"Luffy, what are you doing?"
Zoro and Sanji shouted as Luffy kept releasing his Conqueror Haki. They moved forward to stop Luffy as he wasn't pulling back his Haki.
"Wait!"
Robin saw that Luffy had realized something. Although she wasn't sure what it was, she decided to let Luffy try.
When Zoro and Sanji got pulled back, they also calmed down and stared at Luffy and the necklace.
At this moment, some Straw Hats were having a hard time. As for the fleet, they had already passed out.
Only the core crew managed to stay awake under Luffy's Haki.
After fifteen seconds, the necklace released a powerful red light and suddenly squeezed out of Luffy's hand.
"Whoa!"
Luffy suddenly became excited at this. As the red light slowly disappeared, there stood Liam.
Yes, it was Liam's phantom that stunned the entire crew.
"Liam!"
Luffy excitedly jumped forward, but his body passed through Liam.
"Is that you, Luffy?"
Nami almost burst into tears as she moved towards his phantom.
It was clearly his phantom, but for a moment, everybody took him for a real Liam.
Only Zoro stared at him suspiciously.
Not because this Liam didn't look like Liam, but simply because there was something off about him.
It wasn't aura, pressure, or anything.
'That's right! I can't feel anything from him.'
Law also calmed down and spoke.
"Everyone, this is just a projection. It's not real Liam."
Nami paused as she bit her lips. She wanted to cry, but considering she wasn't in front of him, she didn't know if those tears mattered.
"Huh? Is it Liam's ghost? Did Liam die? No!"
Luffy immediately connected the projection to a ghost and shouted. But he saw his crew's reaction and paused.
"What is projection?"
He asked, not curiously but out of habit.
Robin shook her head at his reaction and explained.
"This could be a video that Liam left behind."
At this moment, Liam's projection moved its mouth.
"No, I am not Liam."
As soon as he said that, there was a pin drop silence.
Even Luffy got serious as he stared at the projection, waiting for it to continue.
"I am just a tool. I am using this projection because I was connected to Liam for six months."
"I am the one who brought Liam's soul to this world. I am the one who was living inside Liam till his disappearance."
When the Straw Hats heard that, their eyes widened in shock.
"You are the God!"
Luffy screamed.
In his mind, the one who brought Liam here was the same one who took him away. And since Liam mentioned him as a god, Luffy always assumed the same.
So, as soon as he heard that, Luffy released his Armament Haki and Conqueror Haki, coating his fist with it, and tried punching forward.
Of course, Robin immediately sprouted a few more arms on his arm and changed his aim as his fist pierced through the roof.
Luffy pulled back his fist and turned towards Robin. His face revealed frustration and confusion as he asked.
"What are you doing, Robin? This is a God who took away Liam."
The other Straw Hats couldn't help but feel speechless while Robin replied.
"Luffy, he said he brought Liam here. He never mentioned taking him away."
Even Liam's projection stared at Luffy with a speechless expression and said.
"I thought Liam had made you a bit more intelligent. No, no, this is not about intelligence. You are a type to throw hands first, ask questions later."
"That's right!"
Hearing his words, the entire crew agreed and nodded their heads at the same time.
Liam had worked hard to change his intelligence, but even Liam couldn't change his nature.
Luffy felt the gazes of his crew and looked away, whistling.
"I am not a God. I am just a tool. A powerful tool, but a tool nonetheless. My job has always been about maintaining the dimensions between Realities."
When he got the confused look from them, Liam's projection explained.
"The multiverse is full of different universes. Omniverse is full of different multiverses."
At this moment, a new projection appeared in front of them.
This projection showed a sphere that was full of dots. It felt weird since they didn't know what it was.
"This is the projection of the Omniverse. But you only need to understand these two."
Two dots suddenly lit up blue. One of them was on the eastern side of the projection, while the other dot was in the middle.
"The dot in the middle is known as Real World. It is the multiverse where Liam came from."
When they heard that, their eyes lit up. Smart ones like Law, Sanji, and Robin began to understand more about this projection.
"So, if we go there, we can find Liam?"
Luffy asked.
Liam's projection nodded.
"But every multiverse is separated by a dimension. And every universe in the same multiverse is separated by a similar dimension, but on a bigger scale."
"Wait, isn't the multiverse supposed to consist of multiple universes? So, why is the universe's dimension bigger than the multiverse?"
Robin interrupted him with a question.
Liam's projection had no choice but to explain this as well.
He pointed at the real world and said.
"Every other multiverses and universes are born from that world. But there is one difference."
"Some multiverses have infinite universes while others only have three or four, based on the creation."
At this moment, Sanji narrowed his eyes and asked.
"Wait a minute! If what you are saying is right, then doesn't that make Liam a God? Can't he just return on his own?"
"Okay, you are turning this into a mess."
Liam's projection didn't want to explain this, but looking at their expressions, he sighed and continued.
He zoomed the Real World dot, and it turned into a stack of different colored spaces.
"Even in the Real World, there are different realities. My job is to maintain the dimensions between those realities."
At this moment, a space on the lower end of the stack glowed brightly.
"This is Liam's reality. It does fall in the Real World, but it is not a real world from the perspective of those living in these realities."
As he said, he pointed at the space at the higher end of the stack.
"It's just like how stories are just second dimensions to us."
Sanji explained.
Liam's projection nodded and said.
"You should be glad that he is from a lower reality. If he were from upper reality, he wouldn't have been able to come here."
"So, what's the point of explaining this to us? Can't you just send us there?"
Zoro interrupted and asked.
Liam's projection shook his head and replied.
"No, you need to understand the consequences of your actions. If you don't understand it, you will not only be dooming yourself but also Liam."
Luffy spoke.
"You don't have to worry about that. We are not afraid of dangers. It doesn't matter what happens. We will bring back Liam."
"And, Liam will return with us. I know this."
When he said that, the Straw Hats nodded at the same time.
They were one hundred percent confident in their partner. If they could find a way to bring back Liam, he wouldn't hesitate to return.
His words before parting explained it all.
Liam's projection shook his head and said.
"No, you don't understand. This can not happen again. Once Liam returns to this world, all of his connections to that world will disappear."
"Previously, I was maintaining a secondary consciousness in his body in that world."
"Because of that, he was able to live a normal life while still being in this world. Now if he returns, he will have to leave behind everything."
"His life, his family, his friends, everything! Do you understand the seriousness of this matter?"
At this moment, Luffy looked straight into his eyes and asked.
"Then, do you understand Liam's heart?"
He shook his head and continued.
"No, you don't. I know he has a family, friends, and a different life in that world."
"But his heart….It's here. It's with us. He might have joined my crew because of my Grandfather and my potential."
"But he is the Vice Captain of this crew. He has poured so much effort into us because this is the life he wants."
"Believe me, Liam will agree to return!"
Hearing that, Liam's projection remained silent before showing a smile.
"You might be right. Liam loved every moment he spent here, with you guys. For him, this is a life he wants to live."
"Since you are serious about this, I will help you with this."
At this moment, Robin curiously asked.
"You know so much about us. But it's like from the perspective of Liam. You said you were with Liam the whole time, but why didn't he tell us about you?"
Liam's projection mysteriously smiled and said.
"Because he didn't even know I was here the whole time. To him, I was nothing more than a Devil Fruit."
Looking at their shocked expression, he continued.
"Yes, I was Kake Kake No Mi!"