"Ah, General Esdeath!" Only after seeing Esdeath's face did Bols react, exclaiming loudly.
"That hurts... but it seems even our superior is a bit odd!" Wave got up from the ground, staring blankly at Esdeath.
Then, after Esdeath showed a smile, she led everyone towards the imperial palace.
"Were you surprised by that prank just now? I just thought a regular welcome ceremony would be too boring." Along the way, Esdeath said calmly.
"I'm used to being treated roughly." Hearing her words, Wave awkwardly said.
"Good. Then after we have an audience with His Majesty, we'll have a party!" Esdeath said lightly.
"S...suddenly meeting His Majesty?" Hearing her words, Wave was stunned.
"Starting from day one, the schedule is full of surprises." Ran also said in surprise.
"It's better to get troublesome things done quickly." Esdeath said calmly.
"By the way, General Esdeath, have we decided on our team's name?" Dr. Stylish looked at Esdeath's back with a charming gaze.
"We are an organization with independent mobility that relentlessly hunts vicious rebels. Therefore, we are named the Special Police: [Jaegers]."
...
The next day, Takeru came to the secret base in the capital. This place was like an old bookstore shop. After entering, Lubbock directly pushed aside some books in a certain spot, revealing a special passageway before Takeru and the others.
"This is my proud secret base!" Looking at Takeru, Lubbock boasted.
Takeru showed a faint smile and nodded.
Walking inside, Leone and the others were already waiting.
"Yo, welcome to the capital's secret base!" Seeing Takeru arrive, Leone rushed over and hugged him.
"Leone, you're too laid-back!" Seeing Leone's action, Mine said angrily.
"Eh, Mine, you're not jealous, are you?" Hearing Mine's words, Leone said with a light laugh.
"N...nonsense..." Hearing Leone's words, Mine reacted as if her tail had been stepped on, completely bristling.
"Alright, the most important thing now is to discuss the [Jaegers] matter." Seeing Leone and Mine fighting over Takeru's attention, Lubbock said somewhat jealously.
"Hmph, what's there to discuss? No matter who they are, as long as they come, just crush them!" Mine said dismissively.
"Naive." Hearing Mine's words, Leone said lightly.
"What did you say, you big-breasted woman!" Hearing Leone's words, Mine said angrily.
"Alright, enough of that. Regarding the Capital Citizen Martial Arts Tournament hosted by Esdeath, I plan to go participate and see if there's a chance to investigate them." Separating the two about to argue, Takeru directly said.
"Eh, what if you're in danger?" Hearing Takeru's words, the two also said worriedly.
"Don't worry. You're still not confident in my strength? And my identity hasn't been exposed. How could there be danger?" Hearing their words, Takeru said calmly.
Although it's called the Capital Citizen Martial Arts Tournament, Takeru knew very well that Esdeath's main purpose was something akin to a martial contest to find a husband.
Additionally, there was the goal of recruiting strong individuals into the Jaegers.
Takeru had been in this world for about twenty days now. After spending this time with Night Raid, he had gained a deeper understanding of this world.
Accordingly, Takeru had also determined how to plan his future actions in this world.
And now, with a chance to openly interact with Esdeath, Takeru wasn't prepared to give it up. She was a relatively important figure in Takeru's plans.
"But... but..." Hearing Takeru's words, Mine pursed her lips, feeling extremely reluctant.
"Don't worry. I won't act recklessly. And it happens that Boss isn't here now. I'll find an opportunity to see if I can get into the capital to start investigating. You all just wait for my good news." Seeing Mine's expression, Takeru gently rubbed her head to comfort her.
Feeling Takeru's gentle caress, Mine stopped saying more, instead showing an expression of enjoyment like a docile kitten.
"So unfair, I want some too!" Seeing this, Leone squeezed over, wanting Takeru to treat them equally.
Looking at Leone, who clearly had a mature, older sister vibe but now acted like a little sister, Takeru shook his head with amusement and also stroked her hair to comfort her.
Lubbock, seeing Takeru living the winner's life, could only gnaw on his collar with envy and jealousy.
Soon, amidst the playful chaos, another day passed. Today was the day of the martial arts tournament. Since it wasn't his turn yet, Takeru sat boredly in the spectator stands, watching the people fighting, and also saw Esdeath sitting on the throne.
Watching everyone's fights, Takeru felt quite bored. Esdeath also seemed very bored.
After all, her goal wasn't to have fun with the citizens, but to find her ideal husband or replenish the Jaegers' personnel.
"What do you think of them?" Ran asked Esdeath gently from the side.
"All are boring matches born from uninteresting talent. As expected, people who can use Teigus won't appear easily." Esdeath said without hesitation.
"Alright, now it's the final group. East team, Karubee! West team, Nara Takeru!" Wave quickly gave a brief introduction.
The crowd below the arena also erupted in cheers.
"One side seems to be just a boy." Noticing Takeru's still-youthful appearance, Ran also said in surprise.
"Well, so it's a brat. The prize money will be mine then. Though I was expelled, I reached 9th dan at the Royal Fist Temple." Karubee, who looked somewhat like a minotaur, looked at Takeru and said with faint mockery.
Looking at his developed muscles, even larger than Takeru's by two sizes, Takeru showed a gentle smile.
"Is that so? Can we start the match?" Hearing his words, Takeru instead looked at Wave beside him.
"You brat, I'll definitely flatten you!" Seeing Takeru so dismissive of him, Karubee showed an angry expression.
"Match begin!" Seeing Takeru so confident, Wave was also somewhat surprised, because he couldn't sense any aura of strength from Takeru. But as the host now, he could only quickly announce the start of the fight.
"Hmph, taste my Full Burst Iron Fist!" As Wave's voice fell, Karubee, who had been ready and waiting, raised his fist high and fiercely punched towards Takeru's head.
"Boring." Looking at Karubee's rapid attack, whether in terms of power or speed, it couldn't spark any interest in Takeru.
Casually extending a palm, his attack soon hit Takeru's hand. Apart from the tremendous force cracking the stone platform beneath Takeru's feet, it caused no harm to Takeru whatsoever.
Karubee, the attacker, widened his eyes, feeling as if his punch had hit some terrifying steel wall, unable to advance even a fraction.
Then, refusing to believe it, he retracted his fist and launched continuous heavy attacks at Takeru again. But facing his assaults, Takeru still only used one hand to block them all.
"This farce should end." After blocking over a dozen punches, Takeru felt continuing like this was a waste of time.
With a slight movement, before Karubee could even react, Takeru appeared right in front of him. Looking at his muscular abdomen, Takeru punched simply.
There's no spectacular explosion! Not even a loud punching sound. But it was this seemingly casual attack from Takeru that made Karubee, who was still preparing for a fierce assault, suddenly have his pupils contract in shock.
Then, clutching his stomach in agony, he fell to the ground, unable to move.
Takeru's attack, however, caught the interest of Esdeath, who had been bored on her throne. Ran beside her also exclaimed in surprise, "That boy is promising material!"
"That's the end! The winner is Nara Takeru!" Seeing Karubee's state, Wave quickly announced the result.
"Oh...!" Seeing Takeru's small frame easily take down the seemingly immensely strong Karubee, the crowd in the arena erupted in loud cheers.
Infected by the crowd, Takeru unconsciously revealed a smile.
Esdeath, who was watching Takeru closely, noticed his smile and blushed slightly.
"Found him!" Esdeath said happily.
"You mean a candidate for the Jaegers, right?" Hearing Esdeath's words, Ran quickly said.
"That's included, but I'm referring to other matters." Hearing Ran's words, Esdeath said calmly, while slowly walking towards Takeru.