The royal capital of the Patnia Kingdom, the "City of Blossoms," Aria, had now become a living hell.
The streets that were once covered in flowers were replaced by collapsed ruins and blazing flames.
The air reeked of blood and burning flesh.
The bells that once symbolized peace and joy were completely drowned out by screams of agony and cries of despair.
"Run! Hurry!!"
"Monsters… they're monsters!"
Terrified civilians fled in every direction, but how could their frail bodies possibly outrun the battle-hardened, slaughter-loving demons of the New World?
"Wahahahaha! Run! Run! Just like a bunch of scared little rats!"
With a single elbow strike, Jesus Burgess shattered a thick wall into dust, the stone fragments blasting out like cannon fire, claiming several more lives in an instant.
He reveled in the destruction and bloodshed brought by his raw physical power, his favorite kind of "fighting tournament."
But amid this apocalyptic scene, one figure that absolutely didn't fit in was darting swiftly between collapsing buildings and burning wreckage.
His name was Rehn, the Commander-in-Chief of the Patnia Kingdom's military.
His large, rotund body was draped in a once-luxurious cloak symbolizing his position,
now torn, filthy, and soaked in blood.
The round face that usually carried a warm, gentle smile was now filled with urgency and unshakeable determination.
In his arms, he clutched a small girl about ten years old.
She had beautiful flaxen hair, now trembling with fear.
Her small face was buried in Rehn's broad chest, desperately holding back tears, not daring to make a sound.
Her name was Lily, Rehn's only family in the entire world. His little sister.
"Lily, don't be scared. Your big brother is here."
Rehn lowered his voice, comforting her with a gentle tone that didn't match his massive frame.
His Observation Haki was stretched to its limit, sensing every malicious presence nearby and avoiding them with utmost care.
As Commander-in-Chief, he knew better than anyone:
This enemy… was terrifying beyond imagination.
These were not ordinary pirates.
Each one possessed the strength to annihilate an entire army single-handedly. Resistance was meaningless.
When Rehn saw the kingdom's finest knight order cut down like fragile straw by that cigar-smoking swordsman, he knew:
Patnia… was finished.
His only mission now wasn't to defend a doomed kingdom, but to protect the only family he had left.
"Here. This place."
Rehn slipped into a half-collapsed tavern. Using his familiarity with the capital's layout, he found a hidden door leading to an underground wine cellar.
He quickly cleared away the rubble and gently lowered his trembling sister inside.
"Lily, listen carefully," he knelt down, using his dusty hands to wipe away her tears, "No matter what you hear out there, you must not come out. Understand? I'll… I'll be back to get you very soon."
"B-Big brother…"
Lily clutched his clothes desperately, her face full of fear and reluctance.
"Be good."
His tone allowed no refusal, but his eyes were full of affection and guilt.
He took off a pendant carved with flowers and placed it in her hand.
"Big brother promises."
He gave his sister one last, deep look before closing the cellar door firmly and disguising it with debris.
Just as he finished and straightened up-
BOOOOM!!!
The opposite wall of the tavern exploded under an unbelievable force!
A huge man wearing a strange mask stepped through the dust clouds, laughing wildly, Jesus Burgess!
His gaze instantly locked onto the round figure standing in the center of the room.
"Oh? Looks like there's still a fat one who isn't dead yet."
Burgess grinned cruelly.
"Perfect. I wasn't done with my warm-up!"
Rehn's heart sank.
His worst fear had come true.
But his expression did not show even a hint of panic.
He slowly turned around, positioning himself between Burgess and the cellar entrance.
His eyes, usually narrowed into friendly slits, flashed with razor-sharp resolve.
He knew he could not retreat.
And he absolutely could not show fear.
He had only one goal, keep this monster's attention on him.
"Warm-up, huh?"
Rehn let out a cold laugh, his tone dripping with mockery.
"Bullying unarmed civilians counts as a warm-up to you? Funny… I thought it was just some stray mutt marking territory."
Burgess' laughter stopped abruptly.
The eyes behind his mask turned viciously violent.
"Fatty… you're dead."
"Shock Elbow!"
Without another word, Burgess' muscles bulged and hardened, coated in Armament Haki.
He launched himself like a cannonball straight at Rehn!
That elbow looked strong enough to level a small hill.
Rehn's eyes tightened.
He didn't take it head-on, instead his foot stomped sharply, and his rotund body moved with shocking agility, slipping to the side!
BOOM!!!
Burgess' elbow crashed into the floor behind him, and obliterated the entire tavern foundation!
A massive crater formed instantly, debris blasting outward in a storm of destruction.
Rehn's heart pounded.
Thank goodness.
The cellar entrance was on the other side, and deep enough to survive that strike.
"Pretty quick for a fat pig!"
Missing his mark made Burgess even angrier.
"Right back at you, rabid dog."
Rehn shot back, his fists clenching as Armament Haki coated them in black.
He couldn't fight here,
He was too close to Lily.
He attacked first.
"Meatball Charge!"
Rehn focused his Haki into his feet, blasting his massive body forward like a cannonball, using his weight and momentum to slam hard into Burgess!
"Wahahahaha! Good!"
Burgess didn't dodge. His arms also hardened with Armament Haki as he braced for impact.
BOOOOOOM!!!
A roaring shockwave erupted as the two collided!
The ground beneath them cracked like shattered glass, and the remaining structures around them collapsed into dust.
In pure physical force alone, Rehn wasn't losing at all!
"Interesting!"
Burgess' eyes gleamed with excitement.
"You're worth playing with a little longer!"
"That depends on whether you can keep up!"
Rehn growled, leaping back and immediately sprinting toward the opposite direction, away from the cellar.
He had to fight.
But not here.
"Trying to run?!!"
Burgess roared and gave chase.
The two became two devastating blurs, tearing across the ruined capital.
Rehn used his familiarity with the terrain and keen Observation Haki to constantly slip around obstacles, dodging Burgess' linear strikes.
Meanwhile, Burgess charged like a human bulldozer, buildings and streets alike crumbling before him like paper.
"Shock… Rising Dragon!"
Burgess sent a terrifying upward punch of compressed force!
Rehn twisted his round body mid-air, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow, but the shockwave still scraped his back, leaving it burning with pain.
He gritted his teeth, endured it, rolled with the momentum, landed steadily, and kept running without looking back.
Only one thought screamed in his mind:
"Farther… I need to lure him farther away!"
"For Lily…I absolutely…cannot fall here!"
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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