Because Dangerous Species had appeared in the outskirts of the Imperial Capital.
Yorii Tsugikuni had only just arrived at the Security Force when they were soon dispatched to assist several Imperial departments in clearing out those Dangerous Species.
Compared to the leisurely days from before.
The past few days had left them with almost no time to rest.
This time, Yorii Tsugikuni had come alone.
Sayo was at the Security Force, handling urgent matters in his place.
Ieyasu was responsible for routine patrols in the city districts, while Seryu had gone to Dr. Fashion's to modify her Imperial Arms.
Come to think of it, I've never seen a Dangerous Species before.
Yorii Tsugikuni walked slowly through the outskirts. Although Tatsumi and the others had told him many times about Dangerous Species.
He had never encountered one himself.
He had come out this time partly because he wanted to see whether Dangerous Species resembled demons in any way.
Though, based on everyone's descriptions, the two had nothing to do with each other, Yorii Tsugikuni was still curious.
Rumble!
He moved slowly through the forest.
Yorii Tsugikuni searched from morning until afternoon without finding any trace of a Dangerous Species.
He stopped beside a stream, drank some water, and then continued onward.
He had originally planned to search a little longer before heading back.
But a disturbance coming from far away caught Yorii Tsugikuni's attention.
Following the direction of the sound, Yorii Tsugikuni broke into a swift sprint.
His figure flashed through the trees.
Sending fallen leaves scattered across the forest.
It's them.
Yorii Tsugikuni paused slightly when he saw Akame cutting down a Dangerous Species in the distance, with Sheele beside her.
"You aren't here to track us, are you?"
A crisp voice came from a small hill behind him.
Then Mine, with her pink hair, poked her head out from behind a large boulder.
The Dangerous Species here had emerged in the middle of the night and wreaked havoc. After receiving a request for help, Mine, Akame, and the others had come together.
But they had not expected to run into Yorii Tsugikuni here.
The Revolutionary Army's higher-ups had long instructed them to avoid clashing with Yorii Tsugikuni whenever possible.
So when Mine saw Yorii Tsugikuni, she did not act as she had before.
She did not aim her Imperial Arms at him.
"I'm tracking Dangerous Species."
Yorii Tsugikuni had met these people more than once already.
Though he was not particularly familiar with them, they were no longer strangers either.
After examining the Dangerous Species Akame had killed, Yorii Tsugikuni shook his head in slight disappointment.
Dangerous Species bore no resemblance whatsoever to the demons from his homeland.
"What a strange guy."
"I wonder how he became so strong."
After Yorii Tsugikuni inspected the Dangerous Species and quickly left, Mine looked at his departing back in confusion.
Aside from a few slightly unusual facial features, Mine could not see anything special about Yorii Tsugikuni at all.
Yet someone like him had left the few of them struggling just to breathe.
Roar! Roar! Roar!
Yorii Tsugikuni headed in one direction.
He had just sensed another Dangerous Species lying in wait, so he did not spend much time interacting with the people from Night Raid.
Instead, he took Adai toward the location he had sensed.
Looking at the massive Dangerous Species before him, Yorii Tsugikuni lightly rested a hand on his sword hilt.
"Kill it."
Adai's wooden sword had been replaced with a standard short sword by Seryu, who had taken a great liking to it.
Seeing Yorii Tsugikuni's movement, it placed its mechanical hand on the short sword's hilt as well.
"Do you want to try?"
Yorii Tsugikuni looked at Adai. Though Adai's strength had been steadily growing during this time, he had never actually seen what it was capable of.
Adai nodded after hearing Yorii Tsugikuni's words.
After receiving Yorii Tsugikuni's permission, it walked toward the enormous Dangerous Species on its short little legs.
Naturally, Mine and the others had not left either.
After hearing the Dangerous Species roar, they had followed over as well.
"That must be the Imperial Arms Chelsea mentioned, Yorii Tsugikuni's Imperial Arms."
"I don't know if it's strong, but it's oddly cute."
Since this chance encounter had brought the Night Raid members and Yorii Tsugikuni here for the same purpose.
The hostile atmosphere from before was gone. Sheele adjusted her glasses slightly.
Watching Adai walk on its short little legs and nearly trip over a branch, she held back a laugh.
"That's a Class 1 Dangerous Species, isn't it?"
"It should be fairly strong."
Mine stood beside Sheele. Yorii Tsugikuni's Imperial Arms gave her a very weak impression.
Looking at the dragon-shaped Dangerous Species in the distance, she did not have much confidence in the short-legged little thing.
First Encounter with Esdeath
Akame said nothing. She quietly watched the little mechanical figure, which did not even reach Yorii Tsugikuni's knee.
Though the mechanical figure looked somewhat clumsy, the way it held its sword was very similar to Yorii Tsugikuni.
A Class 1 Dangerous Species might not be especially formidable in the eyes of Imperial Arms Users like them.
But it was still powerful enough to easily destroy an entire town.
Before they had arrived, the Dangerous Species that had suddenly appeared had already turned many towns into ruins.
Clang!
Just as everyone stared at Adai, Adai vanished.
The sight brought back memories of the fear Yorii Tsugikuni had once instilled in Mine, Sheele, and Akame.
But clearly, compared to Yorii Tsugikuni, the little mechanical figure's movements could still be tracked.
Unlike Yorii Tsugikuni, who seemed to turn entirely into streaks of sword light.
Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!
Not long after vanishing, Adai reappeared on the ground. After launching its attack.
It walked toward Yorii Tsugikuni on its short little legs, only to trip over the same branch again.
But this time, the Night Raid members did not laugh at it.
As Adai fell, thin crimson lines appeared across the Dangerous Species behind it.
Then those lines, like cracks spreading across porcelain, sprayed out bright red blood.
Then the dragon-shaped Dangerous Species, dozens of meters tall, collapsed like toppled building blocks, breaking apart into chunks of flesh.
Yorii Tsugikuni left. After dealing with the Dangerous Species, he began his return journey.
According to the information they had received earlier, there had only been two Dangerous Species here.
"It doesn't seem that weak."
"And humanoid Imperial Arms are quite rare."
At first, Night Raid had evaluated the Imperial Arms Yorii Tsugikuni possessed.
They had not rated it very highly.
But judging from the strength it had displayed just now, it could fight independently without Yorii Tsugikuni controlling it.
It was far more powerful than a large portion of Imperial Arms.
Recalling the slash Adai had just delivered, she decided to report this matter to Night Raid as soon as she returned.
Inside the Imperial Capital.
Yorii Tsugikuni walked slowly with Adai.
Since it was already late, the horizon was covered in the glow of sunset.
But he had not gone very far.
Before Yorii Tsugikuni noticed that something seemed to be happening on the street ahead, clogging the intersection with people.
Yorii Tsugikuni raised his eyes toward the distance and saw a group of soldiers riding tall horses down the street with their heads held high, enjoying the cheers of the crowd on both sides.
Seeing this, Yorii Tsugikuni paused slightly. He thought of someone and continued scanning the procession.
Near the middle of the formation.
A beautiful young woman with fair skin and delicate features sat on a white horse, her pale blue hair fluttering gently in the wind. In the sunlight, she was like an ice-cold beauty radiating incomparable splendor.
She sat calmly on horseback, followed closely by three stern-faced people dressed in black uniforms.
Esdeath?
Looking back at the young woman on horseback, Yorii Tsugikuni recognized Esdeath almost immediately, having heard about her before.
From the cheers of the surrounding people, Yorii Tsugikuni could tell that this Imperial general was indeed beloved by the public.
However, Yorii Tsugikuni did not pay her much attention. After only one glance, he withdrew his gaze.
He stood quietly where he was, waiting for the army entering the city to pass.
Hmm?
Interesting.
Sitting atop her horse, Esdeath did not feel much about the cheers around her.
She had never lost a battle in all her campaigns.
The burning gazes that occasionally lingered on her made her somewhat irritated.
Then she noticed an interesting little mechanical figure that tripped over a stone while avoiding the advancing soldiers.
As her gaze followed the little mechanical figure, she spotted someone who seemed completely out of place amid the surroundings.
Compared to the people around him, he gave off an aloof and utterly quiet air.
And those pure eyes were something she had never seen before.
Before you continue