Sniping

"Within the Imperial Assassination Corps, there is a powerful Imperial Arm user who was modified by Dr. Stylish. Her name is..."

"...Kurome."

Akame spoke that name.

"Kurome, Akame..."

Lubbock and Tatsumi looked at Akame, then at Nacita.

Those two names were so similar that they could not help feeling Kurome had some connection to Akame.

"Kurome... she is Akame's younger sister."

Right, Akame had originally been part of the Imperial Assassination Corps. Naturally, her younger sister was as well.

"If that's the case, can't we win Kurome over?"

Tatsumi thought that blood was thicker than water between biological sisters. If Akame spoke to her, Kurome probably would not immediately draw her blade and attack, right?

"...No. She refused back then."

After Akame defected from the Imperial Assassination Corps, she had secretly gone back once, intending to take Kurome with her.

But Kurome had refused her and declared that she would kill Akame the next time they met.

Tatsumi did not understand it.

But wisely, he did not ask further. It was their family matter, and outsiders should not meddle.

"What about the last one?"

Leona changed the heavy subject.

"The other one is Nyau, who possesses the Flute Imperial Arm."

"The sound produced by her Imperial Arm can hypnotize and paralyze warriors. On the battlefield, it is a powerful weapon capable of deciding the outcome of a battle!"

"Therefore, Lilith, who possesses an Imperial Arm capable of amplifying Esdeath; Dr. Stylish, who can create large numbers of powerful Modified Humans; and Nyau, who could have a tremendous impact on the military, are our targets this time."

"Of them, Dr. Stylish himself does not have much combat ability, so it may be difficult to lure him out of the Imperial Capital. Therefore, this operation has only two primary kill targets: Lilith and Nyau. As for Dr. Stylish, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future."

Night Raid moved quickly. Once the plan was set, they immediately departed, heading southeast in two groups to lay traps and wait for the Hunters.

Not long afterward, someone reported spotting Akame and Mine, both wanted criminals, on the streets of the Imperial Capital.

"This is obviously a trap."

Night Raid, which had always remained hidden in the shadows, had suddenly shown itself—and it was Akame, whose fearsome name was known far and wide.

No matter how one thought about it, it made no sense.

"Even so, we must go. With you and me there, no matter what kind of trap it is, we will crush them!"

Lilith silently agreed with Esdeath's words. After all, she was not wrong.

Then, aside from Dr. Stylish, who had no combat ability, all of the Hunters set out!

The Revolutionary Army's informants hidden outside the Imperial Capital sent this news to Nacita by carrier hawk.

"Esdeath, Lilith, Seryu, and the former Three Beasts. Six Imperial Arm users in total, just as expected."

Though they had made thorough preparations for this ambush, Nacita still felt an ominous foreboding in her heart.

"How many people will die this time?"

Given Nacita's understanding of Esdeath, even if Esdeath knew it was a trap, she would still step into it without hesitation.

She was the sort of person who would never let slip any chance to enjoy a battle.

Especially not a trap she had carefully prepared herself!

And after discovering that Night Raid had split into two groups, Esdeath would surely choose to pursue her without hesitation, wouldn't she?

But now was not the time to face Esdeath head-on.

The next day, Night Raid split up.

One team headed south, while the other went east.

To the south was a force with unclear ties to the Revolutionary Army, while to the east was an Anning Dao.

Either one could be Night Raid's target.

But more likely, they were smokescreens meant to split up the Hunters.

Even so, Esdeath did not halt her advance.

Esdeath then took Seryu and Liva with her to pursue Nacita's group heading south.

Meanwhile, Lilith took Nyau and Daidas east to pursue Akame.

Lilith's group, which was tracking Akame and the others, happened to be Night Raid's target this time.

Though Daidas had been added to the mix, being able to kill one more Imperial Imperial Arm user would still be a good thing for the Revolutionary Army.

On a hillside.

Mine, remotely aiming at Lilith and the others through the Imperial Arm Roman Artillery: Pumpkin, finally saw Lilith's true face with her own eyes.

"What? She's even a little shorter than me."

Mine compared her height to Lilith's in her mind and realized that she was... a few centimeters taller.

At least she was taller!

Probably, this was the only thing she could beat Lilith at.

"She's even cuter in person than in the portrait."

It had to be said that Mine looked at things from a somewhat different angle. This did not seem like the time to be concerned about that.

Suddenly, while Mine was aiming at Lilith through Pumpkin's scope, she saw Lilith turn her head and look in her direction.

Even though she knew perfectly well that, at a distance of over a thousand meters, there was no way that person could see her across such a vast distance, Mine still broke out in a cold sweat.

"Damn it! What sharp instincts!"

Mine was certain that she had been discovered.

She had only looked through the scope for less than two seconds in total, yet she had been detected.

As a long-range sniper, she hated targets with sharp instincts more than anything.

"In that case, I can only use this as a feint and create an opening for Susanoo to launch a surprise attack."

Mine raised Pumpkin, aimed at Lilith, and pulled the trigger.

For this long-range attack, she had specifically replaced Pumpkin's muzzle long ago, turning it into one capable of compressing mental energy into an extremely fine focused beam. Among Pumpkin's several muzzle attachments, this one had the longest range and the strongest penetrating power.

Startled by Lilith's sudden turn of the head, Mine's attack this time was exceptionally powerful. But...

No matter how powerful an attack was, it was useless if it did not hit the target.

Lilith merely tilted her head slightly and dodged the focused laser beam.

The laser pierced through the ground, boring through stone and earth alike, while a wisp of white smoke rose from the tiny hole.

"This is... sniping?"

When Mine had been watching her from afar, Lilith had already sensed it, feeling as though someone was spying on her.

She had thought there was someone lying in ambush nearby, never expecting the attack to come from such a long distance.

Even Esdeath would have found it difficult to launch such a precise attack from so far away.