Kill the Trauma
Some time had passed since Seryu's sacrifice—for those who don't know yet, when I failed to save someone their image would change into a revenant version of themselves until restored(they would return to their normal state and flip over)or killed(the image would become completely black)—and as usual, life went on. Akame woke up—"It's morning...I'm hungry."—to find Mine sleeping next to her, smiling. "Looks like she's having a good dream."
Later; Outside:
Half of us were heading out to check out the town. "Well then, we'll be going now."
Su gave Lubbock, Ieysayu, Sayo and I a warning, "Don't go near the cathedral. We've heard reports of heightened security there."
Ieysayu, "Yeah, we know."
Lubbock, "We can't even go near it without some kind of a plan, anyway."
The human Imperial Arms handed us boxes, "We made lunches for you."
Sayo was excited, "Oh!"
Me, "Thanks, Su."
Su said something that was unsurprising, "Although, half has been eaten by Akame."
Even Ieysayu acknowledged it, "Gee, there's a shock."
Akame's mood seemed to turn gloomy, "...I'm really sorry. I was just going to take a bite, but...it was so delicious..."
I stopped her, "No, I'm thankful that there's still half of it left."
Then, Mine came through the door, "Oh. What are you up to, Tatsumi?"
Sayo answered, "We're headed out."
Me, "We're going to see how the town currently is."
Lubbock, "We'll investigate, and if possible, whittle down their forces. *Sigh* That's about all we can do until the underground tunnel is finished."
It seemed to peak her interest—she actually pushed Lubbock away, "Alright, then Tatsumi and I will go. Switch with me, Lub and Ieysayu."
"Wha!?"
Ieysayu, "Hey! He's my buddy!" Sayo pulled his ear.
Akame had concerns, "Don't push yourself too hard. Even though it's been a month, you're not completely recovered yet."
Mine reassured the red-eyed girl, "I've been focusing on getting better, so it's not a problem! Besides, we can't rely on just three guys and one girl. Humph! It'll be fine if I go instead." Yeah, my heart was racing again; Mine was going with me by HER request.
Lubbock, "Bfft! For the record, I defeated two Rahkshasa Demons..."
Mine turned and pushed him on the back, "Whatever, switch, switch!"
"Y-You're so pushy."
The pinkette grabbed my hand and started running away with me, "Come on! Let's go Tatsumi. Investigation!"
I replied in a nervous manner, "Uh, yeah...o-okay."
"...Mine...could it be that you..." No, Akame didn't think about the possibility of Mine liking me, "you really wanted to eat those lunches...I know how you feel!"
Lubbock whispered to Ieysayu, "She must be thinking of completely off..."
The latter's response, with a deadpan, "She must have regrets about those lunches..."
Later; Back inside:
"OW!" Lubbock and Ieysayu were having fresh bandages applied to their injuries, "Dammit, Tatsumi...is he going to seduce Mine next?"
Ieysayu, "Is he seriously into Mine?! She doesn't even have descent-sized tits!"
Su was the one who was applying said bandages, "It might have been good that you two didn't go. Your wounds aren't completely healed yet."
Lubbock groaned, "Ugh. Assassins' techniques are way too scary."
Ieysayu, "To think that our injuries wouldn't be healed after this long."
Su, "Just be glad that they weren't life-threatening."
"But..." Lubbock really started complaining, "I can't stand how we're being nursed by a man! I, for one, thought that Ms. Najenda would say something like 'Why did you push yourself so hard, you idiot!'...and nurse me with tears in her eyes!"
Ieysayu, "I feel ya, man!"
Su couldn't help but grin, "Looks like you probably wouldn't die even if you received life-threatening wounds."
Then, Lub kinda changed the subject, "...By the way, Su! Um...what do you think of Ms. Najenda?"
"She's a master worthy of respect."
Ieysayu, "Is that it? Are you freakin' serious?!"
"I'm serious...besides, I have no interest in women."
Both were shocked in unison, "What!?"
"Because I'm an Imperial Arms. I have no capacity for love."
Ieysayu, "Tha...That's what you meant!"
Lubbock, "*Sigh* That's a relief...!" Both of them put their clothes back on, "Well, isn't it contradictory that you have a heart but can't love?"
Ieysayu, "Could it be that you just haven't found someone you like?" That seemed to confuse Su.
Lubbock stood and gave the latter a thumbs-up, "The rest of us guys will help you find a perfect woman for you!"
Su couldn't help but grin, "...I see. Sounds interesting."
Outskirts of Town:
Mine and I were having our lunch sitting on logs, "A ruin was destroyed, but the city seems to be lively."
Mine, "If there's that much energy in the city, we should be able to stir a great rebellion."
Then, Mine seemed like she was staring off into space, which concerned me a bit, "Is something wrong?"
I expected her to still be upset about what happened to Seryu - what I got instead was this, "You...like the desert runner nuggets, right? That's all you've been eating." A blush was on her face.
"Um...yeah...sure...I guess."
She handed me her box, "Humph! Fine, then! I'll give you mine."
That surprised me, "Uh...sure. *sweatdrop* Thanks." I was curious, "...What's with her? But still, I have to give Su credit. These nuggets are so good! No wonder Akame couldn't help herself. But seriously, what's going on in that head of her's? Is she still teasing me...or does she finally share the same feelings?"
What Mine was thinking, "He eats like a little kid. Yet, he's so mature."
Then, the great lord came again, "Hello. We meet again."
"Gre...Great Lord!"
He was as polite as usual, "I apologize for interrupting your cheerful lunch. But chance meetings like this rarely happen, so would you mind if we talked for a bit?"
After telling him one of the reasons we were in the area, "...I see. You two are travelers."
What I said to him next, "I was surprised by...the influence of the Path of Peace. You sir, are the founder, right?"
"Yes. That's right. Ever since I was born, I had mysterious powers to heal people's wounds and see prophetic dreams. As I kept healing, and prophesying, more and more people gathered around me, proclaiming me as a man of miracles...by those people, the Path of Peace was created, and it became what it is now."
I was concerned, because I had a feeling of unusual dread in me, as if there was something evil within my body and soul. There was also concern about Bolic. "...Uh, um, about those people that serve you, do you sense anything with those mysterious powers? Like...darkness."
Mine yelled at me, "I-Idiot! That was way too unnatural!"
The Great Lord let out a hearty chuckle, "Hahaha, there is no such thing as a human without darkness. It's true that I sense deep darkness from some of the leaders. But when you're in charge of such a large organization, you sometimes have to make difficult decisions. While I was by myself, I could only save those who were right in front of me. But now, we've come this far thanks to those leaders who created this organization. I've chosen to believe in them."
Me, "Great Lord..."
"By the way...It looks like you two are getting along better than you were the last time we met." That caused Mine to deadpan, "Please treasure this moment. You two have been blessed by God."
"The only blessing I got was this...ever since I was born, my life was filled with terrible luck...at least...until I faced the source of it."
Later; Back at the hideout:
I went over the encounter with the Great Lord with Najenda, and even gave her my viewpoint on the situation with Bolic, "If we get rid of Bolic and fill the leadership with revolution sympathizes, we should be able to still create an uprising, even with the Great Lord's philosophy. But he's too trusting. He could end up being assassinated at any moment and become an actual spirit. We have to hurry with Bolic assassination..."
The silver-haired woman took a puff of her cigarette, "I see. Something like that happened. He sounds like a good lord."
I sighed, "Yeah...I know we'll end up taking advantage of him...but I can't help but not want that man to die."
She put out her cigarette in an ashtray, "...Don't get hasty. If you make a mistake, we'll crash head-on with Esdeath. We don't have enough soldiers to face her yet."
"Based on my observations, we'd need fifty-thousand elite soldiers, and at least ten Imperial Arms users—including Akame—just to face her."
"She and Great-General Budou are on a whole other level. Esdeath is the one who did this to my body."
"Did you start your own rebellion?"
"Actually, yes...it didn't end so well. I lost a significant number of troops...I sustained life-threatening injuries as well, and was on the border of life and death. The difference in our abilities was shown painfully clear to me...it's also possible that she didn't finish me off so that she could enjoy more wars to come...but either way, I'm alive and I'm still here. In the end, I will be the victor...and purge this trauma. But first, Bolic must be assassinated...! That cannot fail, no matter what...!"
Inside the cathedral:
Kurome did some motions with her right hand to see if she was healed yet—she wasn't, "What should I do...? I'm still not healed."
"It's alright." Wave put his hand on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile, "I'll work hard to make up for last time."
"Wave..."
In another area, Esdeath was preparing a surprise for us—and not a good one—"I wasn't just on boring bodyguard duty this whole time...Night Raid...I've prepared the Trump Card of my Imperial Arms. Hurry and come...! You're all in for a treat...!"
Outside the Cathedral:
Su, Leone and Sayo finally reached the destination for the tunnel they were digging. "...Alright. We're through. We can finally make our move."
I had to edit a lot in this chapter. No fights; Sorry. Next Chapter will be the Jaegers Faction. Fights will include(In order)Ran(Soaring)vs Sayo(Archer), Wave(Carnage Incarnate)vs Akame(Assassin), Wave(Carnage Incarnate)vs Sayo(Sharp-Shot), Wave(Carnage Incarnate)vs Lubbock(Trapmaster), Esdeath(Ice Queen)vs Susanoo(Imperial Arms), and Esdeath(Ice Queen)vs Leone(Recon). The parentheses next to the names are which variation the fighters are, since this is a crossover with "Mortal Kombat X".
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