[Goa Kingdom – Royal Capital Guard]
"Duke Outlook assassinated the king and prince? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"His entire family has been executed?"
"No! Your Highness, you must have been deceived! How could Duke Outlook ever commit treason?"
"I don't believe it! Everyone, charge! Kill the traitors and protect the princess!"
........
The entire Royal Capital Guard had begun to split into three distinct factions.
There were those still confused about the situation, standing still in a daze—the neutral faction.
Then there were those loyal to the princess, determined to protect her—the royalist faction.
And finally, there were those loyal to Outlook III—his trusted officers and sworn fighters, forming the rebel faction.
Among them were even distant relatives of Outlook.
They refused to believe the news that the Duke had been killed.
Dressed in resplendent attire, Princess Sarie appeared with Noah atop a building not far from the rebel troops, surrounded by a swarm of soldiers.
"My king, could you show your heroic might?"
Princess Sarie wanted to stabilize the chaos in the royal capital quickly, and at the same time, elevate Noah's image.
She needed to cut through the turmoil like a sharp blade.
After all, this man—her future king—could not be just some common rogue.
He had to be a powerful hero.
"So many soldiers... that's a bit of a challenge."
"But not much."
Noah, wearing noble attire with a long sword at his waist, looked relaxed as he stepped forward toward the raging rebels.
"He's the schemer who tricked the princess! Kill him!"
The rebel commander, Ampera, immediately ordered his men to open fire. A storm of bullets and cannon shells rained down on Noah in an instant.
"Oi~! Concentrated fire like this is definitely my weakness."
Noah's eyes sparkled. Taking a deep breath, he allowed the bullets and shells to tear through his body.
"Is he dead? What an idiot!"
Ampera burst out laughing. He hadn't expected the flamboyant enemy to go down so easily.
When Noah had first appeared with such a masterful aura, Ampera had truly been intimidated. But now it seemed he had frightened himself over nothing.
Looking at Noah's figure, now swallowed by fire and smoke, Ampera's eyes gleamed.
If Outlook III and his family were truly gone, as a distant relative, could he inherit the duke's power?
Maybe even marry the princess and become the new king?
The thought made Ampera's breath grow heavy, his eyes turning bloodshot as he stared feverishly at the princess in the distance.
He couldn't believe he was this close to reaching the top.
"Commander! He's still alive!"
"He's a monster! A monster!"
"Could he be a Logia-type Devil Fruit user?"
"Like that freak, Captain Smoker from Loguetown?"
........
Panic spread among the rebels. Their bullets had failed. Their enemy was an untouchable Logia-type?
Ampera's body broke out in cold sweat.
How could someone in the Goa Kingdom possess such a terrifying Devil Fruit?
How were they supposed to win now? Even the most powerful artillery was useless against him.
Shouldn't monsters like this be serving as high-ranking navy officers—or terrorizing the seas as pirates?
Why here?
Why in the Goa Kingdom?
Noah's figure flickered through the smoke, completely unscathed.
As the thunder of cannons ceased, he raised a hand and summoned a strange, formless field that engulfed the rebel troops.
°Domain: Banishment°
To the shock of Princess Sarie and the royalists, the rebels began vanishing—one after another.
Noah charged in right after.
"That's the same strange power!"
Princess Sarie's eyes sparkled with excitement. Back in the palace, Noah had used this same ability to make palace guards vanish, then strike them down one by one as they reappeared.
But this time, he had made hundreds of soldiers vanish all at once.
"Where's Commander Ampera and the rest of the soldiers?"
Royalists and neutral officers stared in fear at the vanishing rebels.
A chill crept up their spines.
This mysterious fiancé could not only ignore bullets—he could make people disappear entirely.
Terrifying.
Moments later.
As Noah reached the rebels' last positions, a soldier suddenly reappeared—only to be instantly cut down by Noah's waiting blade, blood spraying everywhere.
Another followed—reappeared only to be hacked down in a single stroke.
Then another.
And another.
One by one, the rebels reappeared like NPCs respawning, only to be ruthlessly slain by Noah's blade.
The spectacle left the royalists and neutral guards utterly horrified.
.......
From the rebels' perspective, all they saw was Noah raising his hand—then suddenly appearing right beside them and cutting them down.
Just pain and confusion before blacking out.
Bullets didn't work. He could teleport. How could they win?
Where had all their comrades gone?
If only they had known the horror that awaited, they would never have followed General Ampera into rebellion.
If they could live their lives again, they would never have served the Oteluke family.
........
The slaughter continued.
Noah struck down the rebels like they were nothing more than freshly spawned monsters.
Blood flowed freely, pooling into streams across the ground.
Until finally, Ampera reappeared—only to be pierced through the heart by a single thrust of Noah's blade.
Noah's breathing was heavy, and even his hands trembled slightly from the effort. Maintaining his power while cutting down hundreds of men had drained him.
Luckily, the Goa Kingdom's guards had no masters of Haki. Otherwise, Noah might've truly met his end today.
He still hadn't mastered this Devil Fruit power, but even so, he had already far surpassed its previous wielder.
"You're a devil…"
Ampera clutched the blood-soaked blade in his chest, staring at Noah in terror.
All around him were corpses. Not a single standing soldier remained.
How was this possible? All in an instant?
His men—himself—all wiped out.
He had only seen Noah raise his hand...How did everyone end up dead? Even he had been stabbed before he could react.
As Noah pulled the blade free, blood sprayed again, and Ampera collapsed. His eyes were full of regret and confusion.
Why would someone like this appear in the Goa Kingdom?
His royal ambitions were shattered.
The dream of marrying the princess and becoming king—gone.
Clang!
Noah looked down at his now-dulled blade and tossed it aside with a sharp metallic ring.
"Oi. Clean this up."
He looked like a demon, drenched in blood, shouting at the trembling neutral and royalist soldiers.
As Noah approached, looking like a walking corpse, even Princess Sarie—who had already accepted him as her fiancé—couldn't help but feel fear and unease.
This man, who killed soldiers like slaughtering chickens—
He was terrifying.
"Clean up the rebels!"
Sarie shouted, her voice cracking as she commanded the soldiers around her.
The neutral and royalist guards scrambled, crawling and stumbling to obey the princess's orders, carefully avoiding Noah.
No one dared to get too close, fearing a stray swing from that demon's blade.
"Noah, your clothes... they're dirty. Let's go change quickly."
Sarie tried her best to smile as she looked at Noah's blood-drenched form, her voice trembling like a frightened fawn.
All she had wanted was for him to show some strength to calm the situation.
She had never imagined such a brutal massacre.
"Is this enough to take control of the military?" Noah gave a faint smile. His breathing was finally slowing.
Banishment and the slaughter of five hundred men had taken a toll.
But in his hands, this ability had finally shown its true brilliance. He never expected to pull off something like Rob Lucci's legendary five-hundred-man kill today.
Now, his name might soon stand alongside Lucci and Judge as a ruthless legend.
"Yes. Absolutely."
Sarie nodded like a pecking chick, forcing herself to stay calm.
Shaking, she clung to Noah's bloodstained arm and led him back to the palace for a bath and a change of clothes.