"The broadcast has been dealt with." Inside the Gorosei's office, the curly-haired Gorosei received the latest report, stating that the broadcast on Sabaody Archipelago had been resolved.
"It seems that last attack destroyed the visual Den Den Mushi." The blond Gorosei nodded, then turned to watch the battle scene outside the palace on the Red Line, which was still being shown on the visual Den Den Mushi in their office.
In the footage, a man was confronting Alucard. The infected monsters behind them had already begun to weaken and even die. Their combat effectiveness was now completely negligible.
"However, since even he has made an appearance, Alucard must die, or the Government's secrets won't be safe." The blond Gorosei looked at the screen with a serious expression.
On the battlefield outside the palace, standing opposite Alucard was the man who had just cleaved hundreds of infected beasts in two. He was around sixty years old, with thick, silver hair that was slicked back like a water pipe and reached his waist. His eyes were silver. With his arms crossed, he exuded an imposing aura without even trying, and he was currently staring at Alucard.
Alucard lowered his head and noticed the transparent, spherical helmet behind the old man, as well as his dirty, crumpled clothes. A grin appeared on his face as his fringe danced in the strong wind.
"That helmet... Is that a... Celestial Dragon?"
On Mariejois, some Celestial Dragons didn't wear their helmets because the place was the center of the world. Aside from a handful of high-ranking Government officials, only the Celestial Dragons themselves could freely enter and exit. In such an environment, very few Celestial Dragons held the idea of "not breathing the same air as lower lifeforms," since the air they breathed from their helmets was the same air on Mariejois.
The old man, who was dressed like a character from an ancient book, remained silent. After a moment, he slowly spoke. "O sinner who defied the creators, today I will cast you down to the bottom of the world."
Suddenly, the old man disappeared, in his place was the corpse of an infected beast.
Relying on his Thermal Vision, Alucard was just about to turn around, but before he could even turn halfway, a flash of light vertically sliced through his body from behind.
Blood splattered, and the old man's disdainful and cold voice rang out. "If it doesn't work horizontally, it'll work vertically."
He was clearly referring to his previous attack that failed to kill Alucard. However, what made his white eyebrows twitch was that Alucard's body, which had been split in two, regenerated within a few seconds.
Alucard the Immortal.
The name was well-deserved. He was able to do things that even a Logia user couldn't, despite not being one himself.
"You swapped places with the beast's body. Is that your ability?" As Alucard spoke, he began shooting at the old man. The old man dodged sideways, catching the bullets with his fingertips and deflecting them into the ground.
"..."
In response to Alucard's question, the old man maintained his silence, forming his hands into a blade that was deadlier than any weapon in the world and attacking with immense power.
"Not gonna talk? That's right, why would you explain your abilities to an enemy!" Alucard laughed maniacally. His arm was coated in Armament Haki, and he clashed fiercely with the old man's arm.
At that moment, the ground began to tremble. Alucard tried to raise his other hand to shoot, but the old man was one step faster. He deflected the force, grabbed Alucard's collar with his other hand, and flung him several kilometers away.
As he flew backward, the world in front of Alucard was upside down. He saw the palace getting farther and farther away. With a sinister smile, he raised his gun and shot again, but this time he switched to the Blacklight gun Casull, which couldn't fire continuously but had more terrifying destructive power.
"You want me to stay away from the palace?" With a single bang, Alucard saw that the old man had appeared barely a hundred meters in front of him just as the bullet left his gun. A gigantic crater had been blown into the Red Line wall of Mariejois several kilometers away.
"He's transferring again? As I expected, this guy's ability is..." Alucard created a giant sword from the Blacklight Virus, transformed into bats, and then reformed his body to regain his balance.
The old man attacked again with his hands shaped like blades. There were no extra words, no flashy attack names, just an endless assault!
"It's true that the Government's front door isn't easy to break through..." Alucard muttered to himself as his blade collided with the old man's backhand, creating a violent shockwave and a powerful storm that swept across the area. This old man was stronger than an Admiral.
"Is this all the ability a kid who has recently turned the New World upside down has?" The old man increased his power, and Alucard's giant sword was pushed back.
"Heh..." Whether it was out of retaliation or disregard, Alucard simply sneered and didn't bother to answer. The pool of blood on the ground began to spread, and countless shadowy hands wearing white gloves reached out from within, grabbing the old man's feet and then the rest of his body.
The old man's expression changed slightly, and he snorted. "Hmph, an interesting ability."
To think that such a monster existed among the Celestial Dragons, whom Alucard usually referred to as "trash." Now, he felt he could slightly understand how they were able to stand above the Marines.
"Looking at the current situation, it's a stalemate." The Gorosei were still in their office, assessing the situation between Alucard and the Celestial Dragon through the visual Den Den Mushi. They were temporarily out of the range of danger.
"How are things with the Marines?"
"Not looking good. The war is in full swing. Even though the monsters are mostly dead, they caused significant damage to the Marines."
Upon hearing this, the long white-haired Gorosei thought for a moment. "What if we send the twenty thousand troops led by Tsuru back?"
"No!" The Gorosei with the curved mustache firmly refused. "Even if it's just Alucard, and even if the Government has enough power to deal with him, it's not a sure thing. Even if the Marines are half-dead after this battle, the Government's authority must not be damaged in the slightest."
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