Inside the base, the battle raged on.
Because Murasame's curse had no effect on his opponent, Akame was forced to physically dismantle Toby piece by piece.
Clang!
His left arm was sliced off, and a blade immediately sprouted from the stump, but Akame parried it instantly. Toby threw his mouth open, and a gun barrel protruded from his throat.
Bang!
The bullet grazed Akame's hair. With a shift of her hilt, she swung and severed his other arm. Toby gritted his teeth as a firearm emerged from his right stump, firing two consecutive shots. Anticipating the move, Akame dropped low in a sweeping strike, hacking off both his legs.
Thuck!
Before Toby could react further, a spear crafted from Cross Tail's threads pierced through his chest from behind.
"You coward... how could you... use such a sneak attack..."
"The base is under fire, and my comrades are in danger. Don't expect me to just stand by and watch," Lubbock replied with a matter-of-fact tone. Toby accepted the logic, no longer stubborn, and turned toward the approaching Akame.
"Explain to me, Akame. Why did I lose?"
"Your attacks are powerful, but they lack subtlety. They leave too many openings. That is what I think."
"Is that so... openings in defense... it seems that lacking the sensation of pain is a fatal weakness after all..."
"I lost... fairly..."
Toby died. Lubbock and Akame didn't hesitate, heading down to regroup with the others.
Kakusen, the only one still standing, had been beaten into a mangled mess of distorted metal by Bulat's iron staff.
"How... could you..."
Kakusen couldn't understand. His body had been modified to the point where he could fight on par with Tatsumi in Incursio. Yet, the man before him treated him like a punching bag. Even Kakusen's hardened body couldn't withstand the accumulated damage from hundreds of staff strikes.
Both of Bulat's hands were numb, his skin torn, but his battle intent burned fiercer than ever. That was exactly why Bulat could overwhelm a theoretically stronger opponent from start to finish.
Bang!
The massive Kakusen's head was flattened, and he staggered unsteadily. A figure blurred from behind and kicked the head clean off—it was Leone in her beast form.
"Nice finish, Leone!"
Bulat leaned on his staff, wiping sweat from his forehead, looking exhausted. This Kakusen guy was mediocre, but his body was just too hard; beating him down took too much effort. Having a steel spear would have made it much simpler.
"Next time, I'm finding a spear."
Up on a rocky ledge, the girl with the large ears twitched them repeatedly, reporting the situation to Stylist behind her.
"Kakusen has been taken down. Toby is down. We've also lost a massive number of infantry."
"Oh dear, did I miscalculate? Well then..."
"Lord Stylist! Something is approaching from the sky!"
Stylist looked up, startled, sensing a powerful wind blowing toward them, sweeping across the area. From the woods, a creature shaped like a manta ray flew out.
"A Demonic Beast, an Air Manta!"
"And on it... is the former General Najenda!"
The owl-eyed subordinate spotted three figures. One was Najenda, and the two behind her were draped in cloaks that completely hid their forms. Najenda felt fortunate she had listened to the prophetic Teigu at the Revolutionary Army headquarters. Because of it, she was able to return with reinforcements just in time to unveil Night Raid's two newest members.
"You caught me off guard, but no matter... catching the whole lot at once is even more convenient. I'll turn all of you into test subjects."
Stylist smirked, subtly adjusting the Perfector on his hand. He still had a hidden card to play.
The Night Raid members gathered together, looking up at the giant Demonic Beast in the sky. Mine used her sharp eyes to confirm it wasn't an enemy but their Boss coming to the rescue. Everyone felt their spirits lift.
Suddenly, hordes of Stylist's infantry lunged out from everywhere, surrounding the Night Raid members. Everyone snapped into a defensive stance.
"Everyone! Something is wrong—my barrier didn't trigger!"
"My beast form can't catch any scent either!"
Bulat collapsed, to the shock of everyone.
"Bro!"
Tatsumi was horrified, but that was only the beginning. Mine, Akame, and Sheele were the next to crumple. Lubbock couldn't escape it either, and Leone lasted only a few seconds before following suit.
"What's happening to everyone!!"
Only Tatsumi remained unaffected. The situation was identical to when he and Bulat fought the Three Beasts on the Ryuusen cruise ship. But they had clearly confiscated Nyau's Teigu.
"This is... poison..."
It all came from Stylist's hand—a toxin with his signature touch.
"They've all collapsed except for Incursio, Lord Stylist."
"But... but weren't our own soldiers affected too?"
"Fool, Lord Stylist gave everyone the antidote beforehand."
"Is that so? Lord Stylist is truly the most thoughtful person!"
Tatsumi's entire body tensed. He was the only one left with full combat strength; he had to protect the others. But just as the grand battle was about to begin, something plummeted from the sky into the heart of the enemy, creating a massive crater that blew away dozens of infantry.
A man appeared, wearing white Eastern-style robes, with deep blue hair and a strange, layered weapon in his hand.
"Eradicate all enemies around him, Susanoo!"
"Understood."
Najenda's voice echoed down from the Air Manta. Susanoo stepped forward slowly as his weapon began to transform. From the gaps between the layers, small, alternating blades sprouted. They began to spin at high speed like a meat grinder.
Whirrr! Whirrr!
With just two swings, a swath of infantry was annihilated. Wherever the blades reached, limbs were scattered—it was an unstoppable force. Even Tatsumi was stunned, silently shouting in awe.
Stylist's subordinates were terrified, and even Stylist himself couldn't hide his surprise. He pulled out a remote and activated it. This was the sole purpose of those infantrymen—the final "utility" once they were defeated.
The bellies of the infantrymen bloated, resulting in a series of chain explosions. Stylist watched the rising smoke in the distance, spreading his arms in excitement.
"Human bombs! It will wipe out everything!"
The dust gradually settled. Susanoo looked absolutely trashed, his body torn apart and mangled beyond belief. Just as Tatsumi and the group were wondering what to do next, Susanoo moved. The parts that had been blown to bits began to shift, regrowing as if they were brand new. Even his Eastern robes mended themselves. A few seconds later, Susanoo was fully restored as if nothing had happened.
"A Teigu... it's a biological Teigu! That guy is a human-form biological Teigu!"
With all the surrounding enemies eliminated, Susanoo walked toward Night Raid, specifically aiming for Mine. He reached out his hand. She swallowed hard—what was this guy planning?
Smooth.
Mine's slightly disheveled hair was perfectly groomed with a single stroke. Despite that, she was still sweating from the tension.
"There. Fixed."
"What... what on earth..."
Najenda didn't descend immediately. She used binoculars to scan the area, intent on finding Stylist's position.
"The most advantageous position to disperse poison while observing Akame's group would be... right there. Found you."
"Susanoo, the enemy is on the southwest ledge. Don't let them escape!"
"Understood."
Susanoo returned to the Air Manta, and the Demonic Beast sped toward Stylist's group.
"Lord Stylist, run! They've spotted us—"
Boom!!
Susanoo landed from a height of dozens of meters, looking coldly at Stylist. Several subordinates rushed to stand in front of him.
"Lord Stylist, don't be afraid! We will protect you!"
Stylist curled his lip in silent contempt. These people were just scouts; their combat power didn't even match the infantry. And biological Teigu were notoriously difficult to kill—you either had to destroy the core or kill the user. Otherwise, don't even think about it.
"In that case, I have to use it."
He pulled out a syringe containing a red liquid and plunged it straight into his arm. His face twisted with madness.
"Secret Technique: Demonic Beast Transformation!"