Chapter 6: Enter Northern Royalty

I can feel Ragiri and his men look at me warily.

I mean I did make myself known in a way that would seem villainous to some people, but I like to think it makes me look cool and mysterious.

I motion for my MagnaGuards to stand down, and even when they do, Ragiri and his men are still apprehensive.

A quick look at the corner of my eyes tells me what is at stake.

Current Quest!

[The Northern Alliance: Part Uno]

Ally yourself with Viceroy Ragiri

Reward: Beginning of an alliance with Ragiri, Rare Loot Crate , 20,000 Gold, Guidance Quest [The Northern Alliance: Part Dos]

Hidden Objective: ?

Failure: Viceroy Ragiri's support is not obtained, Alliance with Northern Tribes blocked, Northern Tribes are inevitably annihilated.

I sigh, getting a feeling if I don't show them that I am harmless myself that this whole venture will be but a waste of time for me.

"And what, I pray tell, is your proposition to me?" Ragiri carefully inquires, no doubt nervous of what it is I am here for.

I calmly give him a smile, taking my hat off to show him my face. "Honest's downfall." I state, taking in amusement as I not only see his eyes go wide in shock, but his guards as well.

Ragiri stares at me for a moment before shaking his head rapidly and setting his eyes to glare at me. "Do you know what you are saying!?"

I merely raise a brow at his reaction. "Of course I do. What do you take me for, a moron?" I ask him.

The viceroy is about to respond but stops the moment he opens his mouth and recollects himself as he takes in a deep breath before returning back to his glaring self. "Sir, I must ask you to think clearly about what you are saying. I don't know who you are, but I doubt you have the manpower to even make it to the gates of the Empire." Ragiri states seriously as his face now has a mix of worry along with his sternness.

"Over a month ago you would be right." I state as I put my hat back on my head and open my cloak in a single motion, showing that I have no hidden weapons on my person. "But now, let me just say that I know more than a man of status should know and that there are a lot of things happening right now and the Empire's demise is near."

Ragiri remains silent for a moment before giving a slight nod and turns away from me to get on his horse. "I'd rather discuss this somewhere more… private. If you don't mind I would rather continue this in my own castle." Ragiri affirms.

"Sure, I don't mind at all. Lead the way." I say, taking a look at the deer he killed. "Are you going to take the deer?" I question since he was ready to leave it there.

"Yes actually, I was thinking of having some nice stew for dinner. Care to join me after business is taken care of?" Ragiri asks as two of his guards go and pick up the deer and put it onto the back of his horse.

How can one say no to a free meal?

I smile. "Don't mind if I do."

--------------------------

At the Viceroy's Castle…

The dinner was very good. The venison had the right amount of melty fattiness to compliment the meat's tenderness, and together with its thick soup of carrots, potatoes, broccoli, herbs, and spices it made for a fantastic meal.

The man offered some wine, but I'm personally not one for alcohol so I declined and asked for some water instead.

After finishing dinner the man leads me to his office, with his bodyguards still in tow.

I don't mind personally, since in a world like this one has to be cautious to remain alive.

Especially for a Viceroy who is about to sell out The Empire to the now united Northern Tribes.

It just proves that this is a smart man who probably knows what he is doing.

Though the question is how long will he have by himself before he is inevitably caught in the act and killed for his troubles.

And that is where I come in.

"What do you know?" Ragiri curtly questions as he takes a seat behind his desk and motions me to sit on one of the opposing couch chairs.

Straight to the point I see.

This man is not going to mince words then.

Fine by me.

"I know a lot of things. Things that knowing even just a fraction of what I know would not only have me put to death, but my entire family and friends as well. If they were alive anyhow." I start off, twiddling my thumbs as I see the man's vein bulge on his forehead.

"Please… Elaborate." Ragiri insists.

"Did you know Honest has a son? Like the fat bastard actually reproduced. I feel sorry for the woman who was forced to take his seed. He's actually kept that under wraps for the most part which if I'm quite honest genuinely surprised me. I also know he has Teigu, both Honest and his son. As to what those Teigu are, I'm afraid I don't know." I begin, mixing in some lies with some truths. "I also know that he is the one to have killed the previous emperor as well as his wife, leaving their son to be under his direct supervision. There's also the fact due to Honest's corruption, The Empire is facing a recession so bad that it will never recover through any means. It is directly on the road to damnation." I state seriously as Ragiri looks a bit more relaxed in my presence but still seems a bit apprehensive.

"Okay so you may know some things, but that just makes you even more suspicious. How does one such as yourself even attain such information?" Ragiri presses on as leans forward onto his desk with his fingers interlocked with one another.

"If I told you how, you wouldn't believe me. Nevertheless, I do have a plan that will not only take out the corruption of the Empire, but also jumpstart its economy so fast that the masses will proclaim it to be the Golden Era of the Empire." I proclaim, smiling as I use {Telepathy} to get a quick glimpse into his mind.

"And how will you do that? As far as I know, nobody knows who you are and yet you appear out of nowhere stating you have a solution for this. So please bear with me when I wholeheartedly ask you this. How?" He questions, a bit of anger rolling out of his tongue since he believes me to be wasting his time.

Fine then, he wants proof? I will show him something he will never forget.

"What is power to you Ragiri?" I ask him curtly.

It seems my sudden question threw him off for a moment. "What?"

"What. Is. Power?" I reiterate.

"Er…" He pauses, and a quick usage of Telepathy shows me that he is quickly trying to formulate a proper answer to my question.

Before he can even answer my question, I continue. "Let me tell you what power is. It is the ability to do whatever you want, whenever you want, and no one can tell you otherwise. It is the ability to be able to control those below you to your whim with little to no consequences, for they fear your wrath. Honest right now has set himself up as the most important figure in The Empire's politics, with the child emperor being nothing but a trophy figurehead who seeks advice from the very disgusting pig who killed his very own parents because he doesn't know better. He has Esdeath in his back pocket because there's only one thing she cares about, and that is being the strongest one above everybody else. General Budo is the only one who is opposed to Honest that Honest genuinely can't do anything about since not only is the man extremely respected by his peers and subordinates, but it is rumored that his strength rivals Esdeaths. And even then, since Honest doesn't play by the rules, he can usually circumvent Budo and do whatever he wants regardless because Budo is someone who always restricts himself to the confines of whatever paltry laws The Empire has left."

Ragiri stays silent, mulling over the words I have said.

Seeing that he is remaining silent, I continue. "But even then, Honest is not as infallible as he puts himself to be. If either of them wanted to, Esdeath or Budo could be the next Prime Minister or dare I say it even the next Emperor, but they don't. 'Why is that?' one may ask. The answer is simple, they simply don't want to deal with such things. They are either happy with where they are at, like with Esdeath, or they simply have their hands tied with many other things, which no doubt is what keeps Budo from trying to do anything. Those two are publicly the main reason why nobody has tried to do anything against Honest since they fear the tales that have been made of those two. If one were to take those two out of the picture, then Honest would've been dead years ago."

As I pause, Ragiri speaks up. "So what is your point here?"

"Do you not realize it? Without Esdeath or Budo, Honest is nothing. He overly-relies on them to keep himself safe. We obviously know they won't protect Honest from every single little thing out there, but it is the implication of what might happen should you cross paths with him that makes people stray away from his path. He has set himself up as this untouchable man due to the influence he was able to garner before even ascending to the role of Prime Minister, but I know more than anyone that that abomination of a man is just that. A man. A man who has gone over his head with influential power and no physical power to back it up." I finish as I let my words process through the Viceroy's mind.

"You say that, but like you said, there's no way you can get to Honest without going through The Empire's strongest. Are you saying you can equally match them both in power!?" Ragiri exclaims, his mental state full of a myriad of emotions.

I smile gently at him, spreading my arms out to him as I feel my power flow through me, the area around me glowing a soft orange. "I do."

There is a pregnant pause from the both of us, one that seems to last longer than it actually is.

"Who are you?" Ragiri finally asks as he looks at me in wonder.

My smile widens. "Your New Emperor."

--------------------

Later With Viceroy Ragiri…

After Faust left I immediately went for my strongest scotch and downed the bottle.

I don't think that man knows what kind of effect he has on people.

Or maybe he does.

His confidence, his demeanor, hell even the way he runs his hand through his hair!

And those glowing eyes of his…

It was like the sunset.

I shake my head in an effort to dismiss the images from my head.

…After mulling over his words, a lot of what he said does have some merit to it.

'I can go and end The Empire's tyranny if I wanted to already. I have the resources needed to do so. The problem is that, like you have stated before, I am an unknown, and I know for a fact that no one will rally behind someone they don't know or in Honest's case, fear. That is why I came to you. In exchange for your support, I will lend you my aid whenever you need it.'

That is what he said. Apparently he wants to use me as a way to get into contact with the Northern Tribes, saying that when he becomes emperor, he wants to have a positive relationship with the Northern Tribes, before it was too late.

At first, I didn't know what Faust meant by that, but after having time to think it over I think I know what he was trying to infer.

The implications of that are terrifying.

I'm… I'm taking a big risk here.

He says that he can solve our problem, and a huge part of me is inclined to believe him despite my experience screaming at me otherwise.

But on the off chance that he fails…

I shake my head. No! I can't think like that. Not after everything that bastard Honest has done.

This man is trying to change the world just as I am, who am I to judge.

Especially when I turned to look the other way when crime became so rampant, even in my own home.

If he wants to be the next emperor? Then that is fine by me.

Even more so if he needs the people behind him

Anybody is better than that bastard Honest and the naive figurehead of a child.

…

Numa Seika is coming by next week. I should let Faust know tomorrow.

Alliances come and go throughout history, but if Faust is indeed as mighty as he states he is, then this…

This is the turning point of a new era.

---------------------

With Faust…

Well… that went much better than expected.

Mentally delving into his mind, I just gave a nudge here and there and eventually I have a new subordinate- erhem, ally by my side ready to support me in my path to become the Emperor.

Quest Completed!

[The Northern Alliance: Part Uno]

Ally yourself with Viceroy Ragiri

Reward: Beginning of an alliance with Ragiri, Rare Loot Crate , 20,000 Gold, Guidance Quest [The Northern Alliance: Part Dos]

Hidden Objective: Obtain an alliance before the day is over.

Reward: Mystery Loot Crate x2

Quest Updated!

[The Northern Alliance: Part Dos]

Secure an alliance with the Northern Tribes

Reward: Beginning of an alliance with The Northern Tribes, Increased Reputation with Ragiri, Increased Reputation with Numa Seika, Increased Affection with ?, Rare Loot Crate x6, 30,000 Gold, Guidance Quest [The Northern Alliance: Part Tres]

Hidden Objective 1: ?

Hidden Objective 2: ?

Hidden Objective 3: ?

Hidden Objective 4: ?

Hidden Objective 5: ?

Failure: Decreased Reputation with Ragiri, Ragiri dies, Alliance with Northern Tribes blocked, Northern Tribes are potentially annihilated.

Part two and three huh? I wonder how many parts there are to this quest?

Aside from that though there are five hidden objectives this time. I've been lucky the last couple of quests have had easy hidden objectives but with five this time? I hope I can get them all done right.

Walking away from Ragiri's office I see that Adán and the others are waiting for me diligently by the entrance of Ragiri's Castle. "Vamonos." I state as the MagnaGuards nod slightly and follow behind me as we leave the castle together.

Opening the doors of the entrance I am given such a beautiful view of the sun just rising above the mountains as the orange dawn radiates it light above the city.

Huh, well would you look at that? Morning already.

We keep walking, getting out of the inner city and then from the outer city and once we are back in the forest I stop, with my MagnaGuards stopping as well.

"Ragiri has become our ally. He will be paramount to me being able to attain an alliance with the Northern Tribes. Make sure nothing happens to him. Shadow him and make sure he doesn't get assassinated." I tell my MagnaGuards and in a near instant they disperse into shadows, doing as they are told.

I crack a smile, seeing my creations doing far better than their original counterparts.

God I love Orichalcum.

Making my way to the city of Rakurou, as I pass through the one of the many streets there I notice a cafe that's still open.

Hmm… I do have this absurd amount of gold coins on me. Might as well indulge myself for a bit.

As I walk into the cafe, I notice it being not too busy.

Good, I like it that way.

I walk up to the cashier so as to place my order. "Excuse me? I'm new in this city and was wondering what would you recommend here?" I ask the cashier, who is looking at me with wide eyes as she stares up at me.

"U-U-Um we h-have a w-wide variety of f-foods and drinks here. I-I would recommend the Cream and Berry Croissant and our I-Iced Mocha." She stammers out, shaking slightly as she continues to stare at me with such a scared disposition.

I take off my hat and give the lady a gentle smile in an attempt to help placate her mind and to show her that I'm not as frightening as I seem. "Thank you, I'll take what you have recommended to me. How much will that be?" I ask her kindly, and thankfully she has calmed reasonably enough.

"T-That will be 18 copper coins please." She answers me.

Wait what?

Copper coins?

There are other coins aside from gold coins?

Does that mean I overpaid for both Guerra fucking those mares and for the kidnapped girls' medical treatments!?

"Uh… I sorta don't have any copper coins on me at the moment." I slowly answer as I pull out one of my gold coins. "Since I'm new to this country, can you tell me how the currency works here?" I ask her as she blinks owlishly to my question.

"Uh, certainly sir! We have four types of coins as our currency: Copper Coins, Silver Coins, Gold Coins, and Platinum Coins. A silver coin is worth one hundred copper coins, a gold coin is worth ten silver coins, and a platinum coin is worth five gold coins." She answers diligently.

Well damn…

…

Fucking hell, this is what I get for not doing any more research back in my workshop.

"Okay so here's the thing, I only have gold coins with me, and I don't feel like going to a bank to get some change, so is it alright for me to just pay with my gold coin?" I inquire, as her eyes widen once more.

"Oh my goodness sir. I'm afraid I won't be able to accommodate that. We don't exactly carry enough change for that." She responds, sympathy evident in her tone of voice.

Ah well, I tried. "That's fine. Just keep the change." I state, not really bothered by the fact that she can't break my gold coin down.

"Wha-!? Are you sure sir?" She questions me, genuinely surprised that I am that willing to just throw money around.

I mean it's just money. Yeah, it's the thing that makes the world go round for the most part, but I'm not one to be controlled by his greed of money.

"I insist. Just think of the rest of it as your tip. And if your boss doesn't want to let you keep the rest as a tip, then here you go." I toss her another gold coin, rendering her speechless. "Just keep that one between the two of us. Don't let your boss know about it. Think of it as payment for such wonderful customer service." I inform her as I turn around and walk out to one of the outdoor tables that has an umbrella for shade and take a seat to relax.

Man… No matter how long I'm here in this world, It is still surreal to me that I am in what I thought to be a fictional universe.

And yet, here I am.

I let out a sigh, taking off my hat and setting it on the table before closing my eyes as I melt into the chair, letting my body get all the relaxation it can get.

Man, moments like these…

You gotta cherish them.

For one never knows if it'll be our last one.

"Here's your food and drink sir." a male voice suddenly calls out, making open my eyes and bringing my head back up from its relaxed position. "I hope you enjoy it sir. All of the ingredients have been locally sourced for guaranteed freshness." The waiter states as he pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Taking a look at his vest I see a nametag that states his name is Guren. Well isn't that interesting? There's only one person I know who is named Guren and it's that Crystal-Release chick from Naruto.

"Well, that does raise my expectations for such deliciously crafted food. Thank you very much, my good man." I toss him a gold coin as thanks, and without missing a beat he catches the coin swiftly and puts it into his breast pocket in a single move.

Now that caught my attention. I wasn't expecting him to catch it that fast and the way his hand maneuvered, while to the untrained eye seemed like just really fast reflexes, it was the details in how his hands moved and the notable cuts and scars on them.

His hands have gone through a lot.

Hmm… [Observe]!

Green, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked Five Assassin, Lv. 55

Reputation: 25

Thoughts about you: You are a very generous man and is really thankful for the gold coin you have given him.

HP: 5550/5550

SP: 5550/5550

STR: 575

END: 555

DEX: 575

INT: 650

WIS: 650

CHA: 90

LCK: 155

So this waiter is not what he seems then…

Delving into the memories I have received from Bill and Stylish, it only takes me a moment to find out that this young man in front of me is one of the Assassins put in the care of a man named Gozuki.

And delving further gives me more names to look out for.

Najasho.

Guy.

Cornelia.

Poney.

Tsukushi.

And Akame.

You know… this could be my chance.

A chance to get the main character of this world to join my side.

I know many people would dispute Tatsumi being the main protagonist, but if that was true, then it would've been called Tatsumi Ga Kill, not Akame Ga Kill.

"Is there anything else you need sir?" Green's voice brings me out of my thoughts.

I quickly plaster a small smile on my face and make it look as genuine as possible. "Not at all! Thank you very much for your services." I reply to him as he gives a nod and walks back into the cafe.

Something tells me that he's more than likely here to assassinate Ragiri.

Yeah, I can't let them do that.

Just like how I can't let this food go to waste.

As I go and enjoy my croissant and mocha, I spend a good amount of time subtly observing the surrounding area, taking note of anything that catches my eye.

There were a couple of kids playing around in the street with a ball, then there was a couple passing by me with the girl grabbing the man's ass, and after that two old men yelling at each other about which is the best pie to eat.

Heh, senile fools.

It's obvious which is the superior option.

Pumpkin Pie.

And just as I was done chuckling to myself, I caught some commotion going on towards the end of the street.

"Get that bastard! He overstayed his welcome!" I hear a man yell as my eyes turn to see a young muscular man with a face covered in scars wearing a pair of admittedly awesome looking pants running as fast as he can from a group of men in suits.

[Observe]!

Guy, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked Two Assassin, Lv. 59

Reputation: 0

Thoughts about you: Nothing since he doesn't know you exist and he's too busy running away from the brothel's debt collectors.

HP: 7980/7980

SP: 7980/7980

STR: 1222

END: 798

DEX: 616

INT: 62

WIS: 26

CHA: 111

LCK: 84

Alright, so that one is Guy then…

Imma assume that this man is the dumb brute of the group since it definitely looks like this guy is lacking from the brains department.

"Here's your parfait sir." I hear Green say as slightly turning my head I get a glance of a short man with a head full fo white hair sitting down with a book in his hands as he waves off Green. He looks to be wearing one of those officer coats that have those golden shoulder pads on them that are not actual protection pads but more for style and decoration.

Even without using observe I can tell that he is definitely strong.

But still, I want to see how strong. [Observe]!

Najasho, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked One Assassin/Captain, Lv. 63

Reputation: 5

Thoughts about you: You seem to be generous, considering you gave his comrade Green a Gold Coin.

HP: 7220/7220

SP: 7220/7220

STR: 909

END: 722

DEX: 1111

INT: 428

WIS: 399

CHA: 133

LCK: 185

…

…

Okay, these guys are way stronger than Remus and the others. I'm going to step up their training with me.

I got too lenient thinking that they got strong really fast, but with these guys being their competition I really need to up my game and push them harder.

I hope they understand when I do.

"Something got your attention?" Najasho suddenly asks me with a raised brow on his otherwise serious expression.

Whoops, looks like I stared too long. "Oh don't mind me, I was just admiring that coat of yours. It looks really nice and of exceptional quality." I reply, now fully turning my seat to face him as I put a piece of my croissant into my mouth as he puts down his book and takes a spoonful of his parfait and eats it. As I finish my bite I speak once again. "This place serves some good food wouldn't you say?"

After gulping down his parfait, Najasho looks at me and gives me a small nod. "It is." He concedes, putting his spoon into the parfait to grab another bite.

Time for me to work my charm.

"You know, this is the first time in a long time to take some time for me to relax. It's always been work work work since I've gotten here." I start off, getting the young assassin to give me a small hum, signifying that he is actually paying attention to me. "It's times like these that make me appreciate the beauty the world has. The everyday lives of the general populace, the laughter of children, families… enjoying the company of one another. Makes me wish I had mine back…" I not-so-mutter, getting a raised brow from Najasho again. "Oh! Don't mind the ramblings of this fool! I'm just making some small talk. If you don't want to talk to me that's fine, I'll just leave ya be." I continue as I grab my mocha and take a deep sip of it. "Oh damn, she wasn't kidding. This is actually good."

"So what do you work in?" Najasho suddenly asks me, and I don't even need to delve into his mind with [Telepathy] to know that he's fishing for information.

Fine then. It's game time.

"Oh, I just opened my own organization recently. Like about a little over a month ago or so. Being the leader is more than just being the figurehead in my opinion. I have to fill in more base-lined roles when needed, especially when I have just started." I begin to explain to him, taking another sip of my mocha as he himself does the same with his parfait.

"What does your organization do?" Najasho inquires, his attention fully aimed at me.

Very straightforward isn't he?

Not that I mind, just gives me a chance to talk more and hopefully sway him to my viewpoint, or at least get some positive rep points with him.

"Support those who need support. Help those who need help. This world, despite its natural beauty, is often tainted by the corruption of humanity. Humans in general tend to be greedy people. It's their base instincts that drive them to have more and more, hoarding all that catches their interest regardless of whether or not it will be of use to them. And of course, this has the effect of hurting others, mainly those who are not able to protect themselves from such things." I begin, and I can definitely see that Green is also subtly eavesdropping into our conversation.

That's fine by me. The more the merrier.

"We work to make the lives of those living in the Empire a better experience for them. Currently the Empire is facing one of the worst recessions in history and right now I am putting in the effort to change that." I explain.

"You don't look like the type who cares if I'm quite honest." Najasho says, making me chuckle at what he says.

He's not entirely wrong, but he also isn't right either.

"Looks can be quite deceiving my friend-I'm sorry I believe I never got your name. May I ask what your name is?" I ask, since if I call him by his name by accident, that will immediately alarm both him and Green.

And while I am positive that I will come out on top on the off-chance we fight, something tells me it would cause more problems than solve.

So might as well continue walking down this road carefully.

"Najasho." he curtly replies.

"Well Najasho, my name is Faust and as I have previously stated, looks can be deceiving. You could meet a person who can scare even the toughest of men with a glare, and find out that they are one of kindest people you have ever met, or you can meet someone who embodies the kind jolly man archetype, only to find out that they torture and eat children on a weekly basis." I respond to his small critique of me, even is his right to some degree.

"Though, you wouldn't be the first to critique me of the same thing. For some reason I give off that vibe. But alas, we are only human, perfection isn't a concept we as a species have, but it is one of the biggest things we strive for." I explain as I finish up my mocha, getting one of the napkins given to me to wipe off what is leftover on my face. "But it is as I said, you can't deny that you have seen a lot of people in less than pleasant conditions of living. I plan to change that. While I won't immediately give them the things they need as I feel they won't truly appreciate what they are given, I am more than happy to give those in need opportunities to become more than what life gave them." I finish as I note that Najasho is more than halfway through his parfait while I only have little left of my croissant.

Increased Reputation with Najasho 15/100(+10 for doing your part to make The Empire a better place.)

Increased Reputation with Green 35/100(+10 for doing your part on improving The Empire and those whose lives are heavily affected by all the bad in The Empire.)

Alright it looks like my plan is working so far, now it is time to see how they will react when I tell them this next.

"And while I am doing more than what most people will do to combat the poverty of this nation, it is still not enough. That is why I am meeting with the Viceroy of Rakurou. Maybe if I can get enough support from many of the local lords in the Empire, I can then file a plea to the Emperor to hopefully change things for the better of not only the people suffering, but for the Empire as a whole." I explain, adding as much sadness and hope into my voice to make it sound as authentic and convincing as possible.

"Know that the path you walk will be filled with many hardships, for one such as you have set yourself up for an incredibly difficult mission." Najasho begins, letting out a small sigh as he finally finishes his parfait before dabbing his mouth with a napkin for any remains of the fruity dessert. "That being said, with such a selfless goal in mind I have no doubt you will find many people backing you up along the way, so that will make it at least a bit easier and may remove some of that weight off your shoulders." Najasho compliments as he gives me what I assume to be his nod of approval.

And to my surprise, Green walks forward and gives his two cents. "While I may not be qualified to thoroughly assess your situation, I can say wholeheartedly that both your mind and heart are in the right place. I believe that you will go far if you stay true to your beliefs." Green says as he gives me a grin of his own.

"Thank you guys for the confidence boost. I really needed that, and I'm glad I have such wonderful people such as yourself to talk to about this." I respond with a more genuine smile this time.

Even if this was a charade I played, mixing in lies with very worded truths to make it sound completely different to what it actually is, the fact that their support for me was given, even if it is all based on an exaggeration, actually made me feel good.

"Well then, I must be off. I believe I more than took more time than necessary. I bid you all a good day" I kindly say as I leave the cafe and begin to walk towards one of the many clothing shops in the area.

I could always use new clothes.

----------------------------

With Najasho…

Even in a far off land such as this, there are people who try to make the place a better place for others.

Just like what my comrades and I are doing.

Though unlike Faust who despite having the body of a vanguard seems more like someone who is willing to do things the more pacifist route, my comrades and I work more towards the more unpleasant areas where there is a lot of death is prone to happen.

The thing that concerns him slightly is the fact that he is meeting with their current target.

Viceroy Ragiri.

After the disappearance of some important people in the Empire, including the Empire's Medical Corps Leader Dr. Stylish, The Group of Terror's Leader Bill, and Group A of the Group of Terror, which contained Akame's sister Kurome, their father has sped up their training and has stated that many of the missions he had planned for them are now going ahead schedule.

This has caused them to go do more missions in shorter time frames to make up for the disappearance of Bill and his strongest squad Group A.

He still remembers when their father broke the news to them, especially when it has been more than long enough for them to be considered dead.

Akame was inconsolable for a week when she received the news.

After she finished grieving, there was a noticeable change in her demeanor.

She rarely smiled now, only on rare occasions and even then they were small, borderline minuscule smiles that were only apparent to him because of how long he has known her.

She has also pushed herself more than ever, reaching new heights in terms of speed and strength. It has gotten to the point that she has surpassed Tsukushi in Kill Rank.

And while I am indeed glad that Akame is getting stronger, since that means she has a higher likelihood of surviving her missions, there is a lingering feeling in the back of my head that is whispering to me that she is slightly unstable now.

I certainly hope that isn't the case.

While I may be the serious leader to my group, I genuinely do care about their wellbeing.

Guy wouldn't be the same without that brashness and his tendency to overstay his welcome in brothels.

Cornelia wouldn't be the same if she weren't constantly doting on everyone, including him.

Poney, as much as he hates to say it, just wouldn't be her if she were no longer that single-minded simpleton that always pesters him to do things with her.

He doesn't even want to entertain the thought of Green going the way of Poney. The sheer thought of their being two idiots of Poney's caliber sends a shudder down my spine.

And Tsukushi would honestly unnerve me if she lost her bubbly disposition.

Regardless, even with this setback, we are going to try our hardest to make the Empire into a better place for its citizens.

We were raised for that reason alone.

And when we have a target, we will not fail.

And as much as it would displeasure me, if Faust were to get in the way…

Then he'll be terminated like the rest.

------------------------

A Week Later…

"You have got to admit, he's the best of the best." I praise my horse as Ragiri and I get off of Guerra, having gone around the forest to give Ragiri a realistic feel of how Guerra maneuvers around such luscious terrain before heading back to one of the stables.

"That is underselling him quite severely my dear friend." Ragiri breathes out as he is still in shock by the performance this crimson red horse of Faust's gave. "You must tell me my friend, where did you ever receive such a fine stallion? I have never seen one with such a radiant red coat and to have the capacity to be able to traverse through such terrain without missing a beat!" Ragiri compliments further as he brushes Guerra's mane as Guerra raises his head up high.

Increased Affection with Guerra 90/100 (+2 For showing the man that he is in a league of his own.)

"It's more like he came to me if I'm quite honest. I wouldn't be alive if it were not for him. To be completely honest before meeting him I did not like horses at all." I reply, making Ragiri look at me with surprise and Guerra snorts at my honest comment.

"Really? That is quite a surprise." Ragiri responds as he looks at his own horses before letting out a sigh of disappointment.

I let out a chuckle at the fact that Ragiri will likely never attain a horse that is a fraction as awesome as Guerra before something catches my attention.

Or rather someone.

Akame.

[Observe]!

Akame, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked Six Assassin, Lv. 61

Reputation: 5

Thoughts about you: Indifferent.

HP: 6830/6830

SP: 6830/6830

STR: 641

END: 683

DEX: 975

INT: 386

WIS: 274

CHA: 164

LCK: 700

Well holy shit she has the highest LCK stat I have seen in this world to date!

But then again she is the main character of the series.

And damn she is hot!

Tatsumi you done fucked up going for the pink flat board tsundere when you could've gotten the beautiful red eyed assassin!

Eh, whatever. That just means she is free game!

"Ah, she caught your attention? She's one of the new maids serving under me. She was originally put to work in the kitchen, but she ended up eating all the meat one day and I ended up having vegetable soup. So now she works here." Ragiri states, still a bit miffed from what i can see at the fact that Akame ate all of the meat.

Granted I would too since I love meat as well.

At Ragiri's statement, I notice Akame angrily pouting at Ragiri's remark as she continues to brush one of Ragiri's horses that is in his stables while he silently decides to take his leave, leaving me in the stables alone here with Guerra and Akame.

Walking up towards her I can see her looking at me with an indifferent stare. "What do you want?" she asks as she stops brushing the horse.

Putting my hand in my pocket, I open my inventory and pull out a bacon cheeseburger I made wrapped in aluminum foil and give it to her. "You must be hungry. Take a rest and eat." I offer the burger to her, who takes it hesitantly before realising what it is when she opens it.

Increased Affection with Akame 35/100 (+30 For giving her some delicious food.)

She immediately bites down onto the savory treat and I can literally see her eyes sparkle in awe as she engorges into the food and finishes it within a literal second.

Increased Affection with Akame 40/100 (+5 because it's more delicious than she thought it was going to be.)

"Uhh… I have some more if you want?" I tell her as I pull out an extra three for her to eat.

Increased Affection with Akame 55/100 (+15 because at this point she thinks you have been sent by God himself to sate her appetite.)

Holy shit Akame is easy mode!

Akame snatches the meaty goodness from my hands as her eyes sparkle even brighter much to genuine surprise and disbelief.

"What's your name?" I ask her as she finishes eating her third burger.

"Akame. Thank you very much for the food." Akame replies as she gives me a slight bow of appreciation.

"Akame… that's quite the nice name you have there. And looking at your eyes I can see where you got such a name." I say, taking a note at the rich color of red her irises are.

I'm going to be quite honest, I always have thought that red eyes are too overrated due to how much fiction I have read with main characters or even supporting characters having red eyes and due to that I have never really liked the color.

Just screams edgelord to me.

To see them in real life though…

I take back.

The fact that I can immediately tell that it is natural and not contacts seals the deal for me as well.

I guess red eyes aren't as bad as I thought.

And continuing with my thoughts, I have an idea.

Since canon has already changed so much, why not change it even more?

Getting Akame to my side early on would be such a boon in more ways than one, especially if she was raised by The Empire's best assassin.

And I know just the way to do it.

"Hey, please don't be weirded out by what I am going to say, but you look very similar to someone." I begin, getting Akame's attention as her face perks up at my statement. "Do you have a sister?"

I was met by silence as Akame's eyes widened at what I said.

"Yeah, you look a lot like Kurome!" I exclaim, making her freeze as her eyes widen in shock.

"You… you know my sister!?" Akame suddenly grabs me by my shirt and gets really close to my face, her face morphing into a look of desperation.

Uh… did something happen that I didn't know about? Or does she really miss her sister that much.

Granted I would miss one of my siblings if I didn't see them in-

Stop.

Don't go down that road me.

You know where it will lead you.

Forcing myself back from such thoughts, I harden my heart and respond to her. "Yes. She is actually working for me. I found her and her group when they were in serious trouble and rescued them from their predicament."

Akame pauses looking at me with such relief that tears begin welling up in her eyes. "She's… alive?" Akame's voice softly cracks out as the tears begin to fall.

Please stop.

Don't do this to me.

"Yes… she's alive and well." I force the words out of my throat as I force myself to maintain a schooled face, not trying to show any negative emotions. I pull out my phone and open it to show my contacts. "Would you like to talk to her?" I ask her, making her look at me with those glistened eyes of hers in surprise as she then looks at the phone in my hand.

"How? And what is that?" she asks me as she looks at the device in my hands with curiosity.

"This here is called a phone. It can be used to talk to people that are far away from your location." I reply, tapping the call button on my phone's screen to call Kurome.

Within seconds she responds to my call. "Faust sir! I wasn't expecting your call. What can I do for you?" she inquires as her face makes an appearance on my screen as I hear Akame gasp.

And judging by the cookie crumbs around her mouth, I can certainly tell that waiting for a phone call from me is one thing that wasn't on her mind moment's ago.

"It's not what you can do for me that I called you for Kurome, but rather what I can do for you." I state to her, watching her tilt her head in confusion.

"What do you mean?" she asks me as puts one of her cookies into her mouth.

"See for yourself." I say before turning the phone to Akame who is looking at the screen with wide eyes and her mouth slightly agape.

"Kurome!?" is all Akame gets to say as Kurome spits out the cookie in her mouth from shock as well as dropping the phone. There were some static and some hazy noises coming from the speakers before it suddenly cut off.

Akame is just standing there, frozen as she stares at the message stating that the call ended as the tears begin to well up in her eyes again.

Nopenopenopenopenope! Not letting that happen again. "Er, just gimme a quick sec with this." I grab the phone back and fumble back into my contacts and call Womyn instead.

It only rang once before she picked up.

"I am assuming this about the reason as to why Kurome is freaking out and why she dropped her phone in the puddle?" Womyn inquires as I can feel her raising her brow at me.

I pinch the bridge of my nose as I let out a deep sigh.

I really should've waterproofed those phones.

"Yeah… I have her sister here with me, would you mind putting her on screen, just this time don't have her grab the phone." I ask Womyn who nods with a smile on her face.

"Kurome! He called back and wants you here!" I hear Womyn call out as Kurome runs towards her.

I hand the phone to Akame who seems to be anxious and excited to talk to her sister again. "Talk with your sister, it sounds like you haven't seen each other in years. I'm going to explore the castle for a bit, so when you're done just put the phone in Guerra's pouch." I tell Akame as her disposition brightens considerably as I begin to take my leave.

Increased Affection with Akame 75/100 (+20 because you have kept her sister safe.)

Increased Obedience with Akame 55/100 (+55 because you have kept her sister safe.)

Like I said…

Easy mode.

Leaving Akame in the stables, I go explore the castle grounds at my leisure, and I am stopped many times by the higher ups stationed here.

Through my conversations with them, I've come to understand that all of them are backing Ragiri in his decision to betray the empire, and it seems that I have garnered some respect with them since I have been seen by his side as an equal of sorts.

If that's what they want to believe, that's fine with me.

As long as I have their support by the time I overthrow the government and make myself Emperor I don't care what they think of me so long as it isn't anything negative.

That last thought makes me chuckle to myself.

Oh… how far have I fallen.

Doing the same things that caused my country to fall in the first place.

Eh, whatever. They had it coming anyways with all of that corruption going on in the background that the masses were too blinded to see.

At least I won't have to deal with those anarchist savages that call themselves revolutionaries.

If I do find some people like that in this world though…

I will make them beg for death by the time I feel even remotely satisfied.

Anywho, Ragiri wanted to go out hunting again. Apparently the leader of the Northern Tribe Coalition will be coming here to attain the information Ragiri has on the Empire.

As such he wants to go get more Ragurou-Bambi to feel his special guests and after my display with Guerra wants(begs) me to bring him along to expedite the hunt.

And while passing through I got to see two other assassins that have infiltrated the palace.

Cornelia and Tsukushi.

And a quick use of [Observe] tells me more than enough about them.

Cornelia, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked Three Assassin, Lv. 57

Reputation: 15

Thoughts about you: You seem like a swell person to her.

HP: 8170/8170

SP: 8170/8170

STR: 1033

END: 817

DEX: 725

INT: 294

WIS: 360

CHA: 188

LCK: 54

Tsukushi, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked Seven Assassin, Lv. 52

Reputation: (0)15

Thoughts about you: you seem very kind.

HP: 6830/6830

SP: 6830/6830

STR: 381

END: 410

DEX: 566

INT: 231

WIS: 25

CHA: 140

LCK: 56

Cornelia is admittedly very beautiful if I'm being quite honest, what with her luscious blond hair and such deep blue eyes that compliment that stunning figure of hers.

Then again I have a thing for blond girls, so that could be my bias talking.

And Tsukushi…

Yeah she's cute I can admit that, but holy shit her tits are huge! Like I am one hundred percent sure they are bigger than Gin's.

But there's something weird about that zero popping up besides the rep points.

I don't know why but it looks ominous to me.

Nevermind that though, I get the feeling that they are going to try to assassinate the Viceroy tonight, so I need to make sure I am prepared for it.

Not only is his life on the line, but my rewards as well.

I can't let my rewards escape me!

----------------------------------------

Later At Night…

As Ragiri and I go through the depths of the forest, using my {One With The World} Perk I can sense that Guy is currently scaring the Ragurou-Bambi farther and farther into the forest.

As such when we don't encounter them, Ragiri is slowly starting to get frustrated and angry at the fact that they are not where they were supposed to be.

"Where are they!? Wasn't there supposed to be a herd of Ragurou-Bambi!?" Ragiri yells angrily at his men as he looks around to see if he can catch a glimpse of his prey.

Should I tell him that we are surrounded by assassins? Oh most definitely!

Am I actually gonna do it? Hell no!

Even if he is already supporting me in overthrowing Honest and those under him, I'd rather have him be further thankful of me saving his ass from an assassination that I should honestly not know about, but I do.

I mean, in my opinion, warning him will drive suspicion towards me since they would wonder how I know and even if I could explain it away, I'd rather not deal with the headache in the first place.

Still though, with me by his side and my MagnaGuards stealthily hidden away but also just near enough to intervene, I don't have much to worry about this assassination.

"My apologies sir! We're looking for them as hard as we can!" one of Ragiri's aides responds as I can see the sweat building up on his temple from the nervousness he feels from Ragiri's frustrations.

Suddenly, through the shouting of everybody around me, the mechanical sound of a trigger getting pulled enters my ears and I have to force myself not to immediately react as the muffled sound of a gunshot echo clearly in my ears.

At that, I immediately track the bullet as I see it miss completely as it passes overhead before it somehow curves around a tree perfectly before it begins to head straight to the back of Ragiri's head.

And yet even as it did, I did nothing.

Because why should I do something about it when I already know the outcome?

Faster than what most people can track, Adán intercepts the bullet, blocking with the Proto-Adamantium Shield I have lent him for the time being, a sharp ringing noise echoing in the air.

"Good to have you back Adán." I state as I look at Adán who gives me a nod as all of the other MagnaGuards appear, surrounding Ragiri and I with the intent to protect.

"Permission to pursue?" Adán inquires as he activates his Electrostaff, looking at the direction where the assassins are fleeing.

"Nah, I got this. If any other assassins come by, you are free to do as you see fit, but otherwise keep protecting Ragiri." I remark as I blitz towards Akame's group of assassins, fully intent on trying to recruit them.

--------------------

With Adán…

As my master left the Viceroy under our protection, I began surveying the surrounding area for any other unwanted enemies nearing the vicinity of our objective.

"Hey! What's going on!?" one of the Viceroy's aides exclaims in worry as he looks around frantically as if his primitive eyes can see as good as my master or his creations.

"Assassination attempt." Cuatro responds as he holds his Electrostaff tightly in his hands.

"W-Well why aren't you going after them!?" Screeches another one of the Viceroy's aides.

"That is not the objective our master has given us." Seis remarks, before pausing suddenly before holding his Electrostaff towards the direction of an unwanted aggressor.

Through my enhanced optical sensors I switch to thermal vision and immediately take note that this one of the high priority targets that should be taken out from the list my master integrated into our neurological database.

Gozuki, The Empire's Top Assassin.

Age: 44

Height: 6'2

Weight: To Be Verified.

Personality: Prideful and Ambitious.

Weapon: The One-Cut Killer: Murasame.

Capabilities: Known in the Empire's Inner Circle as it's best assassin, originally part of the Four Rakshasa Demons, he is a master of the Imperial Fist, capable of manipulating his body in ways unknown as of yet. He is also the Leader of the Assassination Squad known as the Elite Seven, with his presence confirming that the assassination attempt was indeed initiated by his group.

Objective: High chance Adversary is going to attempt to kill VIP Viceroy Ragiri.

Directive: Eliminate Target.

"Oh? You men must be some very experienced warriors to see me even when trying to smother my presence." The target comments as he pulls out his blade.

"Guard the VIP, I'll eliminate the target." I inform as I begin heading towards the assassin, fully intent on following my master's orders to eliminate all potential threats.

"Oh? Just you then? Works for me." The target chuckles out as his shoe bursts open, his toenails extending in a way one would think impossible.

A regular human would've been taken by surprise, and I'm sure even my master would've been caught off guard by such an attack.

But not I.

I am not human, so I don't make that mistake.

I crouch down and intercept the attack with my shield, nullifying the kinetic energy in the attack, rendering useless. As the target begins to retract them, I immediately slam into the nails with my weapon, electrocuting the target as the electricity causes his body to writhe and spasm for a good second.

In that second I rush the man, fully intent on keeping him down for good, but his hair immediately moves on its own, increasing in length tremendously as I notice it begin to harden like needles in an attempt to dispatch me.

As I am forced to hide behind my shield once more, this time the target closes the gap and aims his blade right onto one of my hydraulic servos interconnected with the joints. By slightly leaning to the left, I am able to move the armor plating on my neck into the blade's trajectory, so when the blade cuts through the cloth, it instead hits somewhere more durable.

As the blade hits, the notable sound of metal hitting metal rings out from the epicenter of the attack, with the target's eyes narrowing as he clicks his tongue in irritation and tries to attack again.

This attempt is obviously met with failure as I strike him hard in the gut with my Electrostaff, launching him through a tree and into a more open area where there's little foliage to get in the way.

In the small amount of time spent fighting the target, I have collected enough data to know that fighting him in close range will make his termination substantially more difficult.

So it seems my only option is to terminate him from afar.

Stabbing my staff into the ground, I see the target's eyes widen as he takes a good look at my right arm as I remove my sleeve, finally noticing that I am not organic like him.

"You… are not human are you?" The target inquires as he takes a step back as my internal augmented weapons systems are activated and online.

"You are correct." I merely reply as I aim my arm, all six of my EVE-Unit plasma cannons aiming at him and calculating any potential movements he could make to ensure a sure hit.

For some arbitrary reason that I could not calculate, instead of trying to evade the trajectory of my cannons, he instead expands his hair before wrapping it around him in a dome-like fashion in what I believe to be a meagre attempt of creating a defense that could protect him from my cannons before rushing towards me.

Disappointing.

So I fire.

And I keep firing. I don't stop until I am sure the man is down.

So to my surprise, even as my sensors see that his vitals are dropping near the normal fatal levels, the man still stands.

Filled with many punctures and holes as well as having much shorter hair, but standing nonetheless.

As he staggers, he glares at me with what I calculate to be smoldering intensity.

"What… What are you…!?" The almost neutralized target demands as he grips his blade tightly, grunting as my sensors pick up that his wounds are being forced to close, no doubt by the usage of his martial arts techniques.

"My master's bodyguard." I respond, walking towards him with the intent to finally neutralize my target as I see him begin to fall forward.

To my calculated disbelief, he rolls forward and uses the momentum gained to throw his blade at me in what I believe to be a last ditch effort to take me down.

Slightly sidestepping to my left makes the cursed sword pass by me, flying above the trees and into the darkness of the woods as the target begins chuckling to himself.

"You missed." I state to him, wondering what he was even planning to accomplish with such a telegraphed move.

"No I didn't. I may die here, but as long as my children succeed, then that's all that matters." he states softly as he falls forward, laying still as he coughs up blood, he eyes gaining a hazed, glassy look to him as he begins to mutter. "And… as I… displayed such a pathetic performance… it's only fair… you get to see it through…"

In a move that I never calculated would happen, the man's arms extend and wrap themselves around my legs before he throws me in the air. He himself jumps at me as his tongue extends out in an attempt to stab me while in the air.

He really is persistent. I'll give him that.

Blocking his tongue from hitting me with my shield, I aim my weapon directly at him just as I notice that all of his limbs have elongated and are coming at me from all directions.

He's trying to get me to aim my weapon at his limbs.

I see what he's trying to do, sacrifice a limb while ensuring the other ones hit their intended target.

An admirable decision, if one were made of flesh.

But I am much more durable.

I refocus my attention back on the target, my plasma cannons firing upon their intended target multiple times even as all four of his limbs strike me.

"Target Neutralized." I inform my fellow MagnaGuards as my optic sensors no longer pick any form of life in the now falling corpse.

As I calculate and readjust my body for the fall, I notice Cinco and Siete coming towards me, one of them holding a repair kit.

"That won't be necessary. He was severely weakened after getting shot multiple times by my weapon. He's much more durable than initially calculated, but that didn't change the outcome." I inform them as Siete pulls out a Diagnostic Scanner and scans my body for any potential damages.

"Everything looks to be superficial Adán." Siete remarks as he puts the scanner back into the repair kit as Cinco assesses the assassin's corpse.

"Where's the sword? Our database states that it's supposed to be an incredibly dangerous weapon." Cinco inquires as he holds and studies the sheath of Murasame before strapping it to his side.

"The target threw it at me, but I dodged it as it flew by me. By my assumption, it's somewhere in the forest." I reply, reviewing the past footage of the recent battle to get an accurate location as to where the blade went. "In that direction more specifically. Oddly enough, even though he missed, he stated he didn't. Was there anything noteworthy behind me in that direction?" I further inquire.

Cinco is the first to respond. "None that I can call back from my memory chips, though that way is the direction Faust took to go after the other assassins." Remarks.

It didn't take us a second to realize what that meant.

"You two, with me, now!" I order as I begin running towards the direction Faust headed into, leaving the body as our priority has shifted.

Hopefully, I did enough damage to the target for it to affect the strength of his throw and we can find the blade before finding our master, but the fact that he seemed so sure is off-putting.

Directive Completed: Eliminated Target named Gozuki.

New Directive: Find and aid Master Faust.

---------------------------------

With Faust before Adán and Gozuki's fight…

I find it funny how they haven't sensed me yet.

I would've thought that with all of their years of experienced being taught by the Empire's Top Assassin that they would have sensed me minutes ago.

And yet they haven't.

I mean sure I do have the skills of a Ninja Grandmaster, but even I thought at least one of them would've caught on.

Maybe my stats are too high?

Eh, whatever, this has gone long enough, and I'm not just saying that because I think it sounds cool.

We are literally running out of forest and I can see the grassy plains beyond the treeline.

Unleashing my full speed, I break through the sound barrier multiple times as I pass by all of the Elite Seven, catching them all off guard as they all pull out their Shingus and aim them at me.

"Hey hey! Don't be so hasty! I'm hurt that you would aim a weapon on a harmless civilian." I cheekily remark, smiling at them as many of them realise who I am.

"Faust…" Akame breathes out, her guarded posture relaxing a bit when she notices it's the very person who saved her sister.

I mean, I didn't really save her, more like reinstate her somewhere where she can be more useful as well as not get killed.

But she doesn't need to know that.

"Hello Akame, thank you for putting my phone back with Guerra, Earnest people like you have my respect." I tell her kindly, causing her to blush and look away real quick.

"Yes, it is I, it's a pleasure seeing you all alive and well." I begin, my hands in my pockets as I just lightly stroll around their perimeter, making some of them antsy as to what I am about to do.

"Why'd you come after us?" the girl with the brown pony tail yells at me, and through the process of elimination, I know that this one is Poney.

Nevertheless, I do want to check out her stats and see how she compares to the others. [Observe!]

Poney, Elite Seven's Kill Ranked Four Assassin, Lv. 54

Reputation: -15

Thoughts about you: You are standing in their way, therefore you are a target.

HP: 5140/5140

SP: 5140/5140

STR: 645

END: 514

DEX: 888

INT: 63

WIS: 15

CHA: 99

LCK: 401

Alright, looks like in terms of overall performance, it'd be in order from strongest to weakest: Najasho, Akame, Guy, Cornelia, Green, Poney, the Tsukushi.

Heh, looks like I got my work cut out for me.

"Hello~!? I said why did you come after us!?" Poney exclaims once again.

"A bit of a redundant question don't you think?" I ask her as I take off my hat to scratch my head before putting it back on. "I mean really, of all the questions you could've asked me you had to ask the most cliche one?" The sheer stupidity of this girl is starting to make me giggle.

Fuck, get it together me.

Getting out of my funk, I press on. "I mean, I'm sure Guren and Najasho know the reason why, but I'll assume the rest of you don't so I'll tell you. You almost killed my backer. You think you can just attempt to do so with little to no consequences whatsoever?" I question them as I notice Green stepping up in front of Poney as he holds the whip in his hands tightly.

"The name is Green actually, and you wouldn't be supporting the Viceroy if you knew what he was doing behind everybody's back." Green remarks as his glasses glint in the moonlight.

"And that would be?" I ask even though I myself am taking major part of what Green is insinuating.

"He's selling information to the Tribes of the North, potentially causing many lives under the Empire's protection to be lost due to the madness of that man!" Green exclaims passionately.

"You know, if this were any other country, I'd believe you on the account that these treasonous actions of his would indeed cause many innocent lives to fall, but there is one thing you all aren't taking into consideration." I begin, crossing my arms as I look at them seriously.

"And what, pray tell, would that one thing be?" Najasho questions as his eyes glare at me.

"The Prime Minister." I state as I see them all look at me with confusion. "Oh don't give me that look, you all know I am talking about that fat sack of shit. He's the main reason as to why you guys have so many assassination missions!" I begin as I walk closer to them, with Tsukushi and Green taking a step backwards as I step forward. "Have any of you ever thought to yourself why they bought you all as children only to be sent on assassination missions, some of which I'm sure border on the suicidal side of danger. Or do you all just mindlessly do as you are told and obey without question?" I question them, and some of them are bristled by my statement as I essentially insinuated that they are just mindless tools for the Empire.

I let out a sigh as I calmed down a bit. "Alright, let me just ask you this, when you came here at Rakurou, did it look strange to you?" I ask them as many of them side glance one another before Cornelia speaks up. "No. It looked like any other city."

"And that is the problem, Beautiful. Nothing is out of place here, and yet if you were to go to any other place in the Empire it would make this place look like it's runned by saints." I remark, catching her off guard by calling her beautiful while I notice the young man named Guy getting angry at me for whatever reason.

Increased Affection with Cornelia 20/100 (+5 because you earnestly called her beautiful.)

Decreased Reputation with Guy -20/100 (-20 for trying to get Cornelia. The man is the jealous type, more so because Cornelia rebuffs his advances.)

Ignoring the glaring of Guy, I press on. "If you think every city is like Rakurou, then you all are sorely mistaken. The only reason it's like this is due to the Viceroy taking the law into his own hands and trying to make the best out of a shitty situation. You act as if he wants to sell out the Empire because he wants to. Well guess what? At this point in time, it's a necessity, because with the way The Empire is heading, It won't last another few years and Ragiri is trying his best to make sure his city won't fall when the capital inevitably does."

I can see the doubt begin to show ever so slightly in the eyes of Akame and Green. It's very well hidden, but it's there.

"You say that, but you have yet to show any proof of that happening. So tell us, big guy, where's your proof?" Guy says as he begins cracking his knuckles.

"Guy enough, the man is just a civilian-" Akame tries to talk sense to Guy before being interrupted by him.

"Oh cut the shit Akame! There's no way a civilian can not only catch up to us, but be fast enough to be in front of us as well. This man is clearly lying about who he is. Especially when you take into consideration that he apparently has your sister under his employ, when she should be dead!" Guy yells angrily at Akame as his Shingu activates, wrapping him in a suit of armor, causing a chain reaction as Tsukushi and Poney ready themselves with their own Shingus as well.

I can see that his remark about Kurome has rubbed her the wrong way, and honestly me too. "What the hell do you mean she should be dead?" I growl out.

Before Guy can respond, Najasho cuts him off. "It means that enough is enough. You have obviously said some treasonous things, many of which the punishable by death. I had hoped you were not in league with the viceroy, since it seemed that you were doing good by the people. I was wrong. Do not make this harder than it needs to be Faust."

"Now you are just proving my point." I let out a sigh, I guess they can't be reasoned with at the moment. They are still too brainwashed to see it. I guess I'll have to go for my other option.

Knocking them out.

Though I will give them a little scare beforehand.

Pulling off my cloak, I grip Kousetsu's sheath and slowly start walking towards them.

"If you think you have what it takes, do it." I call them out as I walk towards them, waiting for them to make the first move.

-------------------

With Green…

"If you think you have what it takes, do it." Faust remarks as his towering form begins to walk towards us, his hand grabbing onto the katana strapped to his side as his eyes begin glowing a terrifying shade of orange.

This whole thing is just screaming red flags to me.

A huge part of me wants to take Akame and I far away from him since even in the presence of seven assassins, he is completely unphased.

He is either overconfident…

Or we're in serious danger.

"You think you're hot shit, don't you!? Well then, take this!" Guy roars as he rushes towards Faust, fully intent on caving his face right in with the power of his Shingu Armor, the Rare Suit.

As he's rushing him, I see Tsukushi repositioning herself to get a better vantage point and begins shooting Prometheus at Faust.

I can see what they're trying to do, if Faust pays attention to the bullet, then that will give Guy the opening he needs, but if he pays attention to Guy instead, Tsukushi can manipulate the bullet to hit Faust in one of his many vital areas.

As this happens, he seems to be focusing on Guy, completely ignoring the bullet coming from Tsukushi as Guy gets close enough to-what!?

Did…

Did he just catch the bullet with his teeth!?

And he caught Guy's punch!

"What the hell!?" Guy exclaims in shock as I see him try to move his hand from Faust's grip but to no avail.

Faust then spits out the bullet before focusing his attention on Guy. "Poor choice of words." He states before a loud and sudden series of crunches echoes throughout the forest.

"Aaaaaaaugh!" Guy screams as he is brought to his knees and we get to see his hand being mangled in nine different directions.

This is not looking good.

Guy is physically the strongest out of all of us, so if even he can't beat Faust in a bout of strength, then that means we are going to have to take a different approach.

We all then rush at him as we try to get Guy away from him, Akame and Najasho both taking the lead just as Faust lifts Guy up and kicks him back to us.

Since Najasho and Akame were the ones closest, they grab Guy but the sheer force of the kick sending Guy flying is also now sending them back.

Poney and Cornelia then enter his range and begin throwing attack after attack, only this time Faust is dodging them, and from what I can tell, he's doing it with an ease he's never seen before.

I look at Tsukushi and she looks at me, as we silently give each other a nod and we then begin to support Cornelia and Poney.

Tsukushi unloads all of her chambered bullets towards Faust, who is forced to step back more than what he probably intended as Cornelia's Shingu activates.

"Crushing King!" Cornelia yells out as the punch she throws launches a shockwave that pulverizes the ground surrounding Faust, as well as ripping his sleeves as he tries to block the attack.

As he's blocking, the opening we needed is now there.

Using Sidewinder, I wrap the whip around his ankle, catching him by surprise as I will the whip to throw him in the air, where Poney is jumping towards his position and does a spinning axe kick right into his gut, sending him careening into the ground with a massive thud.

"You think that got him?" Tsukushi asks as she looks towards the crater where Faust is laying down as Poney walks towards him, fully intent on landing the finishing blow on the off-chance he's still alive.

"My turn." is all Faust suddenly says as he grabs Poney by the leg and backhands her kneecap, with the effect of breaking Poney's leg in an awkward position.

Poney's screams of agony don't end there as he does the same with her leg and then punches her in the gut, causing her to cough out blood as she too is sent flying towards Guy's direction.

As I use Sidewinder to catch her before she gets too far, Akame and Najasho are back as they sprint to aid Cornelia and Tsukushi.

"Poney! Are you okay!?" I exclaim to her in worry as I have to hold myself back from recoiling in shock from the amount of damage her legs have gone through.

"Oooooogh…" Poney groans out, barely conscious after receiving such an attack.

Right, stupid question. Of course she's in agony, why wouldn't she after having her legs snapped like that?

"Don't worry Poney… I'll get you fixed up as best as I can." I tell her as I try my best to administer first aid to her, taking off my jacket and having to use it along with some branches nearby to make some splints for her legs before setting her down next to a nearby tree.

While in the process of doing so, she has thankfully lost consciousness, which is good, since that means she won't be awake to feel the pain.

Okay now that I have that done, where the hell is Guy?

"You think you can take me out just because you broke my-hurgh!" I hear Guy yell before being cut off once again, this time flying much higher from the hit, but still not far enough for me to not grab him with Sidewinder.

As I pull him towards me from the sky, a small part of me wants to go assist Akame and the others, but with the way things are going, I feel like I'm going to need to assist them escape.

If escape is still an option that is.

But even the optimistic part of me is saying that retreating is no longer a viable option with Faust on our tails.

Though, the optimistic part of me is also saying that if we work together, we can take him down for good.

"Guy, as useless as your arms are right now if it becomes too much for us to handle, I want you to take Poney with you and escape from here." I tell him, making his eyes widen when he processes what I'm saying.

"You can't be serious-!"

"Of course I'm serious!" I interrupt him. "Do you honestly think you can beat him!? After breaking both arms!? Look what he did to Poney! This is going to take our combined efforts to even have a chance to take him down!" I stop, taking a breath after yelling at him before looking at him somberly. "And even then, we all might not make it." I finish, not wanting to look at his face for saying something so cowardly.

"What the hell do you mean?" Guy demands, no doubt liking the ominous shift of tone this night took.

"Cornelia!" Akame's scream echoes throughout the forest, making both Guy and I to look frantically at their location, expecting the worst.

We turn just in time to see a grief-stricken Cornelia looking at us with tears in her eyes as she reaches out towards our direction, as her body begins dispersing into motes of blue light.

"Guys… help me please-!" Is all we get to hear before Cornelia is no more.

This… this just has to be a sick nightmare right?

There's no way we just lost one of our own and we just did nothing about it!

"Cornelia…?" Guys voice softly cracks out.

Oh shit.

Turning my attention to Guy, I see a torrent of tears falling from his face as he falls to his knees.

That look in his eyes…

Their father warned them about that kind of look.

It's a look one should be wary of when facing an enemy.

The look of one who has nothing left to lose.

"Cornelia… Cornelia… Cornelia…" Guy begins muttering louder and louder as Najasho finally unleashes his sword's main ability, making him much stronger and faster, even if it is for a short period of time.

And yet… even with that boost in power…

Faust is not even phased.

In fact, it looks like Najasho is struggling to keep up with Faust, even with his power boost and Akame directly assisting him.

"Cornelia…! Cornelia! CORNELIA!" Guy screams in pure unadulterated rage as he throws himself into the ground in what is likely his feeble attempt of revenge against Faust.

I curse as I too try to assist them in taking down Faust for good.

Then, as if the heavens have heard us, a miracle came.

In the form of father's blade, Murasame.

Faust doesn't notice before it's too late, the blade grazes his forearm before landing on the ground in front of Akame.

"Oh shit…!" Faust mutters to himself as his eyes widen as he sees the curse begin to rapidly spread from the wound created by Murasame.

Then, Faust does something I did not expect.

Faust tries to cut off his arm, but before he can even complete the move, Guy launches himself out of the ground and lands a powerful kick into his Ribcage, interrupting Faust of his attempt to save his own life as he is launched farther into the epicenter of the grassy plains.

But even then that was not meant to be.

Faust pulls out a different, yet more intimidating sword from who knows where before slicing his arm off from the shoulder down.

This… this is finally turning to our favor.

With him down one arm, that gives us a massive advantage and we have the chance to take him dow- is his arm growing back!?

True to what I'm saying, I see a small stub growing from the wound, which shocks all of us.

He grabs the arm he chopped off and that too disappears in motes of blue lights before he glares at us angrily.

"Enough!" He roars as he clenches his hand and brings it down towards the ground with what my instincts are screaming at me is his full strength.

And the world beneath me crumbles as a blinding light flashes, blinding me for a good moment as I feel gravity doing the opposite and sending me upwards.

Shaking the dizziness away, what my eyes show me causes my heart to drop.

The entire meadow and the nearby trees surrounding it are all thrown about as if the place is the aftermath of two Super Class Danger Beasts fighting one another.

And even with all of that, Faust is at the epicenter of the destruction…

With Akame and Najasho lying motionless in front of him.

"Such a shame…" Faust loudly comments, as I desperately try to get ever so closer to Akame as Faust grabs the both of them from the back of their shirts.

No… for the love of God please don't.

"Kurome would've really liked to have seen you again Akame." He continues as blue motes of light begin to cover Akame and Najasho.

No… nononono…

NO!

"AKAMEEEEE!" I scream out, with Guy coming out of the rubble fully intent with landing one solid hit on Faust.

But even he is caught by him and turned into motes of blue light.

This can't be happening!

Why?

Why!?

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM!? WHERE ARE THEY!?" Tsukushi demands, tears streaming from her eyes, no doubt from the fact that four of us are no longer a part of this world.

Faust on the other hand is unphased by Tsukushi's outburst, slowly walking towards her even as she begins frantically shooting at him as fast as she can. "They're gone." Faust's sudden coldness in his voices causes the two of us to flinch. "And soon the rest of you will be as well."

This is a failure.

I don't care if father reprimands me.

I need to save who I can, and with Tsukushi currently grabbing Faust's attention, that means it's up to only me and Poney.

As I run to grab Poney, the sound of bullets hitting flesh keep ringing in my ears as I hear Tsukushi screaming at the man to die.

"DIE! DIE! DIE DIE DIE! WHY WON'T YOU DIE!?" Tsukushi screams angrily at Faust, who at this point is only one foot away from her, his vest riddled with bullets and yet no wounds or blood is appearing on his person.

Faust remains silent, only grabbing her head tightly as Tsukushi screams

In fear of being killed as well.

She gets even more frantic when the very same blue motes of light that made everyone else disappear begin to surround her.

"DADDY! DADDY, HELP ME-!" is all she says before she too is sent away from this mortal coil.

I've overstayed my welcome.

I have to get Poney out of here.

I must run and not turn back.

Our lives depend on it.

"And where do you think you are going?" Faust's voice whispers to my ear, causing me to freeze in fear.

This is it huh?

This is the end of the road for me and Poney.

I didn't even get to tell Akame how I feel about her.

Not that it matters anymore.

She's gone.

And soon shall I.

"Please just get it over with." I whisper, making him raise a brow at my request before he lets out a sigh of resignation.

"As you wish." he then grabs me and blue motes of light encompass my very body.

I'll be seeing you soon Akame…

Hopefully we meet again in the next world.

---------------

With Faust…

And that is the last of them.

Man did they get scared in the end when I used my inventory to capture Cornelia.

Granted I did play it in a way that it looked like I killed her, but alas, results are results.

And man where in the hell did Murasame come from? I didn't sense Gozuki and he didn't appear in the minimap so what was up with that?

"I take it you are Faust?" a feminine voice suddenly speaks, making me turn to see who is talking to me.

I am met with the sight of a blonde girl in a cowgirl getup, even having on a poncho and a rodeo hat.

It doesn't take me a second to know who she is.

Doya, an assassin that hails from the Northern Tribes.

"That I am, may I ask who you are?" I inquire, grabbing Murasame and sheathing into Kousetsu's sheath for the time being as I grab onto Kousetsu's hilt.

"The Name's Doya, Fourth Daughter of Head Chief Magnus Astrid, Current Leader of the United Northern Coalition, and bodyguard to General Numa Seika." She begins as she walks towards me, a small and beautiful smile gracing her face as she gives me a handshake. "It seems like you've had quite the situation at hand." she remarks as she surveys the damage I did to the place when I brought my fist down upon it.

"You could say that." I merely say, not giving her any details as I pick up my cloak from the ground and wrap it around myself again.

"Okay Mr. Mysterious, if you truly want to meet with my general, then it's best we get there as soon as we can. He's not one known for his tolerance of tardiness." she replies, walking back towards the direction she came from. "Nice hat by the way." she adds as she continues to walk.

A woman after my heart.

"Thanks, I could say the same with yours." I respond as the two of us walk through the forest, side-by-side as we give each other some small talk and tell a bit about ourselves.

All in a day's work I guess.