I will not die a Villainess's death

So, Elysia had successfully managed to make her way out of her room and into the open world. Even if her freedom came at the cost of being followed to her destination, Elysia did not care.

But it was all worth it if it meant that Elysia would get to head toward the scene of the crime and investigate it.

She had a feeling that something huge was taking place in this world and she was related to it all. And that same feeling was making Elysia restless.

"Are you second-guessing your decision to go out? Please tell me that it is what you are thinking about and you want to head back now?"

Enma asked with a begging tone to his voice. The poor child realized that he had been tricked to come after Elysia.

But he also realized that he was too powerless to stop her and this was his only chance to stay safe. If he was found alone by Sorias then he would die a painful death for letting Elysia come out.

"If you want to go back then you can head back alone, Enma. I am sure even Sorias will understand that there was nothing you could do to stop me."

Elysia assured Enma and he felt like crying.

Despite how nice Elysia was overall, she was the biggest trouble magnet for him. If she wanted Sorias to not skin him, then she needed to not get him into trouble in the first place.

But of course, that would be impossible for Elysia to do so here he was, following after her.

"Emma, are you seriously allowing Elysia to do what she wants to? You are the one who should be most bothered by her decision. Think of how angry and disappointed Sorias will be in you."

Emma turned her head away and pretended like she could not hear Enma talk to her.

She knew that Lord Sorias would be angry with her but she also felt irritated that Enma was reminding her about this again and again.

And he also kept on calling her crush by his first name when even Emma found it hard to do. So she pretended like she could not hear Enma speak.

"D-Darn you! You are ignoring me now, Mrs. White? Fine then, get in trouble with me. But I will blame you if Sorias decided to kill us."

Emma did not have a problem with that but Elysia seemed to.

"No one is dying. I will handle Sorias if he finds out about me sneaking out alright? He will also know that this would be the outcome once he decided to leave me alone."

There was a 70% chance that Sorias had realized what Elysia wanted to do and why she wanted him gone.

So there was also a high chance that he would come to find Elysia soon and stick to her side again. There was no risk Elysia was taking right now.

"Fine, I will trust you for now. So, where are we heading out toward? Do we even have any idea where the attack occurred?"

Elysia's stiff shoulder said that she had no idea. She had been bedridden this far so she had no idea what was going on in the outside world.

In the end, it was Emma who sighed and held out a marked map.

"I kind of figured that this would happen so I marked the places where an attack took place already. Which site would you want to check first?"

On the map, there were two marked sites where the attack had happened. They were both close enough to be within walking distance of each other and were separated by a strip of forest in-between.

It was s strip of the enchanted forest but it had a considerably low amount of magical power. It was safe for humans to walk through if they were being careful.

The beast population there was also considerably thinner than anywhere else in the forest.

So, it was a safe area for most people to venture out in but there was a hint of danger ever present even if people approached that forest.

And it irked Elysia for some reason. She felt like she should check this place out and she will find the answer to most of her questions.

"Let's start with the forest first. There is something about this location that is making me worried."

Elysia was not sure why she got the feeling that she had to check the forest out. Her gut feeling rarely came out to warm her like this.

But the pull she felt was undeniable for her.

"Alright. If you say that we have to look into the forest, we will look into the forest. But before that, we should try and get out bonds undone."

Elysia agreed with that statement as well, excited t get the cuffs off her hand finally.

__________________________

"Head to the north and check the supply line there. We cannot allow people to go unattended and-"

"My lord, Sorias is outside your door, waiting for you. Should I let him in?"

Lucas paused from where he was out in his tent, pitching orders to his soldiers. He could not understand why Sorias of all people had headed out to meet him.

'What is Sorias doing here? He's supposed to be with Elysia right now, keeping an eye on her.... Don't tell me something happened to her again?'

Lucas's brain decided to jump on the worst outcome imaginable as soon as he heard Sorias's name come out of his shadow's mouth.

He needed to see what Sorias wanted from him right now or he would not be able to concentrate for the rest of the mission.

"My lord, are you alright? You look pale and sick all of a sudden and–"

"You all should leave now. You have your orders so head out and heed them. Give me your reports by the end of the day or I will make you regret your existence."

The female who had been about to reach out to him quickly retrieved her hand back all of a sudden.

She quickly realized that Lord Lucas was not in a playful mood and that any advances she made would not be taken kindly.

The mere fact that he had not even looked at the soldier the whole day proved to be evidence that he had no interest in her or any other female in the military.

'Maybe Lucas Dirac doesn't swing straight? It would explain his lack of interest in any of the females he ever met. Even the Saintes's beauty does not melt his heart.'

The more the female soldier thought of her conclusion, the more doubtful she felt.

Just because Lucas Dirac had not looked at any females did not mean that he had looked at males either. He just had no one in his eyes and likely never will.

"Did you all not hear me? You all should hurry up and leave this place right now."

The soldiers almost jumped before hurrying out of the room like their tails were on fire. They had often seen Lord Dirac sound so angry now and then and it never ended well for anyone who was caught by him.

Lucas watched all his soldiers run away with their tails tucked away. They likely thought that he had not been noticed by Lucas.

It was annoying how these people went over and beyond to please him but could not handle his ire even for a second.

"You know, sometimes I miss your bother and his infinite patience while dealing with idiots. I wish Noctis could come back to me. Why can't you be more like him?"

Lucas asked, only half serious as he watched Sorias walk into the room. He was trying to drown his worry by saying things that came to his mind.

"The only reason you found my brother refreshing was that he was not initially from 'our' world either. Anyway, don't panic and think that something is wrong with Elysia right now. She's the reason I am here."

Lucas was in-between the stages of relaxing and panicking again. He was not sure what to make of Sorias's words except groan out in annoyance.

He knew that Elysia would cause him trouble but she had not even lasted a single day.

"So she tricked you into coming out and you could not refuse in the end? I should send my shadows around to keep an eye on her, right? She is so getting grounded once she comes home."

"Totally. Elysia will deserve everything she gets from you."

Sorias went quiet for a while before he opened his mouth again. He looked doubtful but also convinced which caused Lucas to pay attention to him.

"I went to the temple before coming here and I felt something wrong going on in there. We should take Elysia and get out of the empire as soon as we can. We cannot allow her to stay here any longer."