Chapter 185: The Little-Known Conspiracy Between the Old Geezers
Behind the giant door, a tall and burly figure sat cross-legged. His thick black hair was loose, and his bone-white oni horns were prominent. The creature known as Kaido supported his head with one hand, his face half-buried in shadow.
Behind him, a tall woman with long yellow hair and red oni horns stood to the side in a black kimono. The arrival of the several people seemed to have attracted her attention, and she cast a curious glance at them.
Arcordon put away the smile on his face and, under the watchful eyes of a group of grunts, stepped into the giant room. Then, he took off his mask, revealing his true face.
"A lot younger than I imagined," Queen remarked, raising an eyebrow and silently lighting a cigar.
"I've long heard of your great name, Kaido of the Beasts—" Arcordon rested one hand on the hilt of his sword. His previous easygoing demeanor was gone, and his entire being became extremely serious and cold.
Before the giant redwood table, Kaido slowly raised his eyes and gave Arcordon an indifferent look. "One of King's clansmen? You made me rush all the way back here. If what you say next doesn't satisfy me, I'll kill you!"
Not long ago, Kaido had returned to Onigashima only to find that there was nothing unusual. Forget about intruders; he didn't even see a few insects. This had thoroughly angered Kaido, who had been planning to go and talk to Archangel Louis. He felt that he had been played. When he heard his subordinates report that one of King's clansmen had come and wished to see him, his face became as black as the bottom of a pot.
Kaido's voice was filled with a hint of rage and a cold killing intent. Everyone here could see that he was not joking.
Arcordon paid no mind to Kaido's threat. Instead, he directly stated his purpose. "I have come this time not only to see Alber, but also to represent Amit and continue your unfinished conversation."
Kaido heard this and frowned. "I don't remember knowing any 'Amit.'"
As his words fell, the atmosphere in the room changed strangely. A series of gun-cocking sounds came from behind Arcordon, from where Queen was standing.
Even in the face of this scene, Arcordon showed no fear at all. He spoke again. "Amit. The person who appeared at the entrance to the New World last time. It was I who informed him to go there. And afterward, he mentioned to me that he had a conversation with you at that time and reached some kind of consensus."
"Hm?" Hearing this, a certain change came over Kaido's face. He slowly lifted his head, allowing his entire face to be exposed to the light. "That old geezer?"
"That's right," Arcordon said with a blank expression.
"..."
The next moment, under the gazes of the others, Kaido slowly stood up and picked up his heavy kanabō, Hassaikai, from behind him. As he moved, his cold voice also sounded. "In that case, why didn't that old geezer come himself? Why is it a little-known character like you? Although that old geezer is not as good as us, he is one of the few who is just below us. What are you?"
Kaido's gaze became brutal. He raised his Hassaikai high, wreathed it in Conqueror's Haki, and smashed it straight down at Arcordon.
In the room, the several others who saw this had a strange light in their eyes.
"Conqueror's Coating?" Arcordon slowly exhaled a turbid breath and drew his twin swords from his waist with a backhand motion. After coating them in Armament Haki, he wreathed the blades in terrifying lightning and met the attack head-on.
Nearby, Queen, King, and the others saw this, their eyes widening. "Is this..." King and Queen's eyes reflected the flashing lightning, their faces becoming visibly serious.
The next moment, the twin swords, crackling with searing white lightning, and the kanabō, wreathed in black and red arcs, collided. A terrifyingly loud roar erupted, piercing through the entire island of Onigashima. Under the sudden assault, thousands of pirates were thrown to the ground, covering their ears in pain and screaming. Countless paper-paste doors and windows were shattered, and dust enveloped the entire skull dome.
With one blow, Arcordon was knocked back a few steps, standing still with his twin swords in hand. As for Kaido, he remained where he was, feeling the numbing sensation transmitted from his hands, which had been struck by lightning.
"I see... Logia-type - the Rumble-Rumble Fruit?" Kaido muttered to himself, enlightened.
Nearby, Queen had a shocked look on his face, his eyes almost bulging out of his sunglasses, a comical sight. "L-Logia-type - the Rumble-Rumble Fruit?!"
Behind Kaido, Black Maria also had a look of disbelief. "The Rumble-Rumble Fruit... one of the legendary invincible Logia-type Devil Fruits. It's actually in the hands of a Lunarian—"
Not far away, King stood with his arms crossed, a look of reminiscence in his eyes. "So, the rumors that were circulating in the Marines and the underworld a few years ago were true. The Rumble-Rumble Fruit really has appeared—"
A few years ago, rumors had been circulating that a Rumble-Rumble Fruit user had attacked a Marine branch, and that Marine Headquarters had urgently deployed Admiral Kizaru, who was far away in the East Blue, to intercept him. Originally, he had been skeptical about this, but now he realized it was not a rumor. And the person who had eaten the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was one of his own clansmen.
Arcordon ignored the others' reactions and stared fearlessly at Kaido. "So? Can we talk now?"
Kaido heard him, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly in a strange smile. "If you add the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, you are indeed strong enough to be on par with that old geezer. With such power, it's a pity to remain unknown. Join the Beasts Pirates!"
Arcordon heard him and cursed inwardly in frustration. He knew it would turn into this, which was why he had been so unwilling to meet this guy Kaido in the first place.
"I refuse! Are you going to continue the consensus you reached back then, or not?" Arcordon asked coldly in the shattered building.
To this, Kaido let out a strange laugh. "Worororo! That kind of thing can be decided anytime!" Then, Kaido raised his Hassaikai again, wreathed it in Armament Haki, and once again swung it at Arcordon's body.
Arcordon had a speechless look in his eyes. The next moment, his body flashed with a dazzling lightning and, with a crackling sound, he instantly disappeared. When he reappeared, he was already standing on the giant horn decoration of Onigashima.
"What a pain. This guy Kaido is much more terrifying than Shanks—"
"And that old geezer... to think he'd quietly cook up an unknown conspiracy with this guy!"
The next moment, a massive dark shadow flew out of the giant eye socket of the Onigashima skull, hovering in mid-air and facing off against Arcordon, who was crackling with deadly lightning.
With a terrifying roar, Kaido, in his Azure Dragon form, was the first to attack. "Blast Breath!" He opened his mouth and spewed out a terrifying flame, which turned into a brilliant golden jet, blasting straight at Arcordon.
Seeing this, Arcordon slightly bent his body, assumed a two-sword style offensive stance, and charged straight into the searing jet of flame.
Meanwhile, Dressrosa - King's Plateau.
Louis looked at the one-legged man standing with a longsword on his back and the black-haired woman in the floral dress, a strange light flashing in his eyes. "I heard from my subordinates that you wish to join the Archangel Pirates?"
Kyros lowered his head and replied calmly, "That's right, Lord Archangel. We hope to be able to join your crew..."
"..."
Hearing this, the confusion on Louis's face grew even stronger. "What made you change your mind?"
Kyros heard him, his fists clenched, his face filled with unwillingness, his eyes flashing with a hint of lingering fear. He decisively spoke his true thoughts.
"It's strength. I need the strength to protect my family from being threatened."
In the main hall, a flash of understanding crossed Louis's eyes. "Was it the accident not long ago that gave you this sense of crisis?" he asked thoughtfully.
"Yes, my lord."
Kyros had originally thought that after Doflamingo died, his and his family's life would return to peace and remain that way. However, the incident not long ago had mercilessly shattered his illusion. If it weren't for the fact that that monster was worried about the Archangel's military threat and had given up on killing him, he would have died long ago, and Rebecca would probably not have escaped that monster's clutches either.
Once again realizing the cruelty of the world, Kyros no longer held onto his fantasies. If he wanted his family to live in peace, then he himself had to have enough strength to shelter them from the wind and rain.
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