Looking at Luffy and Zoro, who seemed just seconds away from rushing off to start a fight, Lucian Thorn was extremely satisfied—though he deliberately put on a stern face.
"Alright, one last thing."
"Luffy. Zoro."
Lucian dropped his smile, his expression turning more serious than ever before.
His gaze swept back and forth between Luffy and Zoro, carrying an air of unquestionable authority.
"You two—don't get overconfident."
"You just finished a fight with that monster Kaido. You know better than anyone how badly drained your bodies are."
"I don't care how good you feel right now. Until I summon you again, your only task is to recover with everything you've got. Bring yourselves back to your true peak condition!"
He paused for a beat, eyes sharpening like blades.
"Because the next enemies you'll face aren't just some nobodies."
"They are the Marine Headquarters' strongest forces—the three Admirals, monsters who stand at the pinnacle of the world!"
"There's also the tactical genius Sengoku the Buddha, and the Marine Hero, Garp!"
"They are the most brutal weapons of the entire World Government!"
"I want you two to understand this clearly!"
"I went through the trouble of crossing time and space to bring you here—I won't allow my trump cards to fail because of carelessness."
These words were both a reminder—and a warning.
Lucian knew very well that even though Luffy and Zoro from the future were strong, their victory over Kaido was a narrow one. A win, yes, but a brutal one.
And the War at Marineford was no child's game.
Any underestimation, however small, could mean complete defeat.
But Luffy's response to these solemn instructions caught Lucian completely off guard.
There was no heavy nod. No solemn pledge.
Luffy just grinned wide—that trademark smile of his, the kind that seemed to drive away all shadows.
"Heeheehee!"
"Don't worry!"
"When it comes to fighting, there's no one more suited than us!"
He thumped his chest with a solid thud, and the flames of confidence nearly burst from his bright, determined eyes.
"When the time comes!"
"Just sit back and watch us shine!"
Confidence.
Unshakable confidence.
The kind of pure, unreasonable, and absolute confidence that could only belong to Monkey D. Luffy.
As for Zoro? He was even simpler.
He stood there silently, arms crossed around his three swords, looking cool as ever.
He didn't say a word. But the gleam in his single eye and the faint smirk at the edge of his lips, full of fighting spirit, said it all.
Fail?
Not a chance.
They had been waiting for this day for far, far too long.
To make up for a lifetime of regret—they were willing to risk everything.
Admirals?
Sengoku?
If anyone stood in the way of them saving Ace…
Then they'd cut them down—all of them!
Seeing the identical determination on both their faces, Lucian froze for a second… and then couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Hahaha!"
"Good!"
He nodded heavily, and the last shred of worry in his heart was swept away.
He had been overthinking it.
For men with such unwavering resolve, no reminder was needed.
They craved that battlefield more than anyone.
"Marco, let's go."
Lucian didn't linger a second longer. He turned and called out to the still-stunned Marco.
"Huh? Oh—right!"
Marco snapped back to reality and hurried after him.
With those words, Lucian stepped onto a patch of relatively open ruins and raised his right hand once again.
Bzzzzmm—!
The familiar golden light gathered in his palm, more brilliant and solid than ever before.
As he waved his hand, the air before him rippled like water, and a stable, deep golden vortex appeared out of thin air.
The Gate of Time and Space opened once more!
"Luffy. Zoro."
Just before stepping into the portal, Lucian turned back for one last glance at them.
"Wait for me."
"The next time we meet—will be on the battlefield!"
With that, he and Marco were completely swallowed by the golden vortex, disappearing without a trace.
The Gate of Time and Space slowly closed, dissolving into particles of golden light and vanishing into the air.
The peak of Onigashima returned to silence once more.
Only Luffy and Zoro remained, standing atop the ruins, gazing wordlessly in the direction Lucian had vanished.
But the fighting spirit burning off their bodies had already reached its absolute peak!
By the time Marco regained awareness and felt solid ground beneath his feet, what greeted him was the roar of familiar ocean waves and howling sea wind.
The next second—
The familiar wind, carrying a salty and warm scent, hit him in the face.
The sound of waves crashing on rocks echoed in his ears, along with the sharp cries of seabirds.
Lucian and Marco reappeared on that uninhabited island on the edge of the Calm Belt.
They were back.
Back from the future—two years later—to the timeline that truly belonged to them.
Marco, standing beside him, finally snapped out of his awe-struck daze.
Staring at Lucian's back, his expression was a swirl of emotions: reverence, gratitude, confusion… but most of all, something new—
A sense of deep, unshakable reassurance.
He opened his mouth. A thousand questions danced on his tongue, but he didn't know where to start.
In the end, all those questions condensed into one sentence.
"Lucian… so right now, we…"
He took a deep breath of air belonging to this era, feeling the four radiant, ready-to-activate Temporal Imprints inside his body.
A powerful surge of confidence and control bloomed within him.
All the pieces on the board were in place.
All the trump cards had been dealt.
He slowly lifted his gaze, eyes piercing the distance to the far-off horizon.
That direction marked the core of their mission.
Marineford, the Marine Headquarters.
An icy, bone-deep killing intent—fierce and frenzied—exploded from within him!
"Marine Headquarters..."
"World Government..."
"Are you ready—"
"To receive the grand gift I've prepared for you?"