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Alex shook his head. "No need. As long as you've recognized how rotten the Empire really is, that's enough."
Akame nodded, then asked, "You came to White Wolf Town this time because of Taeko and Chelsea from the Oberg Assassination Guild, right?"
Having seen the anime and read the manga, Akame knew exactly what was supposed to happen next.
In the original story, it was here in White Wolf Town that Cornelia, the leader of the Empire's elite assassination squad, was cut down by Taeko of the Oberg Guild.
And after that, Akame avenged her by killing Taeko.
Truth be told, Taeko's talent and swordsmanship were no worse than Akame's.
Unfortunately, she'd just gone through a brutal fight with Cornelia. She was exhausted, wounded, and most importantly, she didn't possess a Teigu or even a ministerial weapon. That was why Akame was able to finish her off.
If Taeko had been at full strength and armed with a weapon of equal caliber, the outcome of a duel between her and Akame would have been anyone's guess.
But Akame had the protagonist's halo on her side. That was something Taeko could never compete with.
Alex, however, didn't care about any so-called protagonist status. All he cared about was talent.
A sword prodigy like Taeko—if he brought her back to Orario—could absolutely grow into a Level 6 powerhouse.
"Not just them," Alex said with a smile. "This time, I'm taking all of you with me. And while I'm at it, I'll deal with Gozzi too."
Now that he had ascended to godhood, he had no intention of wasting more time here.
He planned to move the prequel characters into the main timeline as soon as possible and complete the ultimate mission of the Akame ga Kill world.
After that, he still had to head to the Tokyo Ghoul world to help Takatsuki Sen deal with the Washuu clan and push things toward peace between ghouls and humans.
Oh, and there was also the matter of poaching talent from The Benevolent Mistress.
He needed to recruit Ryuu Lion into the Hestia Familia as soon as possible. If possible, he'd bring Chloe Lolo and Lunoa Faust along with her.
The two of them were only working at The Benevolent Mistress because they were drowning in debt. If he paid it off for them, convincing them to switch sides wasn't impossible.
As for Mia Grand, Syr Flova, and Anya Fromel, though, that was a lost cause.
Mia was the former captain of the Freya Familia. Even in retirement, she was still one of them.
Anya was the same. And Syr was the goddess herself.
Those three were off the table.
All in all, Alex had a mountain of things to do.
Once his Familia recruitment was complete, he'd not only have to train himself, but also help the others in his group ascend to godhood.
Free time? Not a chance.
"I understand." Akame nodded and didn't press further.
They chatted a bit more about Kurome, and then Akame left.
Alex changed into a yukata and headed to the bathhouse for a long soak.
Even though becoming a god meant he could keep himself perfectly clean at all times, he still loved the feeling of soaking in hot water.
It was like how gods didn't need to eat—but some still indulged in human food simply for the taste.
Alex might be a god now, but he hadn't abandoned the most basic human pleasures.
After his bath, he ordered a full meal from the inn.
A satisfying feast, followed by a good night's sleep.
…
The next morning, Alex woke up a little after eight.
He extended his divine sense to cover the entire White Wolf Town, checking for any unusual activity.
And sure enough, he found something interesting.
Because Nahashu, Guy, and Green—the three male members of the Empire's assassination squad—had already had their faces exposed, this mission into White Wolf Town was being handled by the three women: Akame, Pony, and Cornelia.
Originally, there should have been four women. But Tsukushi had been captured by Alex, so now there were only three.
Cornelia had run into Taeko in the women's bathhouse. Not knowing each other's identities at first, the two had actually become fast friends.
But this morning, Guy used his ministerial weapon, Thousand Layered Clothes, which allowed him to burrow underground, to deliver her breakfast.
And unfortunately, Taeko happened to see it.
She recognized Guy immediately. From that, it wasn't hard to deduce that Akame, Pony, and Cornelia were also members of the Empire's assassination unit.
So, under the guise of friendship, she invited Cornelia to an abandoned building outside town.
Cornelia looked puzzled. "So, Taeko, what's this big secret you wanted to tell me? Don't tell me you've fallen for Guy? I mean, he does have a certain… manliness. Actually, scratch that. He's more like a straight-up beast…"
She genuinely thought Taeko had developed feelings after seeing Guy.
Clearly, she was wrong.
Before she could finish speaking, Taeko moved.
In a flash, she drew a slender, ornate rapier and slashed toward Cornelia.
The sudden attack caught Cornelia completely off guard.
Luckily, she was in excellent physical condition and a member of the elite unit. She'd been trained to handle all kinds of emergencies.
The moment Taeko's blade swept toward her, Cornelia flipped backward, barely avoiding the strike, and quickly widened the distance between them.
"You dodged," Taeko said, a hint of disappointment in her voice. "I was hoping you'd die without too much pain."
In truth, when Cornelia had evaded that first slash, Taeko could have followed up immediately.
She didn't.
Maybe, deep down, she really had considered Cornelia a friend.
"Taeko… who are you?" Cornelia asked, her face dark.
Taeko's expression turned cold and composed. "I'm an assassin hired by the Revolutionary Army. I thought we could be friends. But now… one of us has to die."
Cornelia's jaw tightened. She pulled out her ministerial weapon, Crusher King, and fitted the metal gauntlet onto her hand.
"If you're an enemy who came looking for a fight, then I'll just kill you."
Crusher King was similar to the Teigu "Adramelech, the Thunder God's Wrath," both being gauntlet-type weapons.
But Crusher King consisted of only a single gauntlet. Its abilities were straightforward: grant monstrous strength to its wearer and unleash shockwave attacks.
Taeko frowned at the sight of the metal gauntlet.
She didn't know what a Teigu or ministerial weapon was. The sword in her hand was simply a finely crafted, exceptionally sharp blade.
Even so, she didn't fear Teigu users or anyone else.
Raised as an assassin since infancy, she had always stood out among her peers.
Now, she was one of the strongest assassins in the Oberg Guild.
Her pride would not allow her to fear any opponent.
Meanwhile, Alex—who had just finished brushing his teeth—had arrived at the scene as well.
Invisible, he sat suspended in midair, leisurely eating breakfast while watching the battle unfold.
"..."
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