Now, as for York.
He and Gunko, carrying the unconscious Nightin, smoothly returned to the high-end hotel where they had previously booked their stay.
The hotel owner didn't dare pay too much attention to the Flame Emperor's comings and goings, but as they passed the lobby, he couldn't help but nervously glance a few times at the new woman York was carrying over his shoulder.
'How many has it been now?!' the owner thought, wiping sweat from his brow.
Entering their lavish suite, York gently laid Nightin down on the soft tatami mats.
As Byrnndi World's veteran crewmate and ship doctor, Nightin was actually quite old, an elderly woman even older than Vice Admiral Tsuru. However, her mastery of Kempo and herbal medicine meant she was miraculously well-preserved.
Aside from her relatively ordinary facial features, her figure was highly curvaceous, her waist slender, her legs round and long, and even her skin was still incredibly firm and supple.
York leaned in, gently sniffing the faint fragrance naturally emanating from her body. There was the subtle scent of cosmetics, but far more dominantly, a light, elegant, and highly complex herbal aroma. Besides that, York's heightened senses unexpectedly caught a faint, unmistakable scent of purity.
He raised an eyebrow slightly, genuinely surprised that a seasoned pirate like Nightin, at her age, had never been with a man.
"Well, this certainly isn't bad either," York murmured with a wicked smirk.
York reached out and casually, gently stroked Nightin's long legs. They were warm, smooth, and beneath the soft skin, there were surprisingly dense, powerful muscle groups honed from decades of martial arts.
Nightin's tightly closed eyelashes trembled slightly.
She had actually woken up on the way here.
One reason she remained completely still was out of sheer shyness and preservation. Although she was not young in years, she had absolutely never had such intimate contact with a man before, and she couldn't bring herself to violently struggle while being carried through a public lobby.
The second, far more tactical reason was to secretly look for an opening to strike.
Captain World was currently locked in a tough fight, and although the apocalyptic clash of Haki between York and Whitebeard had made her clearly aware of the insurmountable power gap between herself and the Flame Emperor, sometimes even the strongest individuals could stumble in the gutter if caught off guard.
This was especially true since she was an master of traditional herbal medicine and poisons. Even though she appeared to be simply dressed and seemed to have brought no weapons, hidden in various concealed seams of her clothing were concentrated herbal powders that could produce devastating effects.
As long as these specific herbal powders were mixed in certain proportions in the air, she could instantly create poisonous clouds that would cause victims to experience various lethal, abnormal states. Against specialized poison, no matter how physically strong an individual was, raw power was often rendered completely meaningless.
So, she firmly believed she still had a certain, calculated chance to successfully ambush York.
However, what the veteran doctor never expected was this.
When York laid her down on the tatami mat and his sinful hand began to casually touch her leg, a strange, overwhelming impulse instantly began to rise violently within her core.
As a master of medicine and biology, she naturally knew exactly what this physiological impulse meant. But precisely because of her medical knowledge, she found it even more horrifying and unbelievable.
How could she possibly feel aroused by a terrifying enemy like York?!
'Damn it! It's his Devil Fruit ability!!' Nightin realized in sheer panic, desperately recalling York's Underworld titles and the dark rumors about his powers from the Rocks era.
'What an absolutely vile and vulgar ability!!'
She cursed him viciously inward, yet outwardly, she still had to forcibly maintain a flawless facade of unconsciousness, which was quickly becoming pure, physical agony.
York's lips curved upward. He had actually known about Nightin's awakening for quite a while through his Observation Haki.
But just like Nightin's deliberate feigned sleep, he also playfully pretended not to know. He simply admired Nightin's alluring, tense body while continuously, silently injecting his aura into the room.
Gradually, Nightin's brilliant brain no longer had the extra cognitive energy to think about complex herbal mixtures or escape plans; she had to invest all her energy and bodily instincts into simply resisting the overwhelming tide of euphoria.
At the same time, York no longer stopped at merely teasing her; he reached forward and began to unbutton her collar.
Nightin desperately wanted to stop him, to strike his pressure points, but her body was impossibly soft and weak. Her logical mind had to fight a losing war against her own biological instincts; if she relaxed her focus for even a fraction of a second, she had a terrifying premonition that she might completely succumb in an instant.
York, a dark smile playing on his lips, unbuttoned Nightin's top, and her proud figure, previously hidden by her clothes, was fully revealed before him.
Nightin could absolutely no longer hold back. She wouldn't pretend anymore; she would erupt right now, throw her powders, and defeat York!!
However, when she aggressively opened her eyes to glare at him and attempted to let out a sharp, commanding battle cry, the sound that actually escaped her lips turned into a soft, breathless moan.
"Awake?" York smiled, looking down at her flushed face.
Nightin's beautiful eyes were completely clouded with emotion. Defeated by her own body, her hands actively, desperately hooked around York's neck. She raised her head and actively pulled York down, crashing her lips against his.
From this moment on, everything else in the room needed no further description.
Only Gunko, sitting quietly at the nearby tea table, rolled her heterochromatic eyes in annoyance.
"We were supposed to go on a romantic date and have fun at the festival," Gunko grumbled to herself, sipping her tea. "How is this any different from just being at home?!"
"Hoo... hoo... hoo..."
Byrnndi World was gasping for air, his chest heaving with mouthful after mouthful of oxygen.
He had never, in his wildest nightmares, imagined that one day he, the World Destroyer, would truly be physically held back and stalled by three nameless brats.
Across from him in the decimated crater of the arena.
The Vanguard trio of King, Bullet, and Katakuri were actually in a significantly worse physical state than World. Except for King—whose invincible Lunarian biology ensured he was only severely exhausted and hadn't sustained any lasting internal injuries—Bullet and Katakuri were practically gravely wounded, covered in blood and bruises.
However, their eyes were exceptionally bright and burning with ferocity at this moment.
By relying entirely on their true strength, flawless teamwork, and sheer, unbreakable willpower, they had successfully managed to stop an old-era powerhouse like Byrnndi World dead in his tracks!
Even if they hadn't outright defeated him, merely achieving a bloody draw and surviving against his 100x speed represented a monumental, world-shaking accomplishment for their martial growth!!
One must know, they weren't even fully adults yet, and their physical strength and Haki were still in their initial growth phases, far, far from reaching their theoretical peaks.
"You three damn brats!!"
World cursed angrily, spitting a glob of blood onto the rubble. After recovering a tiny fraction of his stamina, he prepared to once again launch a high-speed attack.
Now, his tactical mindset was no longer simply about brutally defeating the trio for his pride.
Because Nightin had been captured by the Flame Emperor, nearly a full day had passed since she was taken. He was incredibly worried about what indescribable, horrific things York might do to his loyal doctor.
So, he not only had to defeat the three brats standing in front of him, but he also had to capture them alive! He would use the Vanguards as high-value hostages to physically exchange for Nightin with York!!
King and the others, of course, didn't know about World's desperate change of mind. But even if they did, they absolutely wouldn't care. With their Captain currently residing on this very island, they possessed absolute confidence: even if they were defeated, no one in the world could actually kill them!!
Driven by this unbreakable confidence, a new, brutal round of close-quarters combat erupted once again.
Time passed minute by agonizing minute, and unconsciously, it was finally midnight.
Byrnndi World was half-kneeling on the shattered ground, his breathing rasping like a broken bellows.
'Just a little more!' World roared internally. 'Just a little more speed, and I can completely break these three brats in front of me!!'
He tried with all his legendary might to stand up, but his overtaxed muscles completely failed him halfway, and he sank back down heavily to a half-kneeling position, his vision blurring.
Across from him, King and the others were in a highly similar state.
Bullet and Katakuri were completely lying flat on their backs in the rubble, their Haki reserves utterly drained. Only King could still stand, his sword planted in the earth, barely confronting World.
However, King was actually just putting on a brave front; the flames on his back had extinguished, and he was maintaining his standing posture purely by sheer, terrifying willpower.
However, just as the two exhausted sides were finally about to determine the absolute victor, the battlefield was suddenly illuminated.
Dozens of blinding, high-intensity Marine searchlights suddenly cut through the darkness, shining directly from a massive fleet of warships that had silently surrounded the sea not far away.
"PIRATES ON THE ISLAND!! YOU ARE COMPLETELY SURROUNDED!!" a amplified voice boomed across the entire island.
"SURRENDER NOW WHILE YOU STILL CAN!!"
"IF YOU REMAIN STUBBORN AND RESIST! WE WILL COMPLETELY FLATTEN THIS ENTIRE ISLAND WITH CANNON FIRE!!"
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