"The situation was unexpected," Najenda sighed, "I didn't anticipate that Mine would sneak out on her own. If I'm not mistaken, she's probably gone to rescue Chelsea."
"What do we do, Boss?" Lubbock asked with concern. "There's no way Mine can rescue Chelsea by herself."
"We should go after them," Sheele, the glasses-wearing girl, said, her face showing deep concern.
"We can't," Najenda replied firmly. "It's far too dangerous, and we're running out of time."
"But Mine—" Sheele protested, her worry evident.
"It's not something we have a choice in," Najenda said with a serious tone. "I want to rescue her too, but the Empire's forces are pressing in on us. Especially with the possibility of Esdeath taking action herself, I'm worried that the Revolutionary Army might not hold out."
"Mine is so reckless, that girl always causes trouble," Lubbock scratched his head, a bit exasperated.
Just then, Akame picked up the katana on the table and stood up, heading for the door.
"Akame, where are you going?" Najenda quickly grabbed her hand, stopping her.
"I'm going to rescue Mine," Akame said calmly, her eyes steady, as if this was the most normal thing in the world.
"You can't," Najenda said sternly. "What about Night Raid? What about the Revolutionary Army?"
Akame was silent for a moment, then she pressed her lips together and finally said, "But Mine is our comrade."
"I know Mine is our comrade, but we've been working so hard for so long to overthrow the Empire's rule," Najenda placed a hand on Akame's shoulder, saying, "We will rescue her, but not now."
Akame's grip on her katana tightened.
"Don't worry about them," Leone suddenly said, drawing everyone's attention. "They'll be fine."
Both Akame and Najenda looked at Leone.
Leone spoke seriously, "I've known Kaguya for a while now. She's not the kind of person who would do anything to achieve her goals. She saved my life and Sheele's too. So even if Mine and Chelsea are captured, Kaguya won't harm them. I guarantee it."
Sheele, who had been quiet until now, also nodded gently. She had been saved by Kaguya after Seryu nearly killed her, and if it weren't for Kaguya, she would be dead by now.
Perhaps Leone's words, or the memory of Kaguya's character, had an effect. Akame's tense posture gradually relaxed, and she walked back to the table, sitting down. Najenda, who had been closely watching her, also breathed a small sigh of relief.
But was the situation really as they believed?
Slap!
"Ah! Stop it!"
Slap!
"I—I know I was wrong!"
Slap!
Mine struggled desperately, her slender legs kicking, and her arms twisting as she tried to escape Kaguya's grasp. But no matter how hard she struggled, she couldn't break free from Kaguya's hold.
After giving Mine a good thrashing, Kaguya's anger gradually subsided.
With a thud, Mine was roughly tossed into a cell in the dungeon. She let out a cry of pain as she landed hard, aggravating her earlier wounds.
"Hmph, shameless brat, daring to seduce the princess," a beautiful black-haired girl standing outside the cell huffed in displeasure. "Who would have thought that someone so cute could be such a troublemaker?"
"I wasn't trying to seduce anyone!" Mine shouted indignantly, grabbing the bars, her face burning with shame and anger.
"Hmph." The black-haired girl clearly didn't want to hear her excuses and turned away, walking off with an elegant stride.
Mortified and humiliated, Mine felt so ashamed she wanted to die. How had things turned out like this?
"Hey, isn't this the short flat-chested one?" A voice suddenly called from behind her, and a pink-haired girl stepped out of the shadows—it was Chelsea.
Mine quickly wiped away the tears from her face, trying to appear unaffected. She let out a huff and said, "What do you want? Looking for a fight?"
"Nope," Chelsea replied, waving her hand dismissively, her eyes narrowing with a playful smile. "You came to rescue me, didn't you?"
"As if!" Mine snapped, tossing her head defiantly. "You're imagining things. There's no way I'd come to rescue you."
"Well, thanks anyway," Chelsea grinned. "I didn't think anyone would come for me."
"I told you I'm not here to rescue you," Mine retorted, her voice rising with irritation. "Can't you understand plain language?" Recalling the humiliation she had just endured, Mine couldn't hold back her tears any longer, and they started streaming down her face.
Chelsea's expression softened for a moment. She walked over to Mine and pulled her into a gentle hug. "I'm sorry you had to go through that because of me."
Mine wanted to argue back, but seeing the rare serious look on Chelsea's face, she didn't say anything more. She just pursed her lips and gave a small nod.
"Don't ever do that again, understand?" The silver-haired girl's beautiful face was as cold as ice, emitting an aura of frost that seemed to chill the room.
"I understand." The blonde girl lying on the bed buried her head under the covers, leaving only her large, frightened eyes peeking out.
"Alright, alright," a black-haired girl with a tray walked in, smiling as she said, "Now that she knows she was wrong, you don't need to scare her anymore."
"Sayo, you're going to spoil these little brats if you keep this up," Kaguya said with a hint of exasperation. "She's lucky I was here. If I hadn't been, this little one might've ended up in a ditch somewhere."
Perhaps it was the mention of ditches that scared Fal; she quickly pulled the blanket over her head.
"You're scaring her again," Sayo chuckled, giving Kaguya an amused glance. Despite Kaguya's lofty, untouchable demeanor outside, at home, she was like a parent constantly worrying over her children.
"It's better to scare her now than to have to bury her later," Kaguya huffed, though the concern in her voice was still evident.
"Alright, let's not talk about that now," Sayo said, placing the tray of snacks on the table with a smile. "Let's have some pastries. They were made by Master Chef Air, and they're delicious."
"Really?" Kaguya didn't hesitate to grab a heart-shaped pastry from the tray and pop it into her mouth. The soft, sweet flavor melted on her tongue, leaving a lingering taste.
"She spent three days making these," Sayo explained, "Two of those days were just spent gathering the ingredients."
"Then she deserves a good reward," Kaguya said, her mouth full of pastry, her voice slightly muffled.
"Can I have some?" A timid voice suddenly interrupted.
Kaguya turned around to see Fal peeking out from under the covers, her eyes wide and hopeful as she eyed the pastries in Kaguya's hand.
As spring arrived, bringing with it blooming flowers and revitalized life, the peace was abruptly shattered by the cruelty of war. The Revolutionary Army and the Empire intensified their offensives, with battles growing increasingly fierce. The Revolutionary Army, in particular, seemed desperate, throwing everything they had into the fight, pushing the conflict into a new phase of intensity.
The reason for this sudden push was the entry of Kaguya's Imperial Guard into the conflict, forcing the Revolutionary Army to launch a preemptive strike. They couldn't afford to wait for Kaguya's forces to arrive, which would leave them sandwiched between the Empire's army and Kaguya's.
During this time, envoys from the Revolutionary Army frequently arrived, seeking to negotiate a temporary ceasefire with Kaguya. They hoped to agree on a mutual non-aggression pact, offering generous terms—land, money, food, and even a dozen beautiful maidens. However, these maidens didn't even make it to Kaguya's palace before being coldly turned away by Kurome.
Kurome then gave Kaguya the cold shoulder for several days, leaving Kaguya perplexed. Did everyone think she was that lecherous?
Kaguya firmly rejected the Revolutionary Army's offer, even when members of Night Raid themselves came to plead with her. At the same time, she led her Imperial Guard in a full-scale assault toward the Empire's capital.
In a war tent, a once-dignified middle-aged man furiously threw his cup to the ground, shattering it into pieces with a sharp crash.
"Damn it!" the man fumed, his face twisted in rage, veins bulging on his forehead. "That bitch dares to disregard me like this!"
This man, in his forties, with a face as sharp as a blade, eyes that burned with intensity, and a thick beard that only added to his rugged appearance, was tall and muscular, his body seemingly brimming with power. He was none other than General Simon, the leader of the Revolutionary Army.