Terrifying Will

Diavolo believed that Giorno had completely miscalculated.

He only anticipated that Rock Rose's fire trap could harm Diavolo, who possessed the ability to Time Erasure, but he completely failed to anticipate that the King Crimson, in addition to Time Erasure, could also foresee the future.

Being able to foresee the future allows one to see through all traps.

Once a trap is discovered, it loses its combat value and may even be used by the enemy to their advantage.

Just like now

The trap Giorno set with his life became a demon that devoured him.

The abundant essential oil secreted by Rock Rose becomes the best fuel.

The fire quickly ignited the oil and then every plant around Giorno.

A storm of flames raged from all sides.

Thick smoke billowed up, engulfing everything.

The flames had spread like wildfire, and Giorno was trapped in this sea of fire, with no way to escape.

As for Diavolo, the enemy he was willing to risk his life to defeat, he was now leisurely standing outside watching him "reap his own bitter fruit."

"Ha ha ha ha."

"I was originally thinking about what kind of punishment I should give you two brats to vent my anger."

"I never expected that you would come up with such a perfect answer yourself."

Looking at Giorno trapped in the flames, unable to break free, Diavolo's smile became even more twisted:

"Burn! Burn even more fiercely!"

"Let me watch you dance in the fire, let the flames burn away all you disgusting vermin!"

A vicious curse echoed through the fire and wind.

Giorno, just as Diavolo had hoped, was driven into a desperate situation by the raging flames all around him.

Twisted flames filled every inch of the space around him.

The rapidly rising temperature had long since dried the cold sweat on his forehead and began to scorch his unprotected skin.

Her naturally curly, beautiful blonde hair began to gradually turn yellow and charred in the oven of the flames.

The pain of the skin being burned by flames finally reached a threshold that the brain could no longer bear:

"Ah--"

For the first time in his life, Giorno let out such a piercing scream.

The cruelest way to die is to be burned alive.

At this time, a person can feel the rapidly rising body temperature and the rapid loss of water. They can see with the naked eye that cells are deactivated and die, and the skin is charred and carbonized.

The intense pain of being burned alive was unbearable even for a man of Giorno's strong will.

"Ha ha ha ha."

"Those who disobey me will suffer this fate!"

Hearing the agonizing screams from within the sea of fire, Diavolo's smile grew even more satisfied.

Nothing is more beautiful than the agonizing screams of an enemy on their deathbed.

If so.

That might be the faint "meat aroma" mixed in with the thick smoke.

Thinking of this, Diavolo took a deep breath of the actually very choking smoke near the fire, and felt increasingly happy.

"Giorno!"

Mista's painful, urgent screams came from the other side of the fire.

Diavolo couldn't see Mista through the raging flames, but he could hear the helplessness and despair in his voice:

"Giorno, Giorno!"

Mista had lost all power to resist.

He could only watch the sea of fire in despair, watching his comrades struggling in the flames, calling out helplessly time and time again.

Oh, right.

"And you, Guido Mista."

Diavolo reluctantly withdrew his gaze from Giorno, who was nearly burned alive.

He remembered that he still had one enemy he hadn't killed:

"Aren't you very concerned about this blond brat?"

"In that case, I'll throw you into the fire too, so you can be reunited."

Jotaro could come at any time, and since he's already caused enough trouble, it's time to wrap things up and leave quickly.

As he spoke, Diavolo began to devise a way to approach Mista.

Mista, who had been sent far behind by Giorno, is now separated from him by the fire on the other side.

To bypass the fire and kill Mista, one must use a double to climb back to the second floor, and then use the circular floor plan on the second floor to circle around halfway.

"What a hassle."

Diavolo thought for a moment, and finally decided to act quickly:

He stopped watching Giorno's agonizing struggle in the flames, turned around, and strode away quickly.

However.

That one step was all it took, and things went wrong.

Diavolo was horrified to discover that he was losing control of his center of gravity.

He took a step forward and almost fell over, wobbling unsteadily.

"What, what are you doing?"

Diavolo suddenly reached out and touched his forehead.

At that moment, he suddenly realized that his mind was also becoming somewhat abnormal.

A strong wave of dizziness washed over me.

There was also an abnormal excitement and mania that had been present ever since he first began to admire Giorno's death.

This abnormal emotional fluctuation numbed him, to the point that he didn't even notice his aching and dizzy head, or his gradually losing control of his body.

"How so."

"Am I... am I poisoned? When?"

"Those plants... they were just flammable materials, how could I be poisoned!"

Diavolo muttered to himself, looking dazed.

His vision began to blur, and he even showed signs of hallucinations.

Just then

"Mu-doo-mu-doo-mu!"

"Mu-doo-mu-doo-mu!"

In the midst of the fire, Giorno, who had been silently enduring the burns from the flames, suddenly unleashed an unexpected power.

The golden fist shadow danced wildly in the flames.

Plants, shrouded in misty spray, rose from the scorched earth.

"Is that a lotus flower?"

Diavolo was taken aback.

What he didn't know was that lotus flowers, or any other aquatic plant, could contain an astonishing 98% water.

If one has the ability to create plants, then one would naturally also have the ability to create water out of thin air.

With enough water, the fire can be extinguished.

At this moment, most of Giorno's skin had been burned.

Such extensive burns were clearly life-threatening, but his will never wavered.

He withstood the physical pain, maintained his mental clarity, and summoned the last of his spiritual strength:

"Gold Experience. Continue!"

"Mu-doo-mu-doo-mu!"

Finally, amidst the relentless punches of the Gold Experience, plants with high water content sprouted from the ground.

The water vapor rose up in the high temperature, gradually extinguishing the flames surrounding Giorno.

He collapsed to his knees, utterly helpless.

Covered in wounds, he collapsed in the scorched earth where the fire had just been extinguished.

Despite being badly injured, Giorno survived without a doubt.

"You can put out fires?"

Diavolo's expression changed drastically:

Giorno has the ability to extinguish fires, but he didn't use that ability to save himself just now.

Clearly, he wasn't simply enduring torture, but rather persevering in carrying out his true scheme despite the pain.

The key to this scheme was not fire, but...

"It's cigarettes."

Giorno provided the answer.

Despite his severe burns, he could barely manage to lift his head, but his charred and red face remained as resolute as iron.

You think my attack method is fire?

"But actually, my real killer move is smoke."

"Because that large area of plants contains more than just Rock Rose."

"There are many plants in nature that are harmless under normal circumstances, but when they are burned by fire, they release highly toxic fumes."

For example

Diavolo could give plenty of examples on his own, without Giorno even needing to provide them.

Because the raw materials for those "West Asian specialties" he sells are one of them.

As the saying goes, "He who hunts geese all day long will eventually be pecked blind by them. "Diavolo harmed countless ignorant people with his "special products," never imagining that one day he would suffer the same fate.

"Damn it."

"I actually fell for such a clumsy trick!"

After the truth was revealed, Diavolo felt his head becoming increasingly dizzy.

If this continues, let alone continue fighting, it would be a miracle if he didn't lose his mind amidst hallucinations and excitement.

"Yes, that's a terrible plan."

"In the end, all I want is to lower your guard and make you inhale the smoke without realizing it."

"So, in order to achieve this..."

"I must endure the pain and let the flames consume my body, so that you will think you have achieved final victory."

Giorno struggled to his feet from the embers of the flames.

He was covered in blood and smoke; there wasn't a single good inch of his body.

"."

Diavolo fell silent.

He finally realized how terrifying this brat—no, this man—was in front of him.

What's terrifying isn't that Giorno could devise such an incredibly cruel scheme against himself, but that he actually endured that level of pain in order to successfully carry it out.

You have to understand that human nature is to survive.

But Giorno was able to put out the fire and save himself at any time.

Standing in the flames, watching my own vibrant and precious life burn away bit by bit.

He made no attempt to save himself until the plan was confirmed to be successful.

That kind of willpower is simply monstrous.

"Diavolo."

Giorno finally straightened his broken body.

Although he was no longer able to fight, he once again stood in front of Diavolo, protecting Mista behind him:

I said it.

"If you want to go there, kill me first."

His entire body was charred black.

Those emerald green pupils remained as bright as fire.