One Piece: New Order-Chapter 77: World Nobles

Early the next morning, Enel had already finished getting ready. He stood by the door, waiting for Sakazuki, looking a little impatient.

Inside, the vice admiral let out a chuckle before stepping out.

"Let's go," he said. "We're heading to Grove 41."

As they walked, Sakazuki pulled out a few bounty posters and handed one to Enel. The front showed the bounty amount, while the back had a record of their deeds written by himself.

The boy glanced at the back and began reading softly. "Note Pirates. Originated from the South Blue. A group of musicians with above-average combat ability. Their dream is to hold a world tour of concerts."

"..."

"..."

"Recent activity: Wiped out the Goya Pirates who were looting Featherwind Island."

After finishing, Enel looked up and asked, "Do they even count as pirates? Doesn't sound like they've done anything bad."

Sakazuki was just about to respond when his Observation Haki suddenly picked up something. He stopped, pulled out the stack of bounty posters again and took out another one, handing it to Enel.

The boy took it with a puzzled expression and gave it a quick scan. Compared to the Note Pirates, this crew was far more brutal. There were three recorded town massacres, and the number of people they had killed was countless.

Then he heard Sakazuki say, "Tear it up. I'll show you something else first."

With that, he grabbed Enel by the shoulder and stomped the ground. The two of them vanished instantly, leaving nothing behind but scraps of the bounty poster fluttering in the air.

...

At Grove 10.

A burly man over four meters tall, dressed in a ragged pirate captain's coat, was sprinting through the street in sheer panic. The thick collar around his neck and the massive chains on his ankles made it clear: he was a slave.

Sakazuki and Enel stood on a large branch of the massive mangrove tree, watching from above.

The latter spotted the figure below and said, "Isn't that the pirate from the bounty poster we just tore up?"

Sakazuki gave a nod. "Keep watching."

The pirate looked half-dead, as if he hadn't eaten in days. He was soaked in sweat, panting hard as he stumbled through the town. Cold droplets slid down his filthy face nonstop as he pushed himself forward.

Bang!

A gunshot rang out in the distance.

The bullet struck the ground just ahead of the fleeing man, sending nearby people scattering in fear. Realizing he couldn't escape, the pirate's eyes widened with desperation. He lunged into the crowd, trying to grab someone to use as a shield.

But before he could reach anyone—

Whoosh!

A sharp sound cut through the air. A man dressed in black appeared, an agent from Cipher Pol.

With a swift strike, he severed the pirate's arm and said coldly, "Stupid slave. Being chosen by Saint Terveas is a blessing for you, and you dare to run? Now, by the order of the Saint, you are sentenced to death."

As the words came from the mouth of the agent without a hint of emotion, the pirate captain screamed in terror.

"Please, I'm begging you, let me go! I have so much treasure! It's all yours! I've given up being a pirate! My wife and child are waiting for me back home! Please! My baby was just born when I left! He doesn't even know what I look like! Please... please—aaahhh!"

The agent ignored his cries. The man's story didn't matter. Without pause, he swung his blade again, cutting off the pirate's other arm.

Two sharp cracks followed as he kicked the man's legs, shattering the bones and folding them grotesquely forward at the knees.

Next, the agent picked up one of the severed arms and shoved it into the pirate's mouth, forcing it in so deep the man could no longer scream. Then he vanished, likely to report to Saint Terveas.

Sakazuki glanced at Enel and spoke, "This is what happens to pirates who are captured and sold as slaves. That collar around his neck is packed with powerful explosives. If he crosses a certain range, there'll be nothing left of him."

Giving a slight nod, the boy kept watching.

Before long, a tall, thin figure appeared, wearing a transparent bubble on his head. His expression was full of arrogance.

It was the Celestial Dragon, Saint Terveas.

He strolled up to the mutilated slave lying on the ground and kicked him hard twice.

"Filthy trash. Useless scum. Damn lowlife," he snapped. "I wasted so much money buying you. I was going to show you off to Saint Viraomia. Now look what you've done. You've ruined everything!"

The more he spoke, the angrier he got. He pulled out a pistol and fired several shots.

Bang, bang, bang...

The bullets hit the pirate captain one after another.

As he watched the man's terrified and pain-stricken face, Terveas suddenly thought of a new way to play.

He ordered the CP agent to pull the severed arm out of the pirate's mouth. Then he took out a small remote and held it up, speaking with a sneer:

"You see this thing? Once I press it, the collar on your neck will blast you into pieces."

To prove it wasn't a bluff, he casually grabbed a spare collar from one of his attendants and tossed it to a scrawny slave nearby.

"You. Take that and run over there." He pointed to a spot a few hundred meters away.

The slave hesitated for only a moment before nodding and sprinting off.

Once the distance looked sufficient, Terveas whispered with twisted amusement, "Watch closely."

He pressed the button.

In the pirate captain's eyes, the distant figure suddenly exploded. A column of fire and smoke erupted into the air, and a wave of heat swept through the square. Horror flooded his heart.

Terveas leaned down and whispered, "I'll give you a chance. If you can crawl to that shop over there..." He pointed about a hundred meters in the distance. "I'll let you go."

A spark of hope lit up in the pirate's eyes. He stared at the store as if it were salvation.

"Begin."

Terveas's voice was like a devil's murmur.

The pirate slave started crawling, dragging his mangled body. His broken legs swung uselessly behind him as he pulled himself with what remained of his arms. Each inch forward twisted his face in agony, veins bulging, teeth clenched.

Above it all, Saint Terveas's laughter echoed cruelly through the square.

Enel frowned deeply and continued watching in silence.

Time lost all meaning. The pirate's consciousness began to blur, but his will to survive kept him moving. Eventually, he hit something solid. He could go no further.

With the last of his strength, he raised his head. There it was—the shop's sign.

He had made it.

Despite the searing pain, his lips curled into a faint smile. He turned his head, looking back, relieved, hopeful.

But then he heard it, Terveas's voice, high-pitched and mocking:

"I didn't mean that shop. Tehahahahahahahaha!!!"

The pirate captain's heart sank into a pit of fury and despair.

Beep. Beep.Beepbeepbeepbeep...

The collar on his neck began to chirp, faster and faster. In his final moments, with death staring him in the face, he muttered softly, "I'm sorry... Dolly... Prus..."

BOOM!!!!!

The explosion swallowed him and the building in a blinding flash. Smoke and fire erupted into the sky, leaving nothing behind.

High above, on the tree branch, Enel stared at the laughing Terveas with cold, narrowed eyes.

"So this is the 'Celestial Dragon' the Marines are supposed to protect?" he asked quietly.

Sakazuki replied, "That's right. They enjoy everything the world has to offer and call themselves gods. To separate themselves from the rest of humanity, they wear those air helmets on their heads. They bleed kingdoms dry with their Heavenly Tribute, while the world grovels beneath their feet. Do you think that's fair?"

"No," Enel responded. "It's not."

"It really isn't." Sakazuki nodded. "But they control the lifeline of the world. They have weapons powerful enough to wipe everything clean. Even the Marines' annual budget depends on their approval. In a world like this...

"What would you do?"

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