Breathing with difficulty, Tatsumi finally dropped on a knee, as blood trickled down his forehead. In front of him, standing and just looking at the boy while remaining stoic, Sebas didn't have the slightest scratch, while he asked.

'' Have you found your senses? ''

In response, Tatsumi straightened up while lifting his heavy sword. Inspecting the weapon, Sebas declared.

"I see my assumptions were correct! The knight death who died, the other day, was killed by Night Raid! I admit that I find that very impressive! Few humans have the strength to kill a monster like it! And as proof of your victory, you inherited its weapon! However, are you really fit to fight with such a heavy weapon? "

"I have to, if I want to get stronger."

"And do you think trying to kill me makes you stronger?"

"I just want you to answer my questions ! Why did you attack us? I believed Galadriel-sama had given her word and that she will never attack Night Raid."

"Is it because of our fight? Sorry about that, but the situation forced it! As you know, Rubedo-san was drafted into the military, as a spy for Galadriel-sama! She thinks it will make it easier for us to control a large number of soldiers, when Jaldabaoth comes here to destroy the land! We were forced to fight Night Raid, otherwise we would have been seen as traitors, if we ever had decided to let your friends flee, without fighting them! However ... "

Fixing Tatsumi with a stern look, the butler asserted.

"You know my power, don't you? You know that if we had really wanted to kill your friends, they would never have had the chance to come back to your base."

"You broke Mine's leg! And most importantly, you cut off Scheele's arm and stole her teigu! I'll never forgive you."

"Fool! That was the only way we had to pretend we wanted to kill your comrades! Tatsumi, I understand Night Raid's fight against the Empire! However, Galadriel-sama is also fighting a monster! A monster mightier than all the soldiers in this capital! Do you really think we will abandon our plan just for your little group? Tatsumi! We did not kill your friends and I think this is enough to show our good faith. "

"Your good faith? If you want to show it to us, then return Scheele's teigu to us."

"Sorry, but it's impossible! Rubedo-san has already gave it at her superiors ! We needed this to keep her moving up the ranks."

"Grrr! Motherfucker! Do you realize what you just did? You stole a weapon from Night Raid to give to our enemies! And you still pretend to be our allies?"

In an instant, Tatsumi felt Sebas grab his collar and bang him violently against a wall.

"Don't you understand the point of our fight? If Galadriel-sama does not have the strength to defeat Jaldabaoth, neither Night Raid nor the Empire will be alive before the end of the year! If Galadriel-sama hadn't asked us, we could very well have killed your four friends! Tatsumi, it's time for you to understand something! In a war, there will always be sacrifices! And for the moment, I think that your friend, Scheele, can be happy to be still alive! "

Then, he threw Tatsumi's body against a barrel, which shattered into pieces.

"You, on your side, are just pitying or complaining! What's going on in your head? The first time I met you, you were arrogant and naive! Now it is the opposite! You are fearful and pessimistic! And above all, you blame your weakness on others! "

"My weakness ? "

"I was able to gauge the strength of your friends that I fought! Mine for example, even knowing that she had no chance against me, she continued to fight, until the end! It is the kind of humans who could help Galadriel-sama in her war against Jaldabaoth! You, on the other hand, are mentally weak! You haven't yet understood the feeling of putting your life on the line and losing your friends. "

Gritting his teeth, Tatsumi suddenly stood up, before pointing his sword at Sebas. Seeing him lift his face, Sebas saw him sobbing, while he retorted.

"It is precisely to avoid losing my new friends that I behave like this! Sayo ... Ieyasu ... it is because I was not with them that they were killed! Scheele needs to her teigu to help us fight! Because I know very well that if one of us died, she would blame herself for not having been there to help us! You can't understand that feeling of guilt! "

"Of course it is!" Sebas retorted. "And you want some advice? If you want Scheele not to worry about the health of her comrades, you have to get stronger! Because a soldier who spends its time lamenting or crying, it doesn't he is nothing but a pathetic being who forces his friends to protect him and be vulnerable. "

"I'm not pathetic." Tatsumi roared.

Suddenly running his hands over his eyes, he wiped away his tears, before resuming his attacking position facing Sebas.

"I am Tatsumi! Tatsumi from Night Raid! And even though I still don't have the slightest bit, I will become strong! So strong that I could help my friends! So strong that Galadriel-sama will understand the strength of Night Raid and come to us for that we can become her allies, to help her defeat the army of Jaldabaoth. "

Hearing it, Sebas nodded, before closing his fist. Then, causing a demonic aura to appear around him, he targeted Tatsumi, before throwing his fist in the direction of his head. Seeing him do it, Tatsumi felt his body shake, like the first Sebas had done this gesture. However, after his fight against the Knight death, Tatsumi had learned to tame his fear.

So, uttering a cry, he took a step forward before moving his head to the side to avoid Sebas' fist. Remaining stoic, the butler left his neck defenseless as Tatsumi raised his sword and lowered it to his neck.

Nevertheless, stopped dead, he saw the blade of his weapon, caught between two fingers of Sebas, who had stopped it without any problem. Then, lifting his foot, he metered his strength and kicked him.

Breathless, Tatsumi let go of his weapon, before holding his stomach. With his mouth wide open, he began to drool, before falling to his knees. Seeing it, Sebas put his hands behind his back before leaving.

"You have improved mentally, Tatsumi! But not physically! Unfortunately, you still have a very long way to go before you have a chance to earn my respect! However, ..."

Giving his a quick glance, he declared.

"You've finally developed some semblance of a warrior aura! If you want to challenge me, come back whenever you want."

He then left, leaving Tatsumi who tried not to twist in pain.

Having a cup of tea next to him, Actor Pandora was reading a newspaper that Yuri had sent to Nazarick.

"I hope Aura enjoys being popular! There's her photo in the newspaper."

"I saw it." Assured Galadriel, who was having breakfast. "There is a wanted notice for her and for Mare! I think Mare will be less happy than his sister."

"Good news! This shows that they fitted in perfectly with Night Raid! Nonetheless, I'm surprised you ordered Rubedo-san to give the teigu, which she stole, to her superiors!"

"All in good time, Pandora! First, Rubedo will gain their trust, and once we get rid of them, I could take this teigu back, as well as those in the capital! Anyway, considering the level of strength of their soldiers, it is not one or two more teigus that they will be able to defeat Nazarick. "

"Barely, barely! You're absolutely right, myyyyyyyy lady."

Gesturing his bars, before moving his cap, he asked.

"What's next on the plan?"

"For now, we'll wait for Cocytus to successfully complete his mission! Once that's done, all of my pawns will be placed on the chessboard!"

Precisely revealing a game of chess, she placed pawns one by one.

" My new mercenaries ... Their fanaticism will allow me to very easily indoctrinate the villagers of the villages attacked by the Empire! Rubedo ... If she obtains a title of general, she will be able to more easily take control of the army of the capital and force the soldiers to kneel in front of me, once I will be on the throne! Aura and Mare ... Night Raid does not represent a real threat against me! However, it will always be good for me to control them and make them an elite group for my future kingdom! Demiurge and Shalltear ... After their victories against the neighboring countries of the Empire, we are in the process of making a list of their resources, as the threat of Jaldabaoth grows bigger and bigger! Albedo ... currently, she controls all trafficking and illegal markets, and continues to monitor Aria, to ensure the actions of the nobles of the capital! And as for Cocytus, if he succeeds in his mission, Budo's thoughts will no longer hold any secrets for me! And finally ... "

Putting down the pawn that symbolized the queen, she declared.

"Galadriel ... she will be there to crush Jaldabaoth before showing that she is the Witch Queen, the most powerful being in this world."

Watching her silently, Pandora Actor's seemed to be thinking of something. Knowing this perfectly, Galadriel asserted.

"If my plan has a problem, tell me."

"It has no problem, it is perfect! Nevertheless, we have to admit that the being who defeated Lupusregina is still a potential obstacle, while we still do not know who he is."

"I know that perfectly well! In fact, since he knows my name, I'm afraid he is another player, who was an opponent of Nazarick."

"If so, he might turn out to be a more formidable opponent than Esdeath."

"Chances are, indeed."

"Galadriel-sama."

Entering the room, CZ discreetly poked her head through the door opening.

"Who's it got, CZ?"

"I tried to get Lupusregina out of her room! Nonetheless, she refuses to do so."

Heaving a weary sigh, Galadriel swallowed the last bit of her breakfast before asserting.

"I'm taking care of it. "

Lying on her bed, Lupusregina was huddled under her covers, moping. For a few days, she had remained almost in the same position, while remembering her humiliating defeat against Dijon. And despite the fact that Galadriel assured her that she didn't blame her for being defeated, she couldn't come out of her room, and fear to see her mistress looking at her with eyes filled with disappointment.

"I was lousy! What would my creator have thought if he had seen me?"

Suddenly, she jumped with fear, hearing a crashing noise, she stuck her head out of the blanket, to see her bedroom door breaking in two. Having destroyed it with a kick, Galadriel then entered the chamber of the Pleiad, before walking towards Lupusregina.

"Galadriel-sama?"

Simply reaching out her hand to her, the demon grabbed one of her braids, before creating a magical circle. Staying behind the two women, CZ saw them disappear.

Being teleported in level 5, the duo found themselves in the center of the arena. Having sent her mercenaries on a mission, Galadriel now had the whole arena to herself, and fully expected to use it. Still holding Lupusregina's hair in her hand, she heard Lupusregina moan in pain, gesturing her arms all over the place.

Eventually letting go, Galadriel then covered his arms with titanium gauntlets.

"My lady?" The Pleiad wondered, seeing her get into a fighting stance.

"Attack me."

"What ? "

"I order you to attack me."

"But ... my lady ... I can't do this."

Breathlessly, the Pleiad suddenly felt Galadriel's fist sink into her stomach, forcing her to fall to her knees.

"Get up!" Galadriel ordered her, showing no emotion on her face. "It's a fight to the death! If you stayed on the ground, I would kill you."

Sensing a demonic aura surround her, Lupuregina could only gasp in fear, as Galadriel showed a great extent of her power and showed how she could destroy the whole of Nazarick, with the snap of a finger.

"What did you say?"

"Several humanoid beings have been sighted not far from the capital." Asserted a soldier. "A few groups of soldiers were sent to see what was going on! However, they did not return."

"Humanoid beings?" Budo repeated. "What do you mean by that? What do they look like?"

"From what we know, they are human beings with bat wings.

"Huh? Demons?"

"That's what we heard."

Frowning, Budo asserted.

"In Esdeath's last report, she explained that she had decided to withdraw her army, after meeting a demon man named Jaldabaoth! Do these demons have something to do with him?"

"But… that's impossible." Retorted the soldier. "Demons don't exist."

"Fool! Esdeath is not the type to give up a war! If she has decided to withdraw, then that means she has met someone with superhuman strength."

Growling, he finally asserted.

"We have no choice anyway! Gather a group of soldiers! We will go immediately to where those demons are."

"Aye! General!"

However, an hour later, Budo and his men stopped. Having left the capital, they had started to search the forest. Within minutes, they had discovered the bodies of various soldiers, who had been massacred. Seeing this, Budo quickly understood that the opponents they were going to fight were not trivial.

"Who are these beings? Members of the revolutionary army? Or real demons?"

Then suddenly the whole group was struck by an icy wind, which covered various tree trunks with ice.

"But what…?" A soldier wondered.

A cry of agony stopped him. In the distance, in the direction the cold was coming from, cries of agony could be heard. Thinking that a few soldiers were still fighting the demons, Budo rushed to their aid. However, he was still, the very second he saw a huge halberd swoop down on a demonic being, who was cut in two.

Facing the two parts of the corpse, a man, measuring more than two meters, placed his weapon on his shoulder. Armed with a large red beard, he wore a Viking helmet on his head, one of the horns of which was broken. Dressed in light wooden armor, he also wore a sleeveless vest, which allowed everyone to see his extremely muscular arms.

Flying above the unknown, another demon decided to fly towards him, before increasing the length of his claws. Preparing to shoot them down on the viking's neck, the demon was stopped the moment the man positioned the handle of his weapon in front of his claws, in order to stop them. Then, directing a hand towards the creature's head, the viking created a stake of ice that passed through his skull, instantly killing him.

Seeing the creature collapse to the ground, the soldiers behind Budo saw a dozen bodies of demons, showing that the viking had made a real carnage.

"What is that ...?"

"What are these monsters?"

"Did this man kill them?"

"Did you see? He used ice."

"He has the same power as Esdeath-sama."

Seeming to notice their presence, the viking turned to them. Immediately he saw Budo take a step towards him, before asking him.

"Who are you?"

Seeing lightning appear around the general, the viking had his hand tighten on the handle of his weapon. Fixing themselves, the two men remained motionless. However, sensing two murderous auras, the soldiers behind Budo began to back away, afraid they would be killed in the next second.

Nevertheless, the viking placed his halberd behind him, before trapping it behind his back.

"Calm down…! I'm not… an enemy."

At first surprised to see the viking having difficulty in articulating, Budo ends up questioning him.

"What happened here? And who are these demons?"

"Jaldabaoth!" The viking said simply.

Just hearing that cursed name, several soldiers began to moan in fear. For his part, trying to keep his face emotionless, Budo wanted to know.

"Who are you?"

"My name is ... Cocytus."

Blocking a kick from Aura, Bulat nonetheless felt his feet slip back. Managing to keep his battle spear in his hands, he then swirled it around him, before slaughtering it towards Aura. Displaying a simple confident smile, Aura curved her upper body back and simply felt the draft the weapon caused as it passed over her. Then, spinning her body, she directed her foot towards Bulat's left flank. Being shirtless, the man was forced to withstand the attack, which forced his feet off the ground.

Thrown to the side, he crashed to the ground. Seeing him down, Aura stood still, simply waiting a few seconds. Indeed, as usual, Bulat stood up despite the powerful blow he had just taken. Despite holding back her power, Aura could confess that she was slightly surprised to see a human take so many attacks, which should have killed him.

"Aura ... it's time to stop the warm-up." The man asserted, getting to his feet. "From now on, fight seriously."

"Um?" The elf wondered. "I'm fighting seriously! The fact that I always win against you is proof of that."

"Mine told me about your fight! It seems you easily dominated a girl with an organic teigu! You came back to basics without the slightest injury! I'm sure you're even stronger than you pretend."

Starting to smile, while grabbing his teigu, he declared.

"If I want to get stronger, I have to fight the strongest fighters! Aura… don't hold back and don't hesitate to hit me."

"Oh? Are you a masochist?"

Then, smiling sadistically, she declared.

"However, if you want me to destroy your beautiful face, I won't hold back."

"Perfect!" Bulat asserted, preparing to summon Incursio.

Nevertheless, the duo stopped, while one person walked towards them.

"I want to train too."

"Um? Tatsumi?" Bulat wondered, seeing his friend spotted hurt in the face. "What happened to you?"

Ignoring his question, Tatsumi grabbed his heavy sword, before asserting.

"I need to guess harder! I need to get stronger! I don't want to lose a single friend anymore! I want to show Night Raid and Galadriel-sama that I would be ready to face any danger."

Staring at Aura and Bulat, the boy roared.

"Attack me! Hurts me! Strengthen my body! Teach me to take a hit! Make me grow stronger."

Hearing it, the duo looked at each other, surprised by the sudden determination of Tatsumi, who knew full well that Bulat was more than enough to knock him down, in two seconds. Then, finally, turning to Tatsumi, they affirmed.

"Do you want to become powerful? Learn to take our attacks! If you can, we'll train you."

"It suits me perfectly."

However, a punch from Bulat made him cough up drool, while a kick to Aura's face sent him flying backwards. Seeing him fall to the ground, the elf let out a tired sigh.

"There really aren't that many people who can resist my blows."

"This ... It's not over."

Using his sword to stand up, Tatsumi felt his old wounds reopen as blood trickled down his face.

"I wouldn't give up."

Slightly starting to enjoy her life with Night Raid, Aura wondered how trained humans could get her the perfect punching bags, for her future training.

With that thought, she ran over to Tatsumi, and punched him before he could react.

Level power:

Esdeath: 51

Dijon: 48

Bulat: 41 (+ 3)

Mine (with teigu): 37 (45 max)

Akame: 35

Leone: 35

Sheele: 34

Seryu: 32 (Koro, 44 max)

Ieyatsu: 32 (+ 7)

Sayo: 32 (+ 8)

Lubbock: 30

Tatsumi: 29 (+ 3)