"All right, hold on tight—I'm speeding up."
To break the awkward tension, Haruki quickly changed the subject. But judging by Nina and Kurome's sidelong glances, it was obvious his effort hadn't quite worked.
...
In that uneasy atmosphere, the group soon returned to the Assassination Unit's headquarters.
A streak of light flashed through the air, and Vimana appeared out of nowhere, descending directly into the courtyard where Haruki and the others lived.
By routine, Akame should be training on the forest's outskirts with the rest of the Elite Seven under Gozuki's supervision.
The Empire's southwestern border was covered in vast forests inhabited by numerous Danger Beasts, including some Super-Class ones. Most of those Super-Class Danger Beasts were highly territorial and avoided humans, living deep in the uninhabited center of the forest. The outskirts, however, were teeming with regular Danger Beasts of various types and odd shapes, making it an ideal training ground.
Without wasting time, Haruki led the three girls straight to the outer forest. He planned to hunt some Danger Beasts for dinner to help ease their nerves. If luck was on their side, they might even run into Gozuki's group while they were out training.
Over the past three years, Haruki had often brought Nina, Gin, and Kurome to train in the outskirts, but the forest was vast. Haruki had deliberately avoided the areas Gozuki's team frequented to prevent interference between the two groups. As a result, they'd never crossed paths—until today. Hoping to finally meet them, Haruki brought the girls to a forest zone commonly used by Gozuki.
"Roar... roar... roar..."
But to Haruki's surprise, they'd barely entered the forest when a series of thunderous roars echoed through the trees. The fury in the sound made it clear—it was a powerful Danger Beast, possibly one close to Super-Class strength, and it was engaged in a fight.
Aside from his own team, the only others in the forest were Gozuki's group.
"Looks like your sister and the others are having a rough time. You don't usually find a Danger Beast this strong on the outskirts," Haruki said to Kurome, who stood nearby with a worried look. "Let's go. With their strength, Gozuki and the others won't last long."
Haruki led the way as the four of them dashed swiftly through the forest. The girls' training in close-combat techniques now fully showed its results. Even someone like Gozuki wouldn't be able to move this fast through the trees.
In the blink of an eye, they reached the scene.
The area was in complete chaos. Towering in front of them was a massive, serpent-like Danger Beast—around a hundred meters long and as thick as a van. Its entire body was covered in palm-sized scales, and its eyes were as large as buckets.
When it moved, it was like a walking fortress, causing the ground to quake with every shift. Within a kilometer radius, not a single tree remained standing.
Six people, including Gozuki, were scattered around the monster. Farther back, two girls lay unconscious, clearly struck down by the giant serpent. Its scale-covered body was so tough that Gozuki and the others' weapons barely left faint scratches, only making it angrier. The fighters surrounding it were already covered in injuries—if this went on, they'd all end up as the creature's next meal.
Among the fighters was a girl with long black hair and crimson eyes—Kurome's older sister, Akame. Though only a year older, Akame's figure had already developed noticeably. But right now, her body was covered in wounds, and her situation looked extremely dangerous.
"Sister!"
Kurome, just arriving at the scene, cried out instinctively. But her voice didn't just catch Akame's attention—it also drew the gaze of the giant snake. In an instant, it turned its massive head and charged straight toward Haruki with terrifying speed.
"Kurome, run!"
"Haruki-sama, look out!"
Both Akame and Gozuki shouted in alarm.
Akame hadn't expected that the first time she saw her sister in years, the girl would immediately be caught in such a life-threatening situation. Gozuki, on the other hand, was shocked to see Haruki there with Kurome. He knew Haruki was strong, but in his eyes, Haruki had no Teigu, so there was no way he could take on a beast of this level. More importantly, Haruki held the Prime Minister's token—if anything happened to him, Gozuki wouldn't be able to escape responsibility. Without hesitation, the two of them rushed toward Haruki.
"Looks like dinner's been sorted for tonight."
Haruki grinned as the massive serpent lunged at him.
As the beast charged, fangs bared wide, Haruki sprang into action. To avoid any collateral damage, he surged ahead and, in an instant, appeared right in front of the snake. Bending his legs, he slammed his feet into the ground. The impact left a crater nearly a meter wide—and the next moment, Haruki shot upward like a cannonball, landing above the serpent's side.
Bang!
A dull, heavy thud echoed through the forest as Haruki's kick connected. To everyone's utter disbelief, the enormous snake—larger than a small mountain—was sent flying and crashed into the nearby forest.
Everyone froze.
Even Gozuki and Akame, mid-rush toward Haruki, stopped dead in their tracks, stunned.
Boom!
It wasn't until the deafening crash of the snake hitting the ground that anyone moved again. Turning toward the noise, they saw the once-dominant serpent lying motionless. The spot where Haruki's kick had landed was now visibly caved in.
"What the hell..."
Everyone at the scene silently cursed in their hearts. Even Gozuki, usually all stern and composed, couldn't help but wonder, Is this guy even human?
Of course, he kept that thought to himself. He would never dare ask Haruki something like that. In the Empire, there were rumored to be offspring of Danger Beasts and humans—creatures regarded as taboo, shunned by society. At this point, Gozuki couldn't help but wonder if Haruki was the child of a Super-Class Danger Beast.
If Haruki knew what he was thinking, he'd probably slap him across the face and say, "Do the offspring of Danger Beasts look this damn handsome?"
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / PinkSnake