Chapter 414: Clash of Kings
The Lunarian’s four Fallen Angels, barely in their twenties, had already awakened both Armament and Observation Haki. Led by their captain, Arber, each commanded a squad of winged warriors, forming the Hell Pirates’ air force!
Every day, they patrolled the skies above Elbaf, using the Hell Giant Fortress as their base. They mapped the terrain, population, and even the beast clans of the giant nation, marking every detail with precision.
Golden Lion Shiki had pestered Brook multiple times to integrate the air force into his floating fleet, but Brook brushed him off, saying,
"If you need them for a mission, just ask!"
The Fallen Angels operated as a provisional division, reluctant to join Shiki’s fleet permanently. Still, they jumped at the chance to assist other officers on missions.
Their hatred for the Marines and the World Government burned deep. Any task involving Celestial Dragons—hijacking their gold shipments, raiding their merchant caravans, or wiping out their slave-hunting crews—saw them charging in first.
When they learned of the Hell Pirates’ creed, "Take down a Celestial Dragon, awaken Conqueror’s Haki," they became its most fervent disciples. They constantly urged the officers to join them in hunting Celestial Dragons!
Beast Kaido, in particular, clicked with Arber, despite being a decade younger. The two nearly swore brotherhood over their shared dream of crushing the Celestial Dragons, which suited Arber’s fiery spirit perfectly.
At a raucous banquet, they drank until they collapsed. Aruyan, the hammer-wielding sister, roared with laughter as she "claimed" Arber in his drunken stupor, setting the stage for the future birth of "Arber" the Wildfire!
Arber’s sister, Alice, didn’t intervene. With only four Lunarians left, pickiness wasn’t an option.
Arodan, the brash warrior, often blushed when glancing at Alice, his feelings obvious to everyone. But Alice seemed uninterested—for now—leaving Arodan visibly frustrated.
While Aruyan had no qualms about her bold move on Arber, Arodan knew better than to try the same. Alice’s fists were too fearsome, and getting pummeled by her—or the Hell Pirates’ other officers—was a real risk!
...
Days passed in a blur.
On this particular day, Brook was in his Devil Fruit storage room, cradling his beloved daughter Kanna and inspecting his collection.
"Kanna, my treasure, we’ll find you a Mythical Zoan Dragon Fruit someday. A white dragon form would be perfect!"
Brook chuckled fondly, picturing Kanna as a pint-sized, electricity-stealing, food-gobbling dragon like the one from that maid show—a white Western dragon with a spark of mischief.
"It’s a tall order, though. Where do we even find a fruit like that? Maybe we could snag Yamato’s Okuchi-no-Makami? An ice-wolf god sounds pretty cool too!"
Brook mused about Wano’s trove of Mythical Zoan fruits: Okuchi-no-Makami, Yamata-no-Orochi, Nue, and others.
"How does tiny Wano have so many Devil Fruits?" he wondered. "It must’ve been a powerhouse back in the day, with fruits reincarnating nearby."
He resolved to order Wano’s operatives to collect these fruits immediately. Anyone who ate one by mistake? They’d regret it!
"Brook! A massive giant army’s approaching from the west—looks like King Harald’s main force!"
Antonio’s voice came through the door. He didn’t need to guess where Brook was; the doting dad was always with Kanna lately. Fatherhood had softened him, hadn’t it?
"Got it!"
Brook scooped up Kanna, handed her to Linlin, and rallied Redfield and Shiki to meet the legendary King of Elbaf.
It struck him that he and his top fighters combined didn’t match King Harald’s age. Normal humans envied the giants’ longevity—Whitebeard Newgate, at 72, was clinging to life with IV drips, while giants hit their prime at 200 and didn’t age until well past 300.
"After we settle things in Elbaf, we need to hunt down that pure gold inside the giant lanternfish," Brook thought. "If we wait for the main story, my crew will be too old to fight!"
Preserving their prime was critical—especially for his woman, Charlotte Linlin. Stussy’s ageless beauty and Shakky’s Vampire Fruit powers were safe, but others, like Angelie, needed that gold.
"Jahaha! I wonder if we’ll see the legendary Spear of Elbaf!" Shiki said, practically buzzing. "If I get my hands on that relic, my swords will be museum pieces. Time to forge new blades!"
"Gurarara! It’s tempting, no doubt," Newgate rumbled. "But don’t underestimate it. Our weapons might shatter against that spear!"
He recalled his Ryuo and Conqueror’s Haki-infused alloy naginata taking a nick from Kratos’ War Axe. The Spear of Elbaf would be even deadlier.
"Shiki, prep the Hell Giant Fortress for evacuation," Brook ordered. "If King Harald’s teamed up with the Marines, we avoid a head-on fight. We’ll hit them later."
Two Admirals plus a king wielding a divine weapon? Close combat was suicide. They’d rely on long-range, cataclysmic attacks to level the field.
"If that Harald guy’s working with the Marines, I’ll flatten King City myself!" Shiki snorted. Sparing Thalrik was already a courtesy to Elbaf. If they pushed their luck, the Hell Pirates’ wrath would be relentless.
...
Brook gazed into the distance, where dust clouds billowed. Horned, pale-blue dinosaurs hauled massive carriages stacked with unprocessed Adam Wood branches—Treasure Tree Adam itself!
Back when he scrounged for Adam Wood leaves to feed his Den Den Mushi, he’d scoured shipyards. Now, an abundance lay before him.
"Time to upgrade Antonio’s Den Den Mushi diet," Brook mused.
His eyes locked on the towering figure leading the convoy: King Harald, a 25-meter giant, slightly taller than Blue Ogre Dorry’s 22.6 meters or Thalrik’s 22.22 meters.
This was Elbaf’s mightiest warrior.
Brandishing the 28-meter Spear of Elbaf, Harald rode an enormous eight-legged white horse, his presence radiating power. His gaze met Brook’s atop the Hell Giant Fortress walls.
Their eyes locked, and a clash of Conqueror’s Haki erupted. Crimson lightning crackled, winds howled, and the earth trembled. Cracks spiderwebbed across the fortress walls, and Harald’s carriages collapsed in a thunderous heap.
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