It's so vivid.
She saw a huge white palm engulfed her, too fast for her to react. It curled its fingers around her body, and she could hear her body cracked in multiple places. The taste in her mouth at that time... was of death.
Then, the white prison around her lost its strength. What appeared from beyond it was her comrade, clad in all purple, swinging her prized weapon.
Then her savior jerked her body, a red hole appearing in her belly. Two gaping sets of teeth appeared over the woman's head and shoulder, shutting down with a grim certainty.
She felt warm liquid bathed her face.
Her pink eyes met purple... and she saw a smile...
Everything went white.
"SHEELEEEE!"
With her body covered in cold sweat, Mine winced at the headache caused by her certain movement. But she could care less about the pain.
Sheele... Shelee was...
Tears started pooling around the corners of Mine's eyes, threatening to spill with her choked sobs of anguish. It took around fifteen minutes for the pink-haired assassin to calm down.
A white, luxurious, clean room greeted her fatigued mind. The bed and blanket were ridiculously soft. The room only had the essential furniture, but all of them were top of the line.
'Yeah, definitely not the Empire's prison.'
Taking a deep breath, she started to try recalling previous night's events, after... after that. She's definitely not in a state to escape. No, someone definitely carried her here in high speed, as she vividly remembered the G-force she experienced after Extase exploded with light.
Now though, there's more important matters to discuss.
"WHO CHANGED MY CLOOOOTHEESSSS!?" Mine shrieked loud enough for everyone in the mansion to hear.
XxXx
I'm in the middle of going over some notes with Yoru in the living room, when my eardrums is hammered by a loud voice. It's a good thing I've reinforced my mansion as tough as a fortress, or I suspect some windows may have shattered.
'She has some impressive lungs, despite her size.'
"Damn, are you sure she's human and not a banshee, Aniki? That scream probably ruptured my eardrums," Yoru said, his hands on his ears.
Not replying to the joke, I make my way to the guest room, my loyal assistant on tow.
However, as we reach the guest room's door, I feel a sense of foreboding.
'She'll attack the instant this door opens.' With that thought, I let Yoru open the door.
Just on cue, a pink whirlwind tackles him to the ground. Two small fists pound his face and chest, but he spins his leg around in a flying triangle choke. Deciding against killing her, I'm glad that he simply chooses to use it to flung her away. In a quick step, he's already ready to knock her out with a punch.
I can see Mine's body staggering off-balance, her body definitely hasn't fully healed. I don't wish for a guest of mine to be unconcious twice in two days, so I step in and catch Yoru's wrist, while patting away her desperate counterattack with a kick.
"Stand down. Both of you."
Thankfully, the two of them still retain their common sense. Mine sits back down on the bed with a scowl, while Yoru stands diagonally behind me, killing intent still emanating from his eyes.
I try to defuse the situation a bit further.
"Yoru, splendid reaction from you. Spending yesterday as my punching bag seems to do you good." Yoru sheepishly looks away, so I turn my attention to the young assassin. "And you. I know you're upset because of your clothes..." I immediately cut off her response, "And, yes, I was the one that changed them. However, do all Night Raid members blindly attack their savior like that? If so, I'm disappointed."
Blinking away for a moment, the girl finally has a decency to lower her head in apology.
"Just to make sure..." I let my Prana leak out, "I'll send you to accompany your comrade if you try that again."
I don't need visual confirmation to know my threat is working. Maybe too well, as Yoru shifts uncomfortably behind me.
Calming myself down, I order Yoru to leave me alone with Mine. He obediently complies, and shuts the door softly behind me.
Mine opens her mouth to say something, but again I lift my palm to interrupt her.
"I'll start with an apology," I slowly tell her, "I can't save your teammate."
Her hair is long enough to prevent me from reading her eyes, but her fists suddenly clenches the hem of her white one-piece dress. It's one of my maid's sleepwear, which is very... indecent, to say, given her built, but it suits someone Mine's height perfectly enough to be modest. Tears drip down towards the back of her palm.
"Her... her body... Where's it?" Her voice is raspy and slightly incoherent, but I know it's normal. She's even younger than Tatsumi an Akame, so she still has a long way to go to mature. She recognizes me, which is good enough. Lubbock did as I intended.
"I don't know."
Mine nods her head weakly. "Yeah, it'd be too much to ask... I think..."
"She was an idiot."
Hearing those words, Mine explodes in anger.
"What do you mean... BY SHE WAS AN IDIOT?! SHE WAS A GREAT FIGHTER! She's kind, compassionate, and caring! She... she could be slow at times, yeah, but... BUT SHE'S MY FRIEND! Don't you dare..."
She launches her fist at me, even faster than before.
"DON'T YOU DARE CALL HER THAT!"
Catching her fist easily, I wait for a sign of a follow-up, but there seems to be none.
"May I elaborate?"
"Hurry the fuck up!"
I let go of her fist and sits down in a nearby chair, gesturing her to do the same. A knock sounds from the wooden door, and one of the butlers comes in with some tea. I'm not sure she's in the mood to drink anything right now, so I let the tea cool on the table without drinking mine.
After he left, I continue on. "I don't doubt anything you claim her to be. It's simply an objective analysis from my part." I stare at her right in the eyes. "She chose to save you. There's nothing wrong with that, but she could've achieved the same objective by killing that Teigu's owner faster. Believe me, she had that chance. She blew it."
I close my eyes, resting my back on the chair. "She was hasty. She panicked. Was that your first mission? No, right?" Mine shakes her head. "So, in the end, it's a misjudgment from her part. Her mistake. A false step that caused her death, your injury, and an Empire's Teigu user to leave away with her life."
I lean forward, putting pressure into my words, "Am I right?"
Now, I notice, the girl in front of me still has a face befitting her age. Soft on the edges, just traces of baby fat still lingers. Strong eyes, high nose... She's got a gallant face, people willl say. Normally, she has a fierce expression on, a mask to hide her weakness and immaturity inside, but she's one of those that you can call beautiful.
Her determination to defend her friend fades ever so slightly form her eyes. She slowly looks away from me, not wanting to admit it just yet. Well, it's fine by me; as long as she doesn't make a ruckus, this silent treatment works as well.
Drinking my tea, I start to leave. "I've contacted your comrades, who should be here soon. If you're hungry, come down to the hall to eat. I won't spoil you."
She shoots a glare at me with that remark, but soon accepts her position.
"And my clothes?"
"In the laundry. Someone will send them to you later." I open the door, but not before one final sentence. "Oh, and wipe that drool from your face."
I shut the door behind me, just in time for it to block a powerfully thrown pillow slamming into me.
"Just go and die already!"
Tatsumi was feeling an inexplicable sense of dread as his group approached the rendezvous point, where they're supposedly going to pick up Mine. He chalked it up as old wounds reopening, for that location... was Aria's old mansion. The place he learnt the truth. The place his childhood friends drew breath for the last time. The place he first met Night Raid. It's a catalyst, he felt, in his early life to get where he was now.
Bulat smacked him on the back, causing him to almost stumble and fall onto the ground.
"Oi! What's up with that, Aniki?!" Tatsumi shouted.
"Tatsumi! Pay attention, we are almost at our destination. A true warrior must always be alert, remember that!" Bulat warned him.
Tatsumi couldn't stay angry at the shining face of his comrade, so he just accepted the advice. The swordsman still had some questions he wanted to ask, though.
"Hey, Aniki, why do you think we're meeting Shirou here, of all places?"
"Well, it's his home base, so that in itself is a huge advantage. Other than that, I'm not sure. You should ask the Boss," the older man replied.
"Good point, Bulat. Howev-" Najenda started her explanation, but was cut off suddenly by a strange feeling passing through her.
The whole group stopped, sensing it as well.
No, not all of them. Leone was still running straight, and stopped a few meters in front of them in confusion.
"Hey, why'd we stop?"
"You didn't feel that just now?" Lubbock questioned. His face looked hysterical, as if he just stared death in the face, and one that he couldn't cheat out of.
"Hmm?" she tilted her head in confusion. "Oh, the field perimeter we just crossed? Yeah, I did. So?"
Lubbock was going to press on, but Najenda stopped the discussion prematurely. "Never mind, Leone. Let's get moving. We're exposed here."
With that, the group shot off into the direction of their target.
XxXx
'This man... Shirou Kotomine. How come I've never heard of him?'
Najenda kept on repeating that question over and over again in the last few months, with no solid conclusions. Her experience made her calm in the face of the unknown, but her profession demanded complete knowledge of her opponent. If not, her underlings... no, her family, would be in danger every time she sent them out there.
He's an enigma. He appeared out of nowhere, like Tatsumi, with no obvious background or occupation worth mentioning. What they both have in common was their reception to the Empire's ways, and... that's pretty much it. At least, Tatsumi's background checked out, clearing him out of any suspicion when he joined her group.
Oh, Shirou's background checked out as well. However, it checked out too well.
His hometown was listed as one of those swallowed by the Empire's machinations. His family was listed dead, with no next of kin. He claimed his appearance was due to coming from a faraway land, which sounded plausible. His current job was real estate developments and public investments, both were legit.
An further digging was a dead end. And that's where the problem began.
'No one is a dead end,' she was often told by her seniors and friends. The world was a surprisingly small place, and if you dig enough, every single human being had a connection with others, no matter how small. For example, Tatsumi himself had a passive connection with Esdeath, though the Night Raid leader was certain the two of them never met, just by tracing their past to a near-common point.
This man, though, was a ghost.
His supposed hometown was only rubble, by the time her informant got there. No other traces of living beings was acquired. No evidence of any survivors, or an exodus to other parts of the land. From literature studies, that town was dead even before she was born, more than five decades ago.
Tracing his roots from his appearance also yielded nothing. There's a country in the far south that had similar physical characteristics, but they lived a secular lifestyle, mainly trading with countries further to the south and east of them. Their population was numerous, along with their indigenous tribes, so it's impossible and impractical to invest any more time and money into this lead.
The most frightening thing was just how efficient he was.
From her subordinates' description, he was still in his late teens or early adulthood. That age wasn't uncommon alongside leaders of other organizations, and there's a few of them even younger, not counting Makoto, the current Emperor.
Since she knew of him, he had established a network of information himself, with capabilities nearly matching her own, in less than a year. He made his presence known everywhere her crew operated. He took over Tatsumi's former captor's business with such smoothness she could've suspected he's the heir all along. Said business had onlu grown and grown, giving him enormous wealth. He's been expanding his operations further and further out of the capital, like a growing, contagious net that's impossible to put down.
Even with such scale of operations, not once had the Revolutionary Army had figured out exactly how he worked.
Every time one of his agents was detected, just as swiftly he or she disappeared, only to pop out in an unrelated area sometime later, out of reach. They tried to question the honest face of his business, trying to make them suspect anything about their anonymous master and spill some useful leads. Instead, what the Army learnt was the Saint-like quality of Shirou Kotomine. Not one of his workers, in both sides of the world, had any doubt in their leader.
As if he had a sixth sense. That's the only rationalizing she was capable of.
The Army had no issue in him stealing their targets. What they, and to an extent her, were afraid of was his untouchability.
Four times. Four times five of Night Raid's finest members had come into contact with him. And in three out of four those occasions, her children were sent back at her safely.
He's said his message, loud and clear: "You do not concern me, so scram."
Akame returned broken. Lubbock came back in tears. The first time, Leone cursed at him non-stop back at base, but sang praises when she returned the second time. Only Tatsumi had managed to be unharmed. Yet. And he mostly agreed with Leone's new view of their... acquaintance, to say the least.
He's cordial, that she could determine. He had said things about building a working relationship with Night Raid and the Revolutionary Army, but desired to remain distant and refused to be associated with them. It's a stance she was familiar with, for some of the defectors from the Empire had expressed such things, but it's the first time the other guy held all the bargaining chip.
He's too powerful. Simple as that.
And now her eyes drifted towards Leone, who's leading in front. That... boundary, whatever it was just now, caused a sensation of dread and foreboding that's impossible to ignore or shrug off instantly. She's sure the other members felt the same thing... except for Leone. Her expression and body language didn't even twitch a bit as they crossed that line.
After meeting Shirou Kotomine, the blonde had been... off. She's still the energetic, playful prankster she was before, but her smile had slowly shifted from the predatory grin she often gave off, to a serene, soft smile more befitting a noble girl.
And that's not even putting into account the change in her behavior every time they were discussing about the tanned man. Leone's body language... was akin to a cat petted by its owner. The lioness let her guard down completely, her joints relaxed, and her eyes lost its sharp glare.
It's difficult to tell yet, but... maybe, maybe...
Leone was compromised...?
Any musings were cut off as they arrived at their destination.
"SHIROU KOTOMINE, YOU TWO-FACED BASTARD! TAKE RESPONSIBILITY RIGHT NOW, DAMN IT! I'M NOT GOING AWAY UNTIL YOU COME OOOUUUUUTTTT!"
Massaging my temples, I walk towards one of the guest rooms.
"She really does has a mouth on her, doesn't she?" Yoru asks me a rhetorical question.
I can't help my eyes from eyeing my pocket, where my wallet is.
"Yes, Yoru, she does indeed. She has an even bigger thirst for alcohol. Get the gates open. I'll make sure our guest is ready to return to her friends."
I knock on the door lightly, calling out to Mine, "I'm coming in. Your friends are here to get you."
Mine is back in her normal outfit, which has been repaired and cleaned by my maids. Thankfully, it doesn't evolve into a manga scene where I walk in on her while she's changing or naked.
"Are you ready?"
Mine just stares at me. "Yeah. I'm ready. Being with you is worse than being with Tatsumi, after all." She gives me a bit of jeering with her tongue.
After a bit, she stops and bows at me. "Err... but I apologize for that brute shouting in front of your door." She scratches her reddened cheek.
Making our way down, she nearly tackles her teammates at the sight of them. Well, except for Tatsumi. Oof, classic tsundere hit there! It's not effective!
Knowing my tastes, Yoru serves tea for all of us, then stands behind me on guard. He's getting better and better putting on his 'serious face', as he likes to call it, compared to his old temper. We're nicely seated in my wide living room.
Now, to start the show...
"Welcome, Night Raid, to my humble residence," I spread my hands with a little flair.
"Well, all of us know why we're here... But let me tell you, with full sincerity, that I'm both happy and sorry." Seeing the initial confusion, I continue, "Seeing smiling faces lifts my spirit up, you know? But I also regret... not being able to save one more of you..."
Flashes of sadness and anger begin to show from their eyes, mostly to themselves.
The first to gather a smidge of composure is, predictably, their leader, Najenda.
A former general of the Empire, she was critially injured in battle with General Esdeath when the latter was chasing the former, having defected to the Revolutionary Army at the time. She rose in ranks quickly, becoming head of their assassination unit in two short years. Her first recruit was Lubbock, then Akame, Leone, and Bulat, with Sheele and Mine joining soon after.
It's not a widespread information, even to other groups. The ease of which I acquire my information may seem suspicious, borderline inhuman, maybe, but because I use esoteric methods not known to them to do it: Magecraft. Supplying my agents with low-level Mystic Codes, enchanted items, and even simple charms makes their efficiency skyrockets, even with minimal amount of training and experience compared to Night Raid. In addition, I abuse my Revelation and Charisma skill to my limit, even more than before when I was preparing for the Great Holy Grail War.
Speed is the name of the game, now.
The one-eyed leader stares at my eyes. "Why are we actually here? And no jokes, please. No disrespect to you, Kotomine-san, but we're risking a lot, coming here in a group like this..." She leans forward, prosthetic arm clanking. "Which, I need to stress, is one of your conditions. So, please cut straight to the point."
"You sound very mistrusting of me, Najenda-san." I don't miss the twitch on her eye as I casually say her name without her introducing herself.
"As I should be."
"Wrong."
Now, it's my turn to glare at her.
"If anything, I should've been the one having trouble trusting you, not the other way around. I have never initiated an attack upon your forces intentionally. Not. Even. Once." I freely let my anger bleed into my voice, bringing my Prana along with it. Lately, I've begun to accumulate too much Prana for my personal use, so I have a bit of leeway in wasting it. Using it during conversations is a good investment, I've recently found out.
Lubbock nearly pisses himself, and Akame falls into her knees immediately. Their teammates were frightened as well, with various body parts trembling. Tatsumi, being the innocent boy he is, is looking around dumbly. Leone seems unfazed as well.
'Oh? I need to figure her out later... Maybe I accidentally did something to her?'
"Every time we have had any sort of conflict with each other, Night Raid has started it. And every time conflict has happened I have always come out on top. What do you think this means?"
I wait.
None of them answer back.
I'm satisfied with their understanding.
Wait... no, Tatsumi doesn't seem like he really understands, but he gets the gist of it and questions nothing.
"I apologize, on behalf of the entire Revolutionary movement." Najenda stands up and bows lightly, shocking her underlings. "As you might know, we're a bit cranky at the moment. This... caution of ours stems from the fact you've discovered one of our operating base in the capital. I'm sure you understand."
I wave her off, "That's fine. I don't demand your apology. Regarding that knowledge, aren't we even now? I've showed you my base, after all." I smile and gesture to our surroundings.
Of course, I'm not going to reveal that I know their base in the mountains, as well. Honestly, they think they can cover up a logistics trail that massive and no one will notice? The Empire's staff must be really fat on corruption money, it seems...
"Hey, Boss, I think everything will be fine for right now." Leone comes to my defense.
"You're way too accepting of people, Leone." Najenda replies. 'Especially him.'
"But... think about it. Everything Shirou has said is true! He could have at least killed me, if not Akame, during our scuffle and left Mine to die. I don't think he has any ill intentions for us." Leone says, before turning towards me. "Do you?"
Oh, no. Puppy dog eyes from someone her age is unfair...
"Ugh... Can you stop screwing with me for one second, Leone?" I massage the bridge of my nose, covering up my embarrassment. "It's not really productive."
Damn, that's weak. That's really weak. Need to find an escape route...
Generously, their leader doesn't press on this new wound. Good marks for her. That girl, Mine, is eyeing me with wicked eyes...
Najenda nods. "OK, then. Kotomine-san, let's put aside our differences for now, for I think it won't do good to achieve both our dreams." She stands up again, this time offering a handshake. "We're allies, until the unforeseen future."
I take her hand, smiling. "Of course."
I snap my fingers, and some of the men in the mansion carry forth Pumpkin in a metal case, handing it back to her. The assassin happily holds her weapon close to her.
"Now, I am going to be upfront with you all. I have made contact with former Prime Minister Chouri and bring him over to my side as an ally. He is currently contemplating my offer."
Bulat is the one that replied, "Yes, we've been aware of the former Prime Minister's situation. He is practically a defector, by this point. That is all good if you can bring him to our side."
'It's not your side he will be coming to, though.'
"By the way, have you heard of the big news, Kotomine?" Bulat asks me.
"Which one? 'The Return of the Heroic General'?" I finish with a chuckle.
The rest of the Night Raid seems to find it funny as well, with Bulat's laugh being the loudest. "HAHAHAHA! Y-Yes, that one... Pufu... G-Good shot there..."
Najenda coughs to redirect our attention back to her. "Well, Esdeath's return is certainly grim news for us. However, that's not our priority, right now." She produces a scroll from a compartment inside her metal arm, then tosses it to me.
Unraveling it, what greets my eyes is the normal 'Wanted' poster for Night Raid. Well, she won't consider it important if it's normal in any way, so I start to look for anomalies... Ah, there. Got it.
"You guys will never took out these 3 officials."
Written on the bottom of any posters is usually a list of crimes associated with the criminal. However, the curious thing is that 3 names stand out, all good men. And Night Raid is credited with all these murders.
Najenda nods. "Exactly. A group is killing potential defectors, or those that opposes the Prime Minister. There's a possibility it's connected to Esdeath's return, so we can't leave any stones unturned."
"And our idea on the identity of the next target is the same."
"Yes." She grimly closes her eye. "It's Chouri."
If my expectations are spot on, Chouri and Spear should've departed today, travelling light and incognito. I've directed him to a safe house of mine, so there shouldn't be a problem en route. However, this new group manages to kill 3 officials in quick succession, even though the security increases with every passing victim. They're certainly not normal mercenaries, so my prediction will go out of order.
Maybe I should prepare, just in case.
"I see." I smile at them, indicating my willingness to cooperate. "Well, I think this is quite a productive meeting. I look forward to our partnership in the future." I extend my hand towards the white-haired leader, which she takes eagerly. "Let's reconvene later on. Maybe in your actual base, next time?"
She chuckles. "No way. We need some sort of leeway against you, so no. Perhaps
when our... relationship has progressed a bit more, but not now. You know Lubbock's place and Leone's watering hole, so that's plenty. Contact them if you need anything."
At that sentence, two interesting things happen. First, Lubbock's face is now completely dried of its colour, and his eyes have the look of a corpse. The other one is Leone. I could've sworn I'm seeing her tail wagging excitedly behind her, as her ears perk up and twitch adorably. Her pupils narrow into slits, sparkling in expectation.
I'm not even sure of any feline species that wags its tail. Do they? Either way, she's way too happy in recieving the role of my go-to person. Hmm... again, I need to look into this phenomenon with her at a later time. She's been acting too drastically different from our previous two meetings.
Ahh... well, I think it's tim-
- [SAVE US!]
"Yoru."
"Yes?"
"Please show our guests the way out. Duty calls."
Before any of them can say anything, I disappear in a flash of red.