Demon Slayer Virgil [Isekai One Piece]

The location where the outsiders were gathered was deep underground, at least three levels below the surface, according to Zavia's perception.

He sensed them gathered around a circular platform, seemingly studying some kind of object placed upon it.

"Ugh..."

Thump—

In a three-meter wide steel corridor, Zavia pulled the Yamato blade from a guard's body, blood dripping from the blade.

"Hmm, so down there is the basement, huh."

He flicked the blood off the blade and sheathed it, then gazed down the corridor, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Thirty minutes ago, Zavia and Arthur had set off towards the location where he sensed the outsiders. However, for some reason, no matter where he searched, he couldn't find the entrance to the basement.

Left with no other choice, Zavia had located a group of patrolling guards and swiftly eliminated them, leaving only one trembling in fear.

Zavia couldn't quite describe the remaining guard's state. He seemed like it was his first day on the job, or perhaps he had never witnessed such a gruesome scene before. He stood there frozen, his face contorted in terror, his legs shaking uncontrollably, and an unknown liquid staining his pants.

Seeing the guard's condition, Zavia was puzzled. This was the New World, after all. How had someone so weak and inexperienced ended up here?

His initial thought was that the guard must have gotten the job through connections, but the fact that he hadn't uttered a single word until his death made Zavia doubt that assumption.

Regardless, extracting information from someone in such a state of fear was a simple matter.

Zavia had simply said, "Tell me the location of the basement if you don't want to die," and the guard had blurted it out in terror, even revealing some of his master Caesar Clown's actions.

After obtaining the information, Zavia had swiftly ended the guard's life with a single thrust of his blade. Such weak individuals had no place in the New World.

Ignoring the corpse and bloodstains, Zavia hurried forward, soon arriving at a seemingly ordinary wall.

It looked identical to the other walls, and anyone approaching would have assumed it was a dead end.

Zavia himself would have thought the same if he hadn't interrogated the cowardly guard. He wouldn't have known that behind this wall lay the entrance to the basement.

He walked up to the wall and ran his hand across its surface, searching for something specific.

Click~

As his fingers brushed against an empty space on the right side of the wall, a faint click echoed through the air. He had found a hidden mechanism.

Zavia pressed down on the mechanism and stepped back slightly. A crack appeared in the center of the wall, slowly widening as it split open, revealing an entrance.

"So this is the basement, huh? Hmm..."

Zavia approached the entrance but didn't rush in. He stood there, using his Observation Haki to scan for any potential dangers.

Half a minute later, he opened his eyes. There were no anomalies; it was just a simple staircase leading down to the research lab.

Spatial distortions rippled as Zavia activated his ability, concealing himself and Arthur before they descended the stairs.

As they entered the basement, the wall behind them suddenly moved, sealing the entrance shut.

Ignoring this, Zavia continued downward, soon arriving at a metal door. He pressed a switch on the side, and the door opened with a click.

Stepping inside, Zavia was greeted by a sight that left him astonished – a room filled with various scientific equipment.

"Who are you!?"

Suddenly, a voice startled him. He turned to see a cloaked figure, glimpses of high-tech armor visible through the gaps in the robe.

(This guy, one of the outsiders.)

Zavia instantly recognized the individual as one of the outsiders he had sensed earlier. The cloaked figure stood fifteen meters away, his tone hostile. Zavia remained silent, observing the man. He felt something was off.

"Identify yourself, or I will attack!"

Sensing Zavia's lack of response, the cloaked figure's voice became agitated. He spread his legs slightly, as if preparing for combat.

However, Zavia still remained silent, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. He felt something was amiss.

He took a few steps to the side, noticing that the cloaked figure remained motionless, as if he hadn't seen Zavia move.

But after two seconds, the man suddenly turned to face the direction Zavia had moved to.

(I see, he can't see me. But...)

The cloaked figure's action confirmed Zavia's suspicions – the man couldn't see him.

But the fact that he had turned to face him after a two-second delay was strange. He shouldn't have known Zavia's location if he couldn't see him.

(Radio communication? Or some kind of magic?)

That was the first thought that popped into Zavia's mind.

It wasn't a baseless assumption. The high-tech armor visible beneath the cloak suggested that their technology was advanced; having radio communication was perfectly reasonable.

Perhaps one of the outsiders, the one with perception magic, was relaying Zavia's location through a radio, which explained how the cloaked figure knew where he was.

As for magic, that was just a guess. Given their advanced technology, it was more likely they would rely on that rather than magic, as replenishing magical power was a slow process.

If they had some sort of consumable item that restored magical power, then it would be a different story. But natural recovery was slow, as Zavia had observed with Arthur.

The fact that the enemy could sense his location didn't worry Zavia. He had only used his Spatial Distortion to avoid the hassle of dealing with the guards.

But now that he had found his target, there was no point in hiding anymore, especially since they had someone with perception magic.

"Arthur, find a place to hide. If any enemies come after you, don't hesitate to fight back. You can kill them if you have to. But if you can't win, use everything around you to stall them. And if all else fails, run." Zavia whispered to Arthur, who nodded and scurried off to a hidden spot. Zavia then deactivated his invisibility.

The moment he reappeared, the cloaked figure's demeanor shifted, his body radiating killing intent towards Zavia.

It seemed he had taken lives before, and quite a few, but not an excessive amount. The intensity of his killing intent wasn't as strong as Zavia's.

The Yamato blade materialized in Zavia's hand, his eyes turning cold and emotionless as he matched the cloaked figure's killing intent, but with greater intensity.

"This... 'Force Sky' level!?"

The cloaked figure's composure faltered as he sensed Zavia's aura. His previously cold voice trembled slightly, and his initial agitation was replaced by fear.

"What did you say!? 'Force Sky'!? Impossible! How could someone of that level appear in the Dimensional Realm!?"

A voice filled with shock came from a small Bluetooth earpiece hidden beneath the cloaked figure's hood.

"But his strength is definitely 'Force Sky,' no, he's at the peak of that stage, just a step away from reaching 'Might Sky'!"

"What!? 'Might Sky'!?"

"And he was invisible earlier. I initially thought it was some kind of invisibility magic, but I saw the faint spatial distortions around him."

"Damn it!! Spatial distortions!? He's a spatial ability user!? This is bad. You need to retreat now!"

The voice in the earpiece continued to express shock and disbelief, but Zavia was unaware of this conversation. His Observation Haki could only sense, not eavesdrop like Enel's lightning-based abilities.

Zavia observed the cloaked figure, who stood there frozen, a puzzled expression on his face, but he remained vigilant.

He followed the principle of "If the enemy doesn't move, I don't move." He didn't have any information about the enemy yet, and rushing in recklessly could result in injury, potentially even a fatal one.

While he wouldn't die, he would be weakened, putting him at a disadvantage. Who knew what kind of magic or tools these individuals possessed to deal with someone with his immortality?

If they managed to somehow kill him permanently, Zavia would have no one to blame but himself.

After a tense standoff that lasted half a minute, the cloaked figure finally made a move. Just as Zavia gripped the Yamato blade, anticipating an attack...

The man turned and ran.

Zavia was momentarily caught off guard. He had prepared for a fight, but the man had chosen to flee instead.

However, his surprise was fleeting. He watched the cloaked figure retreat, a look of exasperation on his face, but he didn't pursue. The reason for this was...

Thump—

Suddenly, a loud thud echoed through the air. The fleeing cloaked figure collided with something invisible, his nose becoming red and swollen from the impact.

"What's this? A Spatial Barrier?"

The cloaked figure reached out, his hand meeting an invisible wall.

Being familiar with spatial abilities, he instantly recognized it as a Spatial Barrier, a technique commonly used by spatial ability users.

It could trap enemies and prevent reinforcements, making it ideal for one-on-one battles.

Behind him, Zavia watched the cloaked figure with amusement, his exasperation growing. He had activated his Spatial Barrier the moment the man appeared, enclosing them both within.

This was a precaution in case the other outsiders came to assist, as there were four of them in total. Zavia couldn't afford to be careless.

"Damn it! There's no escape. I can't break through a Spatial Barrier created by someone of this caliber."

The cloaked figure, realizing his situation, seemed to resign himself to his fate. He muttered something under his breath and then tore off his cloak, revealing the high-tech armor beneath.

"Come on then, you monster!"