Grayza looked at Gawain, her voice trembling with uncertainty.
"Do you think... they can rest in peace now?"
Gawain nodded solemnly.
"Yeah. They can."
As soon as he spoke, Grayza's body went limp, collapsing backward. Gawain stepped forward swiftly, catching her before she hit the ground. It was only then that he realized—her body had reached its absolute limit. Weeks of hunger, exhaustion, and battle had drained every ounce of her strength.
She had been surviving on willpower alone.
Gawain checked her breathing with a flick of his fingers. Confirming she was stable, he hoisted her over his shoulder, grabbed the treasure chest containing the Devil Fruit, and leapt gracefully back onto his pirate ship.
After handing Grayza over to the ship's doctor, Gawain turned back toward the pirate ship in the distance.
With a flick of his wrist—
Swish!
A silver-white slash cut through the ship, cleaving it cleanly in two. Within moments, the sea swallowed the wreckage whole.
Only then did Gawain turn his attention to the chest in his hand. He opened the lid, revealing a bizarre red fruit covered in thorns.
"So that's a Devil Fruit..." Nami murmured as she stepped closer.
She eyed the strange fruit curiously, unable to resist reaching out to touch it.
"They say eating one grants all kinds of powers—transformations, elemental control, even turning into animals."
She paused, her eyes sparkling.
"And they say just one of these can sell at auction for hundreds of millions of Berries!"
Kuro, standing nearby, adjusted his glasses with a faint scoff.
"And you'll lose the ability to swim. You'll be completely landlubber."
"In a world where more than 90% is ocean, being a landlubber isn't just inconvenient—it's suicidal."
Gawain nodded in agreement.
"When the cost outweighs the benefit, it's not worth it."
"For instance, if this is the Human-Human Fruit in its normal form, it's practically a joke."
Nami blinked.
"Human-Human Fruit?"
"It means that after eating it, you gain the ability to become human," Gawain explained.
"But we're already human," she said, frowning.
"Exactly. No new powers, and you lose the ability to swim. A net loss."
With that sobering realization, the excitement around the Devil Fruit faded.
Gawain, uninterested in explaining further, stared at the fruit for a long moment before closing the chest with a thud. He shelved the idea of eating it—at least for now.
Even if it attracted the interest of the Seven Warlords, and even if it might be a rare Zoan or Logia-type, it could just as easily be a useless support-type or worse. Until he knew for sure, he wouldn't risk it.
Turning from the chest, he walked into the cabin.
The battle was over.
With no survivors left, Kuro, still on the deck, ordered the crew to set sail.
As the Gawain Pirates' flag disappeared over the horizon, the waters near the Red Line grew choppy. Bloodthirsty sharks feasted on corpses, while a broken pirate flag floated aimlessly in the swell.
When a Navy vessel arrived later, they found nothing but open sea.
The officer in charge furrowed his brow, a chill crawling down his spine. Divers were sent below. Sure enough, they found the shattered remains of a massive pirate ship resting on the seabed.
"The pirate vessel belonging to Hanafuda Pirate, one of the Seven Warlords, has been sunk in the East Blue.
The suspect is Gawain—the infamous Pirate Knight of the East Blue."
"The situation in East Blue is about to change," the officer muttered darkly.
"This is beyond local jurisdiction. Report it to Marine Headquarters—now!"
Raven Harbor.
With the lord gone and Jasmine lacking the presence to hold authority, the port spiraled into chaos. Trade halted. Pirate crews previously driven out by the Cat Brothers seized the opportunity to return and loot what they could.
Just when everything seemed on the verge of collapse, Gin arrived.
With Bronze-level combat strength—a level rare in the East Blue where the average bounty was under five million Berries—Gin tore through the invading pirate crews like a storm.
One by one, he eliminated threats that had overwhelmed local forces.
Order returned swiftly. Merchant ships began docking again—more than before. Peace brought prosperity.
That was the power of force—the kind that spoke without words.
In the lord's mansion, the wounded rested.
The Cat brothers, Jango, and the lucky-to-be-alive Van Augur lay in hospital beds, engaged in idle chatter.
"Hey," Van Augur asked, staring at the ceiling. "What kind of man is Gawain, really?"
During his time in Raven Harbor, he'd heard Gawain's name over and over—spoken with reverence, even love. He had never heard civilians speak of a pirate like that.
Aren't pirates supposed to plunder, destroy, and leave nothing but fire in their wake?
Why was this one so different?
"Captain Gawain?" Sham echoed, then grinned.
"He used to be the Knight Commander of the Goa Kingdom. He's also the man who gave us, the so-called villains, a new life."
Buchi nodded vigorously and turned to Van Augur with a wide grin.
"Exactly! As a pirate, he's totally unqualified. But as a leader? There's no one better to follow."
Sham rolled his eyes.
"You just stole my line."
"Don't sweat the details."
"You jerk!"
"Nya~!"
Despite their injuries, the two started bickering, as if pain couldn't touch them when pride was on the line.
Van Augur chuckled but couldn't shake the worry creeping into his voice.
"It's just… a shame."
"Facing someone from the Grand Line, even that guy might not come out unscathed..."
Bang!
The door slammed open.
Jasmine burst in, eyes wide with emotion.
"Mr. Gawain and his crew are back! They'll be here in just a few days!"
Van Augur blinked.
"They… gave up?"
"No!" Jasmine shook her head quickly.
"According to the lady—no, the Lord—Gawain took down those two bastards with just two swords!"