Chapter 29: The Heart
……
"Brother Brand."
Tazmi shouted, staggering to his feet and rushing toward Brand's corpse.
After running just a few steps, Tazmi was stopped by someone.
"Calm down, Tazmi."
Akame's voice was somewhat low. Although a comrade had died before her eyes, a powerful enemy remained. No matter how furious she felt inside, she had to stay calm.
"How can you expect me to stay calm?"
Tazmi struggled violently, the blood on his body smearing onto Akame's sleeve.
"Calm down, Tazmi."
Akame's voice turned stern. At this moment, rushing forward would only mean death for Tazmi.
Su Xiao picked up the key dropped by Brand. The two had no personal grudge. Brand had injected himself with stimulants while wounded, all to cover his comrades. He was a respectable opponent; they simply stood on different sides. If he didn't kill the other, the other would kill him.
The Empire and the Revolutionary Army were mortal enemies, a conflict that couldn't be resolved through negotiation or similar means.
Between killing and being killed, Su Xiao chose to kill. He was no saint. Any hostile creature that provoked him would be met with the blade in his hand.
Brand's strength was not weak, so he dropped a blue treasure chest. Moreover, in the bundle behind Brand were three Imperial Arms, all of which Su Xiao collected.
Once these Imperial Arms fell into his hands, they reached their final destination. Handing them over to the Empire was a foolish act he would never commit.
The battle continued. Even if he wanted to leave, the Night Raid wouldn't allow it.
"Tazmi, have you calmed down?"
Akame supported Tazmi.
"Yeah."
Tazmi's eyelids drooped. This was his first time experiencing a comrade's death since joining Night Raid.
At this point, Tazmi was still somewhat naive, believing Night Raid fought for justice. But Night Raid was the Revolutionary Army's covert division. They handled the 'dirty work' and 'hard labor.' How could there be no casualties?
The Revolutionary Army might indeed be good, but Night Raid was undoubtedly evil. Though its members harbored righteous intentions, a covert division was still a covert division.
The duty of a covert division was to kill for the nation. No matter how heinous the targets, it was still killing.
"Use this to contact the boss. Tell her we need backup. We might have run into someone as terrifying as Esdeath."
Akame shoved a walkie-talkie into Tazmi's hands. Tazmi nodded weakly.
"Though it might sound naive, I will avenge my comrade today."
Akame gripped her sword with both hands, standing opposite Su Xiao.
"If you can kill me, then go ahead. When I point my blade at others, I already have the resolve to be killed myself."
Su Xiao never considered himself a good person. He knew he was a villain. He could kill others, and others could kill him too. It all came down to who was stronger.
Su Xiao and Akame both stomped the ground and charged at each other.
Clang, clang...
The sound of weapons clashing rang out continuously.
The long blade traced silver threads before their eyes, sparks flying everywhere.
Su Xiao's chosen strategy was to take the offensive, his mind highly focused, ready to seize any opening from the enemy. Akame, on the other hand, was on the defensive, waiting for Su Xiao to make a mistake so she could strike back.
Even the slightest error from the enemy was an opportunity for Akame to kill. That was how cheap Murasame's ability was.
In the distance, Mine stopped shooting. She understood that keeping the enemy distracted like this was far more useful than firing wildly.
Murasame swung toward him. Su Xiao made a show of blocking with Dragon-Slaying Flash in front of him.
Clang.
The recoil traveled from the hilt to his palm. Su Xiao didn't fully defend; instead, he followed the force of Akame's slash and angled his blade downward.
Akame was bracing for the impact of the weapons colliding and had already started exerting force with both hands. But to her surprise, her slash continued downward.
This sudden change caused Akame to lose her balance. Her well-prepared stance collapsed, and she stumbled forward a small step.
This was the gap in swordsmanship. In a duel between experts, even the slightest deviation could be fatal, let alone stumbling forward.
Su Xiao seized this opportunity precisely. First, he sidestepped to stay as far away from Murasame as possible. He didn't want to be caught off guard.
He positioned Dragon-Slashing Flash horizontally on his left side to defend against any potential attack from Akame. Then, he lowered his body and swept his right leg low at Akame's calf.
Thud.
Akame immediately felt a dull pain on the side of her left calf, and her entire left leg went numb in an instant.
Su Xiao's attack didn't end there. He lunged forward, pressing almost flush against Akame, like a pair of lovers embracing.
But this gentleman was rather rough. He raised his knee and slammed it hard into Akame's abdomen.
Thud.
Akame's body involuntarily curled forward. She spat out a mouthful of bile, her vision going dark.
At that moment, Akame knew it was over. She might never have another chance to fight back, and she might even die.
Just as Akame imagined, as her body bent forward, Su Xiao raised his free left arm, gathered all his strength, and hammered his elbow down with full force.
Thump.
The hard bone of his elbow struck Akame's rear ribs. The impact on her chest cavity produced a dull sound. This time, what Akame spat out wasn't bile but bright red blood.
Her ribs in the back were broken. Akame could feel it.
This vicious three-hit combo left Akame unable to control her body. She collapsed face-first to the ground with a thud.
It wasn't just the blade that could kill. Up close, Su Xiao's entire body was a weapon.
Akame was down. Su Xiao wouldn't miss such a golden opportunity. He never wasted words on a fallen enemy; he usually just finished them off. He could say whatever he wanted to their corpse.
Su Xiao targeted Akame's pale neck. But Akame was clever. She placed Murasame behind her back to avoid decapitation. This showed just how experienced Akame was in battle.
Hesitating for less than 0.1 seconds, Su Xiao changed his slash to a thrust, stabbing straight at Akame's head.
Clang.
The long blade sank deep into the ground, Dragon-Slashing Flash grazing down Akame's cheek, cutting a wound into her skin.
In that split second of life and death, Akame erupted with an incredible will to survive.
Time was running out. Su Xiao sensed that Mine's attack from afar was about to land.
Decisively abandoning the head, Su Xiao aimed his second thrust at the larger target of her torso. There was no way Akame could dodge this.
Pfft.
Dragon-Slashing Flash pierced through Akame's left chest, even stabbing into the ground. This was the location of the heart. Su Xiao had killed many people; judging the heart's position was second nature.
Though Akame was as beautiful as a flower, their battle's purpose was to kill each other by any means necessary, without holding back.
Akame's body twitched, the light in her eyes gradually fading.
Su Xiao switched from a one-handed grip to a two-handed grip and sliced the blade sideways. This would completely cut open Akame's heart.
Pfft, blood sprayed out.
This scene fell into the eyes of Tazmi and Mine. Both were stunned, their pupils contracting as if they couldn't believe what was happening.
"This... how is this possible?"
Tazmi muttered foolishly.
A scorching orange laser shot toward Su Xiao's chest. Helpless, Su Xiao had to dodge.
The second one was dealt with. Now he just needed to finish up.
Mine began firing wildly at Su Xiao. He dodged them all. Shots within his perception range couldn't possibly hit him.
Flicking the blood off his blade, Su Xiao dodged while waiting for Akame to die.
A pierced heart doesn't kill instantly. The movies are wrong about that. After the heart ruptures, blood circulation is disrupted. Because oxygen in the blood can't reach the body's tissues, the person goes into shock and dies within a time ranging from ten seconds to several minutes, depending on the size of the wound.
Five seconds, eight seconds, ten seconds.
After ten seconds, Akame actually stood up. Su Xiao was utterly bewildered. Was this Murasame's ability?
No. He had studied Murasame in detail. Though this sword had a way to temporarily strengthen the user, it didn't have the power to grant immunity to death.
Akame pressed her hand to the wound on her left chest, gasping for air. She was clearly recovering her stamina.
"Is this... a heart on the right side?"
Su Xiao could hardly believe it. It was true that some people had their hearts on the right side, but the odds were one in several million, or even tens of millions—rarer than winning the lottery.
Su Xiao had clearly hit the jackpot, but he wasn't happy. The enemy wasn't dead.
Indeed, protagonists with this kind of minor luck weren't so easy to kill. In the original story, all other members of Night Raid died or were on the verge of death, except for Akame.