Kurome, Become Mine

Hum!

An intense chill rapidly spread across the heavens.

The next instant.

The entire sky had darkened.

Under everyone's gaze.

An enormous sphere of ice came hurtling down like a meteor.

"Wh... what is that?"

"Run! Hurry, run!"

The guards who had still been gathering stared at the gigantic falling mass of ice, their faces filled with terror.

"Is that... Esdeath's Imperial Arms?"

Budo alone managed to remain composed.

But as he watched, his expression grew thunderous.

Esdeath had joined the rebellion too. The situation was even worse than he had imagined.

At that moment, however, he had no time to dwell on it. He immediately activated his Imperial Arms, Adramelech.

Crackle!

Dazzling lightning surged from Budo's body, terrifying bolts spreading in every direction.

Then!

The lightning condensed over his armor, seemingly forming a visible suit of thunderous armor.

Against Esdeath, even Budo had no choice but to go all out.

Bang!

The next instant, a crater exploded beneath his feet.

He shot forward like lightning, meeting the falling ice with terrifying force.

Boom!

The instant the two collided, visible ripples spread through the air.

Countless shards of ice scattered in every direction like cannonballs.

"Aaah!"

Screams rose one after another. Who knew how many guards had already been smashed into pulp?

At the same time.

The billowing dust was torn apart as a dazzling bolt of lightning shot out.

Boom!

With a casual slap, Lind shattered the lightning.

The scattered bolts ran wild, effortlessly punching through the surrounding ground.

Whoosh!

A gale swept past.

The dust gradually dispersed.

Bathed from head to toe in lightning, Budo walked out unscathed, stepping over a ground littered with corpses.

"You actually blocked a strike from Adramelech. It seems you're no nameless nobody."

Budo stared at Lind, a trace of wariness flashing in his eyes.

Esdeath alone was enough of a headache.

The man before him was also an exceptionally powerful opponent.

"Esdeath, keep an eye on these people."

After giving that instruction, Lind stepped forward.

At the sight, Budo frowned and ordered, "Everyone still standing, charge!"

The guards who had escaped death prepared to obey almost instinctively.

But!

Esdeath raised her hand again.

"Master said the small fry were mine to deal with."

The instant her words fell, a terrifying chill rippled from her palm.

"Absolute Zero."

Hum!

An invisible chill instantly spread across the entire area.

Every guard felt their blood turn ice-cold as their bodies froze stiff where they stood.

"Aaah!"

They began struggling desperately, but it was futile.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Thick ice covered their bodies.

Within just a few breaths, all the remaining guards had been frozen in place.

"..."

Standing where he was, Budo instinctively swallowed.

Esdeath gazed at Lind's back, her eyes filled with adoration and love.

This was the power Master had bestowed upon me.

Before this.

She could never have frozen each person so precisely without affecting Budo.

At that very moment!

Lind had already reached Budo.

Watching Lind draw closer and closer, Budo took a deep breath.

He had intended to use those guards to probe Lind's Imperial Arms.

But that clearly would not work now.

In that case...

I could only end this quickly.

Then I could free myself up to deal with Esdeath.

Crackle!

Adramelech unleashed its full power. Countless bolts of lightning flashed over Budo's body, making him look like a god of thunder descending upon the world.

Boom!

The ground around him exploded into craters, turning pitch-black in an instant.

"That's a nice toy. I'll take it."

Lind glanced at Adramelech, his eyes brightening slightly.

It let someone unleash power comparable to a High-Class Devil's.

If he could study it and mass-produce it, that would be worthwhile too.

Hum!

Lind raised one hand, and the Devil's Gun appeared out of thin air.

Was that his Imperial Arms?

It looked like he was a ranged Imperial Arms user.

As those thoughts flashed through his mind, lightning flared around Budo, and he lunged forward like a thunderbolt.

Rumble!

Wherever Budo passed, the ground collapsed, the destruction spreading toward Lind.

"Impressive momentum, but you're too slow."

Lind watched the approaching Budo coldly and gently pulled the trigger.

Brilliant magical light filled Budo's vision.

A beam of magic, compressed to the utmost, left a visible ripple in the air.

In just an instant.

The magical beam pierced the lightning armor and flashed straight through Budo's body.

Chapter 25: Kurome, Become Mine

Splurt!

Blood spurted from Budo's neck.

His eyes widened, and then he toppled stiffly to the ground with a thud.

At that moment.

Silence fell once more, both inside and outside the palace.

"Even General Budo is dead."

A minister spoke blankly, his eyes wide.

The other nobles and ministers were also full of terror:

"What... what should we do?"

"What... what else can we do...?"

A subtle change had already appeared in everyone's eyes.

After all.

Honest had already eaten away at almost the entire Empire.

How could anyone standing here be a loyal minister?

Lind walked back into the palace and said indifferently, "From now on, I call the shots."

"Who's in favor, and who's against?"

One minister immediately dropped to his knees. "The Empire is rotten. We owe it to you and General Esdeath for setting things right."

"I humbly ask His Majesty the Emperor to abdicate."

With someone taking the lead, the remaining ministers and nobles hurried to act, afraid of falling behind.

"You... you all..."

The young emperor extended a trembling hand, then his eyes rolled back and he fainted.

Lind was not surprised by this sight.

This was precisely why he had made an example of someone.

As for the other ministers, he had no intention of touching them for now.

The Empire still needed people to govern it.

Once things had stabilized.

He could simply replace them with his own people one by one.