The Battlefield Fell Silent.
For the first time since the battle began, the sounds of ringing swords, gunfire, and roaring fires stopped.
The deck of the Crimson Reaver ship was littered with bodies—but not due to fighting. Dozens of the lesser pirate minions lay passed out, eyes rolled back in their heads, foam seeping from their mouths.
Not a single one of them had been touched.
It was as if their very souls were broken.
And the reason behind it all?
Solian.
He stood there, body bruised and bloodied, his clothes torn, but his presence was different now. It wasn't just his Devil Fruit powers. It wasn't just his raw fighting strength.
This was something else.
Something only a chosen few possessed.
Conqueror's Haki
And it was radiating from him like an angry storm.
The other combatants felt it.
The air grew thick, pressing down on them like a giant's hand.
Syla, the speedster dagger, recoiled, clutching her head. Her whole body shook violently. "What… is this feeling?"
Mikhail, the dual cutlass fighter, clenched his teeth as his swords vibrated in his grasp. "This pressure… it can't be."
Gideon, the brute who had been overwhelming Vance, actually took a step back. His fists, which had been solid and confident, were shaking.
And Roland—the strongest of the commanders after Cain—slitted his eyes at Solian. He could feel it in his bones. This was no ordinary man.
And then there was Cain.
The man who had been so confident.
So certain of victory.
He had never for one moment considered Solian his equal. Never.
But now…
His instincts screamed at him that something was different.
His instincts—the very ones that had allowed him to survive all these years on the Grand Line—were screaming at him.
This was not the same Solian he had been beating up a moment earlier.
This was something else.
Something dark.
For the first time in years, Cain felt a strange feeling crawling up his spine.
Fear.
???? BOOM! ????
Another explosion of Conqueror's Haki burst outward.
The ship groaned in protest, the wood under Solian's feet cracking as if the power of his will was trying to shatter the world.
Jorin, Drayce, Kael, and Vance—each in their exhausted states—felt it.
And instead of fear…
They felt something different.
A surge of pride.
"C-Captain…" Jorin whispered, his hand tightening around his flaming sword. His flames, which had been fading, blazed back to life, burning more intensely than ever before.
Drayce, who had been pushed to his limits, felt his exhaustion vanish. His body was still bruised, but suddenly his arms did not feel quite so weighted.
Kael, his breath coming in rough gasps, grinned. "Took you long enough, Captain."
And Vance—who had nearly been shattered by Gideon—drew himself upright. His shaking hands stabilized. The tide had shifted.
Their captain was still standing.
And so long as he was…
They would not be defeated.
The Crimson Reavers React
The other commanders knew what they had just seen.
"Conqueror's Haki…" Roland muttered to himself. His fingers twitched on his sword hilt.
Syla wiped blood from her mouth, her legs still shaking. "T-There's no way. He's just some upstart pirate. He shouldn't have this kind of power!"
Gideon snarled, his confidence wavering for the first time.
Mikhail licked his lips, his eyes hungry. "He's one of them. A king."
????????????
Solian Takes Back Control
Solian breathed slowly out, his chest rising and falling. His body still hurt, but his mind was clear.
This power… it was his.
And even if it was wild and out of control, he would master it.
His eyes lifted to Cain.
His mouth curled into a slight smirk.
"Not on your level, huh?" Solian said, his voice level, but with a weight behind it.
Cain didn't immediately respond.
For once, his usual smug arrogance wasn't there.
Instead, he narrowed his eyes. "I don't care if you have Conqueror's Haki." His voice was level, but his fists were clenched. "It won't save you."
Solian rolled his shoulders. His body still ached, but his will was stronger than ever.
He took a step forward.
Cain took a step back.
It was subtle.
Barely noticeable.
But Solian saw.
And he smiled.
For the first time since the fight started—Cain had flinched.
And Solian?
He was just getting going.
????????????
The Crew Fights Back!
Meanwhile, the rest of Solian's crew—emboldened by their captain's Haki—began to turn the tides.
Jorin's flames rekindled with renewed intensity, exchanging blows with Syla's speed with renewed vigor. "You were winning a second ago, weren't you?! What happened?!"
Drayce's body danced with renewed precision, forcing Roland onto the backfoot for the first time. "Feeling the pressure, huh?
Kael's Rust powers became more focused, his attacks more precise. "You guys think this fight was finished? No chance."
Vance sneered, using his Recoil Fruit to blast Gideon backward. "You ain't so tough now, big guy."
The Crimson Reaver commanders, once in complete control, were now on the back foot.
The balance of power had shifted.
And at the center of it all…
Solian stood tall.