The commotion finally woke Hancock.
Her eyes snapped open to see Elder Nyon 's stunned expression. She let out a shriek, her face flushing with embarrassment and anger as she hurled a nearby lamp:
"Gloriosa! How dare you! Who gave you permission to barge into this empress's chambers!"
With her other hand, she frantically tried to hide the newspaper behind her back, but her movements were too abrupt, causing it to slip from her grasp and flutter to the floor.
Elder Nyon instinctively looked down.
Dominating most of the front page was a photo of the black-haired young man gazing imperiously at the world—handsome indeed. Even she, who had weathered countless storms alongside Rocks in her youth, had to admit that.
But...
Why was the photo covered entirely in lipstick marks???
And scrawled childishly around it were crooked words like "Hancock Lord Xiano" and similar phrases.
When... when did this happen...
"GET OUT!!!"
Hancock, now utterly humiliated, kicked Elder Nyon straight out the window before slamming it shut with a loud bang. She leaned against the window, her chest heaving violently.
Covering her burning cheeks, she slowly slid to the floor, her gaze involuntarily drifting back to the newspaper.
"Honestly, what am I even doing..."
Hancock sighed softly, yet her fingers uncontrollably traced Xiano's face in the photo, her eyes glazing over with infatuation once more.
"Ahh, Lord Xiano~"
If only Lord Xiano could suddenly appear and kick her a few times, just like she had kicked that old hag... how wonderful that would be...
————
Fish-Man Island, Ryugu Kingdom.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"
In the grand hall of Ryugu Castle, the Left Minister rushed in clutching the latest newspaper, "Big news! Earth-shattering news!"
King Neptune, who had been entertaining a guest, looked up in surprise. "What has you so flustered?"
"Look at this!" The Left Minister trembled as he presented the newspaper.
"This..." King Neptune barely glanced at it before leaping to his feet in shock, cold sweat pouring down his back.
Lord Xiano's audacity... is simply too great!
Could it be...
Was that thought he once had, that speculation about Joy Boy... actually true?
The guest across from him also took the newspaper. After reading it, though equally stunned, he fell into a long, heavy silence.
"Jinbei?"
King Neptune finally regained his composure and noticed the other's odd demeanor. "What's the matter?"
Indeed.
The guest being hosted in Ryugu was none other than one of the current Royal Seven Warlords of the Sea, the "Knight of the Sea," Jinbei.
"I..."
Jinbei's throat bobbed before he spoke with a complicated expression, "Your Majesty, there's something I never told you. When the Curtain Closer passed through Fish-Man Island, I was actually in seclusion at Sea Forest. I knew of their arrival but deliberately avoided meeting them."
King Neptune was taken aback. "You were on Fish-Man Island at the time? Why would you avoid them?"
"It's... a long story."
Jinbei clenched his fists tightly and let out a long sigh, looking up at the sky. "Back then, in a moment of foolishness, I considered our kinship as fellow Fish-men and the bonds of comradeship. I agreed to join the Warlords of the Sea as a condition for the Navy to release Arlong from Impel Down."
"After Arlong and I parted ways, he went to the East Sea and wreaked havoc. According to my later investigations, several towns in the Conomi Islands were destroyed by his hands, with many innocent lives lost or injured, suffering needless pain."
"And as fate would have it, Lord Xiano not only hails from the East Sea, but his hometown is in the Conomi Islands region..."
Arlong ultimately met his end at Xiano's hands.
But at the time, Xiano was just a child of thirteen or fourteen, wasn't he?
Initially, he must have been no match for Arlong. Who knows how much pain he endured, watching friends and family perish before his eyes, how much he suffered before finally reaching that point—all to protect his homeland and loved ones.
The root of it all...
It was all because I released that demon!
Jinbei's gaze darkened. Even though it happened many years ago, this guilt and regret still pierced his heart like a thorn, impossible to remove.
When Xiano first arrived at Fish-Man Island...
Jinbei had wanted to apologize face-to-face, but he couldn't bring himself to do it, feeling unworthy of even offering an apology. He also feared that if the truth came out, Xiano's resentment toward him might extend to the entire Fish-Man Island...
"So that's how it is?"
After listening, King Neptune pondered for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. "Jinbei, oh Jinbei, you really underestimate that lord too much!"
"Your Majesty?"
Jinbei looked up in surprise.
"You think Lord Xiano would hold a grudge against the Fish-Man race over such old grievances?"
King Neptune snorted and pointed at the newspaper headline. "This is a man who dares to kill Celestial Dragons and openly declare war on the World Government! Such audacity! How could he possibly care about a mere Arlong? Or hold a grudge against Fish-Man Island? If he truly hated us Fish-men, he would have already razed Ryugu Castle to the ground when he passed by!"
"That's right, Mr. Jinbei."
The Left Minister chimed in quietly:
"From what this old minister knows, among the highest-ranking officers of the Curtain Closer, there is a Fish-man named Jack. If Lord Xiano truly despised us like those racial bigots, why would he promote a Fish-man to such a position? Arlong's actions back then were his own fault. Why do you keep blaming yourself for it?"
Living with such high moral standards in this world is exhausting!
"..."
Jinbei stared at the newspaper, lost in silence for a long time.
Suddenly, he stood up and bowed deeply to King Neptune and the Left Minister. "Thank you for your guidance, Your Majesty and Minister. Indeed, I was judging a noble heart with my own petty mind."
"However, even if Lord Xiano doesn't hold it against me, I must still overcome this hurdle in my heart."
He raised his head, took a deep breath, and looked toward the direction beyond the palace hall:
"I will set out now for the territory of the Curtain Closer to personally apologize to Lord Xiano. And if he does not disdain it, the Sun Pirates under my command are also willing to join the Curtain Closer and contribute to his cause."
It's good that he's finally moving forward. That's the right attitude.
King Neptune chuckled as he stroked his beard.
——————
Seven days had passed in the blink of an eye since the execution of the Celestial Dragons on Sabaody Archipelago.
Seven days.
Not too long, but not too short either.
But it was enough to leave the sound of shattered chains in the hearts of millions, and enough to crack the divine authority walls that the Holy Land had built over eight hundred years—fissures spreading from their very foundations.
Even as the World Government desperately suppressed the rumors.
There was no doubt that the slash on Sabaody had successfully torn open a gash across these seas.
The far-reaching impact exceeded everyone's expectations.
The blood of the old order flowed, while the fires of the new era burned.
Everyone knew that no matter where the future led, these seas would no longer remain calm in the days to come...
——————
"Damn it, damn it, damn it!"
Bartolomeo knelt on the ground, tears and snot streaming down his face as he furiously slapped himself, his cheeks swollen and red. Yet he didn't stop, only crying harder in despair:
"I'm such an idiot! A complete and utter moron! I actually missed the live broadcast of Senior Xiano executing that Celestial Dragon!"
It was all because seven days ago, he had gotten blackout drunk at that barbecue restaurant!
Which led to him being captured on the spot by one of the Navy's Pacifistas.
Though his crew later managed to rescue him, by the time he woke up, it was already dawn the next day.
And just like that, he had perfectly missed that world-shaking grand performance—and the chance to join the Curtain Closers right then and there.
What kind of excuse is that?!
You're the only fool in the whole world who could miss it!
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