Astrid raised her hand, and a shimmering Holy Shield bloomed into existence— an elegant dome of pure light that wrapped around her like a second skin. The first wave of Red Skulls slammed into it with a bone-rattling crack. Neon-red jaws scraped the luminous surface, sparks of light bursting outward like miniature stars. Astrid narrowed her eyes.

They’re stronger than before.

She didn’t wait for the shield to fade. With a soft flicker, her form blurred— then vanished.

In the next heartbeat, she reappeared high above the horde, right beside the monstrous shape rising from the center of the Red Dragon Boat’s deck.

The scattered Red Skulls had fused, shaping themselves into a towering humanoid abomination. Its torso was made of writhing skulls, its arms thick pillars of gnashing teeth and grinning faces. Each movement caused dozens of jaws to grind against each other, creating a sickening chorus like bones rubbing together.

Astrid’s expression hardened.

The creature swung its massive arm toward her, hundreds of skulls screaming in unison.

Astrid spread her wings— one dark as midnight, the other glowing with angelic radiance— and slashed her hand downward.

A ripple of death energy burst out from her palm, cutting through the arm like a scythe through mist. The Red Skulls forming the limb scattered instantly, breaking apart into flaming motes that fell toward the Sea below. Some splashed into the water with sizzling cracks. Others flared mid-air like dying fireflies.

But even before they hit the water, the fragments trembled... then shot back upward like reversed rain.

The arm regenerated. Instantly. Fully.

"It regenerates faster..." Astrid muttered, frustration tightening her jaw.

The giant swung again.

Astrid dove straight into the swarm.

Her wings flared wide. On her left, a glowing sphere of pure light formed. On her right, a swirling orb of dense darkness pulsed.

She twisted her body, spinning in midair.

The spheres blurred, leaving streaks behind. Light and shadow intertwined, drawing a massive yin-yang symbol across the sky.

The moment the symbol completed, a violent shockwave erupted outward.

The Red Skulls didn’t just scatter— they exploded, torn apart by the conflicting energies. Thousands of crimson fragments rained down like shattered glass.

For a moment, the sky was quiet. Only the crackle of flames and the distant splash of falling debris echoed across the Sea.

Then—

The shattered pieces trembled again.

One by one, they floated upward.

Drawn together.

Merging.

The giant began reforming, its jagged outline slowly taking shape.

Astrid clicked her tongue. "Persistent little pests."

She shot forward again, aiming straight for the creature’s chest. If she could disrupt the core— if it even had one— maybe she could slow the regeneration.

Wind tore around her, flames bending in her wake as she descended with lethal focus.

The giant seemed to sense her intent.

It opened its chest.

Inside was a swirling vortex made of countless skulls, their crimson eyes locked on her. A tide of neon-red surged outward like a tidal wave, each skull screeching with hunger.

Astrid’s instincts screamed.

She slammed her wings downward, launching herself upward just in time as the wave of skulls tore through the space she’d been occupying, shredding the air with a roar. Broken masts and loose barrels disintegrated instantly as the wave passed through them.

"Okay," she hissed, "that’s new."

The wave arced upward, following her.

Astrid raised her hand and fired a beam of pure light, piercing through the wave, scattering dozens of skulls— but the pieces reformed instantly and kept following.

"Seriously?!"

The wave lunged again.

Astrid dove toward the boat, weaving between broken masts and burning debris as hundreds of skulls chased her like a swarm of angry meteors. Several skulls slammed into the ship instead, chewing through its hull as if it were paper.

She landed hard, skidding across the tilted deck, then spun around and unleashed another yin-yang blast— this time point-blank.

The shockwave blasted the wave apart, temporarily halting its pursuit.

The deck beneath her feet cracked from the impact, dust and splinters rising like smoke.

But even as she hovered above the deck, breathing hard, she watched the particles twist and swirl.

Regenerating. Again.

Astrid gritted her teeth.

"This thing... isn’t just regenerating. It’s feeding on something."

Her gaze flicked toward the deck— where dozens of Red Skulls continued crawling onto the boat, latching onto corpses and even devouring fallen phantom pirates. With each bite, a faint red mist rose from their victims —and drifted toward the giant.

Her eyes hardened.

"They’re using the people on it... as fuel."

The giant’s newly reformed head lifted, its hundred mouths grinning at her.

And hundreds more skulls rose from the Sea, forming a second mass behind it— another potential giant waiting to coalesce.

Astrid flapped her wings once.

The air crackled with divine and deathly energy all at once.

"Fine," she whispered, light and darkness gathering around her again.

"If you want to devour everything— "

She soared upward, power gathering like a storm.

"— then come and try me."

Light cracked behind her.

The Sea churned.

The sky dimmed.

And the Red Skulls surged upward in a tidal roar.

---

Serena’s eyes flickered with mechanical light as the runic patterns on her cheek glowed softly. She paused mid-air, her scanners humming like whispered hymns.

"Analysis completed," she said calmly. "I’m detecting unusual wave interference... coming from that cloud above."

She raised a finger toward the sky.

Mathilda turned sharply—and her face stiffened.

"Lady Reaper..."

Without hesitation, Mathilda tore a Swift Charm. Green light erupted around her. Wind curled around her coat as she shot past the mast, the smoke, and the swarming Red Skulls that still fighting Astrid.

None of the Red Skulls noticed her. Their attention remained locked on Astrid’s fierce onslaught.

Mathilda soared higher until the battle below became a muffled echo. She reached the suspicious cloud—one that didn’t move with the wind, didn’t match the sky’s flow—and landed lightly atop its soft, unnaturally solid surface.

Her plague-doctor mask glinted.

And there he was.

A man crouched near the center of the cloud, wearing a sleek VR helmet etched with glowing crimson runes. His hands hovered in the air, manipulating invisible panels.

"So you’re the one controlling the Red Skulls..." Mathilda said, voice smooth and amused. "Found you."

The man jerked back, startled. He flicked his fingers, and the cloud rumbled beneath her feet, trying to collapse. But Mathilda simply rose off it, floating effortlessly.

"I’m a Grandmaster, you know," she said. "My boss is so rich, we can reach this stage just by eating good meals."

He snarled under the helmet. The cloud spun and shot away at terrifying speed, leaving a violet streak behind.

Mathilda blinked.

"...Wow. It is like the legendary Somersault Cloud."

Instead of chasing, she admired it with sparkling eyes. "That is so cool."

But the admiration didn’t last long.

WHOOSH.

The cloud returned—just as fast—slamming to a halt like it had hit an invisible wall.

Hovering ahead was a floating red shrine—ominous, glowing, and carved with ancient motifs. Sitting on its roof, legs dangling playfully, was a Bunny Girl with a massive scythe resting across her shoulders. Her crimson eyes curved into crescents.

Lady Reaper.

The man on the cloud froze. His breath hitched. His hands trembled.

Lady Reaper tilted her head. "Running from us? Sorry but your Time is Up..."

Mathilda smile stretched— sweet but predatory. "Bad choice."

She raised a small vial and poured something shimmering and sticky over the cloud.

A soft glop.

The cloud shuddered... then turned pink.

The man frantically tried to move it—gesturing, swiping, commanding—but the once fierce cloud refused to budge. It bounced like jelly, wobbling helplessly under him.

Mathilda landed next to it and tapped the surface. "It’s cute now."

Lady Reaper also landed, "It’s hard ..

Mc grinned. "I call it Sexy Boobie potions. Makes anything that it touches Hard...."

Below them, a distant screech echoed.

Both women glanced down.

The Red Skulls abruptly abandoned Astrid. Their fusion mass rippled... shifted... then compressed into the form of a colossal crimson bird. Its wings stretched across the sky like a living storm.

It flapped once—

And launched itself toward the immobilized cloud.

Mathilda’s eyes widened behind her mask.

Lady Reaper’s grin sharpened.

"Well," Mathilda murmured, cracking her knuckles. "This just got exciting."

The colossal bird ascended, shrieking murder.

And the sky trembled as the battle shifted to a whole new level.

Mathilda reached into her small handbag and rummaged around with determination. "Where is it... aha!" She began tossing potions over her shoulder at rapid speed.

Several shattered against the cloud, instantly sprouting strange, sussy-looking mushrooms that wobbled obscenely. Others burst into bizarre plants— each one sporting a wet, dripping hole that oozed a glossy oil-like liquid.

Lady Reaper raised an eyebrow. "Do I even want to know what those are?"

"This one," Mathilda said proudly, holding up a bright blue vial, "is called the Handsome Captain Potion. Whatever it touches becomes instantly... wet." She winked behind her mask.

Lady Reaper pinched the bridge of her nose. "MC... you really need to work on your naming sense."

"No time!" Mathilda spun, grabbed three more potions—each with labels written in chaotic handwriting—and hurled them toward the incoming Red Skulls.