Wild Dio

"Mr. Dio."

Dabi jumped, quickly hiding his cigarette behind his back before respectfully bowing his head.

"I'm asking you, Dabi. Who is he?"

Dio came closer and closer, stopping only when he was within five meters. His gaze swept over Dabi.

"Uh... well..."

Dabi scratched his head in a panic. He didn't want to make a mistake in front of Mr. Dio, and the hand behind his back began gesturing frantically.

"As you can see, I'm just an ordinary Stand User."

Dawn remained composed. So far, he hadn't sensed any murderous intent from Dio, and he didn't want to fight.

Of course, it was also possible that, as a vampire, Dio felt no murderous intent toward his food.

To be safe, Dawn still steadied himself and began psyching Diavolo up.

"Diavolo, this guy is incredibly strong. Even I would have a hard time beating him. If you don't want to die..."

In his mind, Diavolo snorted.

"Dawn, now you remember me, do you?"

Dawn ignored him and looked straight at Dio.

"Oh? You're looking at me now... Young man, you're the second person who's dared to look me in the eye. You're impressive."

Dio couldn't help praising Dawn's courage. Then he stepped forward, his tone turning sharp. "But how do I know you aren't a psychic vampire? If you sneak into our camp, that could be a problem."

Seeing that Dawn didn't panic at his words, Dio's eyes flickered with thought. He spoke softly.

"The World."

A strange sound rang out, and time came to a complete standstill. The World, the Stand behind Dio, clenched its fists and charged at Dawn.

It didn't attack. It simply took the Stone Mask, then searched Dawn thoroughly.

"Time, resume flowing."

Holding the Stone Mask, Dio deliberately kept it in plain sight as he looked at Dawn.

"Nothing suspicious on him..."

"King Crimson!"

Diavolo's furious voice came from inside Dawn.

Space shattered, and everything resumed along its original course. Only Diavolo remained unaffected.

"Something's wrong. Epitaph saw nothing. The other guy took the mask in an instant.

How did he do it? Damn it, I need more information."

With a grave look, Diavolo watched Dio continue speaking, then ran over, snatched back the Stone Mask, and returned to his spot.

"Time Erasure, end."

Dio suddenly felt his hand grow lighter. He looked down, and the Stone Mask had vanished.

His gaze snapped to Dawn, his expression changing slightly.

He'd been just about to say, "This man's fine," but the words seemed stuck in his throat, and he couldn't get them out.

"What did you do?"

Dio narrowed his eyes, a fierce glint gathering in them.

Dawn noticed the Stone Mask had suddenly appeared in his hand and rubbed his forehead helplessly. He didn't need to guess who was responsible.

"Give it to me."

Dio's voice took on a threatening edge. When Dawn didn't respond, he tried to activate Time Stop again.

"King Crimson!"

But before Dio could stop time, Diavolo sensed something amiss through Epitaph and activated Time Erasure first.

Even without his memories in the erased world, Dio's body still instinctively used Time Stop.

"Za... Warudo!"

Diavolo was frozen in place. Dio stepped forward, following the predetermined course of fate, and tried to take back the Stone Mask.

But his outstretched hand passed right through. Dawn's body had become untouchable, as though he didn't exist in this world.

When both abilities failed and time returned to normal, shock surged through them both.

"His ability actually failed. Did Time Stop not work?"

"What kind of Stand ability is this? Why did Time Erasure end so quickly?"

Dio refused to accept it and used Time Stop again.

"The World!"

The world fell still. Birds and flowers hung frozen in the air. This was a world belonging to Dio alone.

At last, a grave look appeared on Dio's face. Ever since awakening his Stand, he'd never encountered anything like this.

And using his ability this time felt unusually taxing, as though he'd used it twice in a row.

Nine seconds passed in the blink of an eye.

Time resumed flowing. Diavolo saw the Stone Mask vanish from his hand and had a few suspicions.

"Dawn, this wild man's ability is somewhat like mine, and he's extremely dangerous. Judging by that last test, his Stand is probably time-related, most likely Time Stop."

Diavolo spoke gravely. "I'll use Time Erasure to evade it in advance. Epitaph will ensure I always get the first move. But unless we catch him by surprise, it'll be hard to take him down."

Dawn was a little surprised. Diavolo was pretty perceptive; he'd figured out Dio's ability so quickly.

"You're the first Stand User to surprise me. I've already checked you over, and you don't have a tracker on you. In that case, come with me."

The first light of dawn appeared. Dabi hurriedly tugged his cloak tighter. As a vampire, sunlight would burn him to death.

Dio held out his hand to Dawn and said warmly, "Being human is hard enough. We should put the past behind us."

The early morning sunlight fell across Dio's marble-like body, making him seem almost otherworldly.

After introducing themselves to one another, the three of them entered the forest. Along the way, Dio followed marks he'd left beforehand, leading Dawn and Dabi through the woods.

Before long, Dio lifted the cover of a pit and jumped in first.

Dabi followed close behind. Dawn summoned Cloud Dragon down from the sky to his side, then jumped in last.

The pit was spacious, with green crystals embedded in the walls to light the whole passage and keep them from tripping over the loose stones underfoot.

Dio cast an interested glance at Cloud Dragon's appearance, but didn't pursue the matter.

After walking several hundred meters, they came upon a stout man holding a mining lamp and waiting in place.

"This is Weasel. His Stand is called Steel Ball Run. He dug this mine tunnel."

Dio gave a brief introduction, then said to Weasel, "This is Dawn, a powerful Stand User—and a wild human."

Weasel smiled affably and nodded to Dawn, then summoned his Stand.

It was a two-meter-tall mechanical humanoid. A faint light glowed in its eyes, and steam hissed from its rusted chest. The air around them grew slightly hot.

The mechanical humanoid bent down to the ground. Amid a grating scrape, it transformed into a three-meter-long vintage mining cart.

A drill was fitted to the front of the cart. Its wheels generated translucent ghostly rails, and steam continued to pour from the exhaust vents on top.

"Come on. I'll take you to meet our leader."

Dio climbed onto the cart first. Dawn wondered who this supposed leader was—someone who could even outrank Dio.

Then, without hesitation, he swung himself onto the cart.

"Let's go."

Weasel activated his Stand. Steel Ball Run started up slowly, then picked up speed as it headed into the pitch-black depths of the mine.

In the blink of an eye, it disappeared from sight.