Mary Geoise, in the conference room.
Sunlight slanted through stained glass windows, casting colorful patterns on the marble floor. The Five Elders sat around a circular stone table, where an urgent report from Sabaody Archipelago lay spread out. The words "Celestial Dragon Killed in Attack" glared starkly from the pages.
"Outrageous!" The golden-haired Saint Marcus Mars slammed his palm on the table, sending a silver pen bouncing. "Never has there been such brazen audacity—publicly executing a Celestial Dragon and displaying the corpse on a cross! This is a declaration of war against the World Government!"
"God's Knights are already in an uproar," the bald Saint Topman Warcury added grimly, his knuckles whitening. "They're clamoring to personally hunt down that villain Bahr and make an example of him."
"Calm yourselves. This is no time for rash actions." Saint Shepherd Ju Peter adjusted his glasses, scanning the report's description of the scene. "Since Whitebeard's death, the New World has been in chaos. Blackbeard Marshall D. Teach has just seized the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, his ambitions plain for all to see. The Marines are stretched thin suppressing pirates worldwide. Sending God's Knights away from Mary Geoise now would be leaving our back door wide open."
Saint Jaygarcia Saturn snorted, rubbing the edge of the report. "But we can't just sit idle. The dignity of the Celestial Dragons cannot be challenged. If we tolerate this, rebel forces everywhere will grow even bolder."
"The real issue is Bahr's strength," the eldest, Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro, mused, stroking his beard as his gaze lingered on the words "Space Warp." His aged voice carried gravity. "According to the report, when he uses his ability, the air ripples like water. His blade doesn't even need to touch his victims to kill them."
"The Space Fruit..." Saint Marcus Mars's expression darkened. "To think a power only recorded in ancient texts has actually appeared."
"Ancient texts say the Space Fruit can warp and sever space at will—one of the abilities closest to that of a 'god,'" Saint Shepherd Ju Peter remarked, his tone complex. "But judging by his performance at the Summit War, he can only perform short-distance spatial jumps and cut localized space for defense. That's already beyond most Devil Fruit users, but at best... he's barely scratched the surface of its advanced applications."
"Even so," Saint Topman Warcury frowned, "to achieve this level at his age makes him troublesome enough."
"This isn't the time to discuss abilities," Saint Jaygarcia Saturn rapped the table. "With the current unstable situation and the Marines stretched thin, we can't gamble our entire strategy over two fools. The World Government needs stability, not a manhunt that could spark greater unrest."
"So we let him grow unchecked?" Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro scowled. "That brat publicly founded the 'Cross Guild,' openly rallying allies. Left unchecked, he'll become a scourge."
"We need time to adjust our plans," Saint Jaygarcia Saturn said grimly before shifting the topic. "By the way, has Imu-sama given any instructions?"
Saint Shepherd Ju Peter shook his head. "Imu-sama has remained silent, likely tacitly approving a low-key approach. After all, there are more pressing matters at hand."
"In that case, suppress the news for now," Saint Marcus Mars said, relieved. "Order all channels from Sabaody Archipelago shut down. No newspapers are to report this—we can't afford unnecessary unrest."
He added, "Also, we need people to monitor Bahr's movements."
Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro interjected, "Doesn't Spandam of CP9 still have a few disgraced intelligence operatives under him? Have them infiltrate the Cross Guild."
"Use disgraced agents?" Saint Topman Warcury raised an eyebrow.
"They're perfect for this," Saint Shepherd Ju Peter said coldly. "Let them gather intel on Bahr's movements and the structure of his forces... Once we're ready, we'll eliminate him in one stroke."
Saint Topman Warcury nodded. "This plan is feasible. It doesn't require deploying our main forces yet still keeps tabs on Bahr. Let's proceed."
He added, "Instruct CP0 to stand down for now—we mustn't alert our prey. As for God's Knights, I'll placate them. Tell them the 'wrath of the gods' will eventually be washed clean with that brat's blood."
Just then, a CP0 agent hurried in, pale-faced, and handed over a newspaper.
The headline blared: "Blasphemer Bahr Slays Celestial Dragon—Cross Guild Emerges!" The accompanying photo captured the moment Bahr's blade struck down the Celestial Dragon, with the corner stamped: "Special Edition by Morgans, World Economic Journal."
"That damnable—!" Saint Topman Warcury snatched the paper and hurled it to the ground, tearing it apart. "Morgans grows bolder by the day! How dare he defy the World Government's ban and publish this!"
Saint Jaygarcia Saturn's face darkened like storm clouds. "That wretched News Bird! We should've shut down his paper long ago. Now the whole world knows a Celestial Dragon was killed—we can't downplay this anymore!"
Saint Ethanbaron V. Nusjuro clenched his beard, knuckles whitening. "Dispatch agents immediately—at all costs, intercept every copy of this paper. We cannot let this escalate further!"
The atmosphere in the room plunged to freezing depths. Sunlight still streamed through the stained glass, but it couldn't dispel the fury and gloom on the Five Elders' faces.
They knew Morgans' move had thrust the World Government into the eye of the storm—and that Bahr, far away in Sabaody Archipelago, would now become the focus of countless eyes.
........
Deep within Mary Geoise, in a lavish room draped in velvet, the glow of crystal chandeliers filtered through heavy curtains into a dim, warm haze—yet it couldn't pierce the deathly stillness hanging in the air.
Shalria huddled in an oversized leather sofa, her expensive lace dress crumpled around her knees. A pearl necklace slipped from her neck and rolled onto the carpet with a faint clatter.
Her hands clutched the armrests, knuckles white from the strain, shoulders trembling uncontrollably. Choked sobs escaped through gritted teeth.
"Father... Brother..." she whispered, her vision blurred by tears that soaked the satin ribbon bearing her family crest.
Even at her most arrogant and tyrannical, she had always known her Celestial Dragon status shielded her, that her father and brother would sweep away any obstacles in her path.
But now, those two figures had been nailed to crosses like slaughtered livestock...
"How... How dare they...?" She bit her lip until the taste of blood snapped her back to reality. Overwhelming fear and helplessness drowned her like icy seawater.
For the first time, she realized the despair of those lives she'd trampled upon so casually. When the "divine" halo was severed by a single blade, she and the slaves who once cowered at her feet seemed no different.
Her sobs gradually quieted, leaving only her ragged breathing in the silent room.
Then, abruptly, her trembling stopped.
After several seconds of stillness, Shalria slowly lifted her head. Disheveled golden hair framed her pallid cheeks, and her tear-filled eyes—now contracting, reddening—turned an eerie crimson, like bloodstained gemstones. Her lips twitched, then stretched into an unnatural grin, edged with madness.
Delicate fingers rose to trace the Slave Collar around her neck—once a symbol of her power, now polished to a shine by her obsessive touch.
"Bahr... my master..." Her voice was soft, sickly sweet, the syllables drawn out like a lover's whisper. "How could you... how could you do this to me...?"
Her nails suddenly dug into her own throat, leaving red marks.
"Father and Brother... they were so noisy..." She tilted her head, crimson eyes flickering with disgust before being overtaken by deeper obsession. "But Master... you killed them... What am I to do with you now...?"
The air in the room seemed to congeal. The shifting light through the curtains cast dappled shadows across her tear-streaked, grinning face—pitiful and terrifying in equal measure.
All traces of her earlier helplessness had vanished, replaced by a twisted possessiveness that coiled like vines around that name.