Chapter 351: Charlotte Linlin vs. Red Count (Part 1)
"Zephyr, huh? That makes sense. I heard he started a training program for new recruits… You must be from the first batch, right?"
Red Count raised an eyebrow, casually asking.
"Yes! Yes, senior!"
Borsalino kept both hands raised in surrender.
"And you—"
Red Count was about to continue when a deafening boom interrupted him.
"Hakai!!!"
A piercing female voice echoed across the battlefield.
Red Count's eyes narrowed instantly as he turned toward the source of the sound.
What greeted him was a massive wave of Conqueror's Haki surging toward the port like a crimson storm.
"Not good!"
Without sparing another glance at the natural-type Rear Admiral in front of him, Red Count disappeared in a blur, appearing instantly at the edge of the port.
He quickly wrapped himself in Conqueror's Haki, and with a single sweep of his umbrella, he unleashed:
"Crimson Slash!"
A dark-red wave of sword energy clashed directly with the massive crimson strike.
CLANG!
A thunderous impact rattled the air.
"Who's there?!"
A sharp voice rang out again.
Up in the sky, Charlotte Linlin descended—crowned with Prometheus, wielding Napoleon, and standing atop Zeus. She glared down at the Red Count with disdain.
She had been observing the battle on Kamei Island from her ship all along.
But as it dragged on toward its end, she lost patience.
Unable to resist her greed for the electric cannons she had seen, she launched herself straight toward Kamei Island.
She hadn't even looked at the pirates down below—just sent a Hakai slash their way in contempt.
But she hadn't expected that someone would actually block it.
As the smoke cleared, her eyes widened.
"Red Count Patrick Redfield?! What are you doing here?!"
Her voice was laced with shock.
After all, over the past two years, Redfield had been increasingly spoken of as an equal to the Four Emperors.
Naturally, Charlotte Linlin was familiar with him.
And even bore some resentment.
Because lately, the Red Count's fame had been surpassing even hers.
"Hmm? Looking for someone."
Red Count stood calmly at the edge of the port, his umbrella resting on the ground.
"Looking for someone?"
Charlotte Linlin frowned, confused.
Seeing her dumbfounded expression, Red Count sighed in exasperation.
"Of course, I'm looking for the master of this island—Rockefeller Sharo. Who else would I be looking for?"
He said it with a straight face.
"Then why don't you go to the West Blue? Isn't he there now?"
Charlotte Linlin raised a skeptical eyebrow.
"West Blue's too far," Red Count shrugged. "By the time I get there, who knows where he'll be. I'd rather wait in the New World for his return."
"Then why did you stop me?"
Charlotte Linlin roared.
"Well, this is Sharo's turf. As a friend, I figured I should lend a hand while he's away."
Even Red Count found the word "friend" a bit hard to say, but he said it anyway.
Charlotte Linlin's expression instantly darkened.
She raised Napoleon high.
"So what, you've chosen to be my enemy?"
Standing over nine meters tall, her presence was oppressive.
Red Count raised an eyebrow.
"You can think of it that way."
"BASTARD! If you want to stand out that badly, then GO DIE FOR ME!"
With that roar, she swung her blade down with fury.
CLANG!!!
Their weapons clashed, unleashing a tremendous shockwave.
"What insane strength!"
Red Count was shocked by the sheer force of her blow.
Another monster.
Sensing that Linlin was a brute-force type fighter, Red Count changed tactics.
Instead of direct clashes, he opted for speed—his specialty.
His umbrella-sword twisted in his hand as he launched a flurry of rapid strikes at her from every direction.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Metal clashed with metal as he struck again and again.
But Charlotte Linlin's body felt like solid steel—each strike did nothing.
Red Count's eye twitched.
"What is this creature? Iron skin? Steel bones?!"
He was on the verge of a breakdown.
Over the past few years in the New World, he'd fought monsters—Whitebeard with his overwhelming strength, Golden Lion with his freakish powers, even Gol D. Roger's terrifying Haki.
But this bloated woman—where did she get such power and defense?!
"DAMN YOU, YOU RODENT! I'LL SLICE YOU TO PIECES!"
Frustrated by Red Count's flitting assaults, Charlotte Linlin roared again.
Whoooosh—!!
Enormous blades of wind surrounded Red Count.
"Prometheus!"
She yelled.
The flames on her hair came to life, flying to her side and breathing a jet of fire directly at Red Count.
"Damn it!"
Red Count gritted his teeth.
He couldn't dodge—there was nowhere to go.
His body quickly hardened with Armament Haki as he blocked the flames.
But the heat still caused him pain.
"Enough of this!"
Red Count's expression turned grim.
His strikes now bore the weight of a true swordmaster—sharp, precise, deadly.
But—
"Zeus!"
Charlotte Linlin shouted again.
She dropped down to the ground, while Zeus floated up and summoned a storm of lightning, limiting Red Count's movements even more.
He was completely boxed in.
"Still think you can keep dodging, you rat?!"
The taunt made Red Count's face darken.
Silently, he raised his umbrella and unleashed a sweeping blow.
It was a Conqueror's Haki-infused slash.
Though outmatched, he wasn't going down without a fight.
---
Meanwhile, Borsalino, watching from afar, knew better than to stick around.
Seeing that Red Count had been drawn into battle, he returned immediately to the battleship and picked up the Den Den Mushi.
"Fleet Admiral! Something big's happened—Charlotte Linlin and Red Count have both appeared on Kamei Island! They're fighting each other!"
His voice was urgent.
"WHAT?!"
In Marine HQ, Fleet Admiral Kong shot up from his chair the moment he heard the news.
Without hesitation, he convened a high-level emergency meeting.
The objectives of these pirates—and the Navy's next move—would now have to be re-evaluated.
---
At the same time, in the West Blue—
Rockefeller Sharo had already received word about Kamei Island.
To be more accurate—he'd been watching it unfold the whole time.
Ever since pirate ships were first spotted surrounding Kamei Island, he had known something was off.
The moment the battle began, he ordered the island's defenders to start broadcasting live.
For an entire day, he sat in the captain's chamber, watching the conflict unfold.
When Charlotte Linlin appeared, Sharo clenched his fist tightly.
"Charlotte Linlin... You're asking for death!"
He growled.
Though, to his surprise—Red Count had stepped in to help his people.
He'd known that Red Count often loitered around Kamei Island—as if waiting for him.
But he hadn't expected the man to actually step in and protect his crew.
---
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