“That’s right, it’s the willow fluff.”
In Giorno’s magically compelling voice, the floating willow fluff in the air seemed to freeze in time:
“I don’t know if you’ve ever played this game…”
“When the ground is covered with willow fluff in spring, you casually throw a match onto it.”
“Woosh… with just a tiny spark, the entire street of willow fluff would ignite like a fuse of gunpowder, quickly blossoming into a magnificent sea of flames.”
(Absolutely do not imitate, or you’ll end up in jail.)
“Because the seeds of willow trees contain natural oils, and the fluffy fibrous structure gives them a large surface area in contact with the air, providing ample oxygen.”
“And to float effortlessly, they have very low water content.”
“So…”
Through the dense ‘fog,’ these heavy words echoed clearly:
“Willow fluff, which seems harmless, is actually more flammable than gasoline!”
“And you…”
Giorno steadied himself, instinctively placing one hand on his waist and pointing firmly at the ‘fog’ with the other:
“While you were busy chasing me, these flammable dangers had already completely wrapped around your bodies!”
“Now do you understand?”
“From the moment you stepped into this ‘fog,’ you were already in my trap!”
“……”
Upon hearing this, Fugo and Narancia’s faces turned extremely grim.
They looked at their current situation:
Covered in willow fluff, surrounded by willow fluff, and still more floating in the air.
These ordinary-looking white plant seeds filled every space around them, appearing not only harmless but almost ethereal.
But now, just a tiny spark was needed to bring the terrifying flame demon to life.
“It’s over… it’s over…”
“There’s nowhere to run… we’ve already… walked into the center of a sea of flames!”
Narancia’s voice was trembling, and Fugo’s face had turned pale:
“No… can’t stop thinking… there must be a way…”
“Is there any way to escape!”
Both of them nervously scanned their surroundings, but all they could see was a sea of white.
At this moment, Giorno had already taken out a lighter from his pocket.
This finely crafted, exquisite lighter was something he had picked up while having tea at that upscale restaurant—an act of thrift for a child who had a father but not a father figure.
“Well then…”
“Burn!”
The lighter sparked, colliding passionately with the gasoline on the ground.
The vaporized gasoline exploded in the flame, igniting the hidden energy within the willow fluff instantly.
Boom!
The thick layer of willow fluff on the ground turned into fiery sprites in an instant.
The red flames spread along the white carpet, covering the entire street in a bright and deadly red.
Flames shot into the sky, turning the ground into charcoal.
Before Fugo and Narancia’s figures hidden in the ‘fog’ could become clear, they were swallowed by the roaring flames.
“Ahhh!!”
Soon, a piercing scream came from the flames.
Possibly due to the intense fire or severe injuries, the scream lasted only a moment before ending with a trembling whimper.
What remained was the roaring sound of the fiery wind.
Giorno stood silently outside the sea of flames,
Golden hair fluttering in the wind. “Is it over?”
He sighed lightly, looking up at the clear sky:
The once circling Aerosmith had vanished, leaving only red flames, white clouds, and blue sky.
Then, the fire gradually subsided.
Willow fluff burns like black powder, igniting quickly and extinguishing just as fast.
After the tsunami-like wave of flames passed, only a thick smoke and glowing embers remained.
Of course, some roadside trees caught fire, and a few unlucky shops had their storefronts burned.
But that was for the firefighters to handle.
“It should have worked…”
“Wonder how Lee Sin is doing, better meet up with him quickly.”
Giorno thought.
He waved away the bothersome smoke and stepped onto the still hot, smoldering black embers.
The alley where Lee Sin disappeared was on the other side of the road; Giorno had to turn back and cross the fire scene.
However, at this moment…
“Wait!”
After a few steps on the embers, Giorno suddenly stopped.
The thick smoke had obscured his vision earlier, but now he saw clearly:
“Those two… are gone!”
“There are no traces of them on the ground!”
Giorno held his breath, carefully examining the ash-covered ground:
Nothing… there was nothing.
Only the embers of burnt willow fluff, nothing else.
Two living people… or perhaps bodies, had just disappeared.
“Where are they?”
Giorno nervously scanned the surroundings, seeing only floating ashes.
“How is this possible…”
“Could they have some kind of teleportation Stand ability?”
“No… if they had that, they would’ve used it when chasing me.”
“So… they must still be here, hiding somewhere nearby!”
With this thought, he carefully scrutinized everything around him:
Not on the road, not in the cars by the roadside, and they couldn’t have run further through the flames…
So, the only possibility was…
Underground?
Giorno’s expression changed slightly, locking his gaze on the dark ground.
He cautiously advanced, using Gold Experience to brush away the piled embers with his foot.
Ground, ground, still just ordinary ground…
And then…
“What’s that?!”
Giorno stopped, spotting a round outline faintly visible on the ground.
His face changed, and he jumped back without hesitation.
If things were as he imagined, he couldn’t risk stepping into the enemy Stand’s range.
But the enemy’s attack still followed.
It wasn’t the limited-range Purple Haze, but…
“Aerosmith!”
From the ash-covered ground, a round iron disk suddenly rose—this was a manhole cover.
Then, like a rocket launched from a missile silo, Aerosmith roared upwards, its propeller spinning furiously as it ascended from beneath the opened manhole cover.
Rat-tat-tat-tat—
A rapid and dangerous burst of machine-gun fire followed.
Even with some precaution, at such close range, Giorno found it hard to avoid Aerosmith’s machine-gun fire.
The small, swift bullets shot through the flames, hitting Giorno’s shoulder without mercy.
“Ugh!”
Giorno let out a pained grunt, staggering back a few steps.
At the same time, he instinctively looked at the suddenly opened round hole in the ground:
It was an ordinary sewer manhole, about half a meter in diameter, just enough to squeeze in two men.
And Fugo and Narancia were hiding there.
They were crammed together, stuck near the entrance.
Clearly, it was crowded.
“Hahaha… didn’t expect this, did you?”
“When the fire came, there was a manhole right under our feet!”
Despite their faces squished together comically, Fugo and Narancia’s eyes were filled with confidence:
“Looks like fate is still on our side!”
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