Leaving their daughters in Najenda's care, the trio Akame-Esdeath-Tatsumi dashed into the dark and cloudless night.
Due to their adaptive abilities, they quickly get used to the ambient darkness. They felt the cold ground under their feet, as they made their way through the now almost deserted encampment.
Even if they were distant, they could still hear the sounds of the battles, north and east of their position.
It was a chaotic symphony no one could get used to –excepted born killers like Akame and Esdeath–: cries, pleas, curses, sound of steel against steel, footsteps…
The most surprising thing about a battlefield was neither the sight nor the noise. After all, one could expect these things. No, it was simply the smell.
Smell of blood, guts, and piss and shit. Men pissed themselves when they were afraid and shitted themselves when they were dying.
Fear and death ruled over all the battlefields, and so did the smell of piss and shit. Even a blind and deaf man could find a battlefield, only entrusting his nose.
All of sudden, the closest noises stopped –although the smell remained–. The distant sound of battle coming from north was still audible, but the ruckus coming from east they heard all the way along was just gone.
It could mean only one thing: one of the battling sides had won. Given the earlier report the soldier gave them, it was easy to figure out…
Some minutes later, they found what they were looking for. More specifically, Akame and Esdeath did with their almost supernatural perceptions and quickly prowled in some kind of light bush, inciting Tatsumi to do the same.
The sight in front of them was not really enticing: piles of corpses, broken weapons and armors, guts, limbs, ground watered with blood, faces petrified with fear and pain…
Somehow, the silent ruling the plain where the carnage occurred was more worrying than the battlefield noises, and the smell was definitely worse from here.
"…I'm grateful I didn't eat much earlier…" Tatsumi darkly whispered.
Esdeath warned him with a glare, clearly telling him they were not alone.
That's when Tatsumi saw them.
Standing in the middle of the corpses, in the deserted and cold plain, three silhouettes, two muscular men and one young woman judging from their statures. Before he could concentrate his gaze to analyze them, he heard Akame gasping. This alone was so unlikely to happen that Esdeath and him turned their heads towards her in unison, dazed.
Akame was at loss of words. Since exclaiming loudly or questioning her would only serve to spot them, Tatsumi looked at the silhouettes, hoping to understand what shocked Akame.
What he saw left him dumbfounded. That was to be expected: two of the three people in front of him were dead.
Not 'presumed dead' but truly dead. He knew one his friends killed the first, and he himself killed the second.
A multitude of questions raised in his mind, a storm of interrogations endlessly whirling.
However, Akame and Tatsumi quickly regained their minds; it was due to the fact they had seen a similar fact before.
A Teigu capable of raising the dead and to use them as puppets: The March of the Dead, Yatsufusa.
Even if they were shocked, they knew such 'impossible' things were possible thanks to the power of Teigus.
Only Esdeath was oblivious to the situation. Raising her eyebrows, she quietly said:
"I don't get your reactions. Did I miss something?"
"…of course" murmured Akame to herself.
It was only logical, since Esdeath was not here at these times.
She began to explain with a low voice.
"…long things short, these three guys are dead. I killed one myself and know the other two are deceased."
"Wait, who is this girl? The one holding a katana? I only know the other two" Tatsumi said.
"Her name's Taeko. She's… was an assassin from the Oarburgh Clan. I fought and killed her when I was still in the Elite Seven…but she was indeed a tough opponent."
Akame omitted, purposely or not, that Taeko was a pure beauty, with a long dark hair, a prominent chest, and two shining lime eyes. Her gracious face was marked with a scar near her right eye, and she was wearing a traditional grey assassin outfit. She held what looked like a conventional katana in her hands.
"Oarburgh Clan?" Tatsumi seemed lost.
"A very powerful assassination group which I helped to obliterate" Akame answered. "They were tough opponents, but also a bunch of psychos…they almost turned me into a lesbian."
"Say again?!"
"Nevermind…" The souvenir gave Akame shivers.
"I heard of them. Rumors say they were as strong as they were expensive" Esdeath nodded. "And who are the two big fellows?"
"The one-eyed with grey hair is Ogre. A former Imperial Police captain. Strong, abusive, and corrupted to his soul. And the old bald man with big eyebrows is Gensei."
One of the men was carrying a greatsword while the other had a strange broadsword.
Esdeath tilted her head and put a finger on her lips, pondering.
"Gensei? The name sure rings a bell…"
"He was the former 'Strongest of the Empire'. Maybe you have heard of him. But later, after he retired, he turned into a psycho assassin… we, of Night Raid, had to kill him. Bulat, whom he was the former master, did it."
"Now that you talk about it… I remember. He was the previous wielder of Incursio. But he retired before I could fight him…" Esdeath said.
At the same moment, they heard a rude voice:
"Oi, oi… how long will you stay hidden like cockroaches, you weaklings? I see you!"
Ogre –it was really him– shouted angrily, looking in the direction of the 'hidden' trio. Tatsumi noticed he had new arms: metallic ones, in place of the ones he had cut, but with kinds of claws at the end. The rest of his person did not change much: a muscular, tall body, grey and black hair, and a red eye.
"We know you're here. Come out and accept your fate."
With an emotionless and cold voice, Taeko spoke out. Her voice matched her calm demeanor and appearance but gave chills.
"More puppies to kill…wonderful!" Gensei exclaimed.
As long as he didn't talk, he had the look of a wise and sage master, but right now, his face was enlightened by the perspective of killing: he was truly a mad swordsman.
"Enough talking, let's kill them, otherwise the old hag will get mad at us!" Ogre growled.
Not wasting his time, he slowly walked towards Akame, Esdeath and Tatsumi, soon followed by his accomplices.
Since they had been obviously spotted, the trio get up.
"They clearly have no idea who they're dealing with" Esdeath declared. "I crossed Ogre once and he almost pissed himself. Since he called us weaklings, I think I shall deal with him…"
"Huh, so I'm the only one asking why dead people are alive and walking with the Northerners?" Tatsumi sighed. "Or why their skins are so perfect even though they're supposed to be corpses? Or if we can even kill them?"
"Such things can wait" Akame said, as she unsheathed Murasame. "You have to accept the reality. We can investigate this matter later or capture one of them alive."
"But they're living dead, so capturing one of them 'alive' seems a bit…"
Akame frowned.
"We'll find soon enough if they can be killed. Let's proceed with caution, but do not give into the fear of the unknown."
"Well said, Akame" Esdeath smiled, evaluating the time their opponents would reach them. "So, are we okay?"
"No."
Tatsumi shook his head, drawing his sword too.
"I killed him once. How to put it… I feel it's my duty to send him back to his grave."
"If that's the case, I'll take care of Taeko…" Akame sadly said. "And I hoped we could be on the same side in another life…"
"Esdeath, you'll face Gensei, you're okay with that? A fight between two Strongest of the Empire must be quite a show" Tatsumi half-joked.
"Fine by me. But Tatsumi, is that really okay for me to fight? I thought you didn't like the 'me' who loved battles…?"
Tatsumi's face became serious.
"Esdeath… I truly appreciate how much you care about my thoughts, but after all, you're a born fighter. So as long as you don't torture anyone just for fun, I'm perfectly fine. Just because you kill an already dead psycho doesn't mean I won't love you, I can assure you."
He smiled, troubled.
"In fact, I love you so much that even if you were to do everything you used to, I'd still love you."
Deeply moved by Tatsumi's feelings, Esdeath's heart went doki for a second. After that, she went on her serious mod.
"Well, see you all later. Don't die there" she saluted.
As they suddenly jumped to fight their walking dead opponents, Akame, Esdeath and Tatsumi managed to seize the targets they desired.
Because of the fighting, they soon found themselves separated and dueling with their respective opponents, away from each other and thus unable to cooperate.
"Oi, I know you, brat! You're the fucking bastard who killed me! You've grown quite a lot, but you still have the same face and height!"
Wielding a giant sword did not stop Ogre from talking and cursing, which annoyed Tatsumi.
"Surprised to see me again?! I'm back from the dead, ain't that scary for a brat like you?"
(Will he eventually shut up…)
"That's a pretty mean thought, kid!"
(And of course, there's this problem…)
Tatsumi quickly chased that thought away. He needed to be focused on the ongoing fight, for the simple reason that he was not prevailing.
Ogre had been his first target in his assassination career, and even if he was unexperimented back then, he remembered the imperial captain as a formidable foe.
Surprisingly, death did improve Ogre. He was faster, better and stronger. Being a one-eyed did not seem to bother him as he parried all of Tatsumi's assaults, with his sword or his metallic arms.
Tatsumi could not imitate him in that way, as his own arms were obviously made of flesh and not of steel.
But worst, Ogre was reading all of Tatsumi's thoughts and attacks.
Because he was wearing the Teigu Spectator.
This Teigu, taking the form of a green eye placed on Ogre's forehead, gave the latter several abilities.
It gave him long-ranged vision –which was how he spotted them–, allowed him to see through solid objects, but above all, to read the movements and the thoughts of the target.
Akame did surpass the Teigu and its previous user, Zank, thanks to her incredible speed that overcame her opponent's.
Unfortunately, Tatsumi was not in the same case.
Bending the legs, Tatsumi dodged a strike by twirling and aimed for Ogre's head with a horizontal swing.
Alas, Ogre reacted by raising his arms, like a boxing guard, and Tatsumi's sword ricocheted on the hard surface.
"Pointless, pointless!"
Tatsumi himself moved back in a hurry to avoid the violent riposte.
"Gwa ha ha ha! This bitch is indeed a bitch, but she knows her job! These arms are even better than the previous ones! Solid and light, I couldn't ask for more! And this Teigu is so convenient! Gwa ha ha ha!"
Tatsumi was annoyed by Ogre's boasting, but the insult the latter spat made him blink.
(She? Bitch? The way he talks about her…could she be the one who–)
"Hey, hey, hey, do you have the time to think about it, kid?!" Ogre roared.
Tatsumi's thoughts were interrupted by a rain made of steel, forcing him to crouch, jump and dive in order to survive.
The greatsword Ogre wielded was too heavy for Tatsumi to parry it directly; he could either strike it from the side to deviate the blow, or 'simply' avoid it.
Put it simply, he was clearly at disadvantage.
"How long will you dance like this, brat?!"
Akame and Taeko's fight was really something, a show human eye could barely follow as the exchanged blows were merely ephemeral lights in the night.
Akame had more experience due to her longer career as an assassin –as Taeko died years ago, when Akame was still part of the Elite Seven– but was slowed by Murasame's curse.
Taeko compensated her inexperience and lesser skills by deploying abnormal speed and strength. She obviously had been enhanced in some way and had many sword techniques up her sleeve.
"Whirlwind!"
A storm of successive sword strikes fell upon Akame, from all the directions. It was almost as if her opponent was not wielding one but ten swords.
Basing her parry on her reflexes, Akame deflected the assault. She barely had recovered her senses when she felt a strong pressure.
(I have to move!)
"Ridge Wind!"
Hadn't she throw herself on the ground, Akame would've been cut by the powerful air slash Taeko had just released, which left a deep trace in the ground.
(…despite her abnormal strength, her stamina and body seem regular, not like Yatsufusa's puppets.)
Taking advantage of this short break, Akame called out Taeko:
"How is it you're alive?"
Taeko faced Akame, who noticed her scar on her face, sequel of the injury she inflicted her.
"…I can't tell you."
"What are you, a kid?"
"… Even if I wanted to, I could not."
(That means she's bind by some kind of spell? Or is she lying to me?) Akame pondered.
"But I'm glad I can have a rematch with you, Akame" Taeko continued. "And, ironically, I've been given your sword…"
She raised her katana, and Akame's suspicion became certitude.
"Kiriichimonji…" she gasped.
She had caught a glimpse of the sword's appearance in the dark night, but she had hoped to be wrong. She was not.
Taeko's sword was her previous sword, the one she used to wield before obtaining Murasame.
The Shingu Kiriichimonji. A cursed katana, whose property was to inflict injuries which could not heal. The very weapon she used to kill Taeko.
"How did you…how is it you have it?" Akame asked.
"… I can't tell you. But it does not matter. I like this weapon. How befitting for the Death Reaper."
"Kuuhh…"
Let alone fatal injuries, minor injuries from Kiriichimonji were also deadly; since nothing could heal them, they would cause her to bleed to death if she were to be cut.
In a certain way, Kiriichimonji was an inferior version of Murasame: a single cut could be deadly. But Akame was used to do her best to avoid any injury, since assassins often employed poisoned blades.
It was only natural to her, but still, seeing such a dangerous weapon in such a dangerous foe's hands…
Cooling herself down, Akame raised Murasame.
"Taeko. Nothing personal, but…"
She flipped the switch, entering her 'killing mode'.
"I'll bury you."
Taeko answered by emanating a cold, murderous intent.
"I am the Death Reaper, Breath of Oarburgh. The Untamable Wind. I will show you the way to the underworld."
"What a time to be alive!" Gensei shouted, wielding his broadsword to slice Esdeath's ice projectiles.
(His swordsmanship is very good, I have to admit it), Esdeath thought.
The old man's broadsword seemed to dance and fly in his hands.
(Talking about it, it's a pretty sword he got there.)
The broadsword was indeed a piece of work: long, sharp, with a pommel covered with scales, and some kind of reptile eye on it. At the end of the pommel were snake fangs.
Knowing he was a skilled epeeist, Esdeath had taken her distances and only had fought with ranged attacks.
Gensei's movements were flawless, as well as his blows. His agility did not match his white hair and his wrinkles.
(There has to be a trick. Such an old man cannot be that strong and enduring. But at least, he's mortal.)
Esdeath had concluded her foe was 'killable'.
(If he were immortal, why would he dodge my attacks? If I were immortal, I'd lure my opponent into a trap using this advantage. Like, withstand a direct hit only to block and kill my opponent.)
Of course, there was still the possibility of all of this being a trap, but Esdeath's instinct did not tell her so. Whatever tool or trick had brought these guys to life, there had to be conditions and rules.
(They don't seem to be mere puppets like Yatsufusa's. If there truly are alive, then maybe they only have one life. One chance. Or maybe not, but I guess I'll find out soon enough.)
Truth to be told, Gensei deserved his former title of Strongest of the Empire. But that was tens of years ago, and now, the Strongest was indeed Esdeath.
Esdeath grinned.
"I salute your strength, but it ends here, old man. You're not strong enough to beat me."
Gensei cocked his enormous eyebrows.
"If you take me so lightly, I'll prove you how wrong you are!"
With a quick gesture, he placed his sword's pommel on his arm, or to be precise, the snake fangs.
To Esdeath's surprise, the fangs bit Gensei's arm, and the eye on the pommel widened.
(What, is that sword some kind of vampire?) Esdeath wondered.
The sword was apparently special, since Gensei's appearance changed right after that: every hair on his body ruffled, and he gave off an aura of puissance.
Even his eye had changed: it now looked exactly like the reptile's one on his broadsword.
"It's over now. You should've attacked before, now, I'm at least five times stronger!"
Esdeath didn't look worried and feigned to yawn.
"Only five times? You put up that show for this? How disappointing."
Gensei, pissed off by the carefree attitude of his opponent, exploded.
"Here I come, so-called 'Strongest of the Empire'!" he shouted, dashing towards Esdeath with an incredible speed.
(For a staged warrior like him to run head on, he must be pretty confident in his strength), Esdeath noticed.
She calmly extended her right hand and aimed at the mad swordsman.
(However…)
She fired her ice, so fast that human eye could not catch a glimpse of the shot.
(…the outcome is already known.)
CLANG!
Gensei, who had stopped running, deflected an ice projectile as large as his hand with his sword.
"Hah! Not fast enough! I can see through your shooting speed! But I must commend you on–"
"Seriously, did you only notice that shot?" Esdeath laughed, interrupting him mid-sentence.
"Wha–"
Gensei stopped again, but this time, not because of Esdeath's interruption.
He simply could not talk. Searching for the reason, he lowered the eyes…
And saw nine red flowers blossoming on his body.
(I have been…hit? How?!) he thought, aghast.
Esdeath smirked.
"It appears, out of the tens ice bullets I shot, you only noticed one. Was it really that fast?"
Not waiting for an answer, Esdeath closed the distance between them in an instant.
Gensei tried to raise his sword, but, instantly materializing an ice sword, Esdeath cut both his arms.
She did it so violently that the broadsword flied away along with Gensei's arms.
The latter instantly went back to his normal appearance: without his ruffled hair and with his arms gone, he looked like a pathetic old man.
"Interesting. So, this sword was linked to you, somehow? And it appears, given your condition that you're really killable. My guess was correct."
Esdeath spoke with an indifferent tone.
Gensei opened his mouth, as to speak.
"Gh…I–"
With a backhand, Esdeath decapitated him.
His head flied and fell with a muffled noise.
A blood stream flowed from the open neck, and the headless body collapsed.
"Five times stronger, eh? I guess it just wasn't enough, shrimp" Esdeath told the corpse.
As she was about to go help the others, she suddenly heard numerous footsteps. When she saw the silhouettes in the night, she snorted in dissatisfaction and readied herself for battle.
"Northerners reinforcements… I guess I'll take care of them myself!"
(I got a good grasp of her techniques and fighting style. But if I remember correctly, she has yet to unravel her trump card…) Akame thought.
Concerning the strength and the technique, Taeko's swordsmanship was at least equal to Akame's.
However, concerning the reading of the opponent, Akame was clearly above due to her experience.
Taeko also assumed that Akame's sword was not a mere one and did not let it graze herself once.
Their swords crossed once again, separated, met again… it was an endless waltz.
However, Akame was worried about Tatsumi. From what she had seen, he was in difficulty. His opponent read his mind, and Tatsumi could not overcome him with pure strength and speed.
Worst, their last exchange had broken Tatsumi's sword, the very one Akame and Esdeath gave him.
Tatsumi was defenseless and reduced to barely avoid Ogre's furious assaults. If nothing were to be done, he would surely…
(How can I help him? With some time, I'll get rid of Taeko, but if I try to hurry the things up, it'll turn against me!)
Out of the blue, two arms and a broadsword flied towards Akame and landed right in front of her, startling both Taeko and her.
However, even confronted to this sight, Akame quickly recovered his mind, but moreover, recognized the sword.
In an instant, she thought up of something. Taking the initiative, she jumped on the sword and took it.
Taeko stepped back, probably suspicious about Akame wielding two swords.
However, Akame surprised her by throwing the broadsword towards Tatsumi and Ogre with all her strength.
(I would like to know how it has arrived here, but it can wait. This is what Tatsumi needs!)
Tatsumi was in a dire situation. Since his sword had been broken by Ogre, he didn't have a weapon to fight. His wives, his only allies, were occupied with great opponents. And his was vengeful, strong, wielding a greatsword.
(How am I gonna survive this?!)
He dodged a thrust only by rolling on the side.
(Okay, it's time to pray. Deity of my village, I swear, if you give me a miracle right now, I'll double my offerings! Double, you hear me?!)Tatsumi prayed mentally, avoiding a new strike.
Maybe it was his imagination, maybe he was thinking things because of the stress, but he heard a distant voice answering him:
"Zero multiplied by two is zero. Go die, you scrooge."
Tatsumi gritted his teeth. He never made any offering to his village's god, so the answer was logical, but…
(Am I turning crazy or did my deity just told me to die?!)
"Oi, what the fuck are you thinking about?! I can't understand one bit of your scrap!" Ogre complained.
At the moment Tatsumi thought he was done for, some silver light flied in front of him and almost decapitated him.
"Whaa–"
He held his exclamation when he noticed the silver light was a broadsword, strangely ornamented, with a reptile eye on its scaled pommel.
Tatsumi did not think twice about it: a weapon was a weapon, and he needed one. Grabbing the sword, he noticed the fangs at the end of the pommel.
One second later, he parried a horizontal blow from Ogre
(This sword is good!)
"Tatsumi!"
Looking for the source of the call, Tatsumi localized Akame, fighting Taeko, twenty meters away on the frozen plain.
Akame was still exchanging strikes with Taeko, however, she managed to talk to him.
"Tatsumi! Use this sword! Concentrate like when you invoked Incursio and put the fangs on your arm!"
Both Akame and Tatsumi were interrupted, one by Taeko, the other by Ogre, as both tried to kill them.
Tatsumi backed and focused on Akame's words.
(Concentrate…and put the fangs on my arm?)
He did as he was told, and to his surprise, the snake fangs bit his arm.
But moreover, a terrible pain invaded his body, a pain he never felt before.
It was as if his entire body was burning from the inside, as if someone was hammering his bones with a mace… words could not describe it.
He could not move at all, he could not even see as he had closed his eyes, resisting the pain, the pain that could drive him mad.
In the middle of his suffering, he heard loud footsteps, meaning Ogre was rushing towards him to kill him while he was incapacitated.
"Bwa ha ha! I don't know what's gotten into you but allow me to end your torment!"
The next instant, the pain ceased, as suddenly as it had appeared.
Tatsumi opened his eye, saw Ogre, his greatsword raised, and with a speed he wasn't normally capable of, he dodged the attack.
Ogre took some time to realize Tatsumi had dodged.
Tatsumi himself was feeling incredibly good, incredibly…powerful.
(That's… why Akame told me to?...)
Realizing he had no time for such questions, he readied his body, and rushed Ogre at full speed.
"Wha…What is this–"
His sentence interrupted by Tatsumi's assault, Ogre did his best to defend himself, but Tatsumi was somehow too strong for him now.
"How?! You fucking brat! You were weak seconds ago! How can this... I can't read…Too fast!"
It was a repetition of the fight that opposed Akame to Zank.
Tatsumi was too fast for Ogre's Spectator, which could only mean one thing…
His broadsword vertically cut off Ogre in two, breaking his Teigu in the process, ravaging brains, bones and flesh along with watering the ground with blood.
…the battle was over.
Right after throwing the broadsword to Tatsumi, Akame resumed her concentration and focused on her fight.
She knew Tatsumi would win. She knew he would not die.
Following a counter, Taeko took some distance and all of sudden, smoke appeared all around her.
"Floral Wind: Death to those who draw near!"
Her unexpected immobility dazed Akame.
(Is it a trap? Is that smoke toxic? Or is there another trick? She looks open, but…)
Akame forced herself to observe Taeko. When she caught a glimpse of her gaze, she understood.
Taeko was actually waiting for her to attack. Her eyes, no, her entire being was ready for an immediate counterattack.
(Death to those who draw near… no hidden meaning. But it's precisely why it pushes her foes to attack, eh?...) Akame thought.
Instead of rushing carelessly, Akame waited. It was certain Taeko could not maintain such a concentration eternally.
Her reasoning proved to be right. Several instants later, Taeko suddenly disappeared.
"Mountain Wind!"
To put it accurately, she disappeared and reappeared in front of Akame, on the verge of slashing her.
But Akame was ready. She had not been waiting like an idiot. She had done the same as Taeko: waiting for an opening given by a hasty opponent.
Taeko's Kiriichimonji nearly cut Akame's hair, as the latter slightly moved on the side in order to avoid it.
However, it was not a complete dodge. Akame moved just enough to be able to perform an unavoidable strike, at her contact.
By the time Taeko slashed only air, Akame had raised Murasame with both her hands, like a headsman beheading someone.
But as her sword was declining on Taeko…
"Twister!"
Taeko, at the speed of light, moved behind Akame. She had used her most powerful technique: Twister, which allowed her to drastically increase her speed movement for a limited time.
She was now in Akame's back, in her blind spot, the blind spot she had noticed as they were fighting.
From here, she would easily cut her in two. There was no way for Akame to dodge this blow.
And Akame did not dodge. No. Instead of that…
Her vertical strike followed a curve, and as Akame spun on herself, her sword described a crescent moon to cut Taeko in a perfect reverse blow.
"…?!"
Akame remembered Taeko's ultimate technique, Twister. There was no way she could forget such a deadly and useful move.
She knew Taeko would try to dictate her rhythm, and she created the perfect opening for her to use her ace.
Akame was well aware of her blind spots. One could say she expressly created this one to lure Taeko. She knew that as an assassin, she would aim for the blind spot.
So, she anticipated the incoming attack and planned her own countermeasure.
Put it simply, she utterly read Taeko's mind.
Understanding her enemy, making her believe she had the upper hand, creating a false opening to lead her into a trap and deliver the blow that would kill her with a 100% success rate.
That was one of Akame's many ways to kill. She was always adapting, changing according to the foe she was facing.
Taeko, suffering from a diagonal wound on her chest, fell on her knees and dropped Kiriichimonji. Murasame's curse spread from there on her whole body, proving that even if she had been resurrected somehow, she was mortal…and dying.
Taeko looked at Akame, who was still in combat stance, on the edge.
"You…read me…again."
"I trusted you would strike at my most vulnerable point."
"…so this is my loss…again."
She paused, and spoke, this time hardly.
"Hey, Akame…do you think…we'll be on the same side… in another life?"
"…we don't know. We can only hope."
Taeko smiled for the first time to Akame. A smile with regrets, a painful smile.
She then collapsed on the ground, lifeless.
(… You didn't deserve this. But I will find the one who brought you back), Akame mentally swore.
A quick look around her taught her that Tatsumi had defeated Ogre thanks to the power-up of his sword. Esdeath had killed Gensei and was currently dealing with Northerners reinforcements, the ones who were to arrive as the sentinel told them before.
Akame did not lose her time and ran to help her –though Esdeath was not in need of any help–. It was better to eliminate quickly these remnants for a simple and good reason: what if the enemy had more powerful warriors like the ones they fought?
Terminating the threat of the east flank and coming back to the camp as fast as possible was preferable.
Tatsumi also joined the fight against the newcomers Northerners.
(It's not like these two need my assistance, but the quicker the better, I guess…) he thought, glancing at his wives who were literally rampaging through the Northerners ranks.
With the power-up the sword gave him, he was far too stronger for the poorly armed green boys that came to him.
(In the end, it's like Incursio, it's some kind of boost…)
"?!"
The instant he had this thought, he felt his body coming back to 'normal'. In other words, his enhanced strength, his speed, his vision and reflexes granted by the sword were gone.
He was back to his usual self.
This sudden decline surprised him so much he almost got impaled by a halberd and only dodged it from an inch, leaving a cut on his left cheek.
Fortunately, Tatsumi reacted in time. Even without his newly acquired strength, he was far stronger than the common mortals.
"Akame…you could've told me that this super boost was also super short!" he growled for himself, diving into the melee with a renewed vigor.
"It's…over?" Tatsumi asked, panting.
"Seems so. Clear of hostiles" Akame answered, checking the surroundings.
The frozen plain, once covered with thin snow and rare plants, was now a bloody mess with corpses everywhere.
"A feast for crows…" Esdeath commented.
Contrarily to Tatsumi who was exhausted, Esdeath was perfectly fine, but that was normal: her stamina was simply inhuman.
Akame was lightly panting; Murasame's curse sapped both her speed and endurance.
"Tatsumi, are you okay?" Esdeath asked, seeing her lover's left cheek covered with blood.
"Yes. Just a graze, thanks. What about you?"
"Of course, I'm all right" Esdeath puffed.
"Me too" Akame said. "Though, they were tough opponents…"
Tatsumi tried to sheathe his broadsword, but the blade was too large compared to his previous sword.
"Sorry, I broke your gift…" he apologized to his wives.
"It's not like you did it intentionally" Esdeath reassured him. "But I see you found a new one. Is that Gensei's?"
"Yes. Oh, Akame, talking about that, what was this ability? I mean, the sword's one?! And, since we're at it, should we not be asking questions, like, why are these dead guys alive?!"
Akame sighed.
"Well, they were alive, for sure. Now they're dead. Really dead, I mean. I have several theories about it, but a battlefield is not the place to talk about that. And I'm sure Najenda will want to hear what we have to say…"
She designed their surroundings: darkness and dead bodies.
"Let's get back to the camp. Once we arrive, I'll tell you more about your sword, Tatsumi. And we'll discuss with Najenda, concerning these living-dead…"
"Agreed. We must remain focused. Some may be lurking around" Esdeath nodded.
"Wait a second. It looks like our enemies were all equipped with powerful weapons…shouldn't we get them?" Tatsumi suggested.
"You already have Gensei's sword. I'll recover Taeko's. And concerning Ogre…" Akame started.
"He had Spectator…but I broke it."
"Another Teigu broken…way to go, Tatsumi" Esdeath wryly smiled.
"Sorry…"
Akame came back, Kiriichimonji in hand.
"Let's go."
"Ahem, give me two seconds. I have to recover something too…"
Akame tilted her head but nodded. A few moments later, the trio departed.
As they carefully went on their way back, Akame pondered.
(Dead people coming back to life. Weapons of the past resurfacing. Has the world gone mad?)