Chapter 10: Esdeath's Return

Hado walked through the neighborhood in his guard uniform, perfectly tapered to his body thanks to Saito.

The guards of this side of the empire were now utterly loyal to him, they'd do anything he asked, if someone annoyed him, they were as good as dead, if he needed money, dozens of coin bags would be given to him instantly.

It was almost too easy.

The eggs had hatched now as well, nearly 40 new jeweled wasps were crawling around in his body, hunting the maggots for food and nutrients.

With Hado's command, the maggots didn't resist, they were multiplying as well, so it was just an ever-growing nest.

This came with many benefits, his strength increased, as well as his speed and overall ability. His body had already been unrealistic, doing things no normal human should have been capable of, but now it was different.

Every joint was double-jointed, some even triple-jointed, and he could twist and turn and fit his body into tight spaces.

Another thing was his ability to understand the insects, he could basically talk to them now, and understand what they were saying, which was quite useful.

He had learned to look through their eyes as well, like he had when he first discovered the maggots living inside of him.

This opened many doors for the ambitious boy. For one he could spy around the empire at all times, and on certain people that he found important.

Which was what he was doing at that moment.

"She's definitely powerful..." Hado said as Sayomi lay next him on his bed, quiet as a mouse.

It wasn't mind control, he hadn't wanted to try that yet, but a mere change in her neural pathway that changed her behavior. He had simply made the wasp lodged within her brain change feelings of hate and pain and anger, to be more pleasant.

So everything he had done to her seemed better than it actually was.

She wasn't loyal to him, but he didn't need that anyway, he wanted a pet until he made it to the big leagues, then Sayomi was as good as dead.

She had already been overused, he knew as much as she did about the rebellion.

The empire was a sick and twisted place, and the rebels, as Hado understood it, wanted to be heroes and stop their sick games.

Hado smiled a bit, "I suppose that makes me... The villain."

Hado looked through the eyes of a few of his recon wasps, watching the light blue-haired woman walk into the emperor's castle.

'So that's esdeath huh?' He thought as his wasps focused on a gray-haired woman.

'Interesting...' He thought as the woman turned her head up, locking eyes with the wasps, her deep violet irises looking suspiciously aware of his spying.

"Fly back now little drones, I think I know the first step..." Hado said, severing his connection with the wasps and jumping out of the bed.

"Sayomi, I'm trusting you today, you will have the whole day to yourself, I probably won't be back until late tonight or early tomorrow morning... We'll see just how this empire is..."

With that Hado left the girl alone, still quiet and laying still on the bed.

***

"Ah General, it is nice to see you well and fit, how was the expedition?" The Emperor said kindly as his wife sat next to him.

Her stomach was bulging, the signs of a long pregnancy. She wore loose robes that hid the swell of her belly beneath them. she herself kept eating small portions to keep from gaining excess weight. Her skin glowed, and everyone in the room knew that soon, she would give birth to a beautiful son who would inherit the throne of the empire.

"It was pleasant, the south has declared war with the empire, of course, we cut down a large section of their army... But there are some left that need weeding out," General Esdeath said, giving her report as she kneeled in front of the prime minister and the emperor.

They had heard rumors that another rebel force had taken root among the southern soldiers, trying to take the outskirts of the world so they could attempt to overrule the empire by force.

The emperor gave a slight nod as Esdeath finished speaking, taking in the reports as he considered his response carefully.

"I see, if they want war, then war they shall have... We have more than enough guards here, your troops and General Budo's, as well as General Liver-"

"I am glad you brought that up Emperor," Esdeath interrupted, standing up from her kneel and looking at the Emperor and Prime Minister with a sadistic smile.

"I think Lieutenant Najenda has long since proven herself, and since we have an open position due to our recent defector..."

The emperor seemed to think on this for a second, but shrugging after a second, he threw his hands up in the air. "Yes, I suppose that can be arranged, then who shall replace her as your lieutenant?" He asked, thinking of notable sergeants and captains that could possibly be moved up.

"I do not need any lieutenants, I am perfectly capable," Esdeath insisted, turning her back on leadership, smiling a bit, "We'll get the south handled..." Esdeath said as she left the room.

"She grows more and more powerful each day minister, are you sure it is wise to give her an imperial arms?" The emperor asked as the prime minister smiled from behind him.

"She is a powerful asset, being afraid of a weapon creates problems when you try to use it, we control weapons, weapons do not control us..." The Prime Minister said.

"Well... Never mind that. I hear those seven that Gozuki raised went on their first mission the other day, was that a success?" The Emperor asked, this time looking back at Prime Minister Honest.

"Oh yes, Emperor... The Elite Seven has been a successful experiment, Gozuki has proven himself once again..." The Prime Minister said just as the empress yelled out sharply, and the sound of water hitting the floor echoed throughout the room.

Her water had broke...