Chapter 143: The Qualification to Overturn the Table
After parting with Mahiro, Nahashu and the others arrived at the northern border city of Tsukinami after several days of travel.
However, upon arrival, they discovered that investigating the current intelligence about Tsukinami's governor was far more difficult than dealing with Sabatini's civilian-level acrobatic troupe.
Not only did they need to infiltrate the inner city, but the slightest misstep could bring danger!
Most crucially, without Mahiro backing them up, the difficulty had increased yet another level!
As team leader, Nahashu stationed himself at an inn in Tsukinami's lower town like a brain, responsible for planning their strategy.
This time they planned to first gather intelligence, waiting until Governor Rakiri left the city before making their move.
After all, if they acted within the city, not only would they be outnumbered, but Rakiri was constantly protected by over twenty northern border tribe experts. There were even rumors that Governor Rakiri had connections with the northern hero Numa Seika.
If that bastard managed to escape to Numa Seika, that would be the worst possible scenario.
Thus, the girls split into pairs, infiltrating the governor's mansion separately to gather intelligence while waiting for an opportunity.
However, their intelligence gathering didn't proceed smoothly either.
Poney and Akame applied for cook positions and successfully infiltrated the mansion.
But Akame entering the kitchen was nothing short of a nightmare.
During training, Akame had frequently stolen others' food, so what would happen when she entered the kitchen was predictable without thinking.
She ended up stealing and eating all the meat in the kitchen!
Consequently, Akame was expelled from the kitchen and sent to clean the stables instead.
Only Poney remained in the kitchen, fighting alone.
But this fool encountered problems too.
Because she worked too diligently and had learned exquisite knife skills from Mahiro, she caught the head chef's attention. As if issuing a challenge, the two began competing in ingredient preparation, leaving Poney no time to collect intelligence.
Even Kurome and Gin, upon seeing this, could only shake their heads and sigh "idiot."
Assigned to corridor cleaning duties, they managed relatively smoothly, gathering some intelligence about Rakiri.
They learned that Governor Rakiri would soon go hunting—a golden opportunity for them to make their move.
As for Cornelia and Tsukushi, they became laundry maids. Their maid uniforms accentuated their well-proportioned, curvaceous figures, while the pure black color added a seductive charm.
Precisely because of this, Tsukushi ended up attracting unwanted attention.
In the corner of the castle, Tsukushi wore an expression of fright akin to a small animal.
Across from her stood a man—a patrol soldier of this castle—whose gaze remained fixed on Tsukushi's chest.
This stare made Tsukushi feel intensely disgusted.
"Hey... want to earn some extra money?" the man spoke, his eyes still glued to her chest.
"Huh?" Tsukushi blinked in slight confusion.
"Being a concubine, a concubine for Lord Rakiri. I can put in a good word for you," the man rubbed his chin, his gaze turning lecherous. "But the price... is using those big breasts of yours to service me, to give me some pleasure. How about it?"
"...Urgh."
Insulted beyond measure, Tsukushi puffed her cheeks in anger, tears glistening at the corners of her eyes.
Using her chest to serve someone? Becoming that disgusting lord's concubine?...
She had long decided that she belonged only to Lord Yotsuba in this lifetime!
How could he be so outrageous!
She desperately wanted to kill the man insulting her right then.
But for the mission's sake, she restrained herself.
Unexpectedly, the man grew bold enough to reach a hand toward her chest.
"You'd earn ten times more than now..." he sneered, inching closer.
What should she do?
Should she strike?
She didn't want to be touched by this scum!
Yet, just as the man was about to make contact, someone suddenly tapped his shoulder from behind.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing to my girl?"
"Hah? Who are you?!"
The patrol soldier turned to see a youthful-looking young man gripping his shoulder, a bright smile on his face.
"Who I am isn't important. But what were you trying to do to my girl?"
The young man's hand tightened slightly, making the soldier's bones creak and eliciting pained howls.
"Owowowow, let go! Brat, release me! I get it—you must be a spy who infiltrated the castle!!!"
"Oh ho, you actually guessed it. How impressive. Then I really can't let you live."
The newcomer was none other than Mahiro. He smiled at the man while a faint glint flashed in his eyes.
The soldier's agonized screams abruptly ceased. He stood frozen like a wooden chicken, the light of life gradually fading from his eyes.
As if paused or having his time accelerated, he decayed in Mahiro's grasp, turning to dust along with his weapon, leaving only a wisp of faint blue flame dissipating into the air.
"L-Lord Yotsuba..."
Tsukushi stared blankly at the scene.
At first she thought she'd misheard, but it truly was Lord Yotsuba!
Lord Yotsuba actually came to save me...
It felt like a fairy tale, like the knight saving the princess...
"Lord Yotsuba!!!"
Unable to contain her emotions any longer, Tsukushi's beautiful wide eyes welled with tears as she threw herself into his arms, weeping bitterly with grievance.
"There there, it's alright now, good girl~"
Mahiro gently patted Tsukushi's back to comfort her."
In fact, after settling matters with Najenda, he had traveled day and night to reach Tsukinami City and had been secretly observing the actions of several young girls over the past few days.
If Tsukushi hadn't gotten into trouble, he probably wouldn't have revealed himself until the mission was over.
"Ugh, Lord Yotsuba, does Lord Yotsuba like... like Tsukushi's big... big boobs?!"
She suddenly grabbed Mahiro's hand and pressed it against her prominently swollen chest, even helping him squeeze firmly.
Though separated by two layers of fabric, nothing could hinder the sensation of their soft resilience.
This bold behavior even took Mahiro by surprise—he never expected the usually shy, healing-type girl to do something like this.
"Lord Yotsuba, do you... dislike it?"
Seeing that he hadn't responded for a while, Tsukushi, her eyes glistening with tears, continued to ask, her mood visibly sinking.
"Sigh, how could I dislike it? So big and so soft—it's like an extra-large serving. No one could possibly dislike it, right?"
"Then let Tsukushi be your concubine, okay?!"
"Huh?"
Tsukushi's bold declaration completely stunned Mahiro.
"Lord Yotsuba, that soldier bullied Tsukushi! He said he wanted me to... use my boobs to... to serve him comfortably once, and then he'd recommend me to become the governor's concubine! Tsukushi doesn't want that! Only Lord Yotsuba would cherish and like Tsukushi's boobs. Poney-chan always squeezes me so hard—it must be because hers are too small."
Perhaps this experience had thoroughly shaken Tsukushi, making her speak without restraint.
Bean-sized tears pattered down, one after another, a heartbreaking sight.
He reached out and gently stroked Tsukushi's hair, comforting her:
"Tsukushi, your feelings aren't wrong. Using a girl's body to achieve some goal is shameful. Whether the mission succeeds or not doesn't matter much—your safety is far more important. As I've said before, girls should cherish their own bodies."
"And this incident... it's my fault."
Tsukushi looked up in astonishment.
She had expected Lord Yotsuba to scold her for giving up a golden opportunity to obtain information, but instead, he took all the blame upon himself.
Such a gentle Lord Yotsuba...
She shook her head vehemently, loudly denying it:
"No, Lord Yotsuba isn't at fault! Everything, everything is Tsukushi's problem..."
A resolute expression appeared on her adorable face, though the wrinkled fabric of her chest area seemed somewhat mismatched.
Mahiro was her faith—how could Lord Yotsuba possibly be wrong? The fault lay only with her!
"Alright, it doesn't matter who's right or wrong. First, wipe your tears, and then I'll go get revenge for you."
Mahiro gently brushed away the tears at the corner of the girl's eyes.
"...Lord Yotsuba, are you going to take action yourself?"
"Yes, the game is over."
He smiled as he spoke to Tsukushi, but after turning around, a cold glint surfaced in his pitch-black pupils as he stared at the towering castle ahead.
The reason he had followed the rules of the game wasn't because he had to, but because he was willing to sit down and play along.
But once he no longer felt like playing, he still retained the privilege to activate "Mist Dispersion" at any moment.
Just like now.
"Ah——!!!"
Chaos had already engulfed the castle.
Piercing screams rose one after another, echoing continuously through the castle grounds.
The patrolling soldiers and valiant guards had all inexplicably vanished without exception, transformed into white ash.
Servants throughout the castle were fleeing for their lives, while several girls who had been hiding among them gathered together, staring in astonishment at the scene before them.
It felt as if a deity had descended to deliver punishment.
"...Could it be Lord Yotsuba?!" Cornelia couldn't help but speculate.
She remembered that this same power had been used when dealing with Sabatini's troupe before.
Just then, Tsukushi rushed over to join them.
When everyone asked about the current situation, Tsukushi stammered through an explanation.
After hearing it, Cornelia and Akame exchanged glances with the other girls, then looking at the redness at the corner of Tsukushi's eyes, immediately understood—Lord Yotsuba was angry.
He was venting his anger for Tsukushi...
...
"Dammit dammit dammit! Where did these assassins come from, turning my territory upside down!"
At this moment, Rakiri was packing his belongings to flee.
Originally, he had planned to go hunting for Lelang deer tomorrow, but never expected assassins to openly break into his castle, wantonly slaughtering everyone!
Where did these bold assassins come from?
Aren't they afraid of retaliation from the Northern Hero, Prince Numa Seika?!
"Oh? Fleeing but still remembering to take all your treasures with you? Do you value these things more than your own life?"
"Who's there?!"
Rakiri spun around abruptly to see a young man sitting calmly on the sofa opposite him. The youth completely ignored his question, leisurely picking up a glass of red wine from the table and taking a small sip.
"A bit sour and astringent. Is this what they call the taste of high society?"
The rich flavor of the wine spread in his mouth. Mahiro smacked his lips and put down the wine glass with some distaste.
"As expected, I still can't appreciate the red wine here."
"Just who are you?!"
Rakiri drew a flintlock pistol and aimed it at him.
It was rather strange—though this world possessed automatic firearms, these nobles particularly favored these ornate but impractical flintlock pistols that fired steel pellets.
Moreover, aiming such a toy at Mahiro made him unable to suppress a laugh.
"Fine. Since you're sincerely asking, I'll generously tell you."
Mahiro slowly rose from the sofa, smiling at Rakiri as he said: "My name is Yotsuba Mahiro. You might find this name unfamiliar, but my position—Minister of the Imperial Assassination Unit—should be quite familiar to you, right?"
"The Imperial Assassination Unit?! Damn, we've been exposed!"
Rakiri was a ruthless man who immediately pulled the trigger without hesitation. With a flash of fire, a steel pellet shot out.
But with a snap! It was caught between Mahiro's two fingers.
And was promptly crushed into a flat piece of metal.
"Why so excited? Here, have it back."
Whoosh—
Before Rakiri could react, the metal piece had already pierced through his skull. A thin line of blood appeared in the center of his forehead, while the metal piece shot completely through his head, embedding itself deep into the ornately decorated wall.
"You weren't supposed to die this early—you should have lived another day. Blame your subordinates for being too lustful."
He coldly spoke these words while looking at the limp body on the floor, its eyes wide with disbelief.
Probably until his death, he never imagined that his demise wasn't due to treason, colluding with foreign tribes, or secretly communicating with the Revolutionary Army.
But because the soldiers under his command had harassed someone under Mahiro's protection.
News of Tsukinami City Governor Rakiri's assassination spread quickly, throwing the entire city into unprecedented panic. Even the northern foreign tribes were shaken by this event.
However, these matters had little to do with Mahiro.
After completing their mission, they had gathered at the hotel designated as their safe house.
"You all performed well on this mission, with special praise for Akame and Gin. You successfully obtained intel on Rakiri's schedule."
"Eh? But the rest of us didn't even get to approach the mission target before Lord Yotsuba took care of it..."
Poney straddled her chair, leaning forward to complain:
"Besides, if Akame hadn't eaten all the food in the kitchen, I could have gathered similar intelligence."
"Who said I ate everything, Poney! It was just the meat. Blame the chef for making it too delicious," Akame corrected with seriousness.
"And while assigned to the stables, I gathered plenty of information. Tomorrow, when Rakiri, the governor of Tsukinami City, goes hunting for Lelang deer in the forest, he'll only bring about ten guards. That's when their defenses are weakest—the perfect time for us to strike."
"Alright, alright, Akame and Poney, let's not argue anymore."
Cornelia stepped in to mediate, calming them both down.
Truth be told, she also felt somewhat resentful about having the mission target taken from them. She had originally hoped to complete the mission perfectly and earn praise from Lord Yotsuba.
But after learning why Lord Yotsuba had intervened, her heart felt warm.
Lord Yotsuba was truly different from others; he cared deeply about them.
Otherwise, wouldn't it be normal for assassins to trade their bodies for information?
Nahashu, as the team leader, also acknowledged this point.
That's why he remained silent today, just sitting there quietly.
Although in his eyes, these girls were often incompetent and sometimes messed things up, allowing these "incompetents" to sacrifice their bodies for assassination—wouldn't that make him even worse than incompetents?
However, to consider the feelings of the other girls, Mahiro made sure to praise each of them for their respective actions.
He even complimented Poney slightly on her outstanding knife skills.
Though it had nothing to do with the mission, the fool Poney still happily scratched her head, her large orange ponytail swinging behind her.
"Alright, if you all feel unsatisfied, don't worry—there are more missions ahead."
It was almost like a chain of main quests, one after another, never-ending.
Mahiro couldn't help but silently complain to himself.
The other girls all looked up at him.
"Recently, we received intelligence that the northern tribes and the Revolutionary Army have begun to move. Because we've taken out several of their key figures recently, causing them significant damage, the enemies you'll face next will be an unprecedented challenge."
"Oh... So we've become targets ourselves?" Nahashu slowly spoke up.
"Good comprehension, Nahashu."
Mahiro casually praised him and continued, "Remember, we are the shadows beneath the empire. Only shadows can oppose shadows, so the enemies we face this time are likely fellow professionals hired by the northern tribes."
On this continent, the empire isn't the only one with regular assassination units; there are many mercenary-style assassination organizations as well.
The most famous among them is the Oarburgh.
As I recall from the original work, Cornelia died at the hands of this very organization, so this time I absolutely won't repeat that mistake!