The battle was not fair. After three days of harassment, Queen had grasped a rough understanding of his power. When King and Zeraora arrived, they not only launched a surprise attack but also ganged up on him.
But nobody thought this was unreasonable. In battle, numbers were an advantage. Since Beasts Pirates had gathered three officers, they had no reason to waste this advantage.
“Imperial Archer!”
“Raging Volt!”
Both King’s flames and Zeraora’s lightning attacks carried high temperatures, which happened to be the greatest weakness of the Shroom-Shroom Fruit. The Sunny Day effect set by King was still in place, allowing Queen to unleash a second Solar Beam immediately.
Just as Queen had said, Barolomeo’s body techniques were poor. He didn’t expect Queen to be able to unleash his move continuously without charging-up, nor did he expect King and Zeraora’s attacks to be so fast.
The battle ended quickly, without any epic showdown that lasted for three days and nights. If it were a one-on-one situation, Barolomeo could have held his ground against both King and Zeraora for a while, but he was in a 1v3 situation.
Even though Queen didn’t engage in close combat, the most powerful Solar Beam hit him squarely in the chest.
At that moment, his body released a large number of mushroom spores, but they were instantly incinerated by the intense temperature of Solar Beam. Although his body wasn’t pierced, it bore extensive burn marks.
Zeraora and King also inflicted fatal wounds on his body. After they landed, Barolomeo’s body soon collapsed to the ground.
With Barolomeo’s death, new poisonous mushrooms ceased to be produced, and existing ones gradually disappeared under the burning flames of King.
This was the difference with devil fruit users. Objects created by abilities would continue to exist even if the user died.
King threw a fireball into the sky. It was a signal of a successful mission. At the next moment, a small boat began to approach the shore, carrying special forces armed with flamethrowers and wearing hazmat suits. They were responsible for clearing the poisonous gas on the island.
“Mwahahaha! My plan was perfect, just as I expected.”
“You good-for-nothing, you wasted three whole days. How do you have the audacity to say that?” Although their cooperation was good during the battle, they started quarreling as soon as the fight was over.
“Alright, stop bickering. Once we finish clearing this island, we’ll head back. This is our final target.”
Although Zeraora was shorter than King and Queen, his words carried weight. Just as the group was about to split up to deal with the remaining pirates on the island, a loud “boom” sounded from nearby.
King swung his sword to the side but was still hit in the face by something.
“Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, but there is a trouble.”
King, who was attacked, was unaffected, but his mask was damaged by the unknown object. Strands of white hair scattered as his face was once again revealed. He quickly entered his Human-Beast form, with the head of an Aerodactyl replacing his human face. His eyes exuded murderous intent. Queen already knew his true identity, and Zeraora being a creature created by Arceus meant they could see it too.
Anyone who saw his face had to die. Using Observation Haki, King quickly located where the enemy was.
“Imperial Flaming Wings!”
A flame dragon flew out from his sword, opening its mouth and biting the nearby treetop. A strange person, resembling a humanoid insect, fell down.
Looking at the bug-like creature which was emitting white smoke, King seemed to realize where the attack had come from.
“Die.”
Whether it was because he was attacked or the fact that his mask had been destroyed, King had no reason to spare him.
However, the enemy’s reaction speed was fast. He managed to dodge King’s slash and, in turn, raised his own rear end, spraying out a highly corrosive gas. It was the thing that had broken King’s mask earlier.
“This guy has eaten Insect-Insect Fruit, Bombardier Beetle form?”
Observing the opponent’s peculiar attacking stance, Queen made some assessment. Zoan-type Devil Fruits were the easiest to identify in terms of their classification. With sufficient knowledge, one could discern the nature of the fruit just by observing the appearance of the user.
“Bombardier Beetle?”
“It’s a type of beetle. Its rear end is its poison gland, capable of spraying high-temperature venom that can vaporize anyone upon contact.” Queen wasn’t worried that King couldn’t handle the opponent and even took the time to educate Zeraora.
Venom like that was practically useless against Lunarians. Among the ordinary Zoan-type fruits, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the Insect-Insect Fruit is among the most powerful.
While insects had a much stronger boost compared to fierce beasts, the difference showed when they encountered “Mythical Zoan” types.
The user of the Bombardier Beetle Fruit, Barolomeo’s first mate, wasn’t a match for King. He could only endure a bit longer by utilizing the power of his insect fruit.
Normally, King might be interested in capturing him and showing him to Kaido. Kaido might be interested in the user of Insect-Insect Fruit. However, since he had seen his face, he had no chance of survival.
After dealing with him, King took out another mask from his bag. He would definitely carry such an important item with him, just in case. He couldn’t kill everyone he encountered along the way.
Once these two were taken care of, cleanup work started on the island. However, progress was slow due to the Shroom-Shroom Fruit.
Meanwhile, in Wano Country, although King and the others hadn’t returned yet, their wanted posters had arrived.
【King the Conflagration, Bounty: 600 million Berries】
【Queen the Plague, Bounty: 570 million Berries】
【Thunderclap Zeraora, Bounty: 550 million Berries】
At the same time, Olga’s bounty poster was also updated. The expedition this time had given her a reputation, and she was no longer referred to as an apprentice.
【Olga the Phantom, Bounty: 480 million Berries】
This was the title she had earned during this time. Most of her enemies died amidst fake illusions, especially in large-scale battles. Under the influence of her ability, a significant number of enemies fell victim to the manipulation of illusions, leading to internal conflicts and ultimately resulting in their demise.
However, she kept her Myskina surname hidden; it had not been exposed.
“Worororo, the little girl has grown up. I still remember when she first tried to kidnap me. Looking back, she was quite courageous.”
“Courageous? Back then, she was just clueless. If she had known your reputation, she would have stayed far away from you.”
“Perhaps, but now that the names of the Three Calamities have been revealed, and the third Calamity has appeared, it’s about time we throw a banquet, don’t you think?”
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