The hot shower poured over her head, her wet black hair was sticked tightly to her white skin. Hot water dripped down her chin, down her chest, down her navel, down her long legs, and onto the pink tiles.

The bathroom was so meticulously cleaned that not even a strand of hair could be seen on the floor, and the silver racks on the wall were lined with expensive-looking shampoos. Colonel Usanyi-chan had told her that she could use any of the shampoos she wanted, but when it came time to use them, she was a little hesitant.

After washing off all the dust from her body, she slowly submerged her body in the bathtub filled to the brim with hot water. The bathtub was wide enough for even the tall Minato to stretch out her legs, and it was even a Jacuzzi Tub.

「Fuaaaa……」

The moderately hot bathtub and the gentle aroma enveloped Minato’s limbs. At the same time, the tingling in Minato’s heart dissolved like soap in a bathtub.

Compared to the dark, cold depths of the basement, this was truly heaven.

In the changing rooms, freshly washed soft towels and a fresh change of clothes were provided.

As she dried her hair and looked into the mirror, she saw that her cool eyes were still a little swollen. However, compared to the ghostly face seen earlier, It can be said that it is somewhat better.

After changing clothes and taking a breather, Minato cautiously peered into the living room from the dressing room. The high ceiling and bright interior makes you forget that you’re in the basement.

This room was Colonel Usanyi-chan’s private room in the Ark Dominion underground secret base.

Rintaro’s room is quite spacious, but his room is nothing compared to this. The fireplace has a flickering flame, and in the corner of the room there are training equipments and even a grand piano.

（When you are the number two in the Hundred Beasts Legion and the leader of the Teaching Legion, you are treated so well. ……）

From the perspective of Minato, a newcomer and a lowly employee, it was truly a different world.

「Instead of staying in such a place, why don’t you come in front of the fire? Your body will get cold.」

The owner of the room, who was sitting on the sofa doing some paperwork, didn’t even look at Minato and just twitched her rabbit ears. Minato was timidly surprised by the opulence of the room once more, but complied with the owner’s words.

When she leaned her body against the large sofa, her butt and back softly sank into it as if she were sitting on a cloud. She wondered how much this sofa alone cost, and it made her feel uncomfortable.

「If you can eat, fill your stomach a bit. Hunger rots the fighting spirit.」

Colonel Usanyi-chan, the owner of the room, nonchalantly recommended a meal to the heartbroken Minato without looking up from her papers. On the table in front of her was a mug of warm cocoa and a sandwich with plenty of vegetables in it.　

Colonel Usanyi-chan herself does not look as if she was in the mood for a cup of cocoa, but the steam was still rising from the cup. It was probably prepared just around the time Minato was about to leave the bathroom.

When Minato put them in her mouth, tears began to trickle from her eyes again. It was not a rain of sorrow, but the ice in her heart melted by her courteous kindness.

「Colonel Usanyi-chan…… Thyank yhou……」

Colonel Usanyi-chan turned her red eye for a moment towards Minato, who was stuffing herself with sandwich while crying, and muttered, “I don’t mind.”

Colonel Usanyi-chan was organizing piles of papers without stopping.

On each of these sheets is a detailed profile of the zako fighters she has trained with her own hands, including their specialties and weaknesses.

「This is……?」

「It’s the chicks’ “leaving the nest”. They are a lot of trouble until the very end.」

With a practiced hand, she then signs her signature indicating that they has completed their training, and tucked them into a file along with letters of recommendation for each corps.

Minato felt that she finally understood why the zako fighters adored her even though they were so battered and bruised.

When the work is done, Colonel Usanyi-chan lets out a big breath and turns to Minato.

「Sorry to keep you waiting. So, have you calmed down a bit?」

「Un……」

「So let me ask you again. Why were you in that place?」

「That……」

For a moment, Minato was silent, but Colonel Usanyi-chan did not reproach her, but simply waited for Minato’s words.

Little by little, the words spun from Minato’s lips. Colonel Usanyi-chan, who was supposed to be busy, listened intently without interrupting a single word.

After about 30 minutes, Minato finally finished telling me everything.

The tears that she thought had run out for a while overflowed to the point where she wondered where they were hiding.

「I see……… so you wanted to be of service to Corporal Death Green. And just as you were about to do that, you saw something shocking that broke your heart.」

「Uuu…… I can’t, I can’t get between those two……」

「Fumu. I have warned you before, but you are still too kind. You are so afraid of hurting others that you turn the blade against your own heart.」

At Colonel Usanyi-chan’s words, Minato fell silent.

She can’t do anything about her true feelings now.

Her only wish is to be useful to Rintaro… no, to stand next to him.

Her fear of dragging Rintaro down and her desire to be strong enough to match the Heinous Legion were all just excuses to cover up her own desires.

What drove Kenmochi Minato was her desire to monopolize the man Rintaro. What was once only a small budding desire has taken root as a large tree in the center of her heart.

That is why she was so disturbed by the relationship between Samechi and Rintaro, who genuinely adored each other. Her own desire was not pure at all, but rather an unjust and ugly love affair.

「I didn’t become strong…I just sought a place to escape in my superficial strength……」

Kindness is a virtue, Colonel Usanyi-chan said, but it is also poison. The cruel kindness of not wanting to ruin their relationship was a poisoned dagger.

The blade with nowhere to go pierced her own heart, and Minato’s weak heart couldn’t stand it, that’s all.

「……As expected, I am the weakest mysterious being after all……」

「I guess so. From my point of view, you are not suited for the front lines.」

「Ughh……!」

As Minato looks down with a whimper, Colonel Usanyi-chan said the thing she didn’t want to say. Tears well up in Minato’s eyes again as she was pushed away.

Colonel Usani stood up and gently wiped away Minato’s tears.

And then–.

「I want to show you something.」

Colonel Usanyi-chan then took out one of the stacks of files that filled the wall. She held out a photo that was tucked into the file in front of Minato.

「This is……」

「That is the “weakest mysterious being” I know.」

There was one mysterious being girl in the picture.

His eyebrows were tilted in a “ハ” shape, her back was rounded, and she had a frightened look on her face when she looked at people. Even from this single image, it is easy to see that she is a very timid and weak-looking mysterious being.

「Her name was “Usanyi”.」

Minato was surprised to compare the girl in the photo with the girl in military uniform in front of her. If she had not been told to her face that they were the same person, she would never have recognized her.

「……Usa- Usanyi!? You look completely different!」

「Don’t forget the Colonel and Chan, you moron!」

「Yes, Colonel Usanyi-chan！」

Minato’s eyes were glued to Colonel Usanyi-chan even as her shoulders trembled with fear. It was true that she had some resemblance to Colonel Usani, but her behavior and face were nothing alike.

The woman in front of her is now unquestionably one of the most powerful woman in the Ark Dominion. What kind of experience would this weak-looking girl in this picture have to go through to become one of the top-class mysterious beings in the Kanto region’s largest mysterious being organization?

Colonel Usanyi-chan spoke to the stunned Minato.

「It’s nothing to hide, all the old-timers know about it. I’m sure you’ll be able to find a good deal of information on this subject……, but looking at it now…… Fufu, You are like a duplicate of the me back then.」

Colonel Usani looked at the picture with nostalgia.

In the photo was a large hand firmly resting on the head of Usanyi, the weakest mysterious being in the picture. It was the image of General Bearion, the Hundred Beasts General, not so different from the one we see today.

In contrast to the Usanyi girl who looked as if she would start crying at any moment, Bearion was smiling, showing his white fangs.

Bearion is not the only one. A wide variety of beast-type mysterious beings surrounded them, and they all took funny poses in their own way.

「Medic Minato, you have the talent. The talent for gaining strength… that’s my intuition.」

Seeing Colonel Usanyi-chan smiling gently, Minato thought. Colonel Usanyi-chan’s smile is directed at her beloved family and General Bearion.

Above all, this one photo said everything she wants to say. She did not become strong by leaving her kindness behind.

Minato put her hand on her chest and gathered her courage to speak out.

「Colonel, Usanyi-chan…… I……」

Bii Bii Bii Bii!!

At that moment, a loud electronic sound interrupted Minato’s words. Colonel Usanyi-chan said, “I’m sorry,” and took out a wireless terminal from her pocket.

On the LCD screen, the words “Maebashi Branch of Hundred Beasts Legion” appeared.

「It’s me.……Okay, I’ll be right there.」

After a short response, she quickly put her military cap back on and placed her favorite whip on her hip.  With her back turned, she spoke to Minato, moving her hands briskly.

「Yare Yare, It’s another dispatch order. I guess we’ll just have to wait another day to continue this conversation.」

「Wa- wait a minute, Colonel Usanyi-chan!」

As Minato stood up shakily, Colonel Usani turned her red eye on her while tying her eye patch back on. At the end of their crossed gazes, there was a remnant of her former self.

「……I’m coming with you.」

「Hoo? I like your eyes, miss.」

The tears had dried up now.

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<104: Person in Distress in The Abyss
106: Victor Ranger VS Hundred Beasts Legion>