Hell like she swore she would. However, the conclusions he'd arrived at were no longer quite the same. Godot Deus is gone. And the paladins have taken a serious hit. Maybe once everything's over... A thought crossed his mind. Would she still submit, once this was all over? However, in his heart, he knew. "Having lived the cruel and haughty life of a wolf, I shall die like a sow. "...For that is the choice I made." He knew Elisabeth Le Fanu wouldn't run. No matter how much pain and despair awaited her, she would accept the consequences of the life she'd led. Elisabeth Le Fanu would take responsibility for the horrible life she'd led. She would pay for her sins as the Torture Princess. As he racked his brain about that fact again and again, Kaito found himself at his wit's end. It's no good... What can I do? Closing his eyes, he desperately turned over his thoughts again. After thinking, thinking, and thinking even harder, he opened his eyes wide. Then, led by his heated thought processes, he made a truly odd proposal. "Hey, Elisabeth." "What?" "Go on a date with me." For the rest of his life, Kaito would never forget the face Elisabeth made in that moment. Thanks to her expression, the experience of being asked, "Are you an idiot?" became precious to Kaito for the first time in his life. "Are you an idiot?" "Ah, there it is." He'd expected her to turn him down. However, the fact that he expected it didn't make her verbal arrow sting any less. He suffered a fair deal of emotional damage. He unconsciously staggered back a step. Before him, Elisabeth fiddled idly with the tips of her black hair. Surprisingly, she too seemed flustered. A moment passed, and Elisabeth went, practically grumbling. "Or rather, how to put it? I fail to grasp your meaning, and I think it somewhat problematic for a married man to be asking someone out." "I agree." "And for that someone to be myself, well, then problematic all the more." "Still agree." "Hmm, might you be coming down with something? Did the King's attack hit you as well? You'd best turn in early. Don't go pushing yourself, okay?" "Man, what am I gonna do? This is the first time Elisabeth's ever been nice to me." The fact that she was so concerned for him was kind of sad in and of itself. Kaito reflexively looked off in another direction. However, he couldn't afford to give in that easily. After somehow scraping together his composure, he asked again. "C'mon, let's go. We don't have to call it a date. I'm fine with whatever, I just want to take a walk around the town." "I-is that really the sort of thing one ought to propose in the hours leading into a decisive battle? It feels as though you've lost your wits... Are you quite certain you're all right?" Elisabeth stood up from the bed with great vigor, then pressed her pale palm against Kaito's forehead. It seemed she was checking to make sure he didn't have a fever. Kaito doubted that golems could catch colds, but apparently what he'd said had been enough to elicit concern out of her. Now then, what's to be done? I mean, sure...maybe I have lost my wits. At present, the capital was being overrun by a demon. There was no way of knowing where its underlings might be lurking. And Elisabeth was planning on heading to near-certain death the following morning. No matter how you looked at it, now was no time for a proposal such as Kaito's. However, he also knew that it was now or never. "After you die, my inquisition is probably gonna end with me getting the death sentence." Kaito spoke. As he suspected, Elisabeth said nothing. The fact that the Torture Princess was going to be burned at the stake tied in closely with the cruel fate awaiting Kaito. As both her servant and the Kaiser's contractor, the Church was unlikely to forgive him. "So I wanna check out the capital while I have the chance." Kaito went on. In truth, thoughts of his future weren't the main reason he was making this request. At the same time, though, it wasn't as though he was lying. After all, in his past life, he'd died surrounded by flies in the corner of a cramped little room. He did, in fact, wish to see the big wide world around him. Elisabeth thought on it for a few seconds. But after opening and closing her mouth, she heaved a deep sigh. "Fine. I shall accompany you." "Hey, thanks." Nodding at Elisabeth's response, Kaito extended his hand. He turned his palm up, as though inviting her to a dance. Then she reluctantly placed her hand atop his. With his still-human right hand, Kaito clasped her pale palm. And with that, the two of them strolled into the night. "Hyah!" "Yikes." Before Kaito's eyes, Elisabeth kicked open the pawnshop's door. Her crimson skirt fluttered as she dashed down the short staircase. Bathed in the pale moonlight, she took a short leap before landing with both feet pressed together. Landing magnificently on the stone pavement, Elisabeth looked over her shoulder toward Kaito. "How do you like that, Kaito?! I've done it once more! Tremble in reverence as you praise me!" "Yes, yes. Full points." Kaito's response came practically in a monotone. Elisabeth planted her hands on her hips in dissatisfaction. She was swathed in a crimson dress, a far more respectable one than her usual bondage outfit, with a high collar reaching up to her throat. It was an elegant, high-class article. However, when she did another spin, her immaculate shoulder blades peeked out from behind the dress's audaciously bare back. The inside of her skirt was all frills, and they spread out like the petals of a rose. She stopped in place, and they returned to their original position. Pressing her palm against her bosom, Elisabeth pouted. "Now listen here, you! Show more enthusiasm when you praise me! You're the one who told me to change!" "I mean, I can't deny that, but..." "Heh-heh, 'tis quite the splendid find, for a pawnshop we selected at random! Unlike you, who appears seedy regardless of what you garb yourself in, 'tis showy and extravagant! Wouldn't you say so?" Elisabeth's fashionable plumed hat began to droop. As she fixed it, she puffed her chest out with pride. Looking her over from head to toe, Kaito crossed his arms with an audible "hmm." "It does look kinda nice." "Doesn't it? Then you ought to be more verbose in your praises. You're an impertinent one, for a servant!" "I mean... There is a reason I told you to change, you know. If you were wearing your Torture Princess outfit while we were walking around, running into someone could end poorly." "Mm, we find ourselves in agreement on that point. 'Tis why I agreed to change." "But when you think about it, what we're doing is really just looting. Are we gonna be all right with you picking out something so conspicuous?" "Don't go calling people looters! What a self-centered man you are!" Elisabeth hissed in anger. Regardless of what she said, though, Kaito had been completely blindsided by how flashy the outfit she'd chosen was. He hadn't known that her tastes ran that way. Man, how're we gonna explain this if we run into any paladins? Kaito wondered, concerned. Elisabeth, on the other hand, hesitated for a momentâ€”no doubt deciding whether or not to call forth a torture deviceâ€”before snorting. She tapped her heel against the ground to urge him on. "Well? What did you intend to do from here?" "Huh?" "Don't 'huh' me. I'll have your head." Pressing down on her forehead, Elisabeth took in a deep breath, then exhaled. Adjusting the angle of her hat once more, she raised her lips in a pout. "This situation as a whole is foolish beyond belief, but having said I'd accompany you, I've accepted my fate. Rejoice. I know not what this is, be it a date or what have you, but I intend to accompany you to the location of your choosing! Be honored by my charity. Now, where did you want to go?" "Well, when you put it that way, I guess there wasn't really anywhere in particular." "Just who do you think you are? I'll have your head!" Elisabeth shouted at him, livid. Whatever she had to say, though, the fact remained that Kaito knew next to nothing about the capital. And even in his past life, he'd never had a chance to just go for a walk around a town. Telling a person like that to imagine somewhere they wanted to go was asking a bit much. "See, the thing is..." Kaito conveyed those facts frankly to Elisabeth. Murmuring her assent, she knit her brows as she nodded. Eventually, her shoulders slumped in dejection. "Well, your past life being what it was, I suppose I can take your extenuating circumstances into account. But listen here, you..." "Yes, ma'am." "Inviting someone on a date like that... Even I, the Torture Princess, find that a tad questionable." "I agree with you completely. I have nothing to say in my defense." "Given your sorry state, that wife of yours is liable to leave you." "Hina wouldn't do that." "In truth, I must agree." "I've got an awesome wife, don't I?" "Mm, and one wholly wasted on you at that." "Man, that hurts. Anyway...what about you? Do you have anywhere you want to go visit?" "A place I wish to visit, hmm?" Elisabeth crossed her arms as she pondered this. As she did, the plume drooping from her hat rustled and fell directly in front of her face. With feigned composure, she brushed it back up. But it simply rustled back in her way once more. Rustle, rustle, rustle. After wrestling with the plume, Elisabeth eventually grabbed the brim of her hat with all her strength. "Begone, you vexing thing!" "Now you've done it!" Elisabeth hurled the hat high into the air like a Frisbee. It spun and spun as it fell. Then it landed precisely atop Kaito's head. Perhaps that was what she'd been aiming for. Flustered, Kaito lifted the hat up. Its sagging plume rustled as it fell in front of him. On the feather's opposite side, Elisabeth was grinning. Her white teeth glittered as she made her innocent declaration. "Very well! Then let us wander about the marketplace!" However, the mercantile district had long since been consumed by the mass of flesh. They had no way of wandering about the main market. And if they weren't careful and got too close to the mass, they could unwittingly end up initiating the final battle. Doing that would be idiotic beyond belief. However, according to Elisabeth, the heart of the capital lay elsewhere, which meant they didn't have a problem. "While it's superior in scale, the market that the masses use here is fundamentally quite similar to the one we visited while in the Earl's territory. There's little novelty to be had there. As a special courtesy, I shall guide you and allow you to taste all the wonders this city and this world have to offer." Her narration brimming with confidence, Elisabeth strode rapidly through the residential districts, moving in the direction opposite from the location of what used to be the market. Kaito obediently followed after her. Eventually, the two of them made it to a particularly deteriorated section of town, near the castle gates. As he walked alongside Elisabeth, Kaito surveyed their surroundings. The road around them was surprisingly narrow. Even the main road looked like some sort of back alley. Unadorned, artificial-looking, boxy buildings were packed tightly along both sides of the street. Even then, at night, Kaito could tell how colorless the sector was. And it looked as though the