Three days later.
The bustling streets of the Imperial Capital were lined with countless shops of dazzling variety.
Delicate jewelry displayed in glass windows caught the eyes of customers, antique stores in narrow alleys displayed rare treasures steeped in time, enticing aromas of coffee drifted from cafés, and the smoky fragrance of grilled meat wafted from street food stalls, drawing in an endless stream of hungry patrons.
Even though cities and villages outside the Imperial Capital suffered under heavy taxes and tyrannical rule, barely scraping by, the capital beneath the Emperor's feet remained lively and prosperous, painting a picture of affluence and abundance.
If a foreign traveler were to arrive in the capital, they would have no idea that this thousand-year-old empire was facing its greatest internal crisis and unrest.
Leone, the assassin from Night Raid, was currently lying on the rooftop of a building, cautiously peeking her head out.
In the direction of her gaze sat a tall woman with smooth ice-blue hair and eyes, exuding a cool and mature aura. She sat on a wooden bench outside a shop, leisurely enjoying some highly-praised local delicacies.
If not for the crisp, form-fitting white military uniform she wore, anyone would have mistaken her for a tourist visiting the capital.
The citizens of the Empire might not know who she was, but Leone was all too familiar with that face.
She was the very target Leone was seeking—Esdeath, one of the Empire's two great generals.
Conquering the Forest in the South and defeating foreign tribes in the North, Esdeath fame was now at its peak within the Empire.
She had quelled the Empire's external threats by herself. With her mission complete and returning from the frontier, it was obvious even without thinking what kind of task the court would assign her next.
Esdeath was one of the Revolutionary Army's greatest enemies.
If she could be eliminated in advance, who knew how many obstacles would be cleared from the Revolutionary Army's path, and how many lives of righteous comrades could be saved from being wasted?
So when Leone saw that Esdeath had returned to the capital, she decided that after wrapping up her current tasks in a few days, she would find a way to infiltrate the inner city and assassinate her.
Esdeath would be staying in the capital for quite some time—there was no need to rush.
Originally, Leone planned to first find the last hometown companion of Tatsumi.
If that girl named Yoshino ended up experiencing the same fate as Ieyasu and Sayo in the capital, Tatsumi—who had only just begun to recover from the deaths of his comrades—would definitely spiral back into despair.
However, just as Leone had begun searching for Yoshino, she received word that Esdeath had appeared in the outer city.
Such an opportunity could not be missed.
So, she immediately changed her current objective and came here.
"Oi oi, are you kidding me..."
Leone body froze in place as she watched Esdeath sitting openly on a bench, nonchalantly enjoying her ice cream with no defenses whatsoever.
This wasn't because she was searching for a chance to strike.
It was because she had been completely overwhelmed by the killing intent emanating from this general—an ominous sense of death had paralyzed her into stillness.
As the wielder of the Imperial Arm Beast King: Lionelle, Leone had gained not only the physical traits of a Danger Beast, but also a beast-like heightened intuition.
This intuition had saved her life countless times before.
She knew very well—it would save her again this time.
Though she had planned to hunt Esdeath, at this very moment Leone heart was filled with thoughts of retreat.
In this hunt, she now understood who the real hunter was—and who the prey truly was.
"Just as Boss said... this kind of monster isn't someone I can defeat alone."
Leone swallowed hard and slowly backed away.
She didn't even dare make a large movement, afraid of startling her target.
But just as she was preparing to withdraw, her peripheral vision caught sight of a figure that made her freeze mid-step.
It was a small girl with blue hair and blue eyes, wearing a green bunny-hooded outfit.
On her right hand was a puppet shaped like a bunny.
The bunny puppet looked left and right as if admiring the street scenery, occasionally waving its tiny arm in excitement.
In contrast, the girl herself wore a blank expression, eyes fixed straight ahead, making it hard to tell which one was alive and which one wasn't.
"Blue hair and blue eyes, about twelve years old, wearing a green bunny coat, and a bunny hand puppet on her right hand..."
Quickly matching the traits in her mind, Leone eyes lit up with surprise: "I can't believe I ran into her here! Talk about effortless success!"
Just like that, her target shifted back to Yoshino once again.
Her attempt to assassinate Esdeath had only been a test run—no one had officially assigned her that mission.
Even if it failed, it wouldn't matter.
But if she could find Yoshino and arrange for her to reunite with Tatsumi, then these extra days spent in the capital wouldn't be in vain.
"For now, I'll follow her quietly and talk to her when the time is right," Leone murmured, carefully concealing her presence. "As long as I tell her I know where Tatsumi is, she'll definitely come with me, wanting to reunite with a fellow villager."
However, just as Leone was about to distance herself from Esdeath and tail Yoshino, she noticed something strange.
Plop.
As if she had seen something unbelievable, the usually cold-blooded general—who didn't even flinch after burying 400,000 Northern tribesmen alive—was now vigorously rubbing her eyes like she had just woken up from a confusing dream.
Her gaze remained fixed on Yoshino, following her every move. She didn't even notice the ice cream falling from her hand onto the ground.
It wasn't until Yoshino was about to disappear into the crowd that Esdeath seemed to snap back to reality. She abruptly stood up and strode quickly in Yoshino direction.
"Hey hey! Wait a minute! What the hell is going on here!?"
Caught off guard by the sudden development, Leone panicked.
Her instincts screamed that Esdeath had set her sights on Yoshino.
She didn't know the reason, but if she failed to assassinate Esdeath today and failed to bring back Yoshino, how could she possibly explain herself to Najenda?
With no time to hesitate, she prepared to follow them.
But just as she stepped forward on the rooftop—
Esdeath suddenly whipped her head around.
Her icy gaze pierced through Leone position. Her lips moved slightly, forming the word:
"Leave."
I've been found!
Leone hair stood on end.
So, all this time, Esdeath had known exactly where she was!
If she had tried to attack Esdeath earlier, she would definitely be the one dead now!
In fact, maybe the real reason Esdeath had come to the outer city was to lure out Night Raid's assassins into her trap!
Overwhelmed by intense fear, Leone mind went blank. She didn't even care about trailing Tatsumi fellow villager anymore—she just turned tail and ran for her life.
"How sensible,"
Watching her little shadow retreat in fear, Esdeath let out a cold chuckle.
Still, she didn't pursue. The fact that the enemy had come alone meant they were confident in their escape abilities.
While Esdeath had unmatched strength, chasing was never her strong suit.
Besides—she had something more important to do.
Esdeath turned her head, ready to resume her pursuit—only to freeze in place.
Because that green silhouette had already vanished into the crowd—nowhere to be found.