It was absolutely savage.

Looking at the once-arrogant commander of the God's Knights now dangling midair like a dead mutt, his body spasming under the constant impalement of four legendary Meito, blood spraying in every direction... Dragon suddenly felt very lucky he and Daren were on the same side.

If this lunatic ever came after him, he'd never get a decent night's sleep again.

"His regeneration's slowing down."

Just as Dragon was still mentally reeling, Daren exhaled a thin trail of smoke and spoke casually.

"Huh?"

Dragon blinked, caught off guard.

"How can you tell?"

To him, Michael's wounds—those torn open by the four swords—were still healing just as rapidly as before. There was no visible sign of weakness.

"Thirty penetrations per minute, average healing time about four seconds. That was the baseline."

Daren replied calmly.

"I've kept the puncture rate and wound size as consistent as possible—no major variation. But right now, his average healing time has dropped to about 4.5 seconds."

"The difference isn't huge, but... his aura is definitely weakening."

"..." Dragon stared at him, utterly stunned. His expression screamed disbelief—like he was looking at a maniac.

Are you insane!?

You're calculating it down to tenths of a second!?

That guy's supposed to be the so-called "strongest Celestial Dragon," commander of the God's Knights... and here you are treating him like a lab rat on a dissecting table?

If he hadn't witnessed it firsthand, Dragon wouldn't have believed something so deranged could even be real.

He gave a bitter laugh.

Then, focusing carefully, he began observing.

And sure enough, now that he was paying attention, he noticed that the black flame-like aura clinging to Michael's body looked far dimmer than when the fight began.

"His recovery... really is weakening."

Daren nodded, his voice tired.

"His stamina's nearly gone. Any use of Devil Fruit powers or Haki draws from that. Once it runs out..."

"...they start burning through their lifespan."

Dragon finished the thought, his eyes darkening.

It was basic combat theory from their academy days—both of them top graduates. They knew this principle by heart: physical stamina fuels power. No stamina, no power. Push beyond that—and you sacrifice your life.

"So you think the Five Elders..."

Something clicked in Dragon's mind. His pupils shrank, and he went quiet for a long moment before turning slowly toward Daren.

Daren took a long drag from his cigar, then gave a slight nod.

"I'm afraid so. Who knows how long those five old monsters have been alive... If they really do have endless lifespans—or some version of immortality—it would explain everything."

His voice was hoarse as he voiced a theory that sent a chill down Dragon's spine.

"...If they have infinite life, then their regenerative power would also be infinite. That might be the secret behind their so-called 'immortality.'"

Dragon went silent.

Several seconds passed before he muttered, unwilling to accept it,

"Then what's the point of even fighting?"

No matter how noble the cause, facing enemies who couldn't die inevitably brought despair.

Even someone as determined and forward-looking as Dragon found himself doubting—for the first time—whether resistance was truly possible.

They were up against a colossus that had ruled the world for 800 years.

And at the top of that oppressive order stood five aged figures... wielding absolute, immortal power.

"I'm trying to come up with something, aren't I?"

Daren shot Dragon an annoyed glance.

"By the way, how exactly did you manage to control him?"

Dragon suddenly remembered and asked curiously.

Daren pressed his lips together, then slowly replied,

"My Devil Fruit has awakened."

"I know, I know—I saw it! Your Ryusoken's even more powerful than mine, and I'm the one who created it! No need to rub it in!"

Dragon grumbled, clearly a bit resentful.

Daren shook his head.

"That's not what I meant. I can now influence the human body's magnetic field to a certain extent. And during that brawl just now, I managed to 'embed' some metal particles into his body. That lets me apply attraction and repulsion forces on him directly."

Dragon's eyes went wide in shock.

"You can use the Jiki Jiki no Mi like that!?"

Before Daren, the Jiki Jiki no Mi wasn't exactly unheard of on the seas—its abilities were even documented in the Devil Fruit encyclopedia. The Marines had classified intel on previous users too.

But those guys could barely control metal in basic ways. A few managed to develop "railgun" techniques, and that alone was considered top-tier.

But Daren had taken the Jiki Jiki no Mi and elevated it to a whole new level.

'How could a bunch of clueless bumpkins understand the power of knowledge?'

Daren glanced at Dragon's stunned face and sighed internally, silently roasting him in his head.

He turned his eyes back upward.

At that moment, Saint Michael was still being subjected to the brutal punishment of repeated impalement. The black flame cloud trying to heal his body was noticeably slowing, struggling to keep up with the rate of injury.

It was clear—if this continued, Saint Michael would eventually run out of life force and die from exhaustion.

"So, he's different from the Five Elders... He doesn't have infinite life."

Dragon stroked the stubble on his chin, speaking seriously.

He'd seen it too.

"This method takes too long—and it won't work on the Five Elders anyway."

Daren's brows furrowed involuntarily as he shook his head with a sigh.

"Besides their near-immortal regeneration, those five old freaks have telepathic abilities, and they can even summon each other from afar using magical seals. That means unless you avoid them completely, a one-on-one fight turns into a five-on-one real fast."

In a one-on-one, if he triggered Magnetic Field Rotation, Daren was confident he could rip any one of them to shreds.

But five-on-one? That was a death sentence.

With time, his stamina would wear down, and he'd be forced to retreat.

"So there's really no other option?"

Dragon muttered darkly.

"No... there might be one more way."

Daren replied coolly.

"All Devil Fruit users—no matter how strong—share one weakness."

Dragon froze for a moment. Then his eyes lit up as he stared at Daren.

"You're a damn genius!"

"..."

Daren raised his hand, his fingers curling as if gripping Saint Michael's body from a distance.

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