Sherwin swung his lance and shield, constantly maneuvering around Big Mom.
His current situation was far better than when he had faced Kaido before. He did not use Link Time at all he merely activated Striker Style and successfully fought Big Mom to a "fifty-fifty" stalemate…
Although Sherwin indeed failed to deal any damage to Big Mom, she was also unable to injure him. Calling it a "fifty-fifty" was completely accurate.
He even faintly felt, during the process of circling and exchanging blows with Big Mom, that he was touching upon how to grasp the essence of Aerial Style.
Don't be fooled by how, in the game, the lance appears to be a rather clumsy weapon.
That difference was deliberately created by the developers for the sake of gameplay.
In reality, not to mention Sherwin—whose strength had greatly increased in the world of pirates—even the hunters in his inherited memories were extremely agile when wielding so-called "heavy weapons" like lances and greatswords…
After all, they were an "Ape Wyvern species" capable of hunting Elder Dragons.
A mere door-slab greatsword or tower shield would not be considered a burden, even by a novice hunter who had just entered the field.
What more, the shield in Sherwin hand was not a tower shield at all, but a small round shield normally used to pair with a sword and shield.
Given Big Mom level of attack power, whether he used a large shield or a small one made little difference.
Compared to a cumbersome tower shield that could get in the way and block his field of vision, the small round shield was clearly more suitable for the Hunter Dance combat style.
Of course, Sherwin did not truly believe that he could really fight a Yonko to a "fifty-fifty" just by relying on this method.
The main reason he could currently keep Charlotte Linlin tied down was because she was in the state of hunger pangs, her mind not very clear.
Under normal circumstances, she would never waste time here with Sherwin instead, she would have already turned around to attack the Felynes behind him.
So…
Still needs further refinement.
Sherwin gave the lance in his hand a sharp shake, coordinating with Jinx explosive rounds to knock Big Mom into a stagger.
He then braced the shield in front of himself, dragged Astaralon diagonally behind him with his other hand, and slammed straight toward the unsteady Big Mom.
Hunting Art · Striker Shield Charge + Spiral Thrust!
After using the shield to completely knock Big Mom body off balance, Sherwin right hand gripping the lance snapped forward violently, and Astaralon drilled in like a spinning auger.
"Boom!"
Big Mom, who had been falling forward, was sent flying like a gigantic rubber ball, her entire body bouncing away.
"Tch! Still not working…?"
Sherwin clicked his tongue. Judging from the feedback transmitted through Astaralon just now, he still hadn't managed to break through Charlotte Linlin defense. The Steel Balloon really did live up to its reputation.
And much like Kaido, smashing Big Mom with a shield made of Seastone also didn't produce any particularly good results.
These top-tier ability users really did have ways to overcome that kind of weakness.
However, compared to Kaido—who could completely ignore Seastone—Big Mom seemed a bit weaker in this regard.
She was affected to some extent after all otherwise, Sherwin wouldn't have been able to knock her down so easily.
However, the impact Sea-Prism Stone could produce was only to this extent. It could merely weaken Big Mom strength slightly, but it couldn't reduce her defense at all…
So after that photo of Mother Carmel was destroyed, why did Big Mom become so easily injured? What kind of principle was that, exactly?
The settings of the pirate world really were as bewildering as ever.
But then again, both of them were Yonko, and by the setting Whitebeard strength might even have been a bit higher—so why didn't he have this kind of exaggerated defensive power?
If he had even half the defense of Big Mom or Kaido, then during the Summit War, even if he had been stabbed in the back by that son who hate roger, it probably wouldn't have had much of an effect.
Yet while Sherwin was here, shaking his head in dissatisfaction at the results he had achieved, the members of the Charlotte Family at the side were already completely dumbfounded.
Just like Jack and the others had absolute confidence in Kaido, Big Mom was likewise a symbol of invincibility in the hearts of her children.
Although Sherwin did have a record of clashing with Kaido before, for one thing they hadn't witnessed it with their own eyes, and for another, judging from what the news reported, Sherwin hadn't tangled with Kaido for very long. Both encounters had ended with his escape.
Most crucially, Katakuri fight with Sherwin back then, strictly speaking, should have been considered a draw.
He had only withdrawn early in order to rescue his younger brothers and avoid a conflict with Kaido.
So in the eyes of the Charlotte Family, although Sherwin was very strong, at most he was only on the same level as Katakuri.
But everything happening before them now told them that Sherwin truly did have the qualifications to wrestle with a Yonko.
On this point, Charlotte Linlin actually saw things more clearly, because she understood Kaido strength.
That was why she knew that the Investigation Group, which had managed to escape from Kaido hands twice in succession, was absolutely not as easy to deal with as they appeared on the surface…
"Give me… almond macarons!!!"
The blasted-away Big Mom quickly climbed back to her feet, still obsessively fixated on the food she wanted. "Don't get in my way! I want to eat sweets!"
She reached out, grabbed the nearby wall made of biscuits, snapped off a chunk, and stuffed it into her mouth.
"This isn't the flavor! Where are the almond macarons?!!"
"Notify everyone else to evacuate the castle immediately! Mom has completely lost her sanity!"
Seeing Charlotte Linlin start to shove random things into her mouth, Perospero shouted at once.
At the same time, he activated his Devil Fruit ability, trying to restrain Big Mom movements with syrup.
Sherwin rolled his eyes speechlessly. So that just now didn't even count as completely losing her mind?
"Sherwin! Help me stop Mom! If she gets out, the entire town will be destroyed!"
Katakuri no longer had the luxury of worrying about their past grievances.
While working together with Perospero to bind Big Mom using their Devil Fruit abilities, he called out to Sherwin for help, who had momentarily stopped moving because of his muttering.
Sherwin, who had already planned to continue using Big Mom as a test subject, naturally didn't refuse.
He half-crouched, raised his shield in front of him, and leveled his spear, aiming at Charlotte Linlin, who was struggling amid the syrup and mochi masses.
The effectiveness of prolonged entanglement had been tested enough, so what Sherwin wanted to do now was, while maintaining that entangled state, deal as much damage as possible.
So…
Hunter Art · Demon Blade!
Silkbind Skill · Flawless Thread Stance!
After quickly applying two buffs to himself, Sherwin braced Astalon and charged once more toward Charlotte Linlin.
Monster Hunter Style · Crimson Horn · Lance!
Sensing the threat of this strike, Big Mom, in her berserk state, made a blocking motion for the first time.
Her arms, coated in Armament Haki, crossed in front of her body. When Sherwin thrust landed, it rang out with a sound like clashing steel.
Under the Assault style, Sherwin attack power was still a bit lacking against someone with Big Mom absurd defense. After a brief stalemate, the lance in Sherwin hands was knocked aside, and she followed up by swinging a punch at him.
Kinsect Fusion Technique · Anchor Charge.
Sherwin chose to take the punch head-on with his shield. Though he was sent skidding backward a long distance, he successfully gained another attack-boosting buff.
But that still wasn't enough. Sherwin swiftly switched to Valor Style.
Then… once more!
Monster Hunter Style · Crimson Horn · Lance!
Big Mom raised her arm to block again, but this time, the outcome was finally different.
"Tch."
Though it was only a tiny wound, with several buffs stacked together, Sherwin finally managed to break through the defense of the "steel balloon."
"Where are the almond cookies?!"
Of course, this level of injury was completely ignored by Big Mom in her frenzied state.
She swung her arm again to knock Sherwin longsword aside, then smashed another punch toward him.
This time, having already succeeded in injuring his opponent, Sherwin had no interest in taking the hit head-on again.
With a sliding step, he dodged Big Mom punch and switched back to the previous style of fighting—entangling combat without directly clashing with her head-on.
After several attacks failed to land on Sherwin, Big Mom seemed to grow impatient as well.
"Life… or… Treat?"
With disordered eyes and saliva still dripping from the corner of her mouth, Big Mom recited her soul incantation at Sherwin.
However, a technique developed from Conqueror Haki like this had absolutely no effect on Sherwin.
So after pondering for a moment, he decisively answered—
"I choose 'or'!"