"We're all 'old friends' from the same generation. Did you really think I wouldn't know you were coming?" Arlan said with a disdainful sneer. "You were even collecting intelligence on me in my own territory. Did you think we've been running the entire Clifford Kingdom for nothing all these years? Idiots!"
"However..." Arlan suddenly scratched his head. "You chose a good time. You almost caught me off guard. I almost didn't have enough time to mobilize our forces."
"Tch. Don't play dumb." Betilla touched her slightly singed green hair, her eyes filled with disgust as she looked at Arlan.
"What's the deal with the guy up there?" Abel asked, looking up at the Death Gun in the sky.
"He used to be our client, but now we're his," Arlan replied, glancing up at the Death Gun as well. "200 million Berries is a bit expensive." He then muttered to himself, "A black dog turned into a big bird... The Raven Fruit? For such a good Devil Fruit to be eaten by a dog, should I call it a waste or a stroke of luck?"
In the past few years, the gold mine next to the Micity Port had been explored and mined, and it was found to be the largest gold mine in the kingdom. It produced a lot of gold every year. As the Minister of Military Affairs, Dimitri would often come to oversee it for a while, and Arlan had specifically come to inspect the gold mine.
However, Millie was the head of the Internal Affairs Department of the Chris Investigation Bureau, so she knew about every disturbance in the kingdom. How could she not know that three "old friends" from the same generation were coming?
The only problem was that Urtes launched his attack so soon after arriving, leaving Arlan with very little time. He didn't even have time to send a message.
So Arlan had to mobilize the Triangle Pirates, who had just returned to the kingdom and were halfway through the canal. As for Charlotte Cracker and the Death Gun, they just happened to be in the area, getting ready to go to the entertainment city to have some fun.
When Cracker heard that Betilla was also here, he rushed over without a second thought. The Death Gun was hired by Arlan as a mercenary. Of course, the price of 200 million Berries for a single attack was quite expensive, but given his strength, it wasn't a loss.
"You foul woman! You hurt me last time. This time, I'm going to chop you to bits!" Cracker, who was huge and muscular, was furious when he saw Betilla. As he spoke, several identical people appeared beside him, like clones. He then slammed his hands together, sprouting several more arms and duplicating his weapons. Some of his hands held a greatsword, while others held biscuit shields.
"He turns into two with one hit, and three with two! He truly lives up to his name as Thousand-Armed Cracker!" Everyone watched Cracker in astonishment.
"Charlotte Cracker! You coward! Hiding in your biscuits again! You're a disgrace!" Betilla retorted, her beautiful eyes filled with determination as she looked at Cracker.
Hearing this, everyone looked at Cracker again and realized that this big and muscular person was not his true body. His real body was still inside. It made sense; Big Mom's son looked way too mature.
"You foul woman, you bastard! Pretzel Slash!!!" Cracker was enraged and swung his giant sword at Betilla.
Whoosh!
A huge sword wave was unleashed, instantly splitting the ground. A bottomless crack extended for several hundred meters.
"You coward! I'll fight you!" Barely dodging the attack, Betilla swung her thin silver sword and rushed forward in a fit of rage.
Clang!
The greatsword and the thin sword collided instantly. The powerful impact created a visible shockwave that blew away all the small objects around them.
"Everyone get out of my way! This wench is mine!" Cracker parried Betilla's silver rapier and roared at the people around him. Then, the several identical clones behind him also charged forward with their swords.
"Biscuit soldiers... The same old tricks!" Although she spoke with disdain, Betilla did not underestimate her opponent.
The Paramecia-type Biscuit-Biscuit Fruit had been developed to its full potential by Charlotte Cracker. Both the biscuit armor he wore and the biscuit soldiers he created were extremely hard. Even if they were shattered, they could be restored instantly, making them very difficult to deal with. Coupled with his famous sword, Pretzel, and his powerful swordsmanship, his bounty of 660 million Berries (860 million Berries in the canon) was well-deserved.
As soon as Cracker and Betilla started fighting, the battle erupted.
Fizzzzzzzz~
An electric arc jumped in the air.
Vito's body suddenly grew in size, and he began to get taller. In a few breaths, he transformed into a dark blue giant beast, a five-meter-tall giant lizard that stood on its hind legs. It had three blue and white bone-like spikes on its back and crackling electric arcs all over its body.
Besides Cracker, Dimitri was the first to attack. With a cold face, he flashed and quickly appeared in front of Bank. His sword flashed like lightning, and he slashed at the opponent's neck.
Clang!
Without even seeing Bank move, his black katana was already in front of him, blocking Dimitri's beast-fang dagger.
Fizzzzzzzz~
Then, a huge blue figure flashed by, as if teleporting, and instantly crashed into Bank's body.
Thud!
Rumble!
Bank felt as if he had been hit by a high-speed Sea Train. He felt an unstoppable force, and in a moment of sharp pain, his body seemed to become weightless. He was sent flying, crashing heavily into a tall building dozens of meters away. A rumbling sound and a ground tremor followed, and the building collapsed, creating a large cloud of dust.
At this moment, Abel, who had already activated his ultimate move, also moved. He stomped his right leg on the ground, and the whole person shot toward Urtes, leaving a cracked patch of ground behind him.
"Steel-Hot Body: Scorching Iron!!!" Abel rushed in front of Urtes, put his hands together, and smashed them down toward the opponent's head.
"Don't you dare underestimate me! Fiend: Knuckle Fist!!!" Urtes' muscles on his right arm bulged and were covered in Armament Haki. He threw out three punches at the same time.
Bang!
Boom!
The ground instantly caved in, forming a five to six-meter-wide crater. A circle of white shockwaves exploded outward, spreading in all directions like a shockwave, plowing through the ground and sending countless objects flying.
Clang clang clang~
"I'm not underestimating you. I'm just taking you seriously," a mocking voice said. Marcus took advantage of Abel and Urtes' struggle and quickly rushed over, bringing his great-ringed saber down on the top of his head.
———————
Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my patreon ——— patreon(.)com/JuanFiction [remove the parentheses ( )]
There are over 100 advance chapters available for you!