"Sixteen Night Moonlight!"
"No, I won't dodge or run..."
Lily took a deep breath, her fair fingers now covered in Haki, spiraling along the hilt and coiling into the scabbard.
"Who do you think I am?!"
Clang!
A black thunder appeared, like a straight line flickering in the air, shattering the incoming white Moonlight Slash, darting past Tihana, all the way to the back.
Lily appeared behind Tihana, holding the White Thunder in a thrusting position, while Tihana also halted her actions, the black moonlight around her fading away at that moment.
The surroundings seemed frozen, neither side moving as they stood back to back.
Shh!
The next moment, Lily's battle armor skirt was ripped open entirely, her close-fitting shirt underneath torn in several large gashes, revealing breaches on her skin, and her body surface sprayed out a considerable amount of blood.
"Lady Lily!"
The surviving subordinates exclaimed.
"It's nothing..."
Lily's body swayed, she finally spoke, her left hand reaching down to grab the sword sheath that had slipped due to the falling battle armor skirt, holding the hilt inverted as she slowly sheathed the blade.
Whoosh!
A night wind howled, dispersing the thick scent of blood emanating from the corpses.
Lily slowly opened her mouth, "Now, you can't even sense my speed, so..."
The White Thunder slid into the scabbard, making a friction sound, all the way to the end.
"You've lost for sure!"
Crack!
Puff!!
As the blade returned completely to the scabbard with a sound, Tihana's chest burst with a mist of blood, a hole appearing at its center.
"Cough, cough cough cough!"
The appearance of the hole allowed Tihana to move, opening her mouth to cough up several mouthfuls of blood, clutching her chest, laboriously turning around, shakily raising her arm, pointing the whip blade at the crowd.
"I, I can't lose, I can't lose, you guys..."
She wanted to shout, but the hole in her chest only made her voice grow smaller and weaker.
"I can't lose, truly can't, I have to go to Augustine, I have to..."
Tihana bit her lip, not even realizing her teeth had already broken it, more crimson blood flowing out, as she took tiny steps forward.
Lily turned around, observing the stubborn-faced though weakened Tihana, "Forcing this body to move will only lead to your death. Surrender, and we'll heal you if you relinquish power."
She was a Sword Master, and so was Tihana; during the battle, she could sense that this woman was not merely a formidable enemy.
Both aristocrats, both Sword Masters, even possessing equally sharp minds, able to instantly analyze the current situation, whether in battle or command.
A similar type, even their combat power very close, even if she hadn't yet defeated such an opponent, Lily felt she had gained much, just as Sage said, fighting a strong rival of equal standing can truly enhance one's will.
But in the final step, this person lost her reason, leaving a trace of regret.
Tihana acted as if she hadn't heard Lily, her eyes gradually becoming unfocused, but still moving towards Augustine.
Lily frowned, asking, "Is the position of the King really that important to you? To the point where you lose your sanity?"
Their victory in battle had caused Tihana to lose her calm first, now severely wounded and on the brink of death, yet still fixated on the King.
Is something like that truly so desirable?
Thud!
Moving forward, Tihana's body weakened, collapsing to her knees, the hole in her chest causing her even to lose the ability to move.
She lowered her head, looking at her legs, seemingly still trying to move them, yet ultimately only causing more blood to spill, at this point, she finally revealed a bitter smile, softly saying, "It's not that kind of thing..."
"Hmm?" Lily showed confusion.
"I mean, it's not the King, that boring thing. What I want to do... is simply to stop William from winning."
Tihana's eyes regained some spirit, looking around the pirates who stood or sat, shaken her head: "Did you really think you've won?"
"You don't understand, just like those aristocrats don't understand. No one can understand... if that person wanted, he would have had William ascend the throne long ago. Gathering the army isn't for the King's position; it's because I know, only by uniting like this, only by showing such strength, will he voluntarily retreat."
"Whether aristocrats or commoners, coming together to show him we possess this strength is enough, this way, there is justification for him to retreat, and William won't ascend the throne, haha... it's over already."
"As pirates, you surely know 'Four Emperors' Kaido, the man who can fight Kaido, no one can win, we lost as well, without his part of the vow, he will definitely make William ascend the throne, he definitely will..."
Tihana said miserably, "You have brought forth a demon, he will destroy Gares! Pirates, you did not win either, none of us are winners!"
She forcefully tilted her neck upwards, eyes slightly closed, her arm swiftly raised.
Poof!
Before anyone could react, the whip blade in her hand moved, piercing through the heart.
"Dad, what is a noble?"
"Fearless of evil, brave and dauntless, upholding justice, never forgetting the original intention, never yielding to adversity, and also pursuing hope. Tihana, this country is hope, you must protect it well in the future, understand?"
A somewhat blurry large hand, in memory, caressing the young Tihana...
A tear slipped from the corner of her eye.
"I'm sorry, I failed to protect the country." Tihana murmured, collapsing to the ground.
Lily watched the now silent Tihana, remained silent for a long time, her knuckles turning white from clenching, she bit her lip, thought for a moment, then picked up a cloak from beside a corpse, covering Tihana who had lost most of her clothing due to the battle, and then bowed deeply.
"Although I don't know why, I think I misunderstood you, I apologize."
The situation is very similar.
Lily didn't understand exactly what happened, but she could feel the same aura, the kind that wants to save the country but is powerless, even leading to despair.
But the difference is, she met Sage.
After staying for three breaths, Lily stood up, this time changing to a downward gaze, and slowly said:
"But we will not lose, Sage's plan will certainly be successfully executed!"
William?
The strongest in the kingdom?
Lily didn't know how strong William was, but she knew Sage was confident, unlucky as he might be, so far, his plan... has never failed!
The night faded away, from the eastern sky, a bit of gray appeared, making the land a bit brighter, though not fully dissipated, but this day...
Was about to break.
...
In Augustine Castle, not only was the destruction severe in the North District, but the other three districts near the central square were also damaged to varying degrees, the most conspicuous being a massive trench blasted out of each district, with the surroundings leveled to the ground.
Boom!
Clang!
Clang clang clang!
In the central square, a hideously terrifying figure was fighting a knight whose armor was damaged, face full of scars.
The knight frantically swung the great sword, chopping towards the terrifying individual, but was blocked by his outreached arms, then received a punch, body flung outward momentarily, only to land heavily, and once again swung a sword.
A day and a night.
The battle between Sage and William had lasted for a day and a night, despite looking like he couldn't hold on after being hit by one of his Destructive Death Light, his willpower was incredibly strong, enduring until now.
Sage was not surprised, he determined William's strength was not weak, at least stronger than the Seven Warlords of the Sea, although he had never fought the Hawkeye Empress, it was hard to assess now, but he had dealt with Kuma before.
Based on the extent of the brief encounter with Kuma on Moriah's territory, this guy might be stronger than Kuma...
Definitely has the qualification to confront Kaido.
But...
It was only holding out until now.
Boom!
This time, the sword William swung stopped just outside Sage's shoulder, stuck at a little distance from the shoulder, unable to advance.
The sword blade was blocked by a mass of Haki resembling black flames.
And this heavy sword...
Sage glanced at it, revealing a terrifying grin: "Weak indeed, it seems your Haki is running out!"
His own strength, in a state of full activation, was somewhat stronger than William, under normal circumstances, winning would probably require a price.
But now there was an abnormal situation...
No one's Haki could withstand depletion indefinitely.
Except himself!