"Pero pero~, Katakuri! Let's join forces and finish this guy off quickly!" Perospero completely ignored Albert's warning, licking his candy cane with a sinister grin. In his view, fulfilling Mama's orders was the top priority; any other obstacles were merely things to be cleared away.
Before his words had faded, Perospero launched the first attack. "Candy Cannonball!" He swung his cane, and a spherical candy over two meters in diameter shot toward Albert like a cannonball, tracing a sickly-sweet trajectory through the air.
Albert snorted coldly. His right arm instantly morphed into a sharp longsword. With a cold flash, it sliced the candy cannonball cleanly in two.
However, the moment the candy was cut open, a large amount of viscous syrup burst forth from within. This specially made syrup had extreme adhesive properties, instantly gluing Albert's body firmly in place. Even his metallized arm temporarily lost its flexibility.
"Now!" Katakuri seized the fleeting opportunity. The muscles in his right arm rapidly swelled and transformed into a massive mochi club sheathed in jet-black Busoshoku Haki. A glint flashed in his eyes as he shot toward Albert like an arrow from a bow.
"Slash·Cut·Mochi!" With a low shout, the high-speed rotating club, carrying a shrill sound of rending air, smashed down with thunderous force upon the immobilized Albert. This strike contained terrifying power sufficient to shatter steel, the very air around it churning and distorting.
At the critical moment, Albert's entire body strained violently, veins bulging like coiling dragons beneath his skin.
"ARGH!" he roared, tearing himself free from the syrup's bonds with brute force. His arms instantly completed their metallization, transforming into two massive shields crossed before him.
BOOM!
In the deafening crash, the ice beneath Albert's feet collapsed. Spiderweb cracks radiated out from him for over a dozen meters in every direction. Shattered ice fragments flew everywhere, glittering blindingly in the sunlight.
"Interesting," Albert said, shaking his numbed arms, a long-absent fighting spirit igniting in his eyes. It had been a while since he'd met an opponent who could make him get serious. "Seems I need to show some real skill."
With a low growl, Albert's entire body began to gleam with a metallic luster.
His body visibly expanded and morphed. In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a metal giant standing five meters tall. Silvery-gray armor gleamed coldly in the sunlight, each metal plate fitting together seamlessly to form a perfect combat form.
"Metal Giant Form!"
Seeing this, Oven immediately launched his own offensive. His blazing Heat Fist, carrying a scorching heat wave, slammed hard into the Metal Giant's chest. Yet Albert didn't budge an inch, letting the flames spread and burn across his armor.
"Fire of this level..." he said coldly, suddenly swinging a colossal metal fist. Oven hastily crossed his arms to block, only to be sent flying by the punch. He slid across the ice for dozens of meters before barely managing to steady himself.
At that very moment, Daifuku's lamp genie appeared soundlessly behind Albert. Its sharp longsword cut through the air, aiming straight for the giant's neck.
Without even turning his head, several metal tentacles suddenly extended from Albert's back, tightly entangling the genie. However, the bound genie suddenly dissipated into blue smoke, only to coalesce again on another side, its longsword once more slashing at Albert.
"Useless tricks," Albert sneered. Countless sharp metal spikes suddenly sprang from his metallic armor.
The genie's longsword struck the spikes, sending brilliant sparks flying, but couldn't harm him in the slightest. Immediately after, a hail of metal bullets shot from Albert's body, screaming toward the spot where Daifuku stood.
"Candy Wall!"
At the last possible second, Perospero rapidly raised a thick wall of candy, blocking Albert's metal barrage.
"Bird Mochi!" Katakuri's arm instantly transformed into a mochi whip, lashing out at Albert with a sharp, air-rending sound.
Albert, already prepared, nimbly dodged with his massive metallic form. Simultaneously, his hands morphed into two large, high-speed spinning chainsaws. The buzzing of the锯齿 was ear-piercing as they sliced directly toward Katakuri.
"Horn Mochi!" Katakuri immediately transformed his arm into a strip of mochi. Jet-black Busoshoku Haki rapidly covered it as he clenched his fist to meet the chainsaws.
CLANG——!
A deafening metallic crash rang out. This time, Katakuri wasn't sent flying, but the ice beneath his feet shattered backward from the immense impact.
"Diverting the force through the soft, pliable mochi, is it?" Albert saw through his technique at a glance. "Still too green."
As he spoke, another massive metal fist was already aimed at Katakuri, ready to strike.
"Don't even think about it! Genie Hunt!" Daifuku promptly manipulated the lamp genie to descend from the sky. Its sharp blade, with a fierce sound of cutting air, cleaved toward Albert.
CLANG! The genie's full-power blow deflected Albert's iron fist, buying Katakuri a moment to catch his breath.
The battle had reached a stalemate. Albert's Metal Giant Form displayed astonishing defensive and offensive power, while the Charlotte family's commanders relied on their unique abilities to contend with him.
Sparks and ice chips continuously burst forth on the frozen plain. The clang of metal and the roar of explosive energies rose and fell.
"Candy Wave!"
Perosperro finally seized the perfect opportunity for a counterattack. A smug grin spread across his lips as his hands quickly formed seals. Vast quantities of viscous syrup seeped up from the ground, gathering into a swamp beneath the feet of the Metal Giant Albert.
The syrup, like a living thing, coiled around the giant's metal legs, slowing his movements before continuing to climb upward, relentlessly covering the entire metal giant.
"Heat Fist!" Oven, having just recovered his stamina, seized the chance. He condensed blazing energy in his right fist, unleashing a powerful blast of hot wind straight at the Metal Giant. The scorching air current carved a distorted path through the atmosphere with a whoosh.
"I've said it how many times? Attacks like this don't even itch," Albert mocked in a mechanical, muffled tone, a look of disdain visible on his metal visor.
Yet, as he prepared to move, he suddenly found his legs completely immobilized. Oven's Heat Fist had instantly baked and solidified the syrup at his feet, turning it into hard candy that firmly anchored the giant to the ground.
"Now!" Perosperro shouted excitedly, his voice brimming with the joy of impending victory. His hands danced rapidly. Countless candy particles gathered in the air, forming a massive arrowhead shape.
"Candy Impact!" At his command, the candy arrowhead shot toward the trapped giant at an incredible speed.
Simultaneously, Katakuri's arm suddenly swelled and morphed into a club studded with spikes.
"Slash·Cut·Mochi!" he bellowed. The club spun at high speed through the air, emitting a loud whirring sound.
The lamp genie summoned by Daifuku also raised its sharp longsword, assuming a perfect slashing stance.
"Genie Hunt!" The genie's blade flashed coldly.
Oven, who had somehow found a moment to grasp a burning naginata, held the polearm. The flames on the blade glowed fiery red from the intense heat.
"Take this!" he yelled, gripping the naginata with both hands, its tip pointed directly at the giant. Flames danced along the blade, warping the very air around it with their temperature.
The attacks of all four descended upon the Metal Giant, now completely encased in solidified syrup. The candy shell, under the assault of heat and impact, was already covered in a spiderweb of cracks, emitting a crack-crack splitting sound.
When all the attacks landed simultaneously, a thunderous explosion rocked the battlefield.
KABOOM——!
A massive shockwave kicked up a cloud of dust and smoke. Metal fragments and candy debris flew in all directions.