Chapter 32: I have become the Child Emperor

"Did you see that?" Mine asked Akame, her partner in tonight's Night Raid operation. Akame had ordered them to hunt down the perpetrator behind the ongoing killings in the Capital. Mine was paired with Akame, while Lubbock teamed up with Sheele, and Bulat was partnered with Leone.

Currently, all three pairs were patrolling the Capital, and honestly, they found the task of sneaking around more challenging than usual. The Capital was swarming with Capital Guards and Imperial soldiers, all with the same goal as Night Raid. Additionally, a teigu user was seen flying in the sky, further complicating their patrol. All three teams had to stay vigilant on the ground while ensuring they remained undetected by the ever-watchful presence in the sky. Perhaps Bulat would be the only person in Night Raid who wouldn't be greatly affected by all the patrols happening due to his teigu's ability to turn invisible.

"I didn't see anything," Akame replied as she scanned her surroundings. Akame was a skilled assassin, but Mine had the best eyesight among all the members of Night Raid. While keeping watch, Mine noticed something flying in the sky or being deflected. Even for a sniper of her caliber, it was too small to clearly identify.

"Something was there, I'm sure of it," Mine stated, squinting to see further into the distance for more clues.

"Let's leave this place and check it out then," Akame ordered, noticing that a cloud was about to cover the moon, providing good cover for movement. After scanning the surroundings again and confirming that the winged teigu user was not nearby, Akame decided, "The moment the cloud covers the sky, let's move," to which Mine nodded in agreement.

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Meanwhile, Zank stared at the three people that just appeared before him. "My, my, I became too complacent there," he stated as his katar blades pointed towards Sayo. "Your arrows nearly landed on me. Your gonna regret that", he declared with a wide grin on his face. However, unlike the previous time where he was having fun, Zank's smile now carried a hint of annoyance and anger. He was clearly vexed at being unable to deal the killing blow towards Captain Ogre due to the arrow deflecting his latest attack.

"Don't worry, sir. The three of us will protect you," Tatsumi stated to the fallen Captain Ogre as he confidently gripped his blade tightly in his hand. The said Captain couldn't believe that his life was spared at the very last moment. He instinctively moved his hand towards his neck and breathed a sigh of relief. For a moment, he had assumed that his life would have ended.

"Sayo, provide cover. Tatsumi and I will attack him head-on," Ieyasu commanded as he positioned himself beside Tatsumi, their muscles coiled and ready to strike.

Annoyed, Sayo swiftly took multiple arrows from her quiver, positioning it on her bow and retorted sharply, "I know the drill, idiot. Don't remind me!".

Hearing this, Tatsumi chuckled and exchanged a final glance with Ieyasu before they both engaged their opponent head-on. With a sudden burst of speed, both combatants, sword and spear in hand, launched their attacks towards Zank the beheader.

As Captain Ogre tried to rise from the ground, he only just now realized that he had sustained multiple injuries to his thigh, preventing him from standing properly. The adrenaline coursing through his body had masked the pain a few minutes prior, but now the injuries were making him increasingly annoyed. He had initially considered using the three individuals who came to rescue him as a diversion to escape the area, but it seemed that would be harder than he thought. Glancing at the girl near him, he asked, "Who are you people? You are not Capital guards nor Imperial soldiers? Why are you fighting Zank?"

Briefly, Sayo glanced at Captain Ogre before firing some of her arrows to provide support for her friends. She replied, "We are new in the capital. We want to join the army, and we thought that the best way to get the army to recognize our strength is if we are the ones responsible for apprehending the man who caused all the deaths within the Capital."

"Foolish!" Captain Ogre exclaimed loudly. "You don't know what you are dealing with! You might have saved my life, but you don't know how powerful Zank the beheader truly is!" he added. He watched the battle happening in the distance and continued, "Look at him, Zank has already taken out my men and defeated me in battle, yet he wasn't injured whatsoever. I first assumed that we could defeat him with numbers, but it seems that's not possible. Only a teigu user can defeat another teigu user," he added angrily. All his life he had always relied on his strength, but only now did Captain Ogre realize that he was stupid for believing that in the first place. Only by having a teigu could one truly have power in this world.

"Teigu?" Sayo stated curiously. The word was foreign to her, but seeing a grown and powerful man lament at not having such a thing meant that it must be an impressive weapon. Despite her curiosity, Sayo's focus never left the battle happening in front of her. While she listened to Captain Ogre, her eyes and hands never stopped providing support for her friends.

Growing increasingly enraged of Sayo's arrows, Zank realized that he couldn't deal a killing blow to Ieyasu and Tatsumi due to her interference. Frustration and fury boiled inside him, leading him to shift his strategy. In a split-second decision, he activated his Teigu's ability, Illusion Sight, targeting Ieyasu and causing him to freeze in place, leaving an opening.

With confusion etched on his face, Tatsumi shouted, "Ieyasu, what are you doing!?" He couldn't understand what was going on. One moment, both Ieyasu and he were fighting in perfect synchronization, but in the next second, Ieyasu suddenly stopped attacking, catching him off guard.

Seizing the opportunity, Zank delivered a devastating blow towards Tatsumi. Luckily the latter's instincts kicked in at the right moment, and he managed to raise his blade just in time to block Zank's attack. However, the sheer force of the blow sent Tatsumi hurtling backward, smashing into the nearest wall and causing it to crack from the impact.

Regaining his senses, Ieyasu snapped out of the illusion, but it was too late. Zank had already capitalized on the distraction and was now charging towards Sayo with deadly intent.

"I'm gonna kill you first!" Zank shouted like a wild beast, his eyes burning with rage. Both Ieyasu and Tatsumi tried to give chase, but Zank's head start proved insurmountable. He moved like a blur, his movements fueled by a mix of anger and adrenaline.

Sayo's fingers trembled as she fired a desperate barrage of arrows, attempting to stop Zank from approaching. But with almost superhuman agility, he evaded every arrow, each one missing its target by mere inches. Closing in on her, he brandished his deadly katar blades, poised to deliver the final blow.

However, just as Zank's katars were about to make their deadly mark, a sudden and powerful explosion erupted, shocking everyone on the battlefield.

"BANG! BANG! BANG!"

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Meanwhile, somewhere in the Capital, Syura had successfully breached the Royal Collections office. The wave of killings caused by Zank had left government buildings like the collection's office understaffed and vulnerable, and all of this was part of Syura's calculated plan. His return to the Capital wasn't to challenge the Emperor directly—such an act would be sheer folly. Instead, he aimed to acquire something that could provide him with a fighting chance against the Empire.

After a few minutes, Syura emerged from the building with a book clutched tightly in his hand. He couldn't help but notice the cacophony of loud noises emanating from the distance, but he paid it no mind. He was certain that whatever caused such commotion must be related to Zank. 

Syura had grown increasingly annoyed with the man's indiscriminate urge to kill without considering the usefulness of his victims. In fact, midway through their journey, Syura had already decided to exploit Zank as a distraction, allowing him to steal what he needed. It seemed that Zank was fulfilling his role perfectly.

"I need to get out of here," Syura muttered, his eyes glinting with satisfaction. With that, he swiftly departed from the Capital, making his way to rejoin his team, the Wild Hunt.