Boom!
A deafening explosion of energy erupted, sending a violent shockwave tearing in all directions.
The flowers, trees, and vegetation made of food instantly melted into liquid, then were swept away by the howling gale.
Yet the colossal beast, which in everyone's eyes should have been injured, emerged without the slightest wound. Wreathed in flames, it burst out of the cloud of dust, turning everything in its path into a blazing hellscape.
"How is this possible?!"
The onlookers stared at the monstrous creature in utter terror, their courage collapsing.
One by one, they huddled behind Charlotte Linlin, hoping to hide from the attack—
Only to be stunned when, in the very next instant, Charlotte Linlin moved even faster than they could, abandoning them without hesitation and sidestepping away, fully exposing the crowd.
In their despair, they forgot to even scream—until a wave of searing heat engulfed them.
"Ahhh—!"
"Help—!"
Those ignited did not die immediately; instead, their entire bodies burned as they rolled and writhed in agony, desperately slapping at themselves. But the flames clinging to them seemed impossible to extinguish. Their screams soon dwindled into silence, leaving nothing but charred corpses.
The gruesome deaths of her crew stirred little emotion in Charlotte Linlin.
But she knew full well—if she tried to run, she could never outrun something with wings.
With no other choice, she hefted her massive sword once again, ready to continue the fight.
However, Rodan clearly had grown tired of playing. Seeing her battle stance, a flicker of disdain passed through the giant beast's eyes. With a beat of its wings, its taloned feet shot forward to seize her.
"Damn it—! Even if I die, I won't make it easy for you!"
With a roar, Charlotte Linlin raised her greatsword, unleashing Conqueror's Haki infusion at the critical moment.
"I said I'm done playing, old hag!"
Rodan showed no fear before such a fearsome blow. With a resounding bang, its talons clamped down on the greatsword.
Crack—! Cra-ka-crunch!
The enormous sword, enlarged through the Soul-Soul Fruit's power, crumbled like brittle candy under Rodan's grip.
"Impossible!" Charlotte Linlin stared in shock at her shattered soul-forged blade.
"Nothing's impossible… You and I are simply not on the same level," Rodan said bluntly, unwilling to let her cling to illusions.
And indeed—just as Rodan said—while the world saw the Yonko as the pinnacle, they did not know that there existed an even higher realm above them.
Without another word, Rodan opened its massive jaws. Flames erupted in a roaring torrent, engulfing Charlotte Linlin from head to toe.
Thanks to her giant's physique and formidable natural defenses, she did not die instantly, but within the flames she became a massive figure of living fire.
"Aaaahhh—! I'm not willing! My… my Totto Land!"
High above, Ghidorah watched it all unfold, feeling a twinge of pity for Charlotte Linlin.
She clearly possessed great strength, yet remained just one step shy of the final threshold.
She had all the advantages, yet squandered them, playing at her "Totto Land" dream in the New World.
From the very concept of Totto Land, he could see an echo of the ancient Great Kingdom. From that alone, he knew she must have been aware of its history.
But though she imitated the Great Kingdom's form, she lacked its ideals.
In the end, all of it was nothing more than a fleeting illusion.
Looking at the devastated island below, Ghidorah recalled that there were several Poneglyphs here.
With that in mind, he descended from the sky onto the burning island. Spotting a massive building in the distance, he beat his wings without hesitation, unleashing a violent gale.
The raging wind carried blades of force, and with a thunderous crash, the massive structure shattered and collapsed.
Leaping onto the ruins, he quickly found them: two black Poneglyphs and one red.
"Oh? How did these end up here?"
Rodan, approaching from afar, was visibly surprised at the sight.
"Who knows? Maybe she collected them somewhere," Ghidorah said, glancing at the inscriptions.
"Honestly… who even ordered these to be written? What a load of crap."
"I told you before—history is always rewritten by the victors. Keeping these around is pointless," Ghidorah said with open disdain.
"Truth is, I never intended to leave them behind," Rodan replied. "But after I was injured and went into hiding to recover, I simply didn't bother. Still, if I had to guess—there's only one person who'd pull something like this: Kozuki Toki."
"Toki, huh? Yeah… a self-righteous woman if there ever was one," Ghidorah muttered. "We should never have shared this writing with you people."
His gaze lingered on the inscriptions, and his thoughts drifted back to his second homeland.
(Of course, his first homeland remained that blue planet hidden deep in his heart.)
With his prodigious mind, every memory remained intact. And so he sank into recollection—nearly two thousand years of history flickering past like a lantern slide.
Across those long ages, he had witnessed countless kingdoms rise and fall.
Even now, he was not sure what he truly wanted.
Perhaps ending this world's cycle entirely, and building an ideal nation, was his only real pursuit.
"Hey—if we don't go now, this place is going to burn to ash!"
Rodan's voice snapped him from his thoughts.
Looking around, Ghidorah saw that Totto Land was already consumed by flames.
Another dream-kingdom destroyed—but it would not be the last.
"Shall I wipe them all out?" Rodan's voice came again.
Ghidorah noticed a few pirate ships fleeing on the distant sea. Without a second thought, he replied:
"No need. How much trouble could they possibly cause?"
Indeed, before the resurrected Great Kingdom he envisioned, those fleeing pirates posed no threat at all.
They lingered a moment longer on Totto Land, until the island began to tremble beneath them—then Ghidorah slowly took flight.
"Buru-buru-buru…"
At that moment, a ringing sound came from the left head.
Ghidorah grew curious. Only three people could ever call this Den Den Mushi, and if it was ringing, it meant something important had happened.
With a flick of thought, the left head uncoiled its tongue and produced the damp, wriggling snail.
"Master! Master, it's bad—the outpost is under attack!"
The moment the call connected, Sabo's urgent voice rang from the other end.
"Under attack? By who?"
Ghidorah froze for an instant. Given Sabo's and the others' strength, for them to call him meant the situation was dire.
"I don't know—it's a giant, a huge, HUGE giant! Everything's destroyed…" Sabo's voice was frantic.
A giant?
In a flash, Ghidorah seemed to realize something. All three of his heads darkened in unison as he growled:
"The Giant Titan Corps."
"Damn it— I didn't go looking for you, yet you came to me first!"
"The Giant Titan Corps?" Rodan's eyes widened. "Those guys are still alive?"
"Alive—and I've already killed a few," Ghidorah replied, beating his wings. "Come—we're heading to the outpost!"
But before they could move—
"Today, you're going nowhere!"
With a thunderous bellow, the sea exploded. A steel warship, hundreds of meters long, burst from beneath the waves, smashing through the surface.
Two towering giants, both wearing horned steel helmets, loomed into view before them.
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