"As I said, Tatsumi is not just a temporary member of the Jaegers, but also my love."
Esdeath pointed behind her to where Tatsumi was chained to a chair.
"Among the members here, does anyone have a wife or a lover yet?"
When she asked the members of the Jaegers, Bols was the first to raise his hand.
"Eh!!"
"Is that true, Bols?"
Hearing everyone's reaction, Bols shyly covered his face with his hands.
"Um, I've been married for six years. She is wonderful! I still can't believe she chose to be with me!"
"Then I want to ask you, Bols. How can I conquer Tatsumi's heart?"
"The secret to capturing someone's heart is to never give up!"
Love is truly an eternal topic of discussion; even someone as timid as Bols became open when "teaching" Esdeath.
"I myself was rejected twice, but I didn't give up and finally, she was mine! But Commander must be very patient, because it will take a lot of time."
"Understood."
Esdeath intently took notes in a small notebook.
That was what happened this morning, right when Tatsumi was captured by her. Currently, it was late at night, and Esdeath was waiting for him to come out of the bathroom.
She leaned back on the bed, a confident smile playing on her lips. She had campaigned in many places and conquered many lands. However, she had never "campaigned" on the battlefield of love or conquered a young man's heart before. Nevertheless, she would not hesitate. To Esdeath, this was quite an interesting experience.
"If Bols said so... it means sooner or later you will fall into my arms, Tatsumi."
...
Asahi had found a way to infiltrate the imperial palace. Not by breaking in, but by blending in as a servant for the special force, the Jaegers.
Esdeath didn't have any objections because she found the drinks he mixed weren't bad. Furthermore, the number of applicants to serve the Jaegers was nearly zero because its commander was Esdeath; aside from the army under her command, even the Prime Minister was wary of her, let alone an ordinary servant.
And so, in the early morning, Tatsumi and Asahi had a secret meeting in the hallway.
"Don't worry, there's no one here right now. But why do you look so... trashed, Tatsumi?"
His face was haggard, with thick dark circles and bloodshot eyes, proving that Tatsumi had been under intense stress for a long time. Yet, there were no injuries on his body—could it be a new type of mental torture?
"I couldn't sleep at all last night. She said she wouldn't do anything, yet she held me like a body pillow."
Asahi could only pat his younger brother's shoulder in consolation; who told him to catch Esdeath's eye? Afterward, the two quickly exchanged information: Tatsumi's identity hadn't been exposed, Night Raid was currently safe, and they discussed the power of the Jaegers.
Asahi had checked this area, but staying too long could lead to surprises, and he didn't want anything to go wrong.
One more thing, the relationship between Asahi and Tatsumi absolutely could not be revealed; otherwise, if one side had a problem, it would immediately implicate the other. Fortunately, when Esdeath captured Tatsumi earlier, she didn't notice that he and Tatsumi knew each other.
"Alright, we can't stay here long. If you get a chance to escape, take it."
"What about you?"
"Don't worry about me. I plan to use this opportunity to scout this place. The imperial palace is definitely not as simple as it looks on the surface."
"Brother Asahi, please stay careful."
The two walked in opposite directions down the hallway. They didn't know that from a distant, hidden corner, Stylist was resting his chin in thought. He couldn't hear the conversation, but suspicion had begun to grow in his heart.
His eyes darted back and forth between the direction Asahi disappeared and Tatsumi's back, as if making a choice.
Finally, he looked toward Tatsumi, who had entered the Jaegers' meeting room.
Inside the room, only Kurome and Wave were currently talking to each other.
"Isn't it a bit too early for a snack, Kurome?"
"Don't mind my business."
"You should eat more seafood; it's very good for your health."
"No wonder you smell like the stench of the ocean."
"Eh, really?"
Wave worriedly raised his hand to sniff himself and turned to ask Tatsumi.
"Hey, hey, do I really smell bad?"
"Ah, no, not at all."
Tatsumi waved it off, and Wave finally felt relieved. He took a sip of the coffee in his hand and couldn't help but admire it.
"Oh, the new staff's drink is really delicious."
A tray of coffee was placed on the table. Tatsumi took a cup and drank it. He felt his spirit relax significantly; the bloodshot lines in his eyes receded, and his whole body felt more energized.
He looked over at Kurome eating her cookies, his eyebrows furrowing slightly.
"That look, and the name Kurome... it feels so familiar."
Kurome looked up, noticing Tatsumi observing her. Her expression remained unchanged as she hugged her bag of cookies.
"There's no portion for you."
"And... even this gluttonous personality!"
Tatsumi was startled. No more guessing needed; she was exactly like Akame. This person must be related to Akame.
"Uh, this might be a bit rude, but... you look a bit like Akame, a wanted member of Night Raid."
"Looking closely, she really does look a bit similar."
"Yeah, she is my relative. But she betrayed the Empire. I really want to meet her one more time..."
"...so that I can kill her with my own hands."
"After all, she is my older sister."
Tatsumi's pupils contracted, and he subconsciously swallowed. Suddenly, the meeting room door opened; it was Esdeath. She walked in and picked up a cup of coffee to drink.
"Tatsumi, we are going to Mount Fake. We will hunt there for a few days."
"Mount Fake? What is that?"
"Mount Fake is exactly what it sounds like, a Fake Mountain."
Tatsumi still didn't understand what it was, but he could smell an opportunity to escape. His range of activity would no longer be limited to this area.
"Wave and Kurome, you two will be one team. Remember, while hunting, you must also be mindful of enemy attacks."
"Understood."
"Kurome and I will head East until sunset. Wave and Tatsumi go West. In the evening, we will swap; Tatsumi will come with me."
Tatsumi was startled. Esdeath's goal was to hunt the dangerous demonic beasts that appeared at night. As a general, she thought that showcasing her strength in front of the one she loved could "score points" in Tatsumi's eyes.
...
"I didn't dare say this at the palace, but you seem to be suffering quite a bit, don't you?"
Wave asked as the two walked up a winding natural stone path on the mountain.
"If you want to talk about anything, you can come to me."
"Ah, it's okay, I've... gotten used to it."
"Haha, honestly, we are quite similar."
"Similar? In what way?"
"Let's see... we are quite similar in... our situation. Or rather, we are facing the same kind of problems..."
The images of the "bizarre" members of the Jaegers appeared in Wave's mind. Tatsumi seemed to understand, because when he first joined Night Raid, he was also "welcomed" by people like that.
Suddenly, he turned around to face Wave, slowly drawing the sword from his back.
"Tatsumi, you..."
"Watch out!"
The sword stroke swept past Wave—specifically behind him—severing a root-leg of a magic tree monster. The magic tree looked like a massive great tree that moved using thick roots underneath. It attacked with those root-legs and movable branches.
"Thanks, I owe you my life!"
"It's nothing."
Wave secretly broke into a sweat, while Tatsumi was slightly surprised by his own actions; he had saved someone unconsciously, even if they were on the opposing side.
"It's fine, I'll use this chance to run away."
Wave put his back to Tatsumi; the two were surrounded by a large number of magic trees.
"Let's settle this together!"
Wave also drew his sword. The subsequent battle was one-sided, as the opponents of the magic tree swarm were two individuals with strength far exceeding that of ordinary people.
"Your side should be finished too, right, Tatsu...mi?"
Wave turned around, but there was only a pile of magic tree corpses. Tatsumi was nowhere to be seen.