The battle on the plaza was developing in a way Garling had never imagined.
Standing behind the God's Knights' front line, he watched helplessly as his colleagues were, one after another, riddled with holes by Yu's armor-piercing bullets, torn to pieces by Four Gay Bros, and bitten bloody by Beam's massive shark jaws.
Then, the wounds healed.
Then, they were torn open again.
Then, they healed again.
And torn open again.
Garling's temples throbbed violently.
Even he, who had always been accustomed to arrogance, couldn't help but feel a hint of fear at this moment.
These people were truly insane.
"Aaaaarrggh!"
"Aaaarrgh!"
"Aaarrggh!"
"Aaaarrggh!"
"Aaaarggh—"
Another scream erupted on the plaza.
Garling's head snapped around, only to see the Rabbit Devil riding on top of a God's Knights' member, grabbing both of the man's arms with his hands and yanking them violently like tearing off chicken legs.
Rip!
Both arms were torn off at the roots, blood gushing out like a spring.
The God's Knights' member's body twisted in agony as new flesh buds began to sprout from the stumps.
The Rabbit Devil looked at the two arms slowly regenerating and tilted his head.
"How come it seems a bit slower than before? Is the recovery speed tied to stamina?"
He crouched down, leaned close to the God's Knights' member's face, and said with a grin, "No rush, take your time growing them. We have all the time in the world to play."
For the first time, a look of despair appeared in the God's Knights' member's eyes.
Garling's fists clenched with a crackling sound.
He saw—
The Teddy Devil pinning a God's Knights' member to the ground, his nails slicing open the man's chest, breaking his ribs one by one, disassembling the man's body like unwrapping a gift.
The Dolphin Devil using sonic attacks to shatter a God's Knights' member's internal organs, then shattering them again as they regrew.
The Gorilla Devil sticking his finger into a God's Knights' member's mouth, pushing it all the way up and out through a certain spot with a pop. Amidst the member's screams, a candied hawthorn skewer was made.
Beam couldn't help but roll his eyes.
He could now understand why his own growth rate wasn't as fast as these four guys'.
Devils derive their power from human fear. In other words, the more afraid humans are, the stronger they become.
Compared to these four, he was still far too normal.
Garling's heartbeat uncontrollably quickened.
Not to mention that their immortal bodies had a weakness-
Even if they didn't, they could still feel pain, and couldn't withstand such perverse torture!
Garling's gaze began to frantically scan the battlefield, searching for any opportunity to turn the tide.
Then, he saw it.
At the edge of the plaza, beside the ruins of the collapsed white castle.
Makoto was standing in front of a small, ragged, fat slave boy.
The kid looked no more than seven or eight. Although thin, his naturally broad frame gave a deceptive impression of sturdiness.
His face was covered in blood and dirt, his hands and feet bound with slave shackles.
He was looking up at Makoto with a complex expression, mumbling something.
Garling's eyes lit up.
He quickly charged out of the formation, sprinting towards Makoto.
Yu was the first to notice Garling's sudden movement.
'Trying to sneak attack Senpai?'
He raised both heavy machine gun arms simultaneously, aiming the barrels at the speeding figure.
Bang bang bang bang bang—
Armor-piercing bullets poured out like a storm.
Garling neither dodged nor slowed down.
The bullets pierced his shoulders, arms, abdomen, and thighs, exploding in succession.
The intense pain made Garling grit his teeth, but he continued his sprint at top speed.
Yu frowned.
Because he realized that the bastard's target didn't seem to be Makoto, but rather...
Whoosh—
Garling's figure swept past Makoto.
Then, he grabbed the small, fat slave boy by the collar and pressed his sword against the boy's neck.
The blade pressed against the tender skin, a thin line of blood seeping out.
"Don't move!" Garling's voice held a hint of hysterical madness.
"Or I'll kill him!"
The atmosphere at the scene instantly froze.
Yu's gun barrels stopped.
Beam seemed to witness something unbelievable, his mouth agape.
Four Gay Bros also froze.
They all looked in unison at the blonde-haired Celestial Dragon, holding the small, fat slave boy with one hand and pressing the sword to his neck with the other, a standard 'villainous' smile plastered on his face.
Then, everyone showed expressions like they were looking at an idiot.
The Teddy Devil tilted his head: "What's this guy doing?"
The Dolphin Devil: "Is he brain-damaged?"
The Gorilla Devil scratched his head: "Why would he think a hostage would work on Boss?"
The Rabbit Devil laughed out loud: "Hahahahaha, is he serious?"
But Garling was completely unaware of the gravity of the situation.
Seeing Makoto stop, he thought his threat had worked.
His smile grew even more smug.
"Don't move," Garling's voice carried a confident certainty of victory.
"Or this kid is fin—"
He didn't finish.
Gray-black energy ribs suddenly materialized on Makoto's body surface.
Susanoo.
Not the Complete Body Form, just the most basic, incomplete form.
Several ribs enveloped Makoto's body, and bone arms emerged from the sides of the ribs.
The bone hands opened.
A magatama-shaped energy body condensed in the palm.
Yasaka Magatama.
Garling's expression changed drastically.
He had no time to think, kicking the small, fat slave boy away, while simultaneously wrapping his sword in Armament Haki and raising it to block.
Boom!!!
The Yasaka Magatama fell.
The explosion erupted at the edge of the plaza. Fire shot into the sky, debris flew, and the shockwave spread outward, tearing up layers of the white stone floor.
Garling was blasted backwards, crashing into the collapsed palace ruins behind him, embedding himself into the rubble.
His sword was shattered.
His arms were blackened.
His head… gone.
From the neck up, empty.
And the small, fat slave boy, Bartholomew Kuma, who had been kicked away, was also caught in the explosion's aftermath.
His round body was tossed into the air like a ragdoll, then crashed heavily to the ground, rolling several times before stopping.
His skin was charred black, his clothes were almost torn to shreds, and his exposed body was covered in burns and cuts.
His eyes were half-open, his pupils already beginning to lose focus.
"...Ni... ka..."
Kuma's lips moved, his voice so weak it was barely audible.
He was calling that name.
The name his father had told him about, the legendary liberator who would come dancing to save him.
Even at this moment, he was calling that name.
And Makoto, from beginning to end, did not spare him another glance.
His gaze fell on Garling, watching as new flesh buds sprouted from the neck stump of the blonde-haired Celestial Dragon… the head slowly regenerating.
His expression was like watching a clown show.
A full ten seconds passed.
Finally, Garling's head grew back.
He panted heavily, looking at Makoto with bloodshot eyes, incredulous.
"You... don't you have any humanity at all?" Garling's voice trembled.
He had used the hostage-taking tactic countless times before, and it had always worked flawlessly.
The opponent would often show an opening because of it.
Sometimes they would even give up resisting entirely, letting him do as he pleased.
But this approach of Makoto's, with killing the enemy and the hostage together… he was truly seeing it for the first time.