The Revolutionary Army leader ran desperately with his followers, his thoughts a chaotic whirl of shock and ambition.
Night Raid, along with that mysterious man, had seized the Imperial Palace ahead of them.
But it didn't matter.
They had their million-strong army, and he was confident that it would be more than enough to reclaim the capital and the palace.
His eyes burned with fervor.
As long as they reached the army, as long as he stood before them—he would reclaim the throne and crown himself as the new Emperor of the Empire!
"Huh…"
The group came to an abrupt halt as they exited the city.
In front of them, a formation of soldiers clad in elite armor blocked their path.
These were not their soldiers.
Behind the formation loomed massive ice mountains, their transparent surfaces revealing frozen soldiers trapped within, their faces locked in expressions of terror.
"Hiss!"
The eerie, bone-chilling cold made their skin crawl, and goosebumps rose along their arms.
"Revolutionary Army, foreign tribes—do you have any true warriors among you?"
A cold, commanding voice echoed across the battlefield.
Standing before the army was Esdeath, clad in her military uniform, her sharp sword gleaming as she pointed it toward the Revolutionary Army leaders and foreign tribal chiefs.
Her lips curved into a cruel smile.
"I'm giving you an opportunity. A chance to die with honor."
"Es… Esdeath…"
The Revolutionary Army leader instinctively swallowed hard, fear gripping his chest.
Esdeath's infamy was unmatched; her name alone struck terror into hearts across the land.
But he couldn't comprehend why she was here.
"Why… Why are you here?!"
The capital had been captured. The Emperor, the ministers, the nobles—everyone had reportedly been killed.
How was Esdeath, the Empire's most feared general, still alive?
And why was she standing in their way?
The answer was simple: Esdeath had chosen to be here.
When Rei Ao offered her the chance to massacre enemies to her heart's content, she eagerly accepted.
To her, the million-strong army and their leaders were nothing more than playthings to break.
Rei Ao had only one request:
Anyone who refused to submit must be killed.
Under Esdeath's ruthless command, the once-million-strong army had already been reduced to less than 400,000.
The weak are meant to die.
Esdeath saw no value in their lives, and Rei Ao had no objections to her methods.
Esdeath sneered, her sword gleaming as she raised it toward them.
"You have no right to choose your fate."
"The only option left to you is battle."
Her eyes burned with maniacal glee as her grin widened.
"The victors will live. The defeated will perish. Come, let us slaughter one another!"
While Esdeath reveled in the thrill of battle, others found themselves lost in thought.
Inside the grand bathing pool of the now-cleansed palace, several women sat submerged in the warm water, their expressions dazed.
For Mai Sakurajima and the others, the day's events had been a harrowing ordeal.
Blood, dismembered bodies, and the countless lives they had taken replayed endlessly in their minds.
The weight of their actions left them feeling numb, even nauseous, as they tried to process it all.
The bath was eerily silent.
The only ones who seemed unaffected were Rei, Kajika, Ayame, and Saeko Busujima.
Sitting beside Saeko, Mai couldn't help but voice the question gnawing at her.
"You… you don't feel anything about killing, do you?"
The other women, including Megumi Kato and Sonoko Machida, turned their attention to Saeko.
Calmly, Saeko opened her eyes, her serene gaze meeting Mai's.
Through the rising steam, Mai noticed how Saeko's form seemed unshakable, her presence steady as ever.
Saeko turned to face Mai fully, her expression unreadable.
"Are you asking me what it feels like to take a life?"
Mai hesitated, then nodded.
Saeko's ruthless efficiency during the battle had left an impression on all of them.
She had killed without hesitation, without any sign of remorse.
Saeko regarded her quietly before speaking, her tone steady and unwavering.
"You're confused, aren't you? All of you are."
Mai lowered her head, her hands trembling in the water.
"Yes…"
She stared at her palms, still glistening with droplets.
Though clean, she couldn't shake the sensation of blood staining them, an indelible mark on her memory.
Saeko sighed softly.
She placed a firm yet gentle hand on Mai's shoulder, her words measured.
"I won't lie to you. I can't give you peace or erase the weight of what you've done."
Her gaze swept over the others.
"Killing… is never easy, and it never should be."
She paused, letting her words sink in before continuing.
"But if you want to find peace, you must first find your purpose. Choose a path you can accept, a reason that will give meaning to your actions."
Saeko turned her gaze back to Mai, her tone soft but resolute.
"For me, my purpose is clear: I am Rei Ao's blade. My duty is to cut down anyone who stands in his way."
So her blade was swift and deadly.
Even in the imperial palace's grand hall, Saeko Busujima had executed a Revolutionary Army with a single, decisive strike for speaking out of turn.
Next to Yumiko, Ayame nodded.
"That's right, I feel the same."
She exchanged a glance with Kajika.
"Our lives were saved by Rei Ao-sama. We're willing to give everything for him."
Rei Miyamoto, sitting between Megumi Kato and Saya Takagi, nodded in agreement.
But her situation differed slightly.
"In my world, before all this, I had already killed someone…"
"Koichi Shido!"
Saya Takagi immediately blurted the name, her expression twisting with anger at the memory.
"Koichi Shido…"
Yuriko Takagi frowned, her sharp gaze showing recognition.
"That was your teacher, wasn't it? It sounds like something serious happened."
"Yes…"
Saya Takagi's face darkened as she recounted everything that had happened that day.
"A teacher like that… truly deserved to die."
Yuriko's eyes were fierce.
If she'd been there, she wouldn't have hesitated to deal with such a man herself.
And Rei Miyamoto had done exactly that.
"To be honest, after killing Shido, I was terrified. I was afraid that I had become a murderer," Rei admitted.
"But you killed someone who deserved it," Yumiko interjected.
She didn't see anything wrong with what Rei had done.
People like Shido deserved to die!
Rei smiled gently.
"You're right. Eventually, I came to understand that I had done the right thing by killing him. Once I realized that, the fear disappeared."
Seeing that the conversation was taking a positive turn, Rei turned her smile toward the others.
"Don't you think our current situation is quite similar?"
The group fell silent.
Megumi Kato was the first to break it, her tone contemplative.
"The people we killed were accomplices to the Empire's corruption. They helped maintain its oppressive rule."
Mai Sakurajima seemed to have an epiphany.
"Are you saying… they deserved to die too?"
Rei shook her head.
"I don't know for certain. What I do know is that, from our perspective—and Rei Ao's perspective—they were obstacles, enemies."
Her voice became firmer.
"We killed our enemies, and they would have killed us if given the chance. In that sense, life and death were equal on the battlefield."
Sui scoffed, her expression full of disdain.
"If they're Rei Ao's enemies, and dirty humans on top of that, then they deserved to die."
Shizue nodded.
"At the very least, the Empire's future will change because of this."
The conversation seemed to ease the tension within the group.
Saya Takagi sighed, running a hand through her hair in frustration.
"Seriously, all this reflection… it's just about that guy, isn't it?"
The group shared a knowing, awkward silence.
After all, they were all Rei Ao's women.
This mutual understanding made the atmosphere a little uncomfortable.
Saya broke the silence by turning to Saeko.
"Saeko, you came in late. Did you finish dealing with the Revolutionary Army? What's that guy doing now? And what about Akame and the others?"
Saeko's expression shifted slightly, a faint smile appearing on her lips.
"Rei Ao? Well…"
She paused for a moment, then suggested, "Why don't we just ask him directly?"
[Main Chat Group]
Saeko Busujima: "@Rei Ao, Rei Ao, Saya wants to know what you're doing right now."
Rei Ao: "Oh, just the usual. You know, making love and stuff."
Stella: "Hmm?"
[Ding! Rei Ao has started a livestream!]
The group instinctively clicked on the notification.
The moment they entered the livestream, they were greeted by an overwhelming sight.
Frieren: "Wow… that's… a lot?"
Saeko Busujima: "Well, there were six trades, after all."
Stella: "…"
It was happening again.
Stella, already accustomed to these situations, didn't even bother to react anymore.
The scene felt strangely routine by this point.
"I… I hate this…"
Her actions, however, told a different story.
Stella whispered softly, "Why do I keep doing this…"
She, too, gave in to curiosity, though her face burned with embarrassment.
After all, once it started, there was no going back.
Yukino Yukinoshita, however, was utterly unprepared.
The moment she clicked into the livestream, she exited with lightning speed.
Her entire body jolted upright from her bed.
"W-What was that?!"
Her face burned with embarrassment as she clutched her head in disbelief.
"How can something so… inappropriate be livestreamed?"
Her mind, already unsettled by the earlier bloodshed, was now overwhelmed by the chaotic images seared into her memory.
She had heard rumors in the chat group about Rei Ao's outlandish behavior.
But experiencing it firsthand was a completely different story.
The most shell-shocked, however, were Megumi Kato's sister, Hiromi Kato, and a trembling Eriri.
Hiromi, still in disbelief, muttered, "Can this… even be allowed?"
Her thoughts spiraled.
Would Rei Ao's actions one day cause him to self-destruct?
Meanwhile, Eriri lay in Rei Ao's bed, her eyes hollow and voice trembling.
"W-Why… Rei Ao, why are you like this?"
Her mind, already frayed by the gruesome battlefield, was now numb.
Her precious "white moonlight" had been tainted once again!
~~~
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