Holy Land Mary Geoise.
Pangaea Castle.
The once ancient and elegant city was now packed with people.
Celestial Dragons.
Marines.
Agents of the CP organization.
Kings and guards from World Government member nations across the world.
"What on earth is happening outside?"
"Why gather us all here? Isn't this the Holy Land? How could we be in danger here?"
"They say a Marine Admiral defected."
"Nonsense. Admiral Crimson Serpent would never defect! There must be some misunderstanding!"
…
Pangaea Castle had become a marketplace of clamor. The kings of more than one hundred and seventy member nations argued at full volume, and the guards could do nothing about it.
These were the kings of over 170 nations!
Even the Five Elders, the supreme authority of the World Government, could only keep them collected here and could not stop their chatter.
The Five Elders could ignore one or two kings.
But not over a hundred!
"Damn that White Wolf Magnus!"
The bald Elder, Nasjurō Saint, scowled.
Magnus's actions had trampled the World Government's face into the dirt—not only killing Celestial Dragons, but also triggering riots in Mary Geoise during the Reverie itself.
How many years had it been?
Since becoming one of the Five Elders, Nasjurō Saint had never encountered a pirate this brazen. It was as if they did not exist in his eyes.
"We must make Von Braun Rona pay the price!"
The God of Agriculture, Shepherd J. Peter Saint, spoke sharply.
"This cannot become a precedent!"
If it had been a simple defection, that would be one thing. But Rona had leveraged her post—after the slaves revolted, she directed large numbers of Marines to protect the Celestial Dragons and the kings of member nations, preventing the Marines from crushing the uprising at once.
Then she ambushed the Holy Knights' commander, Figarand Claude Saint, leaving the order headless.
By the time they realized it, the slave uprising could no longer be contained.
Now—
more than a hundred thousand slaves were in open revolt across Mary Geoise. Even the total number of soldiers in Mary Geoise didn't match that.
Worse, they could no longer trust the remaining Marines.
Who knew how many spies lurked among them?
So even though the Five Elders wished to tear Rona to pieces, they did not dare leave Pangaea Castle, fearing the chaos outside would spill within.
If anything happened to these kings of the member nations—
the World Government's honor would be in ruins.
"Lucas Saint, Grindlewin Hoin, and Stephens are already pursuing Von Braun Rona. I've ordered Carlo King arrested and detained. A Marine Admiral's rebellion—he must take responsibility!"
Lucas Saint was the Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights, and father of Figarand Claude Saint and Figarand Granreed Saint.
Grindlewin Hoin and Stephens were CP executives—Grindlewin had even taken part in the Elbaf battle against Magnus.
And Carlo King—
the current Commander-in-Chief of the World Government's armed forces, superior to Fleet Admiral Elephant Mountain.
The Five Elders had ordered his arrest.
If Carlo King resisted, he would face a thunderous response—the Five Elders themselves would move to suppress him.
The Marines had caused a disaster so large,
the Five Elders now distrusted any top-tier fighter with a Marine label. They refused to let the Marines near the inner ring of Pangaea Castle, keeping them at the perimeter instead.
The net effect was to shackle a great deal of the Government's top combat power—leaving the Five Elders wearing expressions as black as the bottom of a pot.
"Latest reports: Admiral Kong has been gravely wounded and defeated; the Holy Knights' vice commander, Figarand Granreed Saint, lost contact after clashing with White Wolf Magnus; Admiral Ortega was forced to retreat after being overwhelmed by Magnus and two captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates."
"And also—"
"There are reports that Harald, King of Elbaf, has appeared on the Sabaody Archipelago, bringing many elite giants."
At this, the Five Elders' faces turned grim.
White Wolf Magnus. Harald, King of Elbaf. Rona.
Taken individually, they could be looked down upon.
Together—
"Do they intend to attack Mary Geoise?"
In eight hundred years of the World Government, arrogant pirates were countless, but no one had ever dared provoke them like this.
More importantly—
three top-tier powerhouses were moving in concert toward the same goal!
At that moment—
outside Mary Geoise, the sheer cliffs of the Red Line were awash in the greatest upheaval ever seen. Countless slaves were fleeing the Holy Land, scrambling to ride the bubble cable cars down the Red Line.
Those with poor luck, or those confident in their own strength who missed the cars, simply began to climb down the Red Line by hand.
In an instant,
the colossal wall that split the Grand Line into its two halves—a rock face that had stood over this world for countless years—was swarming with tiny human figures.
From time to time, silhouettes plummeted from the sky.
From a height of more than ten thousand meters, a fall meant death for anyone not overwhelmingly strong.
Even so—
slaves kept choosing the most dangerous path.
Even Magnus and Harald, arriving later, were shaken by the sight.
"Better to die than live without freedom."
"Originally, I only wanted to give those lofty Celestial Dragons a headache," Magnus said quietly. "But now—I think we should get serious."
At first, he'd planned only to free the slaves of Sabaody. As for the slaves of Mary Geoise, he regretted it, but assumed most would die in the coming manhunts.
Yet after seeing this scene, Magnus felt he had to do more.
"They're coming!"
High in the sky, Rona's silhouette flickered.
After ambushing and sealing the Holy Knights' commander in Seastone, the rank-and-file could not hold Rona.
But she had taken heavy wounds. The worst had been the blow Claude Saint landed when she sealed him.
If she could spare focus to stop the bleeding, maybe. But fighting off Holy Knights while shielding fleeing slaves? Rona was far from top form.
Still, it would be fine.
From far off, she saw Magnus and Harald.
"Didn't expect you to be here too, big guy. If it's a fight you want, I'll happily oblige—after this battle is over!"
Blood drenched one side of Rona's body, yet she smiled at Harald, unbothered by the fact they'd once been enemies.
"A couple nasty opponents are on my tail."
In her current state, if untreated, she might not even be able to bring out half her strength in the next battle.
But she wouldn't need to.
"I'll go up first."
Magnus glanced at Harald, grinned, and launched himself straight toward Mary Geoise.
He'd first considered fighting at Red Port at the foot of the Red Line—but countless slaves would be caught in the crossfire.
So he chose the riskier path.
"Heh, I won't be outdone!"
Even with one leg gone, Harald began climbing the Red Line as well, moving fast.
As he passed Rona, his voice was calm: "Among those you freed are giants, Von Braun Rona. You owe us nothing."
After this, the giants would not hail Rona as a benefactor—but neither would they target her for the attack on Elbaf.
The assault on Elbaf had been the Government's order.
And Rona had repaid her share with deeds.
"Hmph. I just don't lay hands on women and children."
True to her willful nature, Rona didn't care what the giants thought. She did what she wanted because she wanted to—nothing to do with their opinions.
If, one day, the giants provoked her, she would show no mercy then either.
Rona and the giants were never fated to get along.
But for now—
they shared the same goal!
"Hurry—those with strong combat power, hold off the Marines and Holy Land guards! Prioritize protecting women and children! Don't push! We can get you all out!"
The White Wolf Pirates moved as well.
Rocks and Newgate were badly hurt, but Ripley and Linlin had recovered some strength after resting.
And to evacuate more people, Ripley's ability was indispensable.
The Millennium Falcon had returned to its normal size.
Its deck was crammed with figures no bigger than soybeans. If not for the anglerfish supporting the hull from below, every sway might have toppled countless people.
"Jeh-heh-heh-heh, Ripley, your ability is so handy. Shrink the two of us as well—easier to fight!"
"Gababababa! We're too drained to use Hakoku anyway. Smaller means our attack range shrinks too, but at least we won't get swarmed by these tiny soldiers."
After unleashing Hakoku twice in a row, Dorry and Brogy were exhausted—and their bodies were covered in wounds from holding Ortega at bay.
They no longer had the strength to clash with Admiral-level foes.
So—
only Magnus and Harald would climb to Mary Geoise to block the enemy.
Magnus had barely set foot on the Red Line
when a peregrine falcon dove at extreme speed.
"You?"
Magnus recognized the bird at once.
Back in Elbaf, those who besieged him—besides Kong and Rona—included this very falcon. A year had passed; Grindlewin hadn't quite reached Admiral level, but he was close.
He was young and had come away from that fight with Magnus without grave injuries. It was natural he had improved.
Grindlewin was confident.
He dared take the lead because he saw Rona wounded.
He could not match Rona at full strength.
But a wounded Rona? A guaranteed achievement.
He was still a step late.
Rona's rank had given her immense practical advantages. She knew the Marine and CP deployments in Mary Geoise like the back of her hand.
So before moving, she had arranged for someone to draw Grindlewin away.
Until after she ambushed Claude Saint, no one in the Government suspected that Mary Geoise's attacker was Rona.
She was already in Red Port.
Grindlewin believed he could catch her before she left Red Port.
However—
as he flew down from Mary Geoise to pursue,
a figure rushed upward against him.
Seeing that silhouette, the falcon all but forgot how to fly.
"Gah—White Wolf Magnus!?!"
The news lagged—Grindlewin had not been prepared for Magnus to be here.
Prepared or not, he chose well.
The instant he saw Magnus, Grindlewin didn't hesitate—
he turned and ran!
To delay even one second would be disrespectful to Magnus's record of fighting—and beating—three top-class enemies at once.
That's right.
Back then, the three of them had nearly killed Magnus.
But now he was alone!
And while he had grown in the past year and a half, he was still some distance from Kong and Rona as they were then.
Let alone Magnus.
Against someone at Magnus's level, Magnus could fight at least two.
No—three!
Grindlewin decided he'd wait to fight Magnus until the Holy Knights' Supreme Commander and his own superior arrived.
Thus Magnus advanced almost unimpeded and set foot in Mary Geoise.
Before him spread a vast domain of greenery, bright spotless streets stretching from his feet to the horizon.
And at its center—
Pangaea Castle.
Though still far away, the sight of that city stirred a faint tremor in Magnus's chest.
Caution. A premonition.
As his Kenbunshoku Haki grew, so too did the future he could glimpse—signs of what was to come.
And that city before his eyes—
was a sign of danger.
Fortunately, his goal was not to attack Pangaea Castle.
Slaves streamed past him, fleeing in all directions, but Magnus kept his eyes fixed ahead.
As the falcon dropped from the sky,
two more figures—aged, but exuding lethal danger—appeared before him.
Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights, Figarand Lucas Saint.
CP Chief Commander, Stephens.
Standing above Mary Geoise—
battle was about to erupt!
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]