Revolutionary Army Intelligence Officer—Nal

"No one else seems to be around, so it must be him."

Originally, Selene had worried that the rebel leader within Patrypol might have chickened out and fled, but here he was, brazenly showing up to pay his respects.

Patiently waiting for a while longer from the tall building in the marketplace, Selene saw no other suspicious figures appearing. Once she was certain he was the only one who had come, Selene decided to act.

"Something's wrong—it's a trap!"

Just as Selene's killing intent flared, Nal, who stood in front of the ruins of the execution platform, suddenly felt a chill of realization. With a powerful push off his legs, the ground beneath his feet cracked with a "bang" as he launched himself toward the inner wall of the marketplace.

As the second-in-command of the Revolutionary Army's intelligence department, Nal had honed his skills on the battlefield. He possessed an extremely keen sense of danger. Beyond his formidable combat abilities, his expertise in evasion and counter-surveillance made him a master of intelligence warfare.

However, his opponent was Selene. As an Herrscher, Selene's ability to conceal her presence and suppress her destructive energy was flawless. Nal wasn't skilled enough to detect her without her revealing herself.

Only when Selene deliberately released her aura and killing intent did Nal finally sense the life-threatening danger, as though he had plunged into an icy abyss.

As a cautious intelligence officer, Nal, even with confidence in his combat abilities, always preferred to avoid direct confrontation. So, his first instinct was to flee.

"Do you think you can escape?"

Boom!

In an instant, the inner wall of the marketplace exploded, sending a storm of debris that momentarily slowed Nal's escape. As he tried to change direction and speed up again... it was already too late.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Under Selene's control, the inner wall of the marketplace crumbled, transforming into three massive stone barriers that instantly blocked Nal's retreat.

"An Imperial Arm user!"

Seeing this, Nal's expression grew grim with deep apprehension as he anxiously scanned his surroundings. Only someone wielding an Imperial Arm could control such a mysterious power.

Tap, tap—

The sound of metal boots striking stone echoed through the marketplace. Following the sound, Nal quickly shifted his gaze to the center of the marketplace.

There, he saw a figure with long, waist-length white hair, crimson diamond-shaped pupils, a tall and slender physique, and resplendent silver armor with blue accents. Selene, her expression cold, walked toward him in white boots.

This appearance perfectly matched the description of Selene, the commander of the Eighth Imperial Guard Corps, as detailed in the intelligence reports.

"Selene von Habsburg?!"

Nal narrowed his eyes, a heavy look flashing across his face. According to the information their intelligence agents had risked their lives to send back, the Revolutionary Army's intelligence network in the capital had been completely wiped out, and his good friend, Youliang, had been killed by Selene.

The report also indicated that Selene was an Imperial Arm user, ranking second on the list of the empire's most dangerous individuals, just below General Budo—a figure of extreme danger and terror.

The recommendation from the intelligence officers was clear: if you encounter her, run as far as you can. Abandoning the mission would not result in punishment.

But now... Nal looked at the blocked escape routes, then at Selene's steady approach. He knew... this might be the end of his life.

"If you kneel and beg for mercy now, I might just spare your life," Selene said with a playful smile, her tone mocking.

Seeing Selene's attitude, as if she were toying with prey, Nal couldn't help but think of his fallen comrades. Had they also been toyed with before being killed?

In that instant, Nal's mind flashed to the image of a pink-haired, twin-tailed girl. When she had learned of Youliang's death, she had cried so bitterly. It had taken Nal a long time to console her. "Mine... it looks like I'm going to break my promise, just like your damned teacher. I hope you'll live on... somehow."

With death in his heart, Nal's eyes widened in fury as he drew a short, heavy axe from behind his waist and sneered coldly, "Hmph, dream on! The will of a Revolutionary Army soldier is something an imperial dog like you could never understand!!"

"Die, you imperial dog!!"

With a furious roar, Nal swung his heavy axe down onto the ground. He knew there was no escape for him, but he would never surrender! Even if he were to die, even if his body were to be shattered, he would make sure Selene was covered in his blood!

Boom!

Selene felt the ground beneath her shake as countless stone fragments were sent flying, covering a large area of the marketplace. Among them, a massive ten-meter-wide boulder came hurtling toward her.

"An Imperial Arm? Or a Shingu?" Selene's eyes gleamed with interest as she casually waved her hand, reducing the boulder to dust.

In the next instant, Nal's figure burst through the cloud of dust, moving with astonishing speed as he leaped high into the air, axe raised. "Aahhh!!!"

Selene remained expressionless, raising her hand to intercept the blow.

Boom!

Sparks flew as the axe blade collided with Selene's gauntlet. The impact caused the stone-paved ground within a radius of several dozen meters to crack and sink, and even the rain that had been falling was blown away by the sheer force of the collision.

Suddenly, Nal released his grip on the axe and spread his arms, attempting to lock Selene in a deadly embrace, a crazed smile on his face. "Let's die together!" he shouted, tearing open his coat to reveal rows of powerful explosives strapped to his body.

"My worthless life in exchange for yours—an imperial noble and a general—what a bargain!!!" In an instant, Nal pulled the fuse on the explosives.

But the next moment, Nal's expression twisted in shock.

Frozen Space!

Within the suddenly shadowed and purple-hued frozen time-space, Nal found himself suspended in mid-air, completely immobilized. He couldn't move, he couldn't speak, and even the fuse on the explosives had stopped burning.

"Hah, so that was your plan. But without my permission, do you really think you could die?" Selene spoke calmly, as she dismantled the explosives from Nal's body. With her right hand, she gently took the heavy axe that was still suspended in mid-air, and then in a flash, her body moved.

Swish!

Selene reappeared behind Nal, her body slightly bent as she slowly stood upright, casually flicking the axe as she lifted her head and coldly stated, "The game has just begun, but unfortunately... you don't have the ability to keep playing."

As Selene's words fell, the time-freezing aura that had enveloped them dissipated.

In the next moment, Nal fell to the ground, his face blank with shock. His body suddenly split open, with deep, clean cuts appearing all over, and his head rolled off his neck.

Then, his limbs and torso were severed into pieces, and finally, blood erupted from the wounds.

Originally, Selene had planned to spare Nal's life and hand him over to Esdeath. But seeing the resolute death wish in his eyes, she decided otherwise. Sigh, Selene is just too "soft-hearted," she thought sarcastically. No need to torture you—I'll just slice you into pieces!

"Someone, hang his head on the city wall as a warning to others!" Selene ordered.