Chapter 15: Esdeath vs Red King

"Really, you want to challenge me for these two girls?" Esdeath's smile brimmed with a bloodthirsty delight as she faced the red-haired man.

The air crackled with a palpable tension, a chilling aura of murderous intent lowering the temperature rapidly, as the ice began to form around them, sending shivers of fear through everyone present.

The man, Mikoto Suoh, his brows furrowed in concentration, unleashed a wave of red aura, countering the freezing air, melting the forming ice around them.

"Oh? To see such a fiery power in you, it's exhilarating!" Esdeath's eyes sparkled with a fighting spirit as she charged towards him, her movements swift amidst swirling shards of ice.

Mikoto deftly melted the ice, dodging Esdeath's attack with a leap, quickly surrounding her and launching a counterattack.

Far from panicking, Esdeath reveled in being outnumbered. With her combat skills and extensive experience, she effortlessly dodged and parried, striking back with precision.

"Ahaha! More! I didn't expect such fun so soon!" Esdeath laughed maniacally, narrowly evading a head strike before delivering a powerful kick to her opponent's head.

"This woman, she's incredibly strong!" exclaimed a man in a beanie, wiping blood from his mouth.

"You're right, her kick alone felt like it broke my ribs," groaned another, a dark blonde man in glasses, clutching his side in pain.

"What's up? Is that all you have? If so, it's disappointingly dull..." Esdeath taunted, her mocking tone fueling the Red Clan's rage as they surged forward to surround her again.

Seeing her tactic succeed, Esdeath, grinning wildly, engaged them again, each attack from her adversaries met with greater force and skill.

Each fiery strike aimed at her was deflected with her quick reflexes, countering with her ice. Utilizing her ice Teigu skillfully, Esdeath easily subdued and grievously wounded her adversaries.

Who was Esdeath? A ruthless and powerful character, capable of effortlessly slaughtering 400,000 and overcoming multiple Teigu users without strain. If not for a prior incident, Akame might have already fallen to Esdeath.

Witnessing his subordinates easily defeated, Mikoto finally became serious in his confrontation with Esdeath, realizing she had merely been toying with them until now.

"Mikoto, can I entrust Anna to you for a moment?" Mikoto asked, passing Anna to Kiana by his side.

"Huh?" Kiana reacted with surprise, then confidently assured, "Sure! You saved us just now! We'll keep her safe!"

Kiana patted her chest confidently, and Mei nodded solemnly beside her. Mikoto felt relieved, hoping they would stay safe.

"Mikoto...be careful," Anna said, gripping his pants. Mikoto smiled and gently patted her head.

"So, you're taking me seriously now, huh? Good! I've wanted to fight you from the start!" Esdeath kicked off the ground, closing the distance with incredible speed, her ice sword slashing through the air.

Mikoto's eyes widened in surprise at her speed, but he quickly reacted, dodging her strike and retaliating with a fiery slash toward Esdeath.

Esdeath leaped away, a building behind her melting and collapsing from the high-speed fiery slash. She clicked her tongue, summoning a massive ice glacier above her.

As a skyscraper-sized ice mass fell, Mikoto protected the area with his aura, shielding it from the impact.

BOOM!

The glacier shattered against the red aura wall, melting swiftly. But before he could catch his breath, Esdeath launched a relentless barrage of similar attacks.

Mikoto gritted his teeth, enduring the onslaught to protect the innocent bystanders.

"Oh? Tougher than I thought, but good! It makes our fight more thrilling!" Esdeath grinned and resumed her relentless assault.

Here, Mikoto shifted tactics, attacking instead of evading, pushing Esdeath away from the crowded area.

Esdeath, a lover of battle, allowed it, refusing to win through underhanded means.

The clash of their powers created a cacophony of explosions and ice shattering, sending bystanders fleeing from the scene.

Minutes later, they separated, panting heavily. Esdeath, flushed but exhilarated, contrasted with Mikoto's exhaustion.

"Reached your limit? That would be disappointing."

Mikoto steadied his breathing, shaking his head, "Not yet at my limit."

"Hahaha!!! Excellent! Then let's continue our battle!" Esdeath laughed maniacally, lunging forward to resume their intense duel.

"Wow...what are they? Monsters? Look at the destruction..." Kiana said, observing the devastation resembling an earthquake's aftermath.

"Even though I've heard stories from my father, this is the first time I witnessed the sheer power and danger of superhuman abilities," Mei said, her face awestruck.

"Mikoto..." The girls looked at Anna, who appeared worried.

"Don't worry, Anna-chan! Even though I don't know much about you, it's clear you and Mikoto-san are close, like partners. That's why you should trust him!" Kiana said earnestly, patting Anna's head gently.

"B-but..." Anna hesitated, wanting to warn them of Esdeath's danger, but Kiana's words reassured her, and she chose to trust.

"Right! It's dangerous to stay here. Let's find a safe place and call the police!" Kiana suggested, and they moved to safety, calling the police.

"Moshi moshi? Is this the police? Yes, I'd like to report an incident..." Mei spoke on the phone, while Kiana engaged Anna in conversation to ease her worries.

"Anna, is that your first or last name? Oh, I haven't introduced myself! I'm Kiana Kaslana and the beautiful lady over there is my friend, Raiden Mei!" Kiana said, introducing herself and Mei, who smiled and waved at Anna before continuing her call.

"I-I'm Anna Kushina! P-pleased to meet you!" Anna stuttered, blushing, making Kiana's heart melt at her cuteness, hugging her tightly.

"You're so cute, I could adopt you right now!"

"T-that's...Kiana-neesan, you're making it hard to breathe..." Anna gasped, and Kiana, alarmed, quickly released her.

"Sorry! You were just too adorable! I couldn't help myself, hehehe!"

"It's okay...but I didn't expect you to be so strong," Anna said, curiously looking at Kiana, who appeared slender and not overtly strong.

"Really? Yeah, others say that too, but I'm not sure where my strength comes from," Kiana shrugged, assuming it was a unique superpower she was born with.

Anna nodded, familiar with people awakening superpowers in this chaotic world.

Mei finished the call, and Kiana asked, "What did the police say?"

After Mei finished her call, Kiana, with a mix of curiosity and concern, asked, "So, are the police coming here?"

Mei, with a puzzled look, replied, "They said they're sending one person to resolve this conflict."

"One person?! What are they thinking, sending just one person for this!" Kiana was baffled by the police's decision, and even Anna seemed worried upon hearing this.

"Mikoto... is he okay?" Both girls looked at Anna with sympathetic concern, uneasy to see such a beautiful young girl like her in distress.

"But Mei-senpai! Why would they send only one person?"

"I don't understand either, but the operator said 'the strongest' would be sent," Mei answered, equally puzzled by the operator's cryptic message of 'the strongest'.

As the three women contemplated the operator's words, elsewhere, a white-haired man with a sleeping mask jumped from building to building, pursuing something with a relaxed demeanor.

Ahead of him was a grotesque, centipede-like monster, emanating an aura of evil and corruption.

Strangely, the terrifying creature, which would normally strike fear into any ordinary human, seemed to be fleeing in terror from the man behind it. The monster could instinctively sense the deadly threat posed by the man, prompting its frantic escape.

However, its efforts were in vain. Bored with the chase, the man, Gojo, effortlessly destroyed the monster with a destructive red attack, leaving no trace of it behind.

"And that's the last one!" Gojo smiled, eager to return home for a well-deserved rest. But just as he was about to teleport home, his phone rang.

Raising an eyebrow in interest, he answered, praying it wasn't another mission.

"Moshi, Moshi, who is this?"

As he talked, Gojo's expression shifted from disinterest to keen intrigue.

"Don't worry! I'll take care of it now!"

"Yes, no worries, I'll solve that problem perfectly and help out afterward! See you soon!" Closing the call, Gojo sighed, then grinned, surprised by the exciting news he'd just received.

Who would have thought Esdeath, the formidable character from 'Akame ga Kill,' would appear in the real world, evenly matched in battle with the Red King?

As a seeker and lover of entertainment, Gojo was thrilled at the prospect of facing one of the strongest fictional characters. After all, as the mightiest being on Earth, only a handful of individuals could rival him.

Quickly heading to the scene, Gojo arrived at the devastated battlefield, the aftermath of the intense fight.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, the government is going to weep at the sight of this damage!" Gojo remarked though he himself had been guilty of similar destruction in the past.

Removing his eye cover, he sensed the energy of the combatants and teleported to their location, only to find a regular civilian still dangerously close to the battle.

Coincidence or not, the aftermath of their powers was heading straight for the civilians. In a rush, Gojo teleported and intercepted the attack with his 'Infinity' barrier, dissipating it on contact.

Turning around, he was surprised to see that the civilian was an elderly woman.

"Grandma? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, young man. Thank you for saving me. I would have been gone without you."

"No problem, ma'am. I'll take you somewhere safe." Gojo then teleported with her to safety, leaving her with nearby police before returning to the battle.

Gojo reappeared amidst the fight, startling both combatants with his sudden presence.

"Mind if I join in?" Gojo said with a smile. Mikoto sighed in relief, recognizing him as Gojo.

Esdeath, however, felt a cold sweat and trembled with excitement. Her instincts told her Gojo was a monster capable of killing her effortlessly.

Yet instead of fear, Esdeath felt exhilarated, her face flushing with thrill.

Both men watching were speechless at her reaction.

"Can I take over from here?" Gojo asked, and Mikoto nodded, smiling gratefully. Gojo turned and activated his cursed energy.

Esdeath immediately went on high alert, knowing any mistake could lead to her defeat against this new adversary.

Gojo appeared in front of Esdeath and launched an attack, which she narrowly dodged. He continued with close combat, his skill, and the Six Eyes giving him an edge, while Esdeath's attacks seemed to hit an invisible wall around Gojo.

Initially, Esdeath thought it was just luck or a weak barrier, but she soon realized she couldn't land a single hit from any direction.

Retreating, Esdeath unleashed her ice powers, bombarding Gojo with a hailstorm of ice, only to watch in despair as her attacks proved futile.

"You're curious why none of your attacks reach me, right?" Gojo looked at Esdeath playfully.

"There's an invisible barrier around me, with an infinite space within. Any attack slows down and eventually disappears before it can reach me."

Esdeath marveled at this, frowning as she asked, "And why would you reveal this to me?"

"Who knows? Just felt like it," Gojo shrugged and smiled, then activated his cursed technique, conjuring a red sphere in front of him.

Esdeath's instincts screamed danger, knowing a direct hit would be fatal. She quickly activated her trump card, but before she could execute her move, Gojo launched his attack.

BOOOM!!!

Esdeath was blasted away by the energy of the red sphere, destroying buildings in its path.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, not even that was enough to kill her. As expected of Esdeath!" Gojo admired, seeing her merely unconscious after the attack.

Another opponent might have been obliterated like the surrounding buildings, but Esdeath had quickly shielded herself after her plan was thwarted.

"Mikoto-san, can you take her with you? I need to attend a government meeting now." Gojo vanished, leaving Mikoto with an unconsciousness Esdeath.

(A/N: "Apologies for the inconvenience, but I must inform you that this novel will not be updated for the next three weeks. The reason is that I need to focus on studying for my college's final semester examinations. Don't worry, though, I haven't dropped the novel. I fully intend to continue writing as soon as my exams are over)