Fifteen minutes earlier.
After three hours of information transmission and preparation, most of the Revolutionary Army's infiltrators across the Imperial Capital had begun to move. Under Najenda's command, they gathered at the hidden passage entrance leading to the Imperial Palace.
After hearing Najenda's daring surprise attack plan, the other Night Raid core members unanimously agreed...
To be precise, aside from Mine, who had clearly opposed it earlier, everyone else in Night Raid and the Revolutionary Army was tempted by the idea.
No wonder—this gamble, even if it cost their lives, was worth taking!
Although the Empire's reputation among the people had already plummeted to the extreme, as long as its upper-echelon combat power remained intact, the Revolutionary Army's hopes of victory were slim. Selene, Esdeath, Budo... none among them could be matched by the Revolutionary Army!
Now, with Esdeath fighting abroad, Selene showing signs of siding with them, and even more Imperial officials beginning to waver, the environment for their decapitation strike had never been better!
As long as they assassinated the Young Emperor and Minister Honest, the revolution would be more than half complete. The rest would simply be a matter of negotiating with the remaining factions—everything would return to order.
In the underground warehouse of a hotel near the secret tunnel's entrance, food and supplies had long been cleared away. Replacing them were mountains of weapons, armaments, and high-powered explosives. Over a hundred Revolutionary Army operatives gathered there.
"Comrades! Our long-cherished dream is about to be realized today!"
Having long been prepared, Najenda stood at the center of the warehouse, beginning her final speech of motivation and mobilization.
"For this moment, countless of our comrades have fallen on the eve of dawn..."
"It's regrettable that they cannot fight alongside us... but that's all right. Their heroic spirits remain by our side! They are watching us!"
"Today, after years of struggle, the end is in sight! Above us lies the palace of the tyrant and his corrupt minister! This will be our final battle!"
"Comrades! For our fallen brothers and sisters! For our families who suffer under tyranny! For all the people who yearn to live! Fight with everything you have!!"
"..." There was no roaring cheer, but every Revolutionary soldier straightened their backs, fists clenched to their chests, eyes solemn yet burning with fire.
Najenda mirrored their gesture, striking her right fist to her chest, her expression serious yet confident as she declared, "Our fate rests here and now. If we win, we live together. If we lose... we die together!"
...
Imperial Palace.
"Even with so many walls and layers of defense, the palace still has this many watchtowers... these 'big shots' sure fear death..."
Muttering under her breath, Mine lay prone atop one of the palace guard towers, wearing a palace guard's uniform. Raising her Pumpkin rifle, she adjusted the high-powered scope, locking onto a luxurious golden palace below.
Inside the glittering hall, the increasingly obese Honest chewed greedily on a slab of greasy meat, resting his chin on his hand as he watched the swaying silhouettes of the dancers with interest.
Across from him, the Young Emperor looked at a report Honest had chosen for him and asked curiously, "Minister, is the Empire truly at peace? Though reports of General Esdeath's victories continue to arrive, why do rebellions never cease? Is it because I am not fit to rule?"
"Hm? Your Majesty, who told you such things?" Honest froze briefly upon hearing the emperor's startling words.
"No one. It's what I thought myself. Also... what happened the night before last? The disturbance was enormous." Setting the report aside, the emperor continued.
"Ah, hahaha... as expected of Your Majesty. You've grown up." After a brief pause, Honest's face twisted into a practiced smile as he praised, "I believe it won't be long before Your Majesty becomes a wise ruler equal to your late father."
Hearing Honest's flattery, the Young Emperor's contemplative expression vanished, replaced by a delighted smile. "Truly? I can be compared to Father? That makes me very happy."
"Yes, under Your Majesty's reign, the Empire shall surely prosper." Though Honest's laughter echoed heartily, behind that smile brewed murderous intent.
It seemed the Young Emperor was gradually developing thoughts of his own. If power were ever returned to him, that old man Budo and that woman Selene would never let Honest live.
He had to find a way... Ah, what a pity. In his earlier rashness, he had wiped out all of the First Emperor's descendants. There wasn't even a substitute left... If the Young Emperor were to die now, Honest himself would surely perish as well.
Hmm... there it was! The Young Emperor truly was growing up—so it was about time he took a consort. Let him experience the pleasures of man and woman. Once he left behind an heir, even if this emperor died, another could take his place, and Honest would remain as the Empire's minister!
"Hahaha, Your Majesty, since you're so concerned about these matters, allow me to explain what happened the night before last. A group of thieves calling themselves Night Raid caused some disturbance. Thankfully, they were swiftly exterminated. To prevent further incidents, I have specially founded an organization to deal with them..."
As he spoke, Honest stood up and continued, "The organization is called 'Wild Hunt.' I've recommended my beloved son, Syura, as its leader."
"The minister's son? Then he must be a pillar of the nation. Let it be so." The Young Emperor, upon hearing that the candidate was Honest's son, agreed without hesitation.
"Hahaha... many thanks for Your Majesty's trust. Syura, come in and express your gratitude!"
At Honest's call, six people entered—four men and two women.
The one leading them had dark skin and white hair, with a long braid like a tail hanging from the back of his head. Yet neither his skin nor his hair was what stood out most.
What drew attention was his face—across it ran two massive scars that crossed each other, carving a grotesque X across his entire visage. The intersecting scars made him appear both wild and savage.
"Your Majesty, this is my son, Syura." Placing a hand proudly on his son's shoulder, Honest introduced him with a smug smile.
"Indeed, quite the impressive figure... Hmm, it's almost six o'clock. Minister, I'll take my leave now. I trust you'll handle things well."
The Young Emperor didn't seem to care about the others' manners. He rose, took his hat, and placed it neatly on his head before walking out of the hall.
"Farewell to His Majesty..." Honest said with feigned reverence. Only after the emperor left with his guards did he sit down again.
"Old man... that fake face of yours is disgusting." Syura crossed his arms, looking down on him with disdain.
"You brat... watch your mouth. Hmph, forget it. So, how do you plan to deal with Night Raid?" Honest resumed tearing into a chunk of meat as he asked.
"Heh, what else? Kill them, of course. I've got the power to do it. Let me introduce my team..." Casually dropping into a chair opposite Honest, Syura gestured toward the five behind him.
All members of Wild Hunt were companions Syura had gathered during his travels around the world. To put it nicely, they were like-minded; to put it bluntly, they were cut from the same filthy cloth.
As he spoke, Syura pulled out a grayish-white cube and began to toss it up and down in his hand, a smug grin spreading across his face. "And with this, Night Raid won't be able to escape no matter what!"
Teigu: Dimensional Formation · Shambhala, a spatial manipulation-type Teigu capable of instantly teleporting targets to designated locations.
With this in hand, Syura believed that even the Empire's strongest general, Selene, could be challenged. He might not win—but he certainly wouldn't be killed.
"All right, old man, I can't wait any longer. I heard there are some real beauties in Night Raid—" Just as Syura boasted, when the Shambhala cube was about to land in his palm—
BOOM—!
Whoosh—!
Along with a deafening explosion, an orange beam of light pierced straight through the hand reaching for Shambhala!
Splurt!
In the next instant, Syura's arm was severed cleanly at the wrist, blood gushing like a fountain, splattering across both himself and Honest beside him.
The sight froze everyone present—including Honest himself. This was the Imperial Palace! What in the world was that explosion just now?!
A moment later—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Explosions erupted in rapid succession. Combined with Syura's ear-splitting screams, everyone instantly realized what was happening.
"Assassins—!"
In less than three seconds, the once-luxurious palace hall collapsed at alarming speed, reduced to rubble and debris. Smoke and dust filled the air, while numerous palace guards were buried beneath the falling stone.
BANG!
But soon, the shattered rubble was lifted away as the burly Sten carried Honest out of the debris. Standing beside him were the Four Rakshasa Demons, who had shielded Honest at the very last moment before the palace collapsed.
As the sounds of movement continued, the five members of Wild Hunt—excluding Syura—emerged one after another from the ruins. After all, each of them was a Teigu user, and none so weak as to die from mere falling debris.
"Useless trash!" Honest roared furiously, though it was unclear whether his scolding was directed at the palace guards or his own son, Syura.
"Execute Honest!!!"
"For the Revolutionary Army!!"
At that very moment, a large number of black-robed Revolutionary soldiers burst forth from all sides of the palace, weapons gleaming as they charged toward Honest.
"Traitors! You damned—hmm?" Honest's furious shouting abruptly halted when his eyes caught a flash of silver amidst the crowd.
Immediately, his jaw clenched tight with audible grinding, the muscles of his face twitching under the pressure. "Najenda!!"
Pulling away the cloak bearing the Night Raid insignia, Najenda held up her double-edged longbow and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Honest! Your death has come!!"
Behind her stood Leone, Lubbock, and other high-ranking Night Raid members. Among them, a man wielding a long-handled scythe was particularly striking.
"Holimaca, thank you for your sect's support. There's no time for formalities—our top priority is to eliminate Honest..."
"Rest assured, Najenda... General, we of the Path of Peace always keep our word. We trust your side will do the same..."
With a raspy voice, Holimaca lifted his scythe and charged straight into the regrouping palace guards. Blood sprayed into the air as his blade cut through flesh and armor alike, clearing a path toward Honest's direction.
"Leone, Lubbock—when even our allies fight with such ferocity, how can we, the hosts of this rebellion, fall behind?!"
"Yes!" With fighting spirit blazing in their eyes, Leone and Lubbock rushed forward, one after the other, plunging into the fray.
Bang!
Clack, clack, clack!
Leone's beastly claws swept out in a wide, one-meter arc, striking three palace guards head-on. They and their shields were sent flying like broken dolls.
Meanwhile, the guards standing before Lubbock suffered an even grimmer fate—their bodies shredded into pieces by the cutting wires of Cross Tail, leaving not even corpses behind.
Three Teigu users, along with nearly a dozen Shingu users—within moments, the palace guards' defensive line was completely shattered.
"Kill—!!" The Revolutionary Army's morale soared even higher, emboldened by their leaders' strength.
Watching the swarming soldiers charging at him like wild beasts, Honest felt an unfamiliar pang of fear.
"Damn it! Stop them! Whatever rewards you want, I'll give them! Just hold them off!!"
With that order barked, he commanded both the Four Rakshasa Demons and Wild Hunt before turning to flee toward the Emperor's sleeping quarters. He had no intention of staying to exchange words with Najenda.
"That old fool Budo—are his Imperial Guards all dead?! The enemy's already inside the palace! And that Holimaca... he's with the Path of Peace, isn't he?! After all the favors I gave them—ungrateful dogs!!"
Cursing as he ran, Honest's voice echoed through the collapsing halls.
Vwoom—
Seeing Honest trying to escape, Najenda locked onto his bulky figure. Raising her silver longbow, the glowing string drew back fully, air swirling violently around her.
"Radiant Arrow!"
As soon as the words left her lips, the roaring wind fell silent. In the next instant—whoosh!—the 'arrow' formed of light shot forth as a streak of golden brilliance.
The shockwave along its path carved a deep trench across the palace floor, scattering rubble and dust in its wake.
Vmmm—!
Just as the glowing arrow was about to strike Honest, a massive arm swung down in front of it, cleaving through the beam with brute force.
It was Sten, one of the Four Rakshasa Demons. The metallic screech of impact echoed as his gauntlet shattered, flesh splitting open and blood spraying from his arm until it was nothing but mangled muscle.
But his interference wasn't entirely in vain—the Radiant Arrow had been broken apart.
"The Four Rakshasa Demons, huh? But my arrows don't break that easily..." Narrowing her eyes slightly, Najenda's expression remained calm as she advanced closer toward Honest.
Najenda's new Teigu: Sure-Hit Bow · L'Arc Qui Ne Faut—a bow-type Teigu. Once the target is locked and within range, its arrows of light will pursue endlessly until they strike.
Though Pumpkin had been inherited by Mine, and Susanoo had been taken by Selene, the Revolutionary Army had grown large enough that acquiring a new Teigu for Najenda was no difficult feat.
"Lord Honest, look out!" Ibara's sudden warning made Sten turn sharply.
The light arrow that Sten had just destroyed was reforming before their eyes!
"What?!"
Hearing the alarm, Honest turned instinctively—only to see a golden flash reflected in his eyes. Reflexively, he pulled a nearby guard in front of him as a shield.
Splurt!