter of an earl.
From the available spots she had, crawling under the bed seemed to be the only viable option, as the room didn't even have a proper closet, and crouching under the small table was a ridiculous idea for anyone over the age of five.
The girl crouched down and peeked under the bedframe to make sure that there was enough space for her when...
*thump*
"...!"
"Ha~!"
Someone pushed the door open and startled the girl in a compromising position, causing her to turn around just in time to witness the dark-brown-haired boy let out a triumphant snicker and...
*crack* *ZAP*
"!!!"
...crush a yellow marble aimed at Zorivia with his thumb and index finger, unleashing the paralysis spell that hit the blond-haired girl instantly, causing all of her muscles to tense up painfully.
Zorivia ended up being stuck in a very problematic position – mainly because the way her body was bent, similar to a number – 2 - would allow a kidnapper to pick her up and carry her over his shoulder like neat baggage.
"I was wondering why that annoying girl suddenly wanted to look into you, but you're nothing special."
Theodore laughed at the paralyzed girl and mocked her as she had no ability to retaliate in any way, shape, or form.
Zorivia was tall for her age, but she was also thin for her height, the paralysis pellet that Theo used against her ended up causing her throat to become so clenched that no voice could escape it.
"Your servants seem to think that only a door could be an entrance or exit~"
The dark-brown-haired capture target chuckled while picking up the girl and using the tension in her muscle to conveniently carry her over his shoulder.
"Ugh... you're heavier than I expected. The life of nobility must be nice."
Since the girl couldn't respond, the boy simply snickered and left the room. He sneaked down the two sets of staircases and scuttled to the side hallway, where he entered a small room where a simple window with wooden shutters was left wide open, leaving the perfectly wide third exit route.
Despite his earlier claims about Zorivia's weight being a problem, Theodore quickly climbed through the window, firmly stepping on the soft ground on the other side.
*SHING*
"ARGH...!"
All of a sudden, a swift swing of the knife cut through the fabric of the dark-brown-haired capture target's pants and just as easily severed the tendon of his left leg, which understandably caused Theo to cry out in pain and lose his balance and also dropping the blond-haired captive.
Still, Zorivia didn't even fall to the ground. Instead, she was caught by a lone figure standing up – the very same person who waited for the dark-brown-haired boy to come out of the window.
*THUMP*
"Fuck...! F-fuck...! What the fuck...?!"
Theo tumbled down and cried out, clenching the bleeding spot while his eyes were only getting used to the darkness.
Despite the pain, he still had enough self-control to only whisper the curses and not shout.