Are You Sure Our Empire's Knight Order Captain is a Yandere? - Chapter 1

A summer night. A full moon high above. The endless, electric drone of cicadas.
“Oi, you really think this plan’s going to work?”
“Nonsense! It’s absolutely going to work.”
Two men, dressed in light armor, hunched down and whispered fiercely behind a massive tree, obviously deep in some clandestine plot. The night was serene, save for the constant whirr of the insects, a quiet broken by the delicate sound of approaching footsteps.
Under the bright moonlight, a young girl slowly emerged. Her black hair, reaching all the way to her waist, swayed fluidly with her every step. Her small, pale face appeared even more captivating under the moon’s soft halo, but the most arresting feature was her pair of mismatched eyes—one burning bright like a crimson flame.
She was draped in a white, gold-trimmed robe, the unmistakable symbol of her high status.
The two men noticed the girl’s gaze was fixed dead-center on their hiding place. Her right hand was already resting on the hilt of the long sword hanging at her waist. Flustered, the pair awkwardly shuffled out from behind the tree.
“C-Captain, I… I just wanted to say that I’ve always… that is, I’ve always…”
The lead man’s tongue completely tied itself into knots the moment he saw those red eyes focused on him. Despite having spent years charging through thick fighting, he was suddenly too nervous to string together a coherent thought.
Sensing that the stammering knight had no real point to make, the girl didn’t get annoyed. She simply moved her gaze to the second knight.
“Yes?”
The accompanying knight hadn’t expected to be addressed, but he certainly wouldn’t dare ignore his superior. After a quick, desperate thought, he could only offer a forced smile.
“Oh, nothing much, Captain. Just wanted to say good evening.”
With that, he swiftly grabbed his partner, whose muscles were now rigid with tension, and dragged him off the battlefield. They practically ran, tails tucked, back to the barracks for a night’s sleep.
A tiny, fleeting flicker of exasperation crossed the fair features of the girl they called ‘Captain’.
“Two grown men hiding behind a big old tree in the dead of night… honestly, what on earth are they doing?”
Being just a young girl herself, she genuinely had no idea what went on inside the heads of those male knights.
“Well, did that little assist improve the Captain’s favorability towards me?”
“Wuwuwuwu!” (A sound of utter distress)
The next morning,
“Kamiya Yoru-sama, Kamiya Yoru-sama!” A servant repeatedly called out to their master from outside the door.
“What is it?” A slightly lazy voice came from within the room.
“The Knight Order has an impromptu meeting this morning.”
“Alright, I’ll be there shortly.”
Kamiya Yoru-sama sat up drowsily in the middle of her bed, her soft, long hair fanned out across the sheets. Remembering the servant’s reminder, she lifted a hand and rubbed her unfocused eyes.
“Right then, it’s a new day!”
After a quick wash and change, she put on her white robe. Just as she was about to open the door, her eye caught the ice-blue longsword leaning against the bedside cabinet. She casually fastened it to her waist, then opened the door and headed downstairs.
“Morning, Captain!”
“Good morning, Captain.”
“Captain!”
On her way down, she continuously met the Order’s elite members. Kamiya Yoru answered each of them with a warm smile. She cherished the feeling of company, which was why she made a point of living in the Knight Order’s private residence.
Reaching the ground floor, Kamiya Yoru first detoured to the kitchen to grab an apple from the cook. She then walked straight down the long corridor, finally arriving at the room at the far end, whose nameplate simply read: Conference Room.
“Hello, everyone!” Kamiya Yoru greeted them as she opened the door.
“Good morning, Captain!” A loud, uniform sound boomed from both sides of the long table.
Kamiya Yoru looked at the five Vice-Captains standing stiffly at attention. Her smile remained steady. This was the Imperial Knight Order she commanded.
“Let the meeting commence!”
“The reason I’ve asked you all here today is to discuss a few final matters regarding the selection of our new recruits for the Knight Order.”
After the meeting finally drew to a close, a genuine look of satisfied relief eased onto Kamiya Yoru’s lips. The routine meeting had included extended discussions on the specifics of selecting new recruits, and it had dragged on until noon before she could finally announce the adjournment.
“Wonder if he’s starved to death yet?” Her voice was light, carrying a mischievous lilt as she voiced the thought.
Kamiya Yoru ambled down the small, relatively empty road leading toward the High-Ranking Officers’ Residence. There weren’t many people about, as she had called every member of the Knight Order for a routine drill immediately after the meeting.
Humming a relaxed tune, she quickly returned to the deserted residence. It wasn’t really fair to call it the ‘Knight barracks’; it should be called the High-Ranking Knight Order Officers’ Residence. The entire manor was only occupied by her and the remaining thirteen Vice-Captains.
The true barracks for the regular knights was located much further away.
She walked up to the third floor, turned a few corners, and arrived at her own room. After checking the area and confirming no one was nearby, she locked the door, picked up the brunch the servant had delivered earlier, and approached her bed.
She gave the corner of the bed two solid kicks. A slow, mechanical creak (Zhi-ya, Zhi-ya) was heard as the bed slowly lifted, revealing a staircase leading down to an underground level.
After confirming one last time that there was no movement outside the door, Kamiya Yoru quickly slipped into the secret room beneath the bed.