"These guards are just getting more and more numerous."
On a damaged plaza, Akame stood at the front, holding Murasame in her right hand, gently wiping blood from her cheek.
Leone and Najenda were on her left and right, their clothes stained with a lot of blood.
Centered around them, the ground was a sea of red, piled high with gore and severed limbs.
Looking out, countless corpses lay strewn haphazardly in pools of blood.
And Ayato stood in the center of the three women. Not a drop of blood on him, his clothes were even spotless.
"Mon... monster!"
Looking at the four, all the soldiers showed fear on their faces, their hands holding their weapons trembling slightly.
"This is Night Raid? That's just cheating."
A squad leader looked at Akame, his voice quivering.
She was simply a true killing demon.
Her speed was like a phantom; before they could even react, dozens more bodies would be on the ground.
Ayato and the other three advanced slowly.
For every step they took forward, the surrounding soldiers took a step back.
It seemed everyone had lost the courage to attack.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Just then, chaotic footsteps like a tide approached from afar.
From all directions, countless figures flickered, dense and seemingly endless.
"Hey hey, it wouldn't be the entire palace guard coming, would it?"
Seeing this, Leone felt a chill run down her spine.
'With these numbers...'
'Even just piling up, they could overwhelm us.'
She looked at Ayato and said, "Devil-sama, isn't it time for you to make a move?"
"Indeed."
Ayato nodded, glancing at the people around him. "The gathered small fry are about enough."
The instant his words fell, the atmosphere in the entire plaza froze in an instant.
The dust scattering in all directions seemed frozen in mid-air.
As if time and space themselves had stopped.
Boom!
In an instant, a stream of light flashed in Ayato's ruby-like, translucent eyes.
Terrifying magic power suddenly erupted, rolling outwards in all directions.
Silently!
All the soldiers, whether their expressions were fearful, excited, or ferocious, were frozen on their faces.
In the distance!
The continuously reinforcing troops also seemed to have turned into statues.
The entire plaza, along with the surrounding buildings, had become a painting.
Everything was frozen in the picture.
'What just happened?'
Najenda and Leone's eyes widened, their expressions full of disbelief.
Thud! Thud!
As if in an instant, or as if a thousand years had passed...
Countless soldiers surrounding Ayato and the others all fell to the ground.
Then,
Soldiers fell in waves, continuously spreading outwards, like harvesting wheat.
In an instant...
Nearly ten thousand imperial palace guards had all fallen to the ground.
What was even more terrifying was that...
Winds and clouds churned in the sky above, countless hurricanes rippled outward, even causing the weather to change.
"Th-this is..."
The corners of Najenda and Leone's eyes twitched, their faces blank.
They were having trouble thinking.
Before this, they had imagined countless times how Ayato would deal with these soldiers.
But who could have imagined that he hadn't even raised a hand,
Nearly ten thousand soldiers are all incapacitated.
Even ten thousand pigs would take a while to catch.
Akame gasped, looking at him with admiration. "Master, this is your magic power?"
"That's right."
"It's just a basic application. You'll be able to do it too, in time."
Ayato nodded.
This was essentially a magic-powered version of Conqueror's Haki.
Useless against slightly stronger opponents, but a divine skill for clearing out small fry.
"Master, I'll work hard!"
Akame nodded heavily, serious and earnest.
The brief fight had already shown her some of the uses of magic power.
If the situation weren't inappropriate, she would take out the magic book right now and bury herself in study.
"Alright, we should continue moving."
As soon as Ayato finished speaking, he sensed something and turned his head.
A large man with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing armor, was striding towards them.
"General Budo!"
Akame's expression sharpened.
The newcomer was none other than the wielder of the Imperial Arm "Adramelech", one of the Empire's two strongest.
Seeing him, Najenda and Leone were instantly on high alert.
Every cell in their bodies told them...
The newcomer was very dangerous.
Ayato, however, smiled warmly, his eyes falling on the man's armor.
'Not a bad item. I wanted it.'
Although he didn't need it himself, it could help his servants increase their strength more quickly.
"How did you do that?"
Budo stopped, looking at Ayato with obvious caution in his eyes.
"Leave the Imperial Arm, and I'll spare your life."
Ayato said calmly. "After all, crushing an ant without damaging its body is a bit troublesome."
Budo was stunned for a moment, then understood.
This person before him was looking down on him.
"Trespassing in the Imperial Palace is a capital offense."
Budo's expression twisted. "Don't think that just because you possess an Imperial Arm's power, you can act recklessly."
Killing intent surged within him.
'Who did this reckless fool think he was?'
Bang!
The next instant, the ground beneath him exploded into a crater.
He lunged forward like lightning, brilliant lightning flashing on his arms.
Clang!
Akame's Murasame began to draw but was immediately sheathed.
Because Ayato was already walking forward. He simply raised his hand.
Boom!
A deafening roar rang out.
Visible ripples spread outward in all directions.
Najenda and Leone's expressions changed, their bodies felt numb, and their minds went blank.
"Hmph!"
Budo grunted, sent flying backward by that surging force.
His feet plowed two furrows tens of meters long into the ground.
"What... what kind of monster are you?"
Budo's expression was wooden, his arm trembling slightly.
This was the first time someone had caught his Imperial Arm barehanded.
The seemingly not-so-strong body before him contained unimaginable power.
"What type of Imperial Arm is yours?"
Budo spoke slowly, trying to gather as much information as possible.
"I don't have an Imperial Arm."
Ayato told the truth. "You, on the other hand, are a bit stronger than I expected."
"You bastard!"
Budo's eyes gleamed with menace, his expression ferocious.
Crackle!
Dazzling lightning flickered over his armor.
With his roar...
The lightning condensed, forming a solid lightning armor.
In an instant...
Budo had entered his strongest state.