"Boom—!!!"
Flames soared into the sky, and blood mist filled the air.
Hachinosu's center was completely overturned by that strike, and the entire island trembled faintly.
Marqi stood at the edge of the explosion, the heat wave rushing toward her and whipping her hair into disarray.
The wine jug in her hand swayed lightly. Liquor spilled from its mouth, running over her knuckles and hanging from her fingertips in glittering drops.
She did not wipe it away, merely letting it drip.
Her eyes were calm, venomous, fixed unwaveringly on the heart of the explosion.
—Zoan Bug-Bug Fruit: Burying Beetle Form.
Her true power was not "explosions," but corrosion.
She could plant poisonous fungal eggs inside corpses. Once detonated, they would trigger a chain reaction of toxic corpse explosions.
On Hachinosu, countless pirates instinctively avoided her whenever they heard the name "Marqi."
"Use your achievements—"
she murmured softly.
"—to consume yourself."
The sea of fire churned, and the explosions continued.
Flesh was torn apart, ground to pulp, and detonated once more. The entire central area resembled a wound being ripped open over and over again.
The surviving pirates around them finally recovered from their shock. They stared at the devastated zone, breathing rapidly.
"It's over, right...?"
"With corpse explosions on that scale, even Azure Dragon..."
Their voices trembled, yet held onto one final shred of hope.
"...couldn't possibly survive."
"Long live Marqi!!!"
Someone could not help but howl, as though clutching at a lifeline.
Just as they finally let out a breath of relief—
"Tap..."
A footstep slowly came from the center of the explosion.
The sound was not loud, yet it seemed to step directly onto everyone's hearts.
The laughter abruptly stopped. The wine jug in Marqi's hand slipped to the ground with a crash, shattering.
Her pupils slowly widened