"That is all for today's training. Everyone is dismissed to rest."
Near the castle, Esdeath led the soldiers through physical conditioning, preparing for future conflicts.
Imperator Cerydra issued orders that they would not take the initiative to attack the territories of other nobles in the short term. To maintain the army's combat effectiveness—and even enhance their strength—the entire castle entered a period of rest and recovery.
Aside from dispatching personnel to surrounding towns to recruit new blood, the priority shifted to training these recruits into an effective fighting force.
The person responsible for this was none other than Esdeath.
Though she was younger than anyone present, in terms of raw combat prowess, Esdeath alone could match hundreds, even thousands.
Originally, this army only truly respected two individuals. One was Cerydra, the supreme leader in name only second to the Prince. The other was Hysilens; the sight of her slaughtering sixty thousand enemies that night still spun vividly in their minds.
Esdeath had not yet performed such a soul-stirring feat, and most did not know her beyond her title as Dux Alptraum.
When this young girl first took command of the military, many voices of dissent naturally surfaced. However, in just a few days, those voices vanished completely.
Esdeath did not kill them. Instead, she used absolute power to show those soldiers exactly who the commander was. Furthermore, because she showed great care for her subordinates, she earned high praise from the officers. From that point on, Esdeath successfully became one of the true leaders of this army.
However, compared to training soldiers, Esdeath cared more about something else.
'I wonder what the Imperator is doing right now?'
If Esdeath was the one the soldiers and officers respected, then Cerydra was the one Esdeath looked up to.
The other's ambition, desires, and methods... all of these stimulated Esdeath, making her yearn to understand this formidable leader. Consequently, after every training session, Esdeath would seek out Cerydra under the pretext of a report, wanting to see exactly what she was up to.
As a subject, Esdeath understood there were things she should know and things she should not. Even so, she wanted to remain by Cerydra's side, just like Hysilens.
It felt a bit strange. While she was assigned the task of recruitment and training, Dux Gladiorium Hysilens made no major moves, instead handling simple tasks... such as tending to the Imperator's daily life.
After observing for a while, Esdeath found the relationship between Hysilens and Cerydra to be more complex than she imagined.
Hysilens was not just the powerful Dux Gladiorium; she was proficient in various daily life skills. If Esdeath didn't know Hysilens' true strength, she might have mistaken her for the castle's housekeeper.
She managed far too much.
'In the future, will I be able to become a capable right hand for the Imperator, just like Hysilens?'
With such thoughts, Esdeath walked toward Cerydra's room. At this hour, the Imperator should be dining.
However, before Esdeath could even reach the door, strange sounds drifted from within...
"Mngh~"
It sounded like a young woman's low moan, seemingly suppressed on purpose. But Esdeath's hearing was exceptional; she identified the owner of the voice instantly.
Hysilens!
The image of Hysilens valiantly slaying enemies on the battlefield flashed through her mind, but it simply would not mesh with such a weak, comfortable sound.
After all, Hysilens was not a fragile girl with a cute way of speaking. How could she make such a noise?
Esdeath instinctively denied it, but her body moved on its own. Suppressing her presence, she crept toward the door step by step, wanting to sense exactly what was happening inside...
"It really... went inside!"
"Nnh~"
Esdeath: ?!
For the past two days, Cerydra and Hysilens were researching one thing: exactly what was going on with the water in Hysilens' abdomen.
They were curious before but lacked the time to discuss it. As nameless nobodies, they had to grow as quickly as possible. But now that Cerydra held the trump card of the Northern Prince and established a strategy of recovery, time became plentiful.
Thus, while Esdeath trained the recruits, Cerydra and Hysilens began their experiment.
Cerydra sat on the throne, her eyes fixed on Hysilens who stood straight before her—specifically on that bubbling midsection.
When controlling that body, there was no special sensation. But when Cerydra reached out to touch Hysilens' bad water, her palm passed directly through the abdomen.
"It really went inside!"
Cerydra thought there might be a membrane or that only Hysilens herself could reach inside, but it seemed anyone could.
"Nnh~"
Sensing the abnormality within her body, Hysilens instinctively let out a sound of pleasure. This sight made Cerydra's eyelids twitch.
Even though she controlled both bodies, instinctual sounds still escaped during certain situations.
Fortunately, no one was nearby. If someone saw this, she would lose a massive amount of face.
Cerydra and Hysilens tried hard to play their roles, but that didn't mean they had to act every second of the day. At the very least, they didn't need to during private time. Otherwise, how much energy would that consume?
It was only because the physical constitution of the Chrysos Heir was stronger than humans that they could play these roles for so long without showing a flaw.
"Since this is real water, I wonder if I can have a taste?"
Looking at Hysilens' abdomen, which was as deep as the ocean with visible ribs, Cerydra could no longer suppress her curiosity. She intended to probe further, but a noise outside the door caused them both to freeze.
It seemed they were discovered...
It's over!