Journey Across Universes

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Chowri and his daughter Spear, I took them to the lodge where Akame once tried to kill Najenda during her time as an imperial assassin. Leaving Chowri and Spear at the lodge, I went to the Night Raid base to inform Najenda that the task was completed and that she could talk to the former Prime Minister.

- Great, at least there's some good news. The Fallen had previously killed three officials and about thirty of their guards, and at the scene of the murders they'd scattered Night Raid leaflets as if we were the ones who'd committed the murders. I can't contact the second group of Night Raiders that was outside the capital, they were probably destroyed by the Fallen, but it's a good thing you killed them. - Najenda told me before going to Chouri.

- Gin, how was the hunt? Did you kill any tasty monsters? - Akame asked me, her saliva even starting to run from the corner of her mouth and she quickly wiped it away with the palm of her hand.

- Yeah, I've got enough meat for six months... two months. - I corrected Akame.

- We'll talk about food later, now let's go to Choury, while I talk to him, you provide protection, and let's hurry up, because they are unprotected. - Najenda said, and the whole Night Raid set off for the mountain hut.

Najenda used to be a general of the Empire, so Chowry knew her well, and while they were talking, I was outside the cabin by the window, kissing Shelly, who had missed me so much in the four days I'd been gone, and I could overhear Najenda and Chowry talking at the same time.

- I'm happy for Shelly, but can you be more discreet in front of strangers? - said a disgruntled Maine.

- I'm sorry, Mayne. - Shelly looked at her friend, and then looked at me again, and with great lust, saying that she didn't just want to kiss.

- Maine, don't be jealous, I'm sure someday you'll find a guy who likes flat pink-haired bitches. - I replied, to which Maine took offence and turned away from us.

- I'm hungry. - Akame said, eating a nearby berry bush that looked poisonous, but Akame had a strong immunity to poisons, so she might not even be affected by Murasama's poison.

- Actually, we could roast some meat right now, but it's not really safe to have a bonfire, Akame, would you like to try the gourmet dishes of carpaccio and tartare? - I asked.

- What's that? - Akame turned interested, she's always very interested in food.

- Carpaccio is raw, thinly sliced meat, without any heat treatment, just topped with some sour sauce, and tartare is finely chopped raw meat with some spicy sauce. These dishes allow you to feel the real flavour of meat, and that's how I eat meat most of the time.

- It's disgusting, eating raw meat like a savage. - Maine looked at me with disapproval.

- I'm from a southern tribe of savages, and I had to switch to raw meat when I was seven years old, alone in the tropics far from my tribe, and I was eaten by a huge snake and dragged deep into the forest. - I took out some meat of hydra, lion, tiger, manticore, dragon, and other monsters. After chopping and mincing everything, I gave the dish to Akame to sample.

- It's unusual, but it's very tasty, especially this one. - She pointed to the dragon meat.

- Hmm... okay, I'll try it too, I'm a lioness, I mean predator. - Leone came over to me and Leone, seeing that if she didn't try it, Akame wouldn't leave anything for her, - It's really good, it's good with beer, especially this one.

- It's the meat of huge lions, I also have their hearts, here, try a piece of this delicacy. - I gave Leona a piece of lion heart.

- Yes, it's much tastier. - said Leone, and from the overflowing lion's ki, her branch of lion's ears and hands turned into animal paws, as if she had activated her Teigu, - Give me more! - Leone demanded, I had enough of those hearts so I wasn't greedy.

Shelly also decided to try it, and after tasting it, she decided on the Hydra meat... by the way, I'll have to make some kind of artefact for Shelly, because her Teigu scissors are quite a special weapon. You could make something out of the Hydra's heart.

- Savages! - Mein said with disgust, looking at us. Lubbock was far away from us, using his threads to keep a signalling perimeter, and Bulat was on invisible duty on a nearby rock, so they couldn't join our meal in the open.

From an overheard conversation between Chowri and Najenda, I learnt a little more about palace affairs. For example, Chowri had been prime minister to the Emperor before last, with whom they were good friends, however, even emperors are not immortal, and the Emperor before last had died of old age. He had several sons, Chowri placed his bets on the eldest heir, and Honest on the contrary helped the youngest heir to the throne, who would be easier for him to manipulate. It was because of Honest that the past emperor took the throne, as Honest simply eliminated all other heirs. When the past emperor had a son, Honest waited a few years for that son to grow up, after which he poisoned the past emperor and his wife, the new emperor was their young son who obeys Honest in everything.

Due to the fact that some Teigu may become useless without a living heir to the First Emperor, Honestus has to settle for the position of prime minister, but in fact the current emperor is just his puppet that will do whatever the prime minister tells him to do.

Since Chowri was already old, and he was not afraid of death, he decided to try and talk some sense into the emperor, the chance that the puppet emperor Honesta would listen to him was minimal, but it was there. Chowri did not officially support the revolutionaries, so he could theoretically be allowed to see the Emperor, as he was a friend of the current Emperor's grandfather, but now, Honest could simply say that Chowri had gone over to the side of the revolution. Eliminating Chowri was a better option for Honest, but since it failed, the backup option of slandering Chowri can be used.

Najenda was just explaining that Chowri was about to be declared a revolutionary, so he had better actually become one to get protection from the rebels. In the event that Chowri is officially declared a revolutionary, but is not truly on the side of the revolution, it would leave Chowri alone against Prime Minister Honest, who now has all the resources of the Empire, making Chowri unlikely to live more than a week.

While the former Prime Minister was deciding what to do, his daughter came out of the hut and sat down on a rock to stare at us all. We had all eaten, except for Mein, who hadn't touched the raw meat, and Akame, who was still eating pieces of raw meat with poisonous berries from the bush.

- Ahem, hello again, I'm Spear, nice to meet you. - said the blonde girl in a friendly manner, occasionally glancing at me.

- Well, hello, hello, baby. - Some of us don't need to introduce ourselves, because the whole Empire knows them as the most dangerous criminals in the Night Raid.

- Yes, I know Akame and Bulat, they are the strongest in the Night Raid. - Spear said, pointing to Akame, who turned to look at whoever had mentioned her name for a moment, but then continued eating.

- About the strongest, that's outdated information. - I remarked.

- Oh, braggart, you're not the strongest in the Night Raid, you're still getting hurt by Akame in training. - Mein interjected.

- I may be inferior in skill, but I make up for it with my survivability and artefacts, and I'm a better shot than you.

- Not better, I'm the better sniper! - Maine objected.

- Oh, braggart, you're not the best sniper in Night Raid. - I took her at her word.

- Hmm! - Maine turned away again, once again taking offence at me.

- Do you have to pass some kind of test to join the Night Raid? - Spear asked.

- What, you want to join the Night Raid? - Leone asked.

- Actually, yes. My father wants to change the country for the better, he's a good politician, but I only know how to fight with a spear... and as the recent clash showed, I'm not such a good spearman. - Spear finished with a sullen expression.

- Well, you were almost killed by General Esdeath's personal guards armed with Teigu, while you only had a regular spear. The fact that you didn't die in the first seconds of the fight like the rest of the guards means something. - I said.

- So, can I join the Night Raid? - Spear asked.

- It's not up to me, it's up to Najenda, but I can fight you, and if you show something worthwhile, I can recommend you to the squad. - I leapt into the air and did a backflip, landing with two swords already drawn.

- Show-off! - Mein shouted.

- All right, I'll show you what I can do! - Spear stood up and picked up her spear... actually, I could see two good reasons for her joining the Night Raid right now, and they were only slightly less good than Leone's.

- Well, attack, I'm not the one to attack the girl first. - I said, and Spear nodded and ran at me, immediately lunging with her spear towards my heart. The spear has an advantage in the range of attack, but if the enemy gets very close, the length of the spear on the contrary will only hinder, and in the premises of the spear is not the best weapon. Spear fought well, trying not to let me get close to her, keeping the optimal distance to attack me and not to let me get to her.

To teach the girl a little lesson, I missed her one punch that pierced my heart.

- WHAT?! - Spear was surprised when her attack 'killed' me.

- You killed me, Spear! KILLED! - I started to lean harder on her spear, and since the spear shaft was blocked inside my body, I was able to get close to the frightened girl, and put the sword to her neck, -I lied, I killed you. - I smiled as I placed my chest on Spear's weapon.

- You... you...' a confused Spear tried to say something.

- I'm alive, the pierced heart doesn't really prevent me from living, unpleasant, of course, but not fatal. - I took the shaft of the spear from the girl's hands and pushed it through me so that I could pull it out through the smooth shaft instead of through the jagged blade.

- How is that-' Spear pointed at my chest, which regenerated almost immediately.

- Like I said, I'm very resilient. You're pretty good with a spear, if you want to join the Night Raid, I'll give you a good recommendation. - I took out my Teigu ring and created some water out of the air, which I used to wash the blood off my clothes and Spear. It's a handy Teigu, but I don't have much compatibility with it, so it uses a lot more energy than it should, but my Life and Ki reserves have been growing a lot lately, probably because my schizophrenia is somehow developing my Stamina with the help of the System.

≪Status≫

Life 19,910/20,310/1015 per hour.

Ki 4685/4685/780 per hour

Characteristics:

Strength 740

Dexterity 448

Endurance 3468

Intelligence 200

Soul 800.

But I think this high Stamina is affecting me somehow, since I've accepted the idea of a second girl so easily, even though I wanted to be with Najenda before, but she's not enough for me now.

≪Oh, yes, it does, the more Stamina, the more libido, soon you'll be all for the idea of sexually enslaving Esdeath. ≫

So that's your plan.

≪Well, besides that side effect, high Stamina keeps us from dying of wounds, one doesn't work without the other, so bear with it... or better yet, enjoy having a big harem.≫

Spear, after standing there in shock for a bit, took her spear and re-entered the hut.

At the outcome, Chowri decided to support the revolution after all, he didn't have much choice anyway. To get the former Prime Minister safely to the rebel headquarters, Najenda sent Bulat and Lubbock with Chowri. Bulat was a strong warrior despite being gay. Lubbock, after accompanying Chowry, was to find out the fate of the second Night Raid squad, which had been operating outside the capital and was not answering letters.

Spear stayed with us, though, having persuaded her father to let her join the Night Raid. The Night Raid is the main trump card of the revolution, and since Chowri himself has decided to help the revolutionaries, Spear has decided to be on the spearhead of the revolution.

While Bulat and Lubbock were getting ready for the long journey to accompany Chowri, and Najenda and the others were bringing Spear up to speed, I went to my house, I have a lot of work to do there, I've got the materials I need to make artefacts out of them.

On the way to the forge, I decided to stop for ice cream, after the searing meat of the lava tiger, I wanted something cold.

When I went to the cafe to order ice-cream, I noticed a blue-haired girl in military uniform sitting near the cafe, who was also eating ice-cream in a cone. Taking a bucket of ice-cream, I went to my forge, which was not so far from the cafe. And as I walked home, I saw that the blue-haired girl was looking right at me, and after almost finishing her ice cream, she got up from the bench and started walking towards me.

- I don't need an ice maniac. - I looked out the window and saw Esdeath walking toward my forge.

While I was firing up the furnace with the wood from the Ents, Esdeath came inside after all.

- Oh, customer, greetings, what do you want? If you want to buy a weapon, I'll take it to a nearby shop for sale, if you need a sword forged or armour made to order, that's for me. - I said, rolling up my sleeves, and then going to the ice-cream bucket and taking a spoonful of cold treat... I should behave as casually as possible.

- I need to fix this rapier. - Esdeath put the scabbard with the rapier on the counter.

I went over and tried to pull the rapier out of its sheath as if nothing had happened, but I only pulled out the hilt with a small piece of the blade.

- Yeah. - I tilted the scabbard, and the rest of the blade, which was all chipped, fell out of the scabbard. Two hundred silver coins, and you can come back for the rapier tomorrow morning. Or go to the shop and buy yourself a new rapier for two hundred and fifty coins.

- I'll give you 500 and have it ready by tonight. This rapier is as dear to me as a memory. - Esdeath sat down on the chair.

- There are four hours left till the evening. - I objected.

- So you'd better start now. - Esdeath replied, 'The soldiers from the guard recommended this forge to me, I came yesterday, but it was closed.

- Ah, yes, I was on a hunt, monsters for meat, leather for armour, and Ents for wood for the cooker. - I took the hilt of my rapier and began to take it apart to get the rest of the blade.

- Oh, so you are not only a blacksmith, but also a hunter, and what are the strongest monsters you have killed? - Esdeath asked.

- It's hard to answer like that, when I was a child, even twenty-metre tigers were strong for me, now it doesn't make much difference who I kill.

- You don't know who I am, do you? - The girl asked as I nonchalantly took a spoonful of ice cream and then put more wood on the cooker.

- Judging by the uniform, someone from the Empire's military. I only moved to the capital from the southwest six months ago, so I haven't learnt the ins and outs of life in the capital yet. - I said, placing the blade of my rapier on the anvil and smashing it into fragments with my hammer, aiming at the already damaged areas.

- Huh... how old are you, blacksmith? - asked the girl a strange question.

- I'll be seventeen soon. - I answered, and began to stack the fragments of the blade on top of each other, and then tied this metal pie with steel wire.

- And now, blacksmith, smile sincerely. - asked the blue-haired girl.

- What - I looked at Esdeath, and still smiled from her strange questions.

- It's beautiful. - She said, and blushed a little.

- So, something weird is going on. - I said, throwing the former rapier into the furnace so the metal would heat up so I could forge it, and while the metal heated up, I sat down to eat ice cream.

- Blacksmith, what is your name? My name is Esdeath, I am a general of the Empire, I have recently been assigned to keep order in the capital. - she got up from her chair.

- And my name is Gin, my grandfather named me so, he and my grandmother brought me up, since my parents were eaten by monsters. And since you're a general, why didn't you take your rapier to a military blacksmith? - I ate another spoonful of ice cream.

- The soldiers said that the current blacksmith's hands are growing out of his arse, and the last one was executed because he skimped on quality material, I guess I'll have to execute the current one too... oh, and since there's room, Gin, don't you want to become the new military blacksmith? - Esdeath asked.

- Given the tradition of executing old blacksmiths, I'll refuse. Although the last blacksmith who lived in this house before me was also executed for helping the revolutionaries... no luck for blacksmiths in the capital. - I said as I continued to eat my ice cream.

- So maybe you refuse because you also help revolutionaries? - Esdeath asked me sternly, coming up to me.

- In general, after paying all the taxes, I often have thoughts of becoming a revolutionary, here you will pay me for the work five hundred coins, and in fact, my profit is a hundred coins, the rest will go into the pocket of the Prime Minister. - I replied, scooping ice cream into a spoon.

- What, you don't like the current government? - Esdeath asked with a smile.

- With all my heart I am rooting for Night Raid, that they should slaughter the Prime Minister.

- And you have the courage to say that to the face of an Imperial general, aren't you afraid I'll lock you in the torture chamber? - Esdeath touched the bucket of ice cream, which had begun to melt because of the heat in the forge, but after Esdeath's touch it froze again.

- Thank you, this must be some kind of Teygu? I've heard of them, yours is quite useful, you can always keep your ice cream cold. - I got up, threw more wood into the cooker, and turned the metal billet over with blacksmith's tongs, - General Esdeath, don't you have anything to do but talk to a simple blacksmith while he forges your rapier?

- Actually, the Fallen should be back soon, so I'll come back for my weapons tonight. - Esdeath walked out of the forge, but she wouldn't be expecting her handmaidens today or ever again, for I had slaughtered them three hours ago.