Smoke still hung over Egghead's skies.
Shattered alloy cha wreckage tumbled into the deep blue sea on the ocean wind.
In the direction of the Red Line, Mary Geoise—the arrogant power that had lood over the world for eight hundred years—was now nothing but a field of smoking ruins.
The rule of the World Governnt had collapsed with a deafening crash.
And the man who had caused it all was standing in midair, casually looking at the four won before him.
Rei Ao slowly turned his head.
The dark hem of his coat fluttered in the high-altitude wind as his deep gaze swept across Betty, Koala, Bonney, and Stussy.
A faint smile curled at his lips, one filled with absolute confidence and control.
His voice was not loud, yet it cut cleanly through the wind and the distant roar of collapsing buildings.
Every word carried unquestionable certainty.
"Well? Have you made up your minds? Co with , and from now on, no one on this sea will dare lay a finger on you."
His fingertip drifted lazily through the air.
Nearby, a several-ton chunk of reinforced concrete and steel, plumting at high speed, was instantly crushed into dust by an invisible force and scattered into the wind.
"Whatever you want, I can give it to you. Even if you want to rebuild this world and write a whole new set of rules, I can do it for you as easily as flipping my hand."
Betty bit down on her lower lip so hard her teeth nearly broke the soft flesh.
Inside her, a violent struggle was raging.
Resist?
The thought had barely surfaced before bloody reality crushed it.
Just minutes ago, Monkey D. Dragon—the leader of the Revolutionary Army, the man she had devoted her life to following—had unleashed his full-powered Dragon's Roar, only for this man to flick it away with a single finger.
Dragon had been blasted through three reinforced alloy fortresses and still hadn't fully regained his footing in the rubble.
Even Dragon had been utterly powerless.
If they charged in, they would only be throwing their lives away. They would not even be qualified to scratch him.
But if she simply agreed and went with him just like that…
Where was she supposed to put the pride of the East Army commander of the Revolutionary Army?
Then again, when she thought about it, why had she risked her life for the revolution in the first place?
Wasn't it to overthrow the Celestial Dragons' tyranny, shatter the cannibalistic class system, and win a world of equality for the ordinary people suffering across the seas?
The Revolutionary Army had fought in blood for so many years, losing countless comrades, yet they had never managed to truly shake the foundations of the World Governnt.
But this man before her had uprooted eight hundred years of rule with a casual wave of his hand.
Imu and the Five Elders could not even survive a single move against him.
If they followed him, maybe they would never again have to watch their comrades die in front of them. Maybe they would never again have to fear the return of the Celestial Dragons.
The world they had dread of all this ti—he really could create it with a flick of his wrist.
And besides…
Betty's gaze drifted uncontrollably across Rei Ao's profile.
That sharply defined jawline. Those deep, careless eyes.
The way his robes had swept around him in battle, the way he had looked down on the world from above—he was absurdly powerful, and on top of that, outrageously handso.
Compared to the rough, sweaty n in the Revolutionary Army who only knew how to shout slogans, the difference was heaven and earth…
No, no, no!
Betty practically slapped herself in her own mind, and her cheeks flushed bright red.
I'm a commander of the Revolutionary Army's East Army!
How can I be swayed by a little good looks and strength?!
After wrestling with herself for a long mont, she finally gritted her teeth and stepped forward.
Her clenched fist had gone white at the knuckles, but she still forced herself to raise her voice with defiant pride.
"Hey! Do your words actually an anything or not? If we go with you, can you really help us tear down those rotten old powers and let ordinary people all across the seas live peaceful, decent lives?"
Rei Ao raised an eyebrow.
Seeing her act fierce while obviously forcing herself to hold the pose, he could not help letting out a low laugh.
He glanced toward the direction of Mary Geoise and replied as casually as if he were talking about the weather.
"Of course. It's nothing more than a trivial matter. Those eyesores? I can wipe out as many as I want, whenever I want."
The massive weight hanging over Betty's heart finally dropped.
She lowered her combat stance, planted her flagstaff against the ground, and gave a disdainful snort, pretending not to care as she said stubbornly,
"Fine! I'll go with you! But if you dare lie to us, then even if it costs my life, I'll make sure to hit you back hard at least once!"
There was no beating him anyway.
Going with him ant clinging to the thickest thigh in the entire sea while also fulfilling the revolutionary dream she had devoted her life to. No matter how she calculated it, this was a deal so good it was almost absurd.
Beside her, Koala watched Betty give in. Her fingers tightened slightly around the hem of her clothes, and at last she made up her mind as well.
She lifted her head to look at Rei Ao, her beautiful eyes still faintly red.
The fear from seeing Dragon get sent flying had not faded yet. Her voice trembled just a little, but every word was clear.
"Y-you really won't hurt us… and you won't hurt the others in the Revolutionary Army either, right?"
She had been taken by the Celestial Dragons as a slave when she was a child. It was the Revolutionary Army that had given her a new life.
Dragon, Sabo, and all her companions were family she would protect with her life.
She did not fear death. What she feared was that her choice might bring catastrophe down on the people she cared about.
At her words, Rei Ao's expression softened slightly, and he answered calmly,
"Of course. I keep my promises."
Hearing that promise, the tension in Koala's shoulders instantly lted away.
She bowed deeply to him, straight-backed and sincere, her voice thick with gratitude.
"Thank you… I'll go with you too. I hope you'll keep your word."
With both of them agreeing, Bonney imdiately panicked.
She rushed forward two steps, staring at Rei Ao with wide, round eyes. Her voice was stubborn and desperate, with a faint sob she could barely keep hidden.
"Hey! If you can bring Kuma back—if you can restore his mind and turn him back into the gentle person he used to be—then I'll go with you!"
"But if you can't, then even if I die, I'll never go with you!"
She had searched every corner of the sea with only one obsession: saving her father, Bartholow Kuma.
She had watched with her own eyes as her gentle father was turned into a mindless human weapon and trampled on by the Celestial Dragons.
She had gone to Vegapunk. She had begged the Revolutionary Army. No one had been able to fully restore Kuma.
This man, who could casually destroy even the World Governnt, was her only remaining hope.
Rei Ao smiled faintly when he heard that, his tone still effortless.
"You an putting a scattered consciousness back into its body? That's a minor issue. I'll take care of it in a bit. I guarantee he'll be exactly the sa as before, without the slightest damage."
Bonney's eyes instantly lit up.
All the grievance and despair she had built up over the years collapsed at that mont, and tears ca pouring down.
She practically jumped in place and rushed in front of Rei Ao, asking again and again just to be sure.
"Really?! You're not lying to ?! You really can save Kuma?!"
"I never lie," Rei Ao said calmly.
Bonney imdiately burst into relieved laughter, all her anger and vigilance vanishing without a trace.
She nodded so hard her head bobbed like a drum toy.
"Okay! Then I'll go with you! And you'd better not go back on your word!"
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