The pirates all mocked the boy's ignorance. Even Rayleigh and Abel glanced his way, though not because they looked down on him. They had heard the deep hatred in his voice. In an instant, both seemed to understand something, and they silently sighed in unison.
Listening to the laughter around him, the boy was like a blade of grass struggling in a storm. From the scattered remarks, he had gained a rough idea of what the Shichibukai actually represented. His heart slowly sank, but he still stared stubbornly at Su Yu, wanting an answer from him.
Su Yu looked at the hatred filling his eyes and fell silent for a moment. He could more or less guess what had happened. After all, this was the world of pirates, where nothing was cheaper than a human life. He had seen plenty of such things over his long life and could now regard them calmly, but he still could not help sighing inwardly.
He looked at the boy. "What's your name?"
"My name is Miland!"
"That wish is simple. I'll give you enough strength to rival the Shichibukai. In exchange, once you've done what you want to do, you'll come back here and work for me."
The pirates who had been enjoying the show froze. What did he mean, simple? Why did he make the strength of the Shichibukai sound so cheap?
They wanted to tell the owner to stop joking, but remembering his strength, they all kept their mouths shut. Still, they intended to watch how he would grant this wish. Yes, they did not believe he could do it at all. They were waiting to see him make a fool of himself.
Rayleigh and Abel also watched Su Yu closely, unwilling to miss a single detail.
Miland froze too. He had actually begun to despair, only for this to happen... The wild ups and downs left his mind in a muddle.
Su Yu gave him no time to react. He stepped out from behind the counter, his eyes glowing blue, then raised both hands with his palms facing down. Blue light shone from his hands as well. A bronze-colored line of light appeared out of thin air and slowly traced a shape, gradually forming a cube about a meter on each side. Then, with a flash, an entirely bronze-colored box appeared and crashed onto the floor with a clang.
Everyone stared at this miraculous sight, dumbfounded. What was going on?! What kind of ability was this?
Rayleigh was even more shocked. The way Su Yu had acted before had led him to believe that Su Yu was an Air Devil Fruit User, but this looked like an entirely different ability! Had Su Yu eaten two Devil Fruits? How was that possible?
Miland stared blankly at the bronze box. It gave off a soft glow, and every side was carved with patterns. The side facing him bore the carving of a magnificent horse's head, with a pair of wings behind it. It looked utterly wondrous.
This was the Pegasus Cloth!
That was right. Su Yu had whipped up a Pegasus Cloth for Miland. Although he had never visited the world of the Saints, he had once been to a special world where he had read not only the Pirate King manga, but also Saint Seiya and many other manga. At his current level, creating a Cloth on the spot was easy.
Honestly, Su Yu found the Saints' setting a little ridiculous. The bare minimum for a Bronze Saint was supposedly punches at the speed of sound, fists that could cleave the sky, kicks that could tear apart the earth, and so on. The protagonist had become a Bronze Saint at thirteen. Thirteen! What had Su Yu himself been doing at thirteen? Probably playing in the mud somewhere...
The Gold Saints were even more outrageous. Their basic attacks were punches at the speed of light, yet the manga kept emphasizing that they were mere mortals. Yeah, right. Fucking mortals, his ass. Had anyone ever seen a mortal casually throw a punch at the speed of light?
Still, Su Yu figured the author was just indulging himself. After all, he was only a manga artist. What the hell did he know about Saints?
Seeing Miland standing helplessly before the Cloth Box, Su Yu said, "Grab that handle and pull it down to open the box. The thing that will give you strength is inside."
Hearing Su Yu's instructions, Miland came to his senses and hurried to follow them.
With a mechanical click, the Cloth Box opened, revealing a soft glow. As the light gradually faded, a silver-white winged horse appeared before everyone. Its entire body was a regal silver-white adorned with golden patterns. It was hollow, as though assembled from individual pieces of armor.
The white-and-gold winged horse exuded a mysterious, noble aura. Greed involuntarily surfaced in the pirates' eyes, but when they saw Su Yu watching them with an indifferent gaze, they instantly came to their senses, and the greed quickly vanished.
"Miland, put on this Cloth, and you'll have the strength of the Shichibukai."
Su Yu had simply whipped up a God Cloth of Pegasus for him. Though it lacked the tremendous power of the original, it was more than enough to beat a member of the Shichibukai.
Miland stirred as though waking from a dream. He reached out and slowly stroked the winged horse made of armor. As if sensing its master's touch, it suddenly burst into brilliant light. The neigh of a fierce horse seemed to ring out from the void, and then it burst apart into a full set of armor-a headpiece, arm guards, a breastplate, and leg guards-which flew toward Miland.
Before Miland could react, the armor had already assembled around him. He had become the Pegasus Saint!
Then a scene suddenly appeared in the bewildered Miland's mind. A boy wearing silver-white armor struck a strange pose, then shouted, "Pegasus Meteor Fist!" Miland felt as though he saw fists as numerous as the stars, smashing every enemy ahead to pieces!
This was Su Yu's handiwork too. How could a Pegasus Saint not know his signature move, Pegasus Meteor Fist?
After receiving the inherited memories, Miland came to his senses. He lowered his head and stared blankly at his armor, then at his armored hands. It all felt like a dream. Did I really have enough strength to rival the Shichibukai now? That boy in the vision certainly looked strong!
And this armor was so light. Wearing it felt like wearing nothing at all...
The people around him looked at the completely transformed Miland, feeling as though something strange had just happened. This armor certainly looked miraculous, and it could even equip itself, but could a suit of armor alone let him fight evenly with the Shichibukai? What a joke!
Abel examined Miland's Cloth curiously, then proposed testing its strength. Miland was just as baffled himself and wanted to know what on earth this Cloth actually was, so after a moment's hesitation, he agreed.
Seeing that the two were about to start fighting right away, Su Yu clapped his hands to get their attention. "You're not planning to fight right here, are you?"
Abel gave an embarrassed laugh. "Haha, I got a little carried away. Please forgive me, boss."
He was about to lead Miland outside, but Su Yu stopped them again. Then, under everyone's puzzled gazes, he swept his hands in a circle. The space inside the little tavern suddenly expanded, as though the bar had become an enormous plaza.
The sudden change in their surroundings sent everyone into a panic. They hurriedly looked around, and once they found no danger, they relaxed for the moment. Then they looked at Su Yu with fear and wariness. That move had truly frightened them. He had changed their surroundings without them noticing a thing. It was terrifying!
Even Rayleigh panicked for a moment. His Observation Haki had not detected what had just happened either. And this was a third ability!
Miland, on the other hand, did not react as strongly as everyone else. After all, he was only an inexperienced kid and had yet to develop any awe of power.
"All right, do it here. You can begin."
Su Yu's calm voice echoed through the space. Abel came to his senses and took his position opposite Miland, about ten meters away.
The battle began!
Before you continue