I, Uchiha Hikaru, have joined the chat group.

Chapter 181 The Arrival of the "Night Raid" and the Supreme Imperial Arms (Two-in-One)

"Plop—"

Inside Ernest's mansion.

Kosmia, who had changed into a soldier's uniform and was lying among the corpses pretending to be dead, swallowed hard, feeling very panicked.

She's a worldly person.

Before she even met Sheila, she was already a notorious "witch" in the Western Kingdom, known for her flamboyant behavior. After joining Sheila's team, she followed the latter in causing chaos everywhere. Although her main hobby was toying with men and she didn't kill many people with her own hands, she still did a lot of unconventional things.

But now...

She felt that the girl named Uchiha Hikari was the real "witch".

Killing Sheila and her group in the central Empire was one thing, but it was a remote and impoverished area, and even if Ernest had received the news, it would have been difficult for him to intervene...

But this is the capital city!

No matter how powerful they are, attacking Minister Ernest's residence by themselves... that's just too outrageous! Even if they succeed, aren't they afraid of incurring the wrath of the Empire and sending a large number of troops to suppress them?

of course……

Kosmia wasn't worried about Hikaru Uchiha's safety.

After all, the latter possesses that amazing flying ability, as well as the "Shangri-La" teleportation Imperial Arm that was seized from Sheila. Even if he encounters a powerful enemy that he cannot defeat, no one can stop him from running away if he wants to.

She was worried about herself—

When Uchiha Hikaru first entered the depths of the mansion, Kosmia was still in a state of exhaustion after being suppressed by the gravity field of the "Judgment Spear," unable to move freely. She also wanted to observe the outcome of the battle between Uchiha Hikaru and Ernest, so she did not choose to escape immediately.

result.

When she realized something was wrong and tried to escape, she found that the Ernest mansion was surrounded by a large number of imperial soldiers.

Even General Budo, who was on par with Esdeath, was in the group.

Now, Kosmia had no chance to escape. She could only secretly change into a soldier's uniform, smear blood on her face and body, lie down among a pile of corpses, and pretend to be dead, trying to get away with it.

Everything was going very smoothly.

Because it was dark and there were many dead and wounded, Bud did not find her.

The soldiers who checked the scene simply checked her breathing before lifting her and several other corpses onto a cart, intending to send them to the crematorium for cremation after the matter was over.

Can……

Just as Kosmia quietly opened her eyes, intending to observe the situation and find an opportunity to slip away.

She then heard a soldier next to her let out a short, startled cry:

"Who goes there?!"

"!"

Kosmia's heart skipped a beat, thinking that her act of faking her death had been discovered.

But the next moment, she heard the voices of several other soldiers, and someone was pointing into the night sky: "Up there!"

"Watch out...it might be an enemy attack!!"

As they were talking.

Then they saw a huge dragon flying down from the sky outside the capital, accompanied by the whooshing sound of wind, heading straight for the direction of Minister Ernest's residence.

Several people dressed in different clothes sat on Feilong's back, led by a white-haired woman wearing an eye patch.

— Najenda, the boss of "Night Raid".

The headquarters of "Night Raid" was not too far from the capital, located in a deep mountain area a few dozen miles away. After receiving the message from Hill, Najenda immediately summoned Akame, Mine, Leone, and others present to come over quickly, wanting to confirm the situation with her own eyes.

Najenda had a general idea of ​​Uchiha Hikaru's strength.

Just as she had seriously underestimated Esdeath's strength, in her opinion, Uchiha Hikaru was only slightly stronger than Buld and Akame. With his ability to fly, it was not surprising that he could kill Sheila and her group. However, choosing to assassinate Ernest in the capital was undoubtedly a very risky decision.

Not to mention that Ernest had already learned of Sheila's death, which made him more vigilant.

Even if the assassination is successfully completed, there is a high chance that the imperial army will pursue and intercept them afterward, resulting in injury or even capture.

and so.

Najenda's purpose in bringing people here was partly to meet up with Uchiha Hikaru.

It would be a pity if such a powerful force, capable of providing significant assistance to the revolutionary army, were to perish here.

but……

"Huh? Where is Miss Hikari?"

"Is the battle over so quickly?"

High in the air.

Looking at the bloody and chaotic scene in the courtyard below, Najenda roughly guessed what had happened—

"As expected, even with Miss Hikari's abilities, assassinating Minister Ernest was still too much of a stretch. The battle was so brutal; I'm afraid she's already..."

"Wait, who's that?"

Under Najendan's gaze, a blinding bolt of lightning burst forth from the courtyard, like a javelin, piercing straight into the sky with unparalleled speed and force!

At the critical moment, the dragon carrying the "Night Raid" suddenly flapped its wings, narrowly avoiding the attack.

As the lightning javelin exploded in mid-air, illuminating the surrounding night, the group saw a tall figure clad in armor emerge from the house and look up at them.

"General Bude?!"

Najenda's heart sank: "I didn't expect even this one to appear here. It seems Miss Hikari's assassination attempt really failed..."

In the courtyard of the mansion.

Bud also snorted coldly, a murderous intent flashing between his brows: "So it really is you, 'Night Raid'! Najenda, you were once a general of the Empire deeply indebted to the country. Defection is already a capital offense of treason, and now you repay His Majesty in this way?!"

"...I'm sorry, but we have different paths. The empire is now utterly corrupt and has reached a point where change is absolutely necessary. Why must you go against the tide?"

"snort!"

Bud disdainfully shifted his gaze to the red-eyed girl beside Najendan: "Black-haired, red-eyed girl...you are the murderer who killed Minister Honest? It's truly a pity that you possess such great power but do not serve the Empire and instead go astray."

Najenda and Akame: "Huh?"

At this moment.

Both sides had some doubts.

For example, Najenda was surprised by the news that "Ernest is dead" revealed in Bud's words.

Meanwhile, Bud wondered when and from where Akame, the "real culprit" who carried out the assassination, slipped out of the mansion and was then "attacked" and picked up by Flying Dragon.

But right now, there's clearly no time to discuss these issues.

As Bud's aura erupted, thunderclouds rapidly gathered in the sky, and the general's body floated into the air, enveloped in lightning, surrounded by arcs of blue-purple light.

—Thor's Wrath, Admiral.

Bud's Imperial Arm is an armor-type Imperial Arm that can manipulate thunderclouds. Among many Imperial Arms, it has outstanding performance, approaching Esdeath's "Demon Essence". Now, as Bud goes all out, his aura rises rapidly in a very short time, like a god who controls thunder, standing high in the sky, making the members of "Night Raid" feel a chill.

Chitong pulled out Murasame.

Leone and Mine have also entered a state of combat readiness.

fighting……

It's on the verge!

……

the other side.

Uchiha Hikaru is following the young emperor to the underground palace.

Compared to Ernest and Dortja, this young emperor's memory was remarkably simple, like that of a 21st-century college student, exuding a clear sense of naiveté.

He didn't even know about the "Supreme Imperial Arms".

Hmm...that's right.

Because the previous emperor and empress were poisoned to death by Ernest, they didn't have time to make arrangements for their deaths or tell the young emperor any secrets about the royal family. Therefore, the young emperor is basically a puppet with a blank mind, and everything he knows is what Ernest wants him to know.

With no other option, Uchiha Hikaru had to personally take on the role of Ernest, telling him about the "Guardian Machine God," and then, led by the young emperor, arrived at the location where this Imperial Arm was stored.

"...Wow, it's that big?"

Standing on a stone platform protected by railings.

Uchiha Hikaru looked down at the abyss below, his face showing surprise.

Many of the Imperial Arms in the world of Akame ga Kill! are capable of changing form.

For example, "Demon Possession" is a sword in its normal state, but when used in sync with a Teigu user, it transforms into armor covering the entire body.

Seryu's Hundred-Armed Giant and Najenda's Susanoo are also biological-type Imperial Arms, which also have transformation forms.

Can……

This "Guardian Machine God" is indeed just as enormous as the one the revolutionary army saw after capturing the capital in the original story. Its colossal body, estimated to be two to three hundred meters tall and weighing nearly ten thousand tons, resembles a mountain in the shape of armor, standing beneath the hollowed-out imperial palace, connected by suspended stone steps.

According to Ernest's memories, this thing is the origin and pinnacle of Imperial Arms, and only those with royal blood can activate and use it.

In other words, only the young emperor can go in and operate it; it's useless for others to sit in the "cockpit".

Uchiha Hikaru did not intend to let the young emperor operate it.

after all……

The power of the "Guardian Machine God" is no less than that of Esdeath.

Furthermore, it possesses a secret technique called "Purge Mode," which allows it to transform its mecha appearance into a dragon shape through alchemy and the inherent characteristics of the Imperial Arms, thereby gaining significantly enhanced weapon destructive power and defensive capabilities. Judging from its performance in the original work, it may be even more difficult to deal with than Esdeath in "Purge Mode," and the destructive power of its beam cannon is even greater than that of the Tailed Beast Ball in the Naruto world.

If the young emperor were to actually sit inside and start the engine, Uchiha Hikaru wasn't confident he could make him stop immediately.

and so.

Her goal was to secretly pack this thing up and take it away, then find a quiet place to study it slowly.

but……

After circling the "Guardian Machine God" and observing it carefully for a while, Uchiha Hikaru noticed a problem—

This thing seems to be integrated with the palace.

Or perhaps the founding emperor placed it here first and then built the current palace on top of it, rather than building the palace first and then digging the hole.

Therefore, opening it or sealing it away and taking it away will cause the entire palace complex to collapse.

After confirming this, Uchiha Hikaru used the Flying Technique to return to the stone platform once again and fell into deep thought.

"Looks like we need to come up with a safer approach..."

But I'm not in a huge rush.

After all, even Uchiha Hikaru, the "Guardian Machine God," couldn't activate it. Her desire to obtain it was merely out of interest. If she had to choose one more, she would actually prefer more practical Imperial Arms like the "Shangri-La" or the "Judgment Spear."

Tonight's operation has been quite fruitful. The sealing scrolls and universal capsules that Uchiha Hikari carried are almost full. She plans to go back and digest them first, clear out her inventory, and then study the treasures in the palace.

present.

Uchiha Hikaru gave the young emperor a hint not to use the Supreme Imperial Arms, and then took him back to his palace.

During this process, several patrolling guards noticed her.

But before the imperial guards could even begin their questioning, the young emperor barked out, "Get out of the way! No disrespect to your ministers!"

Imperial guards: "?"

The guards, unaware of Tsukuyomi's existence, couldn't understand the young emperor's words, but out of respect for the imperial authority, they chose not to interfere, simply assuming that their emperor was playing some kind of special game with the girl... after all, the two seemed to be about the same age.

After returning to the palace.

Uchiha Hikaru lifted Dotya up and used the Flying Technique to leap into the air.

Speaking of which...

Above the Imperial Palace, there are actually quite a few dangerous flying creatures that are artificially fed by a type of Imperial Arm.

As Uchiha Hikari flew away through the air, those things noticed her. Some of them emerged from their lairs, looking somewhat like ancient pterosaurs or enormous bats, and there seemed to be quite a few of them.

Even after Uchiha Hikaru released his killing intent, they showed no sign of retreating; on the contrary, they seemed eager to try.

Fortunately, these things seem to have a limited range of movement.

After Uchiha Hikari flew out of the palace, they stopped chasing her and instead flapped their wings and retreated.

At this time.

Uchiha Hikaru saw thunderclouds gathering high in the distance, lightning flying everywhere, and a clash between red and white beam cannons.

"What's going on over there?"

"...It should be General Bud of the Empire fighting someone. His Imperial Arm can control the thunderclouds in the sky, it's very powerful."

Dortya, suspended in mid-air, whispered, wanting to prove her worth.

But even if she doesn't say it.

Uchiha Hikaru could roughly recognize it.

indeed.

In the original story of Akame ga Kill!, Night Raid once rushed to the capital to fight General Budo in order to rescue Tatsumi who was about to be executed.

Now, thanks to the appearance of Uchiha Hikaru, the course of this world's story has been completely altered. It's unbelievable that this storyline could be repeated at a different point in time...

It's probably an inevitable fate.

(End of this chapter)