The scent of burnt flesh—that was all Gabriel could smell. He wondered why he could smell flesh when the man before him was just a walking skeleton.
Though this probably had something to do with the bomb he had sent. There were a lot of souls in there. When it exploded, it was as if thousands of bodies had detonated at the same time.
And since he had imbued some souls with fire, the flames released had reduced everything to a crisp.
Barragan's Hierro must be top-tier if he could survive so easily.
Well, it was good—nothing to write home about, though. The old man was hella reliant on his technique.
Gabriel watched the old man's broken skeletal body. He could see the cracks running through him, how his royal clothes were now in tatters. He was just a skeleton now—none of that jewelry remained.
A corpse, hanging on to life...
Barragan, on the other hand, was pissed.
He would kill the boy for showing him such disrespect.
Taking out his axe, the old king imbued it with Respira, making the weapon even deadlier than before.
Gabriel just smiled. It wasn't an arrogant smile, nor was it demeaning. It was the kind of smile that seemed to say:
"No matter what you do, your fate has been sealed... Accept your death."
Barragan's hatred boiled.
The man who would kill him was not yet born. If anyone could kill him, it would be himself.
"Enough." His voice was deep, rattling like a death knell through the battlefield. "I tire of your insolence. Your very existence is an affront to my throne—to the order of this world."
"I don't care about your throne or this world order," Gabriel replied coldly. "You made my woman's world miserable, and for that simple reason—you shall die."
That was a promise, not a threat.
Barragan snapped.
The man roared out—he would not fucking lose to a child. He refused to.
BZZZT—BOOM!
Using Sonido to get close, Barragan spread his Respira all around them, forming a deadly circle that trapped them inside.
This is my domain.
Here, he would force this boy into close combat and slay him with his axe.
Gabriel met the man head-on.
Reaching into his storage pouch, he conjured a massive sword—one forged from the souls of countless Hollows.
With a battle cry, he clashed with Barragan.
Blow after blow, they exchanged devastating strikes—each attack carrying enough force to annihilate lesser beings instantly. Barragan's Respira-coated axe tore through the air, but Gabriel met it with precision, parrying, twisting, maneuvering with a level of fluidity that made it seem as though he was dancing in the face of death itself.
And then—it happened.
Barragan's biggest wet dream in this fight.
With one powerful swing, Barragan's axe cleaved through Gabriel's sword—the cursed weapon rotting away instantly, unable to withstand the absolute decay of Respira.
Barragan grinned.
"Die."
With a single, clean motion, he swung at Gabriel's neck—fully expecting the kill.
And then Gabriel showcased why his power was such a pain in the ass to deal with...
His head shot out of his body.
Barragan froze.
For the first time, his mind blanked.
His axe swung through empty air.
No resistance.
No impact.
Nothing.
His sockets widened.
"What...?"
Gabriel's headless body still stood there, as if mocking him, while his detached head flew through the air, his grin still very much intact.
"You thought that was it?" Gabriel's voice echoed, distorted yet full of amusement.
Barragan's fury doubled.
With a snarl, he turned sharply, raising his skeletal hand, ready to release Respira once more—
But Gabriel had already moved.
While in the air, Gabriel forcefully fused twenty souls together, knowing full well they had the highest rejection rate.
Body Repel was used once more.
Barragan swung his axe at the creature, and using his tremendous strength, he managed to cleave it clean in half.
He refused to be underestimated.
"ENOUGH!"
Lifting his hand, he unleashed a massive surge of Respira—a burst so intense that the very sky darkened.
Half of Gabriel's body vanished instantly—
And yet.
He survived.
Just like a cockroach.
Still standing. Still smiling.
Barragan's hatred burned hotter than ever.
"Why... why won't this insect die?!"
His Respira had never failed.
It had reduced countless enemies to nothing. It had stripped flesh from bone, reduced time itself to dust—
And yet this boy stood before him, unfazed.
Before Barragan could voice his rage, before he could even begin to comprehend this absurdity—
Gabriel struck.
A fist collided with his chest.
CRACK.
A shockwave exploded outward—the very ground beneath Barragan's feet shattering like glass.
And then—
Barragan, the King of Hueco Mundo, puked blood.
A lot of it.
He could hear them—the voices of the countless souls he had devoured ringing in his ears.
He could feel himself losing control over his body.
Even his Respira wasn't working anymore. He couldn't even control it.
Before the old man could regain even the slightest bit of control—
BAM.
Another strike landed.
If before, he could faintly hear the voices, now he could hear them clearly.
BAM.
He could feel their hatred, their greed.
He could feel it enveloping his body, trying to consume him.
His soul... his soul was being destroyed.
Gabriel, meanwhile, had a smile on his face.
Barragan had lost control of his body.
He couldn't even move anymore.
"I AM THE KING OF THIS LAND! I REFUSE TO PERISH LIKE THIS!"
Barragan's Reiatsu flared out.
If he was going to die, he would take everyone with him.
He would release a massive wave of Respira, using every ounce of his Reiatsu and life force.
The King of Hueco Mundo would not die to such a person.
But Barragan never got the chance.
Instead, he felt Gabriel's palm press against his chest.
"I'm not letting you do another Ifrit," Gabriel said calmly.
"You lost," he continued, his voice unwavering.
"Your soul is mine to claim."
As those words left Gabriel's mouth, Barragan saw it—
The maw of Hell opening in his vision.
And before the King could do anything about it—
The giant Gillian bit down on him.
The King of Hueco Mundo had fallen.
Gabriel had used his Idle Transfiguration to turn Barragan into a transfigured husk.
Now... for his part.
A/N