No Resentment, Vixen and Daring Woman.

(3rd Person POV)

Machi has just woken up, however, she was still rolling on the bed, she was feeling that something was missing.

'It still feels weird for me to wake up alone. It has been 5 days since Oemitsu left and I already miss him.'

*Knock*. *Knock*

"Who is it?"

Machi asked while she sat on the bed and looked at the door.

'It must either be Shizuku or Pakunoda. No maid is allowed on this part of the castle. Only the people that Oemitsu trusts are allowed to walk near where he sleeps.'

"It is Pakunoda. We have some important issues to discuss."

She heard Pakunoda's voice coming from behind the door. Right after saying that, Pakunoda entered in the room without waiting for Machi to give her permission. After opening the door, a woman dressed in a business coat with some of her cleavage showing entered the room.

Her short skirt showed most of her alluring legs and her high heeled shoes hitting the floor were announcing her position from miles away. This beautiful woman in her twenties is Pakunoda, Machi's great friend.

"There is a reason why people knock on doors before they enter rooms, you know that don't you?"

After hearing Machi's question, Pakunoda simply laughed.

"What are you afraid of? I already walked in on you fucking with Oemitsu."

"Can you forget that already? I would rather not remember that incident."

'I remember that day clearly. We were fucking like dogs in heat and Pakunoda simply walked in wanting to talk with Oemitsu about choosing a proper Minister of Finances. The worst part was that Oemitsu didn't stop, he continued until I came in front of my friend.'

"It was fun memory for me. Besides it shows that you have finally accepted Oemitsu. Who would have guessed that Machi, the woman who was feared in the underworld is now a sex addict."

Pakunoda used a surprise tone to say that. Of course, she was being sarcastic.

"I am not a sex addict... it is just that Oemitsu's thirst for sex is unquenchable..."

"Yeah, right. Whatever suits your boat. So, what were you doing before I came in? Masturbating?"

Machi simply ignored her, refusing to answer such question. Instead she choose to change the subject.

"What are you doing here? You said we had to talk... don't tell me it is about sex?"

Pakunoda laughed, looks like she enjoyed making fun of her friend.

"No. I wanted to tell you that Duke Thernadier has defeated Duke Ganelon's forces near the capital."

This type of thing didn't really matter to Machi. They were just little figures playing in Oemitsu's chessboard. They were taking advantage now that the King was not playing on the board. In the end they were fighting over scraps. The one who will have entire control over everything in the end will be Oemitsu. It doesn't matter who wins the battles the only thing that matters is who is the winner of the war.

"And why should I care? They are just pieces in Oemitsu´s board... you know perfectly since you have been a piece in his chess board once. The feeling of hopelessness... it doesn't matter how smart you are in the end you will be led around like a dog. The same thing happened with our former boss."

These words suprised Pakunoda. Machi rarely talked about her former boss, the Phantom Troupe or their times together.

"Do you hate Oemitsu for what he did?"

There was a hint of concern in Pakunoda's voice. But as soon as she said that, Machi laughed. It was a small laugh, like a chuckle. However, even if it was small, it surprised Pakunoda since Machi is not really a woman who shows any type of emotions.

"Would I sleep with someone I hate? I can't find it in my heart to hate him. He knows perfectly that he hurt me in the past and he doesn't regret it. Instead, he is making my future the best he can..."

Pakunoda smiled and simply sat down on the bed close to her friend.

"You know, this is the second life I have. The only reason I live is because of him. Either I like it or not, I have a blood debt to him. He cares deeply for us family members. I never cared for my enemies the same could be said from when I worked in the Phantom Troupe. Be it civilian or Nen user, we stole from anyone. If anyone got it our way we killed them and Shizuku would destroy the evidence. The only difference is that now we have a family that actually cares and trusts us."

Machi was quite suprised at Pakunoda's words.

"Besides I stole a lot of money from him... when I say a lot, I mean a lot. He noticed it but he doesn't care. He loves deeply his money but he loves us more. It was my way of taking revenge, however, he laughed it off."

Machi just nodded.

"He is a wierd individual. A psychopath to his enemies, a greedy bastard who loves money and yet, he needs us more then we need him... his biggest desire is creating a family to compensate for the one who neglected him. If you look at it from a different angle, he is still a child that wants to compensate for what he lost."

Pakunoda simply smiled and decided to change the subject of the conversation.

"Let us talk about something else. I wanted to warn you that Duke Thernadier has 5 dragons that he made sure to show off to the entire realm."

Her words made Machi look at Thernadier in a different light. Instead of being a harmless bug that she doesn't need to crush. He turned into a little bee that she could stomp. However, if he can get his venon on Oemitsu then it becomes a problem.

"Is he a threat to Oemitsu?"

She asked with her eyes darkening. The killing intent that she was releasing was making the walls crack. Oemitsu was not the only who got stronger.

"Quite possible. However, we cannot mobilise our armies to destroy him. Shiro has forbidden it."

Pakunoda was quite frustrated at this. While her expertise is not warfare, she would love if Shiro listened to her.

"That crazy little brat. Is she trying to put Oemitsu's life on the line..."

Machi would probably kill her if she ever went against Oemitsu's wishes. However, Oemitsu loves her as his little sister so she can't lay a hand on her hair.

Oemitsu's family is not united as it seems. There are two groups. The ones who were there before the Phantom Troupe members joined and the Phantom Troupe members who joined. This is why they were split into two and Shizuku, Pakunoda and Machi stayed in the same group, courtesy of Vergo.

'He probably wanted to give us a chance to prove ourselves since he doesn't trust us. He is right not to. We are the most recent members. While gaining the trust of Oemitsu was rather easy, the same could not be said for Vergo. Oemitsu has a fatal flaw. He finds humans fascinating. To him, they are beasts to their desires and he loves when he sees exceptions in the middle of the pack. If he could, he would make everyone he saw interesting join his family. This is where Vergo comes in. As his right hand, he stops his flaw from getting out of hand.

Right now he isn't here, so that means that his job fell upon us. Shiro loves her brother too much to do anything and Shizuku sees disobeying his orders as a sign of betrayal. So that leaves me and Pakunoda to do such work.'

"I don't blame her. Currently we are surrounded by 3 hostile nations. We have to keep at least 40,000 men in each of our borders, 4 of our Generals are already tied down. If we send another army, then we will have nothing to defend our capital and our conquered lands."

Pakunoda explained as if Shiro's decision was the most reasonable.

"How about deploying Kyoukai? I am sure that she will be able to assassinate him."

Pakunoda shook her head, completly denying such possibility.

"Kyoukai only obeys orders from her King. She has refused any order from Shiro so far. She belives that this is part of Oemitsu's plan."

'Knowing Oemitsu it might be, however it is a risk that I don't want to take.'

"When is Oemitsu coming back?"

Pakunoda simply sighed at her question.

"No idea. It might be in a day or a month. He went to Lebus, on Zhcted, it is at least 5 days of trip on horseback."

Machi sighed, she knew what she had to do. There is no way that Shiro will retract her order even if she asks nicely.

"I will do it. I will kill Thernadier. Let me take Shizuku with me to cover up any tracks and we can deal with him quite easily."

Pakunoda smiled. She trusted her friend's abilities more than anything.

"Do as you wish. However don't you dare die. If you die then Oemitsu is going to be pissed."

Pakunoda got up and walked towards the exit.

"Wait a minute, there is something I want to ask. Why are you suddenly so interested in Oemitsu's sex life?"

Pakunoda continued walking as if she wasn't asked anything. Before leaving through the door she simply smiled.

"Who knows."

Machi looked at her friend's back.

"You sly fox."

She whispered under her breath.

...

...

...

Shiro sat on the main meeting hall of the castle with two maids behind her who are two of Kyoukai's sisters. Besides them, there is also Shizuku in case of an emergency. If anyone saw Shiro, they would think she only has two maids protecting her because Shizuku's presence is almost impossible to detect. Shiro is sitting on her little chair with her legs supporting her chin.

In front of her there is a woman that anyone would recognise. Her signature blond hair and her huge breasts that enraged Shiro are the main characteristics that described the light Vanadis, Sofya Obertas.

'According to my brother, she upholds the principle as a responsible Vanadis, such as how the War Maidens shouldn't put emotions ahead of country affairs or duty. However, here she is, trying to entice me to revolt against my brother all because of her emotions.She is putting her emotions in front of her duty... the irony... I miss him.

It has been 5 days, 4 hours, 39 minutes and 40 seconds... I need my brother to function properly. If he is away from me, I lose energy and feel miserable. I don't even know how did I last this long.

I need him to do everything with me or else my life has no meaning. Be it bathing, sleeping or eating, my brother needs to be there. When I complained about taking baths since it stiffens my hair, he got me a special shampoo bottle that costed him thousands of dollars. All so that my hair remained pretty.

My brother completes me. Without him, I cannot make correct decisions and yet, he let the entire Kindgom under me. I don't want to disappoint him, so I have given my best all the time. However, I can't do it for much longer without his help.'

Shiro's biggest weakness is unpredictability. She knows that she cannot fight with her fists so she uses her brain to help her brother. Most of their military plans were drafted by her, with Oemitsu's help of course. Without him, she would sacrifice half of their troops and probably lose. The battlefield is hard to predict and it changes in random patterns.

Moral, soldier's professionalism, the willingness to sacrifice themselves, are some of the points that Shiro struggles with.

She loves her brother for his emptiness. Without his family, her brother is empty and she knows that which is why she will never abandon him. She already failed him once when she failed to protect his chastity. She will not make another mistake.

The silence on the table ended when Sofy spoke first.

"Greetings your Majesty, I am the envoy from Zhcted, Sofya Obertas, the Vanadis of Polesia!"

Shiro just glanced at her with an unimpressed look.

"I am Shiro, the King's sister."

She said in a hollow tone completely, uninterested in why she is even here. The only thing in Shiro's mind is when will she see her brother. She has time to make Sofy her pet later.

"I heard that you are quite famous with the people of your lands. I would like to propose a treaty."

Shiro took off her shoes and rested her feet on her chair and turned her head sideways. Sofy took this as a sign of interest.

"We all know that you are the real ruler of this lands. Oemitsu conquered the lands, however, the one who keeps the lands together is you. Your kingdom is not ruled by the correct King. You should be the one sitting on the throne!"

Sofya was not entirely wrong. The one who kept the lands together was her, however, she would have never done it without her brother. She wanted to implement plans that would improve the economy, however, thousands would die. She has no idea on how to properly run a country. You cannot just radically implement changes, her brother was the one who placed the brakes on her or else he would be ruling over a graveyard.

'Even if Sofya was right, she is quite an idiot though. For those words alone I could have her executed since she is overstepping her boundaries as an emissary. However, I will not do that. I need to discipline her. She dares to talk badly about my brother!'

"You sure do know how to piss me off. Looks like I need to finish Nii's work. I will make sure that I will discipline you properly."