Wings of the Kingdom

"Skree-!"

A piercing, shrill bird cry tore through the sky, carrying the majesty and oppressive presence of the king of beasts.

The enormous golden eagle circled halfway around the manor. Its sharp, golden-gem eyes instantly locked onto the most conspicuous figure in the courtyard below-Boer, floating in midair, dressed entirely in black.

It hovered overhead, each beat of its immense wings whipping up downdrafts that sent the nobles' robes snapping and nearly knocked them off their feet.

Within Boer's extraordinary sensory perception, this uninvited guest's life magnetic field was entirely different from those of ordinary people or even the knights on the ground.

Ordinary people were merely white clusters of light, bright or dim. But around the humanoid white light at this visitor's core loomed the lifelike golden silhouette of a gigantic bird, wings spread for flight. Its radiance blazed, exuding wildness and strength.

"It's Locke Hohen! He's come to help us!" A viscount slumped on the ground cried out involuntarily, as though grasping at a lifeline, his face filling with wild joy.

Yet that joy was instantly replaced by fear.

The enormous golden eagle overhead suddenly swept its wings downward!

With that motion, dozens upon dozens of feather swords abruptly condensed in the air, formed entirely of golden energy, their edges flashing with a cold gleam that seemed solid!

These feather swords precisely blanketed a broad area centered on Boer, even encompassing the viscount who had just spoken and several nearby barons still trembling with fear!

"No! Lord Locke! It's us!" One of the barons caught within the attack waved his arms in terror, trying to alert him.

Locke Hall seemed to hear that desperate cry from above, but a trace of indifference and resolve flashed through his golden bird eyes.

Sacrificing a few insignificant nobles for a chance to eliminate this monster threatening royal rule is entirely worthwhile. If you must blame something, blame yourselves for standing in the wrong place. He thought coldly, even feeling a flicker of smug satisfaction-who the true hunter was remained to be seen!

The golden feather swords rained down like a violent storm, accompanied by piercing whistles!

At that critical instant, Boer finally moved. He did not even look up at the deadly rain of swords, merely raising both hands calmly.

The black iron sand flowing like a living thing in his hands instantly stirred!

Ninety-seven, Boer counted silently.

The next moment, streaks of black light, deeper than night and colder than ancient ice, shot from his fingertips like living venomous snakes!

These cold black streaks, formed from highly compressed iron sand, launched later yet arrived first, tracing countless tricky, bizarre paths through the air. With absolute precision-or rather, as though the golden feather swords were deliberately running into them-they intercepted every falling feather sword!

"Pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft-!"

A succession of faint yet heart-stopping sounds of annihilation rang out. Black and golden light collided in midair, tangled, then dispersed together into glittering specks of energy that slowly drifted down like a brief, dazzling shower of light.

Not a single feather sword crossed that boundary to harm anyone below.

The nobles who had escaped death supported one another, their legs still weak and their faces bloodless. After a brief, deathly silence came irrepressible, tearful curses of fury.

"Damn Hohen! Was he trying to kill us too?"

"The royal family... is this how the royal family treats its loyal subjects?"

"They don't see us as people at all!"

Boer's effortless defense, its precision nothing short of miraculous, sent a tremendous shock through Locke Hohen overhead. Disbelief appeared in his golden bird eyes for the first time.

How is that possible?! He actually intercepted every attack simultaneously with such precision? This fellow's perception and control... An intense sense of foreboding instantly engulfed him.

I can't give him room to breathe! I have to get close and tear him apart with the strength and speed Zoan users take the greatest pride in!

The enormous golden eagle let out an even shriller cry and abruptly folded its wings. Like a golden meteor, its massive body plunged toward Boer at a speed almost impossible to follow with the naked eye!

Its talons, powerful enough to rend steel, and its coldly gleaming hooked beak targeted Boer's seemingly slender body.

Boer finally raised his head, narrowing his eyes at the rapidly growing golden figure. An extremely dangerous, electric glint flashed through his black eyes.

"I hate," he said softly, his voice quiet yet clearly reaching everyone watching the battlefield tensely, "having people above my head."

Before his words had faded, something changed!

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

The heavy steel plate armor worn by the unconscious knights all around came apart as though wrenched by an invisible, immense force. It became streams of silvery-gray metal, surging wildly toward Boer like rivers flowing into the sea!

The metal pieces collided, assembled, and interlocked in midair. In an instant, a thick, menacing suit of dark metal armor completely encased Boer, covering every inch of his skin!

On the armor's chest, two ring-shaped structures, one gold and one silver, abruptly lit up, flowing with heart-stopping energy like superconducting rings.

At the same time, a rapidly spinning metal sphere the size of a fist appeared in Boer's gauntleted palm.

The gold and silver rings on his chest suddenly blazed brighter. Surging electrical energy was drawn out in an instant and poured into the metal sphere!

A blinding white light instantly flared across the sphere's surface. It gave off a low, dangerous hum, like a savage beast awakened.

Locke Hohen's dive was incredibly fast, but Boer moved faster!

"Vmmm-BOOM!!!"

A blinding white flash suddenly erupted from Boer's palm like thunder tearing open the heavens!

Accelerated to the limit by an electromagnetic field, the metal projectile instantly broke the sound barrier, trailing a visible, conical sonic boom cloud. With an extremely piercing report, it shot straight toward Hall's chest at a speed beyond his ability to react!

"What?!" Relying on animal instinct, Hall barely managed to jerk his head aside at the critical moment, trying to protect his vital areas.

"Thud-!"

It was not the sound of a blade piercing flesh, but a muffled crash like a heavy hammer punching through leather!

The projectile, carrying terrifying kinetic energy and high-voltage electricity, slammed into Hall just below his left shoulder blade!

He could even clearly hear the crack of his own bones breaking. Immediately afterward, indescribable agony and intense numbness swept through his entire body!

"Argh-!"

He gave a muffled groan of pain. The irresistible force hurled his enormous golden body backward in a wretched arc through the sky. Like a downed fighter plane, he completely lost his balance, finally plunging straight into a cluster of outbuildings at the edge of Kent Marquis's Manor with a thunderous crash!

"BOOM!!!"

Dust billowed skyward as shattered stone and wood chips flew in every direction. An elegant servants' building and half a storehouse were smashed directly into ruins by this "giant shell" falling from the sky.

A faint smile of satisfaction with the attack's results had just appeared on Boer's face when he seemed to remember something. His smile instantly froze, replaced by a trace of annoyance.

"Oh no." He patted his armored forehead, his voice tinged with resignation. "My house... the royal family will have to cover the repairs."

His complete disregard for the life-and-death battle just now, turning instead to concern for his property, produced a remarkable array of expressions among the nobles who had witnessed everything. Fear, awe, and a sense of absurdity mingled on their faces, yet not one dared speak.

Boer dispersed his faceplate, revealing his still-calm face beneath, and instructed Roland, who was equally dumbfounded nearby, "Don't just stand there, Mr. Roland. Go get lunch ready."

His tone was as relaxed as if he had merely shooed away a fly. "It seems I'll need a second round of... hmm, somewhat friendlier conversation with our esteemed 'Wings of the Kingdom.'"

His gaze turned toward the dust that had yet to settle.

The dust gradually dispersed, revealing the scene at the center of the ruins. The enormous golden eagle's body was undergoing a strange transformation. Feathers retracted, its body shrank, its skeletal structure reshaped... within a few breaths, it had become a half-human, half-beast form over three meters tall!

He retained his bird's head, his golden eyes as sharp as ever. Magnificent plumes extended backward from either side of his face, replacing human ears.

His body was powerfully built and well-proportioned, covered in a fine layer of golden down. His arms had become winglike structures, edged with broad, sharp flight feathers like two enormous golden swords. His strong legs had the backward-bending structure of a bird of prey, ending in coldly gleaming golden talons.

The form combined a human's upright bearing with a raptor's wild strength, graceful yet powerful. Its suffocating pressure made the nobles, who had only just breathed a sigh of relief, hold their breath again.

Boer studied this form with interest, as though admiring a work of art.

With a light wave of his hand, the menacing armor around him receded like a tide, becoming iron sand again and merging beneath his black clothes. He floated up to eye level with the partially human Locke Hohen and said meaningfully:

"Lord Hall, I don't think we need to continue here." He pointed at the disordered manor beneath them and the trembling nobles around it.

"After all, damaging my house and these fragile 'business partners' would make cleaning up afterward rather troublesome. How about somewhere more spacious?"

Locke Hall-or rather, the half-beast Hall-snorted with humiliation and anger, his golden bird eyes fixed fiercely on Boer, but he did not object.

The next moment, both moved. Iron sand swirled around Boer, while Hall spread his wings. They became two streaks of light, one white and one gold, leaving slowly fading trails across the sky before disappearing beyond the astonished crowd's sight.

They left behind nobles staring at one another, as though they had experienced an absurd nightmare.

"Bang!" The towering Thatch clapped his hands forcefully. The deep report, like a thunderclap, drew everyone's attention back.

He surveyed these shaken "important people," his face showing not a trace of respect, only the cold bearing of someone carrying out orders.

"Stop standing around!" His voice was as icy as the coldest sea wind. "You, and the guards you brought-everyone who can move, get moving! Drag these useless obstructions away! Clear this place up! Mr. Roland has gone to prepare lunch. Don't let my lord come back to find it still a complete mess!"

The pressure of his enormous frame was no less than that of Hall's half-beast form earlier. The nobles had none of their usual arrogance left. Like herded sheep, they directed those guards still able to stand and began frantically cleaning up the wreckage.

"As for you 'gentlemen,'" Thatch bared his teeth in an expression that hardly qualified as a smile, "the banquet will be ready soon. Please-take your seats and wait." He pronounced "please" with the force of an unquestionable command.

Above a primeval forest far from Silver City, the two figures abruptly stopped, hovering over the sea of trees.

Locke Halld, in his human-bird form, attacked first! Wounded so easily by a boy, his pride would not allow him to hold anything back.

"Wing Blade: Cross Slash!"

With a low roar, he swept the broad golden wings on his arms into a fierce crossing strike!

The sharp feathers along his arms traced two dazzling golden blades of light in a cross through the air. One swept toward Boer's neck, while the other drove straight toward his chest!

Before the blades of light reached him, their fierce sword energy had already sliced through the air with a shrill hiss.

Boer's gaze sharpened slightly. His body drifted backward as though weightless, precisely allowing the sweeping blade of light to skim past the tip of his nose. At the same time, his iron-sand-covered right arm instantly expanded and transformed into a thick black tower shield.

"CLANG!!!"

A deafening metallic crash erupted! The golden blade of light aimed at his chest slammed into the tower shield and burst into a skyful of light. The enormous impact pushed even Boer's hovering body slightly backward.

Hall seized that fleeting opportunity! His powerful bird feet suddenly thrust forward. Like the strongest metal shackles, his coldly gleaming golden talons clamped tightly around the armor on Boer's right forearm, which had just finished blocking and had yet to withdraw!

Got you! Break! Hall roared inwardly, unleashing all his bestial strength!

The right arm in his grip seemed to become a fixed pivot. His other "wing-hand" and both legs rained wildly onto Boer's armored upper body like a violent storm, trailing afterimages!

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Heavy impacts rang out as densely as drumbeats! Every attack from Hall carried terrifying force capable of shattering stone monuments. The thick iron-sand armor was battered inward and twisted, even developing fine cracks!

More frighteningly, the powerful impacts penetrated the armor's defenses and struck Boer's flesh directly, producing waves of dull pain.

Yet from beneath the faceplate came neither the scream nor the groan Hall had expected, but an appraisal that remained calm, even carrying a trace of... approval?

"Good strength." Boer's voice sounded somewhat muffled through his faceplate, yet it doused Hall's wild joy like a bucket of ice water.

Hall gritted his teeth. For the first time, disbelief and a trace of helplessness welled up in his golden bird eyes.

This fellow... is he a monster? Is this the legendary power of Captain John's Magnet-Magnet Fruit? How can his defenses and physical toughness be so terrifying?!

At the very instant his mind reeled, the armor on Boer's tightly restrained right forearm suddenly reshaped itself in reverse. Like flowing black sludge, it clamped firmly around Hall's ankle instead!

At the same time, Boer raised his left hand. Its front rapidly transformed and condensed into an enormous black metal hammerhead comparable to a siege ram! Dazzling electrical serpents began wildly leaping and coiling across its surface!

"Electromagnetic Acceleration: City-Breaking Hammer!"

Boer's icy voice announced the beginning of his counterattack.

The enormous hammerhead did not swing slowly. With an instantaneous boost from the electromagnetic field, it became a bolt of black lightning, hurtling straight toward Hall's head with a shriek of torn air and dazzling electrical light!

No! Hall's face instantly turned deathly pale as the shadow of death engulfed him!

He desperately tried to lean his head backward to dodge, but his trapped ankle had robbed him of his greatest mobility.

It's over... The thought had only just surfaced.

"BOOM-!!!"

The enormous hammerhead struck squarely at the junction of his shoulder blade and the wing blade on his left arm, which he had hastily raised to block!

The cracking of bones was clearly audible. Violent electrical currents instantly surged through his entire body, bringing severe spasms and searing pain!

His enormous body, over three meters tall, was hurled violently toward the ground by that irresistible force like a kite with its string cut!

"BOOM!!!!!"

It was as though a heavy bomb had detonated in the forest!

A vast crater more than ten meters across appeared in the ground. Spiderweb cracks spread outward, every tree at its center was pulverized, and dust rose like a mushroom cloud.

At the crater's center, the enormous half-human, half-beast body convulsed violently several times, then rapidly shrank, shedding its feathers. Finally, it became a handsome, unconscious young man wearing a damaged royal guard uniform-Locke Hall's true body.

He lay limp among the dirt and shattered wood in an extremely undignified pose, having completely lost consciousness.

Boer slowly descended from the sky and stood at the crater's edge, looking down at the unconscious Hall. The iron-sand armor around him silently dispersed.

After a while, the fingers of the figure at the bottom of the crater twitched slightly. The faint, leaping electrical arcs that had yet to fully dissipate in the surrounding air seemed to stimulate his nerves. He let out a pained groan and slowly opened his eyes.

Through his blurred vision, he saw the white-haired boy standing at the crater's edge, as though ruling over his fate.

Watching him wake, Boer showed none of a victor's arrogance. He merely said calmly:

"Let's go, Lord Hall. Lunch in the city should be ready by now." His tone even carried a touch of courtesy, as though he truly were inviting an honored guest who had traveled from afar.