"He… he actually brought down the Golden Lion…"
Marine Headquarters. Fleet Admiral's office.
Sengoku and the assembled officers stared in stunned silence at the image frozen on the projection screen. Minds reeled, words failed.
The room was so still you could hear a pin drop.
One second.
Two.
Three.
"Yes!!"
"Fantastic!!"
"We won!!"
"From the Battle of Edd War until now… the Marines have finally crushed that bastard Golden Lion Shiki!!"
"Vice Admiral Darren is truly incredible!!"
The dam broke. Faces flushed, voices rose, some officers even shouting in jubilation.
The suffocating weight that had hung over their shoulders—Golden Lion's shadow—finally lifted.
All of them knew: if the Marines had failed to strike Shiki down, his vengeance would have been merciless. Vindictive and cunning, the Golden Lion could have rained down islands on Marine branches at will, or hurled "gifts" upon Marineford itself, plunging the organization into chaos with every whim.
But now Darren had ended him. That nightmare was gone.
Relief swept the room like a tide. The hiss of champagne corks popping soon followed, a celebration to drown out months of dread.
Amid the jubilance, Sengoku sank into his chair, utterly spent. He exchanged a look with Kong, and the two shared a weary, deeply moved smile.
"We won…"
So the monumental struggle of the Edd War reached its close, its end marked by the death of the legendary Great Pirate Golden Lion Shiki in the North Blue.
Within a single day, news of the clash roared across the world, carried by Marine Headquarters and whispered through the arteries of the Underworld.
It was the greatest upheaval since God Valley.
The combatants: the Roger Pirates, the Flying Pirates, and Marine Headquarters itself.
Two legendary pirate crews, and the greatest military force on the seas. The mere mention of any one of these was enough to stir the world. But the three colliding in a single storm across the waters of Edd War?
Golden Lion's ambition to crush Roger;
The whispered key to the Ancient Weapons;
The Roger Pirates driven to the brink;
The sudden sea storm that turned fate;
The miraculous resurgence of Roger's crew against all odds…
The annihilation of the Flying Pirates, the Marines' overwhelming force, and Golden Lion's final fall—these tremors rattled the seas, shaking thrones and palaces alike.
And when the dust settled, all eyes turned to one man.
Vice Admiral Rogers Darren.
A rising star, his name now roared across taverns, barracks, and courts. For Marines, he was a symbol of glory. For pirates, he was a nightmare to come.
From that day, the lawless North Blue became known as the "Pirate's Forbidden Sea."
And Darren, mastermind of the Edd War, was hailed as the "Uncrowned King of the North Blue."
The New World.
A deserted island in remote seas.
The Oro Jackson lay battered and broken on the shore. Around a small fire, the Roger Pirates chewed listlessly at charred meat, silence heavy in the air.
"Damn that Garp…" Roger grumbled between bites, meat sticking in the gaps of his teeth. "Chased me three days and nights straight! Do I owe him something?!"
Rayleigh leaned back against jagged stone, face lined with weariness. He drank deep from his flask. "Save your breath, Roger. Rest while you can. We'll be lucky to have an hour before he's on us again."
"I know, I know! Stop nagging!" Roger snapped, cramming more meat into his mouth.
The moment fractured when a shrill, panicked voice tore through the camp.
"Captain Roger!!!"
Buggy sprinted into view, legs pumping like windmills, tears and snot streaming. His disembodied hands hovered in the air, clutching a crumpled newspaper.
"Something terrible's happened!"
He stumbled to a halt before them, gasping, eyes bloodshot. "Golden Lion… Golden Lion Shiki is dead!" he wailed. "He was killed by that Marine who stripped your pants off!!"
The crew erupted, their faces blanching.
"Impossible!"
"Shiki—dead?!"
"How could this happen?!"
They seized the newspaper from Buggy's floating hands. Even Roger forgot the meat in his fist, his jaw tightening as he read.
The headline screamed in bold type:
[ Battle of Edd War! Unprecedented Storm! – Legendary Great Pirate Golden Lion Shiki Falls in the North Blue!! ]
Beneath it sprawled detailed accounts, speculation, analysis. But what silenced them was the image.
The photograph showed wasteland. Mountains leveled, forests flattened, the earth charred black.
And there—bathed in the twilight glow—stood Darren.
Two swords skewered his abdomen, their tips bursting from his back. Yet he still stood. Bloodied. Unyielding.
At his feet lay the Golden Lion, lips twisted in a final mocking grin.
"This was a battle of caged beasts, its details lost to time. But one truth remains: after an earth-shattering clash, the legendary 'Flying Admiral,' Golden Lion Shiki—bounty 4.45 billion—fell with a smile, slain by Vice Admiral Rogers Darren of Marine Headquarters."
"A new age dawns. The Marines' Golden Generation rises, led by Darren, stars blazing into a constellation that may reshape the seas. Perhaps this marks the Marines' true ascendance."
"The Marines, champions of 'Justice,' climb toward their zenith. But what fate awaits the pirates, bearers of 'Evil'?"
"I care little for grand narratives. One question lingers…"
"Was the lion's final roar magnificent?"
"Only that Marine knows the answer."
—Morgans, President of the World Economic News
To be continued...