Absolutely Do Not Touch ELdmia Egga – Chapter 158

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
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After leaving the courthouse, amidst the unsettling atmosphere, Envelde felt a profound sense of emptiness as he reviewed the situation.

“He’s… made quite a mess of things, hasn’t he, that Eldmia.”

There was no concrete evidence, yet a strange certainty lingered.

At the heart of this chaos, with a sly grin, stood that audacious young man.

He was certain of it.

No one else in the capital possessed the audacity, or the capability, to disrupt years of careful planning in a mere three days, much less a week.

The merchant group had been thoroughly plundered, not just their secret vault, but also crucial documents, including maps detailing the locations of long-term collaborators.

Considering Eldmia’s elf companion and the missing maps, Envelde entertained the grim possibility that even the bandits had been eliminated.

In the forest, against an elf and that boy, ordinary bandits stood no chance.

Moreover, the lack of response to his emergency communication suggested the Dreamer was either dead or had fled.

Envelde preferred the former; a captured Dreamer was a liability.

He hadn’t even taken the Dreamer’s life, yet they were capable of betrayal and selling information if their own lives were on the line.

That was why he had assigned one to the least threatening individual, yet somehow, they had been compromised.

It was baffling.

In a worst-case scenario, he would have to consider the possibility of a traitor within his own ranks.

The thought was suffocating.

“And today, he was even flying a wyvern.”

He desperately hoped it was for some unrelated reason, a mere coincidence.

But the timing, coinciding with Hawk’s Talon’s area of operation, was too suspicious.

And the fact that he had flown from the Ogatorf family’s training grounds, not the capital’s wyvern station…

“Impossible…!”

Envelde nearly hurled his wine glass against the wall in a fit of rage, but he took a deep breath, forcing himself to remain calm.

He tried to view the situation positively, to reassure himself that everything was still under control.

But the damage was too extensive to be dismissed so easily.

His carefully constructed composure crumbled, instinct overriding reason.

Crash!

“This can’t be happening! My plans are falling apart!”

He hurled the wine glass, the shattered remnants staining the wall crimson.

His fury remained unabated.

The guards had reported Eldmia’s return after a brief wyvern flight.

Something had happened to the mercenary group.

He had dispatched messengers, but they wouldn’t return with information until late tomorrow at best.

Three more years.

No, two.

Two more years, and his foundation would have been unshakeable.

Now, he was questioning how he had become entangled with such a troublesome individual.

“Still… it’s almost over. If I can just contain him…”

He had deployed six Expert-level knights, veterans of the demon war.

They weren’t his most elite force, but they were among the best available in the capital, even considering the combined forces of all the nobles.

Even if their spirits were broken, their skills remained.

With a bit of luck, he would receive news of Eldmia’s death before the day was over.

Having reached that conclusion, Envelde sighed, turning his gaze to the window.

A sudden autumn shower had intensified into a downpour, shrouding the capital in an unnatural twilight.

“It would be a blessing if he simply perished in this rain.”

It was a foolish miscalculation.

He should have eliminated that mad dog long ago.

He had considered himself a veteran, having weathered countless storms, but this… this was beyond his expectations.

A variable combining both skill and reckless abandon.

Was this a sign of changing times?

Were nobles becoming targets of such blatant disrespect?

How could someone act with such disregard for consequences, so brazenly challenging established power?

Even Envelde, challenging the throne, recognized the difference.

“This world has truly gone mad…”

Before he could finish his lament, a strange sight caught his eye.

Or perhaps, not so strange.

Just a figure approaching his mansion.

“Him? Why… how…?”

But the figure, casually twirling a sword in one hand, strolling through the downpour as if oblivious to the elements, was undeniably strange.

Especially considering it was Eldmia Egga.

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“I shouldn’t have done that~ I didn’t know~”

It had been a while since he had sung aloud.

He was running out of songs he remembered from his previous life, but this one stubbornly refused to fade.

With the rain pouring and no one around, he sang freely, his only audience Mongsoon.

“It’s too late to regret~ I’ve become a fool~”

“Um, Eldmia? Are you sure about this?”

Even while clinging to the building, Mongsoon’s voice was laced with concern.

His movements, however, remained remarkably casual, blending seamlessly with the surroundings.

The constant fidgeting was slightly annoying, but she had been invaluable earlier, alerting Eldmia to the six pursuing knights.

She deserved a polite response.

“If anyone dies, it’ll be me. Why are you so worried?”

“I told you, I’ll repay you for saving me. This is suicide on multiple levels.”

He hadn’t expected Mongsoon’s repayment to include life-saving advice, but the Dreamer service was surprisingly comprehensive.

She had to be annoyed at being dragged out into the downpour without an umbrella, yet she remained dedicated.

As Eldmia continued walking, Mongsoon’s speech quickened.

“The royal family will deal with him soon enough. You know this will only complicate matters.”

“I know.”

“Then why…”

“If I cared about that, do you think I would have stormed your hideout and killed Rubilla or whatever his name was?”

“This… this is different!”

“I don’t differentiate between levels of offense when someone tries to kill me.”

A child bumping into him and calling him names, an old man offering unsolicited advice, Cheryl attempting a roundhouse kick to his face – those were minor annoyances.

He might have considered how to retaliate if there was genuine malice, but those actions weren’t malicious.

Even Cheryl’s initial attempts at physical violence had puzzled him.

Why the selective rage?

But after encountering Esmee, he understood.

He hadn’t realized it, but he, too, would probably want to kick someone who constantly bowed their head in his presence.

“I’ve been relatively restrained because he was playing political games. Sending assassins is a different story.”

“But you have no proof…”

“That’s my problem, not yours. Stay out of it if you don’t want to get involved.”

Seeing the guards shifting their grips on their spears, Eldmia called out, Mongsoon’s presence vanishing as he spoke.

“I am Eldmia Egga!”

“We appreciate you identifying yourself, but your sword…”

“That’s a warning. Get out of my way. I’m not stopping until Envelde’s head is on a pike.”

Perhaps it was the unexpected profanity, but the guards’ faces remained blank, uncomprehending.

That was their problem.

He had given fair warning.

He would follow through on his promise.

Calculating the output and duration, he channeled mana, enhancing his physical abilities and imbued his sword.

He charged without hesitation.

“Envelde!”

The distance, less than fifty meters, vanished in an instant.

He sliced through the spear tips and kicked the center of the mansion’s closed gates.

Boom!

“Ugh!”

“Argh!”

The iron gates, reinforced with bars, buckled inward, then sprang back like a swinging door, slamming into the unprepared guards.

It was a pleasant surprise.

He had intended to tear them off completely, but the hinges were surprisingly sturdy.

They finally gave way with a series of cracks and clatters, scattering across the ground.

“You’re good with a sword, but are you ready to be on the receiving end, you bastard?!”

There was no need to worry about his voice being lost in the rain.

Soldiers and knights were pouring out of the mansion.

“Let’s make a movie.”

An action movie for him, a disaster movie for them.

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[Envelde thought he was being sneeky lma. the only thing he is, is a dead man]