Too Lazy to be a Villainess novel Chapter 319

Chapter 319: The Night They Awakened a Monster

[Lavinia’s POV — March to the Eastern Region—Evening]

After distributing the rations and stabilizing the village, we left Black Wall without wasting another breath. The sky was painted in shades of dying pink—sun dipping low, streaking blood-red trails behind the clouds.

Our march was silent. Focused. Icy.

The plan was simple: End the Meren King. Take the throne. End this war before it swallows anything else I care about.

To reach the capital, we needed to break through five fortresses. Black Wall was already ours—fallen in a night.

Four remained.

Next was the Eastern Region’s heart: Red Wall Castle.

A monster of a fortress. The spine of Meren. The place that fed their soldiers and supplied their metal.

"If we keep riding," I murmured, watching the dimming horizon, "we reach Red Wall by dawn."

Haldor nodded sharply. "We should prepare a night assault—before they expect us."

I opened my mouth to answer—

WHOOOOOOOOOSH—!!!

A blast of wind tore through the column. Marshi snarled, claws digging into the ground.

"Your Highness!" Sir Haldor’s voice cut sharp through the chaos as he galloped toward me. "Incoming—RIGHT SIDE!"

Before I could speak—BOOM!!!

The ground erupted. A shockwave slammed through the road, dirt and flame exploding into the sky.

Sera screamed, "Ahhhh..."

Rey shielded her with his entire body, saying, "It’s okay..."

"GET DOWN—!!" Arwin roared.

Another explosion—WHISHHH—BOOOOM!!!

Not arrows. Not magic.

Bombs. Crude, unstable, but deadly enough to rip a wagon in half. The kind rebels use during city riots.

"What—? They’re using riot bombs?" I growled.

Osric’s voice rang out across the field—deep, commanding: "EVERYONE—DEFENSE FORMATION!!! SHIELDS UP!"

Shields snapped upward in a wave. Marshi roared—a divine, furious sound that shook the frozen ground. The air around us vibrated with the raw force of his anger. Solena hissed, wings spreading wide, ready to slice through shadows.

A second bomb streaked across the sky—WHISTLING—glowing—fast.

I drew my sword, eyes narrowing into a razor’s edge. "Everyone—PROTECT YOURSELVES!" I shouted.

Soldiers scattered into defensive positions, ducking behind tree trunks, overturned carts, boulders—anything that could shield them from the explosiveness raining down. The air crackled, hot and sharp.

"Damn it," I hissed, "they attacked us before we even—"

"YOUR HIGHNESS!!!" Sir Haldor’s voice—raw, terrified—cut through everything.

I looked up—Just in time to see a bomb, hissing with sparks, hurtling straight at me. I moved— or tried to. But he reached me first.

In a blur of steel and instinct—Haldor grabbed me, threw his cloak around my body, and leapt, taking the full force of the blast’s shockwave onto his back.

BOOOOOOM—!!!

The explosion tore the earth open behind us as we rolled—once—twice—before slamming into a tree trunk. His arms locked around me, shielding every part of me beneath him, his cloak wrapped around my shoulders like armor.

Dust rained down.

Smoke curled around us.

For a moment—there was only the frantic sound of his breath over mine.

"Your Highness..." Haldor whispered, voice tight with fear.

I blinked—vision swimming—and found myself cradled against him.

His arms were around me completely. My head rested against his chest. His cloak cocooned me, warm and protective, as if he’d thrown his very life over mine.

His face hovered just above mine—too close—eyes wide, breath trembling.

"Are you hurt?" he asked, voice low, shaken. "Are you alright, Your Highness?"

I stared up at him—his hair falling over his forehead, his cheeks smudged with soot, his heartbeat pounding against my ear.

He looked like a man who had nearly lost everything. I swallowed. "Haldor... I—"

He exhaled hard—relief and panic tangled together—and he pulled me closer into a tight hug, as if reassuring himself that I was real. Alive.

"I thought..." His voice cracked. "I thought I was too late."

My fingers tightened unconsciously into his cloak.

"You weren’t," I whispered.

His eyes softened—just a breath—just enough to betray everything he couldn’t say. Then another explosion ripped through the distance—but his grip didn’t falter.

Not until I moved.

"Haldor..." I murmured, breath brushing his throat. "Let me up."

He swallowed hard... then gently, reluctantly, he loosened his hold—but not fully.

His hands lingered at my waist as if parting from me physically caused him pain. Even when he finally pulled away, he moved only far enough to sit up—never exposing me, never turning his back to the danger.

His sword hand was already steady. His body was tense, coiled, and ready to spring. Eyes scanning the smoke-filled field like a predator starved and furious.

"Stay behind me," he said quietly, voice low and cold. "I won’t let anything touch you."

It wasn’t a command. It was a promise carved from bone. I opened my mouth—to say Haldor, I can protect myself—but the words died in my throat.

Because the way he looked at me...Like the thought of losing me had ripped something raw inside him.

I couldn’t speak.

Not yet.

Sharp. Harsh. Overflowing with fury that barely fit inside a human throat. "I will kill every one of them."

"They dared to attack Her Highness," he spat. "From the shadows. Like cowards." His jaw clenched so hard the muscle twitched. "I will hunt them down. Every single one. Not one will be left breathing."

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