"Thump!"
The lifeless body of the bandit hit the ground with a dull thud.
Suddenly, the rest of the crowd snapped back to their senses.
The Bandit King shot up from his seat, threw his wine glass to the floor in anger, and roared,
"Boom!"
"Kill them!"
At his command, the bandits stood up one after another, drawing their weapons and blades.
"Clang! Clang! Clang..."
A flurry of unsheathing echoed in the hall.
Dozens of sharp blades gleamed under the torchlight as the bandits raised their swords and shouted in unison—
"Cut them down!"
With the thunderous shout, they charged toward Kronos and Konan.
But Kronos remained completely unfazed.
"Clatter!"
As Kronos took a step forward, the force of gravity around them suddenly intensified.
"Om!!"
"Boom!!!"
In an instant, all the bandits who had just stood up collapsed to their knees.
"Plop! Plop! Plop..."
"Crack! Crack! Crack..."
"Urgh! Agh..."
Cries of pain echoed through the banquet hall.
Under the crushing force of Kronos' gravity, the bandits were flattened against the wooden floor, their bodies cracking under the pressure. Cracks like spider webs spread across the floor beneath them.
The weight on their shoulders was unbearable.
It became difficult even to breathe.
Kronos ignored them and continued walking toward the Bandit King.
Seeing his men utterly helpless, the Bandit King began to panic. He stumbled backward as Kronos approached, his eyes trembling with fear.
But he quickly realized—retreating wasn't an option.
The entrance was behind Kronos and Konan. To escape, he would have to go through them.
With this in mind, the Bandit King gritted his teeth, drew his long sword, and charged forward.
"Don't get cocky!"
"You bastard!!!"
But the Bandit King's movements seemed sluggish to Kronos, who now possessed Conqueror's Haki.
This wasn't like using Devil Fruit powers that needed to be explored and mastered over time.
The abilities granted by the system came fully formed—completely under his control from the start!
As the Bandit King rushed forward, Kronos didn't hesitate.
He drew the long sword at his waist.
"Clang!!"
"Shhh!!"
"Pfft!!"
With a swift flash of cold steel, the Bandit King's sword arm was cleanly severed and sent flying through the air.
Blood gushed like a fountain.
"Ssssshhh!!!"
"Aaaaaahh!!"
The Bandit King clutched the stump of his arm, collapsing to the ground, howling in agony.
A pool of blood quickly spread beneath him, staining the floor.
Kronos, still holding the blood-soaked sword, stepped forward.
His voice was cold.
"How many of you are there?"
He had no idea how many bandits remained inside the hideout.
He knew there were a lot—but not the exact number.
And if he planned to wipe them out, he had to be thorough.
No survivors.
He couldn't risk a bandit escaping and returning to harm Erica or her daughter.
But the Bandit King, despite his pain, only sneered.
With blood dripping from his mouth and his face contorted in rage, he glared up at Kronos.
"You'll pay for this, boy!" he rasped. "Not just you—Erica and her daughter will—"
Before he could finish, Kronos ended the conversation with a single slash.
"Shhh!!"
"Pfft!!"
The Bandit King's head rolled across the floor.
Kronos turned to the rest of the bandits, their faces now pale, trembling in silent terror.
None of them dared to move.
Walking up to one of them, Kronos asked again—
"How many of you are there?"
The bandit, shaking like a leaf, looked up at him with tears in his eyes.
"I... I don't know... I just joined—"
Before he could finish, Kronos brought his sword down, beheading him without mercy.
"Pfft!!"
He stepped toward the next one.
"Next."
This time, the bandit spoke quickly, head lowered.
"T-Thirty... Thirty-five people."
Kronos looked around the hall, counting in his mind.
There were currently thirty-eight people here. Add to that the five they'd already killed outside—
That made forty-three.
That should be the full count.
But still, he said coldly,
"The number's wrong."
With another slash, that bandit too was struck down.
"Pfft!!"
"Next!"
Just like that, Kronos continued asking.
Wrong answer? Dead.
No answer? Dead.
Even if they gave the right number, if they couldn't explain where the rest were? Dead.
Kronos cut them down, one by one.
No hesitation.
No mercy.
This didn't surprise him at all.
After all, these were lawless criminals who had terrorized the townsfolk, and felt invincible doing so.
They never thought anyone would come for them.
But now—they were prey.
That was enough.
Off to the side, Konan stood quietly, watching everything unfold with calm indifference.
She didn't think Kronos had done anything wrong.
If she had understood his intent earlier, she might not have let him act at all.
She would have finished it herself.
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