If that were really the case, then this misunderstanding would be far too beautiful!!
Looking at Sophia, who was still sleeping soundly despite the continuous screams outside the hall, Arashi shook his head and smiled.
It was hard to imagine that this quiet, docile Sophia had been so wildly passionate just moments ago!
"Help!!!"
Suddenly, a heart-wrenching scream rang out from outside the door.
Immediately after, the palace doors were violently slammed open, and several disheveled figures rushed inside.
The moment he saw the figure at the very front, Arashi's eyes widened.
At the same time, the crashing doors startled Sophia awake.
Still groggy, she slowly opened her beautiful eyes and instinctively looked toward the entrance. But the instant her gaze landed there, her entire body stiffened as if struck by lightning.
The one who had burst in was none other than Topkapı III, who had forced his way here under the protection of several guards.
With his own chambers completely overrun by bats, Topkapı III had no choice but to flee blindly under his guards' protection—and by sheer chance, he had ended up here!
Originally intending to hide in this room, he never could have imagined that an even greater "surprise" awaited him.
Seeing Queen Sophia leaning beside Arashi, her face still carrying a lingering, unmistakable allure, Topkapı III froze for a full ten seconds before finally snapping back to his senses.
"Y-you… you…"
The moment realization hit, he exploded in rage, pointing at the two of them as he stammered incoherently,
"You shameless—ah!!! Sophia… how could you treat your king like this… Guards! Seize them—seize them both!!!"
"Ahhh!!!"
Before he could finish, the guards who had escorted him suddenly let out bloodcurdling screams, only to be swallowed whole by a surging swarm of black bats.
Seeing this, Topkapı III vomited a mouthful of blood on the spot and collapsed, unconscious.
"Well then…"
Arashi blinked as he looked at the old king lying there, having coughed up blood and fainted. Then he turned to Sophia, who was still in a daze, and asked,
"This old geezer… he didn't just die from anger, did he?"
"Uh…"
Sophia had never imagined that her affair with Arashi would be discovered by the king. At this point, she no longer cared about what was happening outside. As she hurriedly got dressed, she spoke anxiously,
"Arashi, w-what do we do now? If this gets out… we'll be executed!"
She was truly panicking.
If this matter were exposed, execution itself wouldn't even be the worst part—the real horror was that her reputation as queen would be completely ruined.
Arashi said nothing and instead walked over to Topkapı III.
Although the old man wasn't dead yet, he was already on the brink of death.
However, it was clear he hadn't fainted from anger alone—on his way here, he had suffered quite a few attacks. Even with his guards risking their lives to protect him, those strange bats had been far too numerous, seeping in through every possible opening.
Under such circumstances, the fact that this elderly king had managed to flee all the way from his chambers to here was already no small feat.
"These bats…"
After examining the king's injuries, Arashi quickly stood and walked to the entrance. Seeing the sky outside filled with swarming black bats, he couldn't be entirely certain—but he had already guessed the truth.
At that moment, Sophia, now fully dressed, came to his side.
Clothed once more, she regained her regal composure—elegant and dignified. Though her expression still carried traces of panic, she perfectly embodied the bearing of a queen.
"Arashi, w-what exactly is going on?"
Looking at the endless swarm of bats outside, Sophia frowned in worry. "Is it a pirate attack?"
Arashi glanced at her—her soft beauty now wrapped in noble grace—and suddenly smiled.
"Whether it's pirates or some other nation causing trouble, one thing is certain," he said lightly. "That old king is beyond saving. So you don't need to worry about our little secret being exposed."
"You're impossible!"
Sophia lightly punched him, exasperated. "At a time like this, you're still thinking about that?!"
"I don't mind," Arashi shrugged. "You're the one who does."
Sophia fell silent, momentarily at a loss.
Indeed, compared to the bizarre swarm of bats outside, she cared far more about their affair—but the current situation was clearly far more serious than that.
"If the king dies suddenly…"
Arashi didn't seem particularly concerned about the fate of the kingdom. After a brief pause, he turned to Sophia and asked seriously,
"Who inherits the throne? His heirs… or…"
"He… he has no heirs!"
Sophia shook her head. "Actually… before I entered the palace, the king had already lost that ability. That's also why he created the Death Marathon game—to seek stimulation."
"I see…"
A sinister smile slowly spread across Arashi's face.
"So that's why you were so wild last night."
"Chi—chi—chi—!"
Before his words even finished, countless black bats suddenly descended from the sky, sweeping toward Arashi and Sophia in an instant.
"Ah!"
Frightened by the incoming swarm, Sophia leapt straight into Arashi's arms.
The moment she did, a dizzying, piercing sound tore through the air. Immediately after, a nearly tangible shockwave burst outward from Arashi in all directions.
Wherever it passed, the bats were instantly blown apart—only to dissolve into shadows and vanish.
"Hm?"
As Arashi released his Conqueror's Haki and watched the bats scatter and disappear, realization dawned on him.
These weren't real bats… they were shadows!
With that, he could now be certain who was behind the attack on Constantin City.
The user of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit—
Gecko Moria.
In the original story, after being defeated by Kaido in the New World, this guy once appeared in the West Blue and plundered a kingdom before dragging Thriller Bark into the Florian Triangle.
Though the original didn't specify which kingdom he attacked, that detail no longer mattered.
What mattered was—
This "loser in life," Gecko Moria… had appeared.
Extra chapters are already prepared… waiting to be unleashed.
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