Chapter 331: Breaking Point (I)

Eifrith Ra’Elis’ POV

The moment Eifrith Ra’Elis caught Uhtred’s eyes, she held his gaze for a second then turned, retreating deeper into the crowd to disappear. She was confident in Uhtred’s ability to keep track of her.

She didn’t look back once, weaving her way through the crowd and keeping her attention on several select figures — individuals whose attention had washed over her covertly after she arrived. They still hadn’t caught onto her yet, but it was clear she’d become slightly interesting to them — something she didn’t want at all.

This was all because of that human champion, Uhtred. She’d had to use her innate skill: [Grand Machination] to nudge things into place and prevent Uhtred from going ahead with his frankly stupid move.

The kids in question had already been set in place before she arrived. She didn’t even know what form her intervention would take until she saw the kids. And even after seeing the kids run past Uhtred, she’d thought her Grand Machination had failed — machinating an intervention of fate at such a quick notice, one that needed to interfere with a powerhouse on Uhtred’s level was extremely difficult.

Yet, it had proven extremely easy, which led her to believe a measure had already been set in place, either to Uhtred’s knowledge or not. Either way, all she’d needed to do was use her innate skill to nudge the fateful encounter his way.

But after seeing that it was simply a bunch of kids, who only ran across Uhtred’s front, Eifrith had second-guessed herself. That was, until she saw Uhtred stop a second after...

He then resumed walking as though nothing had happened, but those kids must have said something or done something to draw his attention, because he no longer headed for the Stele. Instead he began looking around, as if searching for someone.

Exactly who he was looking for remained a mystery — a friend or colleague, perhaps. Somehow, the simple thought of that filled Eifrith with a weird sense of dissatisfaction.

It was this same feeling that spurred her to practically reveal herself — something she hadn’t intended on doing. Uhtred would have stumbled on her on his own given enough time. And she wouldn’t have drawn the attention of the hidden gazes watching her movement now.

But I don’t care! she thought, her jaw tightening. The human is mine and mine alone! He shouldn’t be giving his attention to any other!

Beneath her hood, her face twisted into an expression so grim and unbecoming that anyone catching a glimpse would have reared back in fright — yet she felt no remorse for it.

She proudly embraced thoughts that would make anyone question her sanity. She had never even spoken to Uhtred once, yet she had claimed him as hers in her mind.

On top of that, Uhtred was a mere human, a spawn of one of the lesser races. While Eifrith didn’t bear the age-old scorn for humans and the superiority complex held by the Elves of this Scenario world of Valeria, she was still an elf regardless. That pride was inherent; the only thing missing was the history to go along with it.

Among members of her race, the mere whisper of her thoughts would see her ostracized. To fancy a lowly human was already disdainful. To do so while already having a mate — one belonging to one of the great noble families of her home world — was nothing short of utter travesty.

Yet, Eifrith couldn’t help herself. This strong possessiveness, she’d never felt it for anyone besides this human, and that was mainly because of his fate — or more accurately, his lack of one.

Eifrith had crossed paths with many powerful individuals: Champions belonging to the Dragonkin race, Elves from the most prestigious houses of her home planet, and even formidable Otherworlders during her world’s Trial of Ages.

Not once had she failed to decipher something of an individual’s fate — even if only the faintest thread. Uhtred was the sole exception.

Nothing. Not a single thread of fate could be deciphered from him. It was as though there were no threads to begin with — as if his fate were connected to everything, yet completely separate at the same time.

He was an utterly incongruous existence. An anomaly beyond anyone Eifrith had ever seen. And to a Fateseeker like her, that only signaled one thing:

This human, Uhtred, had the capacity to become a multiverse shaking entity, either for a great good or a terrible evil unlike the multiverse had ever seen.

Either way, Eifrith wanted to possess him. Now that she’d come across him this early into his story, she wanted their fates to intertwine. She wanted for them to be bound one way or another — this was her way as a Fateseeker. She didn’t have the grand spells or flashy magics of other classes, even at her current Level 44, in a straightforward battle, she would lose against much weaker opponents.

However, this — playing with fate and forcing outcomes to her advantage — was where she shone. And she wasn’t going to miss a multiverse-shaking opportunity like Uhtred.

Of course, whether she was going about attaching herself to Uhtred the right way could be debated. But Eifrith saw nothing wrong with her methods. To her, he would be nothing but glad to hear her proposition.

After all, wasn’t it an honor for a human like him to be bound to such a noble elf?

I wonder how happy he’ll be after we speak, Eifrith thought, a bright, triumphant smile hidden beneath her hood.

***

Meanwhile, Uhtred followed her from a distance, weaving through the crowd as they left the city center behind. He tracked her all the way into a quiet residential district, surprised to find she had already acquired a private residence here.

How an elf had managed that in human territory was beyond him, but he stayed focused on her possible motives. Alert and vigilant, he scanned their surroundings while trying to deduce what she wanted or what crucial information she intended to share. She had pestered him since the previous city, so it had to be something important — right?