Cain raised an eyebrow, walked over to the window, and picked up a telescope to focus on the distant sea. Under the bright moonlight, a solitary small boat drifted into the Taxation Zone marked by the G-5 Branch. It flew no flags and moved through the water like a silent ghost.
"Hmm? Can't see what kind of ship it is?" Cain spoke into the den den mushi, his voice carrying a hint of casual curiosity.
"Report, Boss! The vessel is too small and has no distinguishing features at all. It looks like... well, it looks like a private skiff," the lookout replied, his voice filled with confusion.
A G-5 patrol warship quickly spotted the uninvited guest. The massive ship turned its bow and began to approach the target. At the prow, several G-5 veteran scoundrels held their own den den mushis, shouting the Toll Station Declaration that Cain had composed yesterday with such great fanfare.
"Vessel ahead, listen up! This is the Navy G-5 Branch Justice Maintenance Tax Collection Office! Stop your vessel immediately, submit to an inspection, and pay the required fee!"
"Repeating! Refusal to pay will result in physical transcendence!"
The Marines shouted with earth-shaking volume, putting on the arrogant airs of a street gang collecting protection money.
On the small boat, a man dressed in splendid wine-red clothing stepped out slowly from the cabin, leaning on an elegant red umbrella. He stood quietly at the bow, his face pale and framed by smooth silver hair that cascaded over his shoulders. His expression carried a trace of travel weariness, but it could not conceal the innate majesty ingrained in his very bones.
The man slowly looked up. In the deep night, a pair of crimson eyes flickered with a soul-stirring light. The aggressive shouts from the loudspeakers instantly caught in the throats of the G-5 Marines.
"This... this person is..."
"That monster... how, how could he be here!?"
"Re... Red Count!!!"
The Marines who were swaggering just a moment ago now trembled like sieves, and the den den mushis in their hands clattered onto the wooden deck. The lookout's stammering report came through the line: "Boss! It's... it's the Red Count! Patrick Redfield!!"
Cain's telescope clicked shut, and he casually tossed it back onto the table. Deep within his pupils, two flickers of bloodthirsty flame ignited.
Patrick Redfield. He was the solitary monster renowned alongside Roger, Whitebeard, and Golden Lion Shiki, yet he was a man who refused to become a King. He was the Solitary Red who needed no crew, a man capable of rivaling an entire fleet single-handedly. At this moment, he had not yet consumed the Mythical Zoan-type: Bat-Bat Fruit, Model: Vampire, but his power had already reached its absolute peak.
"Interesting." Cain grinned, a low chuckle rolling from his throat. "Finally, a big fish has arrived."
He slowly drew the Zanpakuto Zangetsu from his waist. The jet-black blade reflected a cold, murderous intent under the moonlight.
"Gion, order all patrol warships to return to base immediately." Cain's voice carried an undisguised excitement. "Having them participate in a battle of this level would only be a waste of lives."
Gion watched the fanatical expression on Cain's face, her heart trembling. She rarely saw Cain show such an expression. It was the uncontrollable excitement and thirst of an apex predator upon seeing the supreme prey it had long dreamed of catching. She didn't ask any further questions and immediately picked up the den den mushi to relay the order.
"Boss, are you going?! That's the Red Count!!" the lookout cried out tearfully.
"Nonsense!" Cain snapped coldly into the den den mushi. "This is a huge fat sheep! Anyone who tries to steal my kill, I'll chop them up!"
He grabbed his coat of justice and flung it over his shoulders, letting the wide hem flap violently behind him. Cain, sword in hand, strode out of the office with great strides.
"Has the Navy fallen to such depths?" The Red Count spoke softly, his voice flat yet carrying a natural authority. He watched the G-5 patrol warship frantically turning as it tried to flee. A flicker of displeasure crossed his crimson eyes. He drifted alone on the sea, seeking only true entertainment. And now, these buzzing flies had disturbed his momentary peace.
An intangible yet substantial Haki erupted from the Red Count like a massive tsunami!
Boom!
The sky suddenly seemed to press down on the world. The sea churned violently, and waves several meters high rose from the previously calm surface. On the rapidly fleeing G-5 patrol warship, the Marines didn't even have time to scream before they collapsed in waves, their eyes rolling back as they fainted. The sea within a radius of several hundred meters was instantly cleared by this single burst of Haki.
"HAHAHAHAHA!" A wild, unrestrained laugh tore through the oppressive atmosphere created by the Red Count's Haki.
A streak of white shockwave tore through the night sky in the distance. Like a comet striking the moon, its speed surpassed the speed of sound!
[Godspeed: Flowing Light]!
This was a new move Cain had recently developed while exploring the powers of the Storm-Storm Fruit. He used the fruit's power to maximally compress and jet air currents behind him while enveloping his body in airflow to minimize drag, achieving ultra-high-speed, long-distance travel over the sea.
BOOM! An ear-splitting sonic boom exploded a hundred meters in front of the Red Count's small boat.
Cain's figure appeared as if out of thin air. A pair of wind wings unfurled behind him, allowing him to hover steadily above the churning sea. He held Zangetsu in his hand, and his coat of justice whipped wildly in the gale behind him. The smile on his face was brazen and arrogant.
"Redfield. You violently resisted law enforcement and knocked out an entire ship of my brothers. Medical expenses must be paid. Your vessel entered my G-5 sea of justice, so a toll must be paid. Most importantly, you scared me. I've suffered severe psychological trauma. Compensation for emotional distress is non-negotiable."
Cain held up three fingers, beginning to calculate the bill with a very serious face. "Considering it's your first offense, I'll give you a 20 percent discount. Thirty billion Berries. Hand it over, and I'll let you go."
The air above the sea seemed to freeze solid. The Red Count's eyes lifted slightly, clearly reading Cain's inner thoughts—it was an undisguised malice.
"Interesting brat. Your heart's voice is filthier than this sea." The Red Count smiled. It was the first time he'd seen a Marine who could justify robbery so righteously. "Do you know who I am?"
"Of course I do," Cain replied nonchalantly, picking his ear with his pinky. "Patrick Redfield. Known on the seas as the Solitary Red. What? Trying to use your reputation to settle the debt? Sorry, I don't accept IOUs here."
The Red Count's smile gradually faded. A trace of chill finally surfaced in those crimson eyes.
"Since you know who I am, yet still dare to reach out your hand to me... it seems you've already made your resolve to welcome death."
Boom! The Red Count's aura abruptly changed!
If before it was just a gentle breeze, now it was a Category 10 typhoon. A dark red Conqueror's Haki, like a sea of blood, instantly engulfed Cain.
"Redfield, since you don't want to pay, then you'll have to pay with your life." Cain's smile grew even more ferocious. "Although that face of yours is worth some bounty money, around here, cash is king."
He wasted no more words. The tip of his Zangetsu pointed directly at the Red Count. At the same moment, all of his Haki erupted without any reservation!
BOOM! Two Conqueror's Hakis collided violently on the sea's surface!
Black and red lightning bolts danced like frenzied giant pythons around them, crackling and popping. The sky was torn open by this power. The sea was stirred into a complete frenzy by these two terrifying auras.
"Hmph." The Red Count let out a cold snort. The elegant red umbrella in his hand gave a slight tremble.
Swish! A crimson slash, fast enough to split the sea itself, swept horizontally towards Cain. This slash was silent, yet it contained the terrifying will to sever everything in its path.
Cain's pupils constricted sharply. "Tensa Zangetsu!"
He chanted the name softly. A speed far surpassing his normal state instantly suffused his entire body. The flow of time around him seemed to grow sluggish.
"Disappeared?!" A flicker of surprise crossed the Red Count's eyes, which usually saw through everything.
Relying on the extreme speed granted by Tensa Zangetsu, Cain's figure vanished from the path of the slash like a phantom. Even the Red Count's keen Observation Haki experienced a momentary gap. When Cain reappeared, he was shockingly right in front of the Red Count!
He raised Zangetsu high overhead. His highly compressed, jet-black Armament Haki, as substantial as solid matter, coiled around the blade's edge. This was not Infused Conqueror's Haki. Rather, it was a pseudo-infusion he formed by leveraging Zangetsu's unique properties to condense his own Haki to its absolute extreme. Its destructive power, however, was already comparable to the real thing.
The black blade aura, carrying an unmatched ferocity, slashed directly at the Red Count's head!
Faced with this earth-shattering slash, a crack finally appeared in the Red Count's eternally aloof expression. He did not retreat. He simply raised the elegant red umbrella in his hand forward.
There was no world-shaking roar, only a piercing screech like the sound of tearing cloth. The jet-black edge of Zangetsu, wreathed in terrifying Haki, came to an abrupt halt in mid-air. It was less than an inch from the surface of the Red Count's red umbrella. Between them, it was as if an invisible, transparent barrier existed.
Zzzz! Countless thick bolts of black and red lightning frantically sprouted and exploded in that one-inch gap. It was the most primitive, most savage battle between two Conqueror's Hakis.
The next second, the energy accumulated to its limit erupted violently!
BOOM! A spherical, pure-white shockwave erupted from the point of collision between their weapons, spreading outwards. The boiling sea beneath their feet was forcibly pressed down by this unmatched repulsive force, creating a massive concave pit over a hundred meters in diameter. The rolling dark clouds above were instantly torn apart, revealing a huge circular hole. The bright moonlight poured straight down, like a spotlight shining on these two monsters.
Thud! Thud!
Cain was forced back two steps in the air, the power of the Storm-Storm Fruit instantly stabilizing his posture. Beneath the Red Count's feet, his small boat groaned under unbearable strain. The force transmitted through his feet pressed it several feet deeper into the sea surface.
"Koff..." A very faint grunt escaped the Red Count's throat. Those crimson eyes were now filled with gravity.
"This density of Haki... this unbelievable speed..." He looked up, a trace of deep puzzlement towards this unknown monster in his elegant tone. "Since when did the Navy... produce a monster like you?"
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