"Artoria?" Hancock's pupils shrank as she asked urgently, "What did you do to her?!"
Suddenly, she thought of something and turned to look at Monet, who was still in bed. "Was it you—?"
Monet sat up slowly, calmly put on her clothes, tidied her messy long hair, and returned to her composed secretary demeanor. Smiling, she said, "I don't know what you're talking about, Miss Hancock."
Hancock's expression turned cold. She pointed at Monet and shouted angrily, "Artoria treated you so well. How could you betray her?"
"Betray?" Monet walked over slowly with a faint smile. "I think there's been some misunderstanding between us. There's no betrayal here. I haven't betrayed anyone."
"Not betrayal?" Hancock's eyes narrowed as she spoke coldly, "Even selling out your own master—isn't that betrayal?"
Monet stood beside Kaguya and smiled gently. "Sorry, I only have one master."
A flash of cold light passed through Hancock's eyes. She said coldly, "Shameless woman. I'll kill you!"
Clearly misunderstanding the situation, Hancock touched her lips with a finger. Pink, heart-shaped arrows formed at her fingertips, and as she drew her hand back like pulling a bowstring, a rain of pink arrows shot forth like a floral storm.
"Pistol Kiss!"
"It seems I've been underestimated, Miss Hancock," Monet muttered, a glint flashing in her eyes. She crossed her fair arms before her chest and called out, "Snow Barrier!"
The moment her voice fell, a fierce snowstorm arose in the spacious room. Fluffy snowflakes swirled and condensed into a massive snow wall in front of her!
Puff, puff, puff!
A flurry of sounds followed as the pink arrows rained down onto the snow wall, instantly petrifying it into stone!
Hancock snorted coldly, leapt into the air, spun swiftly, and landed a powerful spinning kick with her long, slender legs directly onto the wall!
"Perfume Femur!"
Bang!
With a crisp sound, the petrified snow wall shattered into countless pieces!
But just then, numerous snowballs burst out from the broken wall, streaking through the air like lightning toward Hancock!
"Snow Bunny!"
"A woman in too much of a hurry will never earn the master's favor, Miss Hancock."
Hancock's eyes narrowed as she replied coldly, "That kind of master—you can keep for yourself!" With that, she flipped midair, hands on the ground, and her long legs spun rapidly!
Bang, bang, bang!
A series of sharp sounds rang out as the flying snowballs were instantly shattered and scattered by her powerful kicks!
"What an enviable figure," Monet said with a smile, covering her mouth as she stepped from the blizzard. "Even I'm tempted. The master would definitely like it."
A trace of anger appeared on Hancock's icy face. "Shameless creature!"
"What's shameful about it?" Monet replied indifferently. "Isn't our purpose to please our master? If it were just anyone, the master wouldn't even give them a glance."
"Spare me your flowery words!" Hancock said coldly. "Do you think everyone is as willing to stoop so low as you?"
"Willing to stoop?" Monet looked at Hancock with a meaningful smirk. "I just worry you might get even more desperate than I am."
"What nonsense!" Hancock growled, suppressing her fury. "Then I'll just turn you and your master into stone!" She spread her feet and formed a heart shape with her hands, aiming at Monet and Kaguya in the distance, her eyes narrowing.
"Mero Mero Mellow!"
As soon as the words left her lips, a dazzling light burst from the heart-shaped gesture in her hands. Ripples of energy spread outward in waves, illuminating the entire room.
Hancock panted lightly. The intense battle just now had cost her some stamina. She hadn't expected Monet, who usually appeared quiet and graceful, to actually have such formidable combat strength. She had clearly been deceived by Monet's delicate appearance.
But to her surprise, neither Monet nor Kaguya seemed affected by the Mero Mero Mellow. Monet even smiled slightly, and Kaguya stood unfazed.
What's going on?
Hancock was stunned. She had never encountered such a situation before. Regardless of gender or strength, anyone not completely free of impure thoughts would inevitably be petrified by her ability…
"It seems your power has failed," Monet said with a smile.
"That's impossible! Don't flatter yourself!" Hancock quickly struck the same heart-shaped pose again and murmured, "Mero Mero Mellow!"
The pink light struck again, but once more, it had no effect on Monet.
Hancock was dumbfounded.
"The night is long and sleepless. Why not… join us in doing something fun?"
A voice sounded behind her, and Hancock's pupils contracted—Monet had somehow appeared behind her!
Reacting instinctively, Hancock spun and launched a high-speed roundhouse kick!
"Perfume Femur!"
Bang!
Her fierce kick landed solidly, sending the Monet behind her flying. Even before she hit the ground, the area of impact began to harden and turn to stone!
With a loud crash, Monet's body hit the floor and instantly shattered into pieces like falling snow.
"No!"
A jolt of alarm surged in Hancock's chest. Something was clearly wrong. Before she could even turn around, a bone-chilling coldness crept up behind her. Snow-white arms wrapped tightly around her body from behind, embracing her firmly!
Whether intentional or not, those pale hands slipped under her arms, crossing and grabbing her large, plush chest. The fingers squeezed, sinking into the soft flesh!
"No wonder you're known as a world-famous beauty—what a nice feel."
Hearing Monet's voice whisper in her ear, Hancock shuddered. She instinctively tried to break free, but was stunned to find herself suddenly wrapped tightly in thick snow that Monet had become, enclosing her completely in an instant!
"Eternal Snow!"
Hancock's pupils contracted as she struggled desperately. But the thick layer of snow surrounding her was as hard as iron and impossible to break free from. What's more, snow continued accumulating outside the shell. In no time, she was completely wrapped up, unable to move—like a snowman.
"What are you trying to do?" Hancock gritted her teeth and asked in a low voice.
"Can't you tell?" Monet reached out her pale hand, gently caressing Hancock's cheek, smirking. "Such a beautiful woman… Even I'm tempted. No wonder you're called the second most beautiful woman in the world—you truly are lovely."
Hancock's icy gaze remained firm. She bit her lip and scoffed, "Despicable… resorting to such shameless means!"
"Battles are about winning. Whatever the method, as long as you win, it's a good method. And—" Monet pinched Hancock's soft cheek with her fingers—it was so smooth it felt like water might seep out. "As long as you win, who cares how you did it?"
Hancock responded coldly, her voice laced with disdain: "That's only your self-righteous thinking. A true strong person doesn't rely on tricks. You're nothing more than a rat in the gutter."
"And isn't that your one-sided fantasy as well? In this world, only the victor has a say." Monet wore a victorious smile as she leaned in to whisper beside Hancock's ear, "Stop your pointless resistance. Just obediently become the master's slave."
With that, her cold hand slid down Hancock's fair neck, slipping through her collar and resting on her chest. Her fingers groped brazenly, her eyes glowing faintly with joy.
"This is an honor. Do you know how many people dream of this yet don't even qualify?"
Hearing this, Hancock trembled violently and bit her lip harder.
Kaguya raised an eyebrow. This little thing… could she have some peculiar fetish?
At that moment, Monet withdrew her hand and briskly walked over to Kaguya, her delicate face beaming as though she had just presented a gift. "Master, I've captured her. What reward will you give me?"
"Is that so?" Kaguya responded nonchalantly, eyeing the snowbound Hancock with a playful smile. "A Shichibukai wouldn't go down so easily. Do you really think this is enough to defeat her?"
Monet paused, sensing something was wrong. She abruptly turned—and her eyes widened.
Boom!
A deafening explosion rang out as the snow trapping Hancock suddenly burst apart. Snow chunks and icy shards flew everywhere, turning the elegant room into chaos.
Monet raised her arm to shield herself from the flying debris. As she spotted shattered stone on the floor, her eyes narrowed. Could it be…?
Hancock stepped out from the swirling snow, hands on hips, pointing at Monet with an expression of utmost disdain. "You vermin. How could someone like me possibly lose? Naive."
Though the snow had confined her, it hadn't sealed her powers. With her petrification ability, she had easily turned the snow into brittle stone and shattered it.
Seeing Hancock emerge, Monet—having lost face before her master—snorted coldly in irritation. "Don't think it's over. Not even close."
She spread her pale arms wide, and instantly, snow and wind howled through the room. The icy gales were like knives, cutting to the bone. The once-elegant room—its floor, walls, and furnishings—was rapidly covered in white frost.
Hancock's delicate face grew serious as she assumed a battle stance, eyes locked tightly on Monet amidst the swirling snow. She knew the real battle was just beginning.
Suddenly, Monet's eyes snapped open, her cheeks puffed slightly as she shouted, "Blizzard!"
The moment the words left her mouth, a chilling whirlwind burst from around her, spinning rapidly and growing larger by the second. In no time, it had become a raging tornado!
"Haaah—!"
With a sharp cry, Monet swung her arms forward, sending the razor-sharp tornado hurtling toward Hancock!
At the same time, Hancock's eyes narrowed.
Boom—!
Snow danced wildly as gales howled. The high-speed wind blades shot out like bullets. In an instant, the thick walls were sliced like tofu, revealing smooth, clean cuts. Everything inside the room met a similar fate—torn apart into shreds. Amid the thunderous roar, the room could no longer hold and collapsed entirely, raising clouds of dust.
As the blizzard slowly subsided, it revealed a ruined chamber—walls cracked, windows shattered, and debris strewn everywhere.
Monet panted softly. That technique had taken a toll—after all, she wasn't a combat specialist. Most of her time was spent on research, so her stamina wasn't the best.
Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she stood tall.
The move had been taught to her by Kaguya. The tornado not only had an extremely low temperature and high rotational speed, but was also laced with sharp wind blades that could shoot out during the spin, drastically increasing its lethality. Even most powerful fighters wouldn't walk away unscathed.
"To think you would look down on me like that… Unforgivable!"
Just as Monet was about to breathe a sigh of relief, a voice from afar startled her. She looked up—and her pupils contracted!
At some point, Hancock had appeared on the palace rooftop!
She released her fingers, and a volley of pink heart-shaped arrows burst forth, raining down like a floral storm from the sky.
"Slave Arrow!"
"Igloo Dome!"
Monet crossed her arms and shouted. A snow wall rose slowly from the ground—but before it could fully shield her, Hancock shot through the air like a released arrow. With a high leap and a spinning kick, she landed a powerful blow!
Bang—!
The snow wall instantly shattered into pieces!
No—!
Monet's heart lurched. She tried to retreat, but the arrow barrage was already upon her!
There was no time left!
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