At lunch, Lin Ran looked at the all-meat feast on the table and could not help feeling a little sheepish. Sure enough, the women of Night Raid all loved meat.
This time, however, everyone was quiet, because Night Raid's leader had returned!
After hearing Akame and the others' reports, Boss became interested too, examining Divine Abyss curiously. But no matter how she looked at it, Divine Abyss seemed no different from an ordinary Teigu.
"Since this Teigu chose Akame, let it stay with you. Still, Akame, your aura is more than a whole level stronger than before. Is that because of this Teigu?"
"Yes. Divine Abyss has already bound itself to me, and I've received Feedback from a portion of its power."
"All right. Akame, spend the next few days getting familiar with your power. Intelligence says Zanku the Beheader has infiltrated the Imperial Capital. Everyone, prepare to hunt him down. Recovering Teigu is one of our tasks, after all."
"Especially you, Tatsumi. Have you decided to join us?"
"What good would joining you do? Even if we kill a few bad people, that won't change the kingdom's current state, will it? My-no, our village will still be oppressed."
"If that's the case, you have even more reason to join us. Night Raid is the Revolutionary Army's advance force, responsible for gathering intelligence and clearing obstacles for the troops. You don't know yet, do you, Tatsumi? In the south of the Empire, a Revolutionary Army is quietly growing stronger!"
"The Revolutionary Army?" Tatsumi asked in confusion. Boss then explained the reasons behind the kingdom's current corruption and the Revolutionary Army's origins, making Tatsumi's blood boil with excitement.
Bored, Lin Ran circled around Akame. Talk like that could only fool a hot-blooded anime protagonist like Tatsumi.
"Akame, you can teach Mine and Sheele some swordsmanship over the next few days. That way, they'll be able to make better use of my power."
"All right, understood."
That afternoon, everyone in Night Raid went about their own business. When they had nothing to do, they stayed at the base, whether to train or simply idle around. Wanted posters for Night Raid's members were plastered everywhere outside, so they generally would not venture into the Imperial Capital without a mission. Leone was the exception; she often ran off to the Imperial Capital to buy drinks.
Akame and Tatsumi took two wooden swords and taught Mine and Sheele swordsmanship. At first, the two women were not particularly willing to learn, until Lin Ran transferred into the Blade of Devouring and demonstrated its power for them. They immediately scampered eagerly over to Akame, pestering her to teach them swordsmanship.
The power Lin Ran displayed was simply too strong-even stronger than their own Teigu! Akame explained to the others that the black swords in their hands were avatars of Divine Abyss and could carry a portion of its power.
That evening, Akame went to the riverbank and roasted a strange fish.
"Didn't you just have dinner? Didn't you get enough?" Lin Ran could not help asking.
"Mmm-I could still eat a little more!" Akame said, biting her finger in indecision.
"Go ahead, eat. Being able to eat is a blessing!"
"System, is there any treasure that can turn me back into a human?"
[Yes. I recommend purchasing the Myriad Spirits Body! For only three million Origin Points, you can change your appearance at will. Each transformation lasts three hours, with a twelve-hour cooldown! Transformation time cannot be accumulated.]
"That's fucking ridiculous. Why is everything so expensive now?! System, be honest. How much have you pocketed in kickbacks?!"
"Tell me! Come on, tell me!" Lin Ran demanded viciously in his mind.
[I have not!]
The System's slightly tsundere voice rang out. Lin Ran still preferred its old mechanical voice.
"Fine, buy it. I thought thirty million Origin Points would last a long time, but half of it's already gone."
After purchasing the Myriad Spirits Body and learning how to use it, Lin Ran immediately took human form, gripped Divine Abyss, and swung, cutting straight through the rushing river.
Only after more than half a minute did the river begin flowing again. Lin Ran nodded in satisfaction and looked at Akame, who stood frozen beside him.
"Hello, Akame. I'm Divine Abyss's sword spirit!" Lin Ran took Akame's hand, feeling the calluses on it, formed by years of wielding a blade.
"Hello. Could you let go of me first?" Akame asked, her face flushed.
"No, I haven't felt enough yet!" Lin Ran said brazenly, pulling Akame into his arms and feeling her delicate body.
Akame froze for two seconds, then began struggling. Lin Ran let her go with the movement.
"Let me teach you swordsmanship. Yours doesn't look very polished yet."
Lin Ran spent a hundred thousand Origin Points and instantly became a swordsmanship master! Holding Divine Abyss, he handed Akame an ordinary iron sword as though performing a magic trick.
Next came sword practice. The blush never faded from Akame's face, because Lin Ran kept using the excuse of correcting her movements to run his hands all over her.
Lin Ran, on the other hand, thought nothing of it. He had already counted Akame as his woman anyway.
"All right, that's enough sword practice for today. Time to go back and sleep!" Lin Ran looked at Akame, rubbing his hands together.
"No! We can't do that yet!" Akame refused.
"Why not? Didn't you sleep hugging me last night too?" Lin Ran asked, playing dumb.
"Relax, I'm a sword spirit. I only did that just now to examine your body. I don't actually have the dirty thoughts ordinary humans do," Lin Ran continued to hoodwink her.
Akame looked at Lin Ran skeptically, then finally nodded helplessly. Lin Ran could hardly wait to lie down on the bed. On their way back, they had also run into Sheele reading a book. Akame had intended to introduce Lin Ran to her, but in the next instant, he had already taken both of Sheele's hands.
She really was a natural airhead. Even with Lin Ran taking liberties with her, Sheele showed little reaction. Akame dragged Lin Ran away in a huff.
Less than an hour remained of today's transformation time. Akame still wanted to take a shower, but Lin Ran would not let her have her way. He simply held her and lay down on the bed.
Five minutes later, Akame's face darkened, and she could bear it no longer.
"Didn't you say you were different from ordinary humans? What are you doing?"
"Examining your body, of course! All of you have hidden injuries inside your bodies. I'm doing this for your own good! Don't get the wrong idea!" Lin Ran declared righteously, his right hand still resting on a soft mound.
Only when Lin Ran's transformation time ran out and he returned inside Divine Abyss's blade did Akame breathe a sigh of relief. She hugged Divine Abyss as it floated over and fell peacefully asleep.
Early the next morning, Akame got up to prepare breakfast. Lin Ran floated groggily beside her. When it was time to eat, Mine and Sheele were still asleep. Everyone was long accustomed to this and did not wait for them. After breakfast, the leader left, apparently to collect intelligence from a contact.
Akame began practicing her swordsmanship in the courtyard. Bored with nothing to do, Lin Ran transferred over to Sheele to chat with the naturally airheaded, mature beauty.
Before long, Mine and Sheele finished breakfast too and began practicing their swordsmanship in the courtyard.
At noon, the leader returned and immediately gathered everyone for a meeting, confirming their assassination target: Ogre of the Imperial Capital Guard. On the surface, he maintained public order every day, but behind the scenes, he abused his authority, torturing and killing innocent girls.
Akame was the first to raise her hand, saying she wanted to go.
"Not you, Akame. You're too strong now. Killing him wouldn't take the effort of blowing away dust. Tatsumi! This mission is yours! Are you confident you can complete it?"
"Yes! I guarantee I'll complete the mission!" Tatsumi shouted. He really was a chuuni teenager.