Everyone but Me Is a Spy - Chapter 28

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 28
The four of them stared at the letter in stunned silence, their minds sluggish and frozen, before slowly lifting their heads to meet each other’s eyes.
“R-ran away?! She actually ran away?”
“This is ridiculous. I’m not babysitting a moody teenager.”
“What are we supposed to do with Rikit’s inheritance? We need Nina’s blood!”
“We’re not family. We can’t inherit anything in the first place.”
Cheyson turned to face the cold, false family and shot the words like arrows.
“Nina’s naïve—she doesn’t know a thing about how the world works. And none of you care that she left home?”
“You still don’t understand. Your niece didn’t run away. The target disappeared.”
“That’s beside the point!”
Natalisha’s gaze turned glacial, fixed on him.
She’d insisted this mission was too important to abandon, and yet here she was, swayed by sentiment after all.
Natalisha decided to ignore Cheyson and huddled with the other spies.
“Where on earth did Nina go?”
“Didn’t that maid May smuggle her out?”
Kathari’s suggestion made Axi shake her head.
“Then there’d be no reason to hide in my room.”
“She didn’t go back to Sejak County Estate, did she?”
……
They all turned to stare at Natalisha, their breath catching in unison.
“She didn’t just leave the Townhouse—she left Soltem entirely?”
“Do we have to track her again? We know exactly who the target is, so it shouldn’t take long to find her, but there’s no guarantee she’ll come back once we do.”
“That maid May was always hard to pin down. If that’s any indication, Nina could hide herself extremely well.”
“Ugh, seriously…….”
Kathari exhaled sharply, her eyes wide and blazing as she fixed the servant-spy with a glare.
“Wait. Isn’t this house under surveillance by intelligence agencies from four or five countries? How did no one notice Nina leaving?”
The servant-spy’s face flushed with indignation, his mouth opening wide in protest.
“Am I supposed to monitor this place alone? Why are you blaming me? Nina Bonz destroyed the entire surveillance network we’d set up. Did you not see her snap the candlestick with the hidden antenna clean in half?”
“Hold on.”
Cheyson, who’d been communicating with colleagues via radio, raised his hand to stop the escalating argument.
“Word is the road to Ilite is blocked, so she probably didn’t go back to Sejak County Estate. At least not yet.”
“Why is the road to Ilite blocked?”
“Bridge inspection, they’re saying.”
“An inspection? Well, there’s nothing we can do about that. So where the hell did she go?”
Kathari accepted the explanation readily, and Axi shook her head slowly, exhaling in frustration.
“This is what happens when we act like a dysfunctional family in front of her.”
“We’re not even a real family. This is disgusting.”
“No. Axi’s right. We got sloppy. Let our frustration and impatience override our professionalism.”
Natalisha drew out her radio, her expression tight with self-recrimination.
What had Nina been chasing after them, shouting about all this time?
Nothing but an endless, tedious lecture about cherishing family.
<I really wish the four of you would live here with me at this Townhouse forever.>
<I think there’s nothing more important than a happy home.>
Just remembering those words made her ears burn and cold sweat prickle her skin.
They all seemed to agree now: they’d dismissed Nina’s wishes far too carelessly.
“If Cheyson dies, Nina might never come back at all.”
Natalisha’s finger pressed down on the radio button with a sharp click.
“Holytch12. Holytch12. This is Natalisha. Abort the accident-death operation on Cheyson immediately. I’m requesting mission cancellation.”
…….
Cheyson watched Natalisha with a flat, uneasy expression.
He’d already known full well they intended to eliminate him under the guise of an accident, but it stung that she showed no hesitation in revealing it so openly. Yet he had no time to dwell on that now.
Cheyson pulled out a Soltem Map from beneath the table and spread it open with a sharp snap.
“First, we need to find out where Nina went.”
* * *
…….
Nina sat on the bed with the blanket drawn halfway up, her eyes moving awkwardly around the unfamiliar room.
The cozy blanket, the soft sofa, and furniture of warm-toned wood seemed perfect for creating a comfortable bedroom.
‘They said this was a guest room…….’
The room bore no trace of habitation—no guest had ever slept here before.
‘Is it really okay for me to stay here.’
Joel offered the room to Nina readily, saying he had a good idea.
“I know well enough that the young master is in delicate health. Whenever he collapses, even briefly, he needs proper rest until the next day at least. Since the road to Ilite is blocked anyway, it makes sense to stay here until it reopens.”
Once the inheritance was settled, he’d planned to raise the servants’ wages, so he’d left most of the money he’d converted to Soltem currency on his desk.
That meant his remaining funds were barely enough to cover a night’s lodging at an inn.
It was the sensible choice to remain here until the bridge inspection leading to Ilite was complete.
He felt guilty and awkward about imposing on the sickly young master.
‘I keep causing nothing but trouble. Maybe I should give him some of the unconverted money before I leave.’
Nina rolled her eyes and quietly pushed the blanket aside, rising from the bed.
“You need proper rest.”
Joel’s firm words came back to her, and she felt a twinge of conscience—but she couldn’t simply lie here, troubling him further.
Her body felt healthy enough that she didn’t sense any real need for extended rest.
The loss of consciousness itself had been truly temporary, just as the doctor said; she felt no dizziness or weakness now.
And above all, Nina—who had lived her life as a diligent errand-runner and maid—had no real conception of what true rest even meant.
‘How am I supposed to rest?’
From yesterday onward, trying to sit still without doing anything had left her entire body restless and itching.
She wanted to position a rifle barrel at the window gap and watch for danger outside, or search for hidden codes buried in books.
‘Is this how Joel feels on days when his condition is poor?’
Remembering the days when he hadn’t appeared on the balcony, she felt a pang of sympathy.
Eventually, Nina slipped out of her room and wandered the quiet corridors, exploring Joel’s Townhouse.
‘He didn’t say I had to stay in my room—surely a little walk around won’t hurt?’
Nina had set out simply wanting to move her restless body, but she quickly realized even that was not so easy.
She had to stop twice while passing by the numerous Magical Tools that Joel had apparently created and arranged for display.
The same happened when she walked through the high-ceilinged lobby and the landing.
‘This Townhouse has dangerous things hidden in it too.’
It seemed someone had concealed surveillance devices throughout the space.
But since Joel’s hobby was Magical Tool Development, it was just as possible that he himself had installed them.
She decided to leave them alone for now—removing them carelessly would be another grave discourtesy to him.
‘In Soltem, a Free State, is spying also free?’
Nina thought of the Free State as a frightening place and leaned against the corridor window.
Just then, a familiar pigeon flew in from outside the window with a flutter and landed in the hallway.
“Oh my, Gugu!”
Recognizing Gugu, Nina clapped her hands with delight.
Gugu, noticing her presence a moment too late, spun around in alarm.
“Who—who—who?!”
“Are you well now? I’m so glad you look healthy.”
“Coo—!”
Upon spotting Nina, Gugu froze as if shocked.
At this reaction—as if Gugu had seen someone who absolutely shouldn’t be in this house—Nina’s cheeks flushed.
“I ended up staying here for a while. But what are you carrying?”
“…!”
As Nina lowered her posture and approached gently, Gugu backed away and hid something behind her back.
What poked out from behind Gugu’s shoulder looked like a camera lens.
“Oh my. So you have a hobby of taking photographs? How wonderful!”
“…Coo-coo-coo-roo.”
Gugu scratched her head at the praise, then gradually withdrew and flew away.
“Oh, Gugu—”
Nina felt disappointed as Gugu vanished in an instant.
‘She didn’t know I was staying here. Of course she was startled—she lives here too.’
Reflecting on the pigeon’s varied expressions, she walked on through the corridor, and the moment she turned a corner adorned with mystical Magical Tools—
Her face collided solidly with something firm and solid.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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