"Your life was pushed to the brink, and now your Fishman bloodline has awakened? So you've gone berserk."
Aaron spoke flatly as he watched Yashika, the half–whale shark Fishwoman bare her monstrous eyes.
Through his Kenbunshoku Haki (Observation Haki), Aaron could clearly sense that her aura had grown stronger after losing control. But to him, it made no difference, she had no chance of turning this fight around.
Yashika had already been gravely wounded, and now trapped within a prison of ice, her body was riddled with frostbite. Even after breaking free, her entire frame trembled, muscles stiff from the cold. Even if this rampage allowed her to momentarily burst beyond her limits, being able to fight at half her normal strength would already be impressive.
Her intelligence had clearly dropped; Yashika was no longer herself. She had become a wild, bloodthirsty beast, completely unaware of how dire her situation truly was.
"I'll kill you!"
The moment she escaped, she raised her massive, spiked club and charged at Aaron, the enemy who had nearly ended her life screaming with hatred.
But no matter how furious she was, Yashika couldn't ignore the condition of her body.
Frozen stiff, she could barely move. Each step was slow and unsteady. Even lifting her weapon was an ordeal, she dragged the heavy club across the ground as she advanced.
All of it laid bare just how weak she had become.
"Pathetic. You might as well die."
Aaron sounded disappointed as he looked at her weakened form.
In the next instant, he raised his left hand, preparing to unleash Snow Prison once again, this time to end the life of the Dars Gang officer for good.
"Please, wait, show mercy, Mr. Aaron. This round… our Dars Gang surrenders."
Suddenly, a cool, gentle voice echoed directly within Aaron's mind. The sound carried a strange allure, an almost magical power that made him want to obey.
But Aaron was a man who had crawled out of hell itself; his willpower was iron. He broke free from the influence in an instant.
Even so, he dropped the idea of killing Yashika outright. Instead, he froze her lower body in place with Snow Prison, keeping her from moving any further, all while continuing to control the snow beast Labon to keep attacking the recovering Winters.
Then Aaron's eyes flashed red. He turned toward the crowd and locked onto a silver-haired woman sitting in a wheelchair.
She was bundled up in thick winter clothing, her head covered by a heavy fur-lined hood. Only her silver hair and half her face were visible.
Yet even with just half her features showing, anyone could tell she was a beauty.
Those rare violet eyes shimmered like liquid amethyst, deep and soulful. Her silver hair flowed like silk, and her pale skin gleamed with a soft, porcelain glow.
But her body was clearly frail. The woman had just used some kind of ability on Aaron, and though he broke free almost instantly, the backlash hit her hard, she started coughing violently, blood staining the white mask over her face.
The maids beside her turned pale with alarm. They quickly fetched medicine and warm water, helping her drink as gently as possible.
When the mask came off, her face was finally revealed and she was indeed breathtaking. A beauty capable of toppling kingdoms.
For a moment, the crowd was stunned. Regardless of age or gender, everyone who saw her face felt their hearts stir and an irresistible urge to protect her. Hearts practically turned into hearts-in-eyes.
A peerless beauty.
That was the only phrase that could describe her.
Even Aaron found himself quietly acknowledging her beauty on par with the most stunning woman he'd ever seen: Boa Hancock.
Yet they were two very different kinds of perfection. If Hancock was a crimson rose, passionate, dangerous, and seductive then this silver-haired woman was a snow lotus blooming atop a frozen peak: pure, elegant, and untouchable.
Aaron, however, wasn't the kind of man who lost composure before a beautiful face like Sanji. His gaze stayed cold, devoid of infatuation; in fact, he looked at her as one would at a deadly beast.
He recognized her. She was Sofia, the daughter of the Dars Gang's leader, Dars himself.
Dars was infamous throughout Vilia Port for being utterly obsessed with his daughter. If anything were to happen to this delicate-looking silver-haired girl, that man, a powerhouse said to rival Akio and Reggie would lose his mind.
And Aaron knew firsthand how terrifying those two veterans, Akio and Reggie, were. Their Busoshoku Haki (Armament Haki) had reached the level of internal destruction. Even though age had dulled their prime, they could still summon terrifying bursts of their former strength.
At their peak, Akio and Reggie had been comparable to elite Vice Admirals of the Marine Headquarters, the kind that stood just beneath the highest echelons.
If Dars was said to match them, then his strength was unquestionably of that same level.
Aaron had easily defeated Yashika and Winters, but judging from their auras, both were roughly at the level of a Marine Headquarters Colonel, similar to Horton. Aaron himself, who beat them without using full power, likely stood at the elite Headquarters Captain tier.
Which meant there were still several tiers separating him from Dars.
From the intelligence Aaron had gathered through Shuma, he'd concluded that Dars was a "daughter-obsessed madman" who would go to any lengths to protect Sofia, and his methods were extreme.
Years ago, Dars had unleashed a pack of wolves to annihilate an entire 2,000-man army of the Drum Kingdom all because its commander, an arrogant noble, had dared flirt with Sofia in public. That same night, the man was torn to pieces.
Just for a single lewd remark, the noble and his soldiers were wiped from existence.
It was madness but it showed just how far this father would go.
Since then, no one in Drum Kingdom had ever dared utter a word of disrespect toward the silver-haired beauty.
And now, standing before a woman who could instantly provoke Dars' wrath, Aaron knew he had to tread carefully.
Unpredictable people were the ones he despised and feared the most. And Dars was exactly that kind of man. A mad wolf. One Aaron could not afford to provoke.
"Mr. Aaron," the woman spoke softly, her voice as gentle as falling snow.
"I am Sofia. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. Please take care of me."
Her face had regained a hint of color after taking the medicine. Hands on her wheelchair, she glided forward with two maids at her sides, gazing at Aaron's formidable presence without flinching and smiled.
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