Hi, everyone.
Thank you for your patience. November has arrived. I am back. I believe I will be able to go back to my normal update rate in the upcoming days. I really appreciate all of your support.
Chapter 56 Even a Small Star Shines in the Dark
When the stars appeared one night in ten thousand years, men started to believe and adore. They preserved the remembrance of that astonishing shade of gold for many generations. Every night come out these envoys of beauty, and light men's hearts with their admonishing smile.
Time will pass, nature will rise, and men will fall.
The sky will grow darker when one strikes at time.
However, one must always pummel that essential piece of force – that unbendable force.
Today or tomorrow.
It will come in the ultimatum.
…
What does Hei want?
Wrinkling her ruffled hair, the leader of the Night Raid assassins cannot help but intensively takes in another sniffing from her perceived cigarette. The stakes are too high – bringing in the Black Reaper to her strategical progression on the empire's capital has surprises that can far outreach the plans from her superiors.
That poker-faced, cold-hearted, taciturn Hei.
Partnership with the Black Reaper was completely an order from the higher officers of the Revolutionary Army. In fact, Hei's level of involvement with the Night Raid assassins has already passed that of mere partnership. Beside the fact that Hei is living with the young killers, this man now has access to all of the information about their habits and abilities.
That can't be good.
No one outside of the Revolutionary Army knows this much about the most elite assassination group in the empire – not even the Prime Minister's secret agents.
Talk about the prime minister's secret agents…
Najenda thoughtfully takes out a piece of paper from the large stack of documents on her desk – her superiors have sent her updates on the Danger List. Fixing her glances on the report, the picture of a unique man reveals itself to the silver-haired woman's attention.
Junius Brutus.
First Advisor of the Prime Minister.
She frowns upon that line – the man looks way too young to be trusted by someone like the Prime Minister. As a former general of the Imperial Army, Najenda knows exactly how the inner circle of the Prime Minister is being comprised. Budo and Esdeath, two of the strongest in the empire, wield the absolute control of the military. The Prime Minister only takes on political schemes, and he will, to the very end, impose his orders only to his own benefit.
Using an advisor is not his style.
No, something is not right.
Then his image dazzles her.
They say, when you try to understand somebody, you look into their eyes. Well, in this case, it is just one eye. When Najenda's eye meets that eye on the paper, a sudden instinct is taken out from many years of experience – this man, undoubtedly, is dangerous.
Exhaling a stream of grey smoke, the one-eyed leader carefully returns that piece of paper into her pile of information.
Junius can wait.
She looks out at the night sky.
Stars are glimmering.
…
"Exquisite."
Under the cover from the dark sky, a man in black robes is currently standing near the cliff of a small hill. The layers after layers of trees behind him seem to have fallen asleep under the tranquility of the night.
"Oh, Hei, nice to see you here."
The peaceful realm is abruptly being disconnected by the animated greeting from a young boy.
"Tatsumi."
The Black Reaper does not turn to greet the boy with a warm welcome, but a reply is good enough for him.
"Enjoying the view? There are a lot of stars tonight." Knowing that the Black Reaper will not acknowledge him further, Tatsumi proceeds to seat himself next to where Hei is standing. The silence between the duo may have been awkward for others, but the cheerful boy has learned to handle the Black Reaper in the recent weeks.
To make a long story short, Tatsumi is going to talk, and Hei is not.
"You know that I told you I have a lot of stars in my village? I wasn't exaggerating. The night sky here is nice, but it still has no comparison to where I come from. We don't have large structures, compacted houses, trees after trees, hills after hills, but only endless farmlands. That is why the night sky in my village is literately a blanket made of stars…"
Enthusiastically commenting on the night view, the green-eyed boy finds it very satisfying to have something that makes the Black Reaper interested – this is the man who replicated a Teigu, but he can still be fascinated by nothing more than Tatsumi's descriptions of the luminous stars.
Such irony.
"What are you doing?"
Precipitously ending Tatsumi's energetic display, the Black Reaper's questioning monotone accompanies his eye sight to his back.
"Ah… um… how did you find us?"
Leone, Lubbock, Mine, Sheele, and Bulat slowly step out of the bushes behind the Black Reaper with their respective awkward expressions on their faces.
"Hei, what are you doing?"
"…"
"Why, of course, he is enjoying the stars." Seeing that the masked man is not answering his fellow teammates, Tatsumi decides to reply for him.
"Enjoying the stars…"
Leone levels her eye brows upon that statement. She remembered Hei liked something about stars, but this… it's almost like discovering a royal guard having a secret love for bunnies.
"The stars are something knowledge cannot provide. Every time you gaze upon the scintillate stars, you can forget your previous encounter, and enjoy this indescribable beauty of nature once again."
Um… Okay…
Hei's philosophy of beauty is definitely something.