While Russ reeled in shock, Loa made his way down and soon reached the lowest level.
The jagged ruins bore witness to the intruder's violence. Broken steel bars jutted crookedly into the air like snapped arms.
Now a huge crater gaped in the center of the bottommost room.
Through the chunks of concrete, a faint black sheen was visible.
Loa's golden dragon eyes glowed strangely in the darkness. Even this deep underground, where little light reached, he could see as clearly as if it were day.
Thud!
He casually hurled an Ice Spear. It struck the black floor with a dull thump.
"Tch. Made of iron again, huh? You really are rich."
Loa shook his head.
The world of One Piece wasn't Earth. Metal smelting here was crude and inefficient. Yet Russ had still used this much iron to build a trap. Did running a casino really pay that well?
"Hahaha! Don't waste your energy! This room is made of the finest refined iron, a full meter thick! You'll never break through my ultimate defense! What are you going to do to me?"
Russ's smug voice came from behind Loa. Loa turned and saw an iron box with a honeycomb-patterned front. The upper side of its casing had been crushed, but it still worked.
"Oh? Is that what you think?" Loa said evenly, then gave a snort of laughter. "Keep thinking that."
"We'll meet soon enough."
Russ's remaining Sonic Bombs had been left upstairs and frozen into huge balls of ice during the earlier attack. Hurting Loa with them now would be difficult.
Clunk!
Russ's heart lurched at Loa's words. A dreadful premonition settled over him.
Suddenly, he yanked a lever beside him upward. Only then did he shout, his confidence wavering, "Yeah? Then give it a try! My pets