Kaede was walking in front, and Tatsumi was following behind.
"My name is Kaede, a General of this Empire. And you?" Suddenly, Kaede's voice reached Tatsumi's ears.
"I am Tatsumi, a man who set out from a small village with the ambition to save it!" Tatsumi said this in a loud voice. Fortunately, there weren't many people around at this time, and no one called him a bumpkin or anything like that.
"A small village, huh." Kaede nodded. Honestly, Kaede was a bit curious about Tatsumi's village. How remote could it be to not have been affected by the Empire? To actually think about coming to the capital to find a way to save the village.
"Um, about just now..." Tatsumi couldn't bear this heavy atmosphere and spoke up.
"She is my younger sister."
"Um, I know." A helpless expression appeared on Tatsumi's face. As long as you weren't blind, you could tell, right? After all, their faces were almost identical.
"She is now a member of Night Raid." Kaede also knew what Tatsumi wanted to ask. After thinking for a moment, she said it anyway.
"Night Raid?" Tatsumi was startled.
"Mhm." Kaede nodded, then the corners of her mouth curled up, "Come to think of it, Night Raid's goal is similar to ours~"
"Huh? Then they?" Tatsumi was stunned. Aren't they good people then?
"They are enemies," Kaede said directly, without any hesitation. "Even if the goals are the same, I will not allow them to come and go, killing as they please."
"Why?" Tatsumi was stunned.
Kaede looked at Tatsumi and then said, "It's like your own family affairs. If a stranger wants to interfere, even if you know they are there to help you, would you want them to interfere?"
"Uh." Tatsumi thought for a while and then shook his head. It was better to resolve family matters internally.
"Furthermore," Kaede pursed her lips, "there should be someone behind Night Raid. After all, that many Teigu are not something a small organization can obtain. And their ultimate goal is to overthrow this Empire. So, do you still think they are like-minded people?" After speaking, Kaede looked at Tatsumi.
"Ah!" Tatsumi widened his eyes.
"The organization behind them..." Kaede narrowed her eyes. Indeed, an organization like Night Raid must have someone behind it. However, which organization is behind Night Raid?
Kaede leaned more toward it being the Revolutionary Army. After all, in terms of rebel armies, this one was the strongest and could provide so many Teigu. But she couldn't be sure, and there was another possibility: that Night Raid was an organization formed by the union of all rebel armies. If it were that, it would be even more troublesome...
"Um, General, what is this?" Tatsumi looked at the scene in front of him, his eyes widening.
"Hm?" Kaede was stunned for a moment, then looked at the things in front of her, only to realize that they had already arrived here.
In front of them were dozens of crosses, and tied to them were commoners covered in wounds.
"This is a place for punishing criminals. Although they are said to be criminals, I estimate that some of them actually have no crimes at all," Kaede said.
"This... isn't this too cruel? Even if they committed a crime, still..." Tatsumi couldn't quite accept it.
"It is indeed a bit cruel, but this is not something we can change right now. However, we can change one thing." As she said this, the corners of Kaede's mouth curled up.
"And that is, to make sure the people hanging on them are all those who deserve it!"
"Yes!" Tatsumi responded loudly. His mood, which had been a bit difficult to calm, became passionate and stirred up again.
"However..." The smile on Kaede's face suddenly became a bit sinister, making Tatsumi feel that something was wrong.
"I hope you won't end up on one of those. After all, our mission is not simple. If you accomplish it, I can take responsibility for everything, but once you fail..." As she spoke, Kaede narrowed her eyes.
Swallowing his saliva, Tatsumi understood what Kaede meant and nodded.
"That's about it. Mhm, our base is almost here. First..." Kaede paused for a moment, then shrugged her shoulders, "Let's meet your companions first."
"Huh? Companions? Great!" Tatsumi couldn't help but look forward to it. What kind of people would his companions be~
Soon, Kaede brought Tatsumi back to their 'base'. Mhm, actually, it was just Kaede's villa.
"Wow! So luxurious!" Standing outside, Tatsumi couldn't help but exclaim.
"It's just on the surface." Kaede indicated that she didn't have that much time to decorate the inside. As long as it could be used for eating and sleeping, it was enough.
Pushing open the door and walking in, Tatsumi, who had held high expectations, was immediately disappointed. The inside was unexpectedly simple, just as Kaede had said—it was only luxurious on the surface.
"General, you've returned." Koujo Shizuka walked over, bowed respectfully, and then looked at Tatsumi, "Is this person also a future companion?"
"Yes." Kaede nodded, already accustomed to Koujo Shizuka's presence.
"Um, hello, my name is Tatsumi, I come from a small village." Tatsumi said, scratching his head.
"Hello, I am Koujo Shizuka, the General's maid. If you have any needs in the future, you can also call me."
"Uh, I wouldn't dare..." Tatsumi didn't know what to say and looked at Kaede.
"Haven't you rested yet?" Kaede looked at Koujo Shizuka and frowned. It was already this late, and it was long past the time when she should have been sleeping.
"If the General hasn't returned, how would I, as a maid, dare to go to sleep?" Koujo Shizuka said with narrowed eyes.
"..." Kaede fell silent, then felt a bit helpless, knowing that even if she lectured her, she wouldn't listen. "After arranging a room for Tatsumi, go get some rest."
After saying that, Kaede looked at Tatsumi. "That's all for today. Tomorrow I will introduce you to your tasks and your companions."
Actually, Kaede had also lost track of time. She thought everyone was still there, but when she entered and saw that there was almost no one in the room, she remembered it was already midnight.
"Ah, alright." Tatsumi nodded.
"Then, please this way."
"Eh? You don't need to be so polite!" Sure enough, Tatsumi was still a bit unaccustomed to being treated like this by others.
Kaede watched them and then walked back to her room. She had originally considered whether to call Natala and Yin over, but then she thought of Bill...
She reckoned that after what happened with her and Kurome, he would thoroughly brainwash them into puppets who only knew how to execute missions and be loyal to him.
Thinking of this, Kaede ultimately gave up on finding Natala and Yin. Let it be just these people. When Kurome returned, if there was a chance to pull Boros in, that would be about enough.
However, would things go as smoothly as Kaede thought?
"Akame..."
After returning to her room, Kaede did not sleep. In fact, she had no drowsiness. Looking at the moon outside, Kaede was lost. What exactly should she do?
Seeing Akame's protection of Leone, Kaede also knew that Akame had once again found companions worth protecting, some good companions...
From this perspective, she should be happy for Akame, but why?
Why couldn't she be happy?
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