Four years ago, long before Hokori set foot in Coelestis, he tangled with the sky-high pillagers. Poetically, four firstborns tried to avenge their captain’s defeat at the hands of the future archmage. Even though said captain told them of his respect for his opponent, they viewed the curb-stomp battle as a massive disgrace.

The firstborns believed the world revolved around them, as their previous battles were nothing short of a cakewalk. If anyone defeated the captain, it was out of cowardice and cheap tricks.

They accused Hokori of being a lying cheat of the century. It was the first time his bloodthirsty grin disappeared; he felt no anger, only disgust. He taught them a lesson about choosing words carefully, giving them wake-up calls after another.

The firstborns never cared about such vague concepts as good and evil in their lives. At that moment, a man who sided with the law looked down on them in a way that gave heroes in tales complete utter despair.

They made vows to each other that day. If they were to meet him again, they would give it their all—until they fulfilled avenging their captain.

Back to the present, the four firstborns now stood tall against the villain. Their eyes beamed with sheer confidence any average man could wish.

In response, Hokori sneered and snickered. “Hahahahahaha! Oh, bruh. Das some dogshit monologue right there. So y’all still think the world revolves ‘round your nanodicks? Worth a shot, I guess!” He charged at them.

Hokori never forgot one thing about the elite four. They were Children of Hephaestus—yet took pride in raw physical power instead of weaponry. To compensate for their flaws, they trained in the arts of bare-fisted combat day and night.

Hokori clashed evenly with Shōyu but decisively hurled his entire body by the neck threw him onto Shio, who sprinted toward him from behind.

Miso came in next and delivered a jumping ax kick aimed at Hokori’s shoulder. Unfortunately, his left hand was faster. He grabbed his ankle and bent his leg the wrong way forty-five degrees. As Miso screamed in agony, he flung him away like the ones before.

Karē threw a flurry of fisticuffs, but as he did, Hokori blocked them all with palm thrusts. He swiped his arms and push-kicked him upfront. Karē flew far enough to destroy numerous cannons with his back.

Hokori hated being left unsatiated through his battles. He decided to pulverize them further. An elbow strike to the ribs for Shōyu. A double straight punch to the back for Shio. A turning side-kick to the belly for Miso, and finally, a headbutt to the skull for Karē.

His one-sided “battle” broke and splintered the airship they stood on in mere moments. Blood, flesh, and bone bits constantly splattered everywhere.

Hokori licked his right forearm. “Oh, how I miss this taste… It’s only refreshing when it’s not from brooding light novel heroes…” he slowly walked toward the four elite guards.

Minutes later, they regained consciousness and saw pulsating blood vessels around their skin. They got back up and saw the villain in front. “C’mon, fam! Show me more! I ain’t had my fill yet!” he grinned.

With that, the “battle” continued.

Out in the sky, Haruto sighed with his eyes closed upon seeing Hokori’s all-out slaughter repeating against the elite four. “I don’t get it, Tokino. He’s my dear brother, no doubt. But I don’t understand how he finds enjoyment in unnecessary violence.”

She drove her flying carpet beside him. “Different strokes for different folks, honey. I don’t condone it, either. It’s disgusting. But it’s not like we’re clean ourselves. I see you smile time after time during battle.

“You got all cocky when you dueled Clovis and his friends back home. And there was that time you fought fifteen orc raider outposts overnight.” Tokino tilted her head, smiling with her eyes closed. She counted more self-experiences to debunk her husband’s claim.

Haruto blushed and shook his hands in front. “N-No, you got all wrong…! I smile over my victory against them. I don’t relish their suffering.”

She pouted. “Mmmm… Are you telling me something I don’t know? Your eyes never lie, honey. I’m not talking about sadistic pleasure over one’s fight. It’s about the enjoyment of it.” She placed her hand on her chest. “I don’t mind admitting that to myself. And you know what? I’m not ashamed of seeing the most deplorable bastards crumble before my feet.

“I may act out of anger, Haruto. In the end, I always feel satisfied when they get their just desserts. I’m no angel—I can be a monster if I want to.” She smiled and held his cheek. “But I’ll always be human… for you and our family….”

He blushed further. “N-No! I-I didn’t mean to deny you. I’m just telling you that….” No matter what he said, she remained unfooled.

Tokino giggled and teased him by pushing his fragile side more out in the open. “I love it when you’re adorable, honey. And I love your smile. It’s like a happy-go-lucky kid who’s never known heartache.” She neared her lips on his.

Haruto stopped blushing and smiled just as she mentioned. For a moment, he saw his previous wife within Tokino. He hugged her with his eyes closed. “I love you so much….”

She hugged him back. “I know, honey. Me t—” Their little moment did not last as bullets rained on them.

Tokino tried to intercept. No matter what, the projectiles teleported behind her. Haruto got the same treatment. The whole time, the bullets never hit them.

They saw two massive airships at a distance with two people standing outside on the front decks. They waved at them with smiles—and even called out their names.

The couple flew their carpets to the strangers with caution. However, no further attack occurred. They were endearingly encouraged to step unto their ships.

Haruto and Tokino held hands before splitting up.

As they walked on the two separate airships, the gun-wielding pirates before them gave a shocking revelation: they were also a wedded couple.

Both were brunettes. The husband had short hair like Haruto—but slicked back. Fair skin and green eyes. The wife had long silky hair like Tokino—but no braids and two strands over the shoulders. Fair skin and blue eyes.

They wore bicornes, but their fashion could pass off as new, especially with their leather jackets and blue jeans. However, the style was still pirate-like. The husband wore a white shirt saying: ALL FOR HER. The wife wore a black shirt saying: ALL FOR HIM.

Haruto and Tokino blushed over the gun wielders’ clothing theme, knowing it was the same as theirs.

The husband shook Haruto’s hand. “William Bonny. It’s great finally meeting you, Mr. Minagawa. Congratulations on having a daughter. We have a son sleeping in a cabin on the captain’s ship.” He patted his shoulder.

The wife hugged Tokino and let go. “Grace Bonny. I’m so happy to see you in person, dear. I met your mother. She was so kind it melted my heart, and she told me of your past. Oh, you poor thing….” She patted her head.

The Minagawa couple asked the other couple simultaneously the same questions. “Who are you? and why are you being nice to me?”

William chuckled while Grace giggled. They gave the couple before them similar summaries.

At that moment, Haruto and Tokino felt something inside their chests. Something about how the other couple spoke made them feel like they were longtime friends. Their hearts bounced.

Suddenly, the other couple jumped away from them and showed smirks of pure competitiveness. After explaining that they were still at war, they pulled out their pistols. However, both reassured the Minagawa couple that it would still be good old-fashioned fun via a duel.

William chuckled. “Let’s do it, Haruto. Guns vs. swords. See what comes out on top.”

Haruto wanted to turn it down, but he unexpectedly felt excited. “You won’t hold back, would you?” He drew his broadswords.

“Of course not. It’s a duel, and it’s fun either way. You fight to protect your sovereignty—while I fight to protect my crew and captain. I love the juxtaposition….” He loaded bullets unto the chambers.

Grace hugged Tokino again. “Let’s do it, dear. My love vs. yours. See what trumps the other.”

Tokino had no second thoughts whatsoever. “You’re not saying my love isn’t real, are you?” She drew her rapier.

“No, of course not, sweety. I wanna know the difference, that’s all. My William and I once thought we were the only real lovers in this ugly, forsaken world—until you two came along. And with that, I am very much happy….” She loaded bullets into the chambers.

They all smiled at each other, fully prepared to fight.

A while back, Feuer’s team now approached their desired destination: Ape D. Aviary’s airship. A seasoned captain like no other, he commanded more successful raids than any before him for thirty years.

Danielle sighed. “I remember when I got so close offing his head through a stealth mission, only for Hokori and his old team to mess it up and steal my thunder.”

Aria’s eyes lowered out of sheer disgust. “I can’t care less about that ‘human’ before me. But his visage encapsulates the curse of being born trash. Utterly degenerate. Oh, to have it all carved up would give me divine pleasure….”

Danielle turned to her and raised an eyebrow. “Remind me to file you under house arrest after this.”

Feuer had a more concerned look than his comrades. He revealed that the last time he encountered Aviary, he and Hagel fell mortally injured. He assured them it was not out of carelessness.

Aviary sat outside his ship, drinking from a barrel mug. He welcomed his adversaries with a hand wave.

Feuer’s eyes squinted. “Be wary, all of you… Even together, we may not stand any chance against that frightening man.”

Danielle turned to him. “But aren’t you stronger than that guy nowadays? Just use a Zenith Corpus technique at him, and he’s toast. Literally.”

“You’ve missed my point,” he shook his head. “I speak of him not of raw strength—but skill. His innate ability complimented it very well.”

Harald greeted Feuer’s team, flying his carpet between them. “I see Elon laying flat on a lawn chair outside, looking at gulls. The time has come….” He drove it at top speed.

Feuer reached out his hand to the king, trying to protest against his resolve. He sighed in disappointment. Danielle drove beside him and patted his shoulder. “Cheer up, pal. Harald made up his mind even before our mission began. We—” A massive sword slash of pure magic flew right at them. Feuer countered the attack with his magma dragon’s breath.

The dreaded captain effortlessly outsped Feuer’s team in midair. Even though “Flight” was a simple innate ability with a simple name, Aviary reigned supreme in the sky because of it.

Feuer shielded him and his comrades with cooled magma. However, the sheer power of the pirate captain’s imprinted weapon almost made them fall to their deaths. As they got their footing back in the air via their magic, Aviary levitated before them. “Hahahahahaha! How’s my initial attack? I’ll fight seriously from now on.” He readied his cutlass.

The three tried to intercept. Aria changed the atmospheric current, but he slashed her waist at blinding speeds. It turned out the wind did not work against his power.

Danielle used a technique called “Ashen Mouth Blues.” Numerous trumpets materialized in thin air. They released musical notes that detonated at any time. Unfortunately, Aviary effortlessly weaved through all of it. He slashed both her shoulders.

Feuer launched countless magma lances faster than even Aviary himself. He received massive gashes on his torso—and nearly had his throat slit. However, Aviary deflected most of them with his sword skills alone and stabbed his opponent’s stomach.

Even though their attempts failed, the three healed themselves quickly via runes. Any more, and they would have met Death itself right there and then.

Surprisingly, the smiling captain did not seize the opportunity and levitated before them again. “Need a breather? Please take your time, my friends! I insist. Even though I fell in love with combat, I’m not Hokori Udemaeno. But make no mistake. I solemnly respect him!”

Aviary sheathed his cutlass and crossed his legs in midair. “Regain strength, strong ones….”