HST: Chapter 102: Twice

Borsalino and Garp saw Caelan's battered condition and assumed he wouldn’t last much longer.

“Yasakani no Magatama!”
“Fist Impact!”
“Hellhound!”

After two more rounds of fighting, Akainu was slapped away by Caelan, flying twenty meters through the air. He looked at Caelan with a trace of confusion.

By now, Caelan's injuries had worsened significantly. The wound on his chest was so deep that the bone was visible. Blood gushed out like a stream—he was clearly critically injured.

“This doesn’t make sense. How is he still fighting so fiercely with injuries like that?”

Akainu touched his swollen face, three question marks practically floating above his head.

His strength hadn’t dropped at all from when the battle began.

“Akainu, what are you doing?! Come help me!”

Garp, who was struggling to hold off Caelan, roared.

This Caelan was a true monster. He had endless strength in his body. As an old man in his seventies, Garp hadn’t felt this thrill since fighting Roger.

“Hellhound!”

Akainu stopped thinking and rushed back into the fight against Caelan.

He simply didn’t believe it. With injuries that severe, how much longer could Caelan hold out?

Boom boom boom!

Another massive explosion echoed, shaking the entire island.

“Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!”

The two Celestial Dragons trembled in terror from the battle playing out in front of them.

That Caelan was like a monster, beating the three top Marine officers into retreat.

They were convinced their lives would end here.

Boom boom boom!

Lasers flew, magma burst forth.

Soon, two more rounds passed.

Caelan slashed Garp away with a sword, kicked Borsalino flying with one leg, and sent Akainu crashing down with a slap, standing alone like a god of war.

At this moment, Caelan’s face was pale like gold leaf. His chest had been scorched black, and his internal organs had begun to rupture.

“Hold on, this is his final madness. He’s about to die!”

Akainu gritted his teeth and encouraged Garp and Borsalino.

The two nodded. They too believed Caelan was on his last breath.

They weren’t wrong. Caelan silently agreed—he could only last three more rounds.

“Meteor Volcano!”
“Iron Fist!”
“Yata Mirror!”

In the blink of an eye, three rounds passed, and the three Marines looked like they had seen a ghost.

By now, the entire island was nearly destroyed from the battle, with only the area around the Celestial Dragons left intact due to the trio’s deliberate protection.

Akainu had six broken ribs, and his body was covered in burns and wounds. Garp suffered internal injuries, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. Borsalino’s stamina was nearly depleted, his clothes filthy.

Caelan’s condition was even worse. His entire chest had been blown through, and all his internal organs had been charred. There was a gaping hole in his body.

If it were a one-on-one fight, he might have only suffered external injuries.

But with the three of them concentrating their attacks on a single point in such a short time, even Caelan couldn’t hold out.

“Is this guy even human? His internal organs are completely destroyed, but he’s still fighting at full strength!?”

Akainu stared at Caelan in disbelief.

Caelan was covered in mortal wounds, yet was still pummeling them like they were children.

“His vitality is terrifying.”

Garp and Borsalino were equally stunned.

With those kinds of injuries, any of them would’ve been dead already.

“But he has to die eventually.”

Akainu couldn’t believe anyone could survive with a hollowed-out chest.

Akainu, Garp, and Borsalino circled the dying warrior cautiously.

“Caelan, why are you so determined to go against the World Government?”

Garp took a deep breath and asked, sighing.

Such a shame. Caelan was clearly powerful and, at heart, a decent man. Yet he had become the government’s enemy.

“No particular reason.”

Caelan grinned, answering calmly.

Though his body was falling apart and he couldn’t last much longer, there was no trace of fear in his expression.

“ You’re about to die!”

Akainu was breathing heavily as he looked at Caelan. Even someone as ruthless as him couldn’t help but feel a sliver of respect for the man.

“Hahaha!”

“You really think you can kill me!?”

Caelan burst into laughter, as if he’d just heard the funniest joke in the world. Tears almost welled in his eyes.

All they’d managed to do was knock his sword away. He still had eleven layers of resurrection armor left!

“I want to see how long you can keep up the act!”

Akainu snorted coldly. Lava condensed in his hands.

“Great Eruption!”

The searing lava struck Caelan’s chest, pouring through his previous wound, blasting straight through him, and delivering the final blow to his already dying body.

“Hah, finally dead.”

Akainu pulled his fist back and exhaled deeply.

This man, who had fought like a god or a demon, had kept pushing harder the closer he was to death. He’d left Akainu with deep psychological scars.

Akainu didn’t understand why Caelan hadn’t dodged that final attack. But whatever the reason, he was just glad the man was finally dead.

Borsalino and Garp looked silently at Caelan’s body, filled with regret.

“To die under siege by the three of us... it’s still an honorable end.”

Garp held his aching waist and sighed.

Since the Pirate King Roger, Caelan was the first man to make him feel as if a new era could be born.

“We survived?”

The two Celestial Dragons cried with joy, convinced they had been blessed by the gods.

They were World Nobles. Of course, they were meant to live forever.

Just as Garp, Akainu, Borsalino, and the Celestial Dragons were caught in surprise and relief, a deep, resounding voice echoed out.

“It’s too early to be celebrating.”

Everyone’s pupils shrank. They stared at Caelan in shock.

There was a gaping hole in his chest. All his internal organs had been charred.

And yet the man who was clearly pronounced dead… stood up again!

His entire body was intact. No wounds in sight.

He was brimming with energy, showing no sign of fatigue.

“I was just making conversation earlier. You didn’t need to take it so seriously.”

Garp looked downcast and gave a bitter smile.

He had genuinely mourned Caelan’s death. But now that the man was back on his feet, fighting again… they were in real trouble.

“This is terrifying. He’s crossed the line between life and death.”

Borsalino took off his sunglasses and wiped them carefully, hoping it was all a hallucination.

But Caelan was standing there, looking exactly the same as he did at the start of the battle.

The two Celestial Dragons were plunged into despair. Seeing Caelan resurrected was more painful than losing a parent.

They had thought the gods favored them. But it turned out the gods favored him.

How could anyone defeat a monster who comes back from the dead?!

“You really don’t want to die, do you?”

Akainu’s face was grim, as if the sky had just collapsed.

They had poured everything into killing Caelan. They hadn’t even had a minute to celebrate before he returned, completely restored.

He’d fought even harder after being fatally injured. That was one thing.

But to resurrect? How could that even be possible?

This was ridiculous. Just shut it all down!

“Alright everyone, I think you’ve rested long enough. Let’s continue where we left off.”

Caelan raised his massive sword again and declared war once more.

“Fine! I don’t believe you can come back twice!”

Akainu gritted his teeth and growled.

If they could kill Caelan once, they could kill him a second time.

He refused to believe there were no consequences to Caelan’s resurrection ability.

He refused to believe Caelan could revive twice in a row!

(To be continued.)