However, fortunately, in this frenzied era, the most critical key nodes were still firmly under Iori's control,
First, Esdeath successfully defeated the northern non-human tribes and wrapped up the battle cleanly and decisively. For quite a long time to come, there would be no need to worry about the safety of the northern border.
Second, the Minister issued a call to "protect the emperor," summoning outside forces into the capital, ordering officials loyal to the Empire, or rather, loyal to him, to dispatch troops to answer the call.
Just as Iori had expected, an "evil faction" centered around Honest and the puppet emperor emerged. The vermin that had originally been hiding all over the Empire had now revealed themselves and gathered together.
Of course, some had mixed in with the Revolutionary Army, or chosen to cooperate with the Path of Tranquility… but there were priorities to consider. Deal with what's on the table first.
The chaotic situation should have dragged on for some time, but when news of Esdeath's victory arrived, it immediately struck a nerve with all sides and became the fuse for the final decisive battle.
Whether it was the Empire or the Revolutionary Army, neither wanted Esdeath's border forces to enter the fray at this moment. They were desperate to finish everything before the northern army crossed the border.
The reason was simple, for both sides, Esdeath was not "one of their own." Her stance was unclear, and she was extremely dangerous.
The Minister knew very well that Esdeath had already broken with him, but he didn't know exactly what had happened, nor could he guess her intentions.
As a result, he never dared to label the northern army as traitors. Instead, at least in name, he vigorously rewarded and appeased Esdeath.
The Revolutionary Army, on the other hand, knew about the situation between Iori and Esdeath, but that only made them more uneasy.
Because Esdeath had sworn an alliance directly with Iori and had nothing whatsoever to do with the Revolutionary Army. As the saying goes, an ally's ally is not necessarily my ally.
The Revolutionary Army had tried to recruit Iori before, but never succeeded. The relationship between the two sides was merely one of mutual benefit, and that kind of connection was worthless in the face of real conflicts of interest.
Although Iori himself had no other intentions for now, the Revolutionary Army's higher-ups were extremely wary of him.
In their view, if the Revolutionary Army and the Imperial Army ended up deadlocked, then Iori might very well lead Esdeath's elite troops south, swoop in, and reap the benefits as a third party.
Najenda repeatedly explained to her comrades that Iori would not do such a thing, because there was no need, but clearly, the Revolutionary Army's leadership didn't believe her.
In order to restrain Esdeath's northern army, they deliberately contacted the non-human tribes and had them launch an early attack.
That's right, the northern non-human tribes and the Revolutionary Army were allies.
A war that was originally aimed at the Empire was launched for completely different reasons.
Under normal circumstances, as the Empire rapidly collapsed internally, the northern army's logistical supply would definitely be affected. Esdeath would be dragged into a hard fight and entangled with the non-human armies for a long time.
And by the time she could free herself, the Revolutionary Army and the Empire should already have decided the outcome, leaving no chance for her or Iori to intervene.
But Esdeath was simply too fast.
No one had expected that a massive battle involving hundreds of thousands of troops would be over in less than a month.
If you excluded the time spent mobilizing troops and marching, the actual fighting probably lasted only a few days… and just like that, hundreds of thousands of non-human soldiers were gone.
Even catching hundreds of thousands of pigs wouldn't be that easy.
This overly clean and decisive victory shocked everyone. Even Iori, who knew the plot in advance, couldn't help but marvel at Esdeath's efficiency.
Now everyone was afraid of her entering the battlefield, so they had to seize control of the core as quickly as possible and use overwhelming momentum to counter Esdeath. If all else failed, they could even promise her territory and a kingship.
And so, a war on a distant frontier changed the entire situation. The Revolutionary Army gathered its forces to attack the Imperial Capital. Honest appointed Grand General Budo as supreme commander to lead the troops in suppressing the rebellion.
At the same time, the military police unit Wild Hunt went on a crazed spree of arresting spies and undercover agents within the capital, while Night Raid struck everywhere, assassinating the rotten nobles of Honest's faction.
It was like tossing a few ice cubes into boiling oil, the steam and hot oil exploded instantly~
When Iori led his people all the way to the Imperial Capital, it was no longer as prosperous as before. The towering city walls were packed with ballistae and cannons.
Defensive tools like rolling logs and falling stones were all in place. Well-equipped soldiers moved through the inner corridors of the walls, transporting supplies in an orderly fashion.
A thousand-year empire still had some foundation left. Budo's guard army could definitely be called elite troops. Relying on the city's defenses, even an army ten times their size would be unable to take it. The Imperial Capital had clearly become a massive armed fortress.
"Relying on piles of bodies alone won't work. You need Imperial Arms users to open a breach in the defensive line," Iori concluded after just one distant glance.
Siege warfare has always been a massive problem, both ancient and modern. Strong cities are every commander's nightmare.
This has little to do with how good your strategy is. A fortress with ample supplies, solid defenses, and usable morale can be held forever. No matter how high your commander stats are, you still have to honestly throw lives into it, or just go around.
It's common enough for famous generals and commanders to suffer setbacks in siege warfare… there's really nothing more to say.
However, in Akame ga Kill, there was another option, using Imperial Arms users to break the deadlock.
Armor-type Imperial Arms like 'Incursio', which combine mobility and defense, can provide tremendous tactical value in situations like this.
So it was easy to guess what the Revolutionary Army would do next, "It seems Night Raid's next target is Grand General Budo."
Gazing at the walls of the Imperial Capital from afar, Iori muttered to himself after a long while, "So what should I do?"
———
'What exactly is Lord Aizen thinking?', the black-haired young man Wave stood five meters behind Iori, staring blankly at his back.
Ever since he officially fell out with the Minister, Iori had revealed his real name to all his subordinates and told them they were free to come and go. If they didn't want to become Imperial traitors along with him, they could take some travel money and leave.
The samurai naturally pledged themselves to Iori. The Rakshasa Demons and the Imperial Arms users also chose to stay.
Even the civilian heroes who had come from all over after hearing his name completely ignored the so-called imperial edicts and wanted posters, determined to follow Iori.
And although Iori's direct subordinates numbered only three to four hundred at present, that was because small units were more convenient to operate.
If he wanted to rapidly expand, he could raise a force of tens of thousands at any time. It was just that he already had Esdeath's army under his command, so there was no real point in doing that.
Among his direct subordinates, some followed him out of gratitude, some gained fame and fortune through him, some worshiped his strength, and some were driven by several of these feelings combined…
Among them, Wave and Dr. Stylish were the two most special.
After spending a long time with Iori, Dr. Stylish knew just how unfathomable this mysterious masked man was.
He could also vaguely sense Iori's attitude toward him, so he was afraid that if he showed even the slightest sign of disobedience, Iori would kill him as a sacrifice to the heavens… which was why he behaved very low-key and obediently.
Wave, on the other hand, was the only one who had no "leverage" at all.
He was a hot-blooded young man and a carefree bachelor, with neither great ambition nor particular desires, just a simple, honest youth whom no one could really control.
And Iori's way of winning him over was also the most traditional one. Nothing special, just going with the flow.
For this kind of hot-blooded youth, as long as you spend enough time together and go through a few tense, fierce battles, a sense of camaraderie naturally forms, making them very easy to sway.
What's more, by following Iori as they traveled through various provinces and regions, Wave greatly broadened his horizons. He witnessed all kinds of tragedies and was moved time and again, long since developing dissatisfaction with the Empire's darkness.
When Iori was declared wanted, Wave hesitated only briefly before decisively choosing to stick with him.
"I just want to follow you, make money, and see them, the ordinary people, smile." Wave's words.
However, setting aside his simple sense of justice, Wave himself had little interest in politics and never made a point of understanding it. He even thought Iori was a Revolutionary Army cadre, so he found it strange that Iori hadn't joined up with the main force.
The Revolutionary Army was enormous in scale. If you observed from the sky, you would see camps set up in all directions, large and small encampments interlocking with one another, already completing the encirclement of the Imperial Capital.
It seemed they wanted to prevent the young emperor from escaping and trap all the important figures here to resolve everything at once.
On a battlefield involving hundreds of thousands of troops, Iori leading a few hundred people was indeed not very conspicuous.
But in terms of combat power, Iori and his group absolutely qualified as "the strongest under heaven".
"Lord Aizen, a siege war is a massive drain on both sides. The longer it drags on, the more variables there are. We should break through the gates of the Imperial Capital as soon as possible and end all this."
Wave spoke passionately. "They didn't have the ability to force a siege before, but now we're here. It's time to launch the final assault!"
So enthusiastic this time, Iori turned to look at Wave after hearing this, a bit surprised.
"You're not usually this eager for battle. Why do you seem different today?"
"Because once the Imperial Capital falls, the war is basically over."
Wave looked far more mature than when he first met Iori, clearly having grown a lot.
"A siege is a long torment. For the people, nothing is more important than peace. If there's a chance to completely overthrow the Empire, then no matter what, we have to try our best!"
"My 'Grand Chariot' is perfectly suited for siege warfare… maybe this is the mission heaven has given me!"
"You've said that very well."
Iori patted the young man on the shoulder encouragingly. "Don't worry. The war will end soon. I won't let the people suffer too much, and I definitely won't let the culprits who caused all this get away."
"This is my promise to you as both your superior and your friend, Wave."
"And if nothing unexpected happens, I think someone will come asking me for help very soon."
There was no need to explain this. Just look at how many Imperial Arms users and Minister's Arms users were gathered here.
The Revolutionary Army would probably have to concentrate all their top fighters, aside from Night Raid, just to match Iori's team. How could they possibly ignore this elite force?
To break into the Imperial Capital, they had to shatter the outer defensive line, which meant confronting Grand General Budo, known as "the Empire's strongest." Only by eliminating this man could the Revolutionary Army's Imperial Arms users have room to operate.
The Revolutionary Army's first choice was naturally Night Raid, but at the same time, they wouldn't forget their "ally" Iori. If they could eliminate Budo while also wearing down Iori's forces… it would be the best of both worlds.
However, they also had concerns, namely, the incident where they had previously instructed the non-human tribes to attack Esdeath. They didn't know how much Iori knew about it.
If Iori had seen through the high command's series of schemes, then it would be perfectly normal for him to sever ties with the Revolutionary Army in a fit of rage.
So they needed to first clarify his stance, and then decide what price to pay to appease his dissatisfaction.
Sure enough, just as Iori expected, the Revolutionary Army soon sent a special envoy to make contact with him. After some probing and confirming that Iori had no intention of betraying the alliance, and that he didn't bring up the northern war, the envoy immediately relaxed and got straight to the point.
Their request was simple, mainly consisting of two things that required Iori's help.
One was to send people to coordinate with Night Raid from the inside to assassinate Grand General Budo. The other was to use "Dimensional Formation, Shambhala" to transfer a Revolutionary Army suicide squad into the Imperial Capital and open a breach in the defensive line from within.
Both tasks sounded difficult, but for Iori they were extremely easy, he could accomplish them with a wave of his hand. However, he didn't agree right away. Instead, he put on a troubled expression, making the envoy extremely anxious.
In the end, after repeated persuasion from the envoy, Iori reluctantly agreed, but he also put forward a condition.
Helping was fine, but he couldn't fully trust the Revolutionary Army. He was worried that his subordinates would be used as cannon fodder, so he wanted the Revolutionary Army to send over a "hostage" as a sign of sincerity.
"Alright," the envoy felt this was a very reasonable request. "Who do you think would be suitable?"
"I don't know many people in the Revolutionary Army… there's one called Chelsea. Send her over."
"Chelsea?" The envoy pondered for a moment. "That'll be difficult. She's also an important combat asset. Could you change it to someone else?"
Chelsea's personal combat ability was quite low, but her Imperial Arm was especially suited for assassination.
She was an assassin on the same level as Akame. Naturally, the Revolutionary Army was reluctant to hand her over as a hostage, what if she ended up like a meat bun thrown to a dog?
"Difficult?" Iori nodded. "Then forget it."
"Huh?"
"I don't think this plan has a high chance of success anyway. Let's wait until my subordinate Esdeath comes over from the north, then have the decisive battle."
Cold sweat immediately broke out on the envoy's back. "What a coincidence! I just remembered, Chelsea hasn't had any assignments lately. She can be transferred over right away, no problem at all!"
"That's good. I also have something I'd like her help with." Seeing the envoy's drastic change in attitude, Iori found it rather amusing.
But were these people really that afraid of Esdeath? They didn't seem quite as afraid of me…
After thinking it over, Iori found the key difference.
Unlike Esdeath, he hadn't displayed large-scale, indiscriminate destructive power.
Imperial Arms users like Esdeath and Budo could alter the weather and cover the entire Imperial Capital with their abilities. On the battlefield, they were practically mobile natural disasters, beyond the power of human resistance.
Although Iori had clearly defeated Esdeath before, all the intelligence suggested that his strength lay in peak individual combat ability, without wide-area annihilation capabilities. His threat to large armies wasn't as high.
Of course, what the Revolutionary Army thought had nothing to do with Iori. He only needed to achieve his objectives. Now that Gaea Foundation was in hand, his plans had gained another layer of security, and maybe… he could even find some fun along the way.
An Imperial Arm that could transform in countless ways would be far too wasteful if used only for assassination. It really needed to be developed with more applications~
Isn't there a saying like this? Mystique's husband is the happiest man in the world.
For Chelsea, being suddenly transferred under Iori's command as a "liaison officer" was a very unexpected personnel decision. She also hadn't expected that when she met Iori again, his status would have undergone such a dramatic change.
Their first cooperation had been when Iori and Chelsea worked together to set up Syura. Not only did they capture the minister's son alive, they also obtained the spatial Imperial Arm Shambhala.
Back then, Iori was still a bounty hunter, high on the Empire's wanted list, giving people the impression of an extremely mysterious lone wolf.
But in less than a year, Iori had completed a triple leap, from bounty hunter, to Imperial general, to masked god of death, transforming from a lone wolf into a rebel leader whose influence was in no way inferior to that of the Revolutionary Army.
Chelsea was a very sharp woman. She knew that Iori and the Revolutionary Army were only nominal allies, with a deep rift in reality.
Sending her to Iori's side was definitely the result of some deal between the two parties, and she herself was like an "insurance deposit."
To be honest, after working diligently for the Revolutionary Army for so many years, being casually used as a bargaining chip did leave Chelsea with quite a bit of resentment.
But well, that's just how reality is. As an assassin who had long been exposed to the dark side of society, Chelsea wouldn't wallow in self-pity over something like this, nor would she resist joining Iori's ranks.
She had originally been a clerical officer who received elite education. It was only through a stroke of fate that she obtained an Imperial Arm, witnessed the Empire's darkness and cruelty, and then turned to the Revolutionary Army.
Now, temporarily seconded to Iori's command, she could still contribute to overthrowing the Empire. And judging purely by public reputation, Iori's image among the common people was also tall and heroic. Chelsea had no real reason to object.
That said, she was a little curious, why had Iori specifically requested her? The two of them had clearly only met once…
When she reported in, Iori also noticed her confusion and immediately led her out of the camp to a quiet, deserted place.
Then, Iori took out Shambhala, deployed the teleportation array, and directly sent the two of them to one of Night Raid's bases, where they met Najenda and Akame.
Immediately after that, he activated it again, transporting them thousands of kilometers in one go, straight to the northern border.
Chelsea was full of questions, and Akame and the others were also somewhat confused. They had only received word that Iori wanted to meet them to discuss something. They hadn't expected such an elaborate operation.
And why was Chelsea included?
Najenda defecting to Iori was a secret even within Night Raid. At present, only Akame knew… 'Wasn't it risky to bring Chelsea in? She was someone from the Revolutionary Army headquarters!'