Chapter 163: The Night Raid on the Brink of Dissolution
"Go get her, Cora-nee!" Poney cheered excitedly.
The previously dead and empty square was now surrounded by crowds of people. Team leaders and their members had all arrived, forming what seemed like a killing formation around the perimeter.
Leone, who was already at a disadvantage in terms of strength, was under even greater psychological pressure, causing her to be steadily pushed back in her duel against Cornelia.
Meanwhile, the situation on the other side was completely opposite.
"Haaaaaa——!!!!"
Sheele wielded her giant scissors as if they were rapiers, launching continuous thrusts at Seryu that left the latter completely unable to counterattack and forced into constant defense.
She was being thoroughly dominated by Sheele.
Even though Seryu possessed greater physical strength, even though her fighting spirit burned like an unquenchable flame...
Sheele's concentration proved far more formidable.
She remained completely unaffected by the surrounding pressure, as if it didn't exist at all.
Sheele focused entirely on the battle, with only one thought in her mind—
Defeat Seryu, then go help Leone!
With this determination, the thrusts from Sheele's scissors became even swifter.
But...
"Koro, help me!!"
At Seryu's call, a dense shadow suddenly bulged from the ground. Koro, who had been the size of a pet dog, returned to its original form—
Magical Beast Transformation: Hekatonkheires
Now the size of a small hill, its cute appearance gradually twisted into something ferocious. Muscular arms coiled and bulged as it swung a fist wrapped in chilling wind pressure toward Sheele's back.
Boom!
A tremendous explosion echoed through the area.
The force of that single punch was like the Tank from Left 4 Dead!
Though Sheele turned and blocked the attack with her scissors, she was still forcefully knocked back, finally giving Seryu a chance to catch her breath.
However, it appeared that Hekatonkheires hadn't actually injured Sheele.
What terrifying physical resilience, to withstand the monstrous strength of a biological Teigu head-on.
And this was the Hekatonkheires, a Teigu specialized in raw power!
Even so, Sheele and Leone's defeat was already inevitable.
"Surrender, Miss Sheele. You're surrounded—continuing to struggle is pointless!"
Seryu put away her tonfa and began attempting persuasion once more.
To be honest, if this were a fight to the death, she wouldn't fear Sheele. Having Koro go berserk would guarantee victory.
But that would be meaningless.
Before the operation, Mahiro had given clear instructions: aside from Zanku, everyone else should be captured alive as long as their own safety could be ensured.
This indicated that Lord Mahiro had known from the beginning that Night Raid would come, and had known their identities all along.
Yet he never moved to capture them, probably because although they belonged to Night Raid, they weren't the villains people imagined them to be, thus deserving a chance to abandon the darkness for the light.
As the vice-minister and someone who upheld justice, she should give them that opportunity too.
But Sheele was still hesitating.
She wasn't hesitating about surrender—she was wondering where Lubbock and Tatsumi had run off to, and whether they could safely escape the Imperial City.
Because she knew very well that both she and Leone were already trapped...
"Enough thinking. Surrender, Sheele."
"...Mr. Yotsuba?"
She turned her head and saw Mahiro walking toward her, stopping right in front of her.
"Listen to me, surrender. In exchange, I'll let the two who escaped go. How about it?"
"Well... Since Mr. Yotsuba has said so, then I agree to surrender."
With a clatter, the Cutter of Creation: Extase fell to the ground as Sheele obediently raised both hands.
How straightforward.
Then again, being airheaded didn't mean being reckless or foolish—she could still weigh the pros and cons of the current situation.
And since he had offered a way out, it would be pure idiocy if Sheele didn't take it.
As for the other side of the battle, it naturally ended with Leone's defeat.
Pinned firmly to the ground by Cornelia, she couldn't move an inch.
"Leone, anything to say to me?"
Mahiro crouched down in front of Leone, gently poking her cheek with his finger.
It was springy and quite soft.
"Uh... Hey, hey, Lord Yotsuba? How've you been? How about we make a deal? For old times' sake, how about letting me go?"
As expected, there was no point hoping this shameless woman would say anything interesting.
"Lord Yotsuba, how should we deal with these two small fries? Kill them?"
Nahashu, holding the Water Dragon Sword, glanced at Leone, who was still lying on the ground.
His deliberately harsh words seemed like punishment for her earlier disrespect toward Mahiro!
But it was enough to scare Leone thoroughly.
"Enough, enough. I'll take care of these two. I'll bring them back to the estate. As for Zanku, gather his corpse and hang it in the square tomorrow as a public warning!"
"Yes, Lord Yotsuba!"
Nahashu, long accustomed to dirty work, had no qualms about handling severed heads. Holding one head in one hand and dragging Zanku's headless corpse with the other, he tossed them directly to his subordinates.
But those subordinates were already pale, vomiting on the spot.
"Small fries, this is the life of the assassination department. You'll have to get used to it sooner or later. Tonight, you're responsible for bringing this corpse back to the department."
Issuing the command without room for argument, Nahashu turned and left.
Though merciless, this was his way of teaching those under him.
After all, the world of assassins was far crueler than this...
As for Mahiro, he brought the tightly bound Sheele and Leone back to his home.
The moment they entered the gate, Leone began chattering nonstop.
"Hey, hey, Lord Yotsuba, are you going to let us go? Is that why you specially brought us back?"
"Actually, you didn't have to go through all this trouble. You could've just let us go on the way."
"Oh, and Lord Yotsuba, when did you find out about mine and Sheele's identities? Why didn't you capture us earlier? Was it out of consideration for Akame?"
"Hey, why aren't you saying anything..."
He hadn't noticed it before, but Leone turned out to be such a chatterbox.
Soon, however, Leone fell silent, because Mahiro led them to a hidden warehouse she had never entered before.
With a creak, the heavy door slowly swung open.
Inside, the space was brightly lit, the brilliant lights illuminating it as if it were daytime.
Yet even so, when stepping inside, one could still feel a chilling wind sweep down their spine.
Dangerous!
Even after having her Teigu confiscated, Leone—who had partially fused with the Lionelle—could clearly sense it, as if something terrifying was lurking in the deepest shadows...
"L-Lord Yotsuba, what is this place for?"
"Can't you learn from Sheele and keep your mouth shut?"
Mahiro cast a calm glance at Leone and said, "Know your place. You're in no position to ask questions right now."
Just as Leone was about to say something else to lighten the mood, faint footsteps suddenly echoed from the depths of the warehouse.
A tall figure slowly emerged, then knelt on one knee before Mahiro, speaking respectfully:
"Master."
"My apologies for disturbing you so late."
"Not at all, I wasn't resting anyway." The woman shook her head.
Judging by her voice, she was young, yet Leone was astonished.
Having lived in the mansion for nearly two years, she had never seen this woman before...
Who was she?!
Unfortunately, the mask concealed her face completely.
"Lock these two in the cell next to that person."
"Master, are you sure that's alright?" The woman hesitated.
"It's fine. They're all together."
"?"
Listening to the mysterious exchange between master and servant, Leone slowly formed a question mark in her mind.
Who was this person she knew?
But when she finally saw the person, she realized she did indeed know them.
"Hey, Leone, Sheele, so you got caught too."
"B-Bulat?!!"
Bulat, who had been missing for some time, was imprisoned here?!
Leone and Sheele covered their mouths in shock, staring at the muscular man inside the cell with his heart-shaped hairstyle and bare chest.
Although he was imprisoned, the conditions inside were comparable to Night Raid's dormitory—aside from the cell door, there was little difference from the outside.
What in the world was going on?!
Just as Leone was about to ask, she saw Mahiro turn and leave, leaving only the masked woman to stand guard.
Her entire demeanor radiated an aura of "don't mess with me."
Surrounding them were boxes filled to the brim with gold coins.
It was just like a dragon guarding treasure in a fairy tale!
...
Meanwhile.
Tatsumi and Lubbock had fled the Imperial City, stumbling back to Night Raid's headquarters in the suburban forest at dawn.
"Lubbock? Tatsumi?! What happened to you?! Where are Sheele and Leone?"
Najenda, seeing their disheveled state, immediately rose from her seat and helped them to the kitchen table.
Under her questioning, Lubbock spoke with a dejected expression:
"We... were ambushed by the Imperial City's Assassination Unit."
"What?!"
Najenda was shocked and pressed Lubbock and Tatsumi for details.
As they recounted the events, her expression shifted from astonishment to grim seriousness.
Though Lubbock called it an ambush, his words were somewhat exaggerated.
It was simply a case where Mahiro led the assassination unit to eliminate the serial killer Zanku the Beheader, and coincidentally clashed with the Night Raid members.
As a result, to cover Tatsumi and Lubbock's escape, Leone and Sheele chose to stay behind and hold off the assassination squad.
Not only that, but Lubbock also lost his Teigu.
"As long as you're safe and made it back, that's what matters."
Najenda patted Lubbock's shoulder comfortingly, trying her best to prevent him from blaming himself too much.
But after speaking, she sat down in a chair, lit a cigarette, and began smoking silently.
She felt deeply troubled, truly troubled.
Night Raid's current situation had reached a desperate point—just one mission had cost them three Teigu and two Teigu users.
This level of loss was unprecedented!
However, she could understand Leone's reasoning.
Because Leone and Sheele had a chance of surviving if they stayed behind, but if Tatsumi and Lubbock had remained, they would certainly have died!
"Alright, Tatsumi and Lubbock, you two should go rest now. For the near future, Night Raid will cease all activities and won't accept any missions. We'll use this time to regroup and wait for the Revolutionary Army's support to arrive."
"That's all for now."
Najenda took several deep drags from her cigarette, stubbed out the butt, then slowly stood up and left the kitchen looking exhausted.
"Boss..."
Watching Najenda's despondent figure, Akame opened her mouth as if to say something.
But the words remained stuck in her throat.
Both she and Najenda clearly understood that Night Raid now existed in name only, and continuing like this would likely make it impossible to maintain the organization.
Still, there was one piece of good news.
At least Sheele and Leone were certain to be alive, though no one knew where they were being held.
Probably Night Raid's next operation would be a rescue mission...
"I hope Lord Yotsuba will bring all this to an end next time."
Akame offered this prayer in her heart.
...
Early next morning.
Mahiro gathered all members of the elite group for another small meeting.
"To summarize, everyone performed well last night. This operation not only successfully eliminated Zanku and earned the Little Emperor's appreciation, but also secured four Teigu at once."
"Combined with the four previously confiscated from Wild Hunt, that makes eight in total."
"The Little Emperor has granted these Teigu to us to strengthen our assassination department."
As he spoke, Mahiro brought out the four Teigu confiscated last night.
Almighty Five Sights: Spectator, Infinite Uses: Cross Tail, Cutter of Creation: Extase, and The King Of Beasts Transformation: Lionelle—these were last night's spoils.
Dimensional Formation: Shambhala, Blood Collection: Absordex, Great Tremor: Heavy Pressure, and Moonlight Sword Dance: Shamshir had been generously provided by the kind Syura.
After a night of analysis, he had completely mastered the characteristics of these Teigu.
"Now, come forward one by one to choose whichever catches your fancy."
Nahashu was the first to leave the room—he had no interest in Teigu, as the Water Dragon Sword was all he needed.
Next was Kurome, who also took a step back. As someone who already possessed Yatsufusa, she clearly understood that a person could only wield one Teigu at a time.
Otherwise, their mental energy wouldn't be sufficient.
Of course, there were exceptions, like the freak of nature Mahiro, who could fully arm himself with Teigus without any issues.
But there was no need for that.
Compared to relying on external objects, he preferred to enhance his own inherent power.
Though if he had to say, he was quite interested in this Infinite Uses: Cross Tail. To be honest, entrusting such a linear-type Teigu to Lubbock was practically a waste.
Not expecting him to achieve the level of a certain death butler like Walter who could slice through buildings, but at least he should have been able to reach the proficiency of a certain flamingo-like Donquixote Doflamingo, right?
And what was the result?
A perfectly formidable Teigu was bluntly used by Lubbock for surveillance purposes, with its offensive applications being utterly straightforward.
There was zero developmental creativity—not even comparable to a fraction of Esdeath's mastery in skill refinement.
However, speaking of which, the outcome of this Teigu selection wasn't particularly impressive either.
Out of the eight Teigus, only two were chosen.
One was Almighty Five Sights: Spectator, which surprisingly synchronized with Gin.
As Gin fashioned the Teigu into a bracelet and wore it on her wrist, she accidentally activated its x-ray effect.
"Wahhh!!!"
Gin couldn't help but let out a startled cry.
"Gin, what's wrong?" the others asked with concern.
"Shouting so loudly—are you being backfired by the Teigu?"
Poney teased, hands on her hips.
"Idiot, of course not! It's mainly because... because..."
Not only did Gin's voice gradually trail off, but her eyes also became evasive, and her face slowly turned red.
Because she had actually seen everyone else naked!
The other girls weren't a big deal—she usually saw them during hot spring baths or showers, and even without such a device, she knew how many hairs they had on their bodies.
The problem was, she had seen Mahiro naked!
His firm and streamlined muscle lines were like meticulously carved works of art, exuding an overwhelming sense of explosive power!
But what captivated her most was what was below.
She never expected Lord Yotsuba's... assets to be so substantial...
Having taken physiology classes, she already knew how procreation worked, but recalling the lessons made her unconsciously swallow hard.
Could something that large from Lord Mahiro really fit inside her body?
"Fool, stop with the wild imaginations!"
"Ouch, ouch, ouch!"
Mahiro walked over and gave Gin a sharp chop to the head, interrupting her ability to see through. The pain made Gin clutch her head and crouch down.
"Serves you right for letting your imagination run wild! And cut down on using the perspective function, understand?"
"Ugh... I understand."
Though she didn't know how Lord Yotsuba had noticed, she nodded meekly and agreed.
But, since the Teigu was in her hands, wouldn't she ultimately decide how to use it in the future?
With that thought, Gin felt her head wasn't hurting as much anymore.
The second Teigu was The King Of Beasts Transformation: Lionelle, which Cornelia had originally been interested in.
However, after putting it on, she was actually rejected by the Teigu and couldn't use it at all.
On the other hand, Poney strangely resonated with the Teigu and even successfully activated the Lionelle transformation on the spot—that is, the half-beast transformation.
Poof!
A pair of fluffy ears popped up on her head, and her originally tied-up single ponytail instantly burst loose, turning into a wild, messy look. A tail grew out from behind her, and both her feet and hands transformed into lion claws.
"Lord Yotsuba, look at me, look at me! Isn't it amazing!"
Poney stood in front of Mahiro, dancing around and showing off, clearly seeking praise.
"Mhm, mhm, Poney is very amazing," Mahiro said, patting her little head with a smile.
Poney narrowed her eyes, her slender tail behind her standing up slightly and gently swaying left and right.
Her expression, combined with her form-fitting yoga shorts-like pants and the half-beast transformation, made her less "amazing" and more... cute.
This was hardly the Lionelle—it was practically a full-blown cat girl!