Waltz Under the Moonlight

"The moon! It is everything!"

The resurrected "Dorian" had a layer of moonlight curling around the bones of his left hand.

"Dorian" let out a horrifying "Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle!" and suddenly lunged at the crew of the Jasmine.

A crewman hiding behind some planks was seized by "Dorian."

"Ah! Captain! It's me, Peter!"

"Don't kill me!"

"Dorian" tore a layer of skin from the crewman's arm and pressed it onto the bones of his own left hand.

The bloody skin covered the bones, then clung tightly to them. It was grotesque, yet strangely fitting.

Arthur took two steps back, picked up a pirate cutlass from the ground, and warily watched the strange Dorian.

His gaze shifted between the captain's cabin and the deck. Arena had been sent flying by a punch—how badly was she hurt?

Could a flintlock still end the life of the transformed Dorian?

No one could give Arthur an answer. He could only be as cautious as possible.

Just then, a heavenly sound rang by Arthur's ear. Research's countdown had ended.

A new Invisible Arts appeared.

[Swordsmanship] + [Despair] = [Despair Waltz].

Built upon the Moth's power, with the longsword as an extension of the arm, it played a waltz of despair.

Like the waltz itself, Despair Waltz required its caster to remain pressed close to the target.

With agile reactions, the rhythm of dance steps, and the body's flexibility, it slaughtered the target's body.

A Waltz of Despair.

The caster and the target of the swordsmanship shared the same despair.

Arena staggered out of the captain's cabin, her right arm twisted beyond recognition.

Supporting herself with her sword in her left hand, she looked at the murderous Moon Bone and shouted, "The Moon Bone's power is weak."

"Separate the bone from Dorian's corpse, and it won't be able to control him anymore. Stop him!"

Hearing Arena's explanation, Arthur understood how to deal with Dorian.

It was hardly feasible, but among those present, only he could approach "Dorian" and cut off the bones of his hand.

Bathed in moonlight, Arthur stepped through an elegant dance, passed the spot where Dorian had fallen, tossed aside the pirate cutlass, and picked up his sword.

He was different!

Leaning against the wall of the captain's cabin, Arena watched Arthur beneath the moon. She keenly sensed the change in his demeanor.

Back on Blue Bay Island, Arthur had seemed refined and scholarly, like an academic from England University;

When fighting Dorian, he had displayed extraordinary skill. His unusual Joint Combat Art involved some kind of supernatural power;

But the aura he showed now was like... that of an artist, with the courage to rush toward dread and despair!

Arthur thrust his sword at "Dorian's" left hand. He had seen the moment when the other man covered the hand bones with skin.

"Dorian" seized the longsword with his bare hand, blood flowing from his right palm along the blade.

He showed no sign of pain. Instead, he looked excited as he opened his mouth wide to bite Arthur's neck, his left hand reaching for Arthur's left hand.

Rather than retreating, Arthur pressed his weight against "Dorian," then sharply leaned aside to evade "Dorian's" attack.

The longsword spun half a circle in his hand, slicing flesh from Dorian's right hand before thrusting into it at an unusual angle.

His body rose and fell with the rhythm of his steps, like waves upon the sea.

The distance between them was less than twenty centimeters. "Dorian" tried to seize Arthur, but had to evade the longsword.

After trying repeatedly without result, unable to catch him despite being so close, the Moon Bone gradually became frenzied.

"You! Damn you!"

The roar in his ear could not affect Arthur now.

The longsword pierced through Dorian's neck from behind. With one fluid sway, Arthur rocked from Dorian's back to his front.

His arm passed through Dorian's neck and gripped the hilt, his body weight hanging from Dorian as though they were inseparable brothers.

"Dorian" grew anxious, desperate to kill the man before him. He opened his mouth and bit at Arthur.

Arthur spun around, placing his back against Dorian's, and the two took two steps forward together.

Dorian bit only air again.

With a flick of his wrist, Arthur ripped open the flesh of Dorian's neck. He turned to face Dorian and thrust once more at his left hand.

Dorian lunged forward, evading the sword strike while trying to restrain Arthur's body. Arthur's spinning, swaying movements filled it with fury.

"Mockery!"

"You dare mock me!"

A torrent of malicious thoughts surged from the Bone of the Moon Hand, assaulting Arthur's mental defenses.

Was this why Dorian had been controlled?

Bracing his left hand on the ground, he bent backward to evade Dorian's lunge, then severed Dorian's left leg with a single slash.

After their brief clash, Arthur understood how difficult it would be to cut off the left hand.

The other side felt no pain and sacrificed everything to protect its left hand from harm.

Only by depriving the Bone of the Moon Hand of its ability to act would it be possible to remove the hand bone on its own.

"What kind of move was that? Praise the God of Storms! That was definitely the most magnificent swordsmanship I've ever seen!"

Kaia aboard the Great White Shark stared wide-eyed, slapping the ship's railing with his palm.

"Look at those elegant dance steps! Oh! That must be a dance from the New Continent!"

"Such passionate, uninhibited rhythm! Every strike could be fatal! If his opponent weren't a resurrected undead, the captain would have killed him ten times over!"

"The captain actually hid such strength! The raids our Great White Shark has taken on must have been too easy."

Listening to Kaia's commentary, the pirates aboard the Great White Shark all looked at Arthur with reverence.

Pirates respected the strong and worshipped the strong.

Arena watched as Arthur remained pressed close to Dorian, his dance-like swordsmanship severing Dorian's limbs.

Every step skirted the edge of death.

Even for a swordsmanship family like Stuart, Arena's insight and experience left her no choice but to marvel at Arthur's swordsmanship...

It was far too insane!

Arthur had entered a certain state, wholly immersed in Despair Waltz. Sword, step, and dance had become one.

His body stretched naturally, his mind wandering along the edge of despair, while unprecedented passion burned within his heart.

During this time, the Moth's power surged forth like clear water from a dried-up well.

Pure moonlight poured over the Jasmine. With graceful dance movements, Arthur swung the sharp sword in his hand and cut off "Dorian's" left arm.

The left arm crashed onto the deck, its five fingers crawling across the ground before gripping Arthur's ankle.

"Finally!"

"I finally caught you!"

The malicious thoughts of the Bone of the Moon Hand furiously battered Arthur's consciousness. At that moment, the sun's radiance vanished.

Arthur took elegant steps to a tapping rhythm, then brought down his sword with both hands in a heavy strike.

The Moon Bone fell from the arm.

Arthur discarded his sword, bowed slightly, and whispered softly into the Moon Bone's ear:

"For Despair Waltz's debut performance, thank you for your cooperation, Mister Unknown Moon Bone."

Upon the shattered deck, the dancer ended his performance, while the hand bone lay silently on the ground without moving.

Arena watched this scene, turbulent waves rising in her heart.