"Rumble—!!!"
"Rumble—!!!"
"Rumble—!!!"
Deafening roar shook the heavens.
Bazz-B went flying backward like a human missile, ripping through the Wandenreich as he smashed down countless buildings.
A deep trench was carved into the ground along his path.
Smoke and dust billowed, debris blotting out the view—until Bazz-B finally slammed into a wall and barely managed to stop.
"Cough, cough… Haschwalth…" Bazz-B hacked a few times, glaring furiously back the way he'd been sent.
Where several militarized buildings had stood before, there was now a massive, human-shaped hole punched clean through the walls.
"Bazz-B, what are you doing here?!"
A startled voice came from beside him.
Bazz-B froze, then turned toward the voice—and immediately put on an annoyed expression.
"Quilge… that's what I should be asking you, isn't it?"
The speaker was Quilge Opie, a Sternritter responsible for hunting in Hueco Mundo.
And not just him—several other Sternritter stood nearby as well, all staring at Bazz-B with shock.
Hearing that, Quilge Opie snapped back to his senses and said blandly, "No, I'm the one who should be asking. Open your eyes and take a good look at where you are."
"Huh?!"
Only then did Bazz-B belatedly scan his surroundings.
And instantly—
Cold sweat poured down his forehead.
The buildings here were lavish, nothing like the Wandenreich's usual militarized structures.
Before him stood an extremely luxurious palace, its exterior wrapped in thick layers of ice that radiated a bone-chilling cold.
This was the heart of the Wandenreich—the Ice Palace!
In the past, that wouldn't have meant much. It was just a symbolic building.
But now things were different.
The master of the Ice Palace had awakened.
The Quincy King—Yhwach.
A traitor showing up near the Ice Palace… didn't that mean he no longer had the Military Police Corps' protection?
The moment that thought hit, Bazz-B's forehead slicked with even more sweat, and he cursed Jugram Haschwalth a thousand times over in his heart.
That damned bastard—he'd slashed him with one sword and launched him all the way here.
What if Yhwach used Seibetsu (Auswählen / Holy Selection)?
Gritting his teeth, Bazz-B staggered to his feet. Even with his body screaming in pain, he forced himself to start walking toward the Military Police Corps.
Watching his back, Quilge Opie and the others were at a loss.
So… what now?
Do they attack or not?
If they attacked, they'd definitely offend the Military Police Corps' commander—Cole.
But if they didn't, the Emperor was inside the Ice Palace, watching.
Damn it—either way they got drenched. And it was all Bazz-B's fault.
Couldn't you have picked somewhere else to come crashing into?!
The Sternritter at the scene practically cursed Bazz-B into the ground.
But they had no choice.
They could only grit their teeth, march over, and forcibly pin Bazz-B down, saying coldly:
"Bazz-B, you traitor who betrayed His Majesty—wait here for His Majesty's judgment."
"Yeah. You bastard, don't even think about leaving."
"Hand over peacefully. Don't force us to fight you…"
"..."
He'd been heavily injured by that slash, and Bazz-B couldn't resist at all.
So he simply stopped resisting—yet a sneer rose in his heart, completely ignoring the threats from these "comrades."
What a joke.
By Wandenreich rules, traitors were always executed on the spot.
Yet these "comrades" pinned him down while chanting "His Majesty's judgment," and not one of them dared to take a single step further.
They were just fence-sitters, wanting to see who was stronger—His Majesty or the commander.
At the same time, Yhwach saw this as well, a cold glint flashing through his eyes.
"A bunch of trash…"
If he weren't just awakened, and if his vitality weren't still insufficient, then before attacking Seireitei, he would have slaughtered these worms first.
Forcing down the killing intent, he looked again at Bazz-B.
A faint realization formed in his mind.
Before, he couldn't sense Bazz-B at all—so he couldn't use Seibetsu.
But once Bazz-B left the Military Police Corps' range, Yhwach could sense him again.
So the issue clearly lay with the Military Police Corps.
"That commander called Cole… how is he blocking my perception…?"
Yhwach frowned slowly.
"..."
"Bazz-B…"
Cang Du and the others stared in shock at the destruction Bazz-B had left behind.
They'd expected Bazz-B might lose—
But they never imagined it would be this thorough, nearly a one-move instant defeat.
When did Haschwalth become this strong?
Before they could even grasp the key point, their expressions abruptly changed because Jugram Haschwalth kept walking forward.
That elegant, noble-looking Emperor's proxy advanced step by step toward the main building.
As if none of them posed any threat at all.
"Don't look down on us, Haschwalth!!"
Cang Du roared furiously.
The improved Blut patterns bloomed across his body, and behind him, Complete Holy Form wings unfurled.
His fist turned the color of steel, and he swung a savage punch straight at Jugram Haschwalth.
I'm not like Bazz-B, getting careless.
If I go all-out from the start, even Haschwalth can be held off for a moment…
That was what Cang Du thought.
But Haschwalth didn't even slow down.
He merely spoke in a flat voice:
"Daiseikyū (Great Holy Bow)."
The moment the words fell, the reishi of heaven and earth—his to command—condensed into a gigantic spirit bow out of thin air, firing a single arrow.
Cang Du didn't flinch at all. He bellowed and drove his steel-like fist forward to meet it.
Boom!!!
"A thunderous boom erupted."
Steel and arrow met—
And in that instant, Cang Du's face changed, staring at his fist in disbelief.
"How is this possible…?!"
His fist—formed by the "Steel" Schrift—was now covered in countless cracks.
Before he could do anything else, he was blasted away just like Bazz-B, nearly punching straight through the entire Military Police Corps.
Liltotto and the remaining girls broke into cold sweat.
"Something's wrong. Haschwalth's power is wrong. What did His Majesty do to him? How did his strength jump this much?"
"This isn't even his Banbutsu Chowa (Harmony of All Things)… this is pure power crushing us."
"His reishi subjugation is way too strong…"
"Why isn't the commander coming out? Did something delay him?"
"No."
A feverish light flashed in Bambietta's eyes. Without hesitation, she entered her Complete Holy Form, a sphere of reishi forming in her hand.
"The commander trusts us—trusts that we can crush Haschwalth. His only enemy is Yhwach."
As she spoke, Bambietta whipped her arm, hurling a red reishi sphere.
Haschwalth simply used Hirenkyaku (Flying Scythe Step) and dodged it with ease, continuing forward without pause.
The ground struck by the red sphere had its very essence altered.
What had been reishi-formed matter transformed into a bomb.
It detonated violently.
Boom!!!
With that deafening roar, Bambietta unleashed even more reishi spheres, her voice excited.
"So, Haschwalth—I won't let you interfere with the commander. You're dying right here!"
Countless red spheres fell like meteors.
This was her Schrift ability: anything that came into contact with her reishi would change from its original material form into an explosive.
As the spheres kept slamming down, the ground erupted nonstop.
Her destructive power alone nearly turned the surrounding area into ruins.
Hearing Bambietta—and seeing her frenzy—everyone else could only grit their teeth and push themselves forward.
"I don't believe it… the five of us can't beat just one guy…!"
Candice Catnipp roared. Violent lightning exploded from her hands, crashing down on Jugram Haschwalth like divine punishment.
The other girls activated their abilities too.
In an instant, the region became lightning and thunder, raging—like an apocalypse had arrived.
Yet Haschwalth's expression remained calm.
Behind him, the sky filled again with densely packed spirit bows, each firing Heilig Pfeil (Holy Arrow) in a rain-like barrage.
At the same time—
Inside the main building, Rukia, Yoruichi, Soi fong, and Sode no Shirayuki were secretly peeking out, their foreheads slick with sweat.
"No, this is way too strong. If he had this kind of strength, why did he kneel in front of Cole and beg before?"
"Exactly. At this level, isn't he close to Yamamoto?"
"If it's just us, even together we might not beat him."
"Where is Cole…?!"
The girls talked in hushed panic, anxiety piling up.
It wasn't modesty.
Jugram Haschwalth was genuinely beyond imagination.
Bambietta, Cang Du, Bazz-B—each of them had reached captain-class, even stronger than some captains.
But under the seven-person onslaught, Haschwalth was not only uninjured—he looked completely at ease.
That meant his strength wasn't even on the same level as theirs.
Even if they joined forces, they probably couldn't win.
Unohana, on the other hand, looked excited. She drew her zanpakuto, licking her lips as she said:
"This guy really is strong… what a shame he doesn't use a blade. If I fought him, I might actually get killed…"
Yoruichi and the others nearly broke into cold sweat all over again.
They hurriedly clung to Unohana's arm, terrified she'd give in to her urge for slaughter and charge out.
If she did, everything would be exposed.
Elsewhere, the scene was similar.
Ryuken, hiding behind a section of wall, watched with a grave gaze.
"Strong… but it doesn't feel like it's his power…"
As the last pure-blood Quincy in the Human World, Ryuken instinctively sensed something off.
Jugram Haschwalth's movements were too stiff.
Every action had a faint discord to it.
A shinigami might not notice—but a Quincy would.
It was like he'd only just gained this power, and neither his body nor his mind had adapted yet, making it eerily unnatural.
Beside him, Uryu's forehead was drenched in sweat.
"This is just the Emperor's proxy…?!"
If even an Emperor's proxy had this level of strength, then how strong would the real Emperor, Yhwach, be?
Could he really…
Get revenge?
Ichigo didn't bother thinking that far—he was already cracking his knuckles, ready to rush out.
Ryuken quickly pressed a hand to his shoulder.
"Calm down. Even those Quincy can't beat him. If you go now, it's pointless. Wait for Cole."
Ichigo looked extremely irritated.
"What are we waiting for? I've already mastered Quincy power—if I go out, I won't be discovered either."
Uryu also looked eager.
"Even if we can't ruin the plan, dealing with this guy first should be fine, right?"
He's an Emperor's proxy.
But he's still just a subordinate.
Perfect for getting some practice before fighting Yhwach—build experience.
Ryuken sighed, feeling a rare headache.
He never should've come to the Wandenreich.
Dragging two high schoolers around made him feel like he was babysitting.
"…It's all that bastard Isshin's fault."
He cursed in his heart, forcing the two of them to keep watching.
Only about half a minute passed.
The world-shattering battle was already over.
Bambietta and the others lay scattered around, battered and bleeding, no longer able to fight.
They struggled to prop themselves up, ignoring their wounds, staring at Jugram Haschwalth in disbelief.
"What the hell is wrong with this guy…?"
"What did Yhwach do to him…?"
"It's impossible… even a thousand years ago, Yhwach didn't have this kind of ability…"
As they spoke, a faint despair seeped into them—so heavy it almost made them want to give up.
If Yhwach could boost large numbers of Quincy to this level…
Then even the commander would have a hard time winning, wouldn't he?
Unlike their despair, Jugram Haschwalth's expression stayed calm as he continued walking forward, unhurried.
Now that he had exchanged power with Yhwach—
Dealing with these people was effortless.
As he drew closer, Rukia and the others hiding in the building tensed to the limit, unconsciously gripping their zanpakuto tight.
If they were discovered, they'd have no choice but to fight with everything they had against this monster.
Just as everyone's nerves were stretched to the breaking point—
A clear, bright voice sounded from above the Military Police Corps building, laughing as it spoke:
"Honestly, Yhwach… I thought you'd come see me in person. I didn't expect you to only send a puppet instead."
"That's really disappointing."
Jugram Haschwalth's heart jolted. He snapped his head up toward the sky ahead.
And what he saw—
Was a gigantic Heilig Pfeil (Holy Arrow) coming straight down at him.
(End of Chapter)
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