Chapter 273

"Defeated instantly? A high-ranking officer of the Demon King's army, taken down just like that..."

"Wait, was that... the cute little Kanna-chan who always greets everyone with 'Maji yabakune'?"

"And that ancient dragon following the blue-haired girl with questionable sanity—is that really a legendary ancient dragon?!"

The adventurers of Axel City stood frozen, their faces blank with shock as they stared at the massive crater still flowing with molten fire.

Raising their stiff necks, they saw the enormous shadow looming overhead. A white dragon coiled in the sky, its gigantic wings stirring up a violent storm with each flap.

The unimaginable sight shattered the townspeople's understanding of reality.

They simply couldn't reconcile the giant dragon that blocked out the sky with the cute, innocent face of little Kanna!

In contrast, Meowth and the others remained far calmer, with hardly any change in expression.

As a young ancient dragon, it wasn't a big deal for Kanna to take down a high-ranking officer of the Demon King's army in an instant.

Meanwhile, a certain idiot goddess, still being chased by demon soldiers, continued to scream for help.

After all, she was now part of the team, and it wouldn't be right to leave her behind.

So, Darkness ran forward...

And with her criminally suggestive body, she blocked the path of the pursuing demon soldiers.

What followed was a series of questionable gasps that, if written out, would surely attract criticism.

"This pervert didn't run over to help at all..."

After over a month together, the group had long since figured out Darkness's tendencies, and they all sighed helplessly.

Escanor, equally helpless, sighed as well, lifting his golden Divine Axe, Rita, and slowly walking toward the demon soldiers.

Since their leader had been dealt with, it was time to finish off these remaining minions and restore peace to their lives.

Just as he thought that, he suddenly halted mid-step.

This familiar presence?!

With deep shock and surprise, Escanor sharply raised his head, his gaze locking onto the figure sitting cross-legged on the back of the flying dragon Kanna!

High in the sky.

"Not bad, Kanna. It seems you've gotten much stronger during this time."

The sudden voice made Kanna instantly alert. She turned her head, ready to attack.

But when she saw the gentle smile on the handsome face of the person speaking, her dragon eyes narrowed slightly.

Then, all her hostility melted away, replaced by overwhelming joy and excitement.

"Kobayashi!"

Kanna squinted her eyes happily, rubbing her enormous head affectionately against Zyhark's face.

"Alright, alright, Kanna. We're still enemies right now, remember? We'll catch up later, once we're back in the world of One Piece."

Zyhark patted Kanna's dragon-shaped head in response and stood up, leaping down from hundreds of meters in the air.

Boom!

The high-speed descent kicked up clouds of dust.

Still stunned from the shock of seeing an ancient dragon, the adventurers exchanged confused glances.

Did something just fall down?

Meanwhile, with Escanor's help, the sobbing and panicked Aqua finally escaped from the demon soldiers.

"Saved, saved! Wait, what?"

She dusted off the dirt from her skirt, looked up, and locked eyes with Zyhark as he emerged from the cloud of dust.

The moment their eyes met, the idiot goddess let out a sharp scream, "Zy-Zy-Zyhark?!"

Meowth and the others, who were preparing to pack up and return to the city, were equally startled by Zyhark's sudden appearance.

Surprise, confusion, shock, and disbelief flooded their minds.

But more than anything, they felt joy at reuniting after more than a month.

Even though Zyhark was now the Demon King they had to defeat!

Zyhark's gaze swept over his companions one by one.

Although he had remained near the Demon King's castle and hadn't gone out much, thanks to Wiz and the demon spies, he was well aware of his friends' whereabouts.

He knew they had been working hard to become stronger, and they had indeed grown.

At least their previous weaknesses were no longer as fatal.

Finally, he looked at the disheveled Aqua: "Yo, idiot goddess, it's been a while, but you're as useless as ever—getting chased by a bunch of minions, really?"

"Z-Zyhark, stop being sarcastic! If I had fought seriously, those demon soldiers would've been no problem!"

Aqua, still stubborn as always, pointed accusingly at Zyhark and complained, "And why are you here anyway? You're the Demon King now, so why are you in the newbie village? Don't you know the game rules?!"

"Ah, well, there was a slight change of plans."

Zyhark's expression grew serious, his eyes narrowing. "I don't have time to explain everything, but in short, this is the final showdown between adventurers and the Demon King!"

Just a moment ago, while immersed in Haki training, he had unexpectedly received some shocking information from the Wishing Pool.

Time flowed differently in this world compared to the world of One Piece, and during the month and a half they had spent here, three years had passed in the One Piece world!

Given the dangerous situation that Rayleigh and the others were in, Zyhark had no choice but to end his training early and rush to Axel City as fast as possible!

"W-Wait, Aqua, this man… is he the new Demon King, Zyhark, that you were talking about?!" Darkness, snapping out of her masochistic daze, stared dumbfounded at the handsome man standing before her.

This gentle demeanor was nothing like the ruthless, heartless, and cruel image she had imagined for the Demon King!

"Yes, that's right, he's the Demon King!"

Aqua confirmed it, solidifying Daknesh's suspicions.

"The... the Demon King!!!" The adventurers behind her immediately panicked.

Zyhark, now standing before them with his black cape billowing behind him, gave them all a wicked smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you all, adventurers of Axel City."

"As that perverted skeleton who loves bad jokes said, I am the newly appointed Demon King of the Demon King's castle!"

With a dramatic flourish, Zyhark spread his arms wide, his lips curling into a smirk. "But there's no need to panic or run away, because..."

Boom!

As soon as he finished speaking, a terrifying aura of crimson lightning erupted from him, a hellish presence that swept across the entire battlefield!

When the overwhelming pressure of his Conqueror's Haki finally subsided, Axel City was littered with the unconscious bodies of the adventurers, their eyes wide open in shock.

If the fight was going to end quickly, it was better to deal with the bystanders first so they wouldn't get in the way.

Although, in retrospect, that may have been unnecessary.

Seeing Zyhark knock out nearly ninety percent of the adventurers with just a look, the remaining adventurers, barely holding on, fully accepted that he was indeed the Demon King.

Driven by sheer terror, they dropped their weapons and fled back to the city in a blind panic.

"It seems we're going to have to take him on for real now, meow," Meowth remarked calmly.

"If possible, I'd really rather not fight him," someone else muttered.

"What are you afraid of? There are so many of us, surely we can take him down!" another voice chimed in.

"Hehehe, Zyhark, I'll show you the power of the golden slime I just summoned!"

As the crowd fled in chaos, Meowth, King, Brook, and Uta moved forward, standing beside Aqua, Escanor, and Darkness.

At the same time, the white dragon dove from the sky, transforming back into the cute and innocent Kanna, who landed gracefully on the ground.

With that, the entire crew of the Sea Restaurant was assembled, ready to face Demon King Zyhark!

"Ha ha ha! See that, Zyhark? Eight against one! We've got the advantage!" Aqua taunted, waving her fist at him arrogantly.

Though, in reality, she had already slunk to the back of the group, only her clever head peeking out from behind Escanor's waist.

As Zyhark's first companion, no one knew better than her just how terrifying he could be.

Taking even one punch from that guy would hurt for a long time!

In short, she was bluffing…

"Eight against one, huh? How terrifying~" Zyhark mimicked Kizaru's tone, pursing his lips as he clapped his hands toward the city gate.

Sigh…

A heavy sigh echoed as two figures emerged from the shadows.

Understanding the Demon King's intention, Wiz and Vanir, both of whom lived in Axel City, had no choice but to reveal themselves.

They knew that once Zyhark appeared, there was no escaping the battle.

"Demon King-sama."

"Lord Zyhark."

The two of them greeted him with a respectful bow.

Zyhark nodded in response.

Seeing this, Aqua immediately stepped forward, her voice filled with righteous indignation, "Hey! Wiz, Vanir, what do you think you're doing?!"

"Zyhark's the Demon King, the evilest of evildoers who should be punished by the divine light of this goddess! How could you betray us and side with him?!"

A heavy silence followed her statement, as both friends and enemies struggled to process her words.

It was so… Aqua.

"Um, Aqua, weren't they part of the Demon King's army to begin with?" Uta gently poked Aqua, reminding her.

"Ah, a-are they?" The idiot goddess was thoroughly stunned.

"Indeed, that's the situation. Apologies, Aqua-sama, but we must serve the Demon King's interests," Wiz replied, still as soft-spoken as ever.

Though she had grown close to the group during their time together, Wiz, as a lich, had no choice but to side with the Demon King.

"If I had the option, I wouldn't want to fight you," she added softly.

"I'm sorry, Meowth, but our partnership has to end here," Vanir said, taking a step forward and bowing like a true gentleman. "Thank you for all the profits your inventions brought me."

"That's irrelevant now, meow," Meowth chuckled. Their goal in making money had always been to defeat Zyhark, so with the final battle at hand, their cooperation no longer mattered.

"The reunion ends here," Zyhark interrupted, cutting the conversation short.

A soft sound of blades being unsheathed filled the air as Zyhark drew the third generation of Kitetsu and Shusui from his waist.

Upon closer inspection, one could see that these two renowned blades, which had been with him since Loguetown, had been tempered countless times with Haki.

The once-sharp blades now bore a faint, permanent black sheen.

Though they hadn't yet reached the level of Mihawk's Black Blade Yoru, it was clear that these swords had taken the first step toward becoming Supreme Grade Blades.

"So, my dear companions, will you come at me one by one, or all together?" Zyhark asked with a grin.

Before anyone could respond, a beautiful knight in shining armor stepped forward.

"Come on, you despicable scoundrel! Even though you're the Demon King, and even though the vast difference in strength between us will shatter my armor in an instant, leaving me in an embarrassing state of shame—even if you imprison me in the depths of the Demon King's castle and subject me to all kinds of unspeakable torture—"

"I-I-I-I-I will resist until the end! I won't let your evil desires come true that easily!"

Darkness's face turned bright red as she launched into her usual outlandish speech.

Her over-the-top excitement and expectation were painfully obvious to everyone present.

Used to Darkness's antics, Meowth and the others were speechless.

"Don't worry, Darkness," Aqua said seriously, trying to reassure her. "Zyhark may be a scoundrel, but he's not that bad."

She didn't see through it at all?

Well, that made sense. She was, after all, a terrifying existence even dumber than an idiot.

"Really?" Darkness asked, her face filled with disappointment.

"Of course not. My methods are far crueler than what you just described," Zyhark replied with a sly grin, triggering her masochistic tendencies.

"But only if you dare step into this Wishing Pool."

As he spoke, Zyhark summoned the Wishing Pool right in front of Darkness, the light reflecting off her long legs.

"T-This pool... Could it be that you plan to drench me completely and then feast on my body with your lecherous eyes?"

"What a dirty, insidious plan!"

Despite her words, Darkness's feet seemed to move of their own accord, inching closer to the Wishing Pool.

"Hey, Darkness, that's definitely a trap!" Uta shouted in warning from the back.

A trap?

Daknesh only grew more excited.

With open arms, Darkness leaped straight into the Wishing Pool!

Splash.

Ripples spread across the radiant surface, and in the blink of an eye, it returned to a peaceful stillness, as if nothing had happened.

Despite being a native of this world, Darkness had not been rejected by the Wishing Pool's cheat system!

Zyhark's pupils shrank slightly as his suspicions were confirmed.

The Wishing Pool's summoning conditions required all his companions to be sacrificed in order to return to the world of One Piece.

Although he had shown disdain toward them, Aqua and the others had clearly accepted Darkness as a true companion.

This meant that Darkness also qualified as someone who could be "sacrificed."

'Even though she's a bit of a weirdo, gaining a frontline tank with maxed-out defense doesn't seem like a bad deal,' Zyhark thought to himself.

As for gaining another eccentric companion...

If he could handle Aqua, what was one more eccentric like Darkness?

One jolt of electricity and she'd be as obedient as a lamb!

(End of Chapter)