"Ahhh—!"
"Help! Save me!"
"Run out of the city! Staying here means death!"
"..."
This night in Doma City was destined to be chaotic.
Cannon fire roared, gunshots rained down, and raging war consumed the entire city. Streets and alleys were filled with pirates, Marines, Royal Army soldiers, Royal Guard soldiers, and noble private armies clashing, with many thugs and gang members seizing the opportunity to loot.
To escape the ravages of war and the harm from the thugs, innocent civilians fled in all directions, seeking refuge in the mountains and dense forests outside the city. Many who couldn't escape, or were too timid, could only cower in their cellars, trembling as they listened to the sounds of fighting from outside.
The sudden Marine attack caught the Roberts Legion off guard. Although Fabian Lent led a reserve unit to resist, the combat power of the Enliven Legion was too overwhelming. They quickly broke through the reserve unit's defenses, disrupting the formation of the Roberts Legion's main force and buying considerable time for the steadily retreating Royal Army.
Vice Admiral Lacroix, a giant, commanded the entire battlefield from his towering fifteen-meter height, sweeping his enormous battle-axe in all directions.
Vice Admiral Huss gripped his battle blade tightly, locked in an intense, inseparable duel with Iron Knight Fabian Lent.
Rear Admiral Onigumo, his expression ferocious, his long hair wild, wielded eight weapons simultaneously like a multi-armed demon, aiding Vice Admiral Huss in surrounding Fabian Lent.
Rear Admiral Pegasus was likewise engaged, holding a steel spear as thick as a teacup. Combining it with Soru and Geppo from the Rokushiki, his moves were as venomous as a snake's, striking directly at Fabian Lent's vital points.
Additionally, Rear Admiral Doberman, full of vigor, commanded large numbers of Enliven creatures and Marine soldiers with effortless advance and retreat, sweeping through the enemies before them with the force of wind, fire, mountain, and forest.
Rear Admiral Massol transformed into a fifteen-meter long Saurophaganax, exuding the terrifying aura of a predator, periodically letting out thunderous roars as he rampaged through the battlefield as the vanguard.
Now, with the main Marine force having arrived, sweeping forth like a surging flood, they quickly overwhelmed Fabian Lent's remnants. Even Lent himself was surrounded by multiple Marine flag officers, making escape impossible.
"Fabian Lent, surrender now!"
In the pockmarked ruins of the plaza, Vice Admiral Silas's voice boomed like thunder, his expression serious as he stared intently at Iron Knight Lent, who was surrounded in the center.
Behind Vice Admiral Silas followed Rear Admiral Sicily, Rear Admiral Gobert, and a host of other Marine officers and countless Marines, completely cutting off Fabian Lent's escape route.
"Surrounded, am I...?"
Lent, wearing his antlered iron helmet and with a black iron mask covering his face, surveyed his surroundings with cold eyes. The area was littered with the corpses of Marines and pirates. He spoke in a voice devoid of emotion, "I wonder who it is, turns out it's Mad Beast Vice Admiral Silas. It doesn't matter. But as for you, have you decided who will be buried with me?"
"Stubborn fool!"
Vice Admiral Silas snorted coldly. His already burly and imposing physique expanded further. Not only did thick black fur grow on his body, but thick, curved black horns sprouted from both sides of his head, and his legs transformed into blade-like bull hooves.
"A Zoan user, nothing unusual about that!"
Lent's eyes remained unchanged, even showing a hint of disdain, as if deliberately trying to provoke Silas.
Silas, in his human-beast form, said nothing. After letting out a dull bovine "moo," he strode towards Lent. His heavy body, nearly six meters tall, made a "thump" with every step on the ground.
"So eager to be buried with me, are you? Very well! Very well!" Lent's eyes narrowed. He tightly gripped the renowned blade Kikkō, advancing rather than retreating, charging towards Silas.
"Don't steal my kill! This one's mine!" Vice Admiral Huss roared excitedly, actually rushing to the very front. He brought his broad-bladed greatsword down on Lent's head.
Clang—!Boom—!
The two blades, one large and one small, collided, producing not only a piercing metallic clang but also an explosion-like roar that kicked up a visible, fierce gale across the plaza.
This initial clash seemed to be a signal.
The surrounding Marine officers all joined in, completely disregarding the notion of fighting unfairly. They launched a concerted attack on Lent.
Under the encirclement of three Headquarters Vice Admirals, four or five Headquarters Rear Admirals, and thousands of Marine officers and enlisted men, even a great pirate like Iron Knight Fabian Lent, with a bounty of 325,000,000 Berries, could absolutely not endure.
Therefore, the battle did not last long before drawing to a close.
Under the bright moonlight, a heavily scarred corpse leaned on its sword, standing in the middle of the ruined plaza littered with bodies. Its armor was severely damaged, and crimson blood flowing from it collected into a small puddle on the ground.
"C-Commander... Commander, it's bad... the Marine main force has broken through!"
A burly, stout woman in deep blue denim overalls, Myna, ran over. An iron hook replaced her left hand, from which hung the corpse of a Marine, dragged along, leaving a long trail of blood on the ground.
"Myna, what happened?"
Roberts glanced at the anxious woman, but his attention remained on Vice Admiral Prodi before him.
"Wicked Woman Myna, the Roberts Legion's interrogator... You vile woman, how dare you insult our Marines like this!" Vice Admiral Prodi glared at the Marine corpse hanging from her iron hook, his eyes instantly reddening as he snarled through clenched teeth.
Myna gave Vice Admiral Prodi a fierce look, ignoring him. Her plump face, stained with blood, showed a hint of anxiety. She quickly swung the Marine corpse on her iron hook towards Bartholomew and said, "This guy was a Marine communicator. I interrogated him and learned that the main Marine force has already arrived outside Doma City! They've probably already entered the city by now!"
Hearing this, Roberts was silent for a moment, then sighed helplessly. "We planned for so long, and in the end, it all went to waste!"
He understood that the Roberts Legion was now caught between the Bion Kingdom's Royal Army and the Marines, trapped inside Doma City. Even if they wanted to retreat, they couldn't do so completely.
"Run!"
"The Marines are here!"
"We can't hold them! We can't hold them!"
"..."
Suddenly, a large group of routed soldiers poured in from the other side of the street, their panicked shouts rising and falling.
Roberts and Myna recognized them: these routed soldiers were pirates from the Roberts Legion, each one in a state of disarray, even abandoning their helmets and armor in their desperate flight.
"Stop right there!"
Roberts stood in the middle of the street, reached up to remove his full-face helmet, and held Gae Bulg to block his fleeing subordinates.
"Commander!"
"It's Legion Commander!"
"Thank goodness, it's Commander Roberts!"
"..."
The thousand-plus routed pirates, seeing Roberts's familiar face, their panic subsided somewhat.
At that moment, a figure pushed through the dense crowd: it was Impaler Snake Moratos. His face was pale, his upper body wrapped in white bandages stained with blood and dirt. He spoke with a grim tone, "Commander, the main Marine force has annihilated General Lent's reserve army! Our main force has also been completely thrown into disarray by that group of stone and metal monsters! Everyone's been scattered!"
"I heard those monsters also clashed with the Royal Guard and noble private armies controlled by the noble faction. Even the severely battered Bion Royal Army has started counterattacking us!"
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