Faced with the sudden scene—
Not far away, Dosun, the other fish-men, and the human pirates were all frozen in place.
Everyone's eyes widened in shock, their bodies stiff with fear.
Even the fish-men who had just planned to charge alongside Icarus stopped in their tracks.
None of them dared to take another step forward.
Their pupils shrank violently, trembling as if in the middle of an earthquake.
"No… no way?!"
"Icarus… and everyone else… dead?!"
"They just died like that?!"
"Even their ship was destroyed before it got close?!"
"Not even a complete body left behind…"
"Only a cloud of blood?!"
At that moment, overwhelming fear gripped the minds and bodies of all the fish-men, and expressions of horror appeared uncontrollably on their faces.
"H-Hey… this must be a lie, right?!"
"I must be dreaming!"
"To instantly kill dozens of fish-men… could humans really do something like that?!"
The fish-men backed away in sheer terror.
On the side, Dosun, a cadre of the New Fish-Man Pirates, stared wide-eyed at the pirate ship flying a flag—an ominous blindfolded skull with wings.
"This… is this the power of a Sea Emperor?!"
"Icarus and the others didn't even get the chance to fight back. They just turned into a cloud of blood!"
"This kind of terrifying strength… they're not on the same level as us at all!"
Dosun's voice trembled.
His eyes were filled with horror and disbelief.
At that moment, a cry from his subordinates snapped him back to reality.
"T-They… they're heading straight for us!!"
Hearing that, Dosun's expression changed drastically.
Without hesitation, he shouted at the fish-men around him:
"Quick! Get out of here!"
"We can't take them on!!"
As Dosun shouted for them to retreat—
In the sea, just above their position—
On the deck of the Kamui Pirates' ship—
A woman with long black hair in a flowing white dress, with a pair of black wings behind her, stepped gracefully to the ship's edge.
Her name was Albedo.
She looked down coldly at the fish-men below, her gaze filled with arrogance and disgust.
Her tone was commanding and absolute.
"Kneel."
The moment she spoke—
"Om!!!"
A deafening hum rang out in the air.
In the next second, the fish-men who had just been trying to flee suddenly felt their legs give out.
Their bodies collapsed uncontrollably.
"Plop! Plop! Plop!"
One by one, they dropped to their knees.
In just a blink, dozens of fish-men—including Dosun—were kneeling on the deck, unable to resist.
Dosun stared at his knees in disbelief.
His body trembled violently.
His face was full of horror and confusion.
'Kneeling? I… I actually knelt down?!'
'What… what kind of command is this?!'
'What kind of power… can force me to do this?'
Shaking with confusion and fear, Dosun slowly looked up.
He saw the slow-moving coated ship.
At the edge stood Albedo, still in her white dress, her expression twisted in disdain.
And then, something terrifying happened.
Albedo respectfully stepped aside, bowed her head, and moved out of the way.
From behind her emerged the figure of a young man.
He was the captain of the Kamui Pirates—Kronos!
Looking at the regal aura and calm demeanor of the man, Dosun immediately understood:
'So this is him… the Fifth Emperor of the Sea… Kronos?!'
As that thought formed in his mind, Albedo suddenly shouted in fury:
"Who allowed you to look directly at Lord Captain?!"
"Kneel deeper, scum!!"
At her words, all the fish-men immediately bowed even lower, faces pressed to the deck, completely unable to resist.
"Boom!!"
The sound of dozens of fish-men kowtowing in unison thundered through the air.
Dosun's heart surged with panic and despair.
Even a simple command had turned into an irresistible force…
'This… this isn't human…'
'They're monsters!'
Next to Albedo, Kronos stood calmly, looking down at the scene below.
He noticed the markings branded on the fish-men's bodies.
Recognizing their identity, he spoke in a cold, indifferent voice:
"The New Fish-Man Pirates?"
"You were trying to pick a fight with me?"
"Were you planning to enslave us, just like you enslaved others?"
Kronos' tone was emotionless.
He clearly knew how the New Fish-Man Pirates operated—forcing both humans and fish-men alike into servitude.
Before he could say more, Dosun quickly responded, trembling:
"N-No! You misunderstood!"
"You are the Emperor of the Sea!"
"How could our small, humble group dare to provoke someone like you?!"
"We… we just wanted to greet you!"
Kronos raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? So you know who I am."
"Then you're also aware of what I can do."
He smirked faintly, voice dripping with menace.
"Well, it's good that you know me… because I know you too."
Hearing that, Dosun began to tremble uncontrollably.
His pupils shrank again.
His body was overtaken by the deepest kind of fear—the fear of absolute, inescapable death.
Kronos smiled coldly.
He looked down at the fish-men like one would at ants.
"You… really are an ugly bunch."
"Grovel like the beasts you are."
As soon as Kronos said those words—
"Om!!!"
An unseen power descended instantly, enveloping all the fish-men present.
Suddenly, they all raised their weapons—not by choice, but under some terrifying compulsion.
And aimed them—at their own hearts.
"What?!"
"What's happening?!"
"My body—it's not listening to me!!"
"This... this is the same force from earlier!!"
"I can't stop it!! Somebody help!!"
They screamed in panic.
They struggled to resist—but it was futile.
The long blades in their hands crept closer and closer to their chests.
As the shadow of death fell over them, many fish-men began to cry—shedding silent, hopeless tears.
"Puff! Puff! Puff!!"
In the sickening sound of blades piercing flesh—
One by one, the fish-men stabbed themselves in the heart.
"Cough!!"
Dosun vomited a mouthful of thick black blood.
Eyes bloodshot, he glared up at Kronos with hatred and despair.
His voice was hoarse and faint.
"You… monster… cough… bastard…"
"This… is this the most brutal of the Sea Emperors…"
"You're not a man… you're a demon."
Around them, the few fish-men who were still alive—
Those who hadn't yet died—
Had witnessed the horror of mass suicide with their own eyes.
Their bodies trembled violently.
Some didn't even dare to breathe.
They buried their heads deep into the deck, not daring to move an inch.
But no matter how low they bowed—
They couldn't hide the terror in their hearts.
Or the sheer horror reflected in their eyes.
"These guys… they're not human…"
"They're demons!!"
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