Chapter 36 36: Hancock's Love-Love Fruit?

— — — — — — Clearing out the flesh-and-blood monster that's taken over Raccoon City has to be a priority. But how exactly to start that boss fight—that's something that needs to be figured out before jumping into action. "Like I said just now, this world isn't exactly friendly to magi. I can use illusions to get you inside and offer a bit of support once the fight begins, but that's pretty much the best I can do." Merlin raised her arms in an exaggerated X in front of her chest, face serious, as she intercepted Veyron's very obvious glance. "Instead of expecting help from me, you're better off thinking of ways to use them, it's their world after all." Veyron rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Doubt they'll be much help. What, you think we can just waltz into a U.S. military base and 'borrow' a nuke to clear the map? Sure, one blast might not be enough, but a few would definitely do the job—problem is, I don't think I would survive that either... Wait a sec." Couldn't Merlin's illusion tank a nuclear explosion? "Wouldn't recommend trying that." Merlin shook her head slightly. "Right now, I can use illusions to trick reality into thinking you're not getting hurt. But once the damage exceeds its limits... well..." That's an awfully casual way to say, 'It'll fail.' Veyron silently roasted her in his mind, then confirmed again, "So... it really can't handle it?" "Nope~" Merlin replied with a sweet smile. "Well, worth a shot." Even if she is a Grand Caster in the Nasuverse, if she says she can't handle the situation in Raccoon City, there's no point in trying to force it. Just getting her support before the battle kicks off is already a sweet freebie. Thinking harder, a new idea came to him. "What do you think—could Hancock's Devil Fruit do anything against that thing?" Boa Hancock. User of the Paramecia-type Love-Love Fruit (Mero Mero no Mi). About a year ago, twelve-year-old Hancock, eager to prove herself as a capable warrior, secretly left Amazon Lily with her two sisters—Boa Sandersonia and Boa Marigold. But that's where the story diverged. As they were drifting along on a raft, Hancock suddenly received an invitation from the Dimensional Chat Group. Panicked, she had the three of them pull over to a deserted island to figure out what this strange chat group thing even was. That's when they were caught by members of the Kuja Pirates, who had been dispatched to bring them back. According to Gloriosa, who came along with the rescue team, if the three girls hadn't stopped on that island, they would've run smack into a slave trading fleet that had just been defeated by the Kuja Pirates. Seeing the loot taken from the slavers and the injured Kuja warriors back on the Perfume Yuda (the ship of the Kuja Pirates), Hancock felt a cold chill. Prideful as she was, deep down she knew—the three of them weren't physically or spiritually strong enough to compare with the veteran warriors of their tribe. If they were, they wouldn't have needed to sneak off like that in the first place. And if the official members got injured fighting those slave traders, what chance would three kids have had if they'd run into that fleet? Once Granny Gloriosa saw that Hancock realized her mistake, she didn't scold them too harshly. She even let them snack on some fruit from the loot stash. But she lived to regret that decision. Because the fruits they randomly picked turned out to be the Paramecia-type Love-Love Fruit, the Zoan-type Snake-Snake Fruit (Anaconda Model), and the Snake-Snake Fruit (Cobra Model). From that point on, Hancock, now properly shamed and motivated, returned home and trained like crazy. She soon awakened both Observation Haki and Armament Haki. Even Conqueror's Haki—which hadn't been seen in Amazon Lily for years—manifested in her. She then traveled to Rusukaina Island to further hone her body, haki, and Devil Fruit powers. By the time Veyron joined the chat group, Hancock had already become that Hancock: the world's most beautiful woman, former Warlord of the Sea, and the Pirate Empress—with the Love-Love Fruit to match. And that fruit? Wildly overpowered. Anyone who so much as feels a twinge of affection for her—whether they think she's cute, beautiful, or have any kind of romantic interest—can be instantly petrified by her heart-shaped beams. Those unaffected are usually either: →True Sigmas with zero interest. →Completely thoughtless. →Or literal objects. Hancock can shoot heart-shaped bullets, arrows, or even imbue her limbs with the petrification power. And unless she chooses to undo it, the stone effect is permanent—even past death. If she dies and someone else eats the Love-Love Fruit, the new user still can't undo the petrification she caused. That's Hancock now—she's even got the Sharingan. Can't wait to see what kind of chaos that brings to the One Piece world. — — — 『Snake Empress: So... we're dealing with someone who needs my powers?』 『Snake Empress: Got it. I'll get ready to head out right away.』 Amazon Lily may be a country of women, but the Kuja are a warrior race through and through. Every girl on the island is trained from birth to fight. To them, strength equals beauty. And fighting strong enemies is an honor. So when Hancock heard there was a threat that required her powers to deal with, she was excited. Didn't even ask what the enemy was—just agreed right away. 『Earth's Cancer: What kind of enemy is it? (Curious.jpg)』 『Ghost Spider: (lurking.jpg)』 『Ordinary Person: Uh... here, see for yourselves.』 『Ordinary Person: (Overhead view of Raccoon City.jpg)』 『Earth's Cancer: Where's the enemy? I don't see anything.』 『Catwoman: Uh... don't tell me we're fighting that thing..』 『Hellish Blizzard: No wonder you're calling Hancock. Honestly, out of all of us, she's probably the only one whose powers could do something here.』 『Ghost Spider: Wait, it really is what I think it is???』 『Ordinary Person: Yup.』 『Catwoman: That's nuts.』 『Earth's Cancer: ??? What the hell are you all talking about? Can someone explain what you're seeing already?!』 『Ghost Spider: Look closely. The entire city. You don't notice how the color and vibe are off? If you zoom in, you'll see the whole place is covered in flesh and blood moss.』 『Earth's Cancer: !!!』 『Ordinary Person: Technically, all that on the surface is just the byproduct. What we're really after is the main body underground.』 『Ordinary Person: That thing supposedly has two whole cases of virus samples or maybe even a cure...』 . . . { 50+ advanced chapters available at???? patreon.com/_Coreal }