The meticulously planned attack had failed, which also meant they had missed their best chance...
Knov's body flew through the air like a kite with its string cut.
'Just die like this...'
That phrase surfaced amidst the regret.
Even at the end, Knov was still running away, thinking he should just die like this, paying the price for his mistake.
He had taken Youpi's hasty strike head-on. Even though it was hasty, it still seriously injured Knov. If he landed hard, he would likely die from secondary injuries.
Knov thought about simply dying like this, but fate clearly wouldn't let him have his way.
The direction he was flying in happened to be where Morel was. So, Morel instinctively manipulated the smoke, creating a soft bed to catch Knov.
Only that soft, non-dispersing smoke bed could dissipate the force on Knov's body and prevent secondary injuries.
As he sank into the smoke, Knov realized something. Using his last ounce of strength, he said "I'm sorry" to Morel.
However, his words were drowned out by the tremendous sound of the tower section crashing to the ground.
That apology, filled with regret and remorse, naturally never reached Morel's ears.
Perhaps this was his punishment.
Knov's head lolled limply to one side. His consciousness was still clear, but his body no longer obeyed him, and he had lost the ability to speak.
Although the ground was damp from the rain, the falling tower still kicked up clouds of dust.
Morel didn't know the status of Youpi and Kite, and Knov was severely injured and immobile.
Assessing the situation, Morel gritted his teeth, hesitated only briefly, then moved Knov as far away as possible from the area.
Knov was now so injured he couldn't even use his ability. To avoid him being caught in the subsequent battle, Morel could only first move Knov outside the combat zone.
Since Kite and Youpi were very close, Morel didn't go too far. After placing Knov over a hundred meters away, he immediately returned to the combat area.
Then, he saw Kite, his left arm broken, covered in bruises and scrapes of various sizes. He also saw Youpi, standing silently on the rubble of the building, head bowed.
"What happened?"
Morel stared blankly at Youpi, whose body had shrunk several sizes compared to before. Judging by stature alone, he no longer had that monstrous, oppressive presence from earlier.
Yet, Morel felt a threat even stronger than before.
'In the mere few seconds it took to move Knov, what exactly had happened?'
Kite shared the same feeling as Morel.
When he emerged from the rubble, Youpi, having mostly reverted to his original form, was standing five or six meters in front of him. The missing shoulder bone area that Knov had erased had now completely regenerated.
However, Youpi did not continue attacking him.
This point confused him, but he soon realized Youpi had become even more terrifying.
Between an angry enemy and a calm enemy, which one was more terrifying?
Now, facing Youpi up close, Kite had his answer.
Without a doubt, that monster easily provoked had stepped into another extreme, transforming from rage into calmness.
"No chance of winning..."
This conclusion involuntarily surfaced in Kite's heart.
The next moment, every nerve in his body tensed to the limit.
"Oh, I see."
Youpi suddenly muttered. His body, restored to its original volume, underwent change once more. But this time, it wasn't the rage-fueled swelling. Instead, it was a localized transformation of his right arm.
The thick, red arm, muscles writhing, transformed into a long spear attached to a grotesque face. That head was covered in numerous smaller human faces.
The spear shaft extended from the grotesque face's mouth. It bore no metallic quality, only a visceral, fleshy appearance.
Immediately after, his left arm also changed, turning into a bloodthirsty flesh-and-metal scythe. As if extracting metallic elements from within his body, the scythe's blade gleamed with a cold, metallic luster.
After both arms underwent localized transformation, Youpi calmly raised the spear in his right arm. He didn't aim at Kite, who was only five or six meters away, but at Morel, who had just returned.
A beam of Aura, condensed and tangible, shot from the spear's muzzle, aimed directly at Morel's face.
Morel's heart filled with dread. He only had time to raise his smoke pipe, blocking in front of himself.
The Aura Beam struck the thick, round-bowled pipe. With an explosion, Morel was blown back two or three meters. When he landed, his smoke pipe was shattered.
Without his pipe, Morel's smoke-control ability was essentially sealed.
Scythe and gun… these were weapons Kite had displayed.
Perhaps influenced by this, Youpi had developed an ability of his own.
The shadow of death instantly loomed over Morel and Kite.
Youpi's mouth twisted into a grin, revealing rows of sharp teeth. He had initially found Morel and Kite quite troublesome, but now, he thought they were nothing special.
Suddenly, he noticed another uninvited guest. Looking over, he saw a white-haired old man standing on a rooftop.
Youpi was certain this old man was also one of the invaders. Strangely, however, the old man exuded not a shred of fighting intent.
This old man was Zeno, who had just escorted Netero and the King away. According to the contract terms, his task was complete. So, he was hesitating whether to lend aid to Morel and Kite, who are now trapped in a dead end.
Because he leaned towards not intervening, Youpi couldn't sense any fighting intent from him.
...
Fighting powerful enemies is the fastest path to improvement.
Pitou had lost an arm but had immediately developed a new ability beneficial for the ensuing battle.
That severed arm was now under Law's foot, fragments of light continuously dispersing from it.
Pitou wasn't stupid and quickly sensed something was amiss. While the puzzle remained unsolved, she withdrew the Aura Output from her severed arm.
Immediately, she saw Law showed a faint smile. Then, that formidable human actually retreated, putting distance between them.
'His ability...?'
Pitou's eyes held doubt, the confusion that arose after her arm was severed. The next second, she received an explanation.
In front of Pitou, Law summoned the book, sealed the severed arm inside, and without hesitation, enacted punishment.
Squelch!
A torrent of blood immediately gushed from Pitou's severed arm.
'It doesn't matter!'
At that moment, Pitou's eyes resembled finely honed, sharp blades.
'Stitch, bind.'
The thought barely formed. The Terpsichora floating behind her moved its fingers, stopping the bleeding from her severed arm.
Then, she took the initiative to attack, choosing the most dangerous trajectory… an aerial path.
She soared into the air, like a cat gathering all its strength for a leap.
Being airborne meant an inability to change direction mid-flight, making it especially perilous without absolute confidence.
Law raised his hand. The book instantly vanished, and Shin materialized in his grasp in a flash.
He didn't summon the White General. Instead, he teleported forward over ten meters, then leaped lightly into the air, swinging his blade to sever Pitou's other arm.
He could have aimed for the neck, but Law chose the arm. The reason was that after cutting off Pitou's first arm, she had likely gained some awareness of his Nen Ability.
If he tried to decapitate her, Pitou would probably be able to control her body without pause, executing a perfect counterattack.
Just as the long blade was about to strike Pitou's arm, the sharp puppet floating behind her moved its palm. Pitou then performed an unnatural mid-air directional change on her aerial path, evading Law's slash.
Immediately after, her body traced a 'V' shaped trajectory. She raised her only remaining right arm, thrusting her claws towards the empty left side of Law's chest.
If this claw pierced through, it could instantly shred his internal organs.
Pitou's bizarre aerial maneuver surprised Law, but he still responded in time.
The White General instantly conjured!
Using a method similar to [Homeward], regardless of whether Law's blade hit or missed, he could then summon the White General for a second phase of defense or offense.
One swing of the blade sent Pitou flying.
In that single exchange, Law concentrated Aura into his eyes, calmly observing the Terpsichora above Pitou's head.
The White General's slash had struck Pitou's claws because the Terpsichora had adjusted Pitou's attack in time. Otherwise, that slash should have struck Pitou's arm bone.
Faintly, Law saw a shadow of the White General in the Terpsichora's usage.
In a sense, the White General was Law's shadow, manifesting when necessary to give the enemy the feeling of fighting two.
That Terpsichora controlling Pitou also seemed like Pitou's shadow, used with a divided mind, increasing the margin for error in combat.
'You deliberately used In to conceal the Terpsichora's presence to hide a weakness, right? In that case, you should have set stricter conditions so enemies couldn't see the Terpsichora at all.'
Law thought to himself.
In just one exchange, he had discovered a weakness of the Terpsichora.