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"Didn't escape from them? Could it be that you didn't encounter the monsters known as the Five Elders?" Roger finally breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
He had initially thought Ayr's bounty had skyrocketed because he fought against the Five Elders and escaped.
But now, it sounded like that wasn't the case.
This calmed Roger's heavily shocked mood a little.
After all, if Ayr had truly fought against the Five Elders and escaped alive...
Then how terrifying would Ayr's combat power have to be???
"I did meet the Five Elders at the Holy Land Mariejois. I encountered four of them... and in the end, I killed three. I only escaped from the last one. Or rather... she let me leave," Ayr said casually, rubbing his chin as he recalled the scene.
"Four... Four Five Elders, and you killed three of them???"
"How is that possible? Those monsters have lived for hundreds of years!"
"Even if their talent was ordinary, after surviving for centuries, their strength would have already reached the pinnacle of this world! Four Five Elders together... and still no match for you???"
The entire Roger Pirates crew, who hadn't yet recovered from their initial shock, now felt their scalps go numb again.
Based on their knowledge from ancient records and historical texts, the strength of the Five Elders was at least on par with Roger.
The idea of four Five Elders fighting together was terrifying enough.
But Ayr faced them and killed three???
Roger's pupils contracted sharply, and he muttered in disbelief: "Three of the Five Elders... dead?"
The Five Elders were old monsters that had survived through countless eras, deeply entwined with the foundation of the World Government!
Although Roger had never fought them personally, he knew very well they couldn't be weaker than himself.
And Ayr... fought against four, killed three, and left alive!?
Rayleigh's forehead was drenched with cold sweat as he said incredulously, "Oi oi oi, Ayr, you're not messing with us, right?"
"Even though we've never been to the Holy Land Mariejois ourselves, the historical texts we've seen described the Five Elders as unbeatable monsters. If you really killed three of them... is there anyone left in the World Government who could even touch you?" Jabba also spoke in disbelief.
"There is still one... Im," Ayr answered calmly.
Throughout the Holy Land Mariejois, there was no one else who could challenge Ayr.
But one existence remained unknown to him: Im.
He didn't know what kind of abilities Im had.
Whether Im had eaten a Devil Fruit, mastered Haki to an extraordinary degree, or possessed some ancient power — Ayr didn't know.
"Im..."
Hearing this name, Roger and Rayleigh frowned deeply.
They had seen the name Im mentioned once in the forbidden historical texts.
But information about Im was extremely rare.
Only a single record existed: Im was said to be the founding figure of the World Government 800 years ago.
Nothing beyond that.
And now, according to Ayr, Im was still alive.
Meaning... someone had survived eight centuries!!!
Thinking about this, Roger couldn't help but break into a cold sweat.
Roger's expression grew grim, and he asked seriously, "Ayr, are you... serious?"
Although part of him couldn't believe it.
The historical texts they'd found clearly named Im.
It wasn't a name someone like Ayr should've randomly known.
Yet Ayr had spoken it naturally, without hesitation.
This left Roger unable to tell whether Ayr was lying or not.
"Whether you believe it or not is up to you," Ayr shrugged. "Anyway, a man like you wouldn't come all this way just to question me. There's another reason, right?"
Ayr didn't want to waste time explaining any further.
Instead, he was more curious about why Roger had sought him out.
Even though they had fought side by side once at the Battle of the Valley of the Gods, and Roger had helped him fend off two Marine Admirals at Naval Headquarters afterward, saving Ayr's life...
Their friendship didn't run particularly deep.
So for Roger to suddenly come to his kingdom, there had to be more behind it.
Roger's serious expression lingered for a few seconds before he exhaled deeply.
He still wanted to extract more information from Ayr, but since Ayr was clearly changing the subject, there was no point insisting.
Thinking of the bigger picture, Roger nodded.
"There's something important I need to ask of you."
"Then just spit it out."
"But let's talk in a more relaxed place first. I heard you opened a tavern here, Ayr," Roger chuckled slightly.
Since Ayr had no interest in continuing the conversation about the Five Elders or Im, Roger decided not to push.
After all, completing his real purpose for coming here was what mattered most.
"You planning to get me drunk?" Ayr laughed.
"Hahaha... what serious talk can happen without a drink, right Ayr?"
"Remember, you're paying," Ayr smirked.
"You brat, still stingy as ever!"
After a few exchanges of banter, the group, including Rayleigh, Jabba, and several other Roger Pirates, followed Ayr into the tavern he had built in the center of the city.
Once they were seated and drinks were poured, Ayr got straight to the point.
"Alright, Roger. Speak."
Ayr sat back in his chair, opened a fine bottle of wine, and slid it over to Roger.
Roger caught the bottle, took a swig, and said solemnly:
"Right now, in the entire New World, among the great pirates, you're the only one who hasn't formed a traditional pirate crew. But... when it comes to power, Ayr, your subordinates are stronger than any pirate crew in existence!"
Indeed, Ayr had never officially declared the formation of a pirate crew.
But because of his tavern — which doubled as a mercenary headquarters and a commission agency — his influence had expanded to an unprecedented degree.
Ayr's reputation soared throughout the New World.
And naturally, the tasks he handled weren't limited to pirate exterminations.
Some were civilian jobs. Others were political contracts. Even mercenary deployments.
This caused countless powerful pirates, bounty hunters, and even exiled samurai to pledge themselves to Ayr's organization.
And Ayr never refused.
After all, the agency operated on a strict ninety-one percent profit cut for Ayr.
The more strong individuals that joined, the more wealth and influence Ayr accumulated.
There was no reason to reject such an arrangement.
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