"Are there different kinds of arrows?"
With that, he handed Dawn a cup of hot tea.
Dawn calmed himself a little, took the tea, and communicated with Diavolo in his mind, activating King Crimson.
As time was erased, King Crimson approached the two of them and got to work.
First, he poured out some of Dawn's tea. Then he carefully switched their cups, even going so far as to disguise the switch.
Diavolo had no choice but to be cautious. If Dawn died, he wouldn't survive either.
Once everything was done, Diavolo thought to himself:
"Time, resume."
When everything returned to normal, Dawn remembered what Rohan Kishibe had said and couldn't help asking, "You said just now that Stand Users have frail bodies. As far as I know, after awakening their Stands, most of them have strength and speed far beyond ordinary people."
Rohan Kishibe calmly set down his teacup.
"Take Dio, for example. The World is just a time-stopping tool in his hands. He still handles most of the fighting himself. His mastery of the Ripple is extremely advanced. As far as I know..."
"No Stand User has ever survived an encounter with him."
Dawn took a tactical sip of tea. This Dio was a little too powerful.
Unprecedented? Unmatched by anyone who came after?
As far as he knew, the greatest display of the Ripple in the original story came from Kars, the Ultimate Lifeform—with a temperature close to that of the sun.
If Dio had reached that level and still couldn't beat Kars, just how terrifying was Kars?
Still, it made sense that he'd lose. As the Ultimate Lifeform, Kars's mastery of the Ripple could only surpass Dio's. And that was without even considering his immortality—he only grew stronger the longer he lived.
"I once considered using a Stand Arrow to stab Kars and awaken his Stand, then focusing all our attacks on the Stand. Maybe we could have killed him that way."
Rohan Kishibe spoke up. "But I eventually dropped the idea. The arrow is already destroyed, for one thing. And if Kars awakened some Stand beyond imagination, humanity really would be finished."
Dawn nodded. It was far too risky.
"What's the plan from here? Maybe I can help."
Rohan Kishibe smiled faintly. He'd been waiting for him to say that.
"Within the next few days, Joseph Joestar is due to be executed in the sunlight. We need to infiltrate the event and rescue him—or at the very least, learn something about the fragments."
"Dio and Dabi will go with you on this mission. Forgive me for imposing, but we really have no one else."
"In return, we'll do everything we can to help you achieve your goal."
Dawn straightened up slightly and said earnestly, "If the plan succeeds, I'd like to use the arrow fragments. Other than that, I have no other requests for now."
Rohan Kishibe held out a hand and smiled. "It's a deal. We'll let you know the exact time later. I'll arrange a room for you to rest in first."
"Sorry for the trouble."
Dawn shook Rohan Kishibe's hand. They quickly came to an agreement, then went their separate ways.
At noon, Dabi knocked on the door and brought food: a hind leg from some kind of beast, cooked until tender.
After exchanging pleasantries, Dabi told Dawn when the mission would take place.
"Dawn, things have changed. We're heading out tonight. We'll take the Steel Ball Run to the sewers beneath Night City, disguise ourselves, and wait for a chance to rescue our comrade."
When he finished, Dabi rubbed his hands together and smiled at Dawn.
Dawn understood. He handed him a cigarette and asked, "Dabi, have you awakened your Stand?"
Dabi was taken aback, then quickly nodded.
"I awakened my Stand many years ago. It lets me draw other people's souls out through games of skill, but it's no use in a fight. On the battlefield, I rely on good old-fashioned hand-to-hand combat."
Dawn had an idea. He suppressed Diavolo's soul in his mind so he wouldn't hear what they said next.
"When this is over, I'll need you to draw the other soul inside me out. I'll be counting on you."
Dabi paused while lighting his cigarette. After a moment's hesitation, he asked, puzzled, "I can do that right now. Why wait until after the mission?"
Dawn smiled mysteriously.
"Fate favors the Two-Faced Emperor."
After Dabi left, Dawn polished off his breakfast in no time. Without speaking to anyone else, he returned to bed and sat cross-legged.
"Hey, Dawn, what did you say while you were suppressing me just now?"
Dawn didn't answer. He simply closed his eyes and rested.
Diavolo felt inexplicably uneasy, but still tried to sound tough. "Hmph. We share one body and two souls now. Our fates are intertwined. Don't force me to take you down with me."
Dawn pursed his lips. He wanted to test an idea, so he focused his thoughts and activated [Stand: Beyond Imagination—Wasting Time].
The world before his eyes wavered for a moment. Dawn ended Wasting Time's effect and saw a burly figure standing in front of him.
Dio had been practicing the Ripple. Hearing the disturbance, he opened his eyes and looked at Dawn.
"Dawn, your condition is very strange. The boss is worried, so he asked me to stay nearby and keep an eye on you."
Dawn caught his breath. It seemed that Wasting Time consumed his vital energy—or perhaps his mental strength.
He'd maintained it for about as long as last time, but the amount of real time that had passed was unexpectedly different.
"Don't worry. I'm fine. I was just testing an ability I awakened."
Dawn felt a little hungry and thirsty. He got up, poured himself a glass of water, and gulped it down.
While under the effect of Wasting Time, Dawn had confirmed one thing: although he entered an invincible state, he still got hungry and thirsty.
He'd have to be careful about how long he used this ability in the future.
"We're about to leave. For your safety, take this knife."
Dio handed him an ancient-looking cursed blade. It seemed to be made of ordinary metal, yet it had a remarkable allure.
"This is Anubis God, a Stand that dwells in the blade. It's already memorized my strength and speed. It can cut ordinary enemies in two with a single stroke."
Dio drew the blade. A flash of cold light passed, and the stone table split in two, the cut as smooth as a mirror.
Anubis God was as docile as a kitten, obeying him as easily as his own arm.
"Anubis God can control the wielder's mind. Don't draw it unless absolutely necessary."
Dio gave him that thoughtful warning, then turned and left the room.
Late that night, the three of them gathered.
After carefully changing their appearances, Dawn and Dio both had vampire fangs added to their mouths, and their skin was painted pale.
The three boarded the Steel Ball Run. The fat man set to work drilling tunnels, occasionally pulling out a map to check their position and make sure they didn't get lost.
After some time, the Steel Ball Run broke through a wall and entered an underground drainage system filled with a foul stench.
"We're here. Thanks for your hard work, Weasel. Wait for us at the extraction point as planned."
The Steel Ball Run turned and burrowed back through the wall, leaving two large holes behind.
Dawn sniffed. He thought he caught a whiff of something unpleasant.
The place reeked of rotting corpses, and pieces of decomposing flesh were still faintly visible in the wastewater.
The three of them set off, heading toward a manhole cover.
Before long, Dawn spotted a manhole cover in an alley and called for Dio to open it.
Dio nodded. His terrifying muscles tensed as he crushed the chain with his bare hands, then pushed open the manhole cover above them.
As the cover lifted, a vampire holding a blood bag looked down at Dio, his face full of shock.
"This place is full."
"The World!"
Time stopped. This was Dio's world.
Dio poked his head out and looked around. Then he grabbed the vampire, dragged him down into the sewer, and swept him with the Ripple. The vampire disintegrated into ash.
Before you continue