Castle-Solid!

Chapter 50: 050. Castle-Solid!

In the blink of an eye, Perona plunged down, not even having time to react.

The next moment.

"Ah!!!"

A deafening, sharp scream rang out, "It hurts!! My nose!!!"

Mercer rubbed his ears.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the sky. Mercer looked up.

The next moment, a piercing sound attacked. He reached out and raised his hand. With a "snap," a Devil Fruit, the color of rock and covered in "Karakusa" patterns, was caught by Mercer.

[Appraisal]

[Paramecia. Castle-Solid Fruit (A)]

Mercer's eyebrows shot up. He examined the Devil Fruit with some curiosity. "I didn't expect it to be this Devil Fruit. It seems that man just now really was who I thought he was."

Rustle~

Karasu landed on Mercer's shoulder. He looked at Perona, who was kneeling on the ground in an or2 pose, groaning in pain, and asked curiously:

"Her? What's wrong?"

Mercer looked at Perona helplessly and said:

"She cursed me, so I taught her a lesson."

"Caw caw~ Serves her right, that's what she gets."

At this moment, Mercer saw Perona's Spirit emerge from her body. He immediately took a deep breath and entered the Unity of Heaven and Man state. As expected, the next second, a small hand appeared, and two ghost dolls spewed out from her palm.

The white, transparent ghosts quickly passed through Mercer and Karasu's chests.

Immediately after, Karasu fell from Mercer's shoulder, lying on the ground and cawing.

Mercer looked at Perona helplessly, reached out to her, and said, "Isn't the ground cold? Aren't you getting up?"

He saw the Spirit's head sticking out halfway from Perona's back, staring at him quietly.

Mercer put his hand to his forehead, helpless. "You look quite sadistic like this, it's pretty scary."

"Then do you hate me?"

"Before, when they bullied me, I would just watch them like this, and then I would be ostracized."

"An orphanage?"

"Mm."

"No wonder."

"Do you hate me too?"

"Not at all, I find it quite interesting. Alright, get up, the ground is dirty."

Mercer smiled. He wasn't lying; it was indeed quite interesting, like a trapped spirit.

So cute.

Well, Mercer was a sucker for looks.

If she were ugly, Mercer believed he would have spoken in a completely different tone. Yes, probably.

If nothing unexpected happened.

"Oh." The Spirit Perona glanced at Mercer again. Not sensing any negative emotions, she obediently retreated back into her body. The next second, she stood up from the ground, rubbing her nose.

She lightly dusted off her clothes.

She glanced at Mercer, then turned her head away and snorted. Then, she stepped on Karasu, who was on the ground, with the sole of her foot. The force wasn't heavy, but the insult was extreme.

Mercer sighed helplessly, grabbed her shoulders, and pulled her back.

"Karasu is very powerful. If you keep bullying him like this, be careful he doesn't fly over your head and poop on you later."

Perona shivered at the words, unable to help but imagine the scenario. A hint of fear appeared in her eyes.

In an instant, she turned to Mercer with a pitiful look, her eyes teary. "Is it too late to apologize now?"

Mercer shrugged helplessly and pointed towards Karasu on the ground, signaling her to look for herself.

Perona lowered her head and looked. She saw that Karasu's bird eyes were filled with ferocity. Her heart trembled. She subtly shifted her body behind Mercer, only her head peeking out to look at him.

"I apologize, I'm sorry. Can we make up? Uh, how about I treat you to a big meal later?"

Karasu remained unmoved.

Perona was stubborn. Her legs went weak, and she sat down on the ground with her feet turned inward. She rested her head on Mercer's leg, with half of her Spirit appearing outside her body.

Her right palm churned with semi-transparent white bubbles. Small, doll-like Spirits flickered in and out of existence.

Spirit Perona said expressionlessly, "If we don't make up, it'll be a fight to the death. If you dare to poop, I'll use my Negi-negi Ghost to pierce you. Let's see who can't take it anymore."

"I mean it."

Karasu's bird eyes were filled with explosive rage. Its beak opened and closed, and finally, it spat out a sentence in a hoarse voice:

"You win, you bastard!"

Perona let out a breath subtly, her suspended heart finally dropping. Her spirit returned to her body, and she opened her eyes, laughing "Harahaha."

She looked like a petty person who had just won.

Karasu's bird eyes twitched in anger.

Seeing this, Mercer smiled, "Da Bao, do you want to become an ability user?"

Karasu asked doubtfully, "Like Bear Cub?"

Mercer nodded, "Similar."

"What kind of ability?"

Karasu was no longer ignorant. It understood the existence of the magical Devil Fruits.

"This fruit?" Karasu asked, "What ability does it have?"

"The Castle-Solid Fruit. After eating it, a huge castle will form inside your body, and you can freely control the layout of the castle."

"Not only that, but your body can also transform into a castle, possessing the defensive power of a castle."

"Do you want to eat it?"

Karasu's eyes lit up, and it blurted out almost instantly, "Will Karasu's body turn into my lady's home?"

"Mm."

"Then Karasu will eat it!" Karasu nodded eagerly and, as if afraid Mercer would go back on his word, immediately flapped its wings and flew up.

It landed on Mercer's right forearm and pecked directly at the fruit.

Mercer did not dodge, letting it peck.

It took a small piece of flesh in one peck and swallowed it with its beak wide open.

At this moment, Karasu's bird face turned ugly at a visible speed.

"So, disgusting."

Perona laughed "Harahaha," "You stupid bird, Devil Fruits are naturally as disgusting as shit."

Karasu retorted hoarsely, "Have you eaten one?"

"Of course, you truly are a stupid bird. I'm already an ability user, so of course I've eaten one."

Mercer chuckled at Perona, "Pepe, is there a possibility that Da Bao was asking if you've eaten poop?"

Perona's face darkened. She looked up at Mercer, then thought about the tone Karasu had used when speaking earlier, and her eye twitched violently.

"Stupid bird."

Mercer smiled and held the Devil Fruit up to Karasu, "Finish it."

Mercer didn't explain why it had to be finished, and Karasu didn't ask anything.

It just stiffened its neck, glared with its bird eyes, and pecked rapidly, shocking Perona.

Ten seconds later.

It even swallowed the stem.

Karasu gagged, its eyeballs rolling up, mumbling:

"For my lady, Karasu will endure."

Mercer smiled, "How does it feel? You should be able to use your ability now."

At this question, Karasu stopped gagging. It tilted its head to look at Mercer, then opened its beak and pecked towards Mercer.

At the same time, as its beak approached, Mercer felt a suction force. He didn't resist and his body began to shrink, being swallowed by Karasu in one bite.

Perona watched Mercer get swallowed by Karasu, her eyeballs bulging. She opened her mouth to shout, but Karasu wouldn't give her the chance. It flapped its wings and flew in front of her, opening its beak towards her.

The next second, her body shrank, and she was also swallowed by Karasu.

As if by spatial transfer, Mercer appeared in a brand new space, surrounded by six granite-like walls.

At this moment, the ceiling rippled like water, and Karasu's body emerged from it, identical to its outside body. It flapped its wings and landed on Mercer's shoulder.

"Kwa~ This is Karasu's castle space."

Mercer stomped on the ground and walked to a window, touching the windowsill, "Then what is this window?"

"Karasu's eye."

Looking at the simple interior structure with only walls and windows, Mercer smiled:

"It seems I need to enroll you in an architecture course. The layout of your internal castle needs improvement."

"By the way, Da Bao, if you're inside now, can you still control your body outside?"

Karasu cackled, and a human-like excitement appeared on its bird face, "Mercer, it's amazing! Karasu's vision has become two, but it's a bit dizzy, seeing two images."

Mercer began to ask Karasu about its ability in detail. In a short while, he had a basic understanding of its powers.

"Is it confusing to look at two screens at once? That's fine, you'll get used to it with more practice."

"Can the limbs outside be partially Castle-ized? That's great! It's also about practice. When the time comes, you can use partial Castle-ization to increase your attack and defense."

"Don't know how to arrange the Castle Space distribution inside the body? It's okay. First, divide it into four floors, and then lay out the rooms on each floor. When you have time, go visit the inns around here and see how they are set up. You'll figure it out naturally."

After working with Karasu to map out the spatial layout within his body, Mercer suddenly remembered he had forgotten something.

"Right, where's Pepe?"

Mercer asked, patting his forehead.

Perched on Mercer's shoulder, Karasu's bird eyes darted nervously. "Ah~ You, come with me."

As he spoke, ripples spread across the ground beneath Mercer's feet, and a marble staircase leading underground appeared.

"Mercer, let's go."

Under Karasu's guidance, Mercer descended, and before long, a stone door appeared before them. With a "creak," the door opened.

Mercer and Karasu entered together.

The next moment, Mercer's eyes twitched. Two Peronas appeared before him.

One floated in the air, her face filled with rage.

The other stood with her eyes closed and head bowed, fixed to the stone wall in a spread-eagle pose. Her wrists, ankles, neck, and waist were all bound by shackles resembling marble protrusions.

Seeing Karasu, the spirit Perona shrieked, aimed her palm, and roared, "Negi-negi Ghost!"

Biu~

Four Negi-negi Ghosts, trailing white translucent ribbons, flew through the air toward Karasu's body.

Startled, Karasu let out a low cry: "Caw~"

Instantly, the ground before him warped, and two thick rock pillars jutted out, blocking the Negi-negi Ghosts' path.

The next moment, the Negi-negi Ghosts passed through the rock pillars as if they weren't there, and then passed through Karasu's body as well.

Watching Karasu's body plummet to the ground, he lamented in an extremely negative tone:

"Karasu is a petty crow, Karasu doesn't deserve to live. If there's a next life, Karasu wants to be a chicken."

Mercer quietly moved away from him, watching the spirit Perona continuously unleash Negi-negi Ghosts.

One pass, two passes, three passes.

Mercer's eye twitched as he walked to the physical Perona, who was fixed to the wall. Leaning against the wall, he suddenly felt like smoking.

A faint sense of melancholy washed over him.

For Perona right now, Karasu's Devil Fruit ability was a good haven.

But now, the human and the bird were fighting the moment they met, neither willing to back down, each able to torment the other with their Devil Fruit mechanics.

"In the end, Karasu is definitely going to be unlucky."

Perona, having vented her anger and no longer using her abilities, had just arrived beside Mercer when she heard this. She asked curiously, "What do you mean? Mercer?"

"I've read in books that after a Devil Fruit user reaches a certain stage (Awakening), they might gain the ability to affect the physical body with their spirit abilities."

"That means, if your future self reaches that point, Karasu will truly be helpless against you, as he has no means to attack spirits."

Mercer looked pityingly at Karasu, who was recovering.

"He can only bully you now. Hmm, if you can't reach the stage I just mentioned (Awakening) in the future, then he'll be fine."

The spirit Perona suddenly smiled, exclaiming cheerfully, "Halahalaha."

Karasu's bird face showed a human-like expression of grief and indignation. He looked at Mercer bitterly and said, "Then she'll be... invincible?"

"She won't be invincible," Mercer chuckled. "There's still Haki in this world. As long as you master Haki, you can resist Devil Fruit abilities."

Karasu's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Mercer, I, I want to learn."

"I'll teach you when I learn it myself."

"Okay."

Looking at Karasu's excited eyes, Mercer felt a bit awkward saying:

Haki also has different grades. Low-grade Haki might not be enough to defend against the spirit penetration of the Ghost Fruit.

At Mercer's signal, Karasu released Perona.

He reached out and caught her.

Then, her spirit entered her body.

Perona opened her eyes and looked at Mercer in confusion. "Haki? It can really block my spirit?"

"Yes, Haki can. There's also a saying in this world, though its accuracy is uncertain: 'Only Haki can transcend all.'"

"Listen. Whether it's true or not, if it's being spread around, there must be a reason for it."

"Then I want to learn Haki too," Perona said to Mercer with a serious expression. "If you're teaching him, you have to teach me too."

Seeing the girl and the bird already fired up, Mercer's lips curved upwards as he reached out and patted Perona's head.

"Sure, I'm just afraid you won't be able to handle the hardship. Learning Haki is very tough."

"Karasu isn't afraid. Karasu definitely wants to learn."

At this, Perona narrowed her eyes and said decisively, "I'm not afraid either. I absolutely refuse to let a bird poop on my head."

"Alright, I'll teach you to train in a few days. If you want to learn Haki, you have to start building the foundation now."

"Mhm."

Perona nodded heavily.

Mercer noticed that the room still had a window and walked over, resting his arms on the windowsill. "Da Bao, where on your body is this window open?"

"Leg."

Mercer nodded and gazed at the ruined scenery outside the window. "Take us flying in the sky. I want to see different scenery."

The next moment, the surroundings changed. As Karasu flew into the sky, the ruins outside the window grew farther and farther away.

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