Even Zephyr's single fist was over ten thousand times the size of Alucard. To describe it as "a mouse trying to stop an avalanche" would be an exaggeration; the size difference was like an adult human compared to an ant. If he didn't use Observation Haki, it would take Zephyr a long time just to locate Alucard in his current Titan state.
Zephyr was shocked that Alucard did not dodge but rushed straight toward him, but his punch was already impossible to retract.
Alucard held his Impaler's Castle spear up against Zephyr's fist. Due to the massive size difference, Ain and the others couldn't see Alucard at all from their position; they could only judge his actions by observing Zephyr's attack.
They had expected the punch, enhanced with Haki, to cause a ground-shaking tremor upon impact. Yet, when Zephyr's strike landed, the expected shock did not occur.
Zephyr was stuck there, frozen in a lowered punch posture, as if his fist had been blocked by something.
"What happened?"
Fallon, who was standing further away and whose Observation Haki was slightly inferior, could not perceive the exact situation through Haki. Seeing Zephyr maintaining the rigid posture, he frowned in confusion.
Suddenly, Zephyr's body began to tremble. His fist started to retract gradually, but not by his own control. Instead, a massive force from below violently pushed his fist away.
Alucard, positioned beneath the fist, tightly gripped both ends of the Impaler's Castle, using it as a shield to block the strike. In a pure strength contest with Zephyr, after a standoff of a dozen seconds, Alucard suddenly pushed off with his legs, causing Zephyr to lose his balance for a moment and stumble back two steps.
Zephyr's expression was startled. Was he just pushed back purely by Alucard's strength?
Alucard leaped into the air, seizing the opportunity to jump onto Zephyr's arm and quickly rush toward the Titan's head.
Zephyr turned his head, looking at Alucard sprinting up his arm. Concentrating his power, the forest on his arm suddenly transformed into countless wooden men. They gnashed their teeth and brandished their claws, blocking Alucard's path.
"He has this ability, too?"
Alucard's normally impassive face showed a rare trace of astonishment as he looked at the tree-men blocking his way. Currently, the only ones capable of such an effect, creating "semi-life" constructs, were Gecko Moria, who could inject shadows into corpses, and Big Mom, who could inject souls into objects.
Transforming parts of his own body into life… is this another application of the Titan Fruit?
"But these are merely minnows."
Alucard narrowed his eyes slightly. He swung the Impaler's Castle in a flourish. Before the tree-men could even attack, he elegantly sliced them into fragments.
Seeing Alucard rapidly approaching, Zephyr was not anxious, understanding that the impatient party would expose a weakness and subsequently be defeated. He could be at a disadvantage in a fight, but his mind must never show a flaw.
You don't have glue on your feet, do you?
Zephyr thought to himself, then abruptly ignored Alucard and began to run frantically across the island, attacking randomly. The Immortal Pirates observing the battle panicked and scurried to avoid the attacks. In an instant, the entire island of Arderay was thrown into chaos.
"Has that bastard Z gone mad?"
Faced with the collapsing mountains and chaotic boulders caused by Zephyr's attacks, Fallon instantly transformed into his animal form. His body was wrapped in the thin, dense quills of his Hedgehog Devil Fruit form and coated with Armament Haki, turning him into a steel-spined shield.
Ivalis, Beckman, Elzeia, and others each used their abilities to dodge Zephyr's erratic attacks while retreating toward the coast. Staying on the island risked being collateral damage at any moment.
"He's trying to shake the Captain off his body."
Slicing the incoming sand and stone boulders like tofu with his sword, Ivalis led the Golden Hair Pirates to the coast. This was certainly not an easy show to watch.
When the Golden Hair Pirates arrived at their ship, they found a group of people in white coats waiting for them.
Leading them was Dr. Indigo, the Head of Research. He rubbed his palms together, grinning creepily at the approaching Golden Hair crew. "I've been waiting for you, Ivalis, Ben Beckman."
"Indigo? Why are you looking for me instead of tinkering in your lab?"
Ivalis frowned. He had very little interaction with Dr. Indigo, only knowing each other well enough to use names. The fact that the man was waiting for him here gave him a bad feeling.
Dr. Indigo continued to rub his hands, shifting his strange grin toward Beckman. "To prevent the possibility of Beckman-san betraying us a second time, Alucard-sama requested that I give him a preventative shot."
As he spoke, one of Dr. Indigo's assistants, also in a white coat and glasses, walked over. In his hand was a tray containing a medical syringe and various vials filled with a sinister black and red liquid. The sight was unsettling.
"What do you mean?"
Ivalis frowned, vaguely guessing Dr. Indigo's intent.
Dr. Indigo held the syringe in one hand and a vial in the other. He broke the vial, drew the bizarre dark-red liquid into the syringe, and gently pushed the plunger, letting a single drop fall. "This is the headquarters' latest research, created using Alucard-sama's cells. The name hasn't been finalized yet, so its codename is DY-1121."
"Just tell us the facts, stop stalling," Ivalis said coldly.
"Simply put, it's a monitorable virus," Dr. Indigo explained. "Anyone injected with this virus will be monitored by Alucard-sama. If they are ever suspected of betrayal, regardless of where they are, Alucard, as the originator—no, the Host, can instantly kill them."
The expressions of everyone in the Golden Hair Pirates changed. This virus was truly vicious.
"You intend to inject Beckman?" Ivalis asked.
"It's Alucard-sama's command. Rest assured, this virus is unlike Zephyr and the monster guards on the island; it won't affect a person's mind, personality, or abilities. But it also won't grant him power. It is purely a monitoring virus…"
Dr. Indigo flashed a toothy grin. "Also, Alucard-sama's final order is that if he refuses, Ivalis, you are to deal with the traitor."