I Picked Up an Abandoned Villain in the Polar Region

Episode 105

 

A few days later.

Kyle’s room was bustling with activity, as usual, as he prepared to head out for the day. However, something felt off.

Normally, Brody would be moving around with him, unintentionally getting in his way as she mirrored his every step. But today, she was simply lying in bed, restlessly tossing and turning.

Noticing her unusual lethargy, Kyle paused mid-way through drying his hair and approached her.

“What’s wrong?”

Brody let out a heavy sigh and pulled the blanket over her head and mumbled.

“I don’t know. My body feels achy, and I’m just not in a good mood”

It was an uncharacteristic response from someone usually as cheerful as a bunny.

Concerned, Kyle pulled back the blanket and looked her over.

“Are you feeling sick?”

Brody, seeing the worry on his face, quickly dismissed the idea.

“No, I’m not sick.”

She assured him firmly, afraid he’d overreact and call for a doctor.

After a moment of silent contemplation, she finally diagnosed herself and said,

“I think it’s time for my shedding season.”

Shedding season referred to the periodic time when furred demi-humans shed their coats.

During this time, their energy levels would plummet, making them feel fatigued and lethargic.

Brody was no exception, and she was now experiencing the telltale symptoms of this phase.

Her shedding period usually came later in the season, but this time it seemed to have arrived early.

Most animals experienced shedding during seasonal transitions, and for an Asgar rabbit like Brody, whose fur was especially thick, her body was adapting to the summer heat of the region she’d traveled to.

“Sigh, I guess coming to this summer land is forcing my body to adjust.”

During shedding season, she’d have to remain in her rabbit form, and the amount of fur that would fall out was infamous.

It was so extreme it was often called the ‘dreaded shedding.’

This made the process not only exhausting but also incredibly inconvenient.

The mere thought of it made Brody groan in annoyance as she sat up on the bed, sighing deeply.

Watching her, Kyle’s expression darkened with concern.

They were scheduled to leave for Avril Village tomorrow, following a request for additional support.

Kyle, who planned to go with Fabian, had naturally intended to bring Brody along.

She had enthusiastically agreed, and all their preparations were complete.

Now, however, her poor condition worried him.

Still, leaving her behind was not an option, and he resolved to bring her with him, no matter what.

“If you need anything, let me know.”

Kyle said, mentally noting to bring back anything she requested.

Brody waved him off, saying she didn’t need anything.

While Kyle continued getting ready, stealing concerned glances at her, Brody eventually grew tired of lounging in bed.

Hearing voices outside, she got up and wandered out to the terrace.

From there, she spotted Albert and Oswald, the twin brothers, waiting in the garden for Kyle.

Thinking something interesting might be happening, she perked up, only to feel let down when she realized they were just waiting.

But her mood quickly shifted as she took in their radiant appearances under the brilliant morning sun.

‘Who said nothing interesting was going on?’

She thought to herself, a sly grin forming on her face. Their faces were entertainment enough.

Leaning lazily against the terrace railing, she shamelessly admired the handsome twins, her mood visibly improving.

 

***

 

Kyle, who had finished getting ready, stepped out onto the terrace and spotted her gazing at the garden.

Curious about what she was doing, he walked over.

When he realized she was staring at the men in the garden, his expression instantly turned frosty.

“How proud their parents must be to have such good-looking sons.”

Brody murmured to herself, completely oblivious to Kyle’s growing annoyance.

Kyle’s sharp gaze locked onto her.

“Good-looking?” he asked coldly.

Startled, Brody turned to him, gesturing toward the twins with a clueless smile.

“Yeah, they’re really good-looking. Don’t you think so?”

She quickly realized her mistake and tried to cover it up. Smiling at him, she added,

“Of course, you’re the most handsome to me.”

But Kyle was already in a foul mood from the moment she complimented someone else.

The fact that she’d been staring at other men only made things worse.

Her attempt to reassure him went unheard as his irritation boiled over.

In a fit of jealousy, Kyle sent Brody back inside and slammed the terrace door shut.

“From now on, don’t go out on the terrace,” he ordered sharply.

“What?!”

Brody exclaimed, confused and indignant.

Ignoring her protests, Kyle stormed out and headed straight for the twins.

Without any preamble, he barked,

“You two, don’t come around here anymore. Stay outside the garden if you want to meet me.”

The twins, taken aback, exchanged bewildered glances.

“What’s going on?”

Oswald asked.

Albert, watching Kyle’s irrational outburst, approached with a smirk.

“What’s gotten into you this morning?”

Kyle shot him a glare and sighed, exasperated.

“You too—just go home.”

With that, Kyle managed to create a string of baffled victims and left the garden, his irritation still simmering.

Though he didn’t realize it himself, his jealousy had taken over completely.

If he could, he would have banished every man in the vicinity.

 

***

 

By the time he reached the restoration site, Kyle forced himself to focus and pushed through the day, determined to finish the project before their departure to Avril.

“Finally! It’s done!”

He exclaimed, exhausted but satisfied.

The Oswald brothers, who had been working under Kyle’s orders, let out a cheer.

Unlike other days, Kyle had pushed them to work twice as hard with the goal of finishing everything quickly, so their sense of liberation was indescribable.

Although they were expected to join Kyle on the trip to Avril Village tomorrow to continue working, Kyle, feeling slightly guilty about pushing them so hard all day, decided not to remind them of it.

On his way home, Kyle stopped by the market to buy some fruit for Brody, as had become his daily routine.

However, as he carefully picked out the fruit, he suddenly recalled the events of that morning and frowned.

‘Why am I even buying something nice for a rabbit who was busy gawking at other men and calling them handsome?’

His irritation flared up again, and before he realized it, the apple in his hand was crushed to pieces.

Kyle was starting to notice that his reactions were becoming more extreme lately. However, instead of attributing this to himself, he shifted the blame onto Brody.

He had noticed a subtle change in Brody’s behavior toward him recently.

She no longer clung to him as she used to.

Previously, she would insist on sleeping beside him, burrowing her way into his space like an overzealous companion.

These days, however, she simply wished him goodnight and slept on her own. The frequency of her playful advances and attempts to tease him had noticeably decreased.

Unbeknownst to him, Kyle had been keeping track of these changes in his memory.

This likely explained his overreaction when Brody showed interest in other men.

What he didn’t know was that this shift in her behavior had started after the incident at the inn.

Kyle bit his lip as an uneasy feeling settled in.

Had Brody lost interest in him? Or worse—had she started fancying someone else? 

Given how easily distracted she was, the latter wasn’t entirely out of the question.

Even as these unsettling thoughts consumed him, his hands continued to carefully select apples for her.

After choosing the prettiest ones he could find—just like Brody herself—he carried the fruit home, still lost in troubling thoughts.

When he arrived at the house and stepped inside, he froze in his tracks.

On the floor were small, white tufts of fur scattered about.

They weren’t confined to one spot but were strewn across the floor, as if someone had wandered around shedding fur everywhere.

‘It must be her shedding season.’

Kyle thought immediately, recognizing the source of the fur.

The bad mood that had plagued him earlier quickly dissipated, replaced by an involuntary smile.

He didn’t realize how deeply he was affected by something as simple as her fur, nor how ridiculous his reaction might seem to others.

Suppressing his amusement, he followed the trail of white fur, which led to Eliza’s room.

Standing in the open doorway, he stopped short at the sight before him.

His mother sat comfortably in an armchair, with a small white rabbit on her lap.

The rabbit was being gently brushed, its fur falling away in soft clumps.

Next to them, a maid was peeling an apple, and the rabbit eagerly reached out with its front paw to grab the peel, pulling it into its mouth.

To anyone else, it might have been an ordinary rabbit, but to Kyle, it was the most adorable sight he had ever seen.

“Brody,” he called softly.

The rabbit perked up its ears and turned to him, its black eyes widening in surprise.

“Kyle!”

The moment she saw him, Brody leaped off Eliza’s lap and bounded over to him, hopping excitedly.

“Why are you so late today?”

She exclaimed, looking up at him.

Before Kyle could respond, Brody spun around, showing off the small pink knitted cape draped over her.

“Look! Mother made me a cape! Isn’t it cute?”

As she twirled and flaunted the cape, it fluttered dramatically, reminding Kyle of the pink satin ribbon she had worn around her neck when they first met.

The memory brought a chuckle to his lips, though it was more of a fond laugh than anything else.

Kyle crouched down and extended his hand to her.

“Come here.”

Brody happily hopped into his palm, settling down with a satisfied ‘plop.’

As Kyle stood up with her in his hand, his gaze met his mother’s. Eliza was watching them with a warm smile.

It was only then that Kyle realized he, too, had been smiling this entire time.

Embarrassed, he quickly adjusted his expression and gave his mother a small, awkward nod before leaving the room with Brody in tow.