Koala leaned against the wall, struggling to remain standing. Raising her head, she glared fiercely at Lloyd.
Lloyd smiled faintly.
"That's a good look. Unfortunately, eyes alone aren't enough to kill me."
Koala spat out a mouthful of blood and snarled,
"You demon! One day you'll pay for everything you've done!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Lloyd applauded slowly as he walked toward her.
"Well said. I find myself appreciating you more and more."
As Lloyd approached step by step, Koala continued speaking defiantly, but her body instinctively retreated. Before long, her back hit the cold steel wall behind her.
There was nowhere left to go.
Lloyd stopped in front of her and looked down with a smile. In Koala's eyes, however, that smile belonged to a devil.
Reaching out, he pinched her chin and leaned close to her ear.
"You know where Luffy is now, don't you?"
Koala's expression changed instantly. She jerked her head aside and replied coldly,
"I don't know."
Lloyd spread his hands helplessly.
"Why make things difficult? I was planning to give you a painless death."
Koala narrowed her eyes and suddenly threw herself toward the wall.
The moment she moved, circles of dark purple gravitational rings materialized above her. A crushing force descended instantly, slamming her flat against the floor.
"AAAH!"
Even someone with Kuma's endurance would struggle under such pressure.
Koala felt as though her internal organs were being crushed. She opened her mouth and coughed up a large mouthful of blood.
With a snap of Lloyd's fingers, the gravity vanished.
Just as Koala felt relief washing over her body, a powerful gravitational pull struck her. It felt like an invisible giant hand had seized her entire body.
Whoosh!
Her body was dragged violently toward Lloyd.
Snap!
Lloyd grabbed her by the hair and pulled her before him.
"Trying to play the hero and sacrifice yourself?"
Koala stared directly into his eyes.
"You won't get a single piece of information from me."
Lucci stepped forward.
"Young Master, leave her to me. I have plenty of methods that will make her talk."
Without even turning around, Lloyd casually waved a hand.
"No need, Lucci. Your methods are too crude. Let's try something different."
Lucci froze.
Before he could react, a blood-red glow flashed through Lloyd's eyes.
The next second, Lloyd lowered his head and bit into Koala's neck.
Koala's body stiffened instantly.
The hatred in her eyes vanished, replaced by emptiness.
Blood-red markings spread from the bite wound across her neck and climbed toward her face. They eventually converged at the center of her forehead, forming a black diamond-shaped mark.
Lucci frowned.
Instinctively, he glanced at Lucia standing beside Lloyd.
A similar diamond-shaped mark rested on Lucia's forehead, though hers was bright crimson.
A moment later, Koala regained awareness.
Staggering backward, she covered the bite wound on her neck.
"W... What happened?"
A sinister smile appeared on Lloyd's lips.
With a slight curl of his finger, the black diamond mark on Koala's forehead flashed.
Koala's eyes widened.
To her horror, her body began walking toward Lloyd completely against her will.
"What is this?!"
"What did you do to me?!"
"Stop!"
She screamed in terror while her body continued moving forward.
Even Lucci stared in astonishment at the bizarre sight.
Koala desperately resisted, yet her body obediently approached Lloyd until she was standing directly before him.
Then, to her complete humiliation, she pressed herself against him.
Her face was buried against Lloyd's chest.
Listening to the steady beat of his heart, she continued shouting in panic.
"No... I don't want this..."
Lloyd looked down at her.
"Don't want this? Then perhaps the stimulation isn't strong enough."
A realization dawned on Koala.
Her face instantly turned pale.
"You... What are you going to do to me?"
"Nothing."
Lloyd smiled.
"I'm simply going to let you experience death."
As he spoke, Lloyd raised one hand.
Then he slowly clenched his fist.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!"
A bloodcurdling scream echoed throughout the cabin.
Koala collapsed at Lloyd's feet.
Her body convulsed uncontrollably.
Blood vessels bulged throughout her eyes as she clawed desperately at her chest.
It felt as though someone had reached directly into her body and seized her heart, squeezing and twisting it at will.
In truth, that was exactly what Lloyd was doing.
His slender fingers moved rhythmically, as though casually playing with walnuts.
Every movement subjected Koala to agony beyond imagination.
Pain.
Despair.
Hopelessness.
By the time the screams finally ceased, Koala no longer possessed the strength to move.
She lay twitching on the floor.
"Kill me..."
"Please..."
"Just kill me..."
Throughout the entire ordeal, Lucia remained expressionless.
Meanwhile, Lucci's eyelids twitched repeatedly.
The awe in his gaze toward Lloyd deepened further.
With a flick of his wrist, the Demon Blade Muramasa appeared in Lloyd's hand.
Squatting beside Koala, he placed the sword into her trembling hands.
"Very well."
His smile widened.
"But you'll have to do it yourself."
Koala's fingers wrapped around Muramasa's hilt.
Then Lloyd's voice entered her ears once more.
"Of course, you could also try stabbing me."
He shrugged.
"The choice is yours."
Koala certainly wanted to drive the blade through Lloyd's heart.
Unfortunately, reason remained intact.
She knew it would be meaningless.
With Lloyd's monstrous body and terrifying strength, she could strike him continuously for a year and still fail to break his skin.
The only thing she wanted now was death.
A swift end.
Gritting her teeth, Koala grasped the sword with both hands.
Gathering every ounce of strength she had left, she drove the blade toward her own heart.
Then she discovered true despair.
Muramasa pierced through her clothing.
The icy tip pressed firmly against the skin of her chest.
And stopped.
That was all.
No matter how hard she pushed.
No matter how desperately she strained.
The sword would not advance even a single inch.
Koala froze.
Slowly, stiffly, she turned her head.
Lloyd sat nearby with one hand supporting his forehead, laughing openly.
"This body no longer belongs to you."
His voice was gentle.
Yet every word felt colder than ice.
"You are my blood slave."
"Without your master's permission, you don't even have the right to kill yourself."
Two streams of tears slid silently down Koala's cheeks.
She finally understood.
She could neither live nor die.
Muramasa dissolved into a stream of black light and merged back into the back of Lloyd's hand.
Rising to his feet, Lloyd smiled down at her.
"Don't worry."
"I'll give you release eventually."
His eyes gleamed with cruel amusement.
"But only after every memory in your mind has been extracted."
"When that time comes, I'll even let you return and reunite with Luffy and the others."
Lloyd's smile widened.
"Tell me, are you looking forward to it?"
===
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