I Became the Villain's Guardian of the Wolf Male Lead

The stairs seemed endlessly long, as if they would never stop. After descending for what felt like an eternity, Billy finally set foot in the underground space.

“You there!”

A knight standing guard in what appeared to be an underground prison shouted at someone.

Billy, having completely masked his presence, took long strides towards the source of the voice.

“At this rate, when do you expect to meet your target? Do you think this half-assed effort will be of any help to the lord?!”

Outside the ominous prison bars, a burly knight furiously banged on the iron bars, berating a beastman inside who was constantly on the move.

“I’m… I’m sorry… I’ll work faster!”

The beastman, now more tense than ever, picked up the pace, causing the knight to click his tongue in disdain before leaving.

“What a mess.”

Illegal magic exploitation—Billy had only heard about it before, but seeing it in person immediately made him uncomfortable. The sight of some youthful faces among the enslaved only worsened the feeling.

The process was simple: slave traders used mages to detect beastmen with magical powers. These captives were then brought to the estate, where they were brainwashed into performing endless labor. This was how the House of Horse had been exploiting these beastmen all along.

The brainwashed slaves, continually subjected to this process, tirelessly created expensive magical items in exchange for the meager food and shelter they were provided. The prominence of magic in the Zebra Territory was due in no small part to their efforts.

After confirming the scene, Billy dispelled the magic concealing his presence. His figure emerged in the midst of the knights and mages overseeing the slaves.

“Who are you?”

“You don’t need to know.”

Now, it was time to apprehend all these criminals.

• •

Zeb, who had visited in broad daylight, showed no intention of leaving anytime soon.

The sky was slowly turning red, but the communication orb held by Zeb’s aide remained silent.

‘By now, something should have happened. Why hasn’t there been any word?’

Remi had assumed someone from the estate would contact Zeb after everything turned to chaos.

The lack of any disturbances made her anxious. Could the mage have messed up?

“Haha, I wonder if I’ve overstayed my welcome”

Zeb finally said, rising after hours of sitting and chatting.

“It’s fine.”

Soon, the mage tower will come to take you away.

‘Probably…’

This was a magical crime, after all. Remi had reported it directly to the mage tower through a communication orb she’d acquired.

After a brief delay, the mage had agreed to investigate and even promised to send a mage to the Horse estate to verify Ed’s magical power.

That mage should be arriving any moment now. Remi planned to handle things quickly once they did.

She had kept Zeb here all day, not wanting him to leave before the mage arrived.

Normally, Remi would have long since bolted out of the drawing room, but she was doing everything she could to keep the man in place.

After promising to see Zeb off herself, Remi and Zeb walked out of the main building together.

Remi then spotted Ed, who had been waiting for her in a corner of the garden.

“Ed!”

Overcome with joy, Remi quickened his pace, only to be interrupted.

「 1. Why aren’t you working? What are you doing out here?

2. Are you waiting for your master? I need to re-educate you on proper manners.

3. What is a child doing wandering the garden so late? You should be inside. 」

Her concern for Ed was faintly reflected in the options.

“What is a child doing wandering the garden so late? You should be inside.”

Remi tried to soften her tone, but it still came out far from gentle.

“Oh? Lady Remi!”

Despite her curt words, Ed greeted her with a smile. The sheer gratitude Remi felt nearly made her want to run over and embrace the boy right then and there.

But before she could, the zebra nobleman took a step forward, blocking Ed’s path.

The man exhaled through his nose like a horse, then sneered with a mocking tone.

“I told you that even if you followed her around like this, She would leave you behind when we get married, right? I have no intention of bringing a wolf into the Horse territory. When a noble speaks, the slave should know to grovel.”

What’s with his attitude?

Was he acting this way because he thought it was okay after hearing the way Remi spoke to Ed? Or was this just his nature? Either way…

“This is too vulgar for me to tolerate.”

Without realizing it, Remi slipped into informal speech out of sheer anger. Not that it mattered. She had never cared much about maintaining her image, so she decided to go all out.

“Excuse me? What did you just say?”

“I said…”

Remi wanted to tell him not to speak carelessly about someone she cherished, but the words got caught in her throat.

「 1. That slave belongs to me. Do you think you can reprimand someone else’s property in front of its owner?

2. Posturing like a noble in front of a child. It’s really pathetic.

3. Whether I take my slave or not is for me to decide. Are you going to disregard my will and make decisions on your own? 」

As always, a selection of choices appeared before her.

So, I get options when I talk to other beastmen about Ed in front of Ed too, huh…?

They really didn’t need to be this thorough.

With a heavy heart, Remi scanned the choices. She wanted to avoid referring to Ed as a slave in front of him, so there was really only one option.

“Posturing like a noble in front of a child. It’s really pathetic.”

Remi slightly tilted her head, crossing her arms and shifting her weight onto one leg. She paired the pose with a disgusted expression, perfecting her mocking stance.

“Kuh—”

A stifled laugh suddenly erupted from somewhere.

Remi looked around, suspecting it might be Ed, but saw that he was looking past her. When she turned her head, she saw a tall man leisurely walking toward them.

Who is that?

Billy couldn’t recall seeing a beastman like him at the estate. Besides, that shade of blue hair was a distinct trait of the wolf tribe.

Could he be the mage from the tower?

Her eyes narrowed as she observed the man’s appearance—a handsome figure clad in a fitted black shirt with a couple of buttons undone, exuding an effortlessly captivating aura.

Remi found herself inadvertently staring at his face in a daze. The man, whose face seemed to glow with an ethereal light, smiled warmly as he looked down at Ed.

“Hello, nephew.”

…Huh? Nephew?

Remi’s mind went blank as she quickly glanced back and forth between Ed and the man.

In the original story, there hadn’t been a detailed description of the physical traits of the members of the Louvre family, except for Ed.

But looking at the man’s slightly sharp eyes, which were similar to Ed’s rounded yet slightly upturned ones, his straight nose, perfectly shaped lips, and the ideal facial structure…

As I compared Ed and the man’s features one by one, a growing certainty filled me with unease.

‘Anyone can tell they’re related…! So that man really is Ed’s uncle?’

No way… No way the mage from the Tower they sent is him, right?

“Save the reunion for later. Zeb Horse, you’re coming with me to the Mage Tower.”

It is him!

Was Ed’s uncle part of the Mage Tower? That wasn’t in the original story.

Then again, the original mainly focused on Ed and the female protagonist, so there wasn’t much detail about the uncle.

The story started when Ed had already grown up and joined the Mage Tower, long after he left the estate.

My body stiffened. Even though I had tried to take care of Ed, there were limits due to the option windows.

What if this man used that as an excuse to wipe out the whole estate?

With a beast who could kill me standing right in front of me, my heart pounded with fear.

The man who had appeared so suddenly mentioned the Mage Tower, and Zeb looked incredibly flustered.

“Did you… come from the Mage Tower?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

The mere mention of the Mage Tower made Zeb tense up. He quickly shifted to a groveling attitude.

“W-Why… Why would I need to go…?”

The man’s lips curved into an attractive, almost predatory smile. He raised his hand and drew a small circle in the air. The black circle grew larger and larger until it was big enough for a person to step through.

Thud!

The man kicked Zeb in the back, sending him flying through the black portal.

It was both satisfying and a bit terrifying. From the other side of the portal, the sound of monstrous howling echoed ominously.

*Roooar!*

“Wh-Where is this… What are you doing… Wait, stop!”

“That’s for calling my nephew a slave.”

Zeb banged against the black portal’s barrier, trying desperately to get back through, but to no avail.

“You’ve heard of the Forest of Shadows, right? Try surviving there and make it back to the Tower. Once you get there, you’ll learn everything.”

With Zeb’s scream still echoing in the air, the black portal vanished.

The man, having finished his business, turned his gaze to Ed, who had been clinging to my side since this all started.

“Who… Who are you?”

Ed’s voice was wary as he clutched my dress tightly. It reminded me of the guarded Ed I first met when he arrived at the estate.

The man had likely last seen Ed as a baby, but even so, he recognized him instantly. He took a step toward Ed.

Step.

Ed flinched, stepping back as the man stepped forward. This happened two or three times until the man stopped moving.

“How strange. Blood should recognize blood.”

He looked genuinely puzzled, as if he couldn’t understand why Ed wasn’t drawn to him.

He ran his hand through his slicked-back hair in frustration, a gesture that made my heart skip a beat.

“I don’t have any family.”

Ed’s voice was still cautious, filled with wariness. Having been alone for so long since his childhood, it seemed he truly believed he had no family.

Ed, you do have family!

I wanted to shout it out but instead bit my lip and kept silent. The man’s gaze now shifted to me.

“Ah, I haven’t introduced myself properly. I’m Billy Louvre*, this child’s uncle.”

(Ayaka: I changed his name to Billy Louvre in all chapters ant I’ll go with this name)

The smile he gave me was completely different from the one he had shown Zeb earlier. He extended his large, strong hand toward me.

A wolf’s hand. But unlike Ed’s small, childlike hands, this was a fully grown adult’s hand.

Gulp.

I nervously reached out to shake Billy’s hand.

It felt as if an earthquake had started in my body.

Since Ed had been clinging to my dress from the moment Billy appeared, my body had already been trembling. But now, the shaking was even more intense.

I desperately searched my mind for a calm and polite response.

“Oh, I see.”

But the words that left my mouth were stiff and automatic, a far cry from the composed greeting I had planned.

“Yes, that’s right.”

He smiled that charming smile again, unfazed by my short response.

This isn’t going well.

As we finished shaking hands, I gestured for him to follow me inside to discuss the situation further.

“We should talk inside.”

Couldn’t I have been a little more polite?

When people — or, well, beasts — are nervous, they really can malfunction like this.

The fear I had felt toward Ed paled in comparison to this.

The tall man towering over me with his imposing presence felt dangerous just by standing there.

Squeak.

My body, like a rusty machine, stiffly turned toward the guest house, and I took a step forward.

“I’m not going to eat you.”

His voice was laced with amusement, dangerously close behind me.

“Wh-What?”

My tense nerves sent alarm signals throughout my body. His sudden remark left me startled, and I quickly turned my head to meet his gaze.

Unlike me, who was trembling with anxiety, Billy remained calm and at ease. He casually walked past me and said,

“Relax, both of you. You too, nephew.”

He chuckled softly, walking ahead of me with a faint smile on his face.

‘Relax…’

How am I supposed to do that…?

I followed far behind him, taking the smallest steps possible, trying to keep as much distance as I could from Billy’s large strides.

Ed, still sticking close to me and warily eyeing his supposed uncle, was right by my side.

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