“Huh…?”

Liver was incredibly shocked. The Empire had knowledge on nearly all 48 Teigus created since their creation, but before him—what he assumed—was an unknown consumable Teigu being used, might actually be a body transformation type.

‘It’s not an elemental Teigu like the general’s—?‘

Liver thoughts had to come to an abrupt stop as Haco was like an enraged bull, but much more dangerous. The sheer speed and nimbleness forced Liver into a predicament when he realized the environment and situation they were in.

Haco danced like an ice skater as those talons were launched without any breaks. Liver swiftly evaded with back steps until he finally did a big back step, gaining a good distance between them, before raising his hand.

Not a care was given, so Haco did not notice the silver ring Liver was wearing—and he luckily didn't have to as Liver regretted his action.

He had to put down his hand because of the situation he was in. Standing on ice with plenty of soldiers around. The cost of using the ring was too much if it isn’t the last resort.

Still, the hesitation did cost him.

A finger was cut into the bone, leaving it to fate if it would have to be amputated later.

As a former general, regardless of the pain, Liver pulled out a shortsword and went on the offensive.

**Clang!**

When a talon met the sword, a metallic sound was produced. In a deadlock, neither of them moved. Instead, sparks began being traded from the eye contact, or at least from Haco. Liver’s calm and indifferent expression was pissing him off.

Inwardly, Liver was a little astonished that Haco could match his strength while standing on one leg.

But—

With a slight jerk of the sword, the balance was broken and Liver’s swordsmanship showed its beauty. The sword in his hand flowed as result of the loose wrist and cut Haco across the gut, deep.

For a moment the knees softened and Liver expected Haco to kneel in pain, but just as quickly as petrol being ignited, the wound did the same.

Haco felt so humiliated at being reminded of the suffocating feeling of drowning, that he was fighting with everything on the line to remove it. With a reason to be pissed, his normally apprehensive and observant vision had turned into a tunnel-visioned outlook.

The mental agony at the moment outdid the physical, so when Haco suddenly grabbed hold of the sword’s blade with his hands and stepped on Liver’s foot, the satisfaction outlasted the pain. Especially when he grunted in pain.

“Ugh!”

To add further pain, Haco did a twist, though it might have been a mistake when Liver pulled his sword out from Haco’s grip. The two pinkies that were touching the sharp edge of the sword, were sliced cleanly off, bones and all.

Having been satisfied a little, the pain was instantly noticed—and it hurt a lot.

“Ahh!—“

Liver was not so forgiving to let his enemies scream in pain without doing anything, so he used his hand—with a sliced finger of his own—to punch Haco in the face to get him off his foot.

Maybe because of the talon doing the last twist, or the force meeting his finger, Liver grunted in pain again as Haco involuntary back stepped with a broken nose. The flames matched his haggard breathing as he struggled with the pain he had begun experiencing.

Just as Haco had decided not to give any time to let the adrenaline wear off and continue fighting, the sudden sound of claps, made him scrap that idea as he stiffly shifted his attention to the bystanders—Esdeath, Daidara, and Nyau.

The notion of what he’d done hit him hard.

‘What have I done!? I’m doomed!'

Haco did the only thing he thought was right, flee.

Like a rocket, he bounced with sweat running down his face. Down the icy passage that Esdeath had made, through the village where the soldiers were partaking in the victory.

Some soldiers were getting in the way, which Haco pushed or kicked away without remorse. To waste time, he couldn’t control himself and go a little out of his way to kill a soldier that was dragging a little girl by the hair, into a shed.

But it dawned on him when he was cornered in the chain of plateaus.

‘I’m trapped!!’

In desperation, Haco began to climb. The talons helped a lot, and he might have been able to escape—if he’d ignored the little girl.

After having only climbed a few meters, Haco was forced to jump to the side to dodge the incoming axes which tore two holes in the mountain. It made Haco lose grip and slide down a distance.

More desperate than ever, he hastened the climb. But it was too late—

**Bang!**

Esdeath leaped and punched Haco on his defenseless back without holding back even a little.

**Crack!**

Honestly, Haco was getting too familiar with the sound of his bones fracturing.

What followed with the loss of strength, was Haco tumbling down, kissing the hard ground.

Haco tried to say something between his whining, but Esdeath couldn’t hear it clearly enough, so she got closer.

“Just-ugh! Get it over with. Or would you be so kind and—piss off!-ugh!” At the very least he wanted an honorable death, so the last thing he wanted was to beg for his life. Even though he was very unwilling to die, he couldn’t help but be agitated at the thought.

‘I’m really pathetic... Still being afraid of dying after all the things I have gone through.'

“You know, this village’s chief begged for death too—“

“—I’m not begging for anything!!” Esdeath’s words upset Haco so much that he couldn’t hold back from interrupting.

The curiosity won over her annoyance of being interrupted, “Whatever. But I assure you, you will be going to if you don’t explain how you suddenly transformed your legs into talons. I will drag you back to the Capital and torture you myself."

Remembering, how knowledgeable Esdeath seemed when he was given a tour of the torture yard, sent a terrible chill through the body. But more than anything else, he’d a question, “Why haven’t you already?” Yes, from the moment the flames were displayed in the Capital’s colosseum, to thousands of people—why did it seem like it wasn’t of much importance to know the origin of the Flames of Resurrection?

“Because I wanted to observe if you were just the average fool, who’d just happened to stumble upon some power. I have no use for fools other than being fodder." He'd danced at Esdeath’s mercy ever since the Colosseum. “That’s why... So why don’t you get up and join my team?“

Haco looked at Esdeath’s outstretched hand with confusion, “What do you mean? I’m already in the army."

Esdeath reformulated her sentence with a sudden crazed expression; revealing the set of pearly-white teeth with a smile, her eyes turned wide and acute. “I meant. Why don’t you join my group, the Three Beasts,” Esdeath told dramatically while showing off Nyau, Daidara, and lastly Liver that’s doing a quick first-aid on his finger. While his foot was still bleeding, hearing Esdeath’s proposal did make his eyebrows jump once.

The exact same thoughts were running through Haco’s head as the last time she proposed the same thing.

‘Do I even have a choice?’

Having already thought about it before, “I’m in!” Accepted Haco once again as he stood up—much to Esdeath’s satisfaction. She didn’t want quitters under her.

But that doesn't mean the hatchet was buried between him and Liver. It would never be, Liver realized—that even if he wanted to, and he did not—Haco would never accept an apology by the short eye contact they shared.

After taking one last look at his nicked sword, Liver sheathed it and followed behind Esdeath.

The battle was over and they would soon have to return to the Capital.