What Esdeath truly meant was that she hadn't expected Byn to be fond of such weak creatures.

  In contrast, she had no interest in these so-called "cute" little animals. Something so fragile—she could kill it with a flick of her wrist, and even then, it wouldn't be satisfying.

  “Well, I like small animals like kittens and puppies,” Byn admitted with a nod.

  “I see. So you have a soft spot for cute little things? How adorable,” Esdeath said with a teasing smile.

  Byn suddenly felt like he was being mocked. Did Esdeath just compare him to a little girl?

  “No, I just—”

  Before he could crify, Esdeath cut him off.

  “No need to expin. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone about this cute little secret of yours. It’ll stay between us.”

  To Esdeath, seeing this softer side of Byn wasn’t off-putting—in fact, it only made her desire to dominate him even stronger.

  Meanwhile, Chelsea, nestled in Byn’s arms, was quietly ughing to herself. This wasn’t just a secret between the two of them anymore—she, as an unexpected third party, had just become privy to it.

  Esdeath, however, gave Byn no chance to argue and swiftly changed the subject.

  “Byn, I heard about how you repelled Night Raid before. Well done.”

  She praised him without hesitation. “There's even a rumor going around that, like me, you let them go just so you could enjoy an even more exhirating battle in the future.”

  “This...”

  Byn felt that this rumor had spun a little too far.

  That being said, if he had truly gone all out back then, with the sheer brutality of Double Kamui’s first strike, Night Raid would have suffered devastating losses, and he could have walked away unscathed.

  But there had been no reason for that. He had no grudge against Night Raid—why waste the effort fighting them?

  “As expected, we’re quite compatible. When the time comes, you should come work under me,” Esdeath said directly.

  Byn’s pupils narrowed slightly. “And when exactly will that time be?”

  Esdeath’s words completely pushed aside any lingering thoughts about her earlier teasing.

  “Once I’ve conquered the Northern Tribes, that’ll be the right time,” Esdeath answered without a hint of concealment. “Right now, they’re the biggest threat aside from the Revolutionary Army. Some people estimate it’ll take The Empire at least a year to subjugate them.”

  She smirked, her expression brimming with unwavering confidence.

  “But I’ll show them what true power is. That so-called ‘one year’ is a joke. It won’t take me six months—no, not even half a month—to ftten the Northern Region.”

  “By then, with my military achievements, you’ll have built up your own reputation and merits. Prime Minister Honest won’t dare oppose it. And if he does... I have ways to make him agree.”

  As she spoke of the Northern Tribes, her dangerous smile carried absolute certainty—an unshakable confidence born from sheer strength.

  To her, the Northern Tribes' 400,000-strong army was nothing more than a swarm of insignificant ants.

  "I understand..."

  Byn gave a slight nod.

  On the surface, he showed no reaction, but inwardly, he wasn’t pleased.

  There were still many things he had yet to deal with. The situation with the Imperial Assassination Unit had already progressed to this point—he couldn’t just abandon it halfway.

  He had to see things through to the end, at least until he had everything settled here.

  Of course, Byn wasn’t helping the Assassination Unit out of pure goodwill. He had been gradually working toward his own goal—establishing an organization of his own.

  Seryu and the members of the Imperial Assassination Unit were the perfect candidates.

  Once he fully took control of the unit, forming his own organization would be the natural next step.

  The Empire, Esdeath, the Revolutionary Army, Night Raid—why should he serve under anyone?

  Still, Byn said nothing to Esdeath. Instead, he simply acknowledged her words with a short response.

  There was no need to mention his pns before Esdeath had dealt with the Northern Tribes.

  If he brought it up now, it would no doubt displease her—perhaps even make her turn against him entirely.

  Given her overwhelming need for control, she was more than capable of doing just that...

  "Of course, I won't have you at the same level as the Three Beasts. You'll be my deputy general—no one but me will have the authority to order you around, not even Minister Honest," Esdeath added.

  Hearing this, Chelsea knew she needed to accelerate her mission.

  At the very least, before Esdeath subdued the Northern Tribes, she had to determine whether Byn was someone worth recruiting into the Revolutionary Army.

  "Alright," Byn nodded again.

  "But... you don't seem very happy. Is the position not good enough for you?" Esdeath mused.

  "No, it's not that. I've always been like this, haven’t I?" Byn said with a slightly awkward smile.

  He simply wasn’t the type to smile often—that was all.

  Esdeath didn’t press the matter further. Instead, she gently cupped both sides of his face with her hands.

  "That's why you should smile more. You actually look really good when you do."

  "You're the first person to ever say that," Byn remarked.

  "Maybe it's just because I'm straightforward," Esdeath replied without hesitation.

  She was always direct—unless she truly didn’t understand something, she had no hesitation in speaking her mind.

  "That’s... very obvious," Byn agreed.

  Esdeath released his face and continued, "I have plenty of time today, so I’ll stick around and watch you work. Show me around first?"

  "Alright..."

  Byn hadn’t expected Esdeath to stay.

  He had assumed she would just rey some information and leave—like she had st time.

  "But I still need to give this little guy a bath. Why don’t you have a seat for a while?" Byn suggested.

  "So... in your eyes, this little thing is more important than me?"

  Esdeath’s gaze turned noticeably colder.

  "No, it’s just that I just got back from training the Assassination Unit outside, so I need to wash up as well. I figured I’d bathe it at the same time," Byn expined casually, unfazed.

  He hadn’t expected Esdeath to be bothered by something so trivial, but fortunately, he reacted quickly.

  Meanwhile, Chelsea, still in her kitten form, nearly bristled in arm. She barely managed to suppress her reaction—any unusual movement might make Esdeath suspicious.

  A moment ago, it had been Byn struggling to deal with Esdeath.

  Now, it was Chelsea’s turn.

  She had completely forgotten about the whole bath situation!

  PinkSnake