Out on the deck, Esdeath's expression had grown extremely dark.
Her ice ability was leaking out unconsciously, and the cold around her had become uncomfortable even for Seryu.
After a moment, Esdeath released a long sigh.
"Nyau is useless. I never should have given him another chance."
Perhaps his injuries had affected him. Either way, being unable to properly use his own Teigu made him worthless.
"I've never understood art."
A loud crash suddenly came from the other end of the Dragon Ship.
"The rear deck?"
Esdeath immediately suspected that Night Raid had entered from the back of the ship.
Almost at once, another possibility occurred to her.
The rear deck had fewer guards.
That made it a likely diversion.
Still, she could not ignore it completely.
"Seryu, head toward the rear deck. Fire signal flares along the way and make sure at least one other member goes to support you."
"Yes!"
Seryu responded immediately.
Her legs changed shape as air intakes opened along the front and thruster-like mechanisms formed behind them.
Wave felt the vibration through the ship and tensed.
"What happened?"
Noah opened his eyes.
"Night Raid probably attacked. It seems the false information really did draw them here. Most likely, someone attending this banquet is also one of their targets."
Wave immediately stood up.
"Then why are we still sitting here listening to this horribly off-key music? We need to go and help!"
...
'I sound bad?'
Nyau was deeply offended by Wave's blunt criticism.
How could that possibly be true? If he did not possess exceptional musical talent, Scream would never have chosen him as its user.
He was a musical genius worthy of wielding the Teigu!
Wave was simply an ignorant country bumpkin who could not appreciate true art!
With a quiet snort, Nyau decided to switch to another song.
The moment he stopped playing, Wave rushed out of the booth.
Tatsumi saw Nyau preparing to raise the flute again. With the only other obstacle gone, this was his best chance to act.
He threw a full-strength punch toward Nyau's head.
Unfortunately, Tatsumi was still too inexperienced.
Nyau had noticed his hostility the moment the thought of attacking appeared on his face.
By the time Tatsumi finally committed to the strike, Nyau had already been given more than enough time to prepare.
It could hardly be called a surprise attack.
He still did not understand why Tatsumi was attacking him, though.
"Have you lost your mind? Even if you're Lady Esdeath's pet, you'll still be put down if you start biting people!"
"Who are you calling a pet?"
The booth was too cramped for most people to fight properly, but since both of them were relatively small, there was just enough room for them to struggle.
Tatsumi grabbed Nyau by the head and tried to slam him into the table.
Nyau was still one of the Three Beasts, however. Even as the least experienced of the three, he was stronger and more skilled than Tatsumi.
He caught Tatsumi's arm and twisted it with all his strength.
To keep his arm from breaking, Tatsumi had no choice but to follow the motion. He flipped through the air and crashed into the booth door with a loud bang.
The boy grimaced in pain.
Nyau crouched in front of him and asked, "Were you trying to take away my ability to fight?"
"Tch."
"Hmph. So pretending you couldn't appreciate my music was only a distraction. Not a bad trick."
"Huh? No, I genuinely couldn't stand it."
As Tatsumi spoke, he glanced toward Noah, who had remained seated and watched the entire exchange.
Nyau noticed the look and immediately became wary.
He raised the flute and coldly asked, "Are you working with him?"
Noah calmly finished the juice in his glass and pulled out the straw.
"Hey, don't try anything strange, or—"
Nyau's warning suddenly became silent halfway through.
He tried to speak again but failed.
No sound came from his throat.
"Mmm! Ngh!" Nyau stared at Noah in panic.
'What did he do to me?'
Noah listened to the meaningless noises for a few seconds before losing patience.
"I can't understand a word. Never mind, you can die now."
Mana reinforced the drinking straw until it became rigid, while wind magic sharpened its tip and increased its piercing power.
Noah flicked it forward, and the straw passed directly through Nyau's forehead.
A moment earlier, Noah had already fired a droplet of water from the straw through his windpipe.
That was why Nyau had suddenly become unable to speak.
Tatsumi was still lying upside down near the door when he witnessed the whole thing.
Nyau had defeated him in only a couple of moves, yet Noah had killed him instantly in a direct confrontation.
Nyau had not even been able to react before his life ended!
Everything Tatsumi knew about Noah had come from his companions. Aside from Akame, all of them described the man in much the same way.
'He's terrifying.'
Now Tatsumi was beginning to understand why.
Killing did not seem like anything special to Noah. He did not need to become serious or expend much effort.
It came to him as easily as drinking water.
How could anyone pierce a skull with a drinking straw?
No matter how sharp its tip became, a straw should still have been too fragile. It might cut skin, but it should have broken the moment it struck flesh and bone.
Yet there was not even a mark on it.
No one looking at that ordinary straw would ever imagine that it had just passed through a person's head and killed him.
Noah really was exactly the kind of power Night Raid desperately needed.
Perhaps he might even be capable of defeating Esdeath.
Tatsumi swallowed.
"Mr. Noah, please—"
"I refuse."
"What?"
Tatsumi froze before shouting, "I haven't even said anything yet!"
"I can tell from your face. You're very easy to read." Noah looked at him calmly. "Why do you think your surprise attack failed? An assassin should never allow his intentions to show on his face. Train yourself properly before asking others for help."
He tossed Nyau's body toward Tatsumi, forcing him to catch it.
"Dispose of him, then come back. Esdeath is on the forward deck, so we can stay here and avoid the fighting until everything is over."
Tatsumi stared at him.
"You're not going to help me escape?"
"Why would I?"
"You know I'm a member of Night Raid! I need to get back to everyone!"
"I see."
Noah nodded as though he understood, then immediately added, "But I still refuse. You're the person Esdeath cares about most right now. If I let you escape, she'll start bothering me again. I have no interest in dealing with that."
Tatsumi was speechless.
Did his life mean nothing compared to Noah avoiding a little trouble?
"I don't care what she wants! I'm getting out of here!"
"I wouldn't recommend it."
Noah glanced at him while keeping part of his attention on the battlefield through Black Nightmare.
Akame had already begun fighting Seryu.
There was a considerable gap between their strength.
Akame had struck her twice within a short time, but both cuts had landed on mechanical parts of Seryu's body.
Murasame's curse could not affect soulless machinery.
In that sense, Seryu's modified body was a good counter to Akame.
However, the difference in their fundamental ability remained too large, and Seryu would not last much longer.
"Are you going to stop me?" Tatsumi asked nervously.
If Noah answered yes, then his chances of escaping were not merely low.
They were effectively nonexistent.
Noah had no intention of going through that much trouble.
He simply believed Tatsumi would not escape.
Esdeath's attachment to him was far from normal. She would chase him immediately and drag him back.
She might even kill every member of Night Raid who tried to help him.