I love time travel the most!

"I see. Just as Tatsumi said, the reason he didn't join the Empire, nor the Night Raid, is because he's actually a member of the Axis Cult."

Najenda is right, Kobayashi is neither an enemy nor an ally.

At least as far as she knew, the Axis cult had been very active recently, recruiting a large number of followers as if it were planning something big. The Revolutionary Army had a good relationship with them and was inclined to bring them into the same camp, but for some reason, they suddenly became indifferent.

It is estimated to be related to the previous armed uprising of the Anning sect.

Lan left, and Kobayashi, having failed to persuade him, sighed, looking somewhat disappointed. She then picked Chelsea up again and said something that almost made Chelsea tense.

"Aren't you right, lovely assassin?"

"...We've been exposed?!"

Chelsea's excellent assassin skills prevented her from showing any unusual behavior. She and Kitty looked up at Kobayashi with innocent and clueless eyes.

They looked at each other for a long time.

Kobayashi blinked: "Hmm... As expected, it's just a kitten. I was overthinking it."

"call--"

Chelsea immediately felt relieved.

"It's just a kitten... do you think I would say that?"

"—?!!!!"

Chelsea's heart jumped again.

But she knew perfectly well that she absolutely could not show any abnormality; at this moment, it was a test of mental fortitude.

"Hehehe, come on, repeat after me."

Kobayashi chuckled softly, then lifted the kitten's little paws with both hands to make her stand upright, exposing her embarrassing private parts.

He said, swaying:

"The sacred flame shines brightly, the sacred flame blazes gloriously, all my disciples, meow meow meow meow!"

"...Huh?"

"This guy is an idiot, playing with something like this with a kitten."

"How rude of me, I'm not stupid."

“…Huh?”

"Huh?...Unexpectedly, she looks completely bewildered. I never thought a kitten could make such a human-like expression, unless she's not a cat but a human in disguise."

Kobayashi lightly scratched her chin with his index finger, a very professional touch, and said with a grin, "You agree, Miss Chelsea?"

Chapter 71 Win-Win, meaning both sides win twice.

Is it a false alarm? Or a test?

If, like before, it's just overthinking and he's deliberately testing the waters a few more times, and the responses to the questions in his mind are merely coincidences...

No, no, no, he has already stated his name clearly.

But no matter what, we have to test it again. After all, the disguise of the Gaia Foundation is absolutely flawless. Even if we are exposed, testing it again will only make us look like clowns.

Thinking of this, Chelsea tilted her head, revealing a bewildered expression.

"Meow~~~"

The long, soft meows and the adorable appearance of a cat are enough to melt even the most indifferent heart.

"How about that? This is my ultimate move."

Chelsea used her ultimate move, "acting cute," but nothing happened.

"Hehehe, what an adorable little catgirl."

Kobayashi held her in his arms, seemingly mocking and teasing her, and said, "When people encounter something terrible or something they don't want to face, they always deny it at the first moment, not knowing that in the eyes of others, it is full of stubbornness and ignorance."

"Meow~~~"

Chelsea has decided to go all the way and means she doesn't understand anything you're saying.

"Alright, alright. In that case, I'll explain it a little."

Kobayashi lightly tapped the kitten's forehead with his index finger and said:

"Your transformation is perfect. Your figure, weight, expression, and smell are all flawless."

But what you've overlooked is its vigorous vitality.

If you had transformed into a dangerous kitten, that would have been fine, but you've only transformed into an ordinary house cat kitten, which is far more resilient to it.

of course.

You wouldn't dare transform into a cub of a dangerous species.

After all, this is the royal palace, and you, who are afraid of revealing your weakness, will naturally not transform into a dangerous cub. However, this also becomes your weakness.

The only weapon capable of a perfect transformation is the Imperial Arm [Gaia Foundation], which is wielded by Chelsea... This is information Najenda told me.

So, are you satisfied with this reasoning?

"And now that I've called you by name, it would be incredibly rude of me to continue pretending to be oblivious, Miss Chelsea."

……

The kitten held in Xiaolin's arms widened its bewildered eyes, seemingly utterly shocked by Xiaolin's reasoning.

It's quite clever of you to be able to deduce her identity from the slightest clues!

“Miss Chelsea is very familiar with everything about the changing target, but her weakness is that she tends to overlook the influence of the surrounding environment.” Kobayashi rubbed her cat’s head.

"no way"

"Since we've been exposed, we have no choice but to reveal our true forms."

boom—

A puff of smoke dissipated, and the kitten transformed into a charming and adorable young girl. Due to their position, Chelsea straddled Kobayashi after the transformation ended.

The poses were alluring, and the atmosphere was enchanting.

"Oh dear, I thought Miss Chelsea would continue to play dumb."

"Haha, after all, you said that if you kept pretending to be stupid, it would be too tactless, wouldn't it?"

A young girl leaning against a man should be shy and timid, but Chelsea not only didn't leave quickly, she puffed out her chest and pressed herself closer to Kobayashi.

A sweet fragrance unique to girls wafted over.

Chelsea, feigning a seductive air, approached Kobayashi and whispered teasingly in his ear, "I didn't expect you to see through me. Well then, I'll just have to let you do as you please."

What may seem like a reward could easily lead an impatient person to fall for it.

but……

“Miss Chelsea, you’d better stop with your underhanded tactics. You should be glad you weren’t hostile, or you’d be dead by now.”

Saying the most frightening things in a calm tone.

Chelsea paused, then silently withdrew the sedative needles from her hand.

She did not intend to take Kobayashi's life.

Whether it's the story of the group that launched the night raid or Kobayashi's self-destruction just now, it proves that Kobayashi is not an enemy, and in some sense, they are allies with the same stance.

"Oh, I'm glad you think that way."

Kobayashi lightly scratched her chin with his fingers, and Chelsea subconsciously showed an expression of enjoyment, but immediately slapped his hand away.

"I'm not a cat!"

"But you seem to be enjoying it..."

"Don't misunderstand, it was just an unconscious act of trying to please someone."

It's definitely not because I felt too comfortable when I turned into a cat.

Well, absolutely not!

"Alright, alright, let's continue with our pleasant topic."

That concludes the opening remarks.

Kobayashi cut straight to the point, saying, "Miss Chelsea must be a new ally sent to reinforce Night Raid, right? Her purpose is probably to help them assassinate more Teigu users, that is, members of the Jaeger, am I right?"

"Well, roughly the same." Chelsea didn't deny it.

"Since that's the case, how about we make a deal? I'll help you assassinate the Hunter members, how about that?"

“…What’s the reason?”

"My goal is also to weaken the Empire's fighting strength. Wouldn't it be better if someone helped me? It would be a win-win situation for both of us."

"That's true."

The intelligence we just received indicates that Kobayashi is a member of the Axis cult. Considering their recent massive expansion and fanatical recruitment of followers, their motives are self-evident.

But in any case, they are not enemies.

Furthermore, since Kobayashi has now successfully infiltrated the Hunters, making it easier to carry out assassinations through him, she has no reason to refuse.

"Okay, I agree."

"Okay. Let's talk about the details of the deal then."

Chelsea would agree, which Kobayashi had expected, but the deal with her was just a prelude.

"I will provide you with intelligence on the Hunters, including their actions, routines, weaknesses, and so on. In return, I will receive everything after Miss Chelsea's death."

"What happens after death...?"

“That’s right. From the moment Miss Chelsea died, everything you had belonged to me. Please note, it was ‘everything.’”

Xiaolin's words are very easy to misunderstand.

Chelsea crossed her arms and said with disdain, "Kobayashi, you don't have that kind of fetish, do you?"

"No, that's not true!" Kobayashi immediately denied.