Akame ga Kill: Starting with Dual Kamui

Blayn let out a small sigh. "Why are you all overthinking this? I already told you—it's not set in stone yet. I need time to consider my options."

Kurome froze for a moment.

Commander Blayn was seriously thinking this over?

Did something like this even require consideration?

Becoming General Esdeath's deputy was an opportunity countless people could only dream of.

Not only would it remove the burden of dealing with the high-ranking officials of the Imperial Assassination Unit, but Esdeath also didn't seem nearly as strict with Blayn. In fact, their relationship even seemed somewhat ambiguous.

From Blayn's perspective, this had to be nothing but good news, right?

So Kurome had only voiced a small complaint—she had never actually said she didn't want him to go.

Her real plan was to eliminate Night Raid before he left, securing a major victory for the Assassination Unit. That way, they might have enough merit to negotiate with the Empire for their future.

It was a slim chance, but it was worth trying.

So she couldn't help but ask, "Isn't this a great opportunity? Why do you still need to think about it, Commander?"

"It's for your sake," Blayn replied. "You think I can just walk away that easily? If I do leave for Esdeath's side, what happens to you all? I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving everything in Seryu's hands."

In a way, he wasn't wrong.

Restructuring the Imperial Assassination Unit into a new organization was already a vast improvement over what it used to be.

And truthfully, he couldn't fully trust Seryu just yet—her warped sense of justice still hadn't been corrected.

The unit members had already been deeply brainwashed, and if they ended up following Seryu's lead without his influence...

"Commander..."

Kurome was visibly moved by his words.

Meanwhile, Chelsea quietly took mental notes on Blayn's personality.

A certain level of kindness, gentleness, and loyalty—those were the traits she temporarily attributed to him.

She was beginning to understand why the Assassination Unit members were so reluctant to let him go.

They had been trained under inhumane methods by the Empire, yet Blayn actually seemed to care about them.

But what she found even more curious was—wasn't he worried about his own position?

Going against the Empire's usual training methods was bound to cause trouble for him. Even danger.

"I understand now. I was wrong to assume, Commander," Kurome said, finally calming down. "But this is General Esdeath's order. If you go against it, there will be consequences, right?"

For the first time, she was genuinely worried for him.

"Probably," Blayn admitted. "I'll deal with it when the time comes."

"In that case, we should still deal with Night Raid as soon as possible," Kurome insisted.

She had already made up her mind.

In the end, she believed Blayn wouldn't disobey Esdeath's orders.

Instead of dragging him down, they should be doing their part.

"There's no need to rush into a fight with Night Raid," Blayn said calmly. "You don't have to be so focused on earning merit."

He added, "Just train when you need to train, rest when you need to rest—that's all."

If the Assassination Unit engaged Night Raid now, the best outcome would be mutual destruction. The worst? A complete wipeout of the Assassination Unit. And that outcome was far more likely.

Neither scenario was something Blayn wanted.

"But..."

Kurome was about to protest when Blayn cut her off.

"This time, just listen to me. You always follow your commander's orders, don't you?"

"Yes, Commander. I was being out of line," Kurome admitted.

She realized she had pushed too far.

Had this been their previous commander, she would have been punished for even speaking up.

"Anyway, don't worry too much—I'll figure something out," Blayn reassured her.

"Alright," Kurome said with a faint smile, nodding slightly.

She still wasn't entirely at ease, but she felt better than before.

For now, this matter was settled.

...

Kurome and the others had just returned from training today, so as usual, Blayn gave them some time off.

This allowed the Assassination Unit members to walk around the streets of the Imperial Capital, giving them a chance to observe and better understand the city's current state.

Without regular reinforcement, the effects of their brainwashing would gradually weaken. And by seeing the reality of the Imperial Capital firsthand, that process would only accelerate.

Blayn's idea was undoubtedly effective. In the original story, Akame had begun questioning the Empire only after witnessing too much of its darkness. Eventually, her doubts led her to join the Revolutionary Army.

As Blayn walked through the streets with the Assassination Unit, he stopped by a market stall to buy ingredients for making nutritious porridge.

"I wonder how that family is doing. Their child couldn't afford medical treatment, so I gave them some money."

"They should have gotten the medicine by now. Why don't we stop by and check on them later?"

"Last time, I met a few young girls who had come from out of town. I gave them some money for lodging. I hope they've found work by now."

"..."

Everyone recalled various encounters from their previous time off.

They didn't react much to the sight of impoverished civilians scattered across the streets. They simply felt a bit of pity and offered small acts of help when they could.

After all, they had been taught by the Empire that the people's suffering was caused by the rebels who had destabilized the nation. To them, seeing poverty only reinforced their belief in fighting against the so-called "traitors."

Listening to their conversations, Blayn thought to himself that their perception of the Empire was still far too naive.

When he had served as the Captain of the Imperial Capital Security Force, he had seen countless cases of outsiders being swindled, abused, or even tortured to death.

Crime lurked in every corner of the city.

Back then, he had been overwhelmed, constantly dealing with all sorts of incidents.

During his tenure, the city's security had improved significantly.

But after his resignation, he had no idea how the new captain was handling things. Most likely, they were no different from Ogre, the previous one.

Blayn followed the Assassination Unit members to check on the family that had been struggling to afford their child's treatment.

Chelsea, watching all of this unfold, found herself a bit surprised.

The members of the Assassination Unit actually seemed to care about the less fortunate.

Was it because they weren't inherently bad people?

Or had Blayn somehow changed them?

(40 Chapters Ahead)

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