There was no doubt why Hancock was called the world's most beautiful woman.
She was 191 cm tall, with an excellent figure.
Her long black hair was styled in a hime cut. After fighting Luffy, it was slightly disheveled.
Her deep blue eyes were long and delicate. Her almond-shaped eyes were usually cold, but now showed extreme shock.
Her soft, wrinkle-free lips parted slightly, inviting a taste.
Especially in her current emotional, disheveled state right in front of him.
With that overwhelming beauty and allure, if his brain weren't constantly processing pain signals, Luffy wasn't sure he could have kept his composure.
But Hancock no longer cared about any of that.
He killed Celestial Dragons?
The existence she hated, yet hadn't even dared to think of resisting—this man had killed them?
Beyond shock, a very complex emotion welled up in her eyes.
Vindication. Disbelief. And something else – a flutter she couldn't understand.
"What he says is true."
Nyon pulled out another, slightly worn newspaper from her clothes. "This is the original report I obtained through special channels, not edited by the World Government."
She handed the newspaper to Hancock.
Trembling, Hancock took it and unfolded it.
On the front page was a dramatic, high-impact photo taken from a clever angle.
In it, a man wearing a straw hat, wielding a strange, pitch-black sword, swung it, sending out a sword energy.
The energy was captured just as it reached several figures wearing bubble helmets and Celestial Dragon clothing.
The killing intent was palpable, even through the newspaper.
Hancock's pupils suddenly shrank.
Her gaze was deadlocked on the straw-hatted man in the photo. It was as if the entire world had disappeared, leaving only the back of a figure raising a sword against the gods.
"Oh. So someone caught that on camera?"
Luffy also saw the photo. He raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Grandfather and Aokiji were both there. Someone actually dared to risk their life to take that photo. Impressive."
And the composition clearly came from a professional.
Perona, nearby, covered her face. But finally, she also looked.
She audibly gulped.
Hancock's hands were trembling.
No wonder the World Government wanted to suppress this report. Even for a Warlord, the impact of this image was massive, let alone for ordinary people.
"Why did you kill the Celestial Dragons?"
Hancock's hands gripped Luffy's shoulders tightly. Her voice trembled.
"I wanted to make a deal with the World Government to get my brother, Ace, back."
Luffy pursed his lips, a bit annoyed. "Those pieces of trash didn't agree. Though, if Ace knew I traded them for him, he'd probably throw a fit. Anyway, the deal fell through, so I just killed them. They're nothing but pests, anyway."
He'd heard about them from Hatchan and then witnessed their actions firsthand.
Luffy wasn't about to claim that, as a pirate, he hadn't done anything extreme. But compared to the Celestial Dragons...
Forget it. You can't compare people to trash.
Hancock looked at how matter-of-fact he was. First, she was stunned. Then, her face took on an expression that was both tearful and smiling. She couldn't hold back anymore. Large tears rolled down her cheeks, joining the ones she had been holding back.
She cried and laughed.
She couldn't believe there was really someone so foolish in this world, daring to challenge the supreme "Heavens."
And he had actually succeeded!
Luffy couldn't help looking at Nyon. He wanted to ask if their empress was okay?
He felt that would be rude.
Maybe sensing his question,
"Let me tell you what this is."
Hancock took a deep breath, as if mustering all her strength.
She turned her back to Luffy. She fully lowered her top, exposing her entire back and the ugly Hoof of the Soaring Dragon brand.
She was voluntarily opening her deepest wound.
"This is the Celestial Dragons' Hoof of the Soaring Dragon. It is the brand of a slave!"
Hancock bit her lower lip. "It is stamped on those kept by the World Nobles. The mark of an inferior being that can never be erased!"
She turned back, tearfully looking at Luffy, and said, word for word, "The three of us sisters were once slaves to the World Nobles."
A Warlord of the Sea was a slave?
Not just Luffy, but Perona, standing nearby, was shocked.
Hancock began to speak of her and her sisters' dark past.
At twelve, they had been kidnapped by slave traders. On an auction block, displayed like merchandise.
Then bought by a Celestial Dragon. Stamped with this humiliating brand.
After that, force-fed Devil Fruits, just because the Celestial Dragon wanted to see the expression of a slave eating something that tasted like shit.
The Celestial Dragon's interest came and went quickly. Bored before they even finished the fruit, he abandoned them.
The three sisters then became the lowest-ranking foot soldiers among the slaves, powering Mary Geise's so-called "automatic staircase."
They worked like beasts in Mary Geoise for four years. Until a man named Fisher Tiger climbed the Red Line bare-handed, rampaged through Mary Geise, and freed the countless slaves there, including them.
"We don't want anyone to know about our past. If our people saw it, we could no longer stay on this island. Even if we have to deceive the entire nation!"
Hancock's tears fell like pearls off a broken string.
That was the secret hidden behind the glamorous exterior of the Pirate Empress.
The reason she always showed a haughty, cold face to the world. Why she was afraid to open her heart to anyone.
Because, in this world, slaves were at the very bottom of the pecking order.
Once a slave, always a slave!
"Then that proves I was right to kill those pieces of trash."
Luffy knew that, medically speaking, this was a psychological trauma. No wonder this woman's personality was so strange.
Her earlier arrogance and contempt for everything had just been a mask. The crying woman beneath the mask was the real Empress.
The kind doctor.
Once a doctor, always a doctor!
"Let time slowly heal the past. But we have the future, don't we?"
Luffy reached his hand out to Hancock, smiling. "If you want, I'll take you along to clear out that trash when the time comes."
It was as if a beam of sunlight had instantly shone into a dark corner that Hancock had kept closed for over a decade.
Almost instinctively, she placed her hand in Luffy's palm.
THUMP!
THUMP! THUMP!
Her heart had never been beaten like this.
For some reason, two red blushes rose on her cheeks.
"Snake Princess, put your clothes back on!"
Nyon, who had chosen a very bad time to speak, pointed at Hancock's almost-naked upper body. "You look like a mess! And in front of a man!"
"Shut up, you old hag!"
Hancock snapped out of it, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
Embarrassed and angry, she grabbed Nyon's wrinkled face and pulled.
Why did she always show up at the worst time!
Fortunately, Sandersonia and Marigold quickly separated them. Otherwise, Nyon felt her face might have been torn off.
"Let it go."
Though her face hurt, Nyon's eyes held a hint of relief. "It's been years since I've seen you show your true feelings. It's good you haven't become completely cold."
Hancock, dressed again, gritted her teeth and glared at Nyon.
"Shut up! You traitor to Kuja!"
"You shut up! I'm the one who brought you three half-dead little girls back to this island!"
Nyon countered, unyielding.
"Hmph. Don't try to sell your small kindness!"
Hancock turned her head with a tsundere attitude.
"What did you say?!"
Watching them bicker like grandmother and granddaughter, Luffy laughed and tried to mediate.
"You two seem to have a good relationship."
"Who has a good relationship with her?!"
Hancock and Nyon said simultaneously, then glared at each other.
Sandersonia and Marigold, like firefighters, quickly stepped in to separate them.
Hancock took a few deep breaths, calming herself. She couldn't help looking at Luffy again.
"Do you look down on us?"
Hancock's voice was barely a whisper.
In this world, a slave was the lowest of the low. Even commoners could trample on them.
Hancock was no longer the Empress or a Warlord. She was just a vulnerable, scarred patient.
For some reason, she longed for an answer.
She had never longed for anything like this. Her hands unconsciously grasped her sleeves. She didn't dare look up at Luffy.
"What are you talking about? We're friends." Luffy grinned.
"Friends..."
Hancock murmured the word.
They were already friends?
Luffy's logic was simple: Kuja had a good relationship with Rayleigh. Rayleigh was definitely a benefactor. So Rayleigh's friends were naturally his friends.
Logical. No issues.
Hancock smiled. The proud, confident Pirate Empress seemed to have returned.
"So, friend. About our earlier arrangement."
Luffy patted Marguerite's petrified statue.
Hancock blinked. "Of course."
For some reason, she felt a little jealous.
Especially seeing Luffy talking with Perona, her cheeks puffed out.
Why can't you talk more with me?
"Ah, Snake Princess. I mentioned I was in a hurry."
"Call me by my name."
Perona, nearby, was quiet for a moment. Weren't you demanding a respectful title earlier, Your Highness?
What was wrong with this woman? She changed so fast.
Hancock, unconcerned, smiled. "You want to borrow a ship. I know. My memory has always been good."
"So, can I?"
"Of course!"
Hancock undid Marguerite's petrification, a slight blush on her face. "I am quite fond of you... Tell me your destination, and I will lend you my ship."
Marguerite, just recovered from petrification, heard this. Looking at the scene, her brain completely froze.
In her memory, they had been in the arena, Luffy and Snake Princess at each other's throats. How had it suddenly become a... romantic scene?
Even after Luffy explained everything to her, she couldn't recover for a long time.
Hancock, usually the absolute center of attention, now felt half-forgotten.
Watching Luffy talking happily with the now-depetrified Marguerite and the always-annoying-looking Perona, Hancock's eyes unconsciously narrowed.
The atmosphere was strange.
Sandersonia and Marigold noticed their sister's abnormality.
It had been happening ever since Luffy showed up.
The newspaper about the Celestial Dragons' deaths – before, she would have read it over and over. But now, she had crumpled it in her hand. Her eyes were filled with only one person.
Hancock had never cared about anyone's conversations before.
But now, she noticed every change.
Especially when Perona leaned close to Luffy's ear, her fingers unconsciously tightened.
Sss!
Perona wasn't sensitive to this kind of gaze, but this one was so intense it was almost tangible.
She looked over. Hancock's gaze had already turned away.
Even weirder!
Perona nervously clutched her parasol, stealing a glance at the Empress.
Hancock calmly looked down at her feet.
Stop pretending!
If looks could kill, I'd be dead a hundred times!
Perona's heart jumped. Remembering something Hancock had said earlier, she couldn't help leaning closer to Luffy, her lips almost touching his ear.
"Hey, Luffy. Could what she said be serious?!"
"What?"
"I am quite fond of you!"
Wasn't that practically a confession?!
"Don't overthink it, Perona."
Luffy waved his hand. "That's about the same as me saying I'm quite fond of you."
"H-How is that the same?!"
Perona's brain was spun around.
Then, she snapped out of it.
Damn it. Was he trying to distract her? Was he a player?
"What if she's serious?"
Perona couldn't help asking. "She doesn't look like she's kidding."
"You're overthinking. She's a Warlord. Maybe it's just a figure of speech?"
Luffy patted her shoulder and turned to the smiling Marguerite, seeking confirmation. "Right, Marguerite?"
Marguerite's smile instantly froze. The corner of her mouth twitched slightly.
How could Snake Princess have a figure of speech like a love-struck teenager?!
In Marguerite's memory, Snake Princess had always been alone, high and beautiful.
Even her sisters, Sandersonia and Marigold, had never received such praise.
Just then, Hancock walked over with elegant steps. The crisp sound of her heels hitting the floor interrupted their conversation.
As if unaware of the awkwardness, her gaze swept over Perona, standing very close to Luffy, then settled on Luffy's face. Her tone returned to its usual haughtiness.
"Tomorrow, I will use the Kuja Pirates' ship to take you back to the Sabaody Archipelago. For now, rest well."
Perona flinched. She unconsciously floated behind Luffy.
She was afraid of turning into stone!
"Thank you!"
Luffy was clearly in a good mood. "If you're free, shall we go see Rayleigh together?"
See... see his parents?
Hancock went into misreading overdrive. After a long moment, she seemed to hear the name "Rayleigh." She shook her head. "No. I do not wish to see Rayleigh."
More specifically, she did not wish to see any man!
Of course, if it were Luffy's family, that would be different.
She couldn't help turning around, covering her face.
So hot. So hot.
Luffy didn't notice. He was in a good mood.
Going back to the Sabaody Archipelago as soon as possible was good. He'd already begun planning.
First, check on the Going Merry and Thousand Sunny.
Merry had been sent to the so-called "Endless Land." But she was a ship spirit. Could she sense the Merry?
It was his first time away from his crewmates for so long. Honestly, he missed them.
Though Luffy knew it probably wasn't possible.
Everyone needed to train. Entering the New World like this would be too hard.
He needed to find a way to tell them his decision.
And tell them their new crewmate, Perona.
"You're that casual about inviting people? Would they even agree?"
Perona, floating, arms crossed, listening to Luffy mutter, couldn't help complaining. "We've only known each other for such a short time. Plus, I used to be on the enemy's side."
How long? Zoro got on my ship after one meeting.
Luffy did seriously defend himself. "How was that casual? I gave it a lot of thought!"
Though his eyes wandered a bit, avoiding Perona's gaze.
"Crewmates?"
Hancock's voice cut in again. She walked closer, a shallow smile on her face. "I very much wish to meet them. Are they all as beautiful as her?"
Hancock didn't know much about the Straw Hats.
But she wanted to know everything now!
Most importantly – how many women? Perhaps I should turn them all to stone...
Hey, hey, hey. Your expression is becoming more and more perverted.
But even your perverted expression is beautiful!
Perona's head was full of mush.
Feeling watched, Hancock smiled at her. "What's wrong?"
Pat pat.
Perona quickly patted her cheeks and shook her head.
She wanted to say, "The questions you're asking sound strange."
Her hand unconsciously rested on Luffy. She immediately sensed the unfriendly vibe.
Perona trembled.
Luffy didn't seem to notice. Smiling, he answered, "Nami and Robin really are beautiful! And Zoro and the others are great crewmates."
As he spoke, Luffy's stomach loudly growled.
***
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