Two minutes earlier, outside the mansion courtyard gate.
Just as Kairo D. Arashi rushed over at speed, he was immediately spotted by the marine soldiers.
The leading officer paused slightly when he saw Kairo D. Arashi. A straggler?
No… if he were a straggler, why would he walk straight into danger?
With that thought, the officer decisively drew his gun and aimed it straight at Kairo D. Arashi. "Stop right there. Take one more step and I'll blow your head off!"
Hearing this, Kairo D. Arashi tilted his head slightly and asked in confusion, "Are you… capturing pirates?"
"Hahaha…!"
At Kairo D. Arashi's words, the marines burst into laughter.
"And what exactly are you laughing at?"
Kairo D. Arashi's brows instantly furrowed. He stepped forward without hesitation and said in a low voice, "Or are you… the pirates yourselves?"
"Stop!"
Seeing Kairo D. Arashi continue approaching, the officer shouted coldly again, "Anyone who obstructs the Marines in carrying out their duties… dies!"
"Obstructing the Marines means death? What authority. Looks like you really are Marines."
Kairo D. Arashi didn't slow down, continuing toward the officer as he spoke calmly, "Though the Marines represent justice in this world, there's no shortage of scum among you. So—you must be that kind of scum, right?"
The moment his words fell—
Kairo D. Arashi suddenly vanished forward like a flash of lightning, snatching the officer's saber in an instant and slashing down in one clean motion.
Slash—
Blood sprayed into the air.
The officer's entire right arm, still gripping the gun, fell to the ground with a thud.
"AAAAAH—!"
It took several seconds before the officer finally processed what had just happened, then let out a shrill scream of agony.
This brutal, bloody scene sent the crouching villagers trembling in fear, while the marines stood frozen in place.
"Y-you… who are you?!"
"Damn it! You dare attack the Marines!"
Snapping out of their shock amid the officer's screams, the marines raised their guns and aimed at Kairo D. Arashi.
But when they saw him walking toward them with the saber in hand, the marine closest to him instinctively staggered back, stammering, "D-don't come any closer!"
"Tell me—are you here to capture pirates, or to oppress villagers?"
Holding the saber, Kairo D. Arashi walked forward slowly.
There was no overwhelming aura, no surging killing intent. From the moment he seized the blade until now, everything he did seemed almost casual—his expression relaxed, his tone calm.
Yet it was precisely this unfathomable calm that made the marines' hearts tremble. Their hands shook uncontrollably as they gripped their rifles.
At that moment, the tightly shut gate suddenly opened.
"Damn it!"
The marine who stepped out, having received the middle-aged officer's order, immediately shrank his pupils upon seeing his comrades lying on the ground in agony, while the rest were retreating in fear from Kairo D. Arashi.
"No one's answering me?"
Ignoring the marine who had just come out, Kairo D. Arashi calmly glanced at the retreating soldiers, then suddenly smiled. "Relax. I'm just a traveler passing through."
After a brief pause, he shifted his gaze to an elderly man crouching on the ground and politely asked, "Sir, could you tell me what's going on here?"
"Young man, you should leave quickly!"
Though terrified of the marines, the old man still mustered the courage to warn Kairo D. Arashi kindly. "They're Marines—you can't afford to provoke them!"
"So they really are Marines…"
Kairo D. Arashi blinked, then continued, "Are they capturing pirates, or…?"
"Capturing pirates? What nonsense!"
The old man shook his head with a sigh, speaking helplessly,
"Over the years, they've come to the village every so often, making up excuses to force us to hand over our valuables! Otherwise…"
"You old fool, what are you spouting?!"
Hearing this, the marine at the gate finally snapped out of his daze. He rushed forward, raising his gun and aiming it at the old man, snarling, "We're carrying out official duties—official duties, understand?!"
"And you…"
The marine suddenly swung his gun toward Kairo D. Arashi, killing intent surging. "I now suspect you are the pirate we're hunting. In the name of the Marines, I hereby arrest—"
Pfft!
Before he could finish, a sharp piercing sound rang out.
In the next instant, Kairo D. Arashi flashed past him like a phantom.
"Urgh…"
As Kairo D. Arashi passed, the marine let out a muffled groan, clutching his throat before collapsing straight to the ground.
After killing him cleanly, Kairo D. Arashi slowly lifted his head and looked at the marines who had retreated to the gate. His gentle tone remained unchanged:
"Seems you've done quite a bit of harm to these villagers. In that case… die."
Before his words even finished—
Kairo D. Arashi charged forward with his blade.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Almost simultaneously, the marines at the gate pulled their triggers.
But—
But they were already too slow.
At the exact moment they fired, Kairo D. Arashi had already appeared before them. The saber in his hand traced a sharp arc through the air, cutting them down in an instant.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
As a series of bodies hit the ground, not a single marine remained standing at the gate—all lay dead, eyes wide open in disbelief.
The villagers crouching on the ground had never witnessed such a scene. They stared wide-eyed in absolute silence, trembling as they looked at the fallen marines.
Though they hated these marines, they had never dared to resist them.
Yet this stranger who had suddenly appeared had slaughtered them as easily as chopping vegetables?!
Fear and shock overwhelmed the simple villagers. They forgot to speak, forgot to run—remaining frozen in place like statues.
After eliminating all the marines at the gate in an instant, Kairo D. Arashi didn't stop. With a saber in hand, he stepped through the gate and into the courtyard.