Three days had passed since he fled Linluo City.
Considering that someone might be tracking him, Ye Yu changed his route many times along the way, taking extensive anti-tracking measures before finally arriving at a small town where he intended to stay for the night.
Ye Yu had been in this world for seven years. He walked alone through the streets of Sanshui Town.
As an unaccompanied strange child, he drew frequent sideways glances from passersby. Keeping his head down in a cap, Ye Yu observed his surroundings in silence until he spotted a small grocery store and walked straight in.
"Boss, do you have a map of the Empire here? Also, I need these items—how much will it all cost?" Ye Yu carried a pile of goods right up to the grocery store owner's counter.
He had walked around earlier and found no one selling imperial maps, so he had to see if the owner had any resources.
"A map? You won't find those for sale anywhere these days. Things are unstable between the Empire and the surrounding ethnic minorities, and a bunch of people calling themselves the Revolutionary Army have popped up, claiming they're going to overthrow the ruling government. The Empire doesn't allow maps to be sold to outsiders anymore." The owner shook his head, then smiled good-naturedly. "I do have a friend who has one, though. But can a little brat like you afford the price?"
Ye Yu needed to gather a lot of supplies. Although he had the experience of his past life, his physical body was currently far too weak.
This world was far from peaceful; being prepared was the only way to survive. He urgently needed various supplies and a map of the Empire.
As for his target, Esdeath, one of the strongest combatants in this world, Ye Yu believed in the principle of enjoying the shade beneath a great tree. Once he latched onto that powerful thigh, he could throw his weight around right in the Imperial Capital—wouldn't that life be sheer bliss?
"Of course." Without a shred of caution, Ye Yu pulled out his pouch of gold coins, casually drew out three of them, and asked the owner, "Are these enough?"
"Enough, of course they're enough! But little fellow, where are your family members?" Seeing the pouch, the owner's eyes went wide. He quickly agreed and took Ye Yu's money.
"I'm on my own," Ye Yu replied indifferently.
Greed flashed in the shopkeeper's eyes, but without missing a beat, he hurried to the back of the shop and soon returned with a map. It was battered and torn, but still usable.
Taking the map, Ye Yu walked out of the shop and continued wandering the streets to look for an inn, paying no mind to the greedy gaze the owner fixed on his back.
Looking at the sparse shops along the street, Ye Yu thought about how deeply fractured the world of Akame ga Kill! was. It possessed advanced technology his past life couldn't match, yet the living standards of the common people were shockingly, appallingly low.
Families pushed to the brink of desperation even had to sell their own children just for a chance to survive. The ruling class's relentless stripping of the people's wealth, combined with foreign wars, had long hollowed out this once-mighty Empire, leaving it fragile and tottering on the brink of collapse.
Wandering into a secluded alley, Ye Yu stopped in his tracks and looked with amused interest at the five figures who had been trailing him for who knows how long as they closed in to surround him.
After a silent, thorough appraisal of the five men, Ye Yu spotted the grocery store owner. Ever since he had produced the coin pouch, the man's fixed, greedy stare had never left him. Did this fellow really think he was hiding his intentions well?
To maintain his persona as a seven-year-old kid, Ye Yu put on a frightened look, hunching his shoulders as he stammered at the shopkeeper, "W-what are you people trying to do?"
The lean, sharp-faced man with a hairy chin among them coldly issued orders to the other four: "Make it quick. Dump the body for the dogs when you're done."
Hearing those words, Ye Yu was left utterly speechless. Were the villains in this world always this prompt and decisive? How did this bear any resemblance to what happened on television? How was he supposed to achieve the milestone of villains dying from talking too much at this rate?
At the command, the other four rushed toward Ye Yu. Dropping the act instantly, Ye Yu looked coldly at the thugs charging at him.
Judging by their posture and clean movements, they had probably received systematic martial arts training. They didn't look like ordinary thugs—at the very least, they seemed far more formidable than the pack of good-for-nothings in Linluo City.
Aside from the man giving orders, none of these thugs carried weapons. Ye Yu flicked his left hand, side-stepped a thug who tried to grab him, struck the man right in the face, and promptly used the falling body as cover.
Seizing the opportunity, he kicked a second thug squarely in the groin, then rapidly flashed to the sides of the third and fourth thugs, ruthlessly targeting their vulnerable spots with brutal counterattacks—especially the grocery store owner.
Little seven-year-old Ye Yu held quite a grudge.Watching his subordinate writhe on the ground, clutching his crotch, the bandit leader drew the saber from his waist with a solemn expression. "Are you from the Imperial Fist Temple?"
The Imperial Fist Temple was the state temple of this world, having cultivated a vast number of elite martial artists for the Empire. Those who reached an advanced level of cultivation at the Imperial Fist Temple could develop their bodies to incredible limits.
In the eyes of many, it was a sacred ground for cultivation, and even many already-famous experts scrambled for a chance to enter the Imperial Fist Temple.
It was common for juniors to descend the mountain to undergo training.
The bandit leader licked his lips. There was no time for him to hesitate any longer; regardless of who this was, bad blood had already been drawn. Even if this brat was from the Imperial Fist Temple, how strong could someone so young possibly be?
Once he killed him, he could immediately find a place to change his identity and go into hiding. The gold coins the kid carried were more than enough for him to live a comfortable and secure life for the rest of his days—who would keep doing this kind of robbing and pillaging then?
With this thought, the bandit leader raised his saber and charged directly at Ye Yu. Seeing the heavy blade slashing toward him, Ye Yu sidestepped with a light leap.
Setting down the bundle he was carrying to free up his hands, he saw that the bandit leader was already closing in on him once again.Ye Yu backflipped, watching calmly as the blade whistled past his eyes, then pushed off the ground with both hands and kicked the bandit leader squarely in the exposed ribs under his arm, forcing him back several steps.
Crouching on the ground, Ye Yu chuckled lightly at the bandit leader, "You're a bit stronger than them."
"You little brat!"
To be kicked away and mocked by a kid who looked only a few years old infuriated the bandit leader. He regained his stance, secretly alarmed—was this really the leg strength of a mere child?
The spot where he had been kicked was still throbbing with pain. He shifted his guard constantly, wary of Ye Yu's next move. Furious though he was, he had not lost his head and stood his ground, watching Ye Yu with extreme caution.
Ye Yu helplessly scratched the back of his head. *This guy is way too cautious, isn't he? My physical age is only five or six, and yet he's already this scared.*
Sighing, he took a step forward, and the bandit leader immediately raised his sword defensively as if facing a formidable enemy. Ye Yu stretched his neck slightly, picked up the bundle at his feet, and began to walk away.
Since the man dared not attack anymore, he was ready to leave. There was no point wasting time here; finding Esdeath remained his top priority.At this thought, Ye Yu stopped in his tracks. The bandit leader, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, felt his heart leap right back into his throat, terrified that Ye Yu might take a dislike to him and send him packing to the netherworld. He hastily raised his blade to protect himself.
"Hey, do you have a horse?"
Ye Yu looked at the bandit leader's posture and, keeping his distance, asked from where he stood.
"Yes, yes, I do!" the bandit leader answered immediately. Getting rid of this plague god as quickly as possible was the only business that mattered now; their previous clash had made it abundantly clear that he was no match for Ye Yu whatsoever.
He looked so young—he must be some big-shot alchemist with a peculiar taste for youthful disguises.
"Get a good horse ready for me, then lead it over to your general store and wait for me there. I'm going to buy some things." Seeing the shifting glint in the bandit leader's eyes, Ye Yu took ten gold coins from his pack and tossed them over. "Stop doing this robbery business. Run your shop properly."
The bandit leader scrambled to catch the gold coins Ye Yu tossed at him, hurriedly kicked his subordinates back to their feet, saluted Ye Yu, and replied, "Understood! I guarantee your lordship will have a ride ready the moment you return!"
Ye Yu nodded and walked away without looking back.
He wasn't worried that these bandits wouldn't follow through. Their leader was a smart man; after deducting the cost of a horse, ten gold coins were more than enough for them to live comfortably for the rest of their lives, not to mention that they still had their own business in Sanshui Town.
Besides, even if they tried to run off with the money, he was confident he could wipe them all out and get the cash back. This was the self-assurance of a top-tier assassin from his past life; making a few ex-soldier punks vanish quietly from the world was a simple task.
Watching Ye Yu walk into the distance, the bandit leader weighed the gold coins in his hand. To say he hadn't thought about pocketing them for himself would be a lie.
Yet, a figure this formidable had handed the money over with absolute ease, which meant he certainly had a foolproof way to track him down and take it back if he tried to run.
The store-owning lackey stared at the coins in his hand and asked greedily and cautiously, "Boss, why don't we...?"
"Stop, don't say another word." The bandit leader absentmindedly yanked out a handful of his own beard and winced in pain as he said, "We get to work. Let's go get a carriage ready. This fellow is definitely an alchemist—and a great alchemist at that, one who's already capable of reclaiming his youth. If we swallow this money, we won't even know how we died. Sending him off well-fed and happy is the only sensible thing to do."Sanshui Town was very small, and Ye Yu soon reached the end of it. Having gained nothing and feeling rather bored, he looked up at the sky and decided to head back to get his horse.
Just then, he noticed an unassuming street stall set up in a corner. Ye Yu walked over and inspected the items on display. The setup was very simple: an animal hide of unknown origin was spread out on the ground, with a few scattered items placed on top of it.
It was clear the stall owner didn't care much about the wares; most things had simply been tossed there, and many were parts of animal bodies.
"Old man, what kind of animals do these come from?" Ye Yu asked curiously, staring at some claws, teeth, and what looked like the shell of a beetle.
Some of these items were large, while others were small, seeming unremarkable at first glance. However, in Ye Yu's memory, there was a special category of animals in this world known as Danger Beasts.
As the name suggested, these were creatures one shouldn't mess with casually. Yet in the original story, only First-Class Danger Beasts slain by the protagonist Tatsumi, the Special-Class Danger Beast ridden by Night Raid boss Najenda, and the Super-class Danger Beasts used as materials for creating legendary Teigu had ever appeared.
Ye Yu glanced at the old man whose face was hidden beneath a cloak. If there were items here belonging to a First-Class Danger Beast or higher, this old man was certainly no ordinary person.
Such a powerhouse hadn't appeared in the main storyline at all. Ye Yu felt a secret surge of joy—it was like someone handing him a pillow just as he was getting sleepy.
He was still in his growth phase and not yet at his peak. If he had an expert to guide him through this damn early stage, the road ahead would be much smoother.
"Just ordinary animals," the old man replied flatly upon hearing someone ask, making no move to greet his customer, as if he weren't even here to do business.
Ye Yu was left speechless. Did these powerhouses all like putting on airs for no reason?
Crouching down, he picked up a claw. Seeing that fresh blood was still oozing from the severed end and feeling the vitality that hadn't completely dissipated, Ye Yu muttered in soft surprise, "Just died not long ago?"
Only then did the old man tilt his head toward Ye Yu, finally noticing that a brat in front of his stall was poking and prodding the paw of a First-Class Danger Beast with his finger. Far from being angry, he merely frowned and said, "Kid, you can tell it only just died?"
"Well, it's still oozing blood, and it's even bright red. But why sell these things here? If you handed them over to the blacksmith or the town guards, wouldn't there be a bounty?" Ye Yu replied casually to the old man's question, then stood up and looked at the face that had previously been obscured by the cloak.
"Though I suppose you can't, seeing as you're carrying a wanted poster, Locks Crotiar." Ye Yu smiled and continued.
Yet the killing intent radiating from the old man—whom Ye Yu had called Locks Crotiar—began to climb steadily with those words. The moment the name was spoken, a flying knife flashed out from beneath Locks's cloak.
Ye Yu caught the flying knife with his bare hand without a care in the world. Locks's eyes narrowed; he instantly stood up, leaped backward two steps to create some distance, and placed his hand back under his cloak.
Noticing his movement, Ye Yu unconcernedly twirled the flying knife in his hand and said, "Don't be hasty. I'm not here to arrest you."
A smirk curved the corner of Ye Yu's mouth—he was going to let this person from another world see what true style looked like.
Yet the answer he received was three more flying knives thrown by Locks.
Ye Yu's head was full of question marks. Why wasn't this guy playing by the script? Shouldn't he stop now and listen to a nice little speech? Why was he attacking again?
Dodge-rolling past the incoming blades, Locks was already right in front of him, his dagger thrusting straight for Ye Yu's vital chest area. The attack was meant to be fatal from the very start, forcing Ye Yu to drop his playful attitude.
Shifting his footing, Ye Yu parried Locks's attack with one hand while counter-attacking with a thrown blade aimed straight at Locks's throat.
The blade stopped right against Locks's skin. Locks stared into Ye Yu's eyes, a cold sweat breaking out across his back.
*How could he possibly be this fast?*
Ye Yu's expression was calm and unruffled, but Locks keenly caught a hint of murderous intent in his eyes. This was a real assassin; any move he made would surely mean death or severe injury.
"I yield, I yield." Ye Yu dropped his weapon and laughed as he took a step back.
Before him, Locks's blade was also pressed against his chest. If they had actually gone through with it, neither of them would have come out alive, or at best they would both have been severely wounded. It wasn't worth it.
"Old man, your skills are truly unfathomable. This is the first time I've fought to a draw."
Seeing Ye Yu drop his weapon, Locks slowly lowered his own. Ignoring Ye Yu's joking manner, he simply began packing up his stall.
To have such astonishing martial prowess at such a young age—who knew what kind of demon he would grow up to be?
Looking at the grinning Ye Yu beside him, Locks asked solemnly, "Why didn't you strike? You could have minimized the damage from my attack, couldn't you? And you were entirely capable of sending me to the grave."
"Like I said, I'm not here to arrest you," Ye Yu shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm still young, and this world is huge and dangerous. Old man, how about you become my bodyguard?"
*Who is more dangerous than you...*
Locks muttered inwardly. With strength like that, combined with such an innocent and harmless appearance, assassination must be child's play for him.
"I'm a wanted man right now. If you take me in, aren't you afraid of courting even more trouble?"
Locks had originally been an instructor for the Imperial Capital's city guard. Because he was unwilling to collude with Prime Minister Honest, the Prime Minister had banished him from the Imperial Capital on trumped-up charges.
Locks's old friends had either bowed to the Prime Minister's tyrannical pressure and chosen submission, or had been hunted down and assassinated. As for Locks's family, they were no longer in this world.
"That's not a problem. Don't you want revenge against the Prime Minister? I can give you the chance to get it."
Ye Yu brushed off Locks's concerns and waved a hand dismissively.
Locks didn't speak, instead staring intently at the young boy before him, as if trying to see through Ye Yu's very soul and essence.
Should he take a gamble? Right now, he was utterly alone and helpless; relying solely on himself, he stood no chance of revenge. But this little fellow...
If the kid could grow up safely, he would inevitably stir up monstrous waves in the Imperial Capital. When that time came, going toe-to-toe with Prime Minister Honest might not be out of the question.
The crux of the matter was whether this person was worth trusting.
After pondering for a long time, Locks took a deep breath.
As if making up his mind, Locks dropped to one knee before Ye Yu, placed his right hand over his heart, and said devoutly: "Locks Crotiar hereby pledges allegiance to..."
"Ye Yu."
"Pledging allegiance to Master Ye Yu."
Locks decided to gamble. He had nothing left; relying on himself alone, he could only scrape by while constantly being hunted. Since someone wanted to borrow his hand, he could make use of that person's strength in return.
It was a relationship of mutual utilization.
Ye Yu nodded cheerfully and hurriedly helped Locks to his feet.
He finally had a high-end combatant by his side now. What puzzled him was that no such expert had appeared in the original work—had Locks met a bad end after all?
"Come on, Locks. First of all, we need to change your look so we don't have a bunch of annoying flies causing trouble."
Ye Yu dragged Locks into a barbershop and a clothing store, giving him a complete head-to-toe makeover.
Locks had shed his previous black robe, which was meant to avoid attention. His silver hair was now neatly tied back, and his messy beard had been cleanly trimmed.
He was now dressed in a sharp butler's swallowtail coat. Tilting his head to adjust his necktie, Ye Yu looked at the handsome old man with great interest. With an appearance that bore almost no resemblance to the wanted poster, he let out a sound of admiration.
When Ye Yu and Locks arrived at the bandits' general store and saw the spacious carriage waiting outside, Ye Yu couldn't help nodding. That bandit leader certainly knew how to handle things—he had only asked for a horse, after all.
Seeing Ye Yu approach, the bandit leader broke into a broad smile and hurried over. Catching sight of the imposing silver-haired old man walking behind him, exuding natural authority, the bandit couldn't help swallowing hard.
*Did he bring his family to settle the score? But I couldn't beat him personally anyway!*
"Boss, please take a look. Considering your comfort, I took the liberty of upgrading the horse to a carriage. Dry rations and drinking water are already prepared inside, and here are the remaining gold coins." The bandit leader bowed and scraped before Ye Yu.
Ye Yu nodded, but refused to take the gold coins from the bandit leader's hands. "I'll be on my way then. You lot should stop being bandits from now on. These remaining gold coins and this shop are enough for you to live proper lives."
They had originally been soldiers who had seen battle, forced into banditry by the chaos of war. Now that he had removed their worries for the future, he hoped they would turn over a new leaf.
As Ye Yu climbed into the carriage, Locks naturally took the driver's seat.
Watching the carriage pull away, the bandit gang waved goodbye. Gazing at the blurring trees flashing past the window, Ye Yu said, "Locks, head to the Imperial Capital."
"Yes..."