Chapter 171 Deal and Impact
The chunks of flesh quickly reassembled, transforming back into Aoki's appearance, and turned to look at Esdeath.
Makopotmo? Freezing Time and Space?
Wasn't this a technique Esdeath developed after meeting Tatsumi?
He reflected on himself.
Regeneration combined with "space travel," plus a certain degree of "prophecy," he had indeed been too reckless lately. He
needed to be more cautious in the future!
Other worlds weren't as safe as the Demon Slayer world.
Also, he couldn't rely too much on information from his memories.
However,
although the process was a bit convoluted, the result was good.
Aoki grabbed Honest and threw him into the alternate dimension.
"Looks like I won today."
Esdeath stared at Aoki for a few seconds, a tempting blush appearing on her face.
"You won't die like this? That's really amazing!"
Aoki: "?"
Okay.
This is a real pervert.
From a purely economic standpoint, Honest's death would bring Esdeath a huge loss.
But clearly, she wasn't someone who prioritized profit.
"Come on, let's continue our battle!"
Esdeath smiled excitedly, her toes barely touching the ground as she charged towards Aoki.
Aoki flashed to the top of the nearby palace, a thought forming in his mind.
"Esdeath, how about we make a deal?"
"A deal?"
Esdeath swung her longsword, sending ice blades flying towards Aoki.
Aoki flicked his bone whip, shattering the ice blades.
"Yes, you help me hunt down a few super dangerous species, and after it's done, I'll fight you to my heart's content."
Esdeath appeared behind Aoki, her longsword slashing repeatedly.
"Super dangerous species?"
Aoki didn't even turn around, his whip flashing to block the blades, then he flashed away, creating distance.
"Yes, four in total."
"Four super dangerous species? Where are they?"
Esdeath's face showed great interest.
She was born into the Baltus tribe, a clan that made their living by hunting dangerous species.
However, she had encountered very few super-dangerous species in her entire life.
"Think it over."
Aoki's figure disappeared.
Esdeath didn't try to stop Aoki from leaving.
"Mahavairocana" was extremely energy-consuming; even she could only use it once a day.
A soldier cautiously approached.
"General Esdeath, may I ask about the minister?"
"Dead!"
Esdeath sheathed her sword and turned to leave.
The soldiers exchanged bewildered glances.
The minister was killed!
This was an catastrophic event.
Everyone knew that a super-terrifying storm was about to erupt.
Inside the luxurious palace.
"The minister, dead?"
The young emperor slumped onto his throne, his face utterly dejected.
Bud frowned deeply.
He loathed Honest,
but he didn't want to see Honest die in this way.
Taking a deep breath, Bud slowly said, "I didn't expect even you couldn't kill that assassin."
Esdeath smiled strangely, "He displayed many new abilities, indeed exceeding my expectations."
Bud asked, "What do you plan to do now?"
"I will continue the hunt for the assassin!"
Esdeath glanced at the young emperor, then turned and left.
...
The two hurriedly entered an inconspicuous courtyard, and after closing the door, they could no longer contain their joy.
"Dead! The minister was actually killed!"
"Hahahaha, good riddance! He should have died long ago; living this long was already too good for him!"
"Who exactly was that assassin? The last time he broke into the palace at night was outrageous enough, but this time he actually killed the minister right in front of Esdeath!"
"I don't know. We'll talk about that later. We need to get the news back to headquarters quickly. Oh, and the night raid too."
The two quickly got to work.
Soon, a pigeon flew out of the courtyard, piercing the night sky, and quickly flew towards the outskirts of the capital.
...
In a hidden room, a group of people gathered.
"Ernest is dead! Killed right in front of Esdeath!"
"That madwoman, so arrogant all the time, completely useless when it mattered, what a waste!"
"Ernest trusted that madman, he deserved to be killed!"
"Ernest deserved to die, but now we're in trouble."
"Enough of that, what should we do now?"
"The only way is to elect another minister. I currently hold the highest position and have the best chance of becoming minister. For the sake of the entire organization, I hope everyone will support me."
"Come on, how did you get your position? Others may not know, but don't we? In terms of ability and prestige, I'm the most likely to become minister!"
"If that's the case, I..."
The hidden room quickly became noisy.
This was just a microcosm.
The entire capital was churning with undercurrents, and a restless atmosphere spread rapidly.
For years, the Minister and Esdeath had formed an alliance, and Bud didn't interfere in politics; no one in the entire Empire could rival them.
Now, with the Minister's unexpected death, the unbreakable alliance crumbled, and a huge amount of profit suddenly appeared, driving everyone into a frenzy.
...
Night raid on the base.
Everyone was asleep, and the base was quiet.
Moonlight streamed into the room through the window, falling on the bed and illuminating a pair of beautiful girls tightly embracing each other.
Suddenly, a dark figure appeared in the room, its feet landing with a soft thud.
Akame's eyes snapped open, grabbing Murasame, her crimson eyes flashing with sharp light.
"Who? Hmm?"
Upon seeing who was in the room, she paused slightly, her tense body slowly relaxing.
"Aoki?"
Aoki said, "Sorry to disturb your rest."
"Aoki, why are you back?"
Kurome tidied her hair; she hadn't actually slept and had noticed Aoki even before her sister.
Akame also realized what had happened.
Aoki had left to assassinate the Minister, which was expected to take two to three days.
But now that he's suddenly back, could it be…?
Aoki said, "I came to tell you that Honest is dead!"
"So fast!"
Although she had already guessed this possibility, Akame was still shocked.
Going to the palace alone to assassinate a minister—even she wasn't entirely confident about such a thing.
Kurome was also somewhat dazed.
The minister was dead.
Although she hadn't killed him herself, a sense of peace settled in her heart.
"You two inform Najenda."
Aoki nodded to the two of them, and his figure disappeared again.
"Kurome, you should rest first."
Akame quickly got up and hurriedly left the room.
A moment later, everyone from Night Raid gathered together.
"What happened?"
Mine yawned.
She had just fallen asleep when she was woken up.
"Is there some urgent operation?" Tatsumi was both excited and nervous; he hadn't carried out a mission since joining Night Raid.
Najenda said, "Aoki just came over and told Akame that Minister Honest is dead!"
The room fell silent instantly.
Everyone, including Mine, jolted awake, no longer sleepy.
"So fast? Are you sure?" Leone asked.
Najenda nodded and took out a slip of paper: "I just received a message from my intelligence personnel confirming that Ernest was murdered inside the palace!"
"Wasn't it three days? It hasn't even been a night yet!"
Lubbock's mouth dropped open.
Their ultimate target for the night raid, established long ago and still seemingly unattainable, had been taken care of in just a few hours.
This efficiency was simply unbelievable.
Najenda was equally astonished.
The intelligence also mentioned that Aoki killed the minister right in front of Esdeath.
The highest level of difficulty, terrifying efficiency.
They had significantly underestimated Aoki's strength.
(End of Chapter)