"Show yourself!" Kuro roared, his eyes darting around the wrecked hall.
Darian didn't answer. He stayed invisible, watching as Kuro's composure shattered.
Die!
Kuro vanished. He moved so fast he was a blur, using his signature Stealth Foot technique to launch an indiscriminate attack on the entire room.
Slash! Slash!
"Ladle of Death!"
Furniture exploded. Chairs were reduced to splinters. The walls were gouged with deep claw marks.
Darian, despite being invisible, wasn't intangible. He felt the wind of the blades and took several glancing hits. Thankfully, his silicone body and energy absorption mitigated the damage, turning lethal cuts into minor scratches.
Realizing that stealth was pointless in a room being shredded by a human blender, Darian dropped the invisibility.
"There you are!"
Kuro spotted him instantly. His face was bruised and swollen from the earlier lightning strike, but his eyes were manic. He didn't care about strategy anymore. He just wanted to kill.
"You ruined everything!"
Ignoring the pain in his arm, Kuro lunged, swinging his remaining claw at Darian's throat.
Darian didn't dodge. He stood his ground, raising his left arm to block.
CLANG!
The razor-sharp blades hit Darian's forearm but failed to cut. The silicone skin depressed, absorbing the kinetic energy, and a white halo rippled across his body.
"Got you," Darian whispered.
He grabbed Kuro's wrist with his free hand, locking him in place.
"What?!" Kuro's eyes widened in horror. He tried to pull away, but Darian's grip was iron.
"You're fast," Darian said, his eyes glowing blue. "But you can't outrun current."
"Maximum Discharge!"
BOOM!
A blinding column of blue-white lightning erupted from Darian's body. It traveled instantly through his grip and into Kuro.
"GYAAAAAAH!"
Kuro screamed as thousands of volts surged through him. His muscles seized, locking him in a paralysis he couldn't break. The smell of ozone and burning fabric filled the air.
For five agonizing seconds, Darian held on, pouring every ounce of his remaining stamina into the attack. The entire mansion lit up like a lighthouse, bolts of lightning arcing from the roof.
Finally, Darian let go.
Kuro collapsed. He was charred, smoking, and utterly defeated. The "Hundred Plans" had ended in a pile of ash.
Darian slumped to the floor, panting heavily.
"Damn," he muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. "I really need to work on my stamina. Nami drained me too much last night."
Creak.
The door to the master bedroom opened slowly.
Kaya stepped out, wearing a nightgown and slippers. She looked pale and terrified, awakened by the thunderous noise.
"Ah!"
She screamed when she saw the carnage. The hall was destroyed. Merry lay in a pool of blood (injured but alive), and a smoking, unrecognizable body lay near the window.
"Miss Kaya..." Merry coughed weakly, trying to sit up. "I... I was attacked by Klahadore. Usopp was right. He... he is a pirate."
Kaya covered her mouth, tears streaming down her face. The betrayal hit her harder than the fear. The man she had trusted for three years had killed her parents and tried to kill her.
"Hey," Darian said, his voice weak. "Merry, don't talk. You're losing blood."
He dragged himself over to Merry and placed a glowing hand on the butler's wounds. The Lubrication ability eased the internal trauma and stopped the bleeding. It wasn't a miracle cure, but it would save his life.
"And you," Darian looked at Kaya. "Don't look at the body. It's not pretty."
He quickly disposed of Kuro's remains (tossing the charred corpse out the window into the bushes). He sighed. Nami is going to kill me. I can't claim a bounty on a pile of ash.
"Mr. Darian..." Kaya wiped her tears, finding a sudden resolve. "I need to go to the beach. Usopp is down there protecting the village, isn't he?"
"You're in no condition to walk," Darian said bluntly. "You'll just be a burden."
"Please!" Kaya stepped forward, her eyes pleading. "I have to go. This is my responsibility too!"
She looked at Darian, and for the first time, she really saw him.
Darian wasn't wearing his mask. His face—perfected by the Devil Fruit—was fully exposed in the moonlight.
Kaya's heart skipped a beat. She blushed furiously, looking away. Why is he so... handsome?
"Fine," Darian sighed, standing up. He started walking toward the door. "But don't say I didn't warn you."
Kaya tried to follow him, but her weak legs gave out after three steps.
Thump.
Darian stopped and looked back. "See?"
He walked back, knelt down, and offered his back. "Get on."
Kaya hesitated, her face burning red. But she had no choice. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he lifted her easily.
As they walked down the hill, Darian felt Kaya's soft body pressed against his back. She was light, fragile, but undeniably feminine.
"Mr. Darian..." she whispered against his ear.
"Yeah?"
"Thank you."
Darian adjusted his grip, accidentally brushing her thigh. Kaya gasped softly, her breathing hitching.
Darian frowned. He could feel her heart racing against his back. Her body temperature was rising.
Oh no, he realized. Not again.
His Outer Path pheromones were active. And unlike Nami, Kaya had zero resistance. She was already melting against him.
"We need to hurry," Darian muttered, picking up the pace. "Before this gets complicated."
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