Your world?
Everyone was a little confused when they saw Caelan suddenly appear.
However, everyone was extremely curious.
That murderous loess land they had just seen looked extraordinary at first glance.
"Then shall we go in and take a look?"
Dragon and Morgans asked carefully.
He was truly curious about the skeleton that looked exactly like him.
If he didn't resolve this problem, he feared that one day he might wake up inside a coffin.
"Go ahead."
Caelan didn't mind outsiders watching.
Just looking would not reveal the flaws of his Reality Marble, otherwise it would be far too cheap.
It just so happened that his Reality Marble had only just been completed, and he wanted someone to share his joy with.
Magic power surged through Caelan's body as he activated the Reality Marble.
In an instant, everything changed.
The hazy moonlit sky vanished along with many of Dressrosa's buildings, replaced by a shocking new scene.
The scorching sun hung high in the sky, and the land stretched vast and boundless.
White bones of countless shapes were scattered across the loess, their hollow eye sockets staring upward as if filled with unwillingness and submission.
Before anyone could react, they were pulled into this strange world.
"It's not that we're being pulled in. It's the original world being replaced."
Dragon muttered as he studied the scene around him.
Without any warning, the world had shifted before their eyes.
He had felt nothing as it happened, and if not for the environment changing, he might have believed he was still in the same place.
"Besides, it seems like we can't leave."
Morgans looked around and spoke gravely.
As a news king used to fleeing danger, his instinct was always to find an escape route, which was the reason he had survived so long.
The moment the world shifted, he instinctively checked for exits, but there were none.
"Don't be afraid. As long as you are not an enemy, you are completely safe in this world," Caelan said with a smile.
"If they are safe when not enemies, then that means enemies are dangerous?"
Morgans caught the meaning in Caelan's words. Speaking to himself, he carefully observed the surroundings, searching for hidden murderous intent.
But aside from the countless bones, nothing else appeared unusual.
Still, even if nothing lurked here, just being in the same space as Caelan was enough to drive any enemy to despair.
And those bones were clearly anything but ordinary.
"Caelan, can I examine the bones?"
Dragon asked, referring to the skeleton he had seen earlier that resembled him so closely.
Although tens of thousands of bones lay scattered across the wasteland, he had been immediately drawn to that one and recognized it at a glance.
"Of course. Go ahead," Caelan agreed.
Dragon immediately pulled Morgans along with him.
It wasn't that he trusted Morgans, but in dangerous situations, it was always better to have someone else take the fall.
As Dragon moved away, Caelan chuckled softly and whispered, "I hope I didn't scare you."
Dragon studied the skeleton curiously. The longer he looked, the stranger it seemed, as if he were staring at another version of himself.
Only this version had nothing left but bare bones.
A strange sense of shame welled up inside him.
Almost involuntarily, he reached out and touched the hard bones, carefully examining their features.
Meanwhile, Caelan was speaking with Nami and the others.
"Is this your world? It looks so desolate."
Nami frowned with some disdain as she glanced around.
She had been shocked at first, but after observing for a while, she realized it was nothing more than a lifeless wasteland steeped in murderous intent.
Apart from the endless land, there was nothing else to see.
"It's like Alabasta under Crocodile, but much worse."
Vivi spoke with a scowl.
Even under Crocodile's control, Alabasta had still been filled with people. But here, there was nothing but bones.
"This is a battlefield. How could a battlefield ever be filled with life?"
Caelan rubbed Vivi's head helplessly.
This world wasn't a place for rest or leisure. Where would vitality come from?
If they truly wanted to relax, they only had to look up at the sky.
"Battlefield?"
"I thought it was going to be something incredible, but in the end, it's just a pile of bones."
Gion's tone was disappointed.
With all the commotion earlier, she had almost believed the entire world would collapse.
Yet after stepping inside, aside from its vastness and oppressive atmosphere, there seemed to be nothing particularly special about it.
"You underestimate this world. Those piles of bones are anything but ordinary."
Caelan chuckled and pointed toward Dragon.
The women followed his finger, just in time to see the skeleton Dragon was touching suddenly break free of his grasp.
"Dragon Claw Fist!"
The skeletal hand flexed, and with shocking speed, a familiar Dragon Claw strike slammed toward Dragon's chest.
Dragon's reflexes were quick. He dodged aside and countered with his own Dragon Claw Fist.
The bones were blasted hundreds of meters away, scattering across the ground before pulling themselves back together again.
"Tch. He just touched my bones, and now he pretends not to know me."
The skeleton staggered to its feet, speaking with a pitiful tone.
Even without flesh or vocal cords, the bones still produced sound, and it was identical to Dragon's voice.
"What the hell are you?"
Dragon asked solemnly.
The technique, the voice, everything was exactly the same as his own. Aside from being slightly weaker, it was like staring at a carbon copy of himself.
"I am not a thing. I am Lord Caelan's medal of honor, the wail of the defeated."
"I am you, you loser!"
The skeleton spoke slowly, its hollow sockets flashing with contempt.
"I'm a loser?"
Dragon froze.
His revolutionary cause was thriving. How could he possibly be a loser?
He had recently been defeated by Caelan, yes, but that didn't justify creating a skeleton just to mock him.
"Caelan, this…?"
Dragon looked at him in confusion, eager for answers.
"This is the kingdom of the defeated. Anyone who loses to me leaves behind a mark here, becoming my servant."
Caelan did not hide anything and explained directly.
These bones were the projections of those who had been defeated by him.
Silvers Rayleigh, the three Marine admirals, Enel, Crocodile, and most recently Monkey D. Dragon himself, all had places here.
Even the Arlong Pirates and Don Krieg's crew were mixed in among the ranks.
Some had been killed, others survived.
But everyone he had defeated had a corresponding skeleton here.
"I see. No wonder some of the bones looked familiar."
The women nodded in sudden realization.
They recognized a few old enemies among the bones.
There was Enel's skeleton sparking with lightning, Kizaru's glowing with light, and Aokiji's encased in ice…
All of Caelan's past enemies were present within this Reality Marble.
"So if you defeat me, I end up as a skeleton serving you?"
Dragon shouted in disbelief.
This ability was absurd.
If he could use every opponent he defeated, then the Revolutionary Army would have long since conquered the world.
And he knew how many terrifying foes Caelan had overcome. If all of them became skeletons fighting under him, that would be an unimaginable power.
"That's about right, but don't exaggerate. At most, they retain thirty percent of their original strength," Caelan said with a hint of regret.
As a product of magic within the Reality Marble, the strength of the skeletons was not very high.
Thanks to magic's versatility, they retained all the abilities of their originals, including Devil Fruit powers and Haki.
But their power was only thirty percent of the real thing.
Still, thirty percent was already enough. Thirty percent of the strong was still strong, and thirty percent of the weak still added to his numbers.
Every person he defeated contributed to his path of conquest.
This was the kingdom of the defeated, half of his Reality Marble, shaped by his ambition to rule the world.
The other half embodied the will to preserve.
"Thirty percent is already terrifying enough."
Dragon was shaken.
To retain thirty percent of one's strength was already unbelievable.
Thirty percent of a Yonko was still stronger than a Vice Admiral, and thirty percent of a Vice Admiral was stronger than a Rear Admiral.
In every case, it was only one step below the original strength.
With such an army, the power was overwhelming.
It was hard to believe this ability could even exist within a human.
(To be continued.)
***
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