It turned out that during the entire incident, Haruki had been watching from above Aria's mansion aboard Vimana, accompanied by Kurome, Gin, and Chelsea. They only descended when Kurome urged him to do so just as the Night Raid members were preparing to leave.
Haruki had originally intended to bring only Kurome and Gin, but Chelsea insisted on coming along, saying, "How could I miss out on something this exciting?" Haruki was helpless against her fondness for getting involved in anything lively.
The voice that had just called out, naturally, belonged to Kurome.
Hearing Kurome's voice, Akame—who had been about to leave—suddenly froze. Her body trembled, and she stood still, clearly at a loss.
Hearing a voice suddenly echo from high above, the rest of Night Raid immediately tensed up. No one had detected them observing from the sky for so long—that alone proved their overwhelming strength, or at least their ability to conceal their presence far exceeded that of the Night Raid.
Akame had never told the others in Night Raid about Kurome or Haruki. All they knew was that she had defected from the Empire's assassination unit. None of them knew she had any connection to Haruki, much less that she had a younger sister.
Haruki jumped down from Vimana with Kurome, Gin, and Chelsea. As they landed, a golden vortex appeared, and Vimana instantly vanished into it. The spectacle was breathtaking.
But for Night Raid, the sight only deepened the tension.
At least one of the four was a Teigu user—and a rare one capable of flight.
"Minister of Security? What are you doing here?!"
As the Night Raid members recovered from their initial shock and shifted their focus to the newcomers, Leone caught sight of Haruki. His whole body tensed, and he shouted a warning to the others.
For assassins like those in Night Raid, the Imperial Security Department was their greatest enemy. And Haruki, as its head, was not only a major threat—he was one of Night Raid's ultimate targets since the group's founding.
Even though none of them had ever confronted Haruki directly, especially Leone, who handled intelligence gathering, they all recognized him. With Haruki's striking looks, once seen, no one could easily forget him.
"Sister, don't you think you owe me an explanation for leaving without a word?"
Ignoring everyone's shock and wariness, Kurome slowly walked toward Akame, holding Yatsufusa in her hand, her tone icy cold. She still bore a deep grudge over Akame's defection years ago.
Hearing the question, Akame's gaze faltered. She had always carried guilt in her heart toward Kurome.
"Kurome… I think this empire is too dark. The people suffer too much. Things need to change… and I wanted to help make that change."
Seeing that Kurome refused to look away, Akame knew she couldn't dodge this any longer. She finally spoke.
"The Empire is dark and the people suffer? What does that have to do with you? Have you ever thought about your own life? Did you ever consider how I felt? Revolution? Who exactly are you trying to overthrow—me, or our brother?"
Kurome's questions left Akame speechless.
"Hey, you're Akame's sister, right? How can you be so selfish? What's wrong with giving up a bit of happiness for the sake of justice?"
At that point, Lubbock, unable to bear any more, pointed at Kurome and called her out.
Boom.
A flash of golden light burst out.
A crater, about two meters wide, suddenly opened at Lubbock's feet. Its edge came dangerously close to him, and at the center of the pit stood a golden spear, planted perfectly upright.
Behind Haruki, more golden whirlpools opened, and an array of weapons began emerging one by one. The pressure on the Night Raid members was immediate and immense.
Even within the Empire, no one truly knew what Haruki's Teigu was. For some reason, Akame had never told her comrades about Haruki's feat—annihilating thirty thousand elite soldiers from the allied forces on the southwestern front in a single strike.
Faced with this display, Lubbock froze in place. Beads of sweat dotted his forehead.
"You have no right to judge my woman."
Haruki's tone was cold.
"Hmph, you wanna fight? You think we're scared of you?"
This time, it was Mine—the ever-prideful tsundere—who finally spoke up.
In her eyes, their side had six Teigu Users, while the only confirmed Teigu user on the other side was Haruki. Even if it came to a fight, they shouldn't be at a disadvantage.
"That's right. You really think we're afraid of you?"
Hearing Mine's words, Bulat, Lubbock, and even the slightly dazed Sheele all stepped forward to back her up.
"No, don't!"
To everyone's surprise, Akame and Leone shouted in unison to stop Mine and the others.
Akame had seen Haruki in action before—his terrifying power firsthand. And it wasn't just Haruki. Even facing Kurome and Gin, Akame didn't believe they stood a chance. She had personally witnessed Kurome and Gin efficiently slaughter hundreds of people in mere moments.
Leone hadn't seen Haruki fight, but her Teigu, The King of Beasts Transformation: Lionelle, granted her an exceptional sense for danger.
She could feel her Teigu tremble with instinctive fear in Haruki's presence, and it became even more alert around Kurome and Gin. Even Chelsea, who appeared to be the weakest, triggered a trace of fear from her Teigu—something Leone had never experienced, not even when facing members of Night Raid.
As unbelievable as it seemed, Leone had a gut feeling: everyone in Haruki's group, aside from Chelsea, had the power to annihilate their entire team. And even Chelsea wasn't someone they could afford to underestimate.
Leone had always trusted her instincts—that's why she stopped everyone from making a move.
"Leone, what's gotten into you today? This isn't like you!"
Mine shouted, frustrated.
It was one thing for Akame to hold back, but Leone had always been the most impulsive member of Night Raid. Her sudden caution confused everyone.
"What's so strange about that? She knows that even if all of you attacked, none of you could beat me."
Haruki's voice rang out again, calm and confident.
"But there's no need to worry. I didn't come here today to destroy you. I just brought Kurome to see Akame. Now that the goal's achieved, you can all leave."
He looked at Akame and the rest of the Night Raid members, who were still on full alert.
"Oh, and Akame—just one more thing. If one day you find out you've been lied to, you're always welcome to come back to me. Remember, your home is here."
"What are you even talking about? That doesn't make any sense."
Before Akame could respond, Mine cut in again.
"Shut up, Mine. Let's go. And... I'll remember what you said."
Akame snapped at her, then turned and addressed Haruki.
Seeing the change in Leone and Akame's expressions, Mine finally sensed something was seriously off and stayed silent.
Soon after, the Night Raid group disappeared into the vast night, carrying the still-unconscious Tatsumi with them.
...
"Chelsea, what's wrong with you?"
As soon as Night Raid was gone, Haruki, Kurome, and Gin turned to Chelsea with concern.
Earlier, Night Raid had been so focused on Haruki that they hadn't noticed anything was off.
But Haruki's group—all elite in strength—had sensed something wrong with Chelsea the moment they disembarked from Vimana.
That was the real reason Haruki let Night Raid go so quickly.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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