On the warship deck—
The Marines finally snapped out of it.
"Saint Saturn of the Five Elders… is dead…"
"Th-this can't be…"
"How could this happen? The Five Elders are gods… how can gods die…"
"We actually lost…"
…
The five Marine Vice Admirals looked horrified. Some Marine officers collapsed right onto the deck, while regular soldiers were scared out of their minds.
"Marines!"
"Drop your weapons and surrender!"
"Or else…"
"Die!"
The flame giant's voice rang out again like a massive bell.
"I surrender!"
"Same here!"
"We all surrender—please don't kill us!"
The regular Marines and some of the lower officers quickly dropped their weapons like pecking chickens.
But—
The five Marine Vice Admirals and the remaining officers had no thoughts of giving up. They stood firm like steel, ready to fight to the end for the Celestial Dragons and the Five Elders.
In an instant—
They charged toward Egghead Island like wild beasts!
"Ryuen!"
"Leave these guys to us!"
"Go!"
"Take them down!"
Nami, Kuina, and the others jumped at the chance, afraid they'd miss this rare battle. Their strength now was nothing to take lightly!
Right after—
Before Ryuen could even say a word, the rest of the Dream Team dashed out like arrows flying off a bow, charging straight at the Marine officers!
Ryuen just silently watched.
His body quickly shrank until he returned to normal human size, standing calmly on the magma. Then he began walking toward the direction of the fight.
But that simple move instantly made several Marine Vice Admirals tense up.
They instinctively thought Ryuen was about to join the battle.
Even if he didn't, just having Ryuen nearby watching was enough to make them feel enormous pressure.
After all, this was the guy who had just taken down a member of the Five Elders like it was nothing.
Right now in Mary Geoise—
It felt as if a terrifying storm had swept through, with the eye of the storm centered right on the Room of Flowers.
In an instant—
That overwhelming pressure burst out like a tidal wave from the Room of Flowers, spreading across all of Mary Geoise.
Countless Celestial Dragons, guards, and soldiers—
All collapsed unconscious under that pressure, like stalks of wheat flattened by a powerful gust.
The remaining four Elders stared at the Room of Flowers in shock, as if they had just witnessed the end of the world.
"Lord Imu is furious!"
"Saturn must be dead..."
"He didn't last until we arrived... and not even until Lord Im made a move..."
"Ryuen..."
The four Elders immediately understood what had just happened.
They had only just received Saturn's call for help—
But before they could even set off, Saturn had vanished completely, like a falling star.
This clearly triggered Lord Im's overwhelming rage.
For over ten seconds, waves of Conqueror's Haki swept through like a raging storm before the skies finally calmed down again.
But just as things settled, an old man with a crescent moon-shaped hairstyle entered the temporary Hall of Power.
The four remaining Elders were clearly displeased as Garling Saint barged in without even a greeting.
"Garling Saint, what are you doing here?" Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro asked angrily, clearly annoyed.
Garling just gave Saint Nusjuro a cold glance and said nothing, walking straight toward the empty seat and sitting down like he owned the place.
"Garling Saint, you've crossed the line. Only a member of the Five Elders has the right to sit in that seat!" Saint Topman Warcury said in a low and stern voice, his words hitting like a hammer.
But Garling Saint still said nothing, as if he hadn't heard a thing Warcury said.
Because right now, he was lost in the thrill of power. From this day forward, he too could enjoy the long life granted to the Five Elders.
Seeing Garling's arrogant attitude—
Not just Saint Nusjuro and Saint Warcury, but Saint Peter and Saint Mars were also burning with rage inside.
At that moment—
Garling finally spoke, slow and calm:
"Gentlemen, by Lord Im's order, from this moment on, I, Garling Saint of the Figarland family, will take over as the Scientific Defense God."
"From now on, we're colleagues."
The moment he said that, it hit the four Elders like a stone dropped into still water—sending shockwaves through their hearts.
They hadn't expected it.
The empty seat of power had been filled again so quickly by Lord Im. It left them feeling unsettled.
At the same time, they felt wary of Garling Saint.
He was already powerful, and had been the commander of Lord Im's God Knights. But even that hadn't been enough to make them truly wary—
Because no matter how strong Garling was, he would still die one day.
He didn't have the gift the Five Elders received from Lord Im—the gift of long life.
That was the true benefit of being one of the Elders.
But now—
After enjoying that benefit for 800 years, they suddenly had to share it with Garling too. It was hard for them to accept.
Still, no matter how unhappy they were, they didn't dare say a word.
Because this was Lord Im's command.
So they all went quiet, silently acknowledging Garling's new position.
"Now then, shouldn't the Marines be sent out? This needs to be dealt with soon. Don't forget—Lord Im is still waiting for the Holy Mother Flame," Garling said in a soft, steady voice.
"Then notify the Marines. Make sure they don't let the Holy Flame of the Virgin fall into the hands of the Dream Exploration Group," Saint Warcury said in a low voice.
"Agreed!"
"Seconded…"
"Agreed!"
The remaining three Gorosei agreed with Saint Garling's suggestion. They all wanted to send a Marine Admiral to deal with the matter.
None of them wanted to get personally involved.
After all, they had already seen what happened to Saturn.
They were now the perfect example of the saying: "The longer you live, the more afraid of death you become."
So—
A written order was sent from Mariejois to Marine Headquarters. Marine HQ had been waiting for the Gorosei's orders, and even Admiral Aokiji, who had been out on a mission, had returned.
"Everyone, the Gorosei have given us our orders. We are to make sure the Holy Flame doesn't fall into the hands of the Dream Exploration Group," said Vice Admiral Tsuru seriously.
"Well then..."
"Borsalino, you go. You're the fastest, and it'll show how seriously we're taking this." Akainu made the decision on the spot.
"Understood," Kizaru replied, though his tone sounded a little bitter.
Ever since the Marine's mass recruitment started, he had been working overtime all the time. And now, even his speed had become the reason for all that overtime.
But his pay hadn't gone up at all!
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