Within the gold-encrusted halls of the palace, a bloated man sat on the stairs leading to the throne, listening to a subordinate's report.
"I see. So such things transpired in the North..."
Taking a large bite of the greasy meat in his right hand without hesitation, the man fell silent for a rare few seconds. His gaze seemed to pierce through layers of obstacles to witness everything occurring on the northern battlefield.
"I acknowledge the situation. You are dismissed."
After a nod, the messenger soldier departed at top speed, leaving the man alone on the stairs.
Generally, only the Emperor should be capable of acting solely on his own whims within such a magnificent palace, indifferent to the attitudes of others. Yet, this man was not the Emperor; he was merely someone by the Emperor's side. However, he remained the greatest mastermind in the world of Akame ga Kill and the Revolutionary Army's primary adversary: Minister Honest.
As Honest pondered northern affairs, the sound of approaching footsteps caught his attention. He immediately stood from the steps, performing the basic requirements of etiquette.
"Your Majesty!"
A young boy, appearing about five years old, emerged from a side passage flanked by maids. He soon entered Honest's line of sight.
Perhaps because he saw his most loyal subordinate, the boy wore a look of sincere joy. Ignoring the nervousness of the maids, he jogged to Honest's side.
"Minister, We have come to find you again. We hope it is no intrusion?"
"Of course not. Your Majesty is the most important matter in the Empire. How could you ever be an intrusion?"
Facing the young Emperor's inquiry, Honest flashed a brilliant smile, appearing for all the world like a man coaxing a child.
That was the reality. The boy was the Emperor of the Empire, a child in every sense of the word. Because the previous Emperor and Empress died young, the boy—having no siblings—was forced to ascend the throne and become the sovereign of a nation at a tender age.
"It is somewhat shameful. The Empire currently relies entirely on the Minister to function. Because We are so young, We truly lack the energy to handle these matters... it is a great burden on you."
"How could it be a burden?" Honest's demeanor never wavered. "Devoting myself to the Empire is my duty as Minister. I naturally cannot let Your Majesty feel disappointed!"
"Furthermore, the late Emperor entrusted everything to this old official. I shall give my all!"
Scenes of the late Emperor and Empress dying miserable deaths flashed through Honest's mind, yet his expression remained unchanged. Deep down, he felt only mockery. He poisoned them both; the Empire existed now in name only.
Most importantly, the little Emperor was in his grasp. The future of the Empire belonged to him.
He could do whatever he pleased.
"To have a subject like the Minister, We truly feel deeply gratified!"
The young Emperor nodded with a smile, but the expression soon vanished. When he arrived, he spotted the pensive look on the Minister's face from a distance.
"But Minister, has some trouble occurred recently? Your expression was quite poor just now. Is there anything We can do to help?"
"Your Majesty has eyes like jewels; this old official truly cannot hide anything!"
After offering a brief compliment, the Minister recalled the previous report and relayed the events to the young Emperor. Although the Emperor was young, he listened to the Minister's reports daily to become a wise ruler, checking if anything significant occurred within the Empire or its borders.
According to the young Emperor's own words, this was his cultivation to become a king. Even if his energy flagged, he wanted to personally understand the internal state of the Empire so the Minister wouldn't have to toil alone.
"The matter is thus..."
A few months ago, the Empire dispatched an army of 300,000, dealing a fatal blow to the Northern Banri tribes. This triggered total chaos within the Northern Empire. The Northern King's imperial power was weakened to an unprecedented degree, leaving him unable to even command his subordinate nobles.
Honest planned all of this. Once the entire North fell into turmoil, he would send troops again without hesitation to seize the entire region. Naturally, the Revolutionary Army would interfere, and the Empire would eventually find a way to counter them.
But before that, the North had to break first.
Honest received word that the old Northern King was assassinated by someone unnoticed. This made the already chaotic northern situation worse, even putting the Northern Empire at risk of total collapse.
The cause lay in the actions of a few nights ago. According to Imperial scouts, several nobles formed a coalition to assemble a powerful army, intending to directly seize the Northern Prince, Numa Seika.
It looked as though they intended to follow Honest's own example—taking the "Son of Heaven" hostage to command the feudal lords.
Honest originally intended to think highly of them due to their shared experience, assuming their operation would succeed. But they failed.
"As expected of the Banri tribes!"
Compared to himself, born in the Empire, those people were pathetic. They couldn't even handle a single Prince?
This string of events caused Honest's judgment of the North to shift once more. Were these northern foreigners really this weak?
However, one name surfaced that piqued Honest's interest. This person led the Prince's army to crush the rebellious officials, and using that merit, became a prominent figure by Numa Seika's side.
Supposedly a woman?
The name seemed to be Cerydra.
"Hahaha! Your Majesty, is this not interesting?"
"Mmm, indeed. We did not expect that northern Prince to have such a subordinate... should we do something?"
The young Emperor was thoughtful, but how could a five-year-old have a solution? Ultimately, he looked to the Minister, seeking guidance with his eyes.
"We should indeed do something... a probe would be best!"
Based on reports from the northern scouts, the coalition of northern nobles was wiped out.
Total annihilation meant no news leaked out. Cerydra's side could completely rewrite the history of that war, for history is written by the victors. Even as shrewd as Minister Honest, he couldn't know every detail. To prevent the Northern Empire from expanding and returning to its former strength, he needed to send scouts to test the opponent's power.
If the opponent only won against that 60,000-strong army through sheer luck, the Minister wouldn't do anything extra. But if the opponent hid key information and sought to rise again...
Then Honest would not stand idly by.
"Your Majesty, let us first send a small unit to test them. If the opponent truly possesses great strength..."
"Then we shall send a powerful General to thoroughly eliminate them! I believe the newly appointed General Najenda would be quite suitable!"
"Mmm!" The Minister's words brought a smile back to the young Emperor's face, deepening his trust in the man.
"Then We shall leave it to the Minister!"