Chapter 50: Esdeath's Battle (Part 1)
"Freeze!" Esdeath placed her hand on the snowy ground, and a trail of ice surged toward Eric . He didn't dodge. The frost climbed up his legs and quickly encased his entire body.
With a powerful stomp, Esdeath leapt into the air and delivered a flying kick—shattering Eric 's frozen form into pieces.
She turned to look at the shattered remains. "You're not going to die that easily, are you?"
Bzzt! The ice fragments sparked with blue electricity, and the frozen exterior cracked. Ten meters away, the lightning reassembled into Eric 's body.
"Tch. Missed…" Esdeath muttered, though it was barely audible.
"So this is the power of a Logia-type Devil Fruit… not even a scratch."
"I told you, without Haki, you can't hurt me."
"Oh~" Her expression changed. A fierce aura burst from her, blowing away the snow around her. The pressure swept through Eric and Kurumi, making their hearts tremble.
Esdeath unsheathed her long rapier. Eric sensed it immediately—Armament Haki was wrapping around her sword.
"??" He glanced at the system interface only he could see:
[Name: Esdeath]
[Armament Haki: 1.5 Stars]
[Conqueror's Haki: 2 Stars]
'Why the hell did she suddenly awaken Conqueror's Haki?! And she just learned Armament Haki out of nowhere?! Overkill much?'
'System, what's going on here?'
[To improve gameplay experience, difficulty has been slightly adjusted.]
'The hell?! What kind of game powers up the boss mid-fight?!'
[...]
"So this is Haki… learned it just now… but now I can hit you." Esdeath's words snapped Eric out of his internal debate, sending a chill down his spine.
"Here I come." Esdeath tilted her cap to obscure her eyes and charged forward. Thanks to his sparring with Chiron, Eric reacted in time and blocked her slash with his sword.
"Hoh?" She seemed surprised. She'd assumed Eric relied solely on his Devil Fruit powers—like many others who grew complacent with strong abilities or weapons. But his reflexes and technique told a different story.
"How about this?" Though she wasn't at full strength, her muscle memory and instinct were enough. Her strikes were simple, direct, and relentless, forcing Eric onto the defensive.
"10 Million Volts: Chidori Stream!" Lightning surged from Eric , crackling in all directions and forcing Esdeath back.
"Solid foundation, sharp reflexes, and good counterplay—you've definitely trained." Esdeath leapt back, giving a teacher-like assessment. "But… it's not enough. Your will to fight—your desire to win—is far too weak!"
"Frost Horn!"
A massive spike erupted from beneath Eric . With the Rumble-Rumble Fruit and Observation Haki, Eric predicted the danger and dodged with [Teleport].
"Thousand Thunder Needles!"
In the air, Eric unleashed a hail of lightning-formed needles at Esdeath. For anyone with trypophobia, the scene would be terrifying.
"Ice Wall!"
Like a mirror of his own earlier move, Esdeath blocked the attack. The tiny bolts only left small holes.
'The range is great, but each needle's power is weak. Only good for clearing mobs.' Eric noted. He needed to develop new techniques—spamming "1 Million, 10 Million, 100 Million Volts: Discharge" was getting lame.
"This… is all you've got?" Esdeath seemed unimpressed, but in Eric 's ears, it sounded like: "You're not man enough."
And when a woman says that—you have to be.
"60 Million Volts: Thunder Dragon!" he roared. A massive blue dragon of lightning slithered through the air and charged Esdeath.
"Now that's more like it! A worthy opponent gets my blood pumping!"
Battle maniac that she was, Esdeath didn't even glance at weaklings. But someone who came at her with full force—she respected that.
She encased herself in a giant ice golem. It raised its fists to block the lightning dragon. Cracks echoed through the air as the ice shattered from the heat. The steam surged skyward.
The five-meter-tall golem instantly shrunk, leaving only a two-meter block around Esdeath.
"Tch… Can't use Mahapadma. Lightning really is troublesome—way stronger than Budo's Adramelech," she muttered. Still, she didn't back down.
"Hailstorm Drop!"
A massive block of ice, like a meteor, appeared above Eric 's head. Dodging would feel like conceding, so he decided to counter it head-on.
"100 Million Volts: Kirin!"
Inspired by Sasuke's move from Naruto, Eric didn't need storm clouds—nor did his Kirin have to strike from above.
"Raaawr!"
The lightning Kirin howled and clashed with the ice block.
Crackle!BOOM!
The ice shattered into glittering crystals, then evaporated into steam. The cold air condensed it again into mist. Sparkling frost and fog turned the battlefield into a fantasy landscape. Even Kurumi, watching from afar, whispered, "What a beautiful scene…"
"Don't move."
A cold voice spoke behind her. A rapier lay across her slender neck. Esdeath had used the mist as cover to sneak up.
"Kurumi!" Eric 's eyes widened as he moved to charge.
"Stop right there!" Esdeath barked, halting him. "From the beginning, I noticed you lacked killing intent or a will to fight. What's the deal?"
"...Well, you're my summoned companion. Why would I want to fight you, let alone kill you?"
"I see. Then if I kill this woman, will that give you a reason to fight me? Will you finally hate me?"
"What did you say?!" Eric roared.
"Ara ara, that's a dangerous thought."
"I suppose it must be done, then."
Esdeath raised her blade slightly, as if to slit Kurumi's throat.
In Eric 's mind, scenes flashed:
Kurumi shooting him at first sight, bandaging his wounds, angrily demanding answers, kissing his cheek…
"You… stop right there!"
BOOM!
A burst of energy exploded from Eric , surging past Esdeath.
In his fury—Eric had awakened Conqueror's Haki.
(END CHAPTER)
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