Arifureta Shokugyou de Sekai Saikyou (LN) - Volume 7 - Chapter 2

Chapter II: Roar of Revolution 

If you were to ask a resident of Hoelscher’s capital to describe the city, they would all give you the same answer: It’s a mess. 
The core of the capital had an organized layout with unadorned buildings lining the streets at regular intervals. But as they city had grown, houses and buildings had cropped up haphazardly, leaving the outer fringes a disorganized maze. Thanks to that, the streets were a jumbled mess as well. Numerous back alleys and side streets mixed together and connected with the main thoroughfares in baffling ways. 
The entire city seemed like a sized-up version of Horaud, with the majority of residents looking like rough adventurer-types. Open-air stalls littered the streets, with their owners hawking their wares in loud, coarse voices. 
Despite which, the city didn’t seem in any way run-down or gloomy. If anything, there was an overwhelming sense of freedom to the place. Anyone and everyone did what they wanted however they wanted. Everyone was responsible for their own actions, but otherwise did as they pleased. As if they held to freedom as a creed to live by. 
The Hoelscher Empire was a relatively new nation, founded only a few hundred years ago by the mercenary group that was instrumental to winning the last great war. Little wonder that it was a nation of fighters that valued strength above all. Almost every citizen knew how to fight, and considered their strength a point of pride. Some thought of that as barbaric, but others saw it as heroic. The empire also held the largest arena in the continent, and tournaments of all kinds were held multiple times a year. 
“Oi, what the hell—Gah!?” 
As always, thanks to Yue and the others Hajime attracted a lot of attention within the city. A number of hoodlums had already tried to pick fights with him, only to be crushed each time. The guy who’d come up to Hajime just now had been sent spinning through the air as well, before faceplanting onto the ground and getting a mouthful of dirt. What was surprising about this city was that no one batted an eye at Hajime’s ostentatious displays of violence. Fights broke out every other hour here, so the citizens were used to it. 
“Ugh, I’d heard rumors but... the capital really isn’t a nice place.” 
“Yeah, this place makes my skin crawl. I’m glad we were summoned in the kingdom.” 
“Well, Hoelscher is known as a militaristic nation. I’m not surprised even those not part of the army are experienced fighters. It stands to reason the citizenry here to be more belligerent than in other nations. Though I must say, this is not the kind of place I would want to live in.” 
From the sound of it, Shea, Kaori, and Tio didn’t like the capital one bit. Yue didn’t say anything, but she nodded in silent agreement. Kouki and Ryutarou, on the other hand, didn’t seem to mind the atmosphere. Shizuku, however, kept a close eye on her surroundings while Suzu hid behind her. It appeared this country wasn’t popular with the girls. 
That being said, Kouki and the others didn’t exactly like it either. It was a bit too gritty for them, especially since they’d come from a peaceful country like Japan. 
The biggest difference between the empire and the capital, though, was the presence of slaves. Shea watched with a pained expression as a group of them walked past. 
“Just ignore them, Shea. We’ve got more important things to worry about right now.” 
“Yeah, I know...” 
But Shea couldn’t help but stare. She couldn’t stand seeing her brethren locked up in cages or being brought out to be bought and sold. Because of Hoelscher’s lax policies, the slave trade had flourished. Even beastmen children were captured and sold. Even if she wanted to avert her eyes from it, Shea couldn’t. Everywhere they went they saw slave markets or groups of slaves being taken away. 
“Shea, are you okay?” Yue asked worriedly and squeezed Shea’s hand. Hajime walked over and pinched her cheeks as well. Seeing their concern for her heartened Shea, and bunny ears flopped around happily. 
“I won’t forgive them. How could fellow humans do something... so vile.” Behind Hajime, Kouki came to a halt and grit his teeth. In Heiligh, the church’s influence was everywhere, which meant the people’s prejudice against beastmen was strong. However, because their hatred for beastmen was so great, they couldn’t even stomach keeping them as slaves. Hence why Kouki and the others hadn’t seen any in the kingdom, and why seeing them here affected them so badly. 
Still, there’s nothing we can do about it right now... I swear if Amanogawa tries to pull something I’m just going to pretend I don’t know him. Well, as long as Shizuku the Rational’s with them, she won’t let them do anything stupid. She won’t... right? 
Hajime glanced over at Shizuku. Noticing his gaze, she looked back at him. He surreptitiously pointed to Kouki. Sharp as always, Shizuku picked up on what Hajime was trying to say with just that. She grimaced, and with a tired sigh, nodded. Shizuku sidled up to Kouki and whispered something to him. Kouki’s expression turned sour, but he reluctantly nodded. Shizuku breathed another sigh, this time one of relief, and patted her chest. She then noticed Hajime smiling wryly at her, and glared at him. Hajime pretended not to notice and averted his gaze. 
In an attempt to patch up the strained atmosphere, Kaori blurted out, “Oh yeah, didn’t the emperor propose to you when he visited the kingdom, Shizuku-chan?” 
“...Now that you mention it, I do remember something like that happening,” Shizuku replied with a frown. She hadn’t wanted to be reminded of that memory. The target of her glare changed from Hajime to Kaori. Why did you have to go and bring that up? Kaori hurriedly bowed her head in a silent apology. 
The girls all turned to Shizuku with devilish grins on their faces. Meanwhile, Kouki’s expression grew more sour. For once, Shizuku looked as unhappy as he did. Normally, being proposed to by royalty would be something to celebrate, but Shizuku didn’t seem the least bit delighted about recalling that particular memory. It appeared she wasn’t a fan of Emperor Gahard. 
“More importantly, Nagumo-kun. Where exactly are we headed?” In order to fend off the army of girls who no doubt wanted to pry for details, Shizuku changed the subject. She knew they were here to find Shea’s father, but she hadn’t heard how Hajime planned to do that. 
“Well for now, we’re going to the adventurer’s guild. If I flash my gold rank at them, they’ll probably be willing to share all of their info with me.” 
“Do you think they’ve been captured?” 
“I’m not sure. It’s possible they got thrown in jail, or made into slaves... but they might also just be in hiding somewhere. Even if the capital isn’t on high alert, you can tell the guards are being oddly vigilant. It’s possible they were able to sneak their way in, but now have no way to get out...” 
As Hajime had mentioned, the capital’s guards appeared to be patrolling the streets in force. On top of that, they were doing thorough examinations of everyone who entered the city, and had posted entire squads to watch the walls. Patrols within the city were being done by three-man teams, and they were checking every nook and cranny of the city, including back alleys. 
Hajime guessed the increased security was due to the recent demon invasions. It was because security had been so tight that Par and the others had yet to find an infiltration point. No rabbitman who wasn’t a slave would be allowed entry into the city, and there was a limit to how many pretend slaves Hajime could bring with him. For that reason, the reinforcements Hajime had brought with him were waiting in the shadows of a rocky outcropping at the outskirts of the city. 
To be honest, I’m kind of wondering how Cam managed to get in here himself. Though Hajime had said he wasn’t sure what had happened to them, it was more likely than not that they had been taken. Rabbitmen possessed the best stealth skills among the beastmen, and Cam’s family had honed those talents to the limit. No matter how tight security was, they should have been able to ferry messages in and out of the city. The fact that they hadn’t meant they’d probably been captured, or otherwise incapacitated. 
Naturally, Hajime didn’t expect the adventurer’s guild to just tell him where Cam was. But there was a good chance he might find some rumors on their whereabouts, or the circumstances of their capture there. 
Hajime stretched out his hand and pinched Shea’s cheeks again. Though her mood had improved considerably, Shea still looked a little worried. 
“Don’t worry, Shea. Even if they got caught, there’s no way the empire would just execute such rare rabbitmen. They’d probably want to interrogate them first, at least. And if they’ve been caught, that means all we’ve gotta do is free ’em again. I promise you, even if I have to burn this entire city to ash, I’ll get them out of here.” 
“Yeah... Leave it to us, Shea. We’ll grind them to dust.” 
“Hajime-san, Yue-san...” 
Through the course of their journey, Shea’s, Hajime’s, and Yue’s bonds had grown very strong indeed. After all, Shea had been with the pair of them the longest. 
“Wait, wait, wait, you’re not really going to burn the city down, are you? Your expressions look serious, but that was totally a joke right? Right? Please say it was a joke!” Shizuku cried, pale-faced. She could appreciate the loyalty the three of them showed for each other, but that didn’t mean she could just ignore their declaration to slaughter thousands. 
Kaori placed a hand on Shizuku’s shoulder and shook her head. In a mournful voice, she uttered something rather depressing. 
“Shizuku-chan, I’m sorry, but it looks like the capital’s done for...” 
“You’re just giving up!? Kaori, you’re a healer! You can’t just ignore the plight of the people! You healed all those people back at Verbergen, right!? Why’re you giving up now!?” 
Do you really hate the empire that much, Kaori... Shizuku had thought that Kaori’s violent tendencies only appeared when Hajime was concerned, but it appeared that wasn’t the case. Before she worries about healing others, she should focus on healing her own heart. 
As the group continued joking with each other and walking down the main street, they noticed their surroundings begin to change. 
Many of the buildings they were passing by now had been reduced to cinders, and rubble littered the streets. According to the snippets of conversation they heard from passerby, it appeared the monsters that had been kept locked up in the coliseum had suddenly transformed into powerful, vicious, beasts and rampaged through the city. These monsters, some of which had been over thirty meters tall, had destroyed entire sections of the capital, and slaughtered the squads sent out to eliminate them. 
The demons had taken advantage of the confusion to assault the castle in an attempt to take Emperor Gahard’s life. In Hoelscher, the emperor was effectively the strongest person in the country. Which was why the demons’ assassination attempt had actually been thwarted, and they’d had the tables turned on them. After which the emperor had personally led a charge into the city and annihilated the monsters as well. However, there had been a great deal of civilian casualties before Gahard had been able to kill them all. In order to repair the damage to the city, the empire had captured a massive quantity of beastmen slaves. Everywhere Hajime looked, they were slaving away, laying the groundwork for the city’s restoration. 
It appeared the adventurer’s guild was on the other side of the devastation, so they would have to cross it whether they wished to or not. Which meant they’d have to pass through the field of slaves as well. 
Beastmen toiled without rest while their imperial overseers hurled curses at them. It was a tragic sight to behold. They’d been forced to bear the brunt of the consequences of the damage done to the capital. No matter how physically strong beastmen might be, even they wouldn’t last long under such harsh conditions. 
The fact that they continued to raid the sea of trees to replace all the beastmen who died to overwork rather than let them rest made it clear that the empire didn’t even think of them as human. Though it was hard to tell if that was because of religious prejudice, or because of their ingrained doctrine of “survival of the fittest.” As they walked, Hajime and the others saw a young dogman, barely ten years old, trip over a brick, sending the wheelbarrow of rubble he was holding falling to the side and spilling its contents everywhere. 
It seemed he’d injured his leg in the fall, as he curled up in pain and made no motion to get up. The nearest overseer glared angrily at him and walked over, his club raised. His intentions were clear. Naturally, everyone’s favorite ally of justice couldn’t let this stand. 
“Stop right—” Kouki dashed off toward the soldier. But he slowed to a halt as he watched what happened next. There was a faint whoosh, and a second later the imperial soldier pitched forward, falling headfirst into the pile of rubble. There was painful thud, after which he lay motionless on the ground. He’d been knocked unconscious. 
His fellow soldiers hurried over to him. After a cursory examination, they shook their heads in confusion. Then, annoyed and trying to get as little of his blood on them as possible, they grabbed their comrade by the arms and carried him off. Everyone had forgotten about the dogman. 
He watched them go, dumbfounded, for a few seconds before returning to his senses and scrambling to his feet. He quickly gathered up all of the rubble he’d spilled and resumed transporting it like nothing had happened. 
Kouki stared blankly, just as surprised as the boy had been. He came to with a start when Hajime called out to him from behind. 
“I don’t really care if you want to stick your neck out for other people, but could you at least do it in a way that doesn’t cause trouble for us? Or even better, do it in a way that doesn’t get noticed.” 
“Ah... Did you do that, Nagumo?” 
Hajime nodded silently. He’d used his prosthetic arm’s needle gun to knock the soldier out. Though Hajime had managed to save the boy before Kouki could even lift a finger, his attitude irked Kouki. Worse, Hajime had flipped Kouki’s preachy switch. 
“What do you mean, don’t cause trouble for you? What’s so wrong about wanting to save people, huh? Didn’t you save that kid just now yourself?” 
“More like I just solved an issue before you could blow it up. If you pick a fight with the imperials here, you’re going to have to deal with their whole army. We’re trying to look for people here, and making a huge fuss is not going to help with that. I’m begging you, just don’t make a scene.” Once again, Hajime emphasized that he didn’t want anyone making a ruckus. He waved dismissively at Kouki, indicating the conversation was over. Kouki didn’t take too kindly to that, and once again attempted to impress his ideals onto Hajime. 
“Don’t you feel anything for those poor beastmen being abused over there!? Look! Even now they’re suffering!” 
“Oi, Yaegashi. Do something about this moron. You’re supposed to be in charge of him, aren’t you?” 
Of course, Hajime wasn’t completely heartless. He’d saved Myu before, and if he saw children suffering, he did feel like he should help them if he could. Adults he could care less about, though. 
However, he also had the discipline to properly prioritize things. Helping a few slaves here would make finding Cam harder, or possibly result in him being killed, so he turned to Shizuku for help in handling Kouki. Shizuku rubbed her temples in frustration and turned to Kouki. Before she could say anything though, he interrupted her. It seemed Hajime turning to Shizuku for help irritated him as well. 
“Shizuku’s got nothing to do with this! I’m talking to you right now, Nagumo! If you care so much about Shea-san, then how come you can’t share even a little of that concern for those beastmen suffering out there!?” Heads turned at Kouki’s loud outburst. Some of the imperial overseers came over to see what was going on as well. So long as Cam might potentially be in enemy hands, the last thing Hajime wanted was a fight with the empire. It would put their lives at risk. 
Hajime narrowed his eyes and glared at Kouki. A powerful wave of Intimidation washed over him. 
“Amanogawa. I said it before, but I really don’t care about your opinion, and I don’t feel like arguing with you about what’s right and wrong. We’re not comrades, we’re not friends, and we definitely don’t believe in the same things, so I have absolutely no intention of doing something just because you say so. All I did was allow you to accompany me for a bit. I suggest you quit trying to pick a fight. The next time you do something stupid... I’ll break your arms and legs and send you back to the kingdom.” 
“Wha—” 
Hajime canceled his Intimidation and continued with a sigh. 
“On the other hand, I have no intention of convincing you to change your ways. As long as you’re not causing any trouble for us, you’re free to do as you like. But I won’t allow you to do anything that might put Cam and the others in danger. Also, don’t ask stupid questions. There’s no way I’d see other beastmen the same way I see Shea.” 
Hajime shook his head and turned away. Slavery was a natural part of life in this world. While it was true the beastmen here were being horribly mistreated, the citizens here would see Hajime and the others as the bad guys if they tried to save them. To them, freeing a slave was akin to stealing. 
If one wanted to help slaves in these circumstances, they needed to be prepared to see it all the way through. They needed the resolve to fight the entire empire, and force a society to never use slaves again. Unless they were able to manage that, their efforts would only make things worse. Even if they managed to free some slaves now, the empire would just come down even harder on the beastmen afterward, and make their lives more of a hell than they already were. 
Hajime had no idea if Kouki understood that or not, but it seemed he was unwilling to give up. Even now, he continued to glare daggers at Hajime’s back. 
“I know it sucks, Kouki. But we gotta go, for now at least.” 
“Right now we need to focus on Shea-san’s family.” 
Kouki sighed. He knew Ryutarou and Suzu were just trying to comfort him, and it only made him feel worse. Seeing as he wasn’t moving, Shizuku also called out to him. 
“Kouki.” 
“...I know.” 
He nodded reluctantly. Hajime was more than capable of sending them all back home with a snap of his fingers. Kouki knew that he needed to get stronger. Strong enough to stand by his ideals. Stronger even than Hajime. 
But in order to that, in order to obtain the ancient magic, he needed Hajime. No matter how much Hajime’s methods sickened him, Kouki had no choice but to grin and bear it. As sticking with Hajime was the fastest way to get stronger. 
Kouki swallowed down his complaints, repeated to himself to hold it in, and silently followed after Hajime. 
“That boy seems to be struggling to sort out his emotions.” 
Tio strode up beside Shizuku and flashed her a smile. 
“...No one’s ever as simple as they look.” 
“Indeed they’re not. Someone like you, who notices more than most has your fair share of hardships too, I imagine. Especially as you seem unable to abandon anyone who needs help.” 
Shizuku gulped when she saw Tio’s serious gaze. Her usual perverted personality was nowhere to be seen. 
“Feel free to ignore the prattling of this old woman if you wish, but... I think you should let yourself loosen up. If you spend all your time looking after others, you’ll lose sight of your own desires. Besides, do you see that? You’ll keep worrying those who care about you if you don’t relax sometimes.” 
“Huh?” 
Shizuku followed Tio’s gaze. 
“Shizuku-chan, are you alright? You keep making this scary face.” 
Kaori was standing right in front of her, a worried look on her face. Only when she looked down did Shizuku notice that Kaori was holding her hands. 
“Heh, thanks for worrying about me, Kaori. But I’m alright. Well, I am a little worried about Kouki. But now that my best friend’s got the body of a God’s Apostle, I can count on you if anything happens, right?” 
“Yep, just leave it to me, Shizuku-chan!” 
Thanks to Tio’s words and Kaori’s presence, Shizuku was able to let go of the tension that had been building up inside her. She followed after Hajime, her steps lighter than before. 
With Kouki and the others still struggling with their thoughts, the party arrived at the adventurer’s guild. The empire’s guild branch was more of a bar than a proper guild. Tables were strewn about haphazardly among the wide main hall, and there were two counters at the front. The first was a standard reception counter, though the girl manning it had a far more wild look to her than the girls who’d been at other guilds Hajime had seen. The other counter was a fully stocked bar. Though it was still noon, half of the patrons were already drunk. If you’ve got that much free time, why don’t you help out with the reconstruction effort? Hajime thought to himself. 
As always, when Hajime and the others stepped through the front doors, everyone turned to look at them. More specifically, everyone turned to ogle Yue and the others. Hajime didn’t want to deal with this right now, so he activated his Intimidation right from the start and walked up to the reception counter. However, the adventurers in the empire were cut from a different cloth than those in Horaud or the capital. Instead of fainting, they instantly went on their guard. The lady at the counter had none of the cute cheerfulness the other guild receptionists had. She just stared lazily at Hajime, her gaze clearly saying “get on with it.” 
“I’m looking for information. Did any beastmen go on a rampage in this town recently?” 
The receptionist stared suspiciously at him. Hajime knew it was a strange question to ask. If he’d wanted to find slaves, he would have been better served going to the merchant’s guild. Besides, no slave would be able to go on a rampage. Their slave collars would put a stop to any resistance they might attempt. Furthermore, there were no beastmen in the city that weren’t slaves. Which meant the thing Hajime was asking about should have been an impossible occurrence. 
In the end, the receptionist pointed to the bar counter on the other side. Hajime couldn’t tell if she was tired of dealing with him, or if that was just standard procedure here. 
“Go ask the guy over there.” Hajime looked where she was pointing and saw an old man with gray hair quietly polishing glasses. Well, I guess it is the standard in RPGs to gather information at bars. After foisting the work off onto her coworker, the receptionist turned away, signaling that she was done talking. Hajime smiled wryly and headed over to the bar. 
The adventurers stared intently at Hajime and the others, sizing them up. Quarrelsome as always, Ryutarou responded by glaring back at every one of them. On the other hand, Suzu hid behind Shizuku and clutched at her sleeves. It was actually rather cute. 
Hajime stopped in front of the barkeep and asked him the same question he’d asked the receptionist. However, the barkeep ignored him and continued polishing his wine glass. Hajime narrowed his eyes dangerously, which finally got the man to respond. 
“This is a bar. Kids don’t belong here. And unless you’re here to order alcohol, I’ve got nothing to say. Now get out.” 
Sheesh, that’s as clichéd as it gets. But Hajime personally liked this particular cliché. The barkeep had the entire act down, including continuing to polish his glass long after it was sparkling. I bet this means he’ll take a liking to me if I down a whole bottle in front of him. Excited at the prospect of acting out the role of an RPG protagonist, Hajime plastered on a stoic frown and slammed some coins on the table. 
Hajime didn’t notice how badly his chuuni tendencies were leaking out at that moment. Nor did he notice the exasperated look Yue gave him. After all, Hajime loved clichéd stuff like this. 
“Alright, we’ll do it your way. Barkeep, give me a bottle of the strongest stuff you’ve got.” 
“If you throw up, I’ll toss your sorry hide out of here.” 
The barkeep’s eyebrows twitched in surprise, but he didn’t refuse Hajime’s request. He grabbed a bottle off the shelf behind it and placed it in front of Hajime. The reason why he’d agreed was because the aura of Intimidation Hajime was giving off, coupled with the wary stares of the surrounding adventurers, had clued the barkeep in on the fact that Hajime was no ordinary kid. 
Hajime brushed the bottle with his fingers, slicing the top off. The grace with which he did so caused everyone watching to gasp. Even the barkeep was surprised. 
The pungent smell of alcohol wafted up from the open bottle, and both Kaori and Shea wrinkled their noses. Kouki and the others covered their mouths and took a few steps back. 
“N-Nagumo-kun? Are you really planning on drinking that? I wouldn’t recommend it.” 
“Y-Yeah. You’re totally going to throw up. I feel like throwing up just smelling it.” 
“If you’re going to drink Hajime-kun, can’t you at least pick something that tastes better?” 
“Kaori-san’s right, Hajime-san. Why did you have to pick the worst-smelling one there is...” 
Shizuku, Suzu, Kaori, and Shea all tried to talk him out of it. Even Yue tugged gently on Hajime’s sleeve when she got a whiff of how bad it smelled. 
“I can hardly ask for quality alcohol if I’m planning on chugging it down. That’s like blasphemy.” Hajime snuck a glance at the barkeep as he said that. 
As he’d hoped, the old man was smiling slightly. I knew he’d understand! This barkeep is clichéd through and through! Hajime ignored the complaints of the girls and began guzzling down the foul-smelling concoction. Hajime and the barkeep were in perfect sync. 
You watching this, barkeep? I’m sticking to the cliché, so you better like me after this. Hajime’s chuuni soul manifested in the form of a mini-Hajime inside his mind. Said mini-Hajime started clutching his left arm like he was trying to hold in some unspeakable evil. 
Hajime’s gulping was the only noise inside the vast guild hall. In the span of a few seconds, he’d emptied the entire thing. He slammed the empty bottle back down on the counter, and grinned at the barkeep. “Happy now?” 
“Alright, alright. You’re a proper customer now.” 
The barkeep raised both hands in surrender, but his smile grew wider. What a wonderful, bitter old man. 
“Hajime. Are you satisfied?” 
“Yeah.” 
Hajime turned to Yue and nodded, the same giddy grin still on his face. He knew it was clichéd, but being able to act out a scene like this had been one of his dreams. 
As an aside, no matter how much Hajime drank, he would never get drunk. One of his skills was Poison Resistance, which counteracted alcohol’s effects. Back in Japan, his father had taught him how wonderful liquor could taste, and he’d actually become a fan of drinking. So it was a little disappointing that he’d never be able to experience drunkenness again. 
“So, do you know anything about what I asked? I’m willing to pay for the info, of course.” 
“Don’t worry about payment. Downing that bottle was payment enough for me. Would the beastmen you’re referring to happen to be rabbitmen?” 
“...Looks like you know something after all. Tell me the details.” 
It appeared coming here had been the right choice. According to the barkeep, there had been a big manhunt to capture runaway slaves a few days ago. During that manhunt, a group of insane rabbitmen had beaten down squad after squad of imperial soldiers, then tried to make their escape. Unfortunately, there had only been a few dozen of them, and a few hundred imperial soldiers. Eventually they’d been surrounded and overwhelmed through sheer force of numbers. All of them had been captured and sent to the castle. 
Their rampage had actually become the talk of the town, so Hajime could have asked basically anyone in the city and obtained the same information. 
“The castle, huh...?” Hajime turned to Shea. As expected, her expression was dark. She knew what fate awaited those who were caught trespassing in the capital. Cam and the others didn’t have a bright future ahead of them. 
The fact that they’d been taken alive meant there was still hope though. 
Male rabbitmen weren’t as popular as sex slaves for obvious reasons, though there were a few nobles whose interests lay in that direction. However, there was almost no demand for older men like Cam, who were already in their forties. However, these particular rabbitmen had attacked the empire. Shea had expected them to be executed on the spot once they’d been captured. That would have been the normal punishment. 
If the empire hadn’t done so, it was because they saw some value in taking Cam and the others alive. Which meant chances were, they were still alive even now. Hajime squeezed Shea’s hand under the counter in an attempt to reassure her. Yue, too, grabbed her other hand and squeezed gently. Encouraged by their support, Shea turned to them and nodded resolutely. 
The barkeep turned to Shea and examined her with great interest. There weren’t many rabbitmen with blue hair like her. He could more or less guess her relationship with the rabbitmen the empire had captured earlier. Hajime knew the barkeep had caught on, but he didn’t stop his questions. 
“Barkeep. What can you tell me about the imperial castle? I’ll pay whatever you want.” 
“That’s not the kind of thing you should be joking about, kid... Though I guess you’re not joking...” 
Hajime smiled at the barkeep, but this time the smile didn’t reach his eyes. He’d had his fun earlier, now it was time to get serious. The barkeep faltered, cold sweat pouring down his forehead. He felt as if he was being stared down by a hungry predator. 
If he wasn’t careful about his answer, he would be branded a traitor to the empire. The adventurer’s guild might have been an independent organization beholden to no nation, so technically the barkeep couldn’t actually betray the empire. But the empire was his home, and more importantly, if word of this got out to the emperor, they wouldn’t let him off lightly. 
It was an implicit rule among adventurers to turn a blind eye to any potentially unsavory things one of their own were planning. But this still wasn’t information the barkeep wanted to part with. 
That being said, he could tell from the pressure this young man was emitting that refusing to answer would not end well for him. So, as a compromise, instead of explaining things himself he reluctantly decided to sell out—err, tell—Hajime about someone who could help him. 
“Look for a man in the fourth patrol squad called Nedil. He used to be a prison guard in the palace.” 
“Nedil... Alright, I’ll go find him. Thanks, you were a huge help.” 
Hajime knew the barkeep would have reservations about answering, and it was entirely possible he just didn’t know anything. So he was glad the barkeep had pointed him to someone who did. 
The barkeep breathed a sigh of relief as Hajime strode out of the building under the watchful eyes of every adventurer in the room. As they walked down the main street, Shea turned to Hajime and asked, “Umm, Hajime-san. Did you ask about the castle because...” 
“Yeah. I’m planning on figuring out where the prison is, and sneaking in tonight. Yue and I will handle the information gathering, so the rest of you just find a place to eat or something. We’ll be back in a few hours.” 
Shea and the others looked at him in confusion. 
“Hm? Why just you two? Shouldn’t we all go together... Wait! Don’t tell me you plan on sneaking off with Yue-san so you can do naughty things like you always do!” 
“Wha!? Is that why, Hajime-kun!? No, I won’t allow it! How could you think of such a thing when Shea’s family is in trouble!?” 
“It’s simply unfair that only Yue gets to partake. Master, allow me to join in as well.” 
“Like hell that’s why! And stop shouting that kind of stuff in the middle of the street. Do you all take me for some kind of repressed horndog or something!?” Hajime retorted hotly. The scene was made even more misleading by Tio caressing her butt and squirming suggestively. Just then, someone tugged on his sleeve. Hajime turned to see Yue blushing and looking up at him. 
“We’re going to do it outside?” 
“No we’re not.” 
“Then are we finding somewhere inside to do it?” 
“No, we’re just not doing it, so drop the subject already.” 
“Hmph, fine. I’ll just have to prepare for a night raid then.” 
“By night raid, you mean our plan to infiltrate the castle, right? Right?” 
Yue’s jokes were always like this. At least, Hajime hoped this was a joke. Surely Yue licking her lips seductively and looking at Hajime like he was a piece of prime steak were all part of the act. 
Shizuku and the others, who weren’t used to these exchanges, looked on in shock. 
“Sh-Shizushizu, what do I do!? I just heard something crazy right now! I can’t even process it!” 
“I suspected that was how their relationship was... But to think Kaori hasn’t done it yet. How should I handle this? Should I cheer her on as her best friend, or tell her she’s too young for this sort of thing? I’m not sure... This is beyond my abilities to handle!” 
Despite her perverted attitude, Suzu was surprisingly pure. She blushed bright red and hid behind Shizuku. Meanwhile, Shizuku herself was fretting over Kaori like a mother worried about her daughter. On the guys’ side, Ryutarou was glaring at Hajime while cursing him under his breath. Kouki had taken such a huge shock that he was staring lifelessly out in the distance. Finally, nondescript citizens A, B, C, etc. all the way up to Z stood rooted to the ground, captivated by Yue’s seductive smile. 
What kind of crazy fetishes does she have!? Blood pounding, Hajime tried to resolve the misunderstanding as calmly as possible. 
“You guys, cut it out. I’m taking Yue because if this Nedil guy doesn’t want to talk, we’re going to need some ‘persuasion’ to convince him he should. And she’s the best at that. Plus she can use restoration magic.” 
“I can use restoration magic too, so...” 
Hajime cut her off by shaking his head. If Nedil was part of the army, there was no way he’d be willing to talk. So they’d have to torture the answers out of him. 
Kaori may have been more than skilled enough with restoration magic, but she was wholly unsuited to torture. Shizuku realized that as well, and tried to placate her best friend. 
“Kaori, leave this one to Yue.” 
“Shizuku-chan...” 
Kaori had more or less figured out what Hajime had in mind as well. And normally, she would have argued back. She was tired of letting Yue carry the burden of doing all the dirty work. After all, Kaori’s aptitude for restoration magic was even higher than Yue’s. It wasn’t so much that she wanted to insist on going with Hajime everywhere, that she just didn’t want Yue to have to shoulder everything. 
But right now, Shea’s family was in danger, and every second counted. They didn’t have time to waste while Kaori argued her point. So Kaori gave Yue an apologetic look and obediently backed off. Yue shrugged her shoulders, indicating that there was nothing to be concerned about. 
Once everything was decided, Yue and Hajime strode off into the crowd. Before they vanished from sight, Shea called out to them. 
“Hajime-san, Yue-san! Umm...” She faltered, unable to find the right words to say. Hajime smiled gently at her. He knew he’d told her not to hold herself back around him, but that didn’t change the fact that she’d gotten them wrapped up in this mess just before they’d headed off to another labyrinth. 
In the end, she couldn’t figure out how to express what she was trying to say, and returned Hajime’s smile. 
“Try to keep it in your pants, okay!” 
“You ruined the moment, you worthless rabbit!” 
Hajime yelled back and pulled Yue—who was giving Shea a thumbs-up—along with him. Before long, he’d vanished into the crowd. 
A few hours later, Hajime and the others sat around a table in a restaurant in some corner of the city. The atmosphere around the table was chilly, and the source of the discord was of course, Hajime. Ever since Hajime and Yue had returned from their intelligence-gathering, the girls had been giving him cold stares. If looks could kill, Shea’s and Kaori’s glares would have ended Hajime’s life a thousand times over. In fact, even he was a little scared of them right now. Especially since he could see the demon stand forming behind Kaori. 
“It looks like the two of you had a lot of fun.” 
“Is it just me, or is your skin glossy now, Yue? I wonder why that might be. Hey, would you mind telling me how you got it like that? Well?” Their monotone voices were so terrifying all the nearby guests had left. Ryutarou and Kouki had attempted to make their escape as well, but Suzu had caught them with a barrier. Both of them were now sitting meekly in their chairs as they watched events unfold. 
Tio had just sighed wearily when she’d seen the two of them, but surprisingly even Shizuku was glaring daggers at Hajime. He could understand why Ryutarou and Kouki had wanted to flee. When they’d returned from their excursion, Yue’s skin had looked glossier than before, while Hajime appeared rather haggard. 
In other words, it was obvious that they’d gotten it on while they’d been out collecting information. 
“Don’t misunderstand. The reason Yue looks like that is because she drank my blood.” 
“What?” 
Seeing as they all seemed to be misunderstanding, Hajime sighed and began to explain. Shea and Kaori looked at Hajime with shocked expressions. They hadn’t been expecting that. 
“You didn’t really think I’d go on a fucking spree now of all times, did you? I’m not a dog in heat, you know. Do you guys really think that little of me, huh?” 
“Ahahahaha, of course not. We knew that. R-Right, Kaori-san?” 
“Y-Yeah! Of course we did, Shea. Restoration magic takes up a lot of mana, so of course I knew something like that might happen.” 
Unable to bear Hajime’s angry stare, the two of them averted their gaze and tried to play innocent. Satisfied, Hajime turned to Shizuku and Suzu. They blushed furiously and turned away. It seems they too had gotten the wrong idea. 
“Haaah... Well, whatever. I got the information I was looking for. We’re going to infiltrate the prison Cam’s in tonight. Apparently they’re under pretty tight watch, but that shouldn’t be a problem for us. The only people going into the castle are going to be me, Yue, and Shea. It’ll be best to have only people who can mask their presence or use teleportation magic in case anything goes wrong. Kaori, I want you and the others to wait outside the capital with Par and the others. Once we get Cam’s group out, we’ll be teleporting them directly to you.” 
“That’s not a bad plan, but... Are you sure your information’s accurate? What if that Nedil guy was lying to you?” 
Shizuku voiced a rather reasonable concern. However, Hajime just shook his head. 
“Not possible. We crushed his balls in front of his eyes, restored them before he lost consciousness, then did it again over and over until he finally talked. No guy could withstand that kind of torture. Even I felt kinda bad for him after we were done. Poor guy was a mess.” 
If you felt bad about it, why’d you do it!? Kouki and the others thought. They would have said it aloud, but they could tell from Hajime’s plastered on mournful expression that anything they said would be ignored. So they just sighed instead. Shizuku mentally patted herself on the back for not letting Kaori go this time. 
What truly scared Kouki and Ryutarou was how Yue didn’t seem to think anything at all of destroying a man’s balls over and over. It seemed the rumors they’d heard in the capital, that she was the legendary “Ball Crusher” were true after all. They swore in their hearts never to cross her. At the same time, they covertly covered their nether regions. 
“Hey Nagumo... I know it’s a bit late to be asking this now, but if the emperor’s got Shea-san’s family captive, can’t we just ask him to let them go? Lily should be in the castle right now, and I am technically a hero, so... I’m sure we could persuade them if we just talk it out...” It was more than just “a bit late.” But he did have a point. Not even the emperor could flat-out refuse a request from the hero, especially if Liliana gave her support to his cause. Hajime could show off his overwhelming strength to force the emperor to negotiate too. 
However, there was one flaw. 
“And how are you planning on compensating him for letting them go?” 
“What?” 
“Not only did Cam’s guys infiltrate the city, they killed the empire’s soldiers. And the fact that rabbitmen like them could fight on even footing with the empire at all is an anomaly. We can’t pretend to be acting under god’s orders, either. The princess would have told the emperor the truth about that by now. You really think he’ll release them for free just because we asked?” 
“Well...” 
“It’s obvious he’ll ask for something in return. Way more than we want to pay too. The empire’s gotta save face somehow if it releases Cam. There’s no way they’ll just let him walk out of here without getting their money’s worth. Plus, it might make it harder for the princess to negotiate for aid. You sure you still wanna just go in and ask?” 
Kouki fell silent. Hajime did have a point. Naturally, Hajime didn’t care how it might affect Liliana’s negotiations, and honestly if the emperor had asked him for reparations he’d let him eat a faceful of missiles. The only reason he’d opted for breaking Cam and the others out of prison instead of attempting negotiations was because doing things this way was less of a hassle. After all, if it was likely to devolve into a fight anyway, might as well go in guns blazing. 
“Leaving the money aside for now, you’re right that causing trouble for Lily... wouldn’t be good. But, still...” 
Kouki felt that since he was part of this party for now, he had to contribute somehow. After the incident with the slave boy, he’d been itching to prove he could be useful too. Sensing that Kouki was about to cook up another troublesome idea, Hajime turned back to Shizuku. She noticed his gaze and shook her head. It seemed it was too late for her to stop his rampage. 
Worried that Kouki might do something colossally stupid to “help” Hajime during his infiltration, he quickly devised a way to redirect Kouki’s energies. 
“Hey, Amanogawa. There’s something I need you to help me with...” 
“Wha!? Did... you just... say you need help? No way...” 
Hearing the word “help” come from Hajime’s mouth had shocked Kouki speechless. Ryutarou and Suzu were both stunned as well. They couldn’t have been more surprised if they saw a UFO in the middle of town. That was just how rare Hajime asking for help was to them. 
Hajime had expected that reaction, so while it irked him a little he was able to keep his emotions off his face. 
“You know what, on second thought, forget it. I shouldn’t ask you to take on such a dangerous job. Forget I asked.” 
“W-Wait! Please! At least tell me what it is!” 
Kouki fell for Hajime’s act hook, line, and sinker. “Well, the castle’s supposedly under extremely heavy guard. That’s going to make sneaking in difficult. In order to increase our chances of success, we’re going to need a diversion. Something like that stunt you pulled before when you tried to save that slave kid. We need someone to start a commotion to draw away the guards. But now that I think about it, it really is too dangerous. Don’t worry about it.” 
Of course, Hajime and the others would have no problems sneaking in no matter how tight the watch was. A diversion certainly might help, but it was by no means necessary. This was just the most believable excuse Hajime could come up with to make Kouki feel like he was helping. If Kouki was going to go on a rampage either way, Hajime would at least like to control the way in which he did. Whatever it took for him to not follow after Hajime. 
“Make a commotion... by saving those kids... Sounds good. I’ll do it, Nagumo! Let me handle the diversion!” 
“O-Okay, if you’re sure. Thanks man... I guess you really are a hero.” 
Shizuku, sharp as always, saw through the whole act. She glared angrily at Hajime He couldn’t tell if she was mad he’d deceived her childhood friend, or because he’d effectively volunteered her for this pointless diversion as well. Hajime pretended not to notice and opened up his Treasure Trove. 
“Alright, if you’re willing to cooperate, let me give you some things that’ll help. Here’s a gift for the justice-loving hero and his team.” 
Hajime pulled out a few chunks of ore and transmuted them into four masks. They completely covered the face and came in different colors. Red, blue, yellow, and pink. Much like the masks of a certain set of rangers. Hajime had made sure to keep the masks breathable, and the eyeholes large enough to not obstruct the wearer’s vision. Such detailed transmuting wasn’t something any Synergist could do. It was a rather pointless display of skill, but Hajime liked to be thorough about everything he did. 
“Nagumo... What are these?” 
“Can’t you tell just by looking at them? Masks.” 
“...Why’d you make them?” 
“You do realize it’d be a problem if the hero went on a rampage in the imperial capital for no good reason, right? We need to hide your identity. That’s what the masks are for. You know, heroes always wear masks to hide their faces. In fact, a hero is their mask. I even made them different colors so you could tell each other apart.” 
“Uhh, I get that you’re enthusiastic about this, but... well, I guess you’re right that we need to keep our identities secret. It’d be bad if we caused trouble for Lily... but you know...” 
Kouki stared at Hajime the sentai lord with an exasperated expression. 
“Don’t worry, great hero (snicker) You get to be red, the leader’s color.” 
“Are you making fun of me?” 
“Sakagami, you get blue. The calm and collected blue ranger. I debated giving you black, but I think blue fits better after all. You should be glad I put so much thought into this.” 
“O-Okay? I don’t really get it, but I guess I’ll take it.” 
“Cool. Now Taniguchi, you’re going to be...” 
“P-Pink, right? It’s a little embarrassing, but...” 
“Yellow. The most forgettable one. Also, the one who gets excited too easily. I’d say it suits you perfectly.” 
“...Do you hate me or something, Nagumo-kun?” 
“And finally... for Yaegashi we have...” 
“Hold it right there, Nagumo-kun. The only color left is... You’re not serious, are you?” 
“Of course I am. Yaegashi, you get pink. This is the color that’s best for you.” 
“I refuse! Besides, aren’t there plenty of other ways to hide our identities that don’t require wearing masks? Can’t we just wrap some cloth around our mouths or something!? You’re just toying with us, aren’t you, Nagumo-kun!?” 
Hajime shook his head in mock disgust. Shizuku’s eyebrows twitched angrily. She didn’t enjoy being treated like an unruly child. 
“Listen up. This is the best way to completely hide your identity 100%! Not only do they have metal fastenings that will never come undone unless you take them off yourself, they even absorb impact damage. Plus, they’re lighter than air and impervious to pretty much any kind of slashing attack!” 
“I-I can’t believe you managed to make something so impressive in an instant... Why do you have to put your crazy skills to use in the weirdest of ways?” 
“Yaegashi, everyone knows that aloof, calm beauties like you have a secret soft spot for cute things. It’s practically required. Or well, more like Kaori told me. But the point is, you like cute things. That’s why I decided you should get pink. Be grateful.” 
“Wh-What’s with that arrogant attitude... B-Besides, it’s not like I’m that into cute... Anyway, Kaori! Just what did you tell him!?” 
“Ehehe, just all the things I find cute about you, Shizuku-chan. Like how your room is filled with stuffed animals...” 
How could my best friend betray me like this!? I mean I guess I never told her not to tell people or anything, but why’d she have to blab to Nagumo-kun of all people!? Shizuku glared at Kaori, who was blushing shyly. Unfortunately, everyone’s favorite hero decided now was the best time to add fuel to the fire. 
“Come to think of it, you’ve always been fond of animals. Like bunnies, and cats... Small, cute things mostly.” 
“!?” 
“Oh yeah, wasn’t your phone wallpaper a cute bunny too, Shizushizu?” 
“!?” 
“And any time we go to the arcade you always go straight for the UFO catcher games. You’ve gotten pretty good at them too.” 
“!?” 
“I get it now. So that’s why you’re always sneaking glances at my bunny ears, Shizuku-san.” 
“N-No!” 
“Go on, Yaegashi. Take it. Pink... embodies you.” Hajime held out the pink mask while giving Shizuku a warm, gentle look. For some reason, everyone else was looking at her like that too. As if they were watching proudly over their daughter’s graduation. The atmosphere made rejecting the mask near impossible.   

“What the heck is with you guys... Let me just say this now, I really don’t like pink that much. I’m only taking it because I have no choice, it’s not like I actually want it. Also, everyone likes small animals, okay? It’s not just me, so there’s no special meaning behind me liking them too... Hey, quit looking at me like that, guys!” 
Ears bright red, Shizuku reluctantly accepted the mask. Upon seeing how hard Shizuku was trying to hide her embarrassment, Shea sidled up to her and whispered, “I don’t mind letting you touch my ears, if you want.” 
A broad smile split Shizuku’s face, and she forgot all about how mortified she was. 
In truth, the reason Hajime had pushed the masks so hard was because he wanted revenge. He was hoping that by sending a group of colorfully masked kids to rampage around the capital, they’d create a legend that was even more cringy than the nicknames the Haulia had tried to give Hajime. 
He still hadn’t forgotten how they’d been laughing at him back then. 
Unfortunately, even if this worked it wasn’t like anyone would associate Shizuku and the others’ nicknames directly with them. But for now, this was the best he could manage. Yue could tell that Hajime’s real reason for the masks was because he wanted to get some petty revenge, and she gave him an exasperated look.

That night. In a dark corridor, where no light reached, there was a row of rooms whose walls were metal bars. The bars were made of a special, extra-sturdy ore, and were reinforced with magic circles that kept inhabitants of the room trapped within. Whoever was stuck in these rooms would have a hard time getting out. The entire corridor reeked of blood and filth, and it was clear the rooms were dirty even if one couldn’t see them. 
This was the state of Hoelscher Castle’s dungeons. They had been designed to mentally whittle down prisoners, driving them into a corner psychologically and physically. As one would expect of the empire’s most secure dungeon, the walls were nigh unbreakable, and magic circles were arrayed throughout the corridors to prevent anyone from escaping. 
All of the traps in the dungeon were designed to be non-lethal, but as excruciatingly painful as possible. They were setup so that both those who might try to escape and those who might be trying to sneak in would have to deal with multiple layers of them. Some traps were even hidden within the walls. Unless one knew the specific chants that dispelled these traps, they would have a hard time moving around in here. If someone was left alone in this hell, they would go crazy in a single day. There was no light, it smelled godawful, and there was no hope of escape. Even the guards who watched over the dungeon mostly stayed in the guardroom outside and avoided going near the prisons as much as possible. The only time they went inside was during their scheduled patrols. 
And yet, on this night, cheerful voices rang out within the dungeon of despair. 
“Hey, how many of yours did they break today?” 
“All of my fingers and two ribs... you?” 
“Heh, looks like I win. They broke all of my fingers and three ribs.” 
“Hah, that’s the best you’ve got? They took out seven of my ribs, and my cheekbones... Oh, and one of my ears.” 
“Seriously? What the hell did you say to them, man? They said we might be useful later so they’re not supposed to touch our ears...” 
“Nothing special. They kept on asking me ‘Who’s the one who sent you’ and stuff like that. I got tired of their nagging so I just told them, ‘Your mom. I just came here to see how my kids are doing, you know.’” 
“Whoa, no wonder they snapped.” 
“But wasn’t it that emperor guy who told them not to touch our ears? They’re probably gonna get in deep shit for disobeying orders...” 
“Yeah, those bastards are totally getting executed. Kakaka, serves those fuckers right!” 
The recently captured Haulia were competing to see who’d been tortured the hardest. As the empire wanted them alive their more serious wounds had been treated with healing magic, but they had still been beaten to within an inch of their lives. And yet, they seemed as lively as ever. Of course, that was just their way of withstanding the situation they’d been put in. They hadn’t gone crazy or anything. Far from it. They’d just been prepared for this from the moment they’d attacked the capital. Now that they had been captured, there was no future for them. Either they would be executed, or they’d be turned into slaves. And they would rather commit suicide than live as slaves, so either way they wouldn’t live very long. If they were made into slaves, they would be forced to fight their own comrades. Death was preferable to that. 
Since they were dead men either way, the Haulia figured it was better to spend their last days living life to the fullest. Because of how abnormal their strength had been, the empire was convinced that someone else was backing the Haulia. 
Even if that weren’t the case, the emperor, Gahard, had taken an interest in them. He wanted to use the Haulia in his own army, if possible. Gahard valued strength, and the Haulia had it in spades. Their tactics, their weapons, their mentality, and even their training methods were all completely out of the ordinary. The Haulia knew that, and that was precisely why they’d resolved to defy the empire until the moment of their deaths. They would never work for Gahard. It was because of that ironclad resolve that they could joke so lightheartedly about their wounds. Because of their cavalier attitude, the soldiers who had to torture them were growing terrified of these unbreakable rabbitmen. The Haulia’s fearless grins struck fear into the hearts of their jailors. 
“I bet they’re giving our chief the third degree right now...” 
“You know it. Hey guys, how about we make a bet on how badly beaten up he’ll be when he comes back?” 
“Oh? Sounds good. I’ll bet they cut off both of his ears.” 
“That’s way too much of a long shot, man.” 
“I mean, our chief’s started becoming a lot more like Boss recently, so he probably pissed them off to hell and back. I mean just look at how he trains our new recruits...” 
“Yeah, sometimes it almost feels like I’m looking at Boss. If our chief said that kind of stuff to the soldiers... I could see him losing his ears...” 
“Well, Boss would never let himself get caught like this in the first place. And if he somehow did, he’d probably crush this prison from the inside and escape!” 
“Man, I’d feel bad for the empire if they ever got on the wrong side of Boss. He’d wipe this city off the map.” 
“Yeah, he’s got no mercy at all!” 
“He’s one hell of a monster, our boss is.” 
“More like he’s the devil.” 
“Yeah, I could totally see him being as scary as that demon lord guy.” 
“Come on guys, you’re making it sound like he’s on the same level as the demons. Boss could probably crush that pathetic demon lord like a bug. Wouldn’t even break a sweat.” 
“So what... is he like a demon god at this point or something?” 
“Yeah!” 
“Well aren’t you maggots looking lively. Can’t believe this is how you greet me after all this time.” 
“......” 
The Haulia only now realized that this new voice was dripping with anger. And it was one they remembered quite well. They all fell quiet. Everyone shrunk back in their cells and held their breath, praying the storm would pass them by. 
“Oi, don’t just go quiet on me you bastards. Weren’t you just having fun talking about how I’m a monster and a demon god? Well?” 
“Hahaha, sorry guys. Looks like I’ll be going on ahead of you. I’ve started hallucinating that Boss is here...” 
“Don’t worry, it’s not just you. Looks like I’ll be coming with you.” 
“Oh, so it’s not just me... But to think the last thing I’ll ever hear is Boss’ yelling...” 
“I wish it could have been a cute girl’s voice instead...” 
The idea of Hajime being here was so unthinkable to the Haulia that they believed they were hearing things. Or perhaps they just wanted to believe they were hearing things, because the alternative was scarier. But of course, Hajime wasn’t nice enough to let them have their fantasies. Yue summoned a ball of light, illuminating the dingy dungeon. Hajime’s profile was reflected clearly in the eyes of the rabbitmen. 
“Geh, Boss!?” 
“Shut up, you morons.” 
“...Looks like they’re still lively.” 
“Those wounds are pretty terrible but... now I feel like an idiot for worrying so much.” 
Though the Haulia were hurt so bad it was a wonder they could still move, they didn’t seem bothered by their wounds at all. Hajime, Yue, and Shea sighed in amazement. 
“Wh-Why are you here, Boss?” 
“I’ll explain later. For now, let’s get you guys out of here... Sheesh, I can’t believe you’re still so lively after all that torture. Just how tough are you guys?” 
“Hahaha! We did get trained by you personally, after all.” 
“Compared to your training, this torture’s nothing.” 
“Those guys just don’t have any killing intent behind their blows, you know? They’re so weak I thought they might be trying to heal me for a second.” 
“Or maybe you’re just that good at intimidating people, Boss. When you looked at us like you wanted to kill us, we thought we’d actually die.” 
The Haulia continued joking with each other, coughing up blood all the while. Meanwhile, Shea and Yue turned angrily toward Hajime. This demon god was the one responsible for turning the kind rabbitmen into fearless warriors after all. 
Hajime cleared his throat awkwardly and used his Demon Eye to locate all of the dungeon’s traps. Once he’d found them, he got to work dismantling them. Normally, magical traps like these could only be deactivated with the proper incantation. That was because the mana stored within the magic circle needed to be dispersed via a very delicate process, or the trap would trigger. 
Destroying the magic circle outright was another option, but in general they were designed to activate upon destruction, or at least notify the caster that they’d been destroyed. If one wanted to be stealthy about it, they had no choice but to use the right incantation. Of course, only certain people were informed of what that incantation was, but ultimately, that incantation was a method to manipulate one’s mana in a specific way. Which meant that anyone who could freely manipulate their mana had no need for said incantation. Hajime easily disarmed the empire’s most secure prison in a matter of seconds, then got to work transmuting the bars of everyone’s cells. Meanwhile, Yue used restoration magic to heal everyone’s injuries. 
“Haaah, you never cease to amaze me, Boss. Anyway...” 
“Thank you so much for saving us!” 
“No problem. And well, I did it for Shea. So don’t worry about it. More importantly, where’s Cam? I don’t see him anywhere.” 
“Well, you see...” 
One of the Haulia explained that Cam was currently being tortured, and told Hajime which room he would be in. The Haulia naturally wanted to help Hajime rescue their chief, but he really didn’t need any assistance. They knew that as well, especially considering he’d managed to make it all the way here without getting noticed, so they obediently agreed to stay behind when Hajime asked. The way in which they shivered in excitement when Hajime ordered them creeped him out a little, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. 
Hajime pulled a palm-sized plate out of his Treasure Trove. The polished gray metal shined with a dull light, and there was a magic circle carved into the handle. The opposite side was made up of various jagged edges. Put simply, it looked like an oddly-shaped key. 
The Haulia watched, wide-eyed, as Hajime poured mana into the metal plate and thrust it out in front of him. The key seemingly fit into some sort of invisible lock, as it disappeared into empty space. A second later, shockwaves rippled outward from the plate. Once the shockwaves had grown to a decent size, Hajime twisted the key-plate. A hole appeared in the empty space in front of Hajime, and rapidly grew to the size of an average person. Rocks and boulders could be seen on the other side of the hole. 
This was Hajime’s latest artifact, the spatial magic imbued Gate Key. It worked in conjunction with another artifact, the Gate Hole. By using the Gate Key, Hajime could open a portal to wherever the Gate Hole was, and instantly teleport there. 
“Alright, you guys go out through here. It leads to a rocky field near the outskirts of the capital. Par and the others are waiting there for you.” 
“Yes, sir! We’re counting on you to bring our chief back, Boss.” 
What Hajime had just done was beyond anything the Haulia had ever seen, but they were disciplined enough to follow orders even through their surprise. Besides, they were used to their boss doing impossible things one after another. They gave Hajime a crisp salute, and walked single file through the gate. They really were well-trained. 
Once the Haulia were through, Hajime closed the gate and headed to where Cam was. They slipped past the heavy guard using a combination of their innate skills and magic, easily making it to where Cam was being held. Hajime silently dispatched the guards outside Cam’s door and stopped to listen to the angry yelling coming from inside. Shea stiffened when she heard the shouting. When she thought about how badly the other Haulia had been beaten, she couldn’t help but worry about what they might be doing to her father. Especially because he was probably purposely provoking them. Seeing her expression, Hajime decided not to waste any time. He grabbed the doorknob, but stopped when he realized who was doing the yelling. 
“What kind of pathetic punches are those!? You call yourself an imperial soldier!? Put your back into it, you worthless maggot! Even a kitten could hit harder than that, trash! What do you think this is, a fucking picnic!? Is that really all you got!? Come on, you can’t even break a single bone with that limp-dick fist! You’re nothing but spineless, gutless, trash!” 
“Sh-Shut up! Why the hell are you the one lecturing me!?” 
“Stop moving your mouth and start moving your hands! What are you, some kinda sissy? I bet your girlfriend’s as much of a wuss as you are! Suits a pansy loser like you!” 
“You bastaaard! Don’t make fun of Natasha!” 
“S-Stop, Johan! If you keep going he’ll die!” 
“Hmph, so you’re as much of a spineless wimp as this maggot here, huh? Looks like there’s nothing but scum in the imperial army! Might as well start calling yourselves the bitch army instead, you cowards! Stop flapping your gums and get serious! Hit me like you’re trying to kill me!” 
“What the hell is with this guy!? He’s insane! There’s no way he’s actually a rabbitman! Someone else take over, I can’t do this!” 
“I don’t wanna either! Talking to him drives me crazy!” 
Most of the angry yelling was coming from Cam himself. Hajime and the others listened in silence. As unbelievable as it seemed, the ones doing the torturing were taking more mental damage than the one being tortured. The three of them looked at each other, nonplussed. 
“Do we even need to save him?” 
“Should we go home?” 
“Sorry, I know he’s like that but please save him. I don’t think he’ll be able to escape on his own...” 
Shea looked off into the distance, reminiscing about the kind man her father used to be. She was right of course. Cam wouldn’t be able to escape on his own, so they did need to save him. 
“Hmph, pathetic. It seems you’re no match for me, Cambantis Elfalight Rodelia Haulia, hunter of the unknowable abyss!” 
But the way he was talking made it rather hard to sympathize with his plight. 
“Shea. Your dad’s sure turned into something special alright.” 
“Mmm... His name’s too long to remember.” 
“Ugh. Does he have a grudge against me or something? It’s like he’s trying to kill me with embarrassment.” 
Shea covered her face with her hand and crouched down in shame. She’d been hit pretty hard by that. It seemed Cam’s torturers were just as shocked by his outburst as his daughter was. 
“What the hell are you talking about!? Fuck, forget this! I can’t stand staying in the same room as this madman! I’m going home!” 
“Wait, Johan! You can’t just abandon your post! And don’t say things like that, you’ll jinx us!” 
Hajime heard the sound of footsteps approach the door. I guess I really overdid it with those guys. Hajime lamented to himself as he balled his hand into a fist. The moment the door flew open, he swung his fist. The poor man known as Johan opened his eyes in surprise as he saw a fist fly toward his face. A second later, Hajime’s metal knuckles buried themselves in Johan’s face, and he was sent flying across the room. 
Hajime then rushed into the room and knocked out the other shocked torturer with another well-placed punch. He carelessly kicked the two unconscious men to an empty corner of the room and turned to Cam. 
“Impossible... Boss... is that really you?” 
“Yeah. You know, I’m actually kinda impressed you were able to yell at them so much considering how beat up you are. You’ve become strong, in more ways than one...” 
Hajime decided not to address the issue of Cam’s crazy nickname. 
“Hahaha. So this really isn’t a dream... Ohh, you brought Yue-dono and Shea with you as well.” 
Cam quickly realized this wasn’t a dream, and chuckled heartily. Despite his near-fatal wounds, he still had the energy to laugh. 
It seemed they hadn’t dulled his mind or his senses with drugs, seeing as he able to accurately analyze the situation. 
“My apologies for showing you such a shameful sight during our long-awaited reunion. I can’t believe I was so engrossed in insulting those spineless maggots that I didn’t even notice your presence... Forgive me for bringing dishonor to your name.” 
“Dad... I really don’t think that’s what you should be worrying about right now. We need to heal those wounds of yours. Especially that nasty brain wound you’ve taken... And how are you still so energetic after being beaten up so much?” 
“Fighting spirit?” 
“Hajime’s reeducation program... is terrifying...” 
Freed from his restraints, Cam awkwardly scratched his head with broken fingers. He didn’t even seem to notice they were pointing the wrong way. His response to Shea didn’t do much to boost her confidence in his mental state either. 
Yue looked at Hajime with a truly frightened expression as she healed Cam’s wounds with restoration magic. You know, what’s really scary about this isn’t me, but the combination of Sgt. Hartman’s training program combined with chuuni spirit... Once Yue finished healing Cam, he hopped up and down a few times to check out the condition of his body. Seeing that he was just fine, Hajime once again took out his Gate Key. 
“I already got the others out of here. So we’ve got no reason to stay.” 
“But Boss, they still have all of our equipment...” 
“Hm? Eh, don’t worry about it. I made a bunch of better stuff while practicing my transmutation. You guys can have some of those.” 
“You’re going to gift us with new equipment? Now that I’m looking forward to. Kukuku.” 
Fed up with his attitude Shea pushed her father through the portal with an exasperated sigh. Hajime and Yue followed close behind.

Let us turn back time to a few minutes before Hajime began infiltrating the castle. 
The capital’s alarm bells suddenly rang through the night, and a massive pillar of light shot up from the center of the city. It sliced through the darkness, cutting across the slave district where most of the beastmen were kept, and smashed right into the slavers’ guardhouse. The light’s caster had held back, which was why the guardhouse hadn’t been obliterated, and only the outer walls had crumbled. In fact, the soldiers inside hadn’t even been hit directly by it. Most of them had still been knocked unconscious by the shockwaves, however. 
The remaining soldiers looked toward the source of the light, and spotted four masked figures standing atop a nearby building’s roof. 
“Who are you guys!? Don’t think you can attack imperial soldiers and get away with it!” 
One of the soldiers let out a yell and charged forward. 
“And... what on earth is with those ridiculous masks!? Is this you’re idea of a prank!?” 
“Huh? No, wait we’re not...” 
“You’re sorely underestimating us, you brats!? That pink mask has to be some kind of joke!” 
“!?” 
“You think you look cute in that or something!? I’ll have you know that mask looks creepy as hell! You damn pervert!” 
“!? I-I’m not trying to look cute. I don’t even like this mask that much... I was just forced to wear it... It’s not my fault...” 
“Hey, stop insulting Shizu... I mean, Ranger Pink’s mask, you ugly old man! Or else you’ll have to deal with me, Ranger Yellow!” 
“That’s right! There’s nothing wrong with Shizu...I mean Ranger Pink liking cute things! If you insult her any further, I, Ranger Red, will never forgive you!” 
“Yeah~ Ranger Blue won’t forgive you either~” 
Ranger Pink slumped her shoulders, dejected. Her comrades stepped forward to defend her. 
Their mission was ostensibly to create a diversion so that Hajime would have an easier time sneaking in, but Shizuku knew the real reason he’d asked them to do this. It was so that Kouki wouldn’t go on a rampage and bumble things up. She understood that, but the whole masks bit really was going too far. Shizuku swore to get her revenge on Hajime once this was over. 
In the time that they’d been talking, more imperial soldiers had gathered. Now that they had enough men, the lead soldier yelled “Capture those weird masked freaks!” Unfortunately, the empire was up against a bunch of overpowered kids who’d conquered the outer part of the Great Orcus Labyrinth. Kouki and the others started taking down the soldiers in waves. 
“Goddammit! Those masked bastards are tough!” 
“Damn you, Ranger Pink!” 
“Is it just me, or does the sword Ranger Red’s using look familiar?” 
The soldiers cursed as they were incapacitated by the students’ attacks. Three squads had already been downed. Unable to take it anymore, the commander shouted. 
“Fuck, what are you weirdos after!?” 
At that, Ranger Red suddenly stiffened. Then, as if he was hurling all of his pent up resentment at the soldiers, he yelled. 
“I demand that you release all of your beastmen slaves! At the very least, treat them better than dirt!” 
“...What?” 
“I can’t stand how awfully you treat those poor beastmen! Stop your tyranny this instant!” 
The imperial soldiers hadn’t been expecting such a strange request. It was understandable, though. After all, to the empire that kind of treatment was normal. So they didn’t understand what was so cruel about it. 
“Ngh. What’s with that attitude... You’re the ones making them suffer!” 
“Hey... Ranger Red. Sorry to burst your bubble, but in this world, it’s our perspective that’s strange. Don’t forget, our main goal is just to create a diversion.” 
“I know that! But maybe we could at least free the kids...” 
“There’s too many of them. Or are you saying we should pick and choose who to save? Either way, it’s about time he should be going in. It hurts me too to leave them like this, but for now let’s focus on the task at hand, alright?” 
“...Fine.” 
Even through his mask, his reluctance was noticeable. Ranger Pink nodded in satisfaction and rapped the side of her mask with her knuckles. Hajime had told her to do so if the empire asked them what their objective was, or if they began to suspect that they were fighting against the hero’s party. Letters made of mana floated up inside Shizuku’s mask. She flinched back in surprise, and watched as the first message disappeared, only to be replaced by another set of letters. These, she reflexively read aloud. 
“Listen well, soldiers of the empire. Our goal is to ascertain the current state of the capital. We may have failed to assassinate your emperor, but it’s clear your city still suffered a heavy blow!” 
The soldiers looked up in surprise. Shizuku’s comrades also looked at her in surprise. 
“Wait, don’t tell me you bastards are demons!? I get it now, so you came to see how badly you hit us, huh!?” 
“We are the most elite of the demon lord’s soldiers. The Masked Rangers!” 
Ranger Pink sounded a little hysterical as she screamed that. She then signaled to her comrades to strike a pose with her. Her forceful attitude shocked them into compliance. I guess rumors are going to spread that there’s an elite demon unit that runs around wearing strange masks now. Ranger Pink mentally apologized to the demons she was impersonating. It was almost impressive how Hajime planned on pinning every disturbance he could on the demons. Doing so also had the added benefit of making Kouki’s outbursts about freeing the slaves sound like something the demons wanted. Obviously that might cause trouble for the demons in the future, but that wasn’t something Ranger Pink had to worry about. It wasn’t her problem, after all. 
“You better stop treating your slaves like trash. Or else...” 
“O-Or else what?” 
The soldiers’ commander asked timidly. Ranger Pink stepped forward and answered. 
“Or else, when you’re in the bath at night, when you’re woken up suddenly from your dreams, when you’re walking down a deserted hallway, underneath your desk, behind your curtains, inside your armor, even in your dreams... you’ll start to see masks.” 
Though she spoke in a monotone, her voice had an ominous tinge to it. The soldiers all gulped. It sounded ridiculous, but also terrifying. There was something horrifying about seeing weird masks everywhere. 
Their mission now complete, the figure leaped off the rooftop and vanished into a side alley. The soldiers hurriedly chased after them, but by the time they reached the alley, they had disappeared into the night. 
As time passed, the legend of Ranger Pink turned into a bedtime story parents told their children to scare them into obedience. When Shizuku found out, she wondered why it was only her that everyone remembered, but that was a tale for another time. 
The simultaneous disappearance of the Haulia along with the appearance of a strange masked group became the talk of the town for weeks to come. It also left the capital in a state of confusion for a good day.

When Hajime, Yue, and Shea returned with Cam, they were greeted by enthusiastic cheers from the rest of the Haulia. The rabbitmen playfully slapped each other on the backs, playfully punched each other in the stomachs, playfully hit each other with right hooks, and playfully insulted each other. 
“Sniffle Thank goodness. Even if they’re still a little violent, I’m so glad everyone’s safe. Hajime-san, Yue-san, thank you so much.” 
Tears welled up in Shea’s eyes. Her wish to see her family safe had finally been granted. 
“Mmm... It’s good that we made it in time.” 
Yue stood up on tiptoe and patted Shea on the head. The tears started flowing. Shea clung to Yue like a little girl. 
“Well, a lot of stuff happened that I wasn’t expecting, but it turned out alright in the end. Looks like I won’t have to wipe the empire off the map after all.” 
Hajime stroked Shea’s bunny ears while casually dropping that statement. A second later, Hajime heard the sound of rushing wind. He raised a hand and grabbed the black sheath that had been swung down at his head. 
“What was that for, Yaegashi?” 
The owner of the weapon was of course, Shizuku Yaegashi. 
Though Hajime was only holding the sheath between his fingers, Shizuku couldn’t pull it out no matter how hard she tried. She clicked her tongue and mustered all of her strength. 
“I thought I’d blow off my stress by knocking you senseless. Don’t worry, I have faith in your kind heart Nagumo-kun. I know you’re generosity runs deeper than the Mariana Trench... So kindly let me beat you to a pulp!” 
“Do you really hate pink that much? And here I thought you’d like it.” 
“Liar! I know exactly what you were after! You just wanted to make us look like fools! I can’t believe I let myself go along with this! I guess that does make it partially my fault, but still! You deserve at least one good smack for this! Now take your lumps like a man!” 
“Don’t be ridiculous...” 
Looks like that traumatized her more than I thought. But it was also true that she could have refused the mask if she really hadn’t wanted to play the part. So she was right that it was partly her fault for letting her go along with the flow. However, that didn’t stop Hajime’s prank from being in bad taste. Nor did it stop her from being mad at him for putting her through it. 
Unfortunately for Shizuku, there was a huge difference in strength between the two of them. Even at full strength, she couldn’t get past his fingers. 
With no other choices left, Shizuku decided to use her katana’s special ability. She was only willing to go so far because she believed it wouldn’t do too much damage to someone as overpowered as him. 
“You little! Roar— Thunder Blossom!” 
“Oh? Heh.” 
Bolts of lighting crackled down the length of Shizuku’s sheath, but Hajime didn’t seem pained by them at all. In fact, he just seemed impressed. Shocked, Shizuku said, “Hey, Nagumo-kun. How come you don’t look bothered at all by all that electricity?” 
“Well I mean, how many times have you seen me fire my railgun now? I’ve been shooting electricity through my body for ages, you didn’t really think that little spark would hurt me did you? Though I’ve gotta say, I’m impressed you managed to make the sword’s skills activate.” 
“Tch. Fine... I’ll back off for now. But you better watch out. I’ll get you for this someday, mark my words. And I got help from the kingdom’s Synergists to make the sword usable.” 
Shizuku reluctantly took her sword back and belted it again. Behind her, Kouki and the others watched in awe. They hadn’t expected anyone to try and seriously challenge Hajime. Kaori gave Shizuku a troubled smile, while Yue glared coldly at her. In a small voice, Kaori said, “I’ve never seen Shizuku-chan... get this mad before.” 
“I thought she’d be angrier.” 
For some reason, Tio also nodded in agreement. 
“Boss, do you have a minute?” 
It appeared the Haulia were done with their reunion scuffling. Judging by Cam’s serious expression, Hajime guessed that whatever this was, it was important. Hajime transmuted a circle of chairs for everyone to sit in, lowered himself into one, and nodded to Cam. 
“I suppose first I should explain how this happened. Put simply, we were overconfident. Basically, it went down like this...” 
In summary, Cam’s tale was this: Back in the sea of trees, Cam’s unit had been able to annihilate a significant chunk of the empire’s rearguard as they retreated from Verbergen. 
The testimonies of the few soldiers who survived, combined with the fact that many of the empire’s units didn’t regroup with the main army made it clear to the top brass that Verbergen had a new unit of soldiers who were a cut above the rest. Because of that, the empire had strengthened their guard. 
Verbergen had already suffered one attack from the demon army. There was no telling what they might do. The army’s commanders thought it wise to throw away their preconceptions that beastmen would never leave the forest, and maintained a vigilant watch in case an army came to take back the captured slaves. 
So when Cam and the others arrived at the capital, they found that the slaves Hoelscher had taken from Verbergen had been gathered all in one place, instead of put to work. By the time the Haulia realized it was a trap, it was too late. 
Cam and the others had no choice but to attempt a retreat after the empire’s dense surveillance net spotted them. 
For their part, the empire was quite surprised too. The unknown squad they’d discovered had been made up of rabbitmen, of all people. The same gentle, peace-loving rabbitmen that were used mostly as sex slaves by the empire. Moreover, these rabbitmen were able extremely well-coordinated, and were more than a match for the empire’s elite troops. Naturally, this piqued the curiosity of the empire’s top brass. 
As a result— “They captured us alive and interrogated us day after day. Most of their questions were about who it was that had transformed us like this, and where we’d gotten our equipment from. Also they wanted to know what Verbergen’s long-term plans were. I think they mistook us for some elite combat unit trained by Verbergen... Even though they nearly executed my entire family and exiled us from the city. Bet they would have never guessed that.” 
Cam and the others had in fact told their captors multiple times that they were no friend of Verbergen, but the soldiers had just thought they were sacrificing themselves for the sake of their country. The Haulia’s denial only solidified the empire’s convictions. 
Gahard in particular had been enamored with Cam and the others. His eyes had sparkled like a child with a new toy when he’d seen how strong-willed his prisoners were. 
“And? I’m sure you didn’t want to just make excuses for why you got captured. What is it you wanna say?” 
“My apologies, Boss. Moving on to the main topic, our family has grown since we inducted new rabbitmen into the Haulia clan. I was thinking of taking our new and improved Haulia army— and going to war with the empire.” 
Time ground to a halt. Cam’s declaration had left everyone stunned. Well, everyone but Hajime and the other Haulia. The others weren’t able to comprehend what he’d just said, or perhaps they were just so shocked they didn’t know what to think. The chirping of crickets was the only noise that that could be heard. 
Finally, Shea broke the silence. 
“What-What did you just say, Dad? Did I hear you right? It sounded like you said you were going to go to war with the empire...” 
“You heard correctly, Shea. As I said, I plan on waging war against the Hoelscher Empire.” 
Shea tried her best to keep her cool, but Cam’s confirmation caused the color to drain from her face. 
“D-Don’t be ridiculous! What are you thinking!? I know you’ve gotten a lot stronger Dad, but you’ve only got 100 people with you! You’re going to fight the empire with just that!? Have you lost your mind!? Did seeing your comrades get captured make you so mad you can’t think straight!?” 
“I’m not doing this for revenge, Shea. And I’m perfectly sane. Just listen to—” 
“Nothing you say is going to convince these bunny ears! If you’re not after revenge, then are you just way too overconfident!? If you really think you can win, take out your sword. You’ll have to beat me before I let you take on the empire! I’ll knock some sense into you!” 
Shea took Drucken out of her Treasure Trove and whirled it around her head. From her perspective, challenging the empire was suicide. And the fact that Cam was driving her family to their deaths made her furious. 
Pale blue mana swirled around her, and the pressure coming off of her was palpable. She was so intimidating that even Kouki and the others gulped and took a few steps back. 
Usually, Shea was a cheerful girl who never seriously got angry. Which made her real wrath all the more terrifying. However, Cam didn’t back down at all. Even with Shea’s hammer thrust in front of his face, he continued staring calmly at his daughter. 
The two of them glared, or perhaps just stared at each other for a few seconds before Hajime finally decided to butt in. 
Before anyone knew it, he’d gotten behind Shea and started fondling her fluffy tail. 
“Hyaaah!? What are you doing!? Aah, stop, not my tail! Hajime-shan, shtooop!” 
The strength drained from Shea’s limbs as Hajime continued groping her. She fell to her knees, panting, and glared reproachfully up at him. She didn’t mind being touched by him, but there was a time and place for everything, and this wasn’t the time nor the place. 
In response, Hajime grinned and started stroking her ears. Unlike before, his hand motions were more gentle than erotic. 
At first Shea had been mad at Hajime for interrupting her during a serious conversation, but as he kept stroking her ears she started to relax. 
“Have you calmed down a little? Cam hasn’t even finished talking yet. You can at least wait until he’s explained his plan before beating him down, right?” 
“Ugh... you’re right... Sorry. I let my emotions get the better of me. I’m fine now. Sorry, Dad.” 
Shea’s bunny ears drooped in apology. Cam smiled and shook his head. 
“There’s nothing wrong with worrying about your family. You have nothing to apologize for. I’m sorry too, I should have chosen my words better. I’ve spent so much time yelling at people I forgot how to talk like a normal person... Hehehe, though I’ve gotta say...” 
“Wh-What? Why’re you laughing like that, Dad?” 
“I’m just glad you seem happy. You’ve gotten a lot closer to Boss in the time since we last met, I see. The way he looks at you now is totally different from when you first left. Does this mean I’ll be getting grandkids soon?” 
“Wha— G-Grandkids!? What are you saying, Dad!? I-It’s still too early for...” Shea blushed and looked bashfully up at Hajime. All of the other Haulia watched with grins on their faces. 
These guys sure have gotten cheeky... Hajime thought absently to himself. He completely ignored Shea’s glances and asked Cam, 
“Cam, surely you didn’t tell me all this because you wanna to ask for my help, did you?” 
“Haha, perish the thought. It’s just, I was only able to make this decision because you taught us how to fight back, Boss. So I thought it was only right that I tell you.” 
Cam smiled. It appeared he really did mean to invade the empire with just the Haulia. Their resolve was the real deal, too. They hadn’t been driven crazy by thoughts of revenge, or overestimated their abilities just because they’d won a few fights. However, whether they were resolved or not, it was still reckless. Cam must have had a very good reason for choosing this path. 
“What’s your reason for going to war?” 
“Now that’s a surprise, you actually care? I thought it wouldn’t matter to you...” 
“If you found your resolve because of what I taught you, then the reason you’re being so reckless is technically my fault. If that was all, I still wouldn’t care, but...” 
Hajime glanced over at Shea. She was clearly still worried about her family. Her bunny ears were still drooping. 
Cam smiled and nodded in understanding. 
“I see. Well, as I said before, us rabbitmen have now caught the emperor’s eye. He’s very interested in what we’re capable of. Everyone in the empire, the emperor included, believes might makes right. They believe that the weak should submit to the strong. It’s permeated every part of their society.” 
“So what you’re trying to say is that even if you escape, he’s going to start hunting rabbitmen? Not to kill, but to make his slaves?” 
“Correct. When we were being tortured, the emperor came to me personally and said he’d be willing to get us out of here if we became his slaves. Of course, I just spit in his face, but...” 
“Good going, chief!” the other Haulia shouted in encouragement. Kouki, on the other hand, was stunned. “He spit in Gahard’s face!?” His surprise was understandable. Cam was probably the first to person, beastman or not, to have ever spit in the emperor’s face. 
Even Hajime nodded in appreciation. 
“Unfortunately, that only made him like us even more. He said something really arrogant about how it’d be interesting if he caught all the rabbitmen in Haltina and trained them the same way we were trained. The problem was, I could tell from his face that he was serious. There’s no doubt that he’ll invade Haltina again and capture as many rabbitmen as he can.” 
Worse, this time they wouldn’t be used as sex slaves, but as soldiers. 
Cam sighed. 
“Verbergen’s still reeling from the last two attacks. It won’t survive a third. So, if the emperor demands they hand over all the rabbitmen in their territory in exchange for not being invaded...” 
“I see. If you stay on the defensive, you’ll run out of options. All of your brethren will end up as slaves.” 
“Correct. If all I wished for was to protect the Haulia, escaping the empire’s clutches would be a simple task. But I refuse to sit idly by as other rabbitmen are robbed off their future... because of us, no less.” Cam was in a far more desperate situation than Hajime had thought. 
As Cam had said, if all they wished was to protect themselves, they could easily hide out in the sea of trees and wage a guerrilla warfare campaign indefinitely. But doing so would mean consigning all other rabbitmen to a fate worse than death. If they refused to become soldiers for the emperor, the women and children would be sold off as pets while the men would all be killed. 
“But you don’t honestly think you can take on the empire with just a hundred men, do you?” 
“Of course not. A head-on battle would see us defeated in seconds. But we’re rabbitmen. We’re better at sneaking about than any other race.” 
Cam grinned triumphantly. Realizing their intentions, Hajime replied. 
“You’re gonna assassinate them?” 
“Correct. We’ll show the empire there’s consequences for baring their fangs at us. Whenever they’re alone, whenever they’re not on their guard, they’ll suddenly find a blade at their throats... By doing that, hopefully they’ll start to fear us. They’ll realize that we can be anywhere, anytime, and kill them in over 400 different ways. They’ll learn that we’re not weaker or lesser than them, and that making an enemy out of us was the worst mistake of their lives.” 
“Do you think emperor hasn’t taken any precautions against assassins or something?” 
“Of course not. But our goal won’t be the emperor himself. Just the people close to him. Even if he can protect himself at all times, there’s not enough guards to protect all of the empire’s officials.” 
“Cam, you didn’t tell me all this because you wanna ask for my help, did you?” 
“This is the best we can hope to do with our current strength, but I think it’ll work well enough. As long as we can get the empire to leave us alone, we’ll have succeeded.” 
What an underhanded plan. Hajime thought to himself. Still, it was a lot more realistic than attempting to assassinate the emperor or his family. However, a plan like this needed time to take effect. There was no guarantee the empire wouldn’t attempt some kind of counteroffensive in that time. 
It was entirely possible that the empire would start rounding up all killing all rabbitmen in retaliation before the Haulia had done enough damage to force the empire to the negotiating table. Cam’s plan was a huge gamble. One with pretty low odds, at that. 
But they had to try, or there was no future for the rabbitmen. The other Haulia had steeled themselves as well. 
“Dad... Guys...” 
Shea slumped her shoulders. Now that Cam and the others had escaped, she knew that the emperor now had a political reason to go after the rabbitmen along with a personal one. 
The only options left to the Haulia were either to escape and consign every other rabbitman to slavery, submit to the empire, or bet their lives on one final clash. 
“Shea, don’t make that face. Before, all we did was run in fear, have our rights trampled over, and tell ourselves we had no choice but to accept it. But now we have the ability and the opportunity to fight back. Nothing could make us happier.” 
“But—” 
“Shea, this fight isn’t just about living. We need to win in order to earn our right to exist. So that we can hold our heads high and proudly call ourselves Haulia. No matter how strong we get, if we run away here we’re no different from the weaklings we used to be. And that is one thing I will never accept.” 
“Dad...” 
“You have to keep looking forward, Shea. You can’t waste time worrying about us. You made your decision, remember? You resolved to go with the boss, wherever that might take you. Don’t forget that determination, and keep moving forward.” 
Cam spoke not as the leader of his tribe, nor as the general of his army, but as a father who cared about his daughter. He didn’t want his daughter to get stuck together with him, unable to move forward with the people she wanted to. 
Shea hung her head, tears pooling in the corner of her eyes. Cam watched over her for a few seconds longer before turning back to Hajime. His gaze seemed to be saying Take care of her for me. 
Kouki stood up, probably intending to announce his desire to help if Hajime wouldn’t, but Shizuku smacked him on the back of his head with her katana, and sat back down. Probably because of all the recent stress, Shizuku’s handling of Kouki was rougher than usual. 
For his part, Hajime remained silent. Shea turned back to him, most likely in order to ask for his help again. But before she could open her mouth, Cam cut her off. 
“Shea!” 
Shea jumped and turned back to him. Cam had no desire to beg Hajime for help. It was his own fault that he’d fallen for the enemy’s trap, and partly his own fault that he’d brought Gahard’s attention onto them. If he relied on Hajime’s strength to solve this problem for him, it would be no different than before. 
Like he’d said before, this was a fight to prove to the world that rabbitmen had just as much a right to exist as anyone else. 
Shea knew that as well. She knew as well as they did how painful it was to always be running away. And right now, she cherished her pride as one of Hajime and Yue’s comrades. But she couldn’t help but worry knowing just how much of a long shot their plan was. 
In the end, Shea fell silent, unsure of what to say. Hajime sighed, scratched his head, and shot Yue a questioning glance. As always, Yue didn’t need words to know what he was thinking. Her expression softened, and she nodded in agreement. 
Hajime gave her a small smile and turned back to Shea. 
“Shea.” 
“Hajime-san...” 
A faint glimmer of hope flared up in Shea’s eyes. 
“I won’t participate in this fight.” 
“Uuu... I... understand.” 
However, Hajime’s words brought her back to the well of tears. 
Kouki stood up to protest again, but Shizuku jabbed in the side and jolted him with an electric current strong enough to knock him unconscious. Meanwhile, Hajime smiled playfully and squished Shea’s soft cheeks. 
“Hold on, don’t jump to the wrong conclusions. I just said I’m not participating in the fight, not that I won’t help.” 
“Huh?” Shea looked up at him in confusion. 
Sensing Hajime’s intentions, Cam and Haulia exchanged troubled glances. 
“The Haulia need to show off their strength here, or this fight’ll be meaningless. They need to show the empire that if you mess with them, you’ll get burned. If I fight with them, it won’t change anything. That’ll just tell the empire they can start going after beastmen again once I’m gone. It won’t do anything about the deep-seated prejudices humans hold against beastmen. But more than anything, Cam wants to win this fight with his own strength, so I won’t interfere.” Hajime then turned to Cam. 
“But if our cute mascot makes that kind of face, there’s no way I’m just gonna shut up and do nothing.” 
“B-But then, Boss... What are you suggesting?” 
In the face of Cam’s confusion, Hajime smiled fearlessly. 
“Cam. No, all of you Haulia. There’s no way I’m letting you use a plan so shitty it made Shea cry. If you’re doing this, your blades are reaching the emperor. Grab him by the hair, beat him down, and show all of his relatives, friends, and subordinates that they’re no match for you. Conquer the capital in just one night, and show those imperial bastards they’re done for! Teach them that nowhere’s safe from the Haulia’s blades! That no matter where they hide, your ears will find them! That anyone who makes themselves an enemy of the Haulia will mean a painful end! Carve your names into the history of the empire!” 
Silence followed after Hajime’s speech. Everyone had been overwhelmed by his fervor. The sounds of everyone gulping echoed through the night. Then, Hajime glared at everyone for a few seconds before sucking in a huge breath. 
“Where’s your reply, you worthless maggots!?” He boomed in a voice louder than thunder. 
“H-Huh!? S-Sir, yes, sir!” 
“I can’t hear you! You call that a battle cry!? Is this how you’ve been fighting all this time, you goddamn wimps!?” 
“Sir, no sir!” 
“Well then prove it to me, you bastards! Prove you’re fighters, and not maggots!” 
“Hoooah! Hooooah! Hooooaaah!” 
“Behead anyone who stands in your way with blades of pure will!” 
“Behead! Behead! Behead!” 
“You bastards are gonna be the main star of this fight! You better not fuck up the opportunity I’m making for you, you hear that!?” 
“Aye, aye, sir!” 
“Alright, then let’s see some fighting spirit! You 120 new and improved Haulia are... 
“......” 
“Going to capture the imperial capital!” 
“Yahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” 
Though Cam and the others had no idea what kind of opportunity Hajime was referring to, anyone with common sense would thought it impossible to capture the capital, and in one night no less. 
But the Haulia were too fired up by Hajime’s speech to worry about that. Their beloved boss was saying he’d personally open the door to victory for them. 
If they couldn’t at least clear the obstacles beyond that door, then they didn’t deserve to call themselves Haulia. If they failed here, they would bring eternal shame onto their boss’ name. 
Thus, the Haulia steeled their resolve and prepared to topple the imperial capital. Their uproarious war cries echoed through the starry night. 
“Uh, Shizushizu, those guys are starting to scare me.” 
“It’s okay, Suzu. I’m scared too... Though, I’m more scared of what Hajime’s planning than the rabbitmen.” 
“That Nagumo... Hehe, I never thought he’d be one of Sgt. Hartman’s pupils too. Who knew you were a real man after all.” 
“Ryutarou!? Don’t tell me you approve of all this!? This is totally crazy!” 
Shizuku and the others watched in dumbfounded amazement as the Haulia hyped themselves up. Except Ryutarou, who respected Hajime’s choice of role model for a drill sergeant. 
“Mmm, I must say, that is quite impressive. Transforming the peaceful rabbitmen into warriors is no mean feat. I suppose I should expect no less from Master. And to think he intends to rout the empire in a single night. I’m getting excited now... Though I wish he would insult me with such vigor.” 
“Shut up, you perverted dragon.” 
“Huh!? Haaah, haaah...” 
“Could you please tone it down, Tio-san? More importantly, do you see Shea’s expression, Yue? She looks so happy. That smile is so cute even my heart skipped a beat.” 
“...Yeah. After all, Hajime’s doing this so Shea won’t cry... It’s natural she’d be happy.” 
“I know, right. It must feel so nice~ I hope Hajime-kun does something like that for me someday.” 
With the exception of the resident pervert, Yue and the others were captivated by Shea’s beaming smile. Yue had known things would turn out like this from the start, but her lips still curled up into a faint smile as she saw Shea’s cheerful expression. Kaori, too, smiled in relief. Though she couldn’t keep a slight twinge of jealousy out of her tone. 
After the cheering was over, Hajime got to work hammering out the details of his plan. Once they were done finalizing it, everyone went to rest before the decisive battle. Throughout the night, Shea stuck to Hajime like glue. She wasn’t as bubbly as usual, but nor was she depressed. Rather, she seemed oddly bashful, and kept blushing every time she nuzzled against Hajime. Even in her sleep, her bunny ears kept brushing against Hajime over and over. As if she wanted to make sure he was still there next to her.

Two figures sat on a rocky outcrop in the predawn light. Hajime and Yue. They had woken earlier than usual. The sun was only just beginning to crest the eastern horizon. 
Technically, it was only Hajime who was sitting on the rock. Yue was sitting in Hajime’s lap. The only other people awake right now were the Haulia on watch. However, the boulder Hajime had picked was in the sentries’ blind spot, so the two of them were able to spend some time together for the first time in a while. 
They sat together in amicable silence as they watched the sun rise. 
Suddenly, Yue took her head off Hajime’s shoulder and kissed the nape of his neck. The wet sound of her kiss broke the silence. 
“Where’d that come from?” 
“Mmm... I just felt like it, after remembering what happened last night.” 
She was of course referring to Hajime’s declaration that they’d topple the capital. 
What that had to with her kissing him, though, even Hajime didn’t know. He locked eyes with Yue and tilted his head questioningly. 
“You put Shea’s feelings over your mission. I’m happy that you care about her that much. And that there’s more things you hold dear now. I’m so happy that I...” As she spoke, Yue kissed him again. 
Ah, I get it now. 
“Does this mean Shea’s special to you now, too?” 
“Well, not exactly. She’s definitely one of the people I care most about in the world, but... you’re the only one who’s special, Yue.” 
“Mrr... Even though I’d be okay with Shea. But I’m also happy.” 
Yue looked up at Hajime, both troubled and happy. Shea was the first friend Yue made after climbing out of the abyss, and she treated Shea like her little sister. To Yue, Shea was just as special as Hajime, just for different reasons. 
That was why she was willing to let Shea be someone “special” to Hajime, a title she wouldn’t relinquish to anyone else. And so, while she was happy at Hajime’s words, she did also wish he’d stop being so stubborn. 
For his part, Hajime found Yue’s insistence that he grow his harem annoying. It irked him that she actually wanted him to consider other people just as special. He decided to get his revenge by showering her in kisses until she could no longer think about anyone else. 
“Mmm... Mmm... Haumf... Haji... Mmm...” 
As the sun started to rise, their shadows grew. Because of how close together they were, it looked like they were a single shadow, except during the times they separated to draw breath. 
After a few minutes, Yue’s cheeks were flushed, her lips were glossy with saliva, and her eyes were filled with longing. 

Just as they were about to take the next step, Hajime heard someone calling for him from behind the boulder he was sitting on. 
“Oooi, Nagumo. You here?” 
It appeared Kouki wanted him for something. He must have gone looking when he’d seen Hajime wasn’t in his sleeping bag. The sun had risen completely now, and it was around the time everyone else would be waking up. 
“Tch, of course he’d be the one to interrupt us. I wanted to let him learn some ancient magic so we’d have help when there’s a dozen Noints coming after us, but... it’s starting to feel like more trouble than it’s worth.” 
Grumbling, Hajime attempted to stand. However, Yue wasn’t going to let that happen. 
“I won’t let you escape, Hajime. Mmph.” 
“Hey wa— Mmmph.” 
She pushed him back down and cut off his protests with a kiss. Hajime fell backwards onto the boulder, but he didn’t go down without a fight. Even as Yue was straddling him, he attempted to kiss her back. 
“Kouki, did you find Nagumo-kun?” 
“Well, I thought I sensed someone over here, but—!?” 
Shizuku, Suzu, and Ryutarou walked up behind Kouki. 
Halfway through answering Shizuku’s question, Kouki stopped. The sight he’d been presented with upon rounding the boulder had shocked him into silence. Confused as to why he was just standing there, Shizuku and the others walked up to him and peeked around the boulder as well. When they spotted Hajime and Yue, they too went stiff. 
Just then, Shea, Kaori, and Tio arrived as well. Upon seeing Kouki and the others just standing there, they went over to see for themselves just what was so shocking. 
“Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey! What do you think you’re doing, flirting first thing in the morning!?” 
“Mmm, want to join in, Shea?” 
“Wait, I can? In that case...” 
“Absolutely not! And Yue, get away from Hajime-kun this instant! You’re making me jeal— I mean, this isn’t right!” 
“Hmph, if Shea is allowed, then I should be too, no? All I ask is that you punish my arse...” 
After seeing the chaos unfolding around him, Hajime reluctantly lifted Yue off him and stood up. 
He calmed Shea, who was about to jump him at Yue’s suggestion, with a sharp jab to the stomach, comforted Kaori, who was crying tears of envy, and appeased Tio by smacking her on the ass as she wanted. Kouki and the others couldn’t bear to keep watching, and beat a hasty retreat. 
Suzu had completely broken down and had been repeating “So this is what an adult’s like...” over and over, so Shizuku had to carry her out. Even though Shizuku’s face had been just as red as Suzu’s. 
That morning marked the beginning of the Haulia’s counterattack. It was such a sloppy start that it left everyone, even the people involved, dumbfounded.