Human-Human Fruit: Mythical Zoan

Dill leaped out of the barrel, his fist crackling with electricity as he swung at the soldier holding the fruit.

"Dill, don't move!!"

The king hurriedly spoke, trying to stop him.

Bang, bang!!

The silver-armored soldier went flying from a single punch.

Without pausing in the slightest, Dill dashed toward the throne.

Only a dozen or so steps separated them.

"Dill, you mustn't-mmph..."

The king, his eyes tightly shut, was about to give another order, but five fingers were already stuffed into his mouth.

"Didn't see that coming, you old bastard!"

Dill's face twisted savagely as his five fingers clamped hard around the king's tongue.

In that brief instant, he had done three things.

Leaped out of the barrel, eaten the fruit, and damaged his eardrums with tiny bolts of lightning.

He had not been a Devil Fruit user to begin with, so seawater had no effect on him. The first step had posed no difficulty.

Eating the fruit strengthened his stamina and gave him the physical strength to send the silver-armored soldier flying with one punch.

Although he had gained a weakness, he wasn't afraid in the slightest. Once he got out, he only needed to hypnotize others into believing he wasn't afraid of seawater.

At worst, he could first obtain a relatively low-level underwater breathing ability to ensure his safety if he fell into the water.

Damaging his eardrums was to shut out commands.

The king had said before that he couldn't control him through thoughts; he had to use words.

Then, as long as he couldn't hear, there was a chance he wouldn't be controlled.

Small perforations in the eardrums would only impair his hearing. To shut out commands completely, a small cluster of lightning was currently screeching inside his ears.

As for his hearing, there was even less need to worry;

Even ordinary people could heal on their own given some time. As a Zoan user, he would only heal faster.

He admitted there had been an element of gambling, but fortunately, he had won.

The winner took all, and the loser died!

Thump!

He brought his fists down with all his strength several times, smashing the king's head apart.

The splattered red and white matter covered the throne, giving off a nauseating bloody stench.

Dill shook his hand, then spat fire from his mouth, setting the remains on the throne ablaze.

The animal pelts covering the throne made the perfect fuel.

This bastard could absorb life force to restore his youth. Who knew whether he had some means of resurrection as well?

So it was best to burn him until not even ashes remained.

"Aaahhh!!!"

"Waaahhh!!!"

"Aaawww!!!"

Roars rang out, and a staff member ran up beside the throne, swinging his fists in an attack.

"Fuck you!"

Dill kicked the man over and swept a dark look around him, only to see the staff who had been watching the surveillance surrounding him like rabid dogs.

Was this the king's final command, or had the king never died at all?

He couldn't tell, but he knew it was time to run, because soldiers in silver armor were pouring through the doorway.

"The legendary Mythical Zoan. Let's give it a try."

Feeling the power surging inside his body, a flicker of excitement flashed through his eyes.

Abundant stamina and formidable recovery were standard for Zoans, let alone the very best among them, Mythical Zoans with all sorts of strange abilities.

Boom!

Flames sprang up around his fist as he slammed it into someone's stomach, knocking them to the ground.

One of the Flame-Swallowing Lord's abilities: controlling flames, burning the earth, and leaving the land parched.

A silver-armored soldier advanced with his spear leveled, its tip gleaming coldly, as though it would pierce his enemy's head the very next second.

Dill wasn't afraid in the slightest. He opened his mouth and bit the spearhead clean off, swallowing it.

At the same time, he threw another punch. Electricity flashed, and the silver-armored soldier went numb all over, losing the ability to move.

The Flame-Swallowing Lord's core ability: eating! Being exceptionally good at eating!

Anything with physical substance could be eaten.

Whatever he ate would turn into energy, replenishing the user's stamina or improving the user's constitution.

As Dill understood it:

If his HP wasn't full, it restored HP. If his HP was full, it slowly increased his maximum HP.

No wonder the king had said there was no need to wait any longer. As long as it kept eating without stopping, even a pig could become Fleet Admiral Tianpeng.

Seeing that enemies were still pouring in, he tried transforming into his beast form, preparing to force his way through.

As everyone knew, most Zoans had large beast forms.

His hair grew wildly, his white locks soon hanging down to his waist and stomach.

His height also went from a disabled person at 1.6 meters to a second-degree cripple at two meters.

Then the transformation stopped.

That's way too half-assed!

The corner of Dill's mouth twitched, and he couldn't help complaining inwardly.

Apart from his hair and height, no other part of him had changed.

No wings, no flashy scales, no cool horns.

"There is a handsome monster whose appearance is no different from a human's, called the Flame-Swallowing Lord."

Recalling what the king had said while introducing the fruit, he could only accept this cruel reality.

Fortunately, his current strength was enough.

Without the king directing them, the Dills attacked chaotically, frequently injuring their own side.

He snatched a spear, coated it with the power of lightning, and began fighting his way out.

First, get out of the surveillance room, then find Robin and Hina, and finally escape this island.

Once outside, he would report this to the Navy, saying there were villains here trying to overthrow the World Government.

Meanwhile, in the guest room.

Robin and Hina had also begun to act.

The two soldiers previously responsible for guarding them had left roaring, giving the pair a chance to escape.

Hina used her ability to create a black spear, then hopped over and stabbed through the barrel.

Once all the seawater had drained away, Robin used her ability to undo Hina's chains, and Hina then helped Robin undo her iron chains.

"What do we do now?"

"Do we jump straight out the window? Will there be enemies outside?"

Hina gripped the black spear tightly, her expression very tense.

Sneaking out of an enemy's castle was something she had only ever read about in storybooks.

Robin, by contrast, was much calmer. She cautiously poked her head out the door to check the situation.

Their guest room was on the second floor. Outside the door was a gallery overlooking the spacious first-floor hall.

She activated her ability, sprouting arms and eyes to observe their surroundings from every angle.

She discovered that everyone was running toward a certain room on the first floor, leaving the entire second floor deserted.

Robin was delighted at first. With nobody around, it would be easier for them to escape.

But when she thought about it carefully, there were no other outsiders in this castle apart from the three of them.

"Dill!"

She cried out and rushed out of the room, intending to head down to the first floor to find Dill.

But before she could descend the stairs, she saw a two-meter-tall Dill, covered in blood, charge out of the room below and to her left.

"Dill!! I'm here!!"

Robin hurriedly called out, crossing her hands and activating her ability at the same time.

Arms linked together, forming a rope that stretched from the second-floor gallery down to the first-floor hall.

"You can't pull me up!"

Dill kicked a silver-armored soldier over and shouted:

"Chains! Go find chains!"

Robin nodded hard and returned to the room, joining the two iron chains together.

"Hina, come with me! Help pull this!"

"Okay, Hina understands!"

Working together, the two girls hauled Dill up with all their strength.

Crack!

Once Dill had his footing, he had no time to explain. He scooped them both up, smashed through the window, and escaped the castle.