A Danger Beast? One Punch, Done. What More Is There to Say?

That's right, it was a young girl, who looked about the same age as him, probably eighteen or nineteen, but her appearance was very striking.

She had delicate features, and her long, ice-blue hair reached her knees, radiating a faint glow.

Her breasts weren't particularly large, but they were quite firm, pushing up the white shirt of her uniform high, making her graceful figure seem impossible to hide, and sparking countless fantasies.

As he sized up the other person, the other person was also sizing him up with those big, blinking, ice-blue eyes that matched the color of their hair.

She exudes an arrogant and cold aura, like a girl born from frost.

(PS: It's probably a bit more mature than this, but not a fully mature woman yet, somewhere between an otome and a mature woman.)

However, Yotsuba Mahiro knows this person; in fact, he is quite familiar with him.

"... Esdeath?"

No way, what a coincidence!

He had imagined many scenarios of meeting this woman, but he never expected that she would be his boss who was going to train him!

Damn bastard, you call this just going through the motions?

You try walking past Esdeath and see what happens?

If the Minister of the Guard could hear his thoughts right now, he would probably cry foul. He usually just went through the motions and practiced casually, but who would have thought that this sadistic woman, Esdeath, who had already been promoted to vice general, would suddenly come down and take over the training!

But it's okay, Mahiro was just making a comment.

Deep down, he really wanted to try things out with this sadistic queen; it would definitely be interesting.

"Call me sir!"

Just as he was lost in thought, a sharp, long whip lashed out from afar, accompanied by a loud whooshing sound.

Snap!

A crisp sound.

Esdeath paused for a second, then a wanton and alluring smile spread across her lips.

"Oh, not bad, finally someone decent has been delivered."

Not for any other reason than that Mahiro simply took two steps back and easily dodged her casual whip strike, something no one else in the room could do.

Based on this first meeting alone, Yotsuba Mahiro left a good impression on Esdeath.

"Hehe, welcome. My name is Esdeath, you can call me Vice General Esdeath. I will be in charge of all training-related matters for the next period of time."

Esdeath picked up the file, glanced at it casually, and tossed it aside. When she looked up again, a captivating smile appeared on her beautiful face, like a snow lotus quietly blooming on a mountain.

The few people kneeling around him all looked at Yotsuba Mahiro with pity.

He himself didn't seem to notice anything, and just kept looking at Esdeath with curious eyes.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?" Esdeath asked with a smile, noticing that the other person had been looking her up and down.

"It's nothing, I'm just surprised that the Empire's vice general would personally come down to train the new recruits."

"You asked a very interesting question."

Esdeath tilted her head slightly, looking down at him—or rather, at all of them—and spoke with an authoritative tone:

"It's alright to tell you this. I took over the recruit training this time to find a few promising subordinates to train. But don't worry, even if you don't meet my requirements, I will definitely train you into the Empire's best soldiers."

Esdeath's tone was very confident, and her smile was chilling.

At the very least, those kneeling on the ground were already trembling involuntarily.

To be honest, they really don't want this kind of guarantee.

After being trained by this sadistic woman, would she even survive?

"Is that the kind of training they do?" Mahiro suddenly asked, pointing to the men and the huge rocks pressing down on their thighs.

This isn't training; it's just you venting your sadistic desires!

"Hehe."

Esdeath suddenly stood up, striding forward with her long, slender legs, her pure white over-the-knee boots making a crisp sound as the slender heels echoed in the small room.

She approached him step by step, her tall figure fully revealed before him, and spoke softly:

"I am a person who clearly distinguishes between rewards and punishments."

"If you can persevere in my training, I will reward you; but similarly, if you fail to meet my requirements, I will naturally punish you."

"These people are just too useless, and I only gave them a light punishment as a warning."

Esdeath said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Of course, some people felt wronged, weakly raising their hands and saying, "General... is this really the lightest punishment...?"

My knees were so painful from being pressed down that I almost lost all feeling in them, and I might even end up with a disability.

"Of course, this is the lightest of my hundreds of punishment methods; it's just an appetizer. If you continue to make mistakes, you might get to experience them all."

Esdeath smiled softly, a hint of anticipation seemingly lurking in her icy blue eyes.

Especially with Yotsuba Mahiro, the time spent on him was longer than with others.

"Very good. Now that everyone is here, I'll give you half an hour to rest and get to know each other. Then we'll begin our first day of training."

After saying that, she tossed her long, flowing hair and walked past Mahiro, leaving only a cool, elegant floral fragrance in the air.

"I'll be waiting for you in the torture chamber!"

As the fragrance faded, the room returned to silence.

"What a fine general..." Mahiro couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

She possesses both beauty and strength, and he also likes her personality very much. In fact, it can be said that Esdeath is the most dedicated general in the entire empire, much more reliable than General Budo.

Others thought so too.

Despite their physical punishment and seemingly pathetic state, they deeply admire Esdeath from the bottom of their hearts.

Esdeath's fame and prestige have even surpassed those of Najenda, who is also a general.

Even though Esdeath was a very sadistic person, they had also heard that Esdeath was very good to her subordinates, would personally help them solve their problems, and was loved by the people.

If I could work under Esdeath, even enduring hellish trials would be worthwhile.

Afterwards, Yotsuba Mahiro chatted briefly with the other people in the room who were from the same cohort. They talked a lot, but only one person's name stuck in his mind.

It was Nyau, who looked petite and delicate, with a gentle and beautiful appearance like a young girl.

I heard she was of noble birth and planned to develop her career in the military, and her pitiful appearance made people feel sorry for her.

Unfortunately, he's a man, and he's the kind of guy who comes with a handle.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the group helped each other to their feet. Once they had mostly recovered, they headed straight for the interrogation room.

She was terrified that if she was even a step too slow, she would be punished by Esdeath again.

Since Mahiro was new to the area, he could only follow them slowly, taking the opportunity to familiarize himself with the surroundings.

However, as soon as they stepped through a dark, cast-iron gate, they heard the piercing screams echoing through the corridor, one after another.

It was as if this pitch-black passage led to the eighteenth level of hell.

Inside the torture chamber, various instruments of torture were laid out around him. Although Mahiro recognized some of them and could name them, he didn't know what the vast majority of them were used for.

All that could be seen were the dried, mottled bloodstains.

And in the center of the torture chamber, there stood Esdeath.

In front of her was a large pot filled with boiling water, and several people were hanging upside down above it.

Following Esdeath's instructions, the torturers scooped up the boiling water and stirred it little by little on the people on top of them, just like slowly pouring hot oil into a dish to prevent it from burning all at once.

"That's right, just like that. Remember to keep the water temperature at 100 degrees Celsius, but don't pour it too quickly, or you could easily scald the prisoners to death."

Esdeath was instructing several interrogators in a professional tone.

Of the group, only Mahiro remained calm as he watched everything unfold; the others were practically vomiting.

The torture chamber was filled with a nauseating, putrid odor, and the scene was so cruel that it was simply unbearable.

Only the fat guy accompanying Esdeath couldn't help but praise her:

"Haha, Vice General Esdeath, your invention of the cauldron torture method is indeed quite interesting."

The man had a full white beard and looked very fat; he was a nobleman who was probably around fifty years old.

Most importantly, this person was able to continue tearing at the steak in his hand without changing his expression.

Seeing the dozen or so death row inmates struggling and screaming in the boiling pot, his fleshy face broke into a wide, happy smile.

"Minister Honest?!"

Chapter 120 Dangerous Species? One punch and it's done, what's there to say? (5K)

"It's Minister Honest?!"

Someone couldn't help but gasp in a low voice.

Yotsuba Mahiro calmly shifted his gaze to the fat nobleman.

Only then did they realize that it was indeed that minister, whose appearance and physique were so repulsive that no one else in the empire could match him except Minister Honest.

At the same time, he subconsciously activated "Eidos Eye" to scan Honest from the inside out.

Although this guy looks extremely obese, the muscles under his fat are very well-developed, suggesting he has undergone systematic training and possesses a certain level of combat ability, seemingly no weaker than that Gozuki.

They were nothing like the weak and powerless characters portrayed on TV.

In short, he's a fat pig with some fighting ability.

At the same time, the minister, who was tearing into his steak, suddenly froze, then turned his head and met Mahiro's gaze.

This was their first meeting.

Mahiro simply nodded slowly with a polite smile.

"Minister Honest, what's wrong?"

"Oh, no, I just suddenly shivered, and it felt like someone was trying to harm me."

I didn't expect this old man to be so perceptive.

Mahiro smiled inwardly.

"But General Esdeath, those soldiers are your men, aren't they?"

"Um?"

Upon hearing the minister's words, Esdeath turned around and saw them. At that moment, Nyau stepped forward, standing ramrod straight, and respectfully spoke:

"Report, Vice General Esdeath, all six men have arrived at the torture chamber on time as you requested!"

The voice was as clear and melodious as a girl's.

Unfortunately, it was a man.

"Hmm, not bad, you guys were quite punctual this time."

Seeing them all together and intact, Esdeath smiled with satisfaction.

"Then, Minister Honest, please allow me to take my leave now; I must take my men out for training!"

"Go ahead, I want to stay and continue enjoying the view."

Minister Honest, his eyes still narrowed and fixed on the bubbling pot, simply waved to Esdeath and began stuffing chunks of meat into his mouth.

Only after Esdeath led them out of the torture chamber did Minister Honest turn his head to look towards the door.

What a pity. If we could bring that woman under our control, we wouldn't have to hold back anymore... no, we wouldn't even have to fear General Budo anymore.

In this way, the young crown prince can be smoothly placed on the throne, and he will wield immense power.

Honest had a very high opinion of Esdeath.

That cruelty, that power, are all things he needs. Right now, the only thing Esdeath lacks is an official position and status.