I’m a Villain, but I Want to Live a Long Life - Chapter 79

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“Are you alright?”

 

Rin, who had hidden me behind her with one arm, said while glancing back slightly.

 

I stared at her in a daze, my mouth agape at her sudden appearance.

 

“H-how did you…?”

 

“Today was my departure date, so I was heading to the port. I happened to see a familiar face, so I followed out of curiosity…”

 

Rin gestured toward my ankle as she spoke.

 

“It looks like a mess.”

 

My stiff gaze, frozen from shock, dropped downward.

 

Below my torn dress hem, I could see my left ankle swollen red.

 

“When did this happen…?”

 

Rin shook her head and sighed.

 

That’s when it happened.

 

“Y-you! Who are you?!”

 

A voice I had momentarily forgotten rang out from ahead.

 

The owner of that tense voice was the coachman who had lost his wrist while swinging his sword at me.

 

He had retreated some distance and was stammering as he looked at Rin.

 

“H-how did you know about this place…?!”

 

Another assassin standing beside him glanced at Rin and shouted urgently.

 

“I-if you want to live, you’d better not interfere! We’re the most famous errand boys in this area! If you knew who was involved in this matter…”

 

But he stopped mid-sentence and closed his mouth.

 

Because Rin had burst into laughter before he could finish speaking.

 

Black fur was already sprouting from the back of her neck. Rin opened her mouth in an annoyed, indifferent voice.

 

“Trash like this calling themselves errand boys… How utterly pathetic.”

 

Errand boys was slang for assassins belonging to the assassin guild.

 

The assassins hesitated and glared at Rin.

 

But Rin smiled coldly, then muttered while emanating chilling bloodlust.

 

“For six of you to swarm together just to kill one small lady, your expressions are quite shameless.”

 

The assassins’ faces hardened.

 

Rin tilted her head slightly.

 

“If it were me, I’d jump into the river right now. Though you shameless bastards wouldn’t understand.”

 

“What?! You insolent—!!”

 

One assassin who had been watching the situation raised his weapon above his head and charged toward us.

 

But Rin was faster.

 

I watched with wide eyes as Rin gracefully leaped forward in an instant.

 

She lightly dodged the assassin’s vertical sword strike to the side, then twisted her body downward.

 

“Guhk—!!”

 

The next moment, the charging assassin coughed up blood and collapsed. Rin’s claws extending from her fingertips had pierced through his body.

 

“What are you doing! Everyone attack!”

 

The coachman clutched his severed wrist and shouted urgently. He seemed to be the leader of the assassins.

 

With the order given, four assassins charged simultaneously this time.

 

“I do hope you can tell me that Erbia doesn’t only have trash like you.”

 

Rin muttered haughtily as she slammed one assassin to the ground.

 

Then she precisely struck the arm of another assassin behind her with her elbow, kicking the dropped weapon far away.

 

…She looked like she was performing an elegant dance.

 

It was clear that if she hadn’t been caught by Rubel’s ability at the gladiatorial event, she would have definitely defeated Felix and claimed victory.

 

Within seconds, the last assassin collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood.

 

Having just finished her final strike, Rin shook her head and wiped her hands on the ground.

 

Blood droplets clinging to her fingertips scattered across the floor.

 

As I watched this scene while swallowing nervously, Rin glanced back and looked at me.

 

“You seem to have many enemies.”

 

Her voice sounded amused. I slumped down as the tension left me.

 

As befitting someone who served Dein Jed, Rin’s low and leisurely tone greatly resembled her master.

 

As I looked up at her with a dazed expression, the throbbing pain in my ankle suddenly intensified.

 

When I placed my hand on my ankle and let out a groan, Rin frowned.

 

Soon she turned her head and walked a few steps forward. Then she grabbed the collar of the coachman who lay battered among the pile of trash.

 

“Do you want this one killed, or would you prefer to take him alive?”

 

My eyes widened. Rin smiled at me reassuringly.

 

“Cartians remember kindness.”

 

Cartian. That was the term for people from Carton.

 

Rin apparently remembered how I had protected her in the military barracks during the gladiatorial competition.

 

“Should I kill him, or will you take him with you?”

 

Rin asked again.

 

After serious consideration, I finally spoke.

 

“It’s already been quite a while…”

 

Judge Paul glanced at his watch and irritably shuffled through documents.

 

He let out a frustrated sigh, then gestured for the attendant standing guard by the door to come over.

 

The attendant hurried over to the judge. The judge nodded toward the window and asked.

 

“Has any carriage passed through the main gate yet?”

 

“No, not a single one, sir.”

 

The judge irritably pressed his temples.

 

“It’s already been an hour past the appointed time, how could…”

 

Glancing up, he could see Meg Cline sitting alone and quietly at the large table.

 

She was staring glumly at the empty seat across from her, occasionally sighing and rubbing her back.

 

“Miss Cline has been waiting here since 30 minutes before the appointed time.”

 

The judge muttered while looking at Meg with pitying eyes.

 

If his own back hurt from sitting for just an hour, he wondered how anxious Meg Cline must be feeling.

 

The judge looked at Seleneae’s still-empty seat with displeasure and muttered to the attendant.

 

“Find something to support her back and bring it to Miss Cline. She’s been waiting so long, her back must be aching.”

 

The attendant nodded and quickly left the meeting room.

 

The judge returned to shuffling through documents with a bored expression.

 

The documents contained the exact contents of the complaint filed by Duke Tigris.

 

‘…Miss Meg Cline called Lady Tigris the trash of Erbia.’

 

He tilted his head in confusion.

 

Looking up at Meg, she was making the same dejected expression as before, her eyebrows drooping.

 

Seeing that gloomy face, he found it hard to believe she had said such things.

 

The judge briefly wondered if this case might be a one-sided frame-up by the Tigris side.

 

Come to think of it, Seleneae Tigris had quite a bad reputation in the Empire.

 

He had heard she lacked refinement, was violent, and had not even a trace of elegance.

 

Such a cunning person might find this level of false accusation no problem at all.

 

‘…But how did she earn His Majesty the Emperor’s favor?’

 

The judge clearly remembered what the Emperor had said when he called him aside a few days ago.

 

“Couldn’t you make Duke Tigris withdraw his complaint?”

 

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

 

“I mean hold a mediation meeting before the trial. Grace’s niece seems to have made some mistake at the charity event, and Duke Tigris is quite angry about it.”

 

“Then, wouldn’t it be better to simply dismiss the complaint using Your Majesty’s authority…”

 

“Then I’d have no face to show Duke Tigris and Lady Tigris! So you need to mediate so that the Tigris side withdraws the complaint themselves!”

 

The judge was so surprised by the Emperor’s attitude that he unconsciously opened his mouth.

 

“But… but no matter how I think about it, Duke Tigris won’t easily withdraw the charges.”

 

“Then should we let this children’s fight escalate into a conflict between noble houses!”

 

The Emperor wore an extremely troubled expression.

 

The Emperor let out a deep sigh and clasped his hands tightly as he spoke.

 

“I just hope it doesn’t come to a trial. Can’t you use your influence at the mediation meeting? They’re children who haven’t even had their coming-of-age ceremonies yet, so if you handle them well, they should reconcile quickly!”

 

The judge had no choice but to nod his head for now.

 

‘…But that’s only possible if the Lady shows up on time.’

 

He hadn’t expected Lady Tigris to fail to appear even an hour past the promised time.

 

The judge clicked his tongue while looking at the firmly closed door. He thought his premonition had been right after all.

 

There were reasons why her reputation was poor throughout the Erbian Empire.

 

‘I’m worried whether mediation will even work with such an immature person who doesn’t follow basic etiquette.’

 

It was the moment when the judge pressed his forehead with a troubled expression.

 

Without even a knock, the firmly closed meeting room door suddenly burst open.

 

The attendant who had gone out earlier to fetch something for Meg’s back support stood there with a pale face.

 

“J-Judge! L-Lady Tigris is…”

 

At those words, the judge’s eyes widened. At the same time, someone appeared from behind the attendant.

 

Meg was startled and stood up upon seeing his face.

 

“I’m sorry. I’m a bit late, aren’t I?”

 

The person who appeared from behind the attendant was none other than Seleneae Tigris.

 

The judge’s mouth slowly fell open.

 

Because there was something strange about Selene’s appearance.

 

She looked as if she had just passed through a battlefield.

 

Her hair was disheveled and falling down, and the hem of her dress was torn and tattered.

 

Even one of her ankles visible through the tears was visibly red and swollen.

 

The judge hesitated and got up from his seat to approach her.

 

“L-Lady Tigris. What on earth is this…”

 

As he trailed off, Selene caught her breath and spoke as if it was nothing.

 

“The carriage broke down on the way here. I had to deal with it urgently, so I ended up being this late.”

 

The judge stared at her blankly, at a loss for words.

 

Looking at her appearance, it didn’t seem like she was lying at all.

 

‘What on earth happened for the carriage to break down?’

 

As the judge stood there with a bewildered expression, Selene walked past him toward the table as if nothing had happened.

 

She was limping severely, apparently due to her injured ankle. Soon Selene plopped down heavily in her seat.

 

Then she looked up sideways at Meg, who was frozen like a statue across from her, and said.

 

“So can we start the mediation meeting now?”

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