Goa Kingdom · Royal Capital Guard.
"Duke Outlook assassinated the king and prince? Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
"The entire Outlook family has been slaughtered?"
"No! Your Highness, have you been deceived? How could Duke Outlook possibly rebel!"
"I don't believe it! Everyone, charge! Slay the traitors and protect the princess!"
The officers and soldiers of the entire Royal Capital Guard had already begun to divide into three distinct factions.
The neutral faction, who couldn't make sense of the situation and stood dumbfounded, holding their positions;
The royalist faction, who firmly believed the princess and were protecting her;
And the rebel faction, made up of officers loyal to Outlook III and his death-sworn followers.
Some members of collateral branches of the Outlook family were among them, too.
They refused to believe the news that Duke Outlook was dead.
Surrounded by countless soldiers, Princess Sally and Wang Shi, dressed in finery, appeared on a building not far from the rebels.
"My future husband, could you show everyone your heroic strength?"
Princess Sally wanted to quickly stabilize the situation in the royal capital and build Wang Shi's reputation at the same time.
So they had to end the turmoil swiftly and decisively.
After all, her man would be the future king.
He couldn't be some unremarkable thug.
He had to be a powerful hero.
"There are a lot of soldiers. This might be a little difficult."
"But not too difficult!"
Wang Shi wore noble attire and carried a long sword at his waist. Relaxed and composed, he walked step by step toward the furious rebels.
"He's the traitor who deceived the princess! Kill him!"
The rebel commander, Outlook Ampera, hurriedly ordered his men to open fire. A dense barrage of bullets and cannonballs shot toward Wang Shi in an instant.
"Oi! A dense barrage is my natural enemy!"
Wang Shi's eyes flickered. He took a deep breath, and countless bullets and cannonballs instantly pierced his body.
"Did we kill him? What an idiot!"
Outlook Ampera burst into delighted laughter. He hadn't expected to take care of this pretentious enemy so easily.
Wang Shi's air of a master when he'd first appeared had really startled him.
He'd only scared himself.
What a false alarm.
Ampera looked at Wang Shi, swallowed up by the barrage, his eyes shining.
If the entire family of Outlook III really was dead, could he, as a member of a collateral branch, inherit all of Duke Outlook's power?
He might even have a chance to marry the princess and become the new king.
At the thought of it, Outlook Ampera's breathing grew heavy. His eyes reddened as he stared feverishly at the princess on the distant building.
He'd never imagined he might get a chance to rise to the top in a single leap!
"General, he looks fine!"
"Monster! He's a monster!"
"Could he be a Logia Devil Fruit user from the legends?"
"A monster like Captain Smoker of Loguetown?"
The rebel soldiers shouted in panic. Their enemy was an unkillable Logia powerhouse?
Outlook Ampera, lost in his fantasies, broke into a cold sweat.
How could the Goa Kingdom have a Logia user?
How were they supposed to fight him?
No matter how powerful their guns and cannons were, they couldn't kill him.
Shouldn't powerful people like this be serving as Navy officers or going out to sea as pirates?
Why was he in the Goa Kingdom?
Outlook Ampera began to panic.
Wang Shi's figure flickered in the midst of the gunfire, yet he emerged completely unharmed.
As the barrage subsided, Wang Shi raised a hand and opened a void domain, instantly covering all the rebels.
Domain: Banishment!
Princess Sally and the royalist soldiers watched in shock.
The rebels vanished from where they stood, one after another, while Wang Shi quickly rushed toward them.
"That's the strange ability!"
Princess Sally's eyes shone with delight. Back at the palace, Wang Shi had used that same power to make the guards disappear, then suddenly reappear one by one, only for him to cut them down.
She hadn't expected Wang Shi to make hundreds of soldiers disappear all at once.
"Where are General Ampera and the soldiers?"
The officers of both the royalist and neutral factions stared in terror at the vanished rebels.
A chill crept up their spines.
This mysterious man who was to be the princess's husband could not only shrug off gunfire, but also make people vanish.
It was terrifying!
A few seconds later, as Wang Shi reached the spot where the soldiers had been, a rifleman suddenly appeared. Before he could react, Wang Shi struck him down with a savage slash, spraying blood in all directions.
The next second, a swordsman appeared, only for Wang Shi to turn and cut him down as well.
Then—
One soldier after another appeared, as if spawned by an NPC, lining up to be cut down by Wang Shi.
The bizarre sight filled the royalist and neutral guards with terror.
In the rebels' eyes, Wang Shi had simply raised his hand, then appeared beside them the next moment and struck them with his sword.
Before losing consciousness, all they felt was endless pain and confusion.
Their enemy was immune to bullets and cannon fire, and could teleport. How could they fight him?
And why was it so empty around them?
Not a single comrade was left standing.
If they'd known it would be this terrifying, they never would have risen up with General Ampera to purge the court.
If they could live their lives over again, they would never have joined the Outlook family's personal army.
The bizarre slaughter continued.
Wang Shi cut down the rebels one by one, clearing them out like freshly spawned monsters.
Blood flowed freely, gathering into little streams.
At last, General Ampera appeared. Wang Shi instantly ran him through the heart with a single stroke.
Wang Shi was breathing hard now, and even his hands trembled as he held the sword.
Maintaining his ability while cutting down hundreds of men had taken a heavy toll.
Fortunately, none of the Goa Kingdom Guard Army's soldiers were skilled in Haki. Otherwise, Wang Shi might really have been in trouble.
After all, he hadn't had this Devil Fruit power for very long.
Even so, he was already countless times stronger than the ability's previous owner.
"You're a devil!!"
General Ampera clutched the bloodstained sword in his chest, staring at Wang Shi in terror.
Corpses were already strewn all around him.
Not a single soldier remained standing.
How could this be?
How could this be?
In just an instant?
His men—and he himself—had been slaughtered.
He'd only seen Wang Shi raise a hand.
How had all the soldiers died?
And Wang Shi had suddenly appeared and pierced his heart, too.
Wang Shi pulled out his long sword, splattering blood. General Ampera collapsed helplessly.
His eyes held nothing but endless regret and confusion.
Why had such a powerhouse appeared in the Goa Kingdom?!!
His dream of becoming royalty was over!
His dream of marrying the princess and ascending the throne was shattered!
Clang!
Wang Shi glanced at the long sword in his hand, now somewhat dull, and casually tossed it to the ground. The metal rang out with a piercing clang.
"Hey, come clean this up!"
Like a demon, Wang Shi stood covered in blood and shouted at the trembling neutral and royalist soldiers.
Seeing Wang Shi return, looking like a man drenched in blood—
Even though Princess Sally had accepted him as her future husband, she had grown up surrounded by luxury and had never seen such brutal slaughter. She still felt terrified and unsettled.
This man killed people as easily as chickens.
He was truly terrifying.
"Why haven't you gone to clean up the rebels?!"
Princess Sally's panicked voice broke into a shrill squeal as she loudly ordered the soldiers beside her.
The neutral and royalist soldiers scrambled to obey the princess's command, rushing over to clear away the rebel corpses scattered across the ground.
They all made a point of nervously steering clear of Wang Shi, the demon.
They were afraid that this demonic future husband would casually cut them down, too.
"Lord Wang Shi, your clothes... are dirty. Let's hurry and get you changed."
Princess Sally looked at Wang Shi, covered in blood, and forced a smile, like a startled fawn.
She had only asked Wang Shi to show off his heroic strength and stabilize the situation in the royal capital.
She'd never imagined it would turn into such a brutal massacre.
"So I can take control of the military now, right?"
Wang Shi gave a faint smile. His rapid breathing gradually settled.
Banishment and cutting down five hundred men had left Wang Shi rather exhausted.
But in his hands, this power had truly shone.
Wang Shi hadn't expected to pull off five hundred kills today, like Rob Lucci.
At this rate, his reputation for ruthlessness might already rival that of Lucci and Judge.
"Yes. Absolutely."
Princess Sally fought through her unease and nodded like a pecking chick.
Trembling, she took Wang Shi's blood-soaked arm and led him back to the palace to bathe and change.