Magical Ink!

"Uraaagh!!"

Vlad's brows knitted tightly as unconscious growls escaped his mouth.

His right arm had swollen grotesquely to the size of a person, covered in red hair, with claws sprouting from all five fingers. It thrashed constantly, trying to destroy the objects around it.

Gunpowder had both arms wrapped around the out-of-control arm, straining to restrain it. A few beads of water dotted his forehead, though whether they were sweat or water left from washing his face was unclear.

The moment Dill entered the room, he went straight to Vlad, who lay on the floor, and stared into his eyes.

"Hey, look at me. Stay calm."

He pushed his hypnosis ability to its limit, trying to calm Vlad down.

Most losses of control were caused by emotional fluctuations in ability users. Once their emotions stabilized, they could regain control.

But not this time.

"I'm calm, but I can't control it."

Vlad clenched his teeth, sharp animal fangs growing in his mouth.

"Please, cut it off!

Don't let me hurt anyone else!"

His eyes were full of pleading and panic. Though he was timid, he was kind.

"It hasn't come to that yet. Focus on your forehead."

Dill pressed a hand against his head and suggested,

"This transformation was most likely caused by those stitches. Your father wouldn't hurt you. Feel them carefully and get them under control!"

At those words, Vlad closed his eyes. His face twitched as he endured the discomfort in his right arm while trying hard to sense the stitches on his forehead.

Dill and Boren moved over to help Gunpowder restrain the out-of-control arm.

With all three working together, the arm soon stopped moving, pinned in place.

Robin and the other two women came over from the next room at the noise, but returned next door at Dill's signal.

Since the loss of control had nothing to do with his mental state, Perona's Negative Hollow would be of little use.

The arm was also restrained for the moment, so Robin and Hina weren't needed to help.

Rather than stay here, they were better off returning next door, lest Vlad lose control and catch them up in it.

Fortunately, the worst did not happen. Three minutes later, the right arm, which had been the size of a person, shrank back to normal.

With his eyes still shut, Vlad let out a long breath.

Dill breathed a sigh of relief too, though a trace of curiosity inevitably rose within him.

He asked,

"Is this power from the stitches?"

If so, that barrel of ink in the secret chamber was very important.

As long as they could control themselves, it meant mass-produced super soldiers.

"I think so. I'm not really sure either."

Vlad lowered his head and said shamefacedly,

"I vaguely sensed the stitches just now. After I touched them with my mind, my arm went back to normal.

But I can't sense them anymore. I'm sorry. I'm really useless."

"Don't apologize. You're a prince. Why are you always so meek?"

Exasperated at his failure to stand up for himself, Dill lectured him,

"Once we fight our way into the palace and open the secret chamber, we'll know."

"Pack up for now. Let's move somewhere near the harbor first."

There was no time to lose. The seven quickly packed their things and went downstairs to check out.

Thanks to the excellent soundproofing, the owner downstairs had no idea what had happened in their room.

The monstrous arm had knocked over some furniture, though.

After they paid a hundred thousand Beli in compensation, the owner overlooked the mess in the room.

Dill bought a small mask for Perona to wear along the way, and the seven evil spirits arrived at an inn near the harbor.

This inn was more luxurious, and they booked two neighboring rooms again.

Robin and Hina took Perona out shopping, intending to buy some clothes.

The clothes Perona wore were all from two years ago. Not only were they tattered, they fit her very poorly.

To keep the three girls safe, Dill assigned Gunpowder and Boren to accompany them and serve as payment machines along the way.

Dill and Vlad stayed at the inn to continue their control work.

Today's main targets were the Kappa Army and the Blood Descendant Army.

The former had the strongest fighting force, while the latter guarded the palace.

Through his connection with a certain zombie sheriff, Dill successfully brought over a member of the Blood Descendant Army who was on leave.

At the sight of Vlad, the soldier's face filled with wild joy, only for him to turn and run immediately afterward.

Dill had no choice but to subdue him before beginning the control process.

He also learned something from the soldier.

Tia had already brought most of the Blood Descendant Army under his command.

Raising a force from within the Blood Descendant Army would be all but impossible.

Bad news, but it didn't matter.

Dill paid it no mind at all, merely ordering the soldier to bring others over.

Perona's ability was a powerful weapon in group battles, on par with Conqueror's Haki.

They couldn't hit her, and once struck, they would be subjected to hard crowd control for a short time.

He planned to spend some time infiltrating the Blood Descendant Army and the Kappa Army first.

Then he would have a captain in the Blood Descendant Army lead some of its soldiers out of the royal capital on another mission.

Afterward, Vlad would wave his hand and rally part of the Kappa Army to storm the royal capital.

Dill would provide long-range support with his secret weapon, Perona.

That way, their grand undertaking could succeed.

Of course, things would be simpler if they could lure Tia out alone.

Unfortunately, Tia seemed to be afraid of something and had not set foot outside the palace during this time.

Even when bathing, he had to have a group of Blood Descendant Army soldiers watching nearby.

"He's probably afraid of you, isn't he?"

"Huh? Me?"

Vlad hurriedly waved his hands and said apprehensively,

"Don't joke around, boss. I'm just a weak prince. Why would he be afraid of me?"

Dill didn't answer. He simply stared at the stitches on Vlad's forehead, lost in thought.

If Vlad could use the stitches to turn his right arm into a monstrous arm, the old king surely could too, and perhaps to an even greater degree.

For example, turning his entire body into a monster.

That was why Tia, who had already brought most of the Blood Descendant Army under his command, had only dared to launch his rebellion after the old king died.

Even now, he feared Vlad might transform his entire body into a monster and sneak into the palace to assassinate him.

That was why he never let his guards leave his side.

At that thought, Dill grew even more curious about that barrel of ink.

Unfortunately, haste made waste. They would have to wait a few more days before they could storm the palace.

He stepped forward and patted Vlad on the shoulder.

"Come on. Let's have a big meal first."

It was evening now, time for dinner.

They chose the most luxurious restaurant in town.

Big eaters were everywhere in this world. Restaurants wouldn't serve a blade of grass on a plate and charge an astronomical price for it.

As long as the money was there, the food restaurants served was both delicious and plentiful.

The scene at the dinner table wasn't particularly interesting.

At the round table, Dill occupied the seat of honor alone, his mouth opening and closing nonstop as he devoured his food, occasionally eating a few plates too.

By comparison, the three girls ate much more elegantly.

Except for Perona.

It was her first time seeing so much delicious food, and she wanted to try a couple of bites of every dish.

But for most dishes, she really did only try a couple of bites.

After all, she was only five and couldn't eat very much.

Once she was full, she hugged her teddy bear and pestered Robin for stories.

Horror stories.

After spending the whole day out, she had finally realized that the monsters on the island were all people in disguise, which had sparked her interest in the monsters' true forms.

Robin didn't eat much either, so she picked up a storybook and sat close beside Perona, telling her about the origins of vampires.

Stories like these were the one thing Thriller Bark never lacked.

As she continued, Hina leaned over too. Though very frightened, she really wanted to listen.

On the other side, Gunpowder and the other two soon finished eating.

Seeing that Dill showed no signs of stopping, the three decided to do something to pass the time.

Boren deftly pulled a deck of cards from his pocket.

"How about a game of poker?"