Chapter 162: [162] Evil Machinations

Marcus stared at the man he believed was the leader of the wood elves, his anger in full display.

’According to what Duke said, these are the freeloaders from the elven village…’

But that was only a short-sighted analysis made by an inexperienced fool.

For the longest time, wood elves had even failed to have a proper meeting with the Baron of Kingsbridge. It was the same when his father was Baron, and it was the same thing now…

His father had told him they helped them because of an age-old agreement, it was a thing of honour in his own words.

If their relationship was just like it had been all those years, why then were the elves at the ball?

And judging by how bold they were…

’Could Pieter have struck some sort of deal with them? Have they found some sort of treasure in their dirty forest?’

’Damn it!’ Marcus cursed.

Tonight was the day he took what was rightfully his, the last thing he needed were inconsistencies.

He could not allow anything that would strengthen Pieter’s hold on power…

If their presence was his brother’s hidden ace, then Marcus had to cut it right from the roots, he had to make sure the deal died before talks even started.

And there was only one way to assure that…

Death.

<•••>

Emma slowly stood up then stumbled back a little, wincing as blood painted her cheeks red.

Eliron watched her curiously.

’For him to do such a number on a knight… he has to be a second-class mage.’

This meant he was around the same level as a second-stage lieutenant, if not higher.

Everyone in his group bore disgruntled expressions when they witnessed Marcus’s disrespect.

But they all waited for Eliron to make the first move.

Still, Eliron didn’t move a muscle. He just stood there, watching as the scene played out in front of him.

“My lord.” Emma spoke resolutely. “I—”

“SHUT YOUR STUPID MOUTH!” Marcus barked. He had no plans to end the confrontation anytime soon.

“A knight of our noble barony is lying unconscious and you dare tell me it is nothing? Shall I suspect you of treason?”

Emma’s expression fell, her words hanging in her throat.

He smirked proudly then turned his attention to Duke. “Young master, please remind me and this crowd here. What is the punishment for assaulting a knight?”

“You see…” he smiled. “My memory is not like it used to be.”

Duke couldn’t have looked happier than he did at that moment. “The punishment is death, uncle.”

The nobles once again began to gossip like market women.

— Death? Isn’t that too harsh?

— The knight is alive, isn’t he?

— Why would a knight even get knocked out by a stranger in the first place? That knight is an embarrassment to us…

“As you can see!” Marcus raised his voice, addressing the nobles. “My fellow nobles, an outsider cannot dare break our law and go scot free!”

He took a step forward, and this time, he stared right into Eliron’s eyes.

“Who was it among you who dared lay a hand on our knight?”

There were a dozen guards present, and a sadistic second-class mage.

Yet Ash gave Marcus a blank stare, not an ounce of fear in his eyes. “I was the one who smacked some respect into that stupid head of his.”

Ash glared at the noble. “Do you have a problem with it?”

A vein ticked on Marcus’ skull. “A mere knight from a barren village, and yet you raise your shoulders so high.”

He glanced at Emma who had not said a single word since.

“By our law…”

“Execute him.”

The crowd went silent.

’Killing a close friend of the elven lord is sure to scramble any deal they may have been planning…’ Marcus thought.

After all, it was an unforgivable offence…

“No.”

Marcus paused.

’Did I hear wrongly?’

He turned to face Emma who now glared at him, her own anger having reached a boiling point.

No matter how humble she may be, she was still a knight, and knights hated disrespect above everything.

Telling her to execute the people she was trying to protect, that was when he had crossed the line.

“They are ambassadors to this kingdom, and although they did assault our knight, he drew his blade first, threatening their lord!”

The whispers continued, and this time the general sentiment began to shift in favour of Eliron and his group.

“Based on the magnitude of this issue, as the acting knight in charge, I will wait for the Baron’s input.”

Marcus twitched with rage. “T-the Baron? Hehe, are you aware that I am the Baron’s older brother?”

“A brother nonetheless.” Emma shook her head, a fire lighting up in her eyes. “My lord, you have no right to order me around. It is not within your authority.”

“Ouch, burn!” Yennefer said rather audibly, her voice cutting through the silence and causing a few eyes to move to her.

“…”

“Tch!”

Marcus’s teeth clicked together.

He was more than livid.

Marcus had expected Emma to cower in fear when he showed her his power, but instead, she had demeaned his authority right in front of all the nobles.

She had insulted him!

And seeing that look in her eyes…

The look that meant she had not a single ounce of fear or respect for him, Marcus snapped.

“You insolent fool!”

Marcus’s mana flared, his murderous aura filling the entire space.

“Uncle—!” Duke tried to intervene when suddenly—

Crack!

Suddenly, the space right below Emma sank like a pitfall, forming a bottomless pit that went down as deep as the eyes could see.

Emma yelped, her eyes wide, and her voice echoing out of the hole as she plunged right into it, speeding down to certain death, dust clouding the area.

Gasps spread through the crowd, followed by sharp, but reserved whispers.

Eliron breathed out a sigh…

“I see why they work well together.” he muttered.

Both Duke and his idiot uncle were impulsive individuals who never really thought anything through…

He smiled. ’This is going to be fun…’

Meanwhile, Marcus had his eyes on the pit, the floor rumbling below his feet …

’A mere knight dares speak to the future Baron in this manner?!’ Marcus hissed in his mind, his mana flaring as he manipulated the space around them.

He would not kill her immediately, he would give the wench a very soft landing, then he would bury her alive.

Little by little, he would pile up the sand atop her skull, packing her inside the hole until her entire body compressed to the size of a ball.

A slow, but excruciatingly painful death!

Marcus let out a dark chuckle, staring into the dust that had formed, but once it settled, his eyes widened in disbelief.

The young lord was staring at him with a bored expression on his face, and in his arms was the woman he had just banished to the underworld.

He stared at the hole and at Eliron and then back at them.

“What the hell is this?”

Eliron smirked.

“M-my lord, what happened? I saw a flash of dark blue…” Emma asked, confused as to how she was not yet dead.

She was covered in dust, and her body had been bruised in several places.

Eliron glanced at her and winked. “Just watch me…” he whispered.

“My oh my…” Eliron walked forward, cradling the knight in his arms like she were a child.

“Honourable nobles of Kingsbridge!” He called out.

’What the hell is he doing?’ Marcus thought, his fingers twitching by his side.

“As you have already heard, my partner is accused of assaulting a noble, and his sentence is death!”

He held the woman with one hand, and then with the other, he summoned the infinity pouch, holding it with his free hand.

“Now, according to the knight in charge, his sentence is left for the Baron to decide….”

Eliron smirked devilishly.

“H-huh?!” Emma yelped when Eliron raised her into the air with one hand, showcasing her battered state to the rest of the nobles.

“But it looks like this man has committed an even graver offence! He not only assaulted a knight, we all witnessed him try to kill her as well!!”

The crowd ate up his words like ice cream on a hot summer day.

— It’s true, I thought she was a goner!

— He really did just break the law, didn’t he?

— But he is the Baron’s brother…

— So, does that make him above the law? Are you defending a murderer?

The nobles began a fierce discussion, while watching to see how it would unfold.

Marcus’ fist tightened by his side.

’He has completely turned my argument against me!’

“Uncle, shall I put a stop to this madness?” Duke asked, only to be shunned by a sharp look from Marcus.

If he was to let his nephew handle it, how would that make him look??

Eliron smiled as the nobles argued amongst themselves.

Then he pulled out his black sword, stunning the crowd.

“According to Act 7 of the empire’s code, I hereby invoke the Good Samaritan law!”

“I, Eliron, Lord of Elves, will now execute this criminal!”

The crowd was dead silent. The murmurs had died down, and the buzz of gossip had faded.

That was when they realised…

That Eliron was not playing around.

“Bwahahahahahahwhaha!!” Marcus laughed out loud, pointing and jeering at Eliron.

“Execute me? Do you know who the fuck I—”

Swish!

With a single flick of his sword, a gash suddenly burst open on Marcus’ face, blood rushing down the wound.

“Uncle?!” Duke screamed, unable to believe his eyes.

Marcus touched his cheek and slowly brought back his hand…

It was covered in blood. His blood.

His hands trembled slightly.

’I didn’t see him move… What sort of monster is this?’

Eliron sighed.

“Ahh, it looks like I missed, I was aiming for the neck…”

Then he tilted his head slightly, a grin spreading from ear to ear.

“Shall we try that again?”

..

A/N

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