Chapter 43: Bad News
With Bubuteni, traveling became much easier. Su Xiao no longer needed to travel on foot.
Although Bubuteni was an Imperial Armament, it still needed to eat normally to maintain its vitality. This was a common trait among living-type Imperial Armaments.
Bubuteni only needed to eat once every three days, but its appetite was quite large.
Su Xiao glanced at the half-eaten buffalo. Judging by the situation, this buffalo could barely satisfy Bubuteni for one meal.
Bubuteni licked the bloodstains on its mouth. Although this was its first feeding, it seemed very interested in eating and was enjoying itself.
"Let's go."
Hearing Su Xiao's voice, Bubuteni quickly ran over, showing no reluctance for the remaining meat.
Su Xiao keenly noticed that Bubuteni's pitch-black eyes were sneaking glances at the pile of meat, as if it still craved more.
Its loyalty seemed fine.
Su Xiao mounted Bubuteni and signaled for it to continue traveling.
Three hours later, in front of a small village.
This was the village where Teli's family lived. Su Xiao had promised to deliver the gem to Teli's wife and daughter.
Su Xiao would keep his promises, but it seemed there was no chance now.
The village where Teli's family lived was charred black. Thin wisps of green smoke rose from the village. All the buildings in this village had been burned to charcoal, and a burnt smell spread far and wide.
"Bubu, go in."
Bubuteni cautiously stepped into the charred village, its eyes flashing with wolfish light. When danger might be present, Bubuteni was anything but stupid.
Bubuteni suddenly lowered its head, its sensitive nose seemingly picking up a scent.
Before long, Bubuteni ran to a burnt building and barked twice.
"Hm?"
Su Xiao looked at Bubuteni with confusion, unsure of what it meant.
Bubuteni walked to a pile of charcoal, extended its sharp claws from its front paws, and began digging in the charcoal.
Su Xiao jumped down from Bubuteni's back and watched it in bewilderment.
A minute later, Bubuteni actually pulled a figure covered in black soot from the charcoal pile.
This was a man with extensive burns all over his body. His limbs were carbonized, but he seemed to have one last breath left.
Bubuteni placed the man in front of Su Xiao, baring its full set of sharp teeth, as if it would bite the man's throat viciously if he made any sudden move.
Bubuteni inherited the loyalty of a canine, as well as the ferocity and keenness of a wolf. Finding a survivor in such an environment showed just how sharp Bubuteni's sense of smell was.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
A violent dry cough came, and the severely burned man woke up.
"Kill... me, please kill me."
The pain from the full-body burns made this man only wish for death.
"What happened here? Answer my question, and I'll give you a quick end."
"Burn... burning squad, kill... kill me."
Su Xiao understood. So the burning squad had come here. No wonder such a tragedy had occurred.
"Where is Teli's house?"
"First house at the village entrance. Hurry... it hurts so much."
Having gotten the answer he wanted, Su Xiao signaled Bubuteni to finish him.
Bubuteni was very intelligent and immediately understood Su Xiao's meaning. It bit the man's throat in one go.
"Let's go."
Mounting Bubuteni's back, Su Xiao signaled toward the village entrance.
Arriving at the entrance, the scene was even worse than before. The house was burned down to just a frame. No one inside could have survived.
"It seems the whole family died together neatly."
Su Xiao took out the bag of gems and tossed it into the nearby charcoal.
With a clatter, the gem bag shattered, and various crystal-clear gems were conspicuous in the black charcoal.
"Let's go. This direction."
Su Xiao pointed toward the Imperial Capital, and Bubuteni began to sprint.
He had left the Imperial Capital three days ago. He had a total of five days of rest, so he needed to return quickly.
Su Xiao rode Bubuteni on a long journey. He had to admit, Bubuteni's stamina was impressive. After running continuously for seven hours, Bubuteni wasn't even out of breath.
In some ways, Bubuteni was more suitable for travel than a car. Not only was it comfortable to ride, but it could also ignore harsh terrain.
Su Xiao couldn't help but reflect. If he had had Bubuteni before, Leone and Akame wouldn't have been able to escape from him.
Su Xiao had tested it. Bubuteni's sense of smell was several times stronger than that of an ordinary canine. From now on, when chasing enemies, he could ride Bubuteni.
Imagine it: the enemy running ahead, him riding Bubuteni in pursuit. This kind of chase was time-saving and effortless, and it had plenty of style.
After traveling for about ten hours, Su Xiao returned to the outskirts of the Imperial Capital.
Here, he put Bubuteni away and stored its core in his storage space.
Suddenly having an extra Imperial Armament would be troublesome to explain, or rather, impossible to explain.
Not to mention that the Empire had records of the appearance and functions of forty-eight Imperial Armaments, and Bubuteni wasn't among them.
If Esdeath saw Bubuteni, she would definitely recognize it. Bubuteni looked too similar to the Giant Wolf Fenrir.
The Imperial Capital was still its usual self. Su Xiao first showed up near the palace, then appeared in several places like the Third Dark Division and Esdeath's military camp. This was to throw off suspicion.
Walking down the street, Su Xiao vaguely felt that the atmosphere in the Imperial Capital was a bit strange. Just then, a black-haired girl led a group of soldiers toward him from a distance.
"Bai Ye? Where have you been these past few days?"
The one approaching was Kurone. She had the longsword Yatsufusa at her waist, and behind her followed an army, looking ready for battle at any moment.
"I went to the outskirts to search for the Night Raid's hideout. The two Night Raid members who escaped earlier were both heading toward the outskirts of the Imperial Capital."
Kurone didn't suspect anything.
"Something happened. Fashion and Ran were killed."
Su Xiao was startled.
"When did this happen?"
"Last night. Both were killed in their own homes. The neighbors didn't hear any sounds of a fight. We found these cards at the scene."
Kurone pulled out a tarot card. Seeing this tarot card, Su Xiao narrowed his eyes.
He took the tarot card from Kurone and carefully examined its appearance.
The back of the tarot card was covered in intricate patterns, while the front was blank, with faint traces of scorching from flames.
"Left by the killer?"
"Yes. Dozens of them were left at the scene, all identical in appearance."
"I'll keep this one."
"Alright. Want to search for the killer together?"
Su Xiao nodded. Acting together with Kurone would prevent others from suspecting where he had been these past few days.
Su Xiao and Kurone led a large group of soldiers in a thorough search of the Imperial Capital.
Although Kurone wasn't particularly warm toward her comrades in the Hunter Squad, she had an extremely strong sense of camaraderie, almost to a pathological degree.
To avoid losing her comrades, Kurone had once used Yatsufusa to personally kill a dying comrade, hoping to see them again in the future.
The Hunter Squad had just been formed, and two members had already died. This clearly angered Esdeath, so she dispatched the army to conduct a detailed sweep of the Imperial Capital. Anyone suspicious was to be captured—better to arrest the wrong person than let the guilty go free.
Su Xiao also joined the search party, but he was waiting for something specific.