[367] The Slaughtered 

After two more days of camp, August had finally recovered enough to care for himself, and only then did Esdeath give the order for the army to march.

During the four days of their stay in the same location, and with Esdeath's complete lack of concealment, many of the soldiers had begun to notice that their commander had someone special in her life.

Surprisingly, Esdeath didn't try to stop the rumors from spreading; in fact, she let them develop freely.

As a result, August became a special figure within the army. Though he appeared weak, like a delicate pretty boy, there wasn't a single person who didn't show him the utmost respect.

August found this surprising. Truly, Esdeath's soldiers were a different breed.

Soldiers typically revered strength, especially those in combat divisions, and yet August, by merely being in Esdeath's presence, was treated with such deference by so many.

This revealed how deeply Esdeath had embedded herself into their hearts, practically becoming a figure of "worship."

With such an army, united in this way, they were a fearsome force on the battlefield. A single, unstoppable weapon.

Ahead of the army, Esdeath and August rode side by side, and not far behind were the Three Beast Warriors, with the rest of the marching troops following closely.

"August, are you sure you're alright?" Esdeath asked, her gaze lingering on him as he appeared weak, still clearly recovering.

She had initially planned to stay a few more days, but August had declined. His sense of shame was too great to allow it; it would be embarrassing for a grown man to linger any longer.

"I'm fine, Esdeath. Don't worry," August reassured her.

"If you feel any discomfort, tell me right away."

"Okay."

August gave a small smile, though his body was still in a fragile state. Yet, compared to staying in place, the battlefield was the place he longed for most.

After all, August now held not only the sins of lust and gluttony, but also the Gate of Sin.

As a dark artifact capable of harboring the Seven Deadly Sins, the Gate could absorb all negative energy in the world, even surpassing the scope of the Seven Sins themselves.

Death and slaughter were the most effective catalysts for breeding darkness and sin. Thus, war was the best form of recovery for August.

"General, we've spotted a village up ahead, a settlement of foreign tribes," a scout reported as he returned to Esdeath.

Upon hearing about the village, the Three Beast Warriors brightened. As Esdeath's subordinates, they had inevitably absorbed some of her preferences—conquest, slaughter, survival of the fittest—these were the ideals they followed.

"A village? How many people are there?" Esdeath asked.

"It's a village of about a thousand people, mostly young men," the scout replied.

"Ha~ A village? This is just a forward base for the foreign tribes. It doesn't matter. Daidara, take a small team and wipe them out."

"Yes, Lady Esdeath!" Daidara answered with a grin, his excitement palpable. He was a battle-hungry man who relished fighting strong opponents to improve his skills.

For Daidara, every battle was a chance to gain experience, and he enjoyed the chaos of combat, especially when leading the charge.

"Come, follow me into battle!" he shouted.

"Understood, Sir!" his subordinates answered enthusiastically.

Daidara charged ahead on horseback, the rest of the soldiers following swiftly behind him. Their faces were filled with excitement and madness; they were a bloodthirsty force.

"What an excellent army, Esdeath. This is the best army I've ever seen, without a doubt," August remarked.

"It's just a small skirmish," Esdeath replied dismissively. "The real war hasn't even started yet."

"Well, I'm looking forward to it."

"Indeed, August. I knew I wasn't wrong about you. We are the same," Esdeath said, her eyes gleaming with excitement.

Both of them followed the "survival of the fittest" law of the Black Forest, where human kindness and morality were meaningless. Only power mattered.

The strong slaughtered the weak, and if one day Esdeath or August were to be oppressed or killed, it would simply mean their own power had been insufficient. There would be no one to blame but themselves.

This philosophy was something Esdeath had held for years, but until now, no one had ever shared it with her.

Even her Three Beast Warriors and the soldiers under her command had only adopted this way of thinking due to Esdeath's influence.

But August was different. He, like her, was someone who believed in power above all else.

"Perhaps this is fate," Esdeath mused.

"I think so too," August agreed.

Esdeath smiled, and her joy was evident. All of this did not escape the notice of Liver, who was trailing behind.

Watching the interaction, Liver couldn't help but feel a mix of envy and jealousy. This man had something he longed for, something that had always eluded him.

"Hey, Liver, are you okay?" Nyau asked, noticing his distracted expression.

"I'm fine," Liver replied, taking a deep breath to calm himself.

From the start, he had known his place. He was nothing more than Esdeath's servant. He had no right to harbor such thoughts.

Meanwhile, Daidara and his team had already arrived at the foreign village.

Thud, thud, thud

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!" a member of the village cried out in alarm as they spotted Daidara and his men approaching.

Thud!

Before the warning could even reach the rest of the village, an axe flew through the air, smashing the man's skull open.

The Teigu Belvaac, the Axe of the Empire, could only be wielded by those with immense strength. Its destructive power was overwhelming, capable of splitting into two axes for throwing, and if the wielder had enough strength, it would pursue its target.

"Experience points secured. Attack, attack! I need more experience points!" Daidara shouted eagerly as his forces surged into the village like wolves into a flock of sheep.

"Damn Imperial soldiers! Die!" the villagers screamed.

"Die!"

"I don't want to die!"

"Why? Why are Imperial soldiers here?"

"Kill them~!"

The sudden attack caught the foreign villagers off guard, and the battle ended almost instantly.

Soon after, the main army arrived, and the village was completely taken over. Corpses littered the ground, and the surviving villagers were bound and awaiting Esdeath's orders.

When August arrived, he immediately began absorbing the negative energy from the site.

However, the sins of lust and gluttony were few. While the Gate of Sin could absorb all negative energy, without corresponding major sins to draw from, the absorption rate was nearly ten times slower than usual.

For example, if there were 100 units of wrath here, August would only absorb about 10 units.

Still, it was progress. Without the Gate, he wouldn't even have been able to absorb that much.

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