"Kill him! Die, you monster!"
"If I defeat you, the wealth and fame will all be mine!"
"We only live if we take him down! Everyone, charge together!"
"May the Goddess of Night protect us!"
Amidst the ruins of the Inner Keep, A-rank and S-rank mercenaries continuously crawled out from beneath the fallen masonry. To survive, they were willing to stake everything on one final, desperate gamble.
The generals and knights who had been convened for the meeting, along with the castle guards, were driven forward by the strict orders of the surviving high nobles. Even the clergy brought by Mondos Bank and Leog, indoctrinated by the Church's teachings, ignored Aeridar's overwhelming power and launched a frenzied, suicidal assault.
"A bunch of gnats. All of you, just drop dead!"
A flash of raw malice crossed Aeridar's face. He cracked his neck and stomped the ground, charging into the crowd like a predatory beast. Instantly, the area was transformed into a whirlwind of blood and gore.
Squelch—!
Aeridar swung an arm coated in the obsidian sheen of Armament Haki. His straightened palm, sharp as a master-crafted blade, pierced through high-quality steel plate armor as if it were soft tofu, skewering a general clean through.
With a fluid motion, he threw a punch to his side. The atmosphere splintered with multiple cracks, and the terrifying force of vibration exploded outward. The earth shattered, flipping a dozen men into the air. Knights and guards alike watched in horror as their armor was vibrated into scrap metal, their bodies crushed internally by the shockwaves.
At that moment, a one-eyed middle-aged man lunged forward. He wielded a broad-bladed hunting sword, wore a coat of brown animal pelts, and carried a sawed-off double-barreled shotgun slung across his back.
This was "Fox Hunter" Downes, an S-rank mercenary and the former ace of the "Special Hunter Unit" from the Forest Kingdom of Fors.
Whish—!
Downes closed in on Aeridar, his hunting sword swinging down in a vicious arc that left an afterimage in its wake.
"Too slow!"
Aeridar didn't even bother to dodge. His Haki-hardened palm shot out like a bolt of lightning. Clang! He caught the falling blade in a vice-like grip.
"Go to hell!"
Downes roared, trying to wrench the sword free while simultaneously drawing the sawed-off shotgun from his back with his other hand. He pressed the barrels against Aeridar's head and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
Bang! Bang!
Two thunderous reports echoed as muzzle flashes lit up the gloom. Billowing smoke erupted as a massive spray of iron shot and steel balls peppered Aeridar's face and chest at point-blank range.
"I got him!" Downes shouted in triumph. No one knew the devastating power of a double-barreled shotgun at close range better than he; no human body could possibly withstand that.
"If guns actually worked, swords wouldn't exist."
Aeridar's voice cut through the smoke. A massive hand reached out through the haze, grabbing the barrels of Downes' shotgun.
As the smoke cleared, Downes stared in sheer horror. The glossy black metallic sheen on Aeridar's skin gradually faded, revealing that he was completely unscathed, not even his clothes were torn.
Cr-crack!
Aeridar applied pressure, effortlessly crushing the shotgun barrels before bringing his fist down like a heavy executioner's axe. The blow landed squarely on Downes' neck.
The sickening sound of snapping bone filled the air. The sheer force of the punch pulverized Downes' neck and shoulder, slamming him into the dirt as a lifeless heap.
"Golden Ring Aeridar!"
"Prepare to die!"
Two voices rang out simultaneously from behind him. Aeridar turned to see two identical men charging forward. Dressed in matching black shirts and trousers, each held a slender, gleaming rapier.
The Arno Brothers: the elder, Arno Balan, and the younger, Arno Knight. Renowned bounty hunters and former Chief Court Fencing Instructors of the Aubrey Kingdom.
Zip! Zip!
The two rapiers thrust forward with the speed of white lightning, aiming directly for Aeridar's eyes.
"Paltry tricks."
Aeridar gave a disdainful smirk. To an ordinary person, this swordsmanship might seem blindingly fast, but in his eyes, it was sluggish.
Clang—!
Aeridar swung his fists like twin sledgehammers. With a savage momentum, he easily smashed the brothers' slender blades into several fragments.
"Impossible!"
"This can't be!"
Balan and Knight felt a massive tremor jolt through their arms, staring at their shattered hilts in disbelief.
"Nothing is impossible."
Aeridar's predatory grin widened as he reached out with both arms. He seized Balan and Knight by their throats. With a sharp snap, he applied a burst of strength and twisted, breaking both their necks instantly. Their bodies went limp and collapsed, their broken swords clattering to the ground.
"You monster! Die!"
A knight fully encased in heavy plate armor stomped forward, wielding a long-handled greataxe. He swung the massive weapon toward Aeridar with everything he had.
This was Senlo Bernie, a former general of the Bivins Kingdom and the vanguard of the Seventh Legion.
"Foolish trash who doesn't know his place." Aeridar spared him a sidelong glance. He twisted his torso and threw a Haki-hardened fist forward.
Clang—!
Fist met greataxe. Like a hot knife through butter, Aeridar's overwhelming strength shattered the axe head into flying shrapnel. His fist didn't stop there; it plowed straight into Bernie's chest.
Thump! The circular breastplate mirror on Bernie's armor disintegrated under the impact.
"Pfft—!"
Bernie sprayed a fountain of blood. His ribcage collapsed inward, and he was sent spiraling backward for nearly a hundred meters, crashing violently into a stone pillar of a nearby gazebo.
Rumble—!
The entire gazebo collapsed, burying Bernie beneath the rubble as a massive cloud of dust billowed into the air.
Lion Bushman, Mad Blade Moen, Iron-Armed Tahur, White Eel Gota... it didn't matter if they were S-rank mercenaries, famous bounty hunters, elite generals, or pirates with hundred-million-Berry bounties. Anyone who stood before Aeridar was beaten or killed within a few moves.
Every punch and kick Aeridar threw carried a terrifying, monstrous strength. He was a force of nature, utterly crushing everyone on the battlefield with absolute dominance.
"M-monster!"
"He's not even thirty... is he the next 'Red-Haired' Shanks?"
"There has to be a weakness! There has to be one!"
"Agh—I'll take you with me!"
The survivors were on the brink of madness, their suppressed terror finally boiling over. Over half of their number were dead or wounded, yet they hadn't managed to leave a single scratch on their enemy. He was simply too strong.
Rumble... Rumble...
Suddenly, the sky darkened. Black clouds converged overhead, filled with the low growl of thunder as terrifying bolts of lightning snaked through the sky.
Crack—!
A bolt of lightning seared through the heavens, illuminating the world below.
"EL THOR!!!"
Enel's voice boomed from the distance. A colossal pillar of lightning descended from the heavens, its blinding light striking the center of the Inner Keep in a heartbeat.
BOOM!
A titanic explosion rocked the earth. A dozen men were vaporized instantly within the lightning pillar, leaving behind nothing but a massive, charred crater in the ground.
Thump... Thump... Thump...
"Yah-ha-ha-ha! Captain, haven't you finished up here yet?"
With a manic laugh and heavy, echoing footfalls, Enel's massive Amaru form strode into the Inner Keep, looming over the survivors.
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