Bad Moon Rising. (Male Reader Insert)

Chapter 6: Kill the mercenary

Today, I was in the capital. Leone wanted to train Tatsumi so she decided to take him to the slums with her.

"So why did you drag me here with you?" I asked her, her arm around my neck.

"Well, there's no point in staying cooped up in your room all day. You need to get out and explore!" He said, squeezing my face into her breasts.

"The people down here seem to be a lot happier than I expected them to be." Tatsumi pointed out.

"You can always make the best out of a bad situation." I managed to break free from Leone's embarrassing grip. "Back at my village, we didn't really have much, but we were self sufficient and we had each other." I explained to him."

Tatsumi looked deep in thought. "Hey, can I ask you a question?"" He asked me.

"Sure."

"Do you miss them. Your people?" He asked me.

I turned my gaze towards the bustling streets of the slums, my expression distant for a moment. Tatsumi's question had touched on a subject I often tried to avoid.

"Yeah," I replied softly, my voice carrying a tinge of melancholy. "Every day."

Leone, who had been eavesdropping on our conversation with her typical curiosity, chimed in. "You must have some fond memories of your village."

I nodded, a faint smile playing on my lips. "We may not have had much, but we had a sense of community, of belonging. It's something I'll always cherish."

As we walked, three angry men chased the three of us, causing Leone and myself to get separated from Tatsumi as we ran away from them.

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(The Imperial Palace, audience room)

A guard knelt in front of the Emperor and Honest, the prime minister.

"I have a report." He announced. "It's about generals Nakakido and Hemi. They're gone. They've joined the rebel army." He said. The room went silent, with dread filling each person, excluding the prime minister and the emperor. They all began arguing amongst themselves, about how the knowledge Nakakido had would make the rebels stronger, before the emperor raised his voice.

"DON'T LET YOUR THOUGHTS RUN AWAY WITH YOU!" He yelled. "After all they are down in the south. We can deal with them at any time."

"That's not all, sir." The guard said, sweating. "There has been sightings of the Moon Knight within the capital, sir."

Honest, the prime minister, stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Ah, the Moon Knight... A masked vigilante who strikes fear into the hearts of nobles and leaves his targets broken but breathing."

"What do you suggest I should do to deal with them?" The emperor asked.

"I've already called for General Esdeath to return to the capital." Honest said, as everyone in the room froze for a brief second. "As for this masked vigilante of ours..." A wicked grin crept across Honest's face as he turned his attention to the kneeling soldier. "Fetch me Anthony Masters," he ordered, his tone dripping with malice. "Tell him to take a brief respite from his military training. I have a highly lucrative task for him, with payment upfront."

"Yes, prime minister!"

The room's atmosphere grew heavy with tension as the prime minister's ominous words hung in the air. The Emperor, though troubled by these developments, nodded in agreement with Honest's plans.