Law and Biscuit didn't alert the other party, quietly observing the furious woman.
"Dammit! It's the first time twelve keyholes have appeared, but why the hell is it this hard? This goddamn stone door… which idiot designed this?!"
The woman clawed at her hair, aggressively ruffling her voluminous curls until they resembled a bird's nest.
At the edge of the mountaintop, Law twitched his lips, feeling an imaginary arrow strike his knee.
'My apologies, but the curse on this stone door was set by me.'
The woman remained oblivious to the two outsiders who had arrived at the summit, her attention entirely consumed by the intricately carved stone door as she scowled in frustration.
She wore a blue denim overall dress, with thick, rounded eyebrows that rivaled those of Crayon Shin-chan.
From behind, her well-defined muscle lines were evident, suggesting considerable physical strength and some proficiency in martial arts.
"Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!"
Seemingly unable to break the curse, the woman stood up and began stomping on the stone door with all her might.
After several forceful kicks, still unsatisfied, she even hopped slightly and landed with both feet, causing the stone door to emit dull thuds.
Law couldn't take it anymore and strode forward.
He made no effort to conceal his presence, yet the woman, despite being a Nen User, was so engrossed in her tantrum that she failed to notice his approach from behind.
"Hey, that's enough."
Law's sudden remark made her jump.
"Ah!"
The woman spun around, instantly assuming a high-alert defensive stance.
"Who are you? What do you want? Piss off! You scared the hell out of me… want me to break your legs and send you limping down the mountain?"
Once she saw that the speaker was just a young man, she immediately asserted dominance.
"I doubt it," Law replied with a faint smile.
Without another word, the woman swiftly pulled out a wide-bladed cleaver from her bag, unsheathed it, and brandished the gleaming blade menacingly.
"How about now?" She sneered.
Law shook his head slightly. In a flash, he closed the distance, snatched the cleaver from her hand, and returned to his original position before she could react.
The cleaver was surprisingly heavy and undoubtedly sharp… a single swing could easily sever bones.
Law waved the cleaver lightly and repeated, "I doubt it."
The woman blinked, only now realizing her weapon had been taken.
'Holy crap, this guy's tough. Not someone to mess with!'
Her thick black eyebrows twitched as her expression shifted into one of fierce determination. She gathered her Aura, radiating a fight-to-the-death vibe.
Law hadn't expected her to be this hot-tempered. Just as he prepared to teach her a lesson-
The woman turned tail and bolted without hesitation!
'This woman…'
Watching her vanish over the edge of the mountaintop in an instant, Law was left speechless before letting out a wry chuckle.
'What a… unique individual.'
Biscuit approached Law's side, gazing in the direction the bushy-browed woman had fled, "Interesting."
"Which part? Her temper matching yours?" Law asked curiously.
Bang!
Biscuit responded by delivering a merciless punch to the top of Law's head.
"Am I really that violent when I'm so gentle and adorable?"
Biscuit swiftly retracted her fist, clasped her hands under her chin, and blinked her sparkling eyes like twinkling stars.
Law rubbed the small bump on his head, maintaining a solemn expression as he lied through his teeth: "Not at all!"
"Mhm, mhm." Biscuit nodded in satisfaction.
'Not gentle at all- Wait, no, Biscuit in her petite form was indeed cute.'
But the moment Law imagined her transformed state...
Law's face darkened slightly, feeling a phantom suffocation.
"That woman used a special footwork technique when she ran away." Biscuit said, dropping her cutesy act.
"What kind?" Law asked.
"Utsusemi." Biscuit mused, stroking her chin, "The schools that taught this technique vanished over fifty years ago."
"She seemed weak to me. More than her footwork, I'm more interested in what she called the [Treasure Vault of the Twelve Bandits]. It must be a very unique Nen Ability."
Law crouched in front of the carved stone door, immediately noticing the twelve intricate, interlocking keyholes engraved on its surface.
"Don't judge things just by their appearance…" Biscuit chided as she joined him, then added after a pause, "But yeah, she really was weak. Her Nen Control was a mess, and her footwork was barely passable."
Hearing this, Law gave her a deadpan look before pointing at the keyholes, "This should be her Nen Ability."
Biscuit crouched beside him, studying the twelve keyholes thoughtfully: "Creating keyholes on a door to open it?"
"Something like that. Have you read The Twelve Bandits?" Law asked.
"Aside from handsome men's magazines, I have no interest in books." Biscuit declared shamelessly.
Several imaginary sweatdrops slid down Law's forehead, "It's a fairy tale. The twelve bandits in the story had a treasure vault they could open anywhere, filled with all the riches they'd plundered."
"The ground, rocks, trees, walls, even people's bodies, could become the door to their vault."
"No matter where the door was summoned, it always had twelve keyholes. Each bandit carried one key, and only by using all twelve together could the vault be fully opened. Using just one key would only unlock a twelfth of it."
"If I had to guess, that woman's Nen Ability was inspired by the vault from The Twelve Bandits."
"Twelve keyholes… and judging by her earlier complaints, this must be the highest difficulty level her ability can create."
After listening, Biscuit pondered for a moment before summarizing: "So, instead of just smashing the door open, she has to solve a puzzle?"
"Uh… the difference is a bit bigger than that."
Law rubbed his forehead and pointed at the stone door. "She managed to implant keyholes even on top of the curse created from Sonata of Darkness. Strictly speaking, her ability has incredible potential."
In other words, its highest potential was the ability to open any door in the world.
But since the woman couldn't even solve the twelve-keyhole challenge, it made her ability seem rather useless in practice.
"By the way, once the Sonata of Darkness's curse is lifted, do you have to play it again to reapply the effect?" Biscuit asked.
"Of course."
"But the cost is your lifespan."
"I know. But after we go in this time, there's no need to reapply the curse when we leave." Law smirked. Just then, the keyholes on the stone door began fading away… something he had expected.
The treasure vault's door had a time limit, just like in the story.
"That's good." Biscuit said.
Without another word, Law pushed open the stone door.
He had come here to retrieve Stargie and all the valuable ancient antiques inside. Once they were gone, there'd be no need to waste his lifespan sealing it again.