"Apologize to you? A mere metal heap? I'm not listening to you! Let's see me dismantle you!"
Queen still didn't take the robot's threatening words seriously. Due to its bulky structure, Blitzcrank's movements in overdrive mode seemed somewhat comical, and its heavy frame didn't appear particularly menacing.
Facing the charging robot, Queen bent his knees, gathered strength, and leaped into the air. Gripping his blade with both hands, he raised it overhead, aiming for Blitzcrank's neck.
"Leaving such a weak point in the design? This glaring flaw speaks for itself!"
Compared to Blitzcrank's robust body, its neck did seem noticeably thinner. But Blitzcrank's response was simple. A puff of steam dissipated from its body, and its neck retracted, vanishing into a metal collar shield.
Clang!
The blade struck Blitzcrank's body, merely chipping some paint. Blitzcrank's frame remained unscathed, while Queen's hands went numb from the recoil.
In the original timeline, both Judge and Queen grew to be formidable. They weren't top-tier monsters in the New World but were considered high-end combatants. However, at this point, they were far from that level.
Both their technical expertise and combat skills were still in their infancy.
Kuma had contributed significantly to Blitzcrank's construction. Without equipment like stamping presses, the Paw-Paw Fruit became the most effective tool, excelling at compression and purification.
Blitzcrank's main body was made from a special alloy, achieving an ideal balance of hardness, strength, ductility, and toughness, with strong corrosion resistance.
Against Blitzcrank, crafted from this specialized metal, even a swordsman capable of cutting iron would struggle to gain an advantage.
Someone who couldn't even cut iron stood no chance.
"Metal, harder than flesh."
Boom!
Blitzcrank's charged fist slammed into Queen's stomach, sending him soaring higher into the sky. He performed a graceful free-fall before landing in a nearby stream.
Blitzcrank's current goal was to teach them a lesson and demand an apology, so the punch wasn't full force. Not long after, Queen, drenched and hunched over, crawled out.
"Hahaha, Queen, you look pathetic. Is this the 'mighty body' you always brag about? Doesn't seem like much."
"What are you laughing at? Get over here and help!"
"You made this mess. Why should I bail you out?"
Judge acted completely uninterested in intervening, seemingly forgetting that he'd chimed in when Queen was narcissistically boasting earlier.
Humans might see Judge's indifference as mere posturing, but Blitzcrank was different. Still developing, it had already categorized Judge and Queen as the same type of person.
Whoosh!
While Judge mocked Queen's predicament, Blitzcrank's grappling claw shot toward him.
"Hey, hey, hey! How do you even pick your enemies? This has nothing to do with me!"
His explanation was futile. Blitzcrank spun its upper body, flinging Judge toward Queen, knocking the just-crawling-out Queen back into the stream.
Good thing Queen hadn't eaten a Devil Fruit yet, or he might've sunk for good after all this.
"Jerk, I'm not that loser Queen! Taste my power!"
Judge pulled out a spearhead-like device and attached it to the front of his musket. After a quick aim, he fired at Blitzcrank.
Blitzcrank's unretracted grappling claw caught the projectile mid-air, but Judge smirked triumphantly. The spearhead exploded, sending a powerful electric current along Blitzcrank's arm into its body.
"Lie there and rust, you dumb metal heap!"
This was Judge's prototype shock gun, designed to short-circuit Blitzcrank with high voltage. As intense electric light flared, Blitzcrank's movements slowed.
"See, Queen? This is how it's done. You idiot, fighting a robot hand-to-hand? What were you thinking?
Sorry, little kitty, we broke your robot. How about we fix it for you later?"
Judge wasn't taking responsibility out of guilt—he was curious about Blitzcrank's internal structure and wanted to see what made it tick. But Kate's gaze held a hint of pity.
"Meow thinks you two should run now."
Kate, having witnessed Blitzcrank's creation with Oran, knew it entered a brief rigid phase after overdrive, slowing its movements.
Despite the electricity crackling around Blitzcrank, looking like a short-circuit, it wasn't due to Judge's attack. The current came from Blitzcrank's internal energy core.
Judge's shock gun didn't stop Blitzcrank—it triggered its combat mode.
The next moment, Blitzcrank went berserk, swinging electrified fists at the duo with even greater speed.
"Judge, you moron! Look what you've done!"
"You started this, you jerk! What right do you have to blame me?"
Zzzzt!
As Blitzcrank approached, its electricity began to arc. Realizing the robot's threat, they abandoned direct confrontation and started dodging, but the grappling claw and stray currents made them miserable.
"Queen! Apologize already! Make this metal heap stop!!"
"No way! Where's my dignity if I do that?"
"If you don't apologize, we'll be worrying about where our lives go!"
Under the midday sun, Blitzcrank chased the two, relentlessly teaching them a lesson.
Though Queen eventually caved after a while, it seemed too late. Blitzcrank's goal had shifted from demanding an apology to simply punishing them.
"Oran, there's a bit of a problem with Blitzcrank. It's beating up two guys from a ship called MADS because…
Should we make Blitzcrank stop?"
Kate dialed Oran's Den Den Mushi, described the situation, and asked for guidance.
In her judgment, the two weren't outright villains, so killing them wasn't necessary. But their earlier dismissive tone toward Oran annoyed her, so she hadn't stopped Blitzcrank.
After all, Blitzcrank hadn't activated its annihilation mode, so no lives were at stake.
"MADS? Looks like they're your subordinates. Got anything to say?"
Oran didn't respond to Kate immediately. Instead, he turned to the tall figure before him, whose head was nearly as large as his body.