ISEKAI? More like I See Crap!-Chapter 115: Tied Up in Trouble ( )

Ellyna’s eyes fluttered open.

Her vision swam for a moment—wooden walls, dim light, and the gentle swaying motion told her she was inside a moving carriage. But something was wrong. Her body felt... heavy.

She tried to sit up—but couldn’t.

Her wrists were bound tightly behind her back with cold, metallic shackles etched with runes. Her ankles were locked in a similar device. And her mouth was gagged with cloth.

Panic surged—but only for a moment.

She focused.

"Absolute Eye—"

Nothing.

Her pupils shimmered faintly, but the skill refused to activate.

She froze, then looked down as much as she could—her bindings were not normal. Runes hummed softly against her skin. Old magic. Ancient.

A chuckle echoed from the front of the carriage.

"Oho~ You woke up now, huh, princess?"

A large figure turned to face her—a tiger beastkin, tall and broad-shouldered, with a dark smirk and a scar over his left eye.

"No use trying to fight back. Those relic shackles? Ancient tools from the old wars. They suppress mana entirely. As long as you wear them..." He leaned in, tapping her cheek mockingly, "you’re just a cute, powerless kitten."

Ellyna glared at him, even with the gag in place.

He smirked wider. "And don’t even think about running. We’ve got four more guards outside this cart, all armed to the fangs. You’re not going anywhere, princess."

He turned back toward the front, grinning into the shadows.

"Now behave, and maybe you won’t get scratched up before we hand you over."

The tiger beastkin chuckled as he turned away, but Ellyna’s eyes narrowed—more a focus than fear.

How did this happen...?

She strained her memory, pushing past the lingering haze that still clouded her thoughts.

—The merchant.

She remembered now.

He had been polite, respectful, even deferential—just like most merchants were around royalty. She had followed the maids outside, intrigued by the excitement, the colorful fabrics, the perfumes...

"This one is quite special, princess," the merchant had said with a charming smile, holding up an elegant glass bottle filled with a pale, shimmering liquid. "A rare fragrance from the Dragonkin Kingdom. It’s said to have calming properties. Would you like to try it?"

She had leaned in, curious. "Oh? Let me smell—"

And then—nothing.

Her mind blanked right after that. She didn’t even remember falling unconscious.

Ellyna clenched her fists, but the magic shackles didn’t budge. Her mana felt as if it were being drowned in mud, suffocated and sealed beneath layers of ancient suppression.

A perfume laced with a sleeping enchantment... an old trick, but effective when the target doesn’t expect it.

Ellyna shifted slightly in her seat, testing the weight of the bindings again.

No good. Her body still felt sluggish.

Judging by the occasional creak of the wheels and muffled voices outside, the carriage was still on the move. They were taking her somewhere.

Ellyna’s thoughts spiraled, the cold fury inside her giving way to something more—helplessness.

Tears welled at the corners of her eyes. She tried to fight it, biting her lip and clenching her fists, but her body trembled.

Again, she tried to activate her Absolute Eye. She focused, strained—

Nothing.

Not even a flicker.

Her breath hitched, and she realized the truth:

She couldn’t do anything.

From across the carriage, the tiger beastkin, the one who had pretended to be a merchant, leaned forward with a mocking smirk.

"There’s no use, princess."

He tapped his claw against the metal shackles around her wrists.

"These aren’t ordinary restraints. They suppress mana completely, cut off passive abilities, and even weaken your physical strength. You’re nothing more than a pretty package now."

He sat back, arms crossed smugly. "So be a good girl and behave until we hand you over to our lord."

Ellyna didn’t respond. She kept her eyes low, but inside, her thoughts churned.

They won’t touch me.

She knew. Even in her fear, even as her tears fell silently, one thing was certain:

The pinky promise wasn’t something people dared to violate. freewēbnoveℓ.com

Everyone in this world understood the weight of that oath. It wasn’t just a childish vow—it was sacred. The kind of promise that bound souls.

Any man who tried to defile someone under the pinky oath, who sought to force intimacy or break the sanctity of the bond—would be cursed.

A curse that didn’t just torment—it destroyed.

That was the only reason they hadn’t done anything worse.

But still... she was captured. Powerless.

The tiger beastkin leaned in closer, his sharp fangs visible beneath that mocking grin. The glow of the lantern inside the carriage cast eerie shadows across his face, emphasizing every wicked curve of his smirk.

"Oho~ Princess..." he purred, his voice low and sinister. "We know exactly how serious a pinky promise is. Everyone does. That sacred little oath? Unbreakable. Untouchable."

He dragged his claw slowly through the air, as if tracing a delicate thread.

"No one in their right mind would dare to violate it..." Then his expression twisted, his eyes narrowing with delight. "...unless the man you made that oath with..."

He leaned even closer, his voice now a dark whisper curling in her ear. "...dies."

Ellyna’s eyes widened in horror, the blood draining from her face.

The tiger laughed—a low, cruel laugh that echoed in the carriage.

"That’s right. Kill the man, and the pinky promise dies with him. No oath, no curse, no consequences."

He sat back with a satisfied sigh.

"Don’t worry, Princess. Our lord’s a smart man. He knows he can’t touch you—yet. But once our team finds your little fiancé and puts him in the ground..." He licked his lips. "...that’s when the fun begins. That’s when our lord gets to claim you."

Ellyna shivered.

Hazuki...

She felt a weight in her chest heavier than the shackles around her wrists. The cold chains digging into her skin were nothing compared to the guilt gnawing at her heart.

This is all my fault...

He wasn’t supposed to be involved.

He didn’t ask for any of this.

Not the pinky promise.

Not the curse-bound ring.

Not the attention of nobles, kings, and monsters alike.

All he ever wanted was to live peacefully... maybe earn enough to buy land and enjoy his freedom.

And yet—now he was being hunted.

By assassins.

By entire kingdoms.

Because of her.

Because of the power she held.

The power that every ruler in the world wanted—to steal, to control, to abuse.

Her ability to transfer any skill she learned to another...

...A gift no one else in the world possessed.

She clenched her fists, trembling.

They don’t care about me. Not really.

They just want to use me. To strip me bare of everything I am and pass it to whoever holds my leash.

And Hazuki...

He was the only one who didn’t ask for anything.

Didn’t care about power.

Didn’t even understand what she’d given him.

He was stupid.

He was loud.

And yet—

"Uncle..." she whispered through the gag, her voice barely a breath behind the cloth.

"Please be safe."

Ellyna’s thoughts trembled with fear, worry... and guilt.

She wasn’t just worried about herself anymore.

She prayed—truly prayed—that Hazuki would be safe, no matter where he went.

That somehow, against all odds, he would stay one step ahead of the monsters chasing him.

Uncle is strong... but...

He can’t use any active magic.

The only skill he had was Elemental Control, a rare passive magic—

Learned from the ancient book.

Transferred to him by her—with a kiss he barely understood.

She remembered the look on his face afterward.

Confused. Flustered.

He has mana...

An enormous amount. A pool as deep as the ocean.

But with no active spells... no magic offense... no defensive barriers...

He was vulnerable.

She lowered her head, a tear sliding down her cheek.

"Hazuki... please... survive."

"Until I can stand beside you again."

( End of Chapter )