"How is that possible?"
Sugar and the executives were all incredulous.
Only Doflamingo vaguely knew the answer.
Sugar's ability was indeed very strong; even if he was unguarded, he could still be affected.
But that was only him. He knew that the Haki of the world's peak powerhouses was no longer in the same dimension as them.
In other words, the physical bodies of the world's peak powerhouses had also surpassed most people's understanding.
With such physical strength and Haki, even if they were unguarded, the protective mechanisms that automatically activated upon encountering danger could break most Devil Fruit abilities in this world.
At his level, he naturally understood the importance of Haki.
It was impossible to become a world-class powerhouse solely by relying on Devil Fruit abilities.
However, it was possible to achieve it with Haki.
The King of the Pirates, Gol D. Roger, the most powerful pirate known so far, and Garp, the strongest Marine known so far, were both Haki users, not Devil Fruit users.
Although Devil Fruits were powerful, they also had a fatal weakness.
In a world where most of it was water, this weakness was something no one could ignore.
Even as powerful as the Four Emperors, once shackled by Sea Prism Stone, although they could still maintain combat power, they could no longer be at their peak.
And in the sea, it was even more so.
Therefore, regarding Sugar's ability and her failure in front of Kotarou, while he was a little surprised, he was more disappointed.
If Sugar could have captured Kotarou, then he wouldn't have to wait for Kaido.
But clearly, his plan had not materialized. Although Kotarou was young, his physical quality was a genuine monster!
Thus, as soon as Sugar's ability was used, it was immediately blocked by the Haki aura that automatically rose around him.
Even if he expanded the infinite space outside his skin and allowed Sugar to truly touch him, the countless threads that rose from Sugar and entered his sight snapped the moment they reached his hand.
"Little sister, you look quite surprised."
Kotarou retracted his hand, stared down into Sugar's eyes, his azure pupils slowly swirling like nebulae, then glinting with a cold light.
"He's going to kill me."
At this moment, Sugar's small body suddenly froze, unable to move any further.
Under the gaze of those eyes, she felt her soul leaving her body and entering the true starry sky.
Above, below, left, and right, there was only darkness, and in the void ahead, a pair of eyes that obscured everything occupied the entire cosmos.
And she was now beneath these eyes.
This feeling was like facing a true deity, making her soul tremble.
"Give her dignity?"
Outside, Kotarou looked at Sugar, whose eyes had completely lost their luster, and stroked his chin with his right hand.
Don't mistake Sugar for a child just because she looks like one. She was actually almost 20 years old, a legitimate adult loli.
"Dignity or no dignity, it all leads to death."
Kotarou lowered his hand, stared at Sugar with killing intent in his eyes, and then reached out to clap towards Sugar.
As his palm descended, the space around Sugar began to fluctuate violently, like boiling water. In the distortion of space, Sugar gradually shrank, shrank, and when Kotarou's palm landed, Sugar had completely vanished into Kotarou's hand.
At this moment, the air on the rooftop seemed to suddenly turn cold. Doflamingo and the executives behind him stared at Kotarou as if he were a devil.
"What the hell is that?"
Kotarou ignored them. He stood up, held out the hand that had grasped Sugar, palm facing up, then opened it, and blew a gentle breath forward.
White ash scattered in the wind, like snow falling to the ground, gradually freezing the souls of everyone who witnessed this scene.
At this moment, not only Doflamingo and his subordinates, but even Violet looked at Kotarou with a hint of fear.
"God?"
"Or a devil?"
This was the sentiment of everyone present.
Even Doflamingo, with his resilient heart, felt a surge of terror at this moment.
Looking at the white powder floating from Kotarou's palm, he seemed to... return to the night that changed his life, to the night the pirates hung him from the city gates.
This moment and that moment gradually overlapped.
However, the difference was that his hatred and fear at that moment had ignited Conqueror's Haki, allowing him to be rescued.
But at this moment, facing Kotarou, who was millions of times more powerful than the pirates of that time, what could he do to escape?
"Violet."
Kotarou raised his head and looked at Violet, who was like a blooming flower.
"Violet."
Seeing her standing there blankly, Kotarou called out again. This time, there was a hint of pressure in his voice. Although it wasn't loud, it was deafening in Violet's ears.
"Ah~"
Violet instantly snapped back to attention. She hurriedly lowered her hand, looked up at Kotarou with a hint of fear, "Silver-haired sir, is there something you need?"
Looking at the woman whose complexion was turning slightly pale, Kotarou shook his head helplessly.
Clearly, the woman had been terrified by his method of killing just now.
He didn't say much more and directly stated, "Your father is in the weapon factory below. You should go down and help!"
The moment he killed Sugar, he felt an explosion radiating outward from beneath the royal palace, instantly spreading across the entire island, plunging Dressrosa into complete chaos.
This was unavoidable.
Couples who had just been dining intimately suddenly discovered that the woman had a husband and the man had a wife. It was no wonder there was chaos.
Even with King Riku's prestige, it might not be possible to resolve this chaos immediately.
Therefore, having Violet, who was very familiar with the Donquixote Family, might help resolve the chaos faster and allow them to evacuate Dressrosa quickly.
Looking at this silly woman still standing there, Kotarou had to emphasize his tone and say again, "The Four Emperors are coming soon. If you don't quickly resolve the chaos and evacuate, the Kingdom of Dressrosa might sink into the sea along with this island due to the battle between me and the Four Emperors."
"Ah~"
This time, Violet was completely sobered. A blush appeared on her pale face, and then she bowed to Kotarou.
"Thank you, silver-haired sir, for your reminder. The Riku family and Dressrosa will forever remember your great kindness."
"Mm!" Kotarou nodded and said gently, "Go down quickly!"
"Yes, silver-haired sir."
Violet straightened up, nodded to Guina, and then quickly walked towards the elevator.
Before long, she disappeared from the scene.
As soon as Violet left, the rooftop of the royal palace instantly became quiet.
Even though they were being suppressed to the ground, Diamante and the other executives endured it fiercely, not daring to breathe too loudly, nor daring to look up at Kotarou.
This guy was a devil.
The method he used to instantly erase a person had filled them with absolute terror.