"Um?"
Loki was stunned and instinctively swung the iron rod in his hand, breaking apart the brilliant sword light with a single strike.
"Wait! What do you mean, kid!?"
He looked at Roya, now blocked by five figures, and said unhappily, "Isn't this a one-on-one duel? What's the point of calling so many people?"
"They're part of my ability," Roya said with a smile. "If you want to fight me, you'll have to get through them first."
Loki should be thankful that Roya didn't bring all the minions he had stored on Hachinosu Island. Otherwise, he'd have learned what it means to fight a legion alone—every member of that legion had a minimum bounty of 50 to 60 million before becoming one of Roya's minions.
"It doesn't matter!"
Loki laughed excitedly. "I'm going to crush you anyway!"
The little giant—still over ten meters tall—charged forward, raising his massive mace high to strike.
The giant guards who had been leading the way stood back and watched coldly. Loki wasn't likable, but the Rocks Pirates were even more aggravating. Let Loki teach this kid a lesson.
Facing Loki's attack, one of the five figures in front of Roya—former Vice Admiral Johnson—leapt up. The blade in his hand became coated in Armament Haki, turning jet black as he slashed down with force.
Clang!
A wave of air erupted from the impact. Johnson was knocked backward through the air.
"That's really exaggerated!" Roya said, stunned.
What immense strength!
Even though Johnson had lost his mind and become a ghost, relying entirely on instinct with greatly reduced strength compared to his prime, the difference shouldn't have been so large in a direct clash.
And yet, Loki had knocked him away with a single blow.
Still, Loki was only a child. His power wasn't overwhelming—he staggered from the clash too.
"This guy..."
He now realized that Johnson was no ordinary opponent. No beast from the underworld could match this man!
Were the others just as strong?
As Loki pondered, the other four charged at him like zombies. Their movements were disjointed, entirely driven by instinct.
Among them, one—formerly a Marine brigadier general—began to transform, turning into a wildcat: the Zoan-type Cat-Cat Fruit: Wildcat Model!
Swish!
The wildcat's form blurred into motion.
"What?"
Loki was caught off guard.
A sharp pain shot through his right leg.
Razor! The wildcat had used the high-speed movement technique to graze Loki's ankles, leaving deep cuts.
"Not bad, not bad," Roya nodded approvingly.
Giants had overwhelming strength, but Loki clearly lacked agility. That made him easier to handle.
"Damn it!"
Loki turned and swung his iron rod at the wildcat, but at the same time, the three former Marine colonels leapt into the air and attacked his back.
Loki had to spin and sweep his mace.
"Out of the way!"
Clang!
The mace met another pitch-black blade.
Johnson had returned, using Geppo (Moonwalk) to rush back midair.
He was knocked away again—but Loki stumbled backward once more.
Then, the three colonels leapt off the mace, closing in on Loki's face.
Loki instinctively raised his hands to grab them.
Pain exploded in his shoulder.
The wildcat had jumped onto him and bitten the back of his neck hard.
"Aghhh!!"
Loki cried out in pain. In the blink of an eye, three colonels lunged in and stabbed him in the face without hesitation.
His screams of pain intensified.
Roya flinched. "That looks painful!"
"What!?"
The giant guards were horrified. Were these unknown fighters truly strong enough to wound Prince Loki? Even if they were from the Rocks Pirates, they were just kids, weren't they?
"Die!!"
Still, giants were known for their durability—and Loki, an ancient giant with exceptional talent, was even tougher. Gritting through the pain, he swung wildly at his own face.
The sound of bones cracking filled the air as the bodies of the three Marine colonels were smashed and twisted.
"I worked hard collecting those navy minions..." Roya sighed. "But, hey, at least they bought some time. It's over."
"AAGGHHHH!!"
Loki screamed in agony.
Even with their bodies crushed, the three colonels still forced their blades deeper into his wounds. The wildcat pounced onto his right wrist and bit down, causing Loki to drop his mace.
Then—
Shing!
A blackened blade pierced straight through Loki's chest.
"Ughh!"
The giant prince staggered backward and collapsed.
"Stop!"
No matter how much they disliked Loki, the giant guards couldn't let him die. They rushed forward to intervene.
They couldn't let Prince Loki be killed—no matter what.
But they froze.
They stared in horror at Roya, whose calm demeanor hadn't changed.
Was this human child even more terrifying than Loki?
"Come back," Roya said.
Johnson withdrew his sword and landed silently beside Roya. The wildcat leapt to his side a second later.
Blood poured from Loki's chest.
"A doctor! Somebody get a doctor!"
The guards scrambled to stem the bleeding.
"That's enough, Captain?"
Roya exhaled and drew in faint tendrils of black energy from Loki's body. "It's not exactly polite to kill someone when you're a guest, right?"
It had to hurt... but why was Loki's black aura so faint?
Rocks looked puzzled. "Aren't your puppets mindless? How'd they coordinate like that?"
He could tell: even with Johnson's strength, they shouldn't have been able to win in a direct clash. Agility might've helped them chip away, but this was too clean.
"Normally, no, they can't," Roya replied with a grin. "But you're here, aren't you? Of course I can control my minions when you're around."
Rocks nodded in understanding.
Whitebeard grunted.
So this kid had ordered those three Marine ghosts to die—just to set up a killing blow.
"Let's go, then," Rocks said, not even sparing Loki a glance. "Time to meet Harald."
Naturally, Roya and Whitebeard followed.
"Wait! What's your name!?"
The defeated Loki shouted from behind.
Roya didn't look back. He simply raised a hand, signaling the ghosts to return to the ship.
Only when they arrived at the castle gate did Roya truly comprehend the sheer scale of it.
The doors were hundreds of meters tall. The castle itself easily exceeded a thousand meters in height.
They walked through the gate and along a vast stone road until they arrived at a hall that, for normal people, would be large enough to be a city square.
"I'm sorry, Rocks. My son caused you trouble."
The giant on the throne spoke slowly.
Massive understatement!
Roya had to crane his neck to look up at the man.
Bald, stern-faced—he looked a bit like Kratos. Like Loki, he had two horns, a trait of ancient giants. His height was probably over 60 meters.
He wore a crescent-shaped black beard, with a thick chin beard—not unlike Whitebeard, though the styles differed.
This was Harald, King of Elbaf—an outlier among the war-hungry giants, and an advocate for foreign trade.
"To avoid wasting time..."
Rocks glanced back. "Roya, show him your ability."
Roya understood immediately. Use force first—then talk.
Black fur sprouted from his body. A pair of black wings unfurled.
In a flash, Roya had transformed into an upright black tiger.
"Then please bear witness!"
Whoosh!
With no warning, the hall's curtains, wooden furniture, and every flammable object ignited in an instant.
"This is..."
Harald froze.
"You see," Rocks said, ruffling Roya's furry head, "how long do you think it would take this kid to set all of Elbaf on fire?"
"Rocks!"
Harald's eyes widened in fury. "Are you threatening me?"
The Treasure Tree Adam that supported Elbaf was ancient. Large parts had decayed over time, making it highly vulnerable to fire.
If a blaze started, it could easily spiral out of control. The only solution would be to cut off the burning branch—assuming it wasn't too late.
That's why Rocks said Roya's ability was a perfect fit for Elbaf.
"I'm just warning you," Rocks said coldly. "Only then can we have a proper conversation."
"You bastard!"
Sweat poured down the Giant King's face. "What is it you want to discuss?"
Without revealing the details of the negotiation, Rocks kicked Roya and Whitebeard out of the room.
"Ha~"
Roya yawned.
Kind of boring.
In that case, he thought, I'll go look at the murals.
Since I'm here—I might as well sightsee.
(Be sure to send powerstones and add this book to your Library.)