"How is this possible?! I'm the Emperor of Darkness! How could I die at the hands of someone like that?!"
Staring at the dead fortune-teller, Diavolo punched the wall. Anger and fear churned inside him, leaving him restless.
But Diavolo soon calmed down again.
"Humph. A guy who isn't even a Stand User dares to deceive me with such a clumsy lie."
Though he said that, Diavolo couldn't shake his unease, and it made him hesitate over what to do next.
Diavolo's eyes darted around. His muscles slowly shrank, and he transformed into a young man.
"Brrr-ring, brrr-ring~"
The young man made a strange series of noises with his mouth as he searched around for something.
"Brrr-ring, brrr-ring~"
Soon, the young man picked up a photograph lying on the ground and held it to his ear, listening with the wary air of someone afraid of being overheard.
"Hello? Boss, it's Tobio."
As soon as he finished speaking, his voice instantly became calm and firm. "Tobio, the plan has changed. Risotto is on Sardinia, and you'll run into him soon. Your job is to guide him and create a false impression."
"You have to make Risotto believe that Dawn is me, so that Bucciarati's team will come under attack."
"Understood, Boss. I'll get the job done."
"To make sure you succeed, I'll lend you King Crimson's Epitaph, which can predict the future."
"Yes!"
Tobio hung up. A red face wriggled out of his forehead: King Crimson's Epitaph.
"Dawn, huh..."
Tobio stared at the photograph in his hand and murmured to himself.
On the coast of Sardinia.
Following the information Trish had given them, the group had come to the place where Diavolo had once gone on a date with his wife to investigate.
For safety's sake, Bucciarati split them into pairs to patrol the area for anyone dangerous and make sure nothing interrupted Moody Blues' investigation.
Dawn had insisted on partnering with Abbacchio. Bucciarati agreed, and soon everyone had split up to search the area.
"Abbacchio, start the replay. With me here, no one can threaten you."
Dawn spoke in a low voice. Moody Blues couldn't move freely during a replay, so someone had to stand guard.
"Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Dawn."
At that, Abbacchio summoned Moody Blues and began replaying the Boss's past.
Dawn stayed on high alert. The Cloud Dragon in the sky lowered its head, scanning for anything that moved.
A group of boys came running over to play soccer. Dawn's heart tightened as he searched among them for someone with red hair.
But he found no one.
The boys continued playing and fooling around. No one approached the two of them.
Dawn was puzzled. Why hadn't the Boss shown up?
As Dawn pondered this, Moody Blues finished the replay.
It had gone smoothly. Moody Blues had taken on the Boss's former appearance and was now passionately reciting love lines to the empty air.
Abbacchio was instantly thrilled.
"Great! So this is what the Boss really looks like?"
Dawn, however, was troubled.
"Something's wrong. The story's gone off track. Diavolo, what are you up to?"
Abbacchio stood up from the rock and called to Dawn, ready to go tell Bucciarati the exciting news.
Dawn nodded and was about to move when he noticed something odd about the rock behind Abbacchio. Its surface looked wrong.
In an instant, a sense of danger swept over him.
Risotto, the leader of the Assassination Squad, came to mind.
"Abbacchio! Move!!!"
Dawn shouted and activated [Stand: Beyond Imagination: Emperor Engine]. A thunderous pumping sound rang across the whole coast.
Thump! Thump-thump!! Thump-thump-thump!!!
An immense pressure hammered Risotto's heart, making it skip a beat. Cold sweat covered his body.
The Assassination Squad's leader was no pushover. Risotto hesitated for only an instant before launching a decisive Stand attack.
He'd originally planned to take out the troublesome Abbacchio first, then focus on Dawn.
The sudden pressure forced him to abandon the attempt on Abbacchio and put all his effort into dealing with Dawn instead.
"You're in my range! Die!"
"Metallica!!!"
Blades erupted from Dawn's body. Blood spattered through the air, landing on the mottled rocks.
Boom!
Dawn fell to the ground, his mind blank. The confidence he'd gained from knowing the story was gone.
Abbacchio reacted and stepped in front of Risotto, glaring at him.
"The leader of the Assassination Squad. You just won't stay dead."
Abbacchio gritted his teeth and summoned his Stand. Moody Blues wasn't much good in close combat. This time, he might have to risk his life to hold Risotto off.
"We do dirty work every day, and get paid next to nothing. One by one, our team members die. Can you feel our resolve to face death without fear?"
Risotto's figure vanished again, his muffled voice coming from the air.
He began circling, trying to get around Moody Blues and finish off Dawn quickly.
Abbacchio looked from side to side, but couldn't find Risotto. Anxiety crept in.
The thunderous pumping sound was growing fainter.
[Stand: Beyond Imagination: Dragon Tamer]
Dawn's voice rang out, low and steady as still water. As if answering his call, a terrifying dragon's roar sounded above the clouds.
The roar scattered the clouds, forming a hollow that widened from a small opening into a vast cavity. A colossal creature hundreds of meters long swooped down, fury burning in its eyes.
The Cloud Dragon couldn't see Risotto, so it attacked the whole area. A blast of icy breath swept in, carrying indescribable scarlet flesh in its frigid current.
"Abbacchio... don't move at all. Slow your heartbeat."
Dawn lifted his head slightly and watched the enraged Cloud Dragon descend, quietly giving his warning.
"I understand."
Abbacchio saw the Cloud Dragon too. He felt as though his legs might start shaking if he stayed on his feet, so he sat down beside Dawn, shifting his backside a little closer to him, then held perfectly still.
"What... are you doing?"
Risotto sensed that something strange was happening too. He looked up at the sky. He thought he'd just heard a truly chilling sound.
"What is that..."
"What kind of monster is it?"
The Cloud Dragon plunged down, furious and grotesque, its gaping jaws covering the whole area. More flesh poured out of its body.
Ice crystals spun rapidly around Risotto. He felt utterly shaken, body and soul.
"Boss, if you'd told us you could do this, the rest of us wouldn't have had to—"
That was Risotto's final sentence. Notorious Big swarmed over him and devoured him cruelly, leaving only scraps of clothing behind.
The motionless Dawn and Abbacchio weren't attacked. The Cloud Dragon roared past, sucked in a breath, and drew the ice crystals and Notorious Big into its body.
The lingering cold froze Dawn's wounds, temporarily stopping the bleeding.
At the same time, Diavolo, hiding nearby, and the scattered members of Bucciarati's team all noticed the battle.
"Something's wrong! That's Mr. Dawn's Stand. He's in danger!"
The team members rushed back. Giorno immediately summoned Golden Experience to treat Dawn, turning blades into damaged organs to fill in his wounds.
Diavolo watched everything from the shadows. Only now did he understand why the fortune-teller had said he would die at Dawn's hands.
"Someone like that... he's far too powerful!"
"Cioccolata's ability might be a good counter. We just need to take out the user. Tch... These two scumbags can finally be of use."
Diavolo gritted his teeth and sprinted away without looking back.
Before you continue