I’ll Steal Everything and Escape - Chapter 3

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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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3.
“Stefan, can I have some water?”
“What? You just drank some.”
Elodie had already planned her escape. The first step was always the quickest to take.
‘Before the others notice, I need to grab as much as I can.’
Stefan glared at her with obvious displeasure, but Elodie kept her composure and her nerve.
“Sorry. My throat’s a little dry.”
She emptied her canteen in a rush, then made sure to hold it out for a refill. When there’s plenty, you drink as much as you can.
“Cough, gack.”
“Ugh. Don’t splash me, get away.”
“Elodie! Why would you drink that fast? Were you that thirsty?”
Cough. Elodie thumped her chest with her fist.
“Oh, I spilled a lot. Thanks, Silvia. Do you happen to have a handkerchief and a mirror?”
“Mm, here.”
There were emergency supplies in the Survival Backpack, but not many. If possible, she’d like to quietly pocket some of the others’ things too, but that probably wouldn’t work.
Dabbing at the corners of her mouth, Elodie deliberately said the exact same words she had said in her previous life.
“Hey, if we put big leaves on the tent roof, it’ll hold up better even when it rains.”
“Rain? Are you serious? How long do you think we’re staying here? What, you want to live on this island forever?”
Stefan, who’d been itching for a fight all along, flared up and started picking at her. The others shook their heads, but none of them spoke up, as though they secretly shared his feelings. It was a careless judgment.
“…I only said it because covering it with green would mean fewer attacks from demonic beasts or wild animals.”
“Ha! That’s the kind of idea only a weakling like you would come up with.”
Her pale blonde hair drooped as she pretended to sulk and looked down.
“I was just making a suggestion…”
The reason she deliberately invited the scolding was simple. No matter how perfect her memory was, she wanted to time things precisely.
“If you want to do it so badly, go ahead and do it yourself. Useless as always.”
Stefan brushed past, shoulder-checking Elodie. Behind the thief-to-be’s amethyst eyes, something glinted. Three, two, one.
“Wait. Everyone, be quiet.”
Robert whipped his fiery head around. Silvia’s eyes went wide.
“Robert, why…”
“Something’s coming.”
Elodie quietly shifted her foot backward. Crack, somewhere in the forest, a thick branch snapped.
“Grrrrraaah!”
A silver beast howled. A massive body barely hidden behind the tall trees. Long, jutting fangs. Flip-flip, a thick book unfurled inside Elodie’s head.
Quino Wolf. A Second Class demonic beast according to the Imperial Monster Encyclopedia. They hunt in packs, which makes them difficult to wipe out.
“Grrr…”
“N-no way! A demonic beast?”
Silvia jolted upright with a startled flutter.
“Quinowolves. Everyone, get ready!”
Robert drew his sword. But this was not the end of it.
“Grrrk.”
Beyond the dim, dark trees, red glowing eyes multiplied one by one.
“Th-there’s more than one?”
“Eight of them.”
Elodie’s lips moved.
“Eight in total. We have to take them all down. The one at the very back is the Alpha.”
Robert leapt high, and a shimmering haze rose from his dazzling blade.
Kwaaang!
* * *
These wretched, insignificant creatures dare to—
Robert swallowed the curse inside, as he always did.
‘By now, the Dungeon Training should have been completely wrapped up.’
Heat surged through his blade, matching the irritation simmering in the prince.
“Krwaaaaah!”
A fang as large as Robert’s upper body revealed itself with a roar.
“E-ew, that’s disgusting!”
“Quinowolves here? That doesn’t make sense! Aren’t they jungle creatures?”
Stefan, who had been shrieking, instantly summoned a water spirit.
“Undine!”
A round, whale-like shape surged up into the sky.
-Woooong.
A colossal spirit drifted through the open air, a truly magnificent sight. And then.
Kwaaang!
A blue whirlpool pierced clean through one of the Quino Wolves.
“Krrrwaaaah!”
“Kill them all!”
The water spear spun violently in the air, and the wolves went down one after another.
“Everyone, step back a pace.”
The finale belonged to Robert. Fire as hot as molten lava boiled up along the Imperial Sword.
“Our food has walked right up to us on its own.”
Ignis Terrain. The magic Robert had inherited scorched the enormous beast’s body.
“Krrrrr!”
The heat was so fierce that his clothes, still faintly damp, dried out in an instant. The prince glanced at the sleeve, where salt crusted white as it fell away, and raised a brow.
‘I should have packed another set of clothes.’
The blood of the Imperial Family must always be flawless. Robert Bayern must always reign above everyone else and set an example for the rest.
“Krrrweng!”
The Imperial Sword, without a flicker of hesitation, split the wolf clean in half.
‘Stranded for days in a place crawling with Quino Wolves.’
The prince hated this filthy island. He hated the monsters that bared their fangs so brazenly. And sleeping shoulder to shoulder with others was, too, a blow to Robert’s dignity.
“Flames, rage like a storm and wipe out the enemy.”
Mana flared red across Robert’s body. Those responsible for ruining the prince’s schedule would surely lose their heads.
“Pay dearly for daring to come at me.”
A scorching wind wrapped around him, and three Quino Wolves were engulfed by the flames and went limp.
“Just as expected of Robert!”
“Not yet.”
He thrust his arm toward Silvia, who was cheering brightly. The fierce flames had taken down five of them, yet his red brows remained knitted low.
“Krrk.”
The prince’s golden eyes turned toward one side.
‘Alpha.’
The beast gave a snort and shook itself, shaking off the sparks. A hide that could withstand a firestorm, no less. Soon, Alpha kicked off the ground swiftly, not forward but backward.
“Ha, it’s running away.”
He had meant to give chase, but Robert sheathed his sword. Now that a Quino Wolf had appeared on the beach, carelessness was out of the question. There was every chance other monsters lurked nearby. Weighing every possibility was the way a sensible leader operated.
‘…Kamil Beltier. If it were him, he would have gone after it, though.’
That monstrous bastard would surely still be alive, even if he had been caught up in some accident.
Robert clicked his tongue, tsk, and slid his sword back into its sheath.
“Aren’t you going after it?”
Elodie Pontaine asked in a small voice. His irritation doubled.
“Wasting our strength for nothing would only cost us. I’ve dealt with the pack, so they won’t come near for a while.”
“I see. That’s a relief.”
“Oh my, are you hurt anywhere?”
Silvia shoved Elodie aside in a rush and came closer.
‘It was a sudden ambush, but dealing with them was no trouble. Even if there are more Quino Wolves deeper in the island…’
The prince slowly surveyed the party. Robert of the flames, Silvia of healing, Stefan the Spirit Mage…
His golden gaze brushed past the one remaining figure.
‘This should be enough.’
Robert nodded. Under normal circumstances, Elodie might have proved useful enough, but the appearance of the monsters had changed things.
‘Well, I’ll just have her handle the odd jobs for now.’
The prince cast a glance at the top student whose legs were trembling slightly, then turned his back.
“At least we got some wolf meat out of it.”
Just as everyone turned their attention to the fallen Quino Wolves.
“Huh?”
Everyone’s hair whipped about wildly. A gust of wind came out of nowhere. Robert turned around on instinct.
“Kyaaaaaah!”
A hideously ugly carrion bird snatched the girl who had been standing alone at the very back. Elodie Pontaine’s pale blonde hair rippled like an afterimage.
The black bird, its feathers patchy and thinning, took its prey and soared upward. Blink once, and Elodie Pontaine had shrunk to a speck. Even her screams gradually faded away.
“W-what is that, aaah!”
Silvia, who had been standing relatively close to her, let out a shriek and landed hard on her backside.
The massive bird flew far off, and as if it had reached its nest, it…
Let go of the fragile Elodie Pontaine with a limp drop.
“Hup.”
“W-what… that thing is…!”
Everyone held their breath. Robert was no exception.
Barely half a day since they’d crash-landed on this remote island.
Elodie Pontaine was dead.
* * *
Elodie’s consciousness drifted
through her memories
.
[‘Aren’t we going after them?’]
The Elodie of her previous life had insisted, forcefully, that the Alpha had to be dealt with.
[‘Go in there right now? Are you out of your mind?’]
Stefan and Silvia were terrified of the pursuit. Then, when the Alpha that had fled came back with its pack, Stefan, paralyzed with fear, shoved Elodie without a moment’s hesitation.
That was all it took.
[‘Aaah!’]
Her right upper body was nearly torn away. She poured every emergency potion she carried over the wound, but it wasn’t enough.
‘…No one pulled out their share of the potions.’
That she’d survived without a serious infection was nothing short of a miracle. Her pale hand fidgeted with her shoulder without her meaning to. Smooth, unbroken skin. For now, there was no scar.
‘Comrades, my foot.’
Elodie poked her head out from the swaying nest of netting.
“Glad it went according to plan.”
That’s right. Elodie Pontaine was still alive.
Every inch of her body stung, yet a faint giggle slipped out. Her amethyst eyes blinked slowly beneath her lids.
[If you want to do it so badly, go ahead and do it yourself. Not that you’re any use.]
No. Not yet. What comes next.
[Wait. Everyone, be quiet.]
Yes, now.
Elodie had gone to great lengths to hit exactly this moment.

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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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