Chapter 33

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Sitting in her office chair, Anna read Ghost's report on the defecting generals. Nakaido and his soldiers were now hiding in the Ornngol Forest in the south-west - it was strange that he had chosen a forest teeming with dangerous beasts as his hiding place, but on the other hand, no one would dare to look for him there. General Hami, on the other hand, did something simpler and decided to fortify himself in the long abandoned fortress of Koupne in the west.

- Is the information reliable? - Anna clarified.

- Yes, General. I've left a couple of scouts to keep an eye on them in case any of them want to change their hideout. - Ghost reported.

Anna shifted her gaze to the map of the Empire. The situation is quite interesting at the moment - although the revolutionaries have a common goal and they pretend to be united, in reality they are a rather fragmented organisation. And despite the fact that the Revolutionary Army has financial support from outside, as well as a few defected generals, they simply cannot find a common language among themselves. Also before that the revolutionaries had plans for the Path of Peace, those with human and financial resources could level the playing field in a war with the Empire, but now, after the death of Borik and the revolutionaries in the east, the cult has started to stick to neutrality. As for the Night Raid... they're only a threat to the Empire because they have teigu and kill powerful aristocrats, but overall they don't change the balance of power in any way. Anna was even starting to get frustrated with them, because while they owned the teigu, they didn't try to eliminate the truly important pieces on the chessboard. It was puzzling - why, with such power, were they killing drug dealers and "greedy" nobles, but not trying to do something bigger?

- What about former Prime Minister Chowry and other officials? - Anna asked in all seriousness, looking into Ghost's eyes that were hidden by the mask.

- My men have delivered the messages and they have given their consent.

- Great... Does father know yet?

- I told him first thing.

- Then I can rest assured.

- One more thing.

- М?

- Leon's hunch was confirmed: the Reid are indeed hiding north of the Capital in the mountains. They're using a rock fortress as their headquarters.

- A fortress, you said.

- Yes, because of its location, it looks unremarkable from the outside, like an ordinary mountain. They also have a signalling system made up of almost invisible strands.

- Well, that's useful information... I'll have to tell Leon. Dismissed.

After saluting, Ghost left the office, and as Anna reached into her pocket for her cigarettes, there was a knock on the door. Putting the pack back in her pocket and assuming a working look, the girl shifted her gaze to the door.

- General Anna, permission to enter! - addressed Seriu.

- Permission granted.

The girl, holding Koro in one hand, opened the door and, going inside, stood in front of the General, saluting her.

- General, report! General Leon was not at home. General Esdeath wasn't there either. - Saying this, Serue was breathing heavily; it was evident that she was in a hurry to report this news.

- 'I see...' said Anna, looking out the window from where the palace was visible.

- Should we start looking for them?

- No. - Anna answered firmly. - I already know where both of them are.

***

[Imperial Palace]

The awakening for Leon was sudden. Feeling a thump in his side, he opened his eye and looked around the room.

Esdeath had offered to spend the night in her apartments in the palace, and though he tried to politely decline, the girl was stubbornly insistent. In the end, realising that this person could not be persuaded, he had to agree. Esdeath's apartment was furnished with quality and expensive furniture, but everything looked rather modest. However, Leon's attention was focused on the single bed and on Esdeath, whose embarrassment was visible to the naked eye. It wasn't hard to guess what she was thinking, so Leon headed straight for the couch. At that point Esdeath tried to convince Leon to sleep on the bed, but he was unwavering in his decision, "We're not that close." - he said at the time.

Asleep, Leon tried to move, but his body was immediately pressed against Esdeath, who was now lying next to him. She was sniffling and smiling softly in her sleep, cuddling the young man, and he was awakened by the girl's leg, which she threw over him as if it were her own.

"Impudence is second happiness..." - flashed through Leon's mind, looking at the completely satisfied expression on the girl's face.

He managed to get out of the unusual captivity, and then went to the bathroom to tidy up.

It was strange to Leon that he didn't wake up when the girl lay down next to him, even though there wasn't much room on the couch. The thought arose that his instincts didn't see Esdeath and her actions as a threat, so he continued to sleep soundly... or maybe she was the one who could masterfully conceal her presence, and given the fact that this person often hunts dangerous monsters, it made this version more likely.

Coming out of the bathroom, Leon went to the rack and, taking his uniform, began to put it on. In general, the uniform the guy wore was tailor-made for people like him - the material was strong enough to withstand a stabbing or a pistol shot, but it wouldn't save him from a sniper rifle shot.

Putting on his uniform, Leon looked around the room once more. Looking out the window, the guy decided to go out on the balcony, and as he approached the door, he heard a low moan from Esdeath, who continued to sleep on the couch.

Walking over to the couch, Leon looked at the girl again - tall slender body, slightly white skin, blue hair. No one had ever denied the fact that Esdeath was beautiful, but her fame as a sadistic general had thickened the colours. Looking at the girl's peacefully sleeping peaceful face, Leon smiled with the edges of his lips.

"Just don't wake up..."

One hand slid under the girl's legs and the other lay on her back. Picking up the still sleeping Esdeath, Leon carried her over to the bed and, breathing a sigh of relief that she hadn't woken up when he picked her up, walked off to the balcony, leaving the girl to catch up on her sleep.

Finally stepping out onto the balcony, Leon sat down on the chair that was already there and looked out over the city. It was about six in the morning now, the sun was slowly rising, illuminating the Capital City. Looking at such a seemingly ordinary phenomenon, Leon caught himself admiring it. If he remembered like this, he had glimpsed things he thought were beautiful before, and once upon a time he hadn't really cared much for it. Had the return of his memory changed him so much... though the change was minor.

With a glance at his katana, Leon took it out of its sheath and set it on the table, then ran his hand over the black blade. How much blood had he shed with this weapon and how much more would he shed...? Even when his puppet shackles fell, he was still a soldier in the service of the state. I remember his father was also a military man... or rather a policeman. And so it was interesting that Leon had partly followed in his footsteps and even further, since he was now a major general and deputy head of the Secret Imperial Police.

- Ironic...

Esdeath, meanwhile, was beginning to wake up, slowly opening her eyes and getting out of bed. Stretching to get rid of the drowsiness, she did not immediately realise that she was lying on her bed, although she remembered that she had fallen asleep on the couch with her lover. And, remembering Leon, she sharply shifted her gaze to the sofa, but found no one there. Her eyes began to dart around the room, and, noticing the open door to the balcony, she got out of bed and walked slowly towards it.

Her hunch was correct - Leon was sitting on a chair, examining his katana. Esdeath breathed a sigh of relief, already thinking that her lover had escaped. She slowly approached the boy and when she was close behind him, she wrapped Leon in a hug.

- Good morning. - Leon greeted, looking at the girl out of the corner of his eye.

- Good morning to you, too. - Esdeath wished him good morning, having stopped hugging the boy and sitting down at the next chair. - Any plans for today?

- No plans today.

- If you don't have any plans, maybe we can go hunting together? - the girl suggested.

- Where would we hunt? I've been hunting a couple of times and I know that really strong monsters are found somewhere in the thousands of kilometres from the capital. - Pointing in the distance, Leon said.

- Believe me, it's not a problem. I know the fastest way for us to get there.

- How?

- You'll see. - she said with a sly smile.

- You love secrets... By the way, why don't you change your clothes? - Leon suggested, looking at the girl, who was again in her (apparently favourite) shirt with the top unbuttoned.

- Why? It's my room, I wear what I want. - Esdeath shrugged it off, adopting a relaxed pose.

- And you're not embarrassed of me at all. Even in my house.

- You are my lover, why should I be ashamed?

- What if a soldier bursts into the room with an urgent report? - Leon suggested.

- I'd like to see that suicide. - Esdeath grinned. - No one dares to barge into my room. Not even Commander Budo himself.

- What about me? - Leon decided to ask.

- You're an exception. I'd be happy to see you anytime.

- That's a tempting privilege.

- By the way, you haven't had breakfast yet, have you?

- No," he said with a shake of his head.

- Then I'll have the servants prepare breakfast for us. I won't be long.

Esdeath got up from the chair and went to her room, and Leon looked at the cityscape for a while, and then returned to the girl's room.

With nothing to do, Leon just started walking around the room, looking at the local luxuries. Paintings, vases, and other antiques whose sole purpose was to speak for the owner about his wealth and status. As Leon continued to walk around the room, he noticed an iron cross lying on the table. Quickly picking it up and examining it more closely, he realised he was mistaken. It was the Esdeath cross that the girl wore on her uniform, as did her soldiers... though it remotely resembled the Balkenkreuz of the Wehrmacht. Leon even found it strange that he hadn't noticed it before.

Walking over to the mirror, the young man brought the cross up to his neck, roughly where Reich officers usually wore the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.

"It really does look like it..." - Leon thought.

Esdeath, who had returned to her room with the maid who was carrying the tray of food, looked at Leon with a surprised look as he tried on her symbol.

- Have you already thought of joining my army? - Esdeath asked with amazement and joy in her voice.

- No... I just remembered a military honour from my homeland. - Leon explained, putting the cross aside.

- It's a pity... And I was already happy. - mumbled the girl. - By the way, it would suit you.

Leon only grinned.

- Well, let's eat.

The maid left the food on the table, and then, bowing, left the general's chambers. Esdeath sat down at the table and gestured to Leon.

- Enjoy your meal. - Leon wished her and sat down at the table.

- You too. - The girl wished him a good meal.

***

For Leon, travelling on a flying beast was new to him. As it turned out, Esdeath had decided to get to the hunting ground on her personal tamed monster, which looked like a dragon, except that it didn't breathe fire. The monster had a large back, so it could probably hold four or five people at most.

Sitting on the beast's broad back, Leon looked down, watching the forests, rivers, and villages as they flew by. According to Esdeath, it wouldn't take them long to arrive at the right place, and while they were flying, they could enjoy the view.

- What do you think?! - Esdeath asked, almost shouting as the wind drowned out any sound.

- It's quite unusual! Do you always move like this?!

- No! Only when I need to cover long distances quickly!

- It's handy! How did you tame it?! - the young man asked.

- Quite simple! You just have to show it who's in charge and then train it!

- It's really impressive!

Esdeath only smiled at the compliment.

- I can teach you too! With your strength, it's hardly a problem!

- By the way, I take it you've chosen a hunting ground in advance?!

- Yes! It's a forest southwest of the capital, so we'll be there by nightfall.

- Does the forest have a name?

- Yes! It's called the Ornngol Forest! Why do you ask?!

- I was just wondering.