Bang!
Click, click...
Abel had only brought two guns with him, and in just a few moments, he had emptied both.
He casually tossed the guns aside and ripped off his shattered Light Bulletproof Vest, its Defense Value completely depleted.
'White-quality gear is just too flimsy!'
"The kid's out of bullets! Let's rush him and kill him!"
"No guns! Slash him to pieces with our blades! This brat's slippery as an eel!"
The surrounding pirates saw Abel's predicament as an opportunity and charged forward with savage grins.
"This 'stage' falls far short of the grandeur I imagined," Abel mused, "but with you trash as the audience, at least the numbers are adequate."
As Abel spoke in a language no one else understood, he gripped the short sword hanging at his waist.
'Asura... Aurora Slash!'
Abel's draw seemed slow, but the resulting Aurora Slash surged swiftly into the enemy ranks, creating a dazzling yet bloody spectacle.
Without any charge-up, the Aurora Slash dissipated after traveling only a dozen meters, leaving behind a field of severed limbs and dismembered bodies.
The Asura Aurora Slash's piercing attribute ensured its power remained undiminished throughout its flight. Unlike ordinary attacks that gradually weaken after cutting through multiple targets, this slash retained its full force until it vanished.
"A... a Swordmaster?!"
The commotion drew the attention of many, who stared in stunned disbelief.
Among them, a few more knowledgeable pirates gasped, recognizing Abel as a Swordmaster. In their minds, a Flying Slash was practically a hallmark of such masters—an attack impossible for ordinary swordsmen to execute.
But then the question arose: a Swordmaster who looked to be around ten years old?
What kind of joke is this?!
Then they saw the boy casually swing his sword again.
Whoosh!
This time, they saw it clearly.
A crescent-shaped slash, roughly two meters long and shimmering with rainbow-colored aurora, instantly detached from the blade. It flew over ten meters, cleaving through every enemy in its path!
There was no mistake—this wasn't an illusion. It was a genuine Flying Slash!
The Skunk Pirates, already on the verge of collapse after their captain's sudden disappearance, now completely broke down. Screaming wildly, they scattered in all directions.
In truth, even without Abel's intervention, their complete rout would have occurred within the next minute or two.
Abel's sudden display of the Flying Slash merely accelerated the process, while also earning him some reputation points.
"Damn it, these useless fools! They couldn't even hold out for a few minutes!"
"But no matter, at least the objective has been achieved."
"Enjoy this grand gift I've prepared for you, Donquixote Family!"
Captain Mephitis, who had escaped through a secret passage earlier and was now hiding halfway up the mountainside, wore a sinister grin of triumph. With a vicious stab, he pressed the red button in his hand!
Captain Mephitis eagerly anticipated the entire estate, along with the Donquixote Family trapped within, being blown sky-high!
"Huh? Why isn't it working?"
"Explode! Explode, damn it!"
Mephitis panicked, his face slick with cold sweat as he frantically pressed the button.
But the massive quantity of explosives purchased by the four pirate crews remained stubbornly inert.
"No wonder I couldn't find you in the estate. You'd already scurried down this secret passage."
As the mocking voice echoed behind him, Mephitis instinctively whirled around, hand reaching for his gun.
But it was too late. The moment Doflamingo's voice rang out, Mephitis knew he had lost any chance of resistance.
"Why can't I move? What have you done to me?" Mephitis's expression twisted in terror. This feeling of utter helplessness was unbearable, utterly dreadful!
A closer look would have revealed several nearly invisible, thread-like strands connected to Mephitis's body, the other ends held firmly in Doflamingo's hand.
With a flick of Doflamingo's fingers, Mephitis jerked around like a marionette, his movements stiff and unnatural.
"What have you done to me? Shouldn't you be the one explaining what your family wants from me?"
"Donquixote... Doflamingo?!"
"No, you can't kill me! This is just a misunderstanding!"
"I can compensate you for everything! Wait, I'll join you! I'm Stinkpot Mephitis, with a bounty of 31 million Beri..."
"Shut up!"
Doflamingo was furious. How dare this worthless scum challenge him?
He manipulated Mephitis to sever his own tongue.
'Finally, some peace and quiet.'
"I was going to ask about your plans, but now I've lost interest. You're about to witness true despair. Everything you cherish, everything you hope for, will be crushed with ease!"
"Be grateful. Letting you witness this before dying in agony is the greatest mercy I can offer."
Under Mephitis's hateful and terrified gaze, he moved like a puppet, stiffly following Doflamingo toward the Flamingo, which loomed in the distance.
Meanwhile, the three pirate ships they had arranged to meet had already arrived at their designated positions.
"Strange. According to the plan, Captain Mephitis should have detonated the explosives by now."
"I have a bad feeling. We haven't been able to contact him since earlier. No one's answering his Den Den Mushi. He's probably in trouble."
"What do we do then? We've come this far. Are we just going to slink away?"
"Fuck it! Forget about him. Let's stick to the original plan and attack. If we destroy the ship, we'll trap those Donquixote Family bastards and starve them out!"
"Right! Charge! Charge! Charge!"
"Give them hell!"
In an instant, a barrage of cannonballs rained down on the Flamingo from three directions.
"Heh heh heh, so many fools actually came to attack us!"
"Enough talk! Protect the ship. Dof will be furious if we let it get damaged."
"Leave it to me. These weaklings are far easier to deal with than those relentless Marines."
As he spoke, Trebol unleashed a torrent of sticky mucus, precisely enveloping each cannonball hurtling toward the ship.
The cannonballs that landed on the deck were rendered duds, completely harmless.
Diamante was equally active, intercepting any stray projectiles with his serpent sword, detonating them mid-air.
With just these two, they managed to repel the combined barrage from three pirate ships!
Of course, this was partly due to the pirate ships' pitiful firepower.
Had they been facing three warships, Trebol and Diamante would have fled long ago.