Chapter 179 Unexpected Developments
What happened?
Has the transformation time ended?
Aoki was stunned, looking at the system panel.
Ultimate Form (0/100).
Sure enough!
Aoki calculated.
From activating the skill to its end, it took about ten seconds.
"That's not even as long as Ultraman's!" He shook his head inwardly.
However, being able to unleash the power of a level 40 at level 1, what was there to be dissatisfied about?
Ten seconds, while not enough for a fierce battle, was enough to turn the tide at certain crucial moments.
Another question was also clarified: the progress bar after "Ultimate Form" was something like "rage" or "energy," which could only be activated after being fully charged.
After use, it needed to be recharged.
The recharge time was about three days.
Clatter!
A series of chaotic footsteps came from above.
Aoki looked up.
"Only now? Bud and the Royal Guard are lax."
He had smashed through the mountain peak and overturned the palace; it would be strange if the people outside didn't react.
In fact, this efficiency was much slower than he had expected.
A squad of armored soldiers cautiously peered out from above the cave entrance, observing the scene below.
Aoki, about to teleport away, stopped, a hint of surprise on his face.
Where did these soldiers come from?
He had been to the palace several times. He
was quite familiar with the palace, if not intimately versed in its intricacies.
But he had never seen this kind of armor before.
Had Bud brought them from outside?
But these men were far weaker than the Imperial Guard; what use were they?
Just as he pondered this, a voice came from above.
"What happened?"
"My lord, the palace here suddenly collapsed. When we came over, we found a deep pit below, and there are people inside!"
"Someone's in the pit?" A beautiful woman with short silver hair appeared at the cave entrance. She wore an eyepatch over her right eye and had a mechanical arm on her left, exuding a capable air.
"Najenda?"
Aoki looked surprised.
Najenda, above the cave entrance, paused, also showing surprise.
"Aoki?"
Aoki flashed and appeared beside Najenda, startling the surrounding soldiers who instinctively raised their weapons.
"Stop! This isn't an enemy!"
Najenda shouted, ordering the soldiers to lower their weapons. She looked at Aoki with surprise: "Aoki, what are you doing here?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
Aoki glanced at the soldiers, thoughtfully: "The Revolutionary Army has overthrown the Empire?"
"Yes, thanks to you," Najenda said.
Aoki realized something and asked, "How long have I been gone?"
Najenda said seriously, "You've been missing for almost a month and a half!"
"It took that long!"
Aoki was slightly shocked.
It seems that bloodline fusion and body modification are not simple matters after all.
Luckily, he's a demon.
If they were still human, they would probably starve to death before the transformation was complete.
Najenda looked down at the cave, her eyes flickering. "There's such a large cave here! We've been controlling the palace for over a month, and we hadn't discovered it at all!"
"Not only you, but very few people in the empire know about this place,"
Aoki said.
Najenda had many questions, but ultimately asked nothing and looked away.
"For over a month, we've been searching for you, practically turning the entire capital upside down, but we couldn't find any trace of you. We never imagined you were in the palace."
"Looking for me?" Aoki looked surprised. Did the Revolutionary Army value him that much?
Najenda said earnestly, "Your contribution to overthrowing the Empire so quickly is immense. Of course, we won't stand idly by and watch you disappear without a trace."
Although Aoki didn't care, her statement was indeed comforting.
"Sorry for the trouble. By the way, how are you all doing?"
He emphasized the second "you all" slightly.
Najenda understood: "Although we went through a fierce battle, thankfully, everyone is safe and sound in the end."
Aoki couldn't hide his surprise.
No one from Night Raid had died?
He wasn't hoping they died; on the contrary, he was worried about them.
Night Raid's promised deal hadn't been fulfilled yet.
He had originally planned to hunt down the super-dangerous species before the war broke out.
But he overslept.
He thought he was going to lose out, but things had taken a turn for the better.
But was this reasonable?
"Where's Esdeath? How did you kill Esdeath?" he asked.
Najenda's expression turned serious, and she shook her head: "Esdeath isn't dead."
"Esdeath isn't dead either?"
An absurd thought flashed through Aoki's mind: "Did you capture her alive?"
Najenda shook her head: "How could Esdeath be captured? In fact, we didn't even fight Esdeath."
"What exactly happened?" Aoki became increasingly curious.
"Esdeath disappeared, at the same time as you, and hasn't reappeared since,"
Najenda said in a deep voice.
They had always suspected that something had happened between Aoki and Esdeath.
Now it seemed they were wrong.
Aoki seemed to know nothing about Esdeath.
Their simultaneous disappearance was merely a pure coincidence.
"Disappeared?"
This answer was beyond Aoki's expectations.
Esdeath must have left voluntarily.
In this world, the only one who could truly threaten Esdeath's life was Akame.
A little over a month ago, even he almost did.
However, based on Najenda's words, it was clear that they, too, knew nothing about Esdeath's disappearance.
How could Esdeath, that warmonger, miss the great battle between the Empire and the Revolutionary Army?
What on earth was she doing?
Najenda said, "For the past month, searching for Esdeath's whereabouts has been one of our top priorities, but we haven't found anything."
For the new nation, Esdeath is more than just a "hidden danger." As long
as Esdeath lives, the nation will never be stable.
Aoki wasn't surprised by this.
Humans are the masters of this world, but they are far from having complete control.
There are many dangerous species outside the city, and many uninhabited areas.
Some secret realms are practically death zones for humans.
If Esdeath didn't want to show herself, no one could find her.
The question is, why did Esdeath disappear?
"What a pity,"
Aoki said regretfully.
He really wanted to take Esdeath with him.
With his current strength, plus a full-strength Night Raid, he was fairly confident he could handle those four super dangerous species.
However,
with Esdeath's help, it would be much safer.
After dealing with the super dangerous species, he could also settle his score with Esdeath.
For him, this was a sure-fire way to make money.
Unexpectedly, Esdeath's mysterious disappearance thwarted his plans.
(End of Chapter)