Unlike the ever-unyielding Esdeath, Furina didn't have that kind of iron will.
xxxxxxxx
A few minutes later, Akuto heard the system chime in his mind.
[Ding!]
[Congrats to Host: Luck acquisition complete.]
[Source of luck: Furina.]
[Blank starter ability slot +1 (overall ability slots now 24).]
[Ding!]
[Hidden achievement unlocked—[Emperor-related] (Gold).]
[Reward acquired: Ancestral Leviathan Bloodline (Gold).]
[Ancestral Leviathan Bloodline (Gold): A further evolution and reversion of the Leviathan lineage. Its purity and bloodline power surpass even the First Leviathan. It also awakens an "ancestral-reversion" path.
When fused, the host can inherit the bloodline techniques of female devils who have joined with the host. The stronger their lineage and power—and the higher the "collection" completion—the greater the gain.
Upon reaching a certain collection threshold, this bloodline can evolve again toward the "Primordial Devil Bloodline," the proto-line that once converged all laws of heaven and earth before differentiating.]
[Note: Among the 72 Pillars, the Gremory line carries the most of Lilith's (the Mother of Devils) legacy, and shows multiple pure-blood devil traits.
Acquiring one Gremory's bloodline can be equivalent to obtaining the traits of several—even a dozen—other Pillar families.]
"So… you want me to collect the 72 Pillar bloodlines—especially Gremory?" Akuto arched a brow.
He'd already had that inclination. But until he hit his target power level, he avoided that direction—no point getting blasted by Sirzechs Lucifer for saying something like, "Leave Gremory's heir problem to me."
That said, the Gremory heads really are many and varied. Due to branch traits, each generation's hair color and abilities differ; looks are top-tier across the board, and—setting aside the current Lucifer—each head in history has been at least Maō-class.
[Ding!]
[The 72 Pillar bloodlines are differentiations born from Lilith resonating with all laws.]
[In reverse, gathering the law-fragments within those blood genes lets you extrapolate back.]
[If you obtain the "Primordial Devil Bloodline" that resonates with all laws, you'll receive vast buffs—world-origin blessings—during combat.]
"…Reverse-refining all laws? Are we sure this is a devil bloodline and not a 'Chaos Body' cultivation manual?" Akuto couldn't help roasting it.
Roast aside, he'd absolutely push this route. Still—not yet.
He quickly set the next-phase policy:
Gremory: On hold until two conditions are met—his Succubus bloodline reaches Purple or higher, and his strength can contend with Sirzechs.
Other Pillar families: Can proceed, case-by-case.
In recent days, through Ravel, Akuto had learned many pure-blood houses were eyeing him. Quite a few had been privately contacting Rias or Ravel, hoping to marry off a pure-blood daughter to Akuto—even as a concubine would do. But many demanded at least one male heir be counted back to the original family, so Akuto hadn't replied.
Soon, the already-frail Furina finally "declared defeat."
By contrast, the ever-proud Esdeath refused to admit defeat in her heart.
Thus, at dawn the next morning, Akuto was woken—not by nature—but by Esdeath's movement. Banking on the fact that he'd been inside her all night, she launched straight into her "revenge" the moment she woke, without asking him. In her creed, unless her heart yields, she hasn't lost; losing to the strong is normal—she'd lost to many Danger Beasts before.
Akuto clicked his tongue, meeting those ice-blue eyes. Esdeath stared back without flinching, full of provocation.
"Esdeath… how about I call you 'Esdeath-chan' from now on?" he teased.
"Say it," she muttered, cheeks—already a little rosy—turning even redder. She, too, felt they should use something a bit more intimate. Queenly as she was, Esdeath would now and then let that girlish side peek through.
The "fourth round at daybreak" kicked off fast.
Since Akuto had work to do once he got up, he went all-out from the start this time. As before, under that ultimate barrage and unprecedented shock, Esdeath was forced to cancel Time-Stop—leading to the same outcome as last time.
"…I have a feeling this won't be rare going forward," Akuto stretched, loosened Esdeath's twin-tail ribbons, and walked out.
At the Prefect's Mansion gate, Sayo and the officers turned toward him. While Akuto had been "enjoying the spoils," all of Anvale City—no, even the surrounding prefectures—had shifted to war-ready.
"Akuto-kun, everyone's ready. Give the order!" Sayo's eyes shone, uncharacteristically excited.
"Good! Per plan: Bā Prefecture and Shū Prefecture advance southwest; Yō Prefecture and Izumi Prefecture advance toward the Imperial Capital and the Central Plains; and Longxi's core force hits South Capital and the Revolutionary Army HQ simultaneously!"
"Understood!" Sayo answered crisply.
Thanks to teleportation arrays and instant-comm arrays, Akuto's commands always reached the front instantly—letting them seize initiative.
With tasks assigned, Akuto looked toward the Imperial Capital. "Everyone else has their orders. Next is my job."
Imperial Capital
Upon arrival, the recon unit from another front reported in at once.
"Oh? The Capital is empty?"
"In just one day, the Minister finished 'evacuation'?" Akuto cocked a brow.
"No, Akuto-kun," Sayo shook her head, "not evacuation—taking shelter."
From the outerwall battlements, they could see it: on the inner city wall yawned a huge circular crater, a presence that could not be ignored.
"I see. So after I left, the Minister already fired once." Akuto knew exactly what attack made that hole.
"Besides the civilians," Sayo continued, "the Imperial Guard and city garrisons have all pulled out too. Our scouts say the Minister is driving them hard toward Anvale."
"If they set off last night and ride full-tilt, the fastest cavalry should hit Hangu Pass tonight," Sayo reported.
"Tonight just to Hangu—and only cavalry. Without teleport arrays, mobility in this era is painfully low." Akuto nodded. "Since he's cleared the chessboard, we won't deploy troops into the Capital."
"Shift your whole army to reinforce Najenda-san's line. I'll handle the Capital alone."
Originally he wanted the army present to minimize civilian casualties while taking the city. Otherwise one Explosion could have cleared it. But with everyone gone, no need to keep forces here.
"Got it! I'll go back up Najenda-san!" Sayo gave Akuto one last look—then wheeled away to execute.
Soon, Sayo pulled the army out of the Capital.
Akuto strolled through the streets. His steps were unhurried, yet each stride covered dozens—hundreds—of meters. In that leisurely way, he finished a full data-pass of the Capital.
"With this, the Capital's full map data is logged."
[Boost!]
Green aura coiled around him.
[Welsh Dragon—Balance Breaker!]
[Forbidden Hand—"Boosted Gear Scale Mail"!]
[Explosion (爆型)!]
BOOM!
A gigantic Explosion sphere dropped from the sky. Expanding madly, the black sphere swallowed the Capital's dozens-of-kilometers diameter in seconds.
When the light faded, charred wasteland remained. Only a small core patch—the imperial palace proper—survived within the massive crater, protected by the Supreme Teigu's barrier.
Akuto accelerated—shunpo straight to the palace barrier.
"Oh? Ernest, you finally learned. Not ballooning the shield like last time?" Akuto smiled.
Last time, the Minister over-extended the barrier, and Akuto used God Avatar: Vāmona to abduct Furina through the weakness. Burned once, the Minister now kept the shield tight to his own body, huddled in the only safe zone left amid a ruined Capital—his money, his turf pulverized. He seethed.
"Governor Akuto, if I'm not wrong, you're quite fond of the Emperor—Furina, yes?" Ernest grinned. "I have something that's been in effect for a while. Have a look!"
Facing Akuto, he unfurled a golden decree:
[Imperial Marriage—Sixteenth Princess Furina]
[Spouse: Ernest]
[This edict takes effect immediately, sealed within the Supreme Teigu; protected by Imperial Dragon Vein and the Supreme Teigu.]
[Thus decreed—]
"How about it? The late Emperor's will!" he preened.
"Oh?" Akuto raised a brow. "Not just a will. I can also smell the late Emperor's blood in you."
"To gain the Supreme Teigu's approval, you even injected the late Emperor's blood into yourself. And your aura… changed." With the Minister pouring everything into the Supreme Teigu, Akuto caught the telltale traces at last.
"Hahahaha—indeed!" Ernest crowed. "Recognized by the will, I am the Regent-Emperor now! Well, Governor Akuto—do you like my gift?"
"Gift?" Akuto chuckled. "Then I'll return one."
He stepped forward—God Avatar flashed—vanished from in front of Ernest…
…and reappeared a breath later, tossing something at his feet.
A fresh, bloody head rolled to a stop.
The Minister froze, staring at that all-too-familiar face.
It was his son—Shura.
(End of Chapter)
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