Through the Pumpkin Teigu's scope, Mine watched the manor's interior, confusion flickering in her eyes.
Their current target was one of the names provided by the Lord of the Path of Peace.
Run had assigned the mission to her and Akame.
She was to snipe the target from afar, while Akame stood guard and watched her back.
It was supposed to be a straightforward mission, but things took an unexpected turn.
Suddenly, six individuals emerged from the residence, looking like they had just finished a banquet.
But instead of being greeted like guests, the guards rushed at them and a brutal fight broke out.
In mere moments, three full squads of guards were wiped out by the six.
"This is bad! Akame, they're Teigu users! Unknown Teigu users just appeared!" Mine's voice trembled with urgency.
"And... the one leading them looks really familiar. I think he's one of the wanted criminals posted all over the Capital."
Akame blinked at the mention of wanted criminals.
Not long ago, she herself had been plastered all over the city walls with wanted posters.
Now here she was, hunting down other wanted men... Life's twists were unpredictable.
"A wanted man in the Capital? Last time, Ogre got slapped to death by Esdeath. The only one left on the posters... is the Minister's son, Syura."
Akame narrowed her eyes, peering into the distance. The manor was too far to make out details, only its outline was visible.
"Could it be Syura?" she asked.
"Too far to be certain," Mine replied. "But his facial features match the sketch Chelsea gave us. I'd say it's definitely him."
She kept her sights trained on the manor. "So what now? Do we go in and take him out?"
Akame didn't act rashly. She asked carefully, "How many Teigu users are there?"
"Hold on, let me check... Four have shown signs of enhanced combat abilities. So, at a minimum, four."
Mine's nerves were tightening.
Four Teigu users. That was not something she and Akame could handle alone.
"Let's head back. We need to report this."
Akame's voice was steady and serious.
"Chelsea told us—if we ever spot Syura, we have to report it immediately."
"Alright," Mine agreed, then added, "Let's wait till they leave and check the manor to confirm if the target is dead. If he's still alive, we'll finish him off. Then report."
Neither of them mentioned following Syura.
Chelsea had warned them long ago, Syura was a target designated by God himself. If he showed up in the Capital, their only job was to report it immediately.
If God was involved, finding him wasn't their concern.
Of course, what they didn't know was that Chelsea was fabricating the divine orders.
Souta couldn't care less about Syura.
It was Chelsea—along with Kurumi, Altair, Rin Tohsaka, and others who had read the Akame ga Kill! manga, who harbored deep resentment toward Syura. Just thinking about him left a bitter taste in their mouths.
After a group discussion, Chelsea volunteered to record a brutal execution video of Syura and upload it for everyone to enjoy.
So she started issuing fake orders under Souta's name.
Naturally, Souta was aware—and didn't care.
Getting to personally punish a character who disgusted you in a manga? Or even just sending someone else to do it?
Frankly, it felt pretty damn good.
Souta was more than happy to look the other way and let Chelsea handle it.
Especially since... he had his hands full right now.
He was beginning to get addicted to spanking Esdeath. The whole sadomasochism thing was starting to grow on him.
Soon, after confirming Syura and his group had left, Mine alerted Akame.
The two of them quickly moved into the manor, stepping over the carnage.
"These people deserved to die, but... this was too much," Mine muttered, eyes full of disgust.
Killing was one thing. But this level of mutilation—it was tasteless.
Chelsea had been right. The Minister's son had twisted hobbies. He was a devil who killed without blinking.
He probably stumbled upon the banquet on his return to the Capital—and decided to have some "fun."
"Target confirmed," Akame said, kneeling beside one of the bodies and checking for a pulse. "He's dead."
Mine stepped over, raised her Pumpkin, and shot him in the head.
Bang! His skull exploded.
As Akame stared in confusion, Mine answered matter-of-factly:
"Don't you remember what God said? Always double-tap. What if he was faking it?"
Akame nodded. "You're right."
Then, she drew her Teigu, Murasame, and sliced the headless corpse in half.
"Now he's definitely dead. Let's go."
Inside the private palace chambers, Souta and Esdeath finished their morning "exercise" and began eating breakfast.
The maids brought in a lavish spread. Souta looked at the food, the ornate palace, and Esdeath—finally understanding why so many people dreamed of being emperor.
"Esdeath," Souta suddenly called.
"Hm?" she looked up, her icy blue hair swaying gently.
He reached out to adjust her bangs, murmuring as he did:
"You were screaming way too loud just now. I wasn't even hitting that hard."
"What? Don't you like it when I respond with more enthusiasm?" Esdeath grinned, unbothered by his intimate gesture.
She really did feel like she was in love.
"Stop giving me weird labels. And if the maids hear, they'll definitely get the wrong idea."
Under Esdeath's guidance, he'd been leaning more into his sadistic side. Holding a whip and candle made him feel like a different person.
Was this... really okay?
Both of them were way too into this game. They barely talked before jumping into another round.
Souta felt like he was going down a slippery slope.
He hadn't even done that with anyone yet, and here he was, diving into something far kinkier.
It was like trying to sprint before learning to walk.
But damn, Esdeath was strong! The more she got punished, the more she enjoyed it.
It felt like he'd flipped her from S to M.
And that majestic throne in the palace? It was becoming her exclusive pain-play zone.
They were so used to playing on the throne that the bed felt almost unfamiliar now.
"Who cares what the maids think?" Esdeath teased. "Shall we head back to the throne today?"
"Ahem... Let's skip today. We're doing this way too often, it's getting in the way of our training," Souta declined her tempting offer.
"Oh? But you looked like you were having fun."
Esdeath's foot slid under the table, stroking his knee and thigh as she licked her lips.
"Your technique's getting better. Almost as good as when I interrogate prisoners."
"You're the one enjoying this, not me! I really need to stop being such a per—"
Before he could finish, footsteps echoed outside.
Without knocking, Chelsea burst in, her eyes lighting up when she saw Souta.
"Souta, Syura's back in the Capital! We've got fresh footage!"
Then she noticed Esdeath sitting across from him—and paused.
"Huh? Why are you here again?"
Esdeath calmly replied, "You're just a saintess. Do I need your permission for everything I do?"
Chelsea eyed the two of them, suspicious.
Something about their dynamic lately... felt off.
Their behavior was getting sketchier too.
Once, when she went to report to the Hall of Audiences, she heard Esdeath shouting from the sealed palace room, "Is that all you've got? Try harder!"
She figured they were sparring again.
Esdeath really was a battle maniac!
But when she opened the door... there was no one inside. No way they'd fought their way outside that fast.
Chelsea was starting to suspect, Souta might be hiding something from her.
"Syura, huh? He's back, so deal with him yourself. You're strong enough—you don't need me."
"Well..." Chelsea rubbed her nose awkwardly. "I never really developed my combat skills, so... I'll still need your help."
"Syura... the Minister's son?" Esdeath interjected.
"Why not send the assassination squad?"
"No good. He needs to be taken out in a special way and..."
Souta glanced at her, exasperated.
"You shouldn't go making promises you can't keep. Fine, I'll catch him for you so you can film your... wait, what?"
A strange vibration ran through his body.
The two exchanged glances, then simultaneously pulled out their system phones.