As evening approached, a soft twilight hung in the sky. The stars were faint, and a pale glow lingered on the horizon.
Near the royal palace of Goa Kingdom's inner city, in front of a luxurious mansion…
After much searching and asking around, Luffy and his crew had finally found it, this was once Sabo's home.
"Knock knock knock!!"
"Anyone home? Open up!"
Without a shred of formality, Luffy walked right up to the large gate and began pounding on it with quick, heavy knocks.
Creak,
A maid slowly opened the mansion's ornate front door.
She had just been preparing to rest for the evening, but curiosity got the better of her. Who would come visiting at this hour? Likely some noble here to see the master.
She began to speak, "May I ask who, "
"AHH!!!"
Before she could finish her sentence, she caught sight of two beautiful women, a man carrying another unconscious man on his back, and then,
A skeleton standing among them!
SLAM!!!
Despite her strong nerves, the maid slammed the door shut in panic.
"Bad news!! Bad news!!"
"Master!! There's a monster outside!!"
"Pfft—"
Robin and Nami both burst into laughter, covering their mouths.
Looking at Brook's embarrassed face, the young and unfiltered Nami couldn't help but tease:
"Brook, you scared another one! That's one more on your record! Hahaha!"
Luffy chuckled too, a drop of cold sweat running down his temple.
For some reason, the scene reminded him of something out of Journey to the West, like when the monk and his disciples visited a village looking for shelter.
And that maid's glance at him before she shut the door… it felt weird. Uncomfortably weird.
He glanced over at Zoro behind him. The more he thought about it, the more he was sure, the maid must have gotten the wrong idea…
Looking at the tightly shut door, Luffy sighed and muttered:
"What a pain…"
He had originally intended to handle this like a civilized person.
The inner city had a peaceful, elegant atmosphere, and he didn't want to disturb it.
But things rarely go as planned.
BOOM,
With a muffled thud, the mansion's grand door toppled over, kicking up a thick cloud of dust as it hit the ground.
Clearly, that maid hadn't been keeping the place properly cleaned.
Behind the fallen door stood Luffy, slowly retracting his right leg.
"Let's go. We're going in."
None of the others seemed the least bit bothered by Luffy's breaking-and-entering. They casually followed him right into the mansion.
─────────🏴☠️─────────
"Who are you people?!"
They had barely walked a few steps when a loud voice echoed through the grand hall. Sabo's father appeared at the far end, flanked by a group of armed guards.
The soldiers quickly took formation, raising their guns in unison. The cold gleam of metal glinted in the dim light, all weapons trained on Luffy and his crew.
Sabo's father stood behind them, leaning calmly on a black cane, his posture proud and arrogant.
Even in the inner city, danger wasn't unheard of, petty thieves occasionally found their way in.
So high-ranking nobles like Sabo's father always maintained their own private security forces.
And someone of his status had elite soldiers, trained directly by the royal army, assigned for protection.
He lifted his chin arrogantly, the perfect portrait of noble pride.
But the moment his eyes, through his monocle, met Luffy's…
A chill swept over his heart.
His arrogance wavered.
Even seeing Brook, a literal skeleton, hadn't rattled him. But Luffy?
Something about Luffy's face stirred an unsettling familiarity in his chest.
His heart thudded, a strange dread rising from within. His legs even began to tremble slightly.
"Who… who are you people?!" he barked again, voice shaking. "Trespassing on a noble's estate is punishable by death!"
But Luffy said nothing. He just kept walking forward, step by steady step.
The distance between them shrank.
Yet Sabo's father still couldn't bring himself to give the order to attack.
It was like some primal instinct warned him not to move.
He had survived in this cutthroat noble world for years, where status ruled above strength. But now, some deep sixth sense screamed danger.
That unease anchored him in place. He didn't run. He didn't speak.
He simply stared as Luffy approached.
Then, Luffy finally raised his head.
A bright, boyish grin bloomed on his face like sunlight breaking through clouds.
"It's been a long time, old man."
"AHH!!"
The man stumbled back in shock.
That smile pierced straight into the core of his memory.
That radiant, familiar grin, like a little sun, instantly tore open memories he had tried to bury for years.
He remembered the day he learned that the small fishing boat that had offended a Celestial Dragon was piloted by his own son, Sabo.
From that moment on, he had tried to erase every memory of Sabo.
To a noble like him, who had dreamed of his son marrying a princess and becoming king, Sabo was a shameful disgrace.
A stain that could never be known to outsiders.
He had gone to great lengths to silence those who knew the truth.
Yet now, the brat who was with Sabo that day had returned.
That brutal, bloody scene from years ago resurfaced in his mind, clear as ever.
"You… you… you…"
His shaking hand pointed at Luffy, but no words came out.
It wasn't fear that silenced him.
It was the crushing realization that he couldn't stop whatever Luffy was about to do.
"Relax," Luffy said calmly, "I didn't come here to cause trouble."
"In fact… I came to talk about a partnership."
"Partnership?" Sabo's father repeated, stunned.
"Yeah, I, "
But before Luffy could finish, a loud voice echoed from inside the house:
"Father!!!"
A boy, about the same age as Nami, came sprinting out.
It was Sterry, the child Sabo's parents had adopted after disowning their son, praised as the perfect noble heir.
Seeing his father collapsed on the ground, Sterry screamed and rushed over.
This was the inner city of the Goa Kingdom. The private residence of one of its most powerful nobles.
To someone like Sterry, raised on strict ideas of class and hierarchy, there was no such thing as "strong" or "dangerous." Only "noble" and "commoner."
He didn't stop to think why his father looked so terrified.
To him, there was no one they couldn't crush, aside from royalty.
Sterry rushed behind his father and pointed furiously at Luffy:
"Fire!! Shoot him! Kill him!!"
The soldiers, brainwashed by years of classism and loyalty, didn't hesitate.
With Sabo's father frozen, they simply followed Sterry's command.
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!,
Gunfire erupted from dozens of barrels.
Whooosh,
A sudden gust of wind roared through the hall.
A wall of whirling air formed in front of Luffy and his crew.
Bullets hit the wind barrier like they'd slammed into solid steel, then ricocheted back at blistering speed.
Faster than they came.
"AHHH!!"
"Ugh!!"
"GAH!"
Screams erupted as soldiers were struck down by their own bullets.
Some were killed instantly. Others were shot in vital areas, left writhing on the ground in agony.
"Sixty-Petal Bloom: Death Hook Claws!"
Suddenly, soft pink petals fluttered through the air.
One by one, two ghostly arms sprouted from every surviving soldier's body, one grabbing the top of the head, the other cradling the chin.
Robin stood calmly, arms crossed, fingers stretched.
Then, SNAP!!!
The crack of dozens of necks breaking echoed through the hall in perfect, chilling harmony.
Nearly a hundred elite soldiers, dead in an instant.
Luffy flashed his bright smile again.
"Now… shall we talk about that partnership?"
=============
150+ Advance Chapters Available on Patreon! Patreon.com/Veltoria