Rei Ao couldn't help but laugh as the wind whipped across the rooftop.
That day, the rooftop was filled with an unusually loud and restless breeze, and the rattling metal railing stood witness to everything that had transpired.
~~~
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50 Advance Chapters!
Chapter 53: Too many girls are paying attention...
Afternoon.
Kasumigaoka Utaha was still pondering over the bento box incident when a memory flashed in her mind.
"The bento box it was Rei Ao's?!"
Utaha was immediately filled with regret. How could she have forgotten something so important? Not only had she eaten all of it, but she had also taken his bento box without asking.
"I should wash it and return it to him and apologize."
However, Rei Ao wasn't particularly bothered by the bento box. After all, compared to the bento, Mai was far more delightful. Unfortunately, the rooftop wasn't the ideal place for their first "meal." Mai, limited by the setting, had fled after their time together, saying she'd rather be at home.
Rei Ao understood that things had been a bit too intense for her, so after she helped clean up, he let her return home. For Rei Ao, the afternoon seemed dull in comparison. He would have much preferred to be at home, cuddling with Mai. To him, Mai was always the best.
For the rest of the school, however, the afternoon was significant, as the midterm exam results were announced.
Megumi Kato returned from outside the classroom and walked up to Rei Ao's desk.
Tilting her head slightly, she asked, "Rei Ao-kun, it seems you didn't check your results."
Rei Ao yawned. "No need, I'm in first place."
"So, you already knew, huh?" Megumi didn't seem surprised by his answer.
Suddenly, she shifted the topic. "By the way, I saw Mai at school today."
"Hmm?" Rei Ao glanced at her.
"She came to bring me lunch."
"Oh, I see."
Megumi seemed curious as she asked, "It seems like you and Mai get along really well. Are you two dating?"
Rei Ao didn't hesitate and answered directly, "Yeah, we just confirmed our relationship these past few days."
"..."
Megumi fell silent at his response, her gaze dimming slightly. Yet, despite feeling unsettled, she couldn't help but press on. "And how far have you two"
Rei Ao pointed upward. "We just did it on the rooftop earlier today."
"..."
Even though Megumi had mentally prepared herself, she was still thrown off by his bluntness.
'The rooftop' Had they really progressed to that level of boldness?
Megumi bit her lip, struggling with her thoughts. "Well, congratulations on your relationship. Class is about to start, so I'll head back to my seat."
She turned around, and Rei Ao watched her retreating figure, deep in thought.
...
"He really did get first place"
Yukinoshita Yukino stood in front of the posted results, seeing Rei Ao's name at the top of the rankings. She felt both surprised and contemplative.
It turned out that Rei Ao hadn't been bragging after all. It seemed she had misunderstood him. Whether it was his keen senses or his academic abilities, everything he said had been proven true.
Yukino had always believed in the painful truth and that honesty could be a sharp blade. She had held firm to these principles, often being hurt by them. Yet, this was the first time she had encountered someone who used the truth to make things better.
Take Yui Yuigahama, for example. From Yukino's observations, Yui hadn't been discouraged by Rei Ao's blunt honesty. On the contrary, she was determined to make even better cookies to surprise him.
"Rei Ao, what kind of person are you, really?" Yukino couldn't help but feel a growing curiosity about him.
...
It wasn't just Yukino who was intrigued by Rei Ao. Another person had developed a sense of competition with him.
"Perfect scores in all subjectshow is that even possible?"
In the student council room, Kaguya Shinomiya was shocked. Someone had actually surpassed her with perfect scores. Since enrolling, her position as the top student had never been challenged. But now, she had placed second!
"Kaguya-chan, I just looked at Rei Ao's previous results. He hadn't even cracked the top 100!" A pink-haired girl with a ribbon, Chika Fujiwara, exclaimed in surprise.
Chika leaned in and whispered, "Kaguya-chan, do you think he cheated?"
Kaguya shot a cold glance at Chika's overly curvaceous figure, which was pressing against her arm. She couldn't help but feel a pang of envy as she glanced at her own much more modest proportions. Still, her tone remained icy.
"No, he didn't."
"The teachers aren't fools. They would've checked thoroughly before posting the results."
"Wow! So, does that mean he's a sudden genius?"
"I'm so jealous~"
Chika was beyond envious. If she could become a genius overnight, she'd have so much more allowance to buy all sorts of snacks and board games. She was practically drooling at the thought.
"..."
Kaguya stared at the results, her mind filled with thoughts as she tried to make sense of it all.
~~~
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50 Advance Chapters!
Chapter 54: Akame Trade Request
Class 3-4.
"Wow, Rei Ao got a perfect score in all subjects and ranked first!" Yui Yuigahama exclaimed, astonished by the rankings.
"Hmph." Yumiko's lips curled into a smirk. 'As expected of the man I'm interested in,' she thought, though she still crossed her arms and feigned indifference. "It's just one first place. It's no big deal."
"Uh" Yui awkwardly scratched her head, then hesitantly asked, "Yumiko, about your confession last time"
"Tch, don't bring that up. I don't want to talk about him right now," Yumiko huffed, pretending to be disinterested, as if she no longer cared about Rei Ao. In reality, she was just too embarrassed to discuss it.
However, Yui mistook Yumiko's attitude, thinking they had some sort of disagreement. 'Thank goodness!' Instead of feeling sorry for her friend, Yui found herself feeling relieved. She quickly realized that her reaction was wrong, so she suppressed the smile that nearly crept up on her face. 'Yui! What are you thinking?'
Looking at her friend's profile, Yui felt a sudden wave of guilt.
"Yui, why do you suddenly seem so interested in Rei Ao?" Yumiko asked, confused.
"Eh?" Yui panicked, waving her hands defensively. "No, no! It's just because of you, Yumiko. That's all!"
Yumiko didn't think too much about it and responded with a tsundere attitude, "Hmph, that guy's just a playboy. Don't get too close to him, Yui."
"Oh, okay," Yui replied obediently, though her thoughts weren't as easy to read.
...
Night Raid's secret base.
"What did you say? Mine was captured during the mission?!" Leone, a Night Raid member with golden hair, roared in anger.
Sheele, a purple-haired woman with glasses and a gentle demeanor, had a rare coldness in her eyes. "We need to rescue Mine."
The rest of the Night Raid members were also on edge: their leader Najenda, along with Akame, Mine, Sheele, Lubbock, Leone, and Bulat, made up the group. Of them all, Sheele was the closest to Mine.
Sitting at the head of the table was Najenda, a white-haired woman with an eyepatch over her right eye and a mechanical arm in place of her right arm. Her gaze was stern as she turned to Lubbock, the green-haired man.
"What's Mine's current situation?"
Lubbock replied seriously, "Mine's been imprisoned. Tomorrow they plan to execute her publicly."
"Damn that Empire!" Leone slammed her fist on the table in frustration.
"Calm down, Leone," Bulat, the muscular man with the pompadour, said firmly. "It won't be easy to storm the Empire to rescue her."
"Does that mean we're just going to leave her?" Leone shouted.
Najenda shook her head. "We're comrades. We don't abandon our own. But we can't act recklessly. Esdeath is currently at the border fighting against foreign invaders, but General Budo is still stationed in the capital."
A full-blown assault on the Empire would be extremely risky for Night Raid. They didn't have the power to face the Empire head-on. A wrong move could lead to the entire group being wiped out.
"Damn it" Leone gritted her teeth, reluctantly sitting down. She understood that acting impulsively would endanger everyone.
"..."
"What if we had equally powerful help?" Akame suddenly spoke up after listening in silence.
"Help?"
...
Back at home, Rei Ao was greeted by a familiar sight: Mai, with her sweet smile and a home-cooked meal. Ever since their relationship had progressed, Mai had become the epitome of a gentle and caring wife.
"You're back. Let's eat," she said softly, but before she could do more, Rei Ao wrapped his arms around her waist from behind.
Leaning close to her ear, he whispered, "Shouldn't there be a choice between eating dinner first or eating you first?"
"You pervert! You've been watching too much weird stuff. There's no such thing," Mai blushed, slapping his hands away playfully.
Feigning anger, she stammered, "Rei Ao, don't don't mess around. What happened at noon was just me repaying you for solving my physical issue. Don't force anything without my consent."
"Hehe, Mai, don't tell me you're going to say it was just a trade?"
"A trade, my foot!" Mai shot him a sharp look. "You've got trades on the brain, you wolf!"
"Haha, well, I am the leader of a trade group, after all." Rei Ao chuckled, though he wasn't actually planning to press Mai further. He was just teasing her. But that didn't stop him from picking her up and sitting her on his lap.
"Feed me," he said with a grin.
Seeing that he wasn't going to push things, Mai relaxed a little. She still had some fear lingering from earlierit had hurt more than she had expected. Especially given that Rei Ao wasn't average. Mai felt she needed time to adjust.
With that in mind, she obediently picked up some food with her chopsticks and fed him.
Rei Ao couldn't help but sigh in contentment. "Marrying someone like you, Mai, would make any man feel blessed."
Mai rolled her eyes. "Who said I was going to marry you?"
"Haha." Rei Ao didn't argue. 'If you weren't going to marry me, why didn't you resist when I held you just now?'
Just as Rei Ao was about to take a bite of some grapes, a notification popped up in the chat group.
[Ding! Akame has initiated a trade request!]
[Trade Request: Infiltrate the capital and rescue Mine.]
[Ding! Please choose your trade condition!]
~~~
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50 Advance Chapters!
Chapter 55: Bringing 3 Women in Another World
"Mine was captured by the Empire?"
This news genuinely surprised Rei Ao. He withdrew his hands from their cozy position on Mai's chest.
Mai blinked, feeling a sudden emptiness where his hands had been. Instinctively, she squirmed. "Why'd you stop?"
"You really are getting addicted," Rei Ao teased, playfully pinching her delicate nose before gently lifting her and placing her on a nearby chair.
"Akame has a mission to rescue someone. I need to go for a bit," he said, giving Mai a soft kiss on the lips. "You're coming with me."
"I can travel between worlds too?" Mai asked, slightly taken aback.
"Yes, now that you have my protection, it's time to give you some practice," Rei Ao replied, smiling.
He reviewed Akame's trade request, which included her prized possession: the Teigu.
Shortly after, a notification appeared.
[Ding! Trade initiated!]
[Trade partner: Akame]
[Trade request: Infiltrate the Empire and rescue Mine.]
[Trade condition: One-Cut Killer: Murasame]
[Duration: 3 hours]
Stella: "So, Akame is making a trade too?"
Frieren: "It seems she's trying to save someone."
Akame: "It's my comrade. She was captured by the Empire during a mission."
Saeko Busujima: "I recall you mentioning Night Raid, a group of assassins."
Stella: "Oh, the group that punishes evil, right?"
Rei Ao: "@Saeko Busujima, @Ayame Yomogawa, get ready."
Ayame: "We're going too?"
Rei Ao: "That's right."
Saeko Busujima: "I'm ready anytime."
Ayame: "Same here."
Rei Ao: "Alright then, let's not waste any more time. Let's get started."
"Akame, who exactly is this help you're talking about?" Leone finally asked, unable to hold back her curiosity.
Night Raid was fully geared up, waiting in the dark forest for the reinforcements Akame had mentioned. But so far, they had seen no one.
The other members were equally confused. Akame wasn't the type to socialize much outside of their group, and none of them had ever heard of her having outside allies.
Akame's eyes shifted slightly as she gazed into the distance. "They're here."
"!!!"
"Who's there?!" Najenda and Bulat immediately sensed something and went into combat stances.
To their shock, a man and three women suddenly appeared behind them without a sound.
Najenda's eyes narrowed as she stared at the smiling Rei Ao. A cold sweat formed on her back. The pressure he exuded was greater than even Esdeath'sa terrifying force!
'This man is incredibly strong!'
Rei Ao's cold gaze swept over the Night Raid members, making them feel as though they had just narrowly escaped death.
"Akame, aren't you going to introduce us to your friends?" Rei Ao's gaze finally landed on Akame, dressed simply in her sailor uniform with her long black hair and red eyes, the same determined and unyielding expression he knew well.
Akame nodded. "These are my comrades from Night RaidNajenda, Leone" She introduced each member one by one, though Rei Ao already knew who they were. Most of the Night Raid members were around level 10, and their strength came more from their Teigu than from personal combat abilities.
"Heh, it's nice to meet you all, Night Raid. As Akame probably told you, I'm the help she mentioned. You can call me Rei Ao," he said with a smirk.
The Night Raid members exchanged glances, their faces full of surprise and caution.
'So the help is real!'
Najenda gave a subtle signal, and the group relaxed their combat stances slightly, though they kept their Teigu at the ready. Even if Akame vouched for him, they were wary of this stranger.
After all, his presence was dangerous.
As the leader, Najenda stepped forward with the proper etiquette. "Rei Ao, I don't mean to be rude, but may I ask what faction you and your companions represent?"
Rei Ao calmly wrapped his arm around Mai's waist. "These three women are with me. They're just here to see the world."
Mai stayed quiet, letting Rei Ao handle the situation. She was curious about the people from this other world, but she knew when to keep a low profile for her partner's sake.
