Even if you're a corrupted magical girl, you still have to try to redeem yourself.

"oh, I understand now."

"Okay, that's settled then. I still have some things to take care of. If there's nothing else, everyone can go home now."

As Yuuki Yuen spoke, she stood up from her throne, glancing at the monarch lying on the ground. This must be the trouble Yuuki Yuen is facing.

Baqi followed closely behind Yuuki Yuuki, accompanying her down the steps.

As Yuuki Yu passed by Mizuno Yu, she revealed the brightest smile of the night.

"And also, Mizuno Yu, I will wait for you patiently, until the day you wake up."

……

Mizuno Yu was surprised to find that the monarch's mansion was huge. She thought it hadn't taken her long to get there, but now she had walked for a very long time before she could finally catch a glimpse of the massive gate.

Those guards who either didn't know what had happened, or perhaps knew what had happened but chose to turn a blind eye, remained loyal in protecting the peace of this mansion that no longer had a monarch, which made Mizuno Yu feel both angry and amused.

On the way out, neither Herica nor Nishio Reki walked with Mizuno Yu, but that was for the best. Mizuno Yu was unsure whether she would give herself away when she was alone with them.

After leaving the monarch's palace, Mizuno Yu could no longer control her leisurely pace, which had been as if she were strolling through the palace, and immediately began to run wildly towards the general's residence.

As soon as she arrived at the gate of the mansion, the guards on duty stopped her.

"Lord Mizuno, the general has already retired for the night."

"I have urgent business to attend to and must see the general immediately. There can be no mistakes," Mizuno Yu said, taking a deep breath and lowering her voice.

The guard hesitated: "But the general has repeatedly instructed that after she returns to her residence, she should not see anyone except the monarch."

The general did the right thing. Although the monarch entrusted her with important responsibilities, the monarch is now capricious and no one can say for sure whether he will suddenly start to doubt the general. Cutting off too much social interaction at the source can also prevent a lot of trouble.

But now, General Lin's prudence has become her own death warrant, and her life may very well be cut short as well.

"Not even me?" Mizuno Yu was slightly angry. At this critical moment, she had no time to waste on such matters with the guards.

Once Mizuno Yu has dealt with the troublesome body lying in the main hall, the next problem to deal with will be the shogun.

The guard hesitated for a moment. Everyone knew that Mizuno Yu was the general's successor, and besides, the general had brought Mizuno Yu here specifically. Even if no exceptions were made for others, Mizuno Yu was special enough.

Seeing Mizuno Yu's anxious appearance, it must be something important. If he stubbornly clings to the general's orders without being flexible, and things go wrong, he will end up pleasing neither side.

"Lord Mizuno is certainly special, but I have learned of the General's intentions and would like to see if he is willing to see you."

The other party was also brought by the general, and under the general's strict military discipline, this was already a great deal of compromise.

"Alright, go and come back quickly."

After Mizuno Yu said it, she regretted it a little. Although this level of compromise was significant, it was still not enough.

The general's life hangs by a thread. Telling him sooner will give him a better chance of survival. Waiting for the guards to come and go could waste time and cost the general his life.

"No!" Mizuno Yu took back her words and pushed past the guards, forcing her way in.

The guard, who had been pushed away by Mizuno Yu, pleaded desperately.

"Lord Mizuno, no, no! You know the general's orders."

If Mizuno Yui had waited at the entrance, it would have been fine, but if she tried to force her way in, the guards would have had a hard time stopping her.

“If the general blames me, I will take full responsibility,” Mizuno Yu said, continuing to walk briskly.

"Do not reveal my whereabouts to anyone. Also, quickly order people to strengthen security. No one except me is allowed to enter, not even ministers or soldiers."

This conversation took place again before they entered the general's bedroom, but before the other person could finish speaking, Mizuno Yu forced her way in.

Just as Mizuno Yu had guessed, the general had turned off the lights but had not yet gone to sleep.

Seeing Mizuno Yu barge in, followed by several guards who were about to stop her, the general frowned.

By the moonlight, the general looked at Mizuno Yu, who was covered in sweat, and then at the helpless guards behind him. He remained silent for a long time.

"You may leave."

Since the general had given such an order, the guards on duty could not say anything more and silently withdrew.

Seeing the guards leave, before Mizuno Yu could get close, the general stood up and stood beside her, putting his mouth to her ear, his tone completely devoid of the blame Mizuno Yu had expected.

"what happens?"

The fact that the general asked this question made Mizuno Yu feel more at ease. It seemed that the general also knew that the matter was of great importance. So he quickly recounted what had happened after he left and offered his own solution.

Mizuno Yu's thinking was very clear; she could only rely on two things right now, and neither was dispensable.

One is the will left by the monarch, and the other is the army that the general left in his territory before he went to the monarch's city.

The monarch is able to sit securely on the throne because of the general's strong military foundation. Any force that rebels against the monarch will be crushed into dust by the general's iron cavalry, such as the traitorous Thunder Clan.

However, an army alone is not enough. No matter how powerful a general's army is, launching a war without a legitimate cause will only be seen as a power grab launched under the pretext of the monarch's death, which is undoubtedly an act of treason.

At this point, the will left by the monarch would be needed. No matter what was written in it, it would be a strong support for the general to send troops to purge the court of corrupt officials, and would give the general the strongest right to make such a claim.

However, without the support of the military, a will is just a piece of paper and serves no purpose whatsoever.

He should remain in the city to safeguard the will hidden by the general, while simultaneously keeping the assassins at bay. The best, and only, solution right now is for the general to temporarily avoid direct confrontation, return to his base, and lead his army to the monarch's city.

This was the first time that Mizuno Yu's plan had been fully adopted by the general, but she was not happy at all. At this critical moment of life and death, she could not care about such illusory things.

The general lived up to her title; after listening to Mizuno Yu's story, she immediately changed into civilian clothes and climbed out of the bedroom window.

Mizuno Yu then left the bedroom through the main door in a very open manner, walked around to meet the general who had already changed into casual clothes, and then saw the general off through the back door of the Prime Minister's residence.

The soldiers guarding the city did not stop the general from leaving the city. Unlike the guards of the Prime Minister's residence, who were personally trained by the general, they were not as disciplined and dared not stop a prime minister dressed in plain clothes late at night.

When the general left the city, he did not ride his own horse, but instead found an ordinary horse in the stable. Although the speed might be slower, this way the target would not be so obvious, and the possibility of being caught would be greatly reduced.

Mizuno Yu only breathed a sigh of relief after the general was escorted out of the city.

But then, she caught her breath again.

As she turned to go back, she saw a towering flame erupt in the direction she had come from.

Chapter 111 Desperate Situation

Although Mizuno Yu had not been in the Monarch's City for long, she already knew its layout by heart, so that she wouldn't wander around like a headless fly in case of an emergency.

Therefore, she was able to take shortcuts to send the general away in the shortest time, and she could easily find some hidden paths that even the general himself was unaware of.

That's why she was able to tell at a glance that the source of the towering flames was the Prime Minister's residence, which she had just left.

Starting a fire that could burn down the entire Prime Minister's residence is not something that can be done by simply striking a flint and steel.

Assembling troops, preparing flammable materials, and launching an operation all take time.

No sooner had he led the general away than the fire broke out; the assassins' group acted faster than he had anticipated.

Fortunately, I managed to leave with the general before anyone else could.

Thinking back, Mizuno Yu felt a wave of fear. If she had been any slower and waited for the guards to report to the general and come back for her, she and the general might have already perished in the fire.

But Mizuno Yu knew that the fire wasn't aimed at her.

I don't live with the general, so if I don't tip him off, I'll never get myself into trouble.

But Mizuno Yuu still returned to the Prime Minister's residence; she had to go back.

She still has unfinished tasks in this city.

Before the general left the city, she deliberately did not show herself, so as not to reveal that she was the one who tipped off the general.

Although nothing stays hidden forever, she outwardly sided with Yuuki Yukino before her act of informing the general was exposed.

She must protect the monarch's will within the capital city and also act as an inside agent when the general returns with his army.

If she escaped with the general, it would expose her true nature of being at odds with Yuuki Yuki and her group, so she absolutely could not disappear at this time.

On the contrary, she had to pretend to know nothing about it and get to the general's residence as soon as possible.

Constantly revealing one's emotions is tantamount to exposing one's inner self to others. Mizuno Yu needs to gradually learn to conceal her intentions, both outwardly and inwardly.

Mizuno Yu took a deep breath, encouraged herself, and then ran at an even faster pace than when she arrived, all the way to the front of the Prime Minister's residence.

By the time she arrived at the Prime Minister's residence, she was exhausted from running all the way and felt as if she might faint at any moment.

The Prime Minister's residence has been completely sealed off, but the area around it is already crowded with all sorts of people.

The area around the Prime Minister's residence was completely blocked by onlookers, firefighters, and those responsible for maintaining order. Among them were undoubtedly spies secretly observing from the crowd.

In firefighting, crowds that gather around can only slow down the rescue efforts.

But the arsonist would certainly be happy to see such a scene.

Mizuno Yu once suspected that even the people bustling around here were not genuinely trying to help, but rather had gathered so quickly so that no one in the Prime Minister's residence would leave alive.

"Let me in!"

Mizuno Yui desperately pushed her way to the front of the crowd, shoved aside the soldiers responsible for maintaining order, and tried her best to rush into the fire.

"The fire is dangerous. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed to approach." A soldier said coldly, pushing Mizuno Yu from behind.

Mizuno Yu grabbed the soldier's outstretched hand with a thud, the immense force causing the soldier blocking the way to stagger.

The soldiers hadn't expected anyone to dare to clash with them. Obstructing law enforcement was a serious crime, and several pairs of soldiers' eyes immediately pierced them with a sharp, dagger-like gaze, along with the real daggers in their hands.

"I'm just some nobody? You think you can lay a hand on me?!"

Mizuno Yu shouted in her hoarse, breathy voice, which was already extremely thirsty from running all the way and then choked by the thick smoke coming from the Prime Minister's residence.

"Open your eyes wide and see who I am! I am Mizuno Yu! The future successor to the Prime Minister! Who dares to stop me?! Which one of you? Come out!"

Mizuno Yu's roar was deafening even amidst the chaos of the fire.

After she roared, the Prime Minister's residence finally succumbed to the raging flames, and the massive building collapsed instantly. The entire roof, accompanied by a deafening roar many times louder than Mizuno Yu's fury, billowed up thick smoke and dust.

The once noisy scene fell silent instantly, with many people instinctively shrinking back, afraid that the high temperature inside the Prime Minister's residence would engulf them as well.

After that, Mizuno Yu felt that more people were looking at her; apart from the burning Prime Minister's residence, she had become the center of attention.

This was the first time Mizuno Yu had truly called herself the heir to the shogun, and it was also the first time she had used this identity to intimidate others.

She knew perfectly well that she couldn't be put into the fire just because of her identity, and even if she did get in, it would be too late.

She just wanted everyone, including the hidden informants, to know that she was here.

But having some calculations doesn't mean it's all acting. On the contrary, at this moment, Mizuno Yu is making the most natural reaction she can, and it's also her true feeling.

"Mizu, Mizuno-sama."

The soldier who had been blocking Mizuno Yu also came to his senses at that moment, and his attitude towards Mizuno Yu completely reversed. The other weapons that were pointed at Mizuno Yu were also moved away.