And the gentle, soothing effect of his Phoenix Flame when healing others made it perfectly suited to such moments.
That was the very essence of a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit.
Though his own abilities effectively combined an Ancient Zoan with command over fire, King knew full well how far he still stood from his captain.
After all, Kaido himself was a Mythical Zoan user of unmatched power!
King had witnessed Kaido's might firsthand for years—they had met long ago, and fought side by side as they built the Beasts Pirates into what it was today.
Kaido's Dragon‑Dragon Fruit let him take the form of a soaring Azure Dragon, granting him flight, dominion over wind and rain, and command over fire and lightning.
Even among Mythical Zoans, his power was truly exceptional.
King knew his place: for all his strength, he could not match Kaido.
But how many others across the entire sea could?
To be second only to the Emperor meant he had almost no equal anywhere on the Grand Line!
Seizing a mere researcher discarded by Vegapunk—Caesar—should have been child's play for someone of his caliber.
…
"What is this…?"
King touched down, folding his wings tight.
From a distance, his sharp eyes picked out a gaping hole smashed straight through the facility's main gate.
Would Caesar have blown his own door in? King shook his head faintly.
Or was this some sort of bluff—an empty fortress ruse, meant to draw him inside while the scientist slipped away to another hidden refuge?
When word of Artificial Devil Fruits first leaked, it was news of the highest order—though confined to a tiny circle of insiders, entirely unknown to the general public.
Even naturally grown Devil Fruits were all but impossible for common folk to access, let alone man‑made variants crafted from the essence of those legendary fruits.
In the underworld black market, however, the revelation caused a massive stir.
Even the weakest Devil Fruit fetched a starting bid of one hundred million berries; mass production would have been nothing short of a gold mine.
Sadly, Dr. Vegapunk halted the project before it was fully perfected, leaving behind little more than a single lab and incomplete research notes.
Later, Caesar Clown uncovered those lost materials and painstakingly restarted the work from there.
But Caesar lacked Vegapunk's genius; the fruits he created were vastly inferior to the original prototypes—an entire tier below the mark.
For all his effort, pushing any further was simply beyond him.
That was why the Donquixote Family had no choice but to sell these flawed imitations, and why the Beasts Pirates were forced to buy them.
For Kaido's crew, any shortcut that boosted their numbers quickly was invaluable; relying solely on rare, naturally occurring Zoan fruits to equip an army was far too slow.
Hence the trade agreement between the two crews—though now the Beasts Pirates clearly intended to seize full control of the operation.
Seizing Caesar and the Donquixote officers was the first step in that plan.
If El and his group had not interfered, the Beasts Pirates would already have taken over the entire industry.
Doflamingo might have been confident no one else could replicate the work, but he knew better than to rule out the Beasts Pirates entirely.
As one of the Beasts Pirates' top leaders, King understood the grand strategy perfectly.
Caesar was a critical piece of the puzzle—one that simply could not fail.
Yet here, right before his eyes, just as he was about to close in, something had gone wrong.
The gate had been breached long before he arrived. Someone else—an uninvited guest—had gotten there first.
The captain's orders were absolute.
The plan could not be derailed. Whoever had beaten him here would pay with their life if harm came to Caesar.
The already battered gate was torn completely apart as King stormed inside, showing no restraint whatsoever.
"Finally…" El let out a quiet breath as he waited for King to walk straight into his trap.
"I was half‑tempted to leave. He's more perceptive than I gave him credit for."
The crashing sounds outside told El that King had realized he was not the only one here—far from it.
"Let's see what the strongest of the Three Disasters is truly capable of." El stood up.
Caesar lay unconscious; his earlier blow had been heavier than intended, but as long as the scientist's mind was intact, he still had value.
A quick check confirmed the Seastone handcuffs were firmly in place—no chance for Caesar to slip away as gas.
Now, at last, El was free to face the last of the Beasts Pirates' All‑Stars head‑on.
WHOOSH!
A burst of flame swept down the corridor, and a towering figure appeared before Caesar's bound form.
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