"Welcome, both of you. Bulat, I hope you can take over the position of Great General Budo to guard the capital for me. Akame, I plan for you to lead an elite special operations squad. Leone and Mine, you will follow Akame..."
After briefly acknowledging the two newcomers, Takeru quickly began assigning tasks to everyone.
"Eh, me replacing Great General Budo?" Hearing Takeru's words, Bulat's eyes sharpened.
"Exactly. To be honest, Budo hasn't been subdued by me. He's only under temporary control through special means. Before long, he'll break free. Given his personality, I'm not sure if he'll oppose me." Hearing Bulat's question, Takeru candidly explained.
"Controlled by you?!" Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned, looking at Takeru with shock.
"Then, is Esdeath also...?" Suddenly, Najenda also realized something was amiss and asked directly.
"No, Esdeath isn't controlled. She simply pledges allegiance to me." Seeing Najenda's gaze, Takeru shook his head with a light smile.
Hearing this, Najenda was dumbfounded. This outcome was even harder for her to accept. She had never imagined anyone could subdue that powerful, sadistic general.
"Let's not dwell on that. What does everyone think?" Takeru quickly waved his hand, changing the subject.
"I have no objections." Akame hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"I'll follow your lead, Takeru." Leone and Sheele said directly.
"As for me, I plan to go with Najenda to the Revolutionary Army's side." Lubbock directly shook his head, then looked at Najenda beside him.
Takeru, looking at Lubbock, knew that although he was a womanizer, his heart belonged solely to Najenda.
The very reason he, a noble, joined an assassin organization like Night Raid was also because of Najenda.
However, perhaps due to his playboy nature or insufficient charm, Najenda might know his feelings but had never accepted him.
As for Chelsea, since Takeru wasn't familiar with her, he had her temporarily join Akame's elite squad. The squad's responsibilities included assassination, investigation, and property confiscation.
Takeru intended for them to manage the institution where commoners could submit reports. With them in charge, he wouldn't have to worry about officials protecting each other.
"By the way, Akame, come with me for a moment." After chatting with everyone a bit more, Takeru prepared to bid them farewell but called for Akame just before leaving.
As for the others, maids escorted them to prepared rooms for rest.
"Hmm?" Hearing Takeru call only her and no one else, Akame was puzzled but didn't worry Takeru would harm her. She simply followed him out.
Soon, Takeru brought Akame to a special room and knocked on the door.
"Come in." Hearing the knock, a cool voice came from inside the room.
Hearing the familiar voice, Akame's heart trembled. Though they hadn't met in a long time, she knew the voice's owner very well.
"Excuse us." After hearing the invitation, Takeru opened the door with a light smile and entered, seeing Kurome alone, gazing at the moon outside the window.
The moment Kurome saw Akame, her heart also shook. Without a second thought, she drew her sword, Yatsufusa, and thrust it towards Akame.
Takeru narrowed his eyes and directly intercepted, positioning himself in front of Akame. Seeing this, Kurome hesitated but still redirected her blade.
"Why?!" After halting her attack, Kurome asked coldly.
"Because both of you clearly care deeply for each other yet are forced to fight. How could I possibly stand by and watch?" Hearing her words, Takeru replied with a light smile.
"..." Hearing Takeru's words, both fell silent.
"Regardless of why you were enemies before due to your affiliations, now I hope you can let go of past grievances and reconcile." Taking their hands, Takeru placed them together.
"Alright. For tonight, you'll both stay here. Don't come out until you've made peace. As for your weapons, I'll confiscate them for now." Looking at both, Takeru quickly took their weapons, pushed Akame inside, and closed the door.
"Don't think about leaving before tomorrow. That's an order!" After giving them instructions, Takeru sensed their conditions briefly before slowly leaving.
The two sisters were momentarily stunned by Takeru's actions. Looking at each other, they fell into silence.
After a long while, Akame, the elder sister, broke the silence. Then, they began an awkward conversation.
However, since they clearly cared for each other, after a night, their relationship had thoroughly softened, and they renewed their vow never to be separated again.
As for Takeru, after leaving the sisters, he returned directly to Esdeath's quarters. Although Takeru was now emperor, he didn't use the young Emperor's former residence as his new chambers, preferring to stay with Esdeath out of habit.
Esdeath was delighted to see Takeru and very dutifully gave him a massage. Although Takeru hadn't shown it much today, the frequent use of Nen Needles had taken a significant toll on his mental energy.
The next day, during the morning court assembly, Takeru had a maid invite Najenda and the others to the palace. Some officials showed surprise upon seeing the unfamiliar yet somehow familiar faces of Najenda and her group. Esdeath, seeing her former subordinate, revealed a smile.
Noticing Esdeath's subtle action, Takeru gave her a warning glance, then had everyone begin their reports: which areas needed support, how other matters were progressing, etc.
Finally, Takeru began bestowing official positions upon Najenda and the others. Hearing their appointments, they quickly accepted their duties...
Later that day, Najenda departed. Bulat became the new Great General, commanding the Imperial Guard.
Initially, many didn't accept Bulat. But under Budo's orders and after witnessing Bulat's feat of taking on fifty opponents single-handedly, they submitted to him.
Akame and the others also established a reporting center not far from Lubbock's former secret base in the capital. Akame and Kurome personally managed it. Chelsea and Leone handled information gathering, while Mine, Sheele, and others led arrest operations.
Thus, under Takeru's governance and everyone's cooperation, the Dawn Empire developed smoothly. The common people's smiles became more frequent.
Many remote villages also received substantial material aid, revitalizing them.
During this time, Takeru also encountered Tatsumi and Ieyasu. Learning Takeru had become emperor, they quickly enlisted in the military.
With their superhuman physical abilities, they rapidly rose to squad leader positions.
Meeting them, Takeru encouraged them with a smile and placed them under Wave's command.
Aside from internal affairs, some foreign forces, hearing of the empire's change in leadership, launched invasions. Takeru dispatched Esdeath to lead a special force modified by Dr. Stylish to suppress them.
It's worth mentioning that Stylish delivered five large, highly regenerative Danger Beasts to Takeru. Takeru used them as stamina reservoirs. With these five stamina providers, Takeru's training during his free time became even more intense.
With virtually unlimited stamina support and relentless day-and-night training, Takeru's attributes increased rapidly.