Time rewinds to several minutes ago.
Cerydra led her Dux Gladiorium and Dux Alptraum, along with three hostages and an army of a thousand, reaching the territory of the Northern Prince, Numa Seika, at maximum speed.
However, they barely arrived—before even sighting the Prince's castle—when the sound of slaughter drifted from the distance.
Clearly, the nobles could no longer sit still. Regardless of whether the King's life remained in danger, eliminating the threat of Numa Seika was their primary concern.
Though Numa Seika's army resisted tenaciously, the elites of the nobility were evidently superior. The war quickly turned one-sided.
Cerydra's gaze merely swept across the battlefield. She directly led Dux Alptraum Esdeath and the bulk of the army toward Numa Seika's castle, leaving only a single sentence echoing in the air.
"Dux Gladiorium, I leave this to you."
"Extermination operation. Leave none alive!"
"By your will, Imperator!"
The Imperator's tone was so indifferent it sounded as simple as stepping on a few ants. This attitude caused cold sweat to break out on the foreheads of the three assassins held as hostages.
During this period, they witnessed exactly how terrifying this person named Cerydra truly was. Not only was her life extremely self-disciplined, but her methods were incredibly ruthless.
"Merraid, do you think it is truly possible for us to be traded back? Is it really possible to survive?" Whether it was Taeko or Chelsea, both felt quite pessimistic. Neither could be certain if Cerydra would keep her promise to release them.
While Merraid could not decipher the Imperator's thoughts, Cerydra's style of conduct made her absolutely certain of one thing.
"She will."
"Because a person as proud as her will absolutely keep the promises she keeps!"
Admittedly, Cerydra's ambition and methods ranked among the best Merraid had ever seen—vying for the top spot—but this style of strictly adhering to rules was something even Merraid saw for the first time.
Glancing at the heroic and formidable Cerydra, Merraid sighed helplessly. As a lesbian, she was drawn to Cerydra!
But the opponent's strength was too great, and with a loyal subordinate like Hysilens present, she had no way to make a move. Ultimately, she could only target the weakest of the three, Esdeath.
'If I can go back this time, I must become stronger. If there is a chance in the future... I will come find you again!'
As a leader, Cerydra naturally possessed unparalleled charisma. That night during the speech in the cave, only Esdeath had openly clapped, but more than just Esdeath had been drawn in.
Merraid.
This woman was similarly attracted to Cerydra, to the point that she could not control herself after becoming a captive, which led to her move against Esdeath.
In the end, Esdeath was merely the appetizer; Cerydra was Merraid's main course!
Thus, Merraid was currently willing to follow by the Imperator's side, temporarily obeying her orders to resist that army of sixty thousand.
Returning to the present, Hysilens led the army of less than a thousand to battle the enemy forces outside. Meanwhile, the Imperator took Esdeath and charged directly into the castle, encountering Numa Seika, who had just donned his armor and taken up his weapon.
He was also the most important pawn in her hands for the coming period.
"You lot, as expected, couldn't resist making a move?"
Though he did not know who the "Liu Xie" she mentioned was, he imagined his end would not be pleasant.
Numa Seika did not recognize the two young girls leading the charge at all, but that did not stop him from viewing them as threats.
Being able to invade the castle at this time and face him—the Prince of the North—with such an arrogant attitude explained everything.
They were enemies!
"Do not misunderstand, Liu Xie... no, Numa Seika!"
"We have come here to make the entire Northern Country better. I believe you will thank me in the future."
Cerydra gave him a mere glance before shifting her gaze to Esdeath beside her.
"Dux Alptraum, do you have experience in interrogation?"
Although the Esdeath in the original anime possessed extremely sophisticated interrogation methods, she was currently young. It shouldn't result in a loss of life.
"Interrogation?" Esdeath shook her head. "If it's Danger Beasts, I have tried many times, but for humans, I do not know."
"It does not matter!"
As long as they could be used for her purposes, the Imperator did not care about the minor flaws of her subordinates. Even if they showed disrespect regarding her height, the Imperator could forgive them.
"As long as you can make him more obedient, you may do anything to him. But one thing to note... do not kill him."
"Do you understand my meaning, Dux Alptraum?"
In the original work, the final enemy Numa Seika faced was Esdeath. One moment he was displaying the status befitting the Hero of the North, but flash forward to the next scene, he literally became a dog licking boot... who was eventually kicked to death!
This was Numa Seika's future: meeting Esdeath, being crushed by Esdeath, being ravaged by Esdeath, and finally being killed by Esdeath!
Cerydra had no interest in this man who appeared for less than half a minute, so she simply let him face his tragic future early!
I brought Esdeath to you ahead of schedule!
Numa Seika, are you happy?
Cerydra explicitly stated her disposal of Numa Seika. How could Esdeath refuse?
"I obey your command, Imperator!"
During this time, Esdeath also learned some etiquette from Hysilens, and her form of address for Cerydra had changed to Imperator.
This was a symbol of their closing distance!
It also represented Esdeath's complete recognition of the Imperator as her leader!
Esdeath's eyes instantly became sharp. She drew her rapier, pointing it directly at Numa Seika, who stood in a combat stance in the distance.
'Is it coming?'
Realizing the opponent was about to attack, Numa Seika focused his concentration entirely, entering a full combat state.
What he did not expect was that Esdeath appeared before him in an instant. While snatching the spear from his hand, an elbow strike slammed directly into his face.
Numa Seika... defeated!
He hadn't even seen the opponent's shadow before being smashed into the wall, his consciousness nearly vanishing.
"Possessing such powerful strength, just who are you?"
"Your name is... what?"
To be crushed so easily, yet Numa Seika did not recognize the opponent at all... it was a total disgrace!
At the very least, before losing consciousness, he wanted to know the name of the person before him!
Even though the opponent was a weakling, he was still a prince and a future pawn in the Imperator's hand. Out of basic courtesy, Esdeath declared her title.
"Under the Imperator's banner, Dux Alptraum, Esdeath!"