89: Discussion of Teigu (Part 2)

Even after joining the Revolutionary Army and arriving at Najenda's Night Raid, Akame had never once revealed any details about Haruki's whereabouts.

When it came to Haruki, Akame wasn't sure how to feel. On one hand, he was a man important to both her and her sister Kurome. But on the other, she knew that unlike herself, Kurome depended on Haruki deeply—so deeply that in Kurome's eyes, Haruki might've mattered more than even her own sister.

So for both herself and her sister's sake, Akame couldn't let any information about Haruki slip out and put him in danger. She knew that if people discovered Haruki possessed a Teigu capable of reviving the dead, no matter how strong he was, it would attract countless enemies.

But when she saw the disappointment on Tatsumi's face, and thought about the day they might have to face Haruki as an enemy, Akame made a decision. To keep the rest of Night Raid from walking into danger blind, she chose to share some information about Haruki.

Truth be told, Akame was a deeply emotional person. To put it bluntly, she could be quite naïve—willing to risk betraying family to protect her comrades.

Her words shattered the somber silence like a stone tossed into still water.

"Wait, Akame, you're kidding, right?"

"Yeah, how could something like that even exist?"

Even Najenda, usually calm and composed, looked shaken as she echoed the others' doubts.

"I'm not joking. Back when I was still with the Assassination Unit, I saw the Security Minister use a sword to bring Cora back to life. Everyone saw it—Cora had clearly already stopped breathing…"

Having made up her mind, Akame didn't hold anything back. She explained everything that happened that day on the southwestern border, when Haruki used Tenseiga to revive Cornelia.

"That's amazing! I'm going to beg the Security Minister—he can bring Ieyasu back!"

Tatsumi shouted, his voice full of hope and excitement.

But the truth was, Akame had only spent a short time with Haruki after her defection and didn't fully understand the limits of Tenseiga—that it could only revive those who had died recently.

"Don't be stupid, Tatsumi. Remember who you are. The Security Minister is on the opposite side from us. Even if you weren't an assassin, he's one of the Empire's top officials. Why would he bother saving someone with no ties or status?"

Though surprised by Akame's story, Najenda stayed level-headed and laid out the harsh reality.

"Enough about this for now. I'll report it to Revolutionary Army HQ when I get the chance. Let's get back to the mission at hand. Leone was right—our target is a Teigu User, so you all need to be extremely cautious. You should know by now: when two Teigu Users clash with intent to kill, one of them is going to die. That's the iron rule of Teigu."

Sensing the tension in the room, Najenda quickly shifted the topic.

"Boss, does that mean some Teigu are stronger than others? Is there such a thing as the most powerful Teigu?"

Prompted by Najenda's mention of the iron rule, Tatsumi suddenly asked. It only made sense to him—if one side always died, then surely there had to be differences in strength between Teigu.

"Of course there are differences in strength. As for the strongest Teigu... I'd say it's Esdeath's—Demon God Manifestation: Demon's Extract. It's an ice-controlling Teigu. From what I've seen, to even have a chance against her, we'd need every Teigu User we have here... and at least fifty thousand troops."

Najenda's expression darkened as she recalled the day Esdeath effortlessly annihilated the subordinates who had tried to defect to the Revolutionary Army—crippling her right arm and eye in the process. That memory was still etched vividly in her mind.

"I don't know about Esdeath... but the pressure I felt from the Security Minister was enormous. And those girls around him? They're definitely not ordinary. Honestly, back at Aria's place, I got the feeling that none of us could handle even one of them."

Leone suddenly cut in after Najenda finished.

"Come on, Leone. You're blowing it way out of proportion. No matter how strong they are, it can't be that extreme..."

Mine, with her usual pride, couldn't help but interrupt. She felt Leone was overselling the enemy and undercutting their own morale.

"No, Leone's absolutely right. I saw it with my own eyes—on the southwestern border, the Security Minister wiped out thirty thousand elite soldiers of the allied forces... in a single strike."

Akame's voice was steady, but serious. She wanted Night Raid to understand how dangerous Haruki truly was.

"...!"

Everyone in the room drew a sharp breath.

Akame's words shattered their understanding of strength. Until now, none of them believed a single person could take on tens of thousands of soldiers alone.

"Akame, are you saying... that the 30,000 elite troops who vanished on the southwestern border were all killed by the Security Minister? Not even ten escaped?"

Najenda suddenly asked, her voice heavy.

After joining the Revolutionary Army, she'd heard about the mysterious disappearance of that elite unit—but she never imagined she'd learn the truth like this.

"Yes..."

Akame then gave a detailed account of how Haruki had annihilated those thirty thousand troops. She had her reasons—deep down, she hoped that by describing Haruki's overwhelming power, the others in Night Raid might reconsider clashing with him.

"I never imagined the Security Minister was hiding this much strength. No wonder Esdeath was willing to send him alone into occupied territory."

Najenda exhaled, her thoughts racing. Everything was suddenly clearer—but it was also a lot to process. She hadn't expected to learn so much today. She needed time to think.

"Alright, that's enough for today's meeting. I'll figure out how to report this to HQ. Starting tomorrow night, you'll split into pairs and begin searching for Zanku. Be careful out there."

Najenda rubbed her temples, issued the assignments, reminded everyone to stay safe, then headed back to her room.

...

(40 Chapters Ahead)

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