Crimson covered the sky.
Within a short time, the entire world had been cast beneath a dim red glow.
Not everyone had access to reliable information, and countless people had no idea what was happening.
To them, the unnatural color spreading across the heavens was simply an omen, one that filled them with instinctive unease.
Cyrus, however, had stopped expanding the phenomenon any farther.
He had considered doing this before, but actually carrying it out consumed far more energy than he expected.
Fortunately, the current range was already enough.
Cyrus poured his consciousness completely into the vast sea of temperatureless flame clouds.
His perception expanded with it until his senses were pushed to their absolute limit.
It was almost like looking down through the eyes of a god.
Everything beneath the crimson clouds entered his awareness.
"That's enough."
Purging the transformed demons had only been a convenient side benefit.
His real purpose had always been to frighten Imu.
He wanted to prove one thing beyond any doubt: if he truly decided to, he possessed the ability to deal with Imu's preparations on a massive scale in a very short time.
The Menos Grande carrying his flame seed had already moved elsewhere. Cyrus could sense that clearly.
Imu, meanwhile, remained in Mary Geoise.
Even from an enormous distance, Cyrus could feel the overwhelming Conqueror's Haki radiating from the Holy Land.
"So we had the same idea?"
As the thought crossed his mind, the crimson clouds stopped spreading and began contracting.
At first, the movement was almost imperceptibly slow.
Then it accelerated.
Faster and faster.
By the time the red clouds reached the skies above Mary Geoise, the enormous curtain that had covered much of the world collapsed inward in an instant, gathering around a single figure floating high above the Holy Land.
The flames formed something resembling a long, physical coat behind Cyrus, billowing violently in the high-altitude wind.
Below him, deep darkness seeped from the only surviving palace.
It churned and rolled as though alive, gradually gathering together until it formed the enormous shadow of a salamander-like creature coiled above the palace.
The monster lifted its head.
Its gaze met Cyrus's.
Their Conqueror's Haki collided.
Black lightning tore through the air as though ripping apart space itself.
The clash became so intense that the surrounding light seemed to vanish into it, leaving only a blinding brilliance at the point where their wills met.
"I knew it."
Cyrus smiled as he looked down at the creature confronting him.
"You were definitely hiding more abilities."
There was genuine amusement in his voice.
Imu's voice emerged from the black monster's mouth.
"I once believed we did not need to become enemies, Cyrus. You do not belong to this world. There was never any truly irreconcilable conflict between us."
"So you're saying that even after everything that happened, you still never considered me an enemy?"
Cyrus descended until he was level with the monster's eyes.
He did not believe a single word.
Imu was stalling for time.
Conveniently, so was he.
"Yes, Cyrus."
The black creature actually nodded.
"If I had personally acted against you at the beginning, perhaps you would never have survived until now."
That part, at least, was sincere.
After Cyrus first rose to prominence, the World Government had naturally gathered information about him
. Back then, although his strength had already been impressive, there was no guarantee he could defeat Garp or an Admiral.
That brief period had been the only time anyone could clearly estimate his limits.
Regret had become one of the most common emotions within the World Government afterward.
Why hadn't they acted then?
Why had they waited?
For a while, people asked themselves those questions constantly.
Unfortunately for them, that window had not lasted long.
Once Cyrus entered the Grand Line, events spiraled completely out of control.
From that point onward, no one knew exactly how powerful he had become.
They only knew one thing.
He never lost.
No matter who stood before him, Cyrus always won.
So when Imu spoke now, there was genuine regret buried beneath the words.
Cyrus, however, did not particularly care.
"Things rarely develop exactly the way people want."
He shrugged.
"It's true that I came from outside this world. But once someone reaches my level, what happens here is entirely up to what I feel like doing."
"I can do whatever I want."
"After all, none of you can stop me."
Imu fell silent.
The words were unpleasant, but impossible to refute.
This was Cyrus's personal view of the world, and once someone possessed his level of strength, very few people remained capable of changing that view.
The only person who could truly change Cyrus's mind was Cyrus himself.
"I know what you want me to do."
After a long silence, the dark creature spoke again.
"But what if I refuse?"
"What can you actually do?"
"I do not believe you truly care about nothing."
Cyrus grinned.
"Are you threatening me?"
He raised one hand.
"What do you think everything I did before this was for?"
A small flame appeared above his palm.
Unlike the crimson clouds that had covered the world, this fire did not suppress its heat.
Its temperature was horrifying.
Despite being no larger than a fist, it caused the surrounding air to heat rapidly.
Even the dark creature Imu had formed began shrinking under the intense heat as portions of its power were consumed simply resisting the temperature.
"For me, the only question is how much I'm willing to pay."
Cyrus's smile faded slightly.
"For you, the question is whether you live or die."
Whoosh!
The instant he finished speaking, a black ribbon shot toward him.
Clang!
A metallic impact rang through the sky.
The ribbon ended in a sharp arrowhead, but when it struck Cyrus directly in the chest, it simply bounced away.
Cyrus calmly brushed his clothes.
A hole no larger than a grain of rice had appeared in the fabric.
"Then let's fight first."
His smile returned.
"Test your abilities against mine. Who knows? Maybe—and I mean maybe—you really can defeat me."
"If you do, every problem you have disappears."
"And even if you can't beat me now, you'll probably get another chance before long."
Cyrus extended his right hand and closed his fingers around empty space.
Flames rapidly condensed into his grasp, forming a long blade glowing crimson.
Imu said nothing.
She simply attacked.
Countless black ribbons erupted from the darkness, moving with terrifying speed and force as they converged on Cyrus from every direction.
Boom!
Cyrus and the blade in his hand exploded beneath the barrage, scattering into flames.
Yet the black arrowheads did not lose track of him.
Instead, every one of them abruptly changed direction and pursued the same point.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The crimson blade reformed.
Cyrus spun it through the air, deflecting every incoming arrowhead in a blur of sparks and red light.
Still holding the sword, he turned his gaze back toward the enormous creature crouched upon the darkness above the palace.
"As expected."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"If you've lived this long, it makes sense that all three forms of your Haki would've reached a level where there's almost no room left to improve."
Cyrus was not surprised by Imu's strength.
She might be cautious to the point of cowardice, but she had lived for centuries.
Even an idiot given that much time would eventually become terrifyingly powerful.
And Imu had never been an idiot.
If she were, she would never have become the hidden ruler of the world hundreds of years ago.
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