"Bang bang!"
The door, which had never been knocked on in ordinary days, was knocked on at this moment.
The people here always pushed the door open and entered; they didn't knock.
"Who is it?" Koujo Shizuka opened the door with some confusion. A woman came into view. Then, Koujo Shizuka saw her face clearly: she had an exquisite face, ice-blue long hair draped behind her, a pair of ice-blue eyes, and fair skin.
"Kaede lives here, right?" Esdeath had also searched for a while before finding this place, and asked with some uncertainty.
"Yes, the General is here. May I ask who you are?" Koujo Shizuka knew of Esdeath, but she hadn't met her.
"Esdeath, why are you here?" There was no need for Esdeath to answer, because Kaede had already heard Esdeath's voice and walked out.
"Esdeath, this name seems familiar; where have I heard it?" Tatsumi didn't notice the shock on the faces of the people around him at this moment, lost in his own thoughts.
Suddenly, Tatsumi's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands. "Right, it was what Chikushi said, it seems like..." Suddenly, Tatsumi froze, staring wide-eyed at the woman standing at the door—the empires strongest!
"I came to see you." Esdeath crossed her arms and watched Kaede walk over, a smile appearing at the corner of her mouth. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"
"..." Kaede rolled her eyes at Esdeath, then let Esdeath in.
"Esdeath... the empires strongest. So, the three strongest in the Empire are now all inside the Imperial Capital?" Mine gritted her teeth, her heart filled with worry.
She really wanted to run away immediately and report what was happening here to her companions in Night Raid, but could she escape from here?
In the end, Mine could only sigh; she really had no confidence that she could escape from the base of the empires strongest.
"Who is Esdeath?" Looking at their expressions, Sheele tilted her head and asked this question.
"Hey, hey! Sheele, you've seen her, right?" Mine looked at Sheele.
"Mm~" Sheele blinked, holding a finger to her chin, seemingly thinking, and then she gave an apologetic smile. "I think I forgot."
"Ugh!" Mine covered her head. As expected.
And the people here were already used to it; they had already witnessed Sheele's airheaded personality.
"So, your mission is complete?" Kaede was already sitting on one side with Esdeath.
"Of course, it was just a foreign tribe; it didn't take much time." As Esdeath spoke, she saw Koujo Shizuka walk over to serve them tea, smiled at Koujo Shizuka, picked up the tea, and took a sip.
"You really dare to say that." Kaede shook her head. The foreign tribe Esdeath dealt with wasn't as small as the ones she dealt with; it was one of the three largest foreign tribes, and now it had been wiped out just like that.
"Why wouldn't I dare to say it? There wasn't a single decent opponent." A look of dissatisfaction appeared on Esdeath's face; this was the only minor flaw.
"Ha, I originally thought the first thing you would do when you came over was to find me for a fight." Kaede said.
"I originally intended to do that too, but I can't let loose here." Esdeath nodded and continued, "If we fought now, we would easily destroy everything within a few miles."
"That's true..." Kaede thought about Esdeath's techniques and couldn't help but nod.
"Then, what did you come to see me for?"
"Nothing, can't I come if there's nothing wrong?" Esdeath smiled and stared at Kaede, trying to see that expression from back then on Kaede's face once more.
"Then why are you staring at me like that?" Kaede felt a bit uncomfortable being stared at by Esdeath. This was Esdeath, after all; among the others who knew her identity, who would dare to stare at her like this?
"Hmm." Esdeath didn't see what she wanted to see, and disappointment appeared in her eyes. "When will you finally show me that smile?"
Esdeath thought, but shook her head, feeling it was a bit unrealistic, and said: "I heard your sister is in Night Raid?"
Kaede's hand paused for a moment, then she nodded.
And Mine, next to them, pricked up her ears.
"I came back this time because I was ordered to deal with Night Raid." Esdeath said.
Kaede was silent, then said: "What does that have to do with me?"
"Hmph~ Then it doesn't matter if I kill that person named Akame?" Esdeath showed a playful smile.
"Bang!" The cup in Kaede's hand was crushed directly. Then, Kaede raised her head, looking at Esdeath, her aura pressing toward Esdeath without any concealment. "What do you want to do?"
"Tsk!" Esdeath was not afraid at all, and her own aura rose as well. Immediately, the people in the room felt their hearts thumping, as if they were about to be crushed the next moment.
Silence spread through the space, and shock appeared in Esdeath's eyes. Although Kaede was also called the empires strongest, Esdeath knew that there were still gaps between those who held that title.
Now, just looking at the aura, Kaede was already completely on par with her, so it was very likely that her strength was also on par with hers.
This discovery really made Esdeath a bit excited; such an opponent was too interesting!
"Speak, what do you want to do?" Kaede slowly calmed the fluctuations in her heart, knowing that Esdeath must have a reason for saying this.
A smile appeared at the corner of Esdeath's mouth, and she opened her mouth to say: "Smile for me."
"Eh?" Kaede was stunned. What was this? She originally thought she wanted a fight, but what the hell was "smile for me"?
Actually, Esdeath hadn't realized it either. Shouldn't she have said, "Come fight me first"? Why did it suddenly turn into "smile for me" when she spoke?
The people around them didn't seem to have reacted either, and were dumbfounded by Esdeath's request.
"How about it?" Ignoring the surprise of the people around, Esdeath asked, narrowing her eyes. "As long as you show me that smile, I won't kill Akame, and I'll catch her alive and bring her back to you."
Kaede looked at Esdeath, then a smile appeared on her face—a formulaic smile.
"No, that's not the smile I want. It's the smile you showed when you saw your two sisters back then." Esdeath looked at Kaede's smile, disappointment appeared on her face, and she said directly.
Kaede was stunned, then shook her head. She didn't know what kind of smile Esdeath was talking about.
"It seems you can't do it~" Disappointment appeared in Esdeath's eyes. Was it really impossible for her to show that smile?
"..." Kaede was silent for a moment, then stood up, looking at Esdeath, as if she had made a decision, and said, "Come with me."
Then, Kaede walked towards her room.
"Hmm?" Esdeath was stunned for a moment, then a trace of anticipation appeared on her face, and she stood up and followed.
"Ugh!"
Then, they left a few people there, looking at each other, not knowing what exactly had happened.
Why did it feel so strange!
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