Chapter 55: Ch 55. Terrifying Haki, A Single Thought to Kill
Roman's voice was calm and unhurried, filled with a sense of ease.
But when those words landed in the ears of Ain and Stella, both of them froze.
Ain stared at Roman, her lips moving slightly.
"Lord Roman..."
She seemed hesitant to continue.
This was the deep sea. If they launched a wide-range attack down here...
The coating would surely burst. They'd all be crushed by the ocean pressure.
But if it was a small-scale attack?
Against a Sea King that was 5,500 meters long, that would be nothing more than a gentle itch.
Either way, they were doomed!
BOOM!
Explosions began to echo across the warship.
The giant squid-like Sea King was surging toward them at an incredible speed!
Its enormous body forced open a path through the ocean, stirring up massive currents. The waves and sounds of destruction grew louder and louder.
It had arrived.
The monstrous Sea King had reached the front of the ship.
Roman turned to face it.
The massive squid extended its towering tentacles, aiming to crush the warship in a single blow.
Beside him, Stella's face had turned ghostly pale. She probably couldn't get any whiter.
But Roman simply said, "Don't worry. Everything will be fine, leave it to me."
He rose from his seat slowly and walked to the edge of the deck, as if he were going out for a stroll. Not a single trace of panic could be seen on him.
Ain and Stella's hearts were suspended in midair.
As they stared nervously at Roman, their minds buzzed with worry.
Would he destroy the coating? Would he doom them all?
The pressure was suffocating.
The Sea King's giant tentacle reached forward, closing in on the bubble.
The moment it was about to touch the protective membrane—
Roman closed his eyes.
And then—opened them sharply!
BOOM!!!
A horrifying spiritual pressure, akin to the legendary Conqueror's Haki, erupted from his body like a tsunami!
It was boundless, majestic, and as heavy as Mount Tai.
Buzz!!!
In the blink of an eye, Roman's Reiatsu enveloped the entire Sea King!
The pressure surged outward with him as the center, blanketing a 6,000-meter radius in overwhelming force.
Because Roman carefully took into consideration and protected Ain and Stella, they weren't knocked out like the others might have been.
But even so—
They felt it.
That terrifying, suffocating power.
Like hell itself had descended.
In that moment…
Roman's spiritual pressure became tangible.
The immense force caused the Sea King's massive tentacle to instantly retract in fear.
But it wasn't over yet.
His cape, marked with justice, began to flutter, despite the still water and no blowing wind.
"Crack! Crack! Crack!"
Under the glow of the ship's lights, Ain and Stella could clearly see—
Cracks were appearing across the Sea King's colossal body!
The tyrannical aura, no longer scattered, was now completely focused on its body.
The beast thrashed and twisted violently. Even in the depths of the ocean, waves surged as it struggled in vain.
But no matter how it fought...
It couldn't even touch the ship beneath Roman's feet.
Such a monstrous power—how could it even be described?
It was clear how terrifying Roman's Reiatsu truly was!
"T-Too powerful!"
"This… This is Master's strength?!"
"Only Lord Roman could have such overwhelming Conqueror's Haki!"
The two girls' eyes sparkled like stars. They looked upon Roman's back with awe and admiration.
As if they were engraving his silhouette into their hearts.
Spiritual Pressure and Conqueror's Haki were very similar...
But not quite the same.
Because Roman's Reiatsu had offensive might far beyond the typical Conqueror's Haki.
He looked at the Sea King coldly.
"If you've come all this way, don't bother thinking of leaving. This world... is based on the survival of the fittest."
As his words fell...
BOOM!!!
His spiritual pressure exploded fully outward, like divine judgment.
The 5,500-meter-long Sea King was instantly torn into dozens of pieces, its massive body crushed by Roman's intense will alone!
This—
This was the White Dove!
The Marine Admiral with the most overwhelming strength to date!
The man feared by countless pirates across the sea!
Ain and Stella both thought the same thing at that moment.
Roman calmly retracted his spiritual pressure.
His face remained unchanged, as if he'd just swatted a fly.
Under the girls' gazes, he walked back to his seat and resumed enjoying his meal.
With a casual tone, he spoke:
"This is a later-stage evolution of Conqueror's Haki. If you both train your mental states properly, you may be able to awaken it yourselves."
"Don't think of Conqueror's Haki as something rare."
"The rarer you think it is, the harder it will be to awaken it. Got it?"
Ain's eyes widened.
She suddenly understood.
This whole situation—Roman had done it all... to train their spirits.
She immediately stood and gave a formal salute.
"Understood, Lord Roman!"
She also thought to herself:
So, Master wanted us to awaken Conqueror's Haki all along…
Roman chuckled as he saw Ain's serious expression.
"Alright, the crisis is over. Let's keep enjoying Stella's cooking."
"Mm-hmm!"
The girls nodded at once.
Now that the threat was gone, their appetites returned with full force!
Later...
Roman used his phantom body to guide the warship through the deep-sea currents.
Before long, they safely arrived at Fish-Man Island.
At the same time—
In the Dragon Imperial Palace (Ryugu Palace), under King Neptune's command, the royal court ministers gathered and moved to the port to personally greet the arriving warship.
Yes—Fish-Man Island had a port of its own. Even underwater, order and management were needed.
Roman smiled slightly.
He hadn't expected Neptune himself to come to meet him.
As they neared the island, Ain and Stella became increasingly excited.
The childlike wonder in their hearts began to bubble up again.
"Look! Look! Fish-Man Island is wrapped inside a massive bubble!"
"There are clouds here! And maybe even breathable air! That's insane!"
"This is Fish-Man Island... 10,000 meters beneath the Holy Land of Mariejois!"
...
While the girls marveled at the sight before them—
Roman guided the ship through the bubble and entered the island.
Just then—
A mechanical voice echoed in his mind.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host. Sign-in successful. Reward acquired: Peak-level Observation Haki!]
[Peak Observation Haki: Allows the host to foresee enemy attack trajectories, predict events up to five minutes into the future, and even communicate with all things!]
Roman froze for a moment upon hearing the system's notification...