Night Raid Base
As Blayn returned to the Imperial Capital, Sheele and Mine also arrived back at the base.
“We just ran into Blayn while hunting a Danger Beast,” Mine immediately reported upon their return.
“You were training nearby, weren’t you? How did you end up running into Blayn there?” Najenda asked, surprised. “Could he have discovered our base? Did he say anything to you?”
“No, he probably doesn’t know our base is here. He looked like he was hunting Danger Beasts as well—seems like we just ran into each other by accident,” Mine replied.
“He didn’t say anything to us, nor did he try to fight,” Sheele added. “I did tell him outright that we wanted to recruit him, but I was too hasty and didn’t express myself well... so he turned me down.” She looked regretful.
“That’s not Sheele’s fault—it’s that guy’s loss for not appreciating the offer,” Mine said immediately.
“That kid, Blayn, really doesn’t know how to count his blessings, turning down our sweet and beautiful Sheele~” Leone teased.
“Don’t make it sound like Sheele just confessed to him,” Mine retorted, sounding a little annoyed.
Sheele, however, remained indifferent, seemingly oblivious to that kind of thing.
“It’s not surprising he didn’t accept right away. We had to go through a lot of trouble for Akame too,” Lubbock pointed out.
Strictly speaking, recruiting Akame had come at a steep price—most of the assassin group Oarburgh had been wiped out, with Chelsea as the sole survivor. If not for the efforts of Oarburgh, especially its leader, Merraid, they wouldn’t have been able to win Akame over so easily. It was Merraid who had shown Akame the countless dark sides of the Empire.
“Are you talking about Merraid?” Akame suddenly recalled the woman.
She had been an odd one, but without her, Akame might never have realized that her work for the Empire’s assassination unit had been misguided.
But in the end, Akame had killed Merraid with her own hands. At the time, she hadn’t yet awakened to the truth—if she had, she never would have slain the one person who could have been considered her benefactor.
“No, no! I was just giving an example!” Lubbock quickly realized he had messed up and tried to backtrack.
“What nonsense!” Leone didn’t hesitate to land a punch on him, making Lubbock yelp in exaggerated pain. Of course, he was just acting—it didn’t actually hurt that much.
“It’s okay. It was my mistake in the first place, you don’t have to be so concerned about my feelings,” Akame said.
“Anyway, what was Blayn’s attitude? Did he reject outright, or was there any room for negotiation?” Najenda steered the conversation back on track.
“He was polite about it, but his rejection was pretty firm,” Sheele replied.
“Oh, right. Sheele also arranged to meet him again in three days, and he agreed,” Mine added, then reassured Sheele, “So you don’t need to blame yourself. If anything, you’ve given us an even better opportunity, haven’t you?”
“Hm...” A smile returned to Sheele’s face. Though in her mind, it was because everyone was so kind that they never blamed her in the first place.
After getting more details from Sheele and Mine, Najenda quickly grasped the situation.
“In that case, we’ll all wait for Blayn at the spot Sheele agreed on with him. By the way, the Revolutionary Army has sent someone who will be arriving soon. Not only will she bring us detailed intel on Blayn, but she’ll also be joining Night Raid as our newest member,” Najenda informed the group.
“Oh! We’re getting a new teammate already?” Leone said excitedly. A new ally was always a welcome addition.
“Really? Is it a guy or a girl? It’d be great if it’s a cute girl,” Lubbock said, visibly eager.
“You really only ever think about pretty girls,” Mine shot him a glare.
“You’ll find out when they arrive,” Najenda teased, keeping it a mystery.
“I hope it’s a guy. With only two men in Night Raid, it feels a bit unbalanced,” Bulat suddenly chimed in, flashing a gleaming white smile.
With that healthy grin and those words, it was easy to misunderstand his meaning.
“No, no, no, let’s go with a girl instead,” Lubbock protested firmly.
“So, Akame, would you prefer our new teammate to be a guy or a girl?” Leone leaned in, asking with curiosity.
“It doesn’t really matter. Whether they’re male or female, they’ll be a comrade who shares our cause,” Akame answered flatly.
“Hah... should’ve figured you’d say that,” Leone chuckled, a little exasperated. Akame was so serious that teasing her was almost impossible.
Akame tilted her head slightly, as if a question mark had appeared above her head, clearly not understanding what Leone was getting at.
“You’re at the age where you should be interested in romance, right? Have you really never met a guy who makes your heart skip a beat?” Leone asked more directly.
"No, now’s not the time to think about things like that," Akame said firmly, shaking her head.
Until she completed her mission, she wouldn’t even consider such things.
Besides, to her, Kurome would always be the most important person.
"I knew you’d say that. But honestly, falling in love doesn’t have to interfere with your mission. If you ever meet someone you truly like, not even your mission will be able to stop you."
Leone patted Akame on the shoulder with a grin.
"Maybe..."
Akame didn’t take Leone’s words seriously.
...
While the Night Raid members were enjoying their laughter and banter, Chelsea was on her way to their base, riding atop a Danger Beast.
The creature she rode was a Special-Class Danger Beast tamed by the Revolutionary Army—called Air Manta.
It looked almost identical to a manta ray from the ocean, except it was many times larger, capable of carrying multiple people at once, and, most notably, could fly.
Being a Special-Class Danger Beast, its flying speed was naturally incredible. Chelsea wouldn’t need much time to reach her destination.
She held a lollipop in her mouth, a faint smile on her face.
She was looking forward to meeting her new companions.
And that innocent and kindhearted guy... he would likely become one of them as well.
At that moment, Blayn’s face surfaced in Chelsea’s mind.