September 22, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
*Ding*
*You have eliminated the Named Character Spandine, causing a positive change in the world*
*You have obtained 50,000 SP*
*You have obtained "Secret Information Pack" (x1)*
*You have obtained "Ancient Silver Key" (x1)*
The moment Spandine's head fell to the ground as a result of Robin's attack, several notifications appeared on the system screen, pleasantly surprising Orion. He had not expected Spandine to be considered so important according to the system's evaluation as to warrant such a large reward.
Not only had he received an incredible amount of SP for someone with a power level as low as Spandine's, but he had also obtained two additional rewards, something that almost never happened when eliminating Named Characters.
Once again, Orion confirmed with certainty that a person's level of power was not equivalent to their level of importance or the threat they posed to the future well-being of the world, and it was precisely for that reason that Spandine had generated such abundant rewards.
Looking at his SP reserves, which had once again surpassed the 100,000-point mark, Orion nodded in satisfaction, feeling a bit more secure about the future. He always tried to keep a certain amount in reserve in case of emergencies, so he had not felt entirely comfortable having so few SP after investing almost all of them into upgrading his Prism Eyes.
Focusing his attention on the "Secret Information Pack," which was stored in the system inventory as a small, shimmering sphere of energy, Orion felt a vast amount of information begin to imprint itself into his mind as the sphere of energy vanished.
After a few brief moments, all of the information had settled into his memory, becoming part of his recollections, although he would still need to consciously analyze and carefully process it before it could be truly useful.
The information he had obtained consisted of Cipher Pol reports, and although it was quite limited—failing to include the greatest truths of the World Government—it was undoubtedly a tremendous reward for him, given the immense value such information held for his future plans.
If Orion had wanted to obtain this type of information by his own means, he would likely have had to personally infiltrate Cipher Pol for months, yet now he had been able to acquire it "simply" by executing Spandine.
Fortunately, the system had deemed him to be the architect of the former CP9 leader's death, regardless of the fact that Robin had delivered the final blow, because otherwise missing out on these rewards due to such a technicality would have been a monumental loss.
Finally, Orion focused his attention on the key floating within one of the inventory slots, but when he set his gaze upon the silver key, he received no information at all. He would probably have to investigate Spandine's life a bit further, and perhaps through that he would discover what lock this mysterious key was meant to open.
Who knew, perhaps he might obtain some great treasure or even more confidential information thanks to this small key, so he would certainly have to look into it in the future.
Closing the system screen, Orion approached Robin, who was staring at the decapitated corpse of her mortal enemy, and gently took the sword from her hand, returning it to Yukimura, who simply bowed and sheathed his blade while stepping back with solemn composure.
Orion placed a hand on Robin's shoulder and looked her in the eyes with a tender gaze, which immediately dispelled the negative emotions that had surfaced in her mind just moments earlier.
Seeing that Robin was emotionally stable, Orion nodded and moved toward the front of the great platform, looking out at his subjects who were standing gathered in the vast central plaza of the capital city.
"Today marks the first time a public execution has been carried out in Pacific Kingdom," Orion said, raising his voice so that the crowd packed into the plaza could hear him.
"However, this will not be the last enemy to fall before our blades. The road ahead will be long and difficult, but I promise you that I will not allow those who threaten our peace and security to go unpunished. Here and now, I tell you that our enemies will be defeated!"
Orion's voice echoed from atop the platform, and the people present raised their hands to shout in response to their king's words. Cries of encouragement, expressions of hope and determination. The people of Pacific Kingdom remained as united as ever.
…
September 23, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
The following morning, Orion said farewell to his family after breakfast, as he was about to depart for Dressrosa to spend some time there with his wife Scarlett, who was pregnant and in need of his company and support during this period.
On this occasion, Giolla and Lucky Roux would travel with him through the Space Gate, and they would also be bringing little Sam along with them. Giolla had wanted to spend time in Orion's company for months, but they had not had the opportunity to do so because he had been searching for the Ope Ope no Mi.
Now that they finally had the chance, the other women of the harem had stepped back, allowing Giolla to "monopolize" Orion for a few days, although this was not truly the case, since Orion was traveling to Dressrosa primarily to be with Scarlett.
Due to the number of companions Orion had—and which would likely continue to increase in the future—it was almost impossible for any one of them to completely monopolize him for an extended period of time, so they simply tried to organize themselves as best as possible so that everyone would have the chance to enjoy some time alone with him.
On this occasion, Giolla had been the one chosen to accompany Orion, partly because she was the one with the fewest pending duties at the moment. For example, Christina and Ginny both had their respective responsibilities, commanding the Royal Army and the Southern Revolutionary Army.
As for Lucky Roux, he had come along simply because he wanted to once again sample the fabulous cuisine of the land of passion. Among Orion's subordinates, Lucky Roux was without a doubt the freest of them all, as the chubby man had no fixed responsibilities beyond being available in case of a conflict with enemy forces.
For the most part, he spent his days eating delicious food and refining his culinary techniques, and was only truly busy when Orion dragged him into his intensive training sessions.
Extending his hand, Orion activated his Space Gate and stepped through the portal together with his two companions and little Sam—whom he had brought along because he did not want to spend so much time away from his young son.
After "falling" through the space–time tunnel for several minutes, they finally arrived in Dressrosa without any issues, which made Orion let out a sigh of relief as he thought that the terrifying red-eyed entity had not caused trouble again during his travels, and he speculated that perhaps this was due to the fact that his spatial abilities had grown stronger after absorbing new Devil Fruits with that attribute.
With Sam in his arms and holding Giolla's hand, Orion emerged inside the great castle of Dressrosa, just a few meters away from where Scarlett was, having been eagerly waiting for him.
Orion took a step forward, his eyes shining with warmth and tenderness, and embraced his beloved wife, whom he had not seen in months, ever since their brief honeymoon.
At present, Scarlett was entering the seventh month of her pregnancy, so her belly was already quite large. The contrast between the last image Orion had of his sensual wife and her current figure with her prominent pregnant belly made it difficult for him to adjust immediately.
However, the moment he placed his hand on Scarlett's belly and felt the movement of his little baby inside, everything made sense once more, and he smiled from ear to ear, wishing he could hold his child in his arms as soon as possible.
Orion was enjoying the tender reunion with Scarlett, but he was unable to do so in complete peace, as an explosive notification appeared on the system screen.
*Ding*
*The activation conditions for the skill "Time Dungeon (incomplete)" have been met. Do you wish to enter the Dungeon? Yes/No (Once you enter the Dungeon, you will not be able to leave until its time limit has been reached)*
Orion stared at the notification on the system screen in great surprise, as he had not expected the conditions for activating this new ability to be fulfilled so soon. A few days earlier, he had been curiously wondering what kind of special skill this "Time Dungeon" might be, and now he was finally in a position to find out.
However, when he looked at Scarlett, who was holding her large belly with both hands and wearing a maternal expression, Orion's curiosity about his new ability melted away like ice under the sun. At this moment, he wanted to be there for his wife, so he could not simply be carried away by the excitement of the moment.
Above all else, the notification clearly indicated that he would be "entering" a Dungeon once he activated the skill. He did not know whether he would physically enter a place or what exactly would happen, but he knew that once he activated the ability there would be no turning back, and he would have to focus on it completely.
For that reason, Orion simply ignored the notification. After all, it did not seem to have a time limit, so he could activate the skill later on. However, Orion was mistaken in this assumption, and he would discover it bitterly upon entering the Time Dungeon.
…
At midday, his father-in-law, King Riku, invited Orion to a small family meal. Seated at the table and enjoying the delicacies of Dressrosa together with his two wives and his son Sam, Orion spoke animatedly with his father-in-law, discussing in detail the production process of the medicines and their commercialization.
On this occasion, in addition to coming to spend time with Scarlett, Orion had also come with the intention of reviewing the progress of the harvest and manufacturing of the medicines, and transporting a good quantity back to Pacific Kingdom in order to commercialize them from there.
Fortunately, the production volume was not yet very large—since the project had not been underway for long—which allowed him to handle distribution with only the occasional assistance of the Revolutionary Army in the Grand Line and Nayana's merchant company in Pacific Kingdom.
Even so, the amount of money they were earning even in the early stages of the project was quite impressive, and Dressrosa's economic conditions had improved enormously in a short period of time.
Although it was still not at a level sufficient to complete the system's economic reactivation mission, Orion was happy because the people of Dressrosa were now much happier and more prosperous, which in turn made his beloved Scarlett happy as well.
As for the amount of Berries that Orion took as his personal cut, it had been completely reinvested into the development of Pacific Kingdom, which was like a bottomless pit when it came to budget requirements.
Once the family dinner came to an end, Orion and Scarlett returned to their marital chambers within the great royal castle to enjoy a moment of intimacy, while Giolla took care of bringing little Sam with her to another nearby room.
"Hello, baby, can you hear me? It's your dad," Orion said, speaking directly to Scarlett's belly and making her laugh cheerfully.
"Look at you, so excited. I thought my husband, the great revolutionary king, was always heroic—I didn't expect to see this side of you," Scarlett said, teasing him with a tender gaze as she stroked Orion's hair, while he rested his head against her swollen belly to listen to the movements of their little child.
"Heh, a man has to be flexible! Sometimes heroic, sometimes perverted, and other times silly!" Orion said, putting on an exaggerated expression that made Scarlett laugh once more, her eyes filled with love.
She had missed her husband terribly during the first months of her pregnancy, but she had not called to ask him to return to her side, because she knew Orion was a very busy man and could not always be with her.
However, even if she never said it aloud, she longed every day for Orion to suddenly arrive, to accompany her in her daily life and watch her belly grow as it carried the fruit of their love.
Now that he was finally here, she had no other wishes, and was simply enjoying his company. To tell the truth, Scarlett was a deeply loving and passionate woman, and also utterly adorable.
Orion spent a long time immersed in the tenderness of his reunion with Scarlett, until bedtime finally arrived, and the pair of lovers removed their clothes and lay down on the gigantic marital bed.
Following the curve of his wife's elegant back, Orion gently embraced her from behind, while placing one hand over her belly to feel the movements of their little baby. In that position—which was particularly comfortable for both of them—they fell asleep, whispering softly to each other about everything they had lived through over the past months.
…
September 24, 1503, Age of the Sea Circle
Only an hour past midnight had gone by when a loud chime rang inside Orion's mind, indicating the presence of a new notification. Opening his eyes with some laziness, Orion checked the system screen, and what he saw made the sleep leave him completely.
*Ding*
*Warning! The available Time Dungeon is entering a critical point. If it is not entered within the next ten minutes, the Dungeon will disappear permanently*
Orion was immediately forced to make a decision.
Originally, he had wanted to enjoy his reunion with Scarlett in peace, and only after spending enough time with her would he attempt to enter the Time Dungeon. However, this ultimatum from the system placed him between a rock and a hard place, leaving Orion with no choice but to sigh bitterly as he resolved to take action.
Gently getting out of the marital bed so as not to wake Scarlett, who was sleeping soundly, Orion dressed quickly and left the room, using Soru and running at full speed to where Lucky Roux was.
It did not take long to find him, as the chubby man was alone in the castle kitchen, eating the reserves of sausages. Without wasting time on formalities, Orion approached Roux and said,
"Roux, I might have to be away for a while, probably not too long. Tell Scarlett not to worry—I'll be back as quickly as I can."
Lucky Roux nodded quickly at his boss's solemn words—though he did not stop eating the sausages—while Orion simply focused his thoughts on the notification he had received earlier, selecting the affirmative option and choosing to activate this new ability.
Suddenly, Orion's vision began to shake violently, and he felt as if his body were being sucked into the void.
*Ding*
*The presence of two possible companions who can participate in the Time Dungeon with you has been detected: Main Wife Scarlett, Secondary Wife Giolla. Do you wish to include them in the Dungeon?*
Orion checked the new notification while feeling his body begin to mysteriously disappear under the effects of the system's spatial attribute. He was not willing to put Scarlett in danger by bringing her into an unknown Dungeon, but Giolla possessed a high level of combat ability, so Orion immediately selected her name and added her to the list of companions.
Another notification immediately appeared on the system screen.
*Your Secondary Wife Giolla has accepted your call*
Orion's vision went black, and his body vanished without a trace from the castle kitchen, leaving behind only Lucky Roux, who, while chewing on a sausage, thought that Orion was always doing all kinds of strange things.
…
When Orion opened his eyes once more, he was still in the kitchen of Dressrosa's castle, but there was no trace of Lucky Roux, and the place looked slightly different.
Suddenly, a gentle hand squeezed his, and Orion turned to meet Giolla's gaze as she looked at him with some confusion, not understanding what was happening. Unfortunately, Orion did not know what was happening either, so he had no way to properly explain their current situation to her.
At that very moment, a window opened automatically on the system screen, and new information began to appear at high speed.
*You have entered the Time Dungeon: The Fall of Dressrosa*
*The Fall of Dressrosa:
Donquixote Doflamingo has arrived in Dressrosa to claim his ancestral right to rule the kingdom, planning to completely wipe out the Riku royal family in the process.*
*Time elapsed since the start of the Time Dungeon: 16 hours*
*Time remaining: 70 hours*
*This is a special type of Dungeon, therefore there are no specific objectives. Follow your desires and act as you see fit.*
*It is possible to obtain rewards depending on the actions taken*
Orion read the information on the screen, and his expression grew solemn. Although the information was quite scarce, he could still extract several important points from it.
To begin with, this was not a Dungeon like the ones he had experienced on other occasions—such as in Wano—since it did not have a specific objective guiding him. Here, if he so wished, he could remain idle for the remaining seventy hours, although that would most likely lead to undesirable results for him.
On the other hand, the time within this Dungeon had been running since the moment the notification had appeared on the morning of the previous day, as indicated by the fact that sixteen hours had already elapsed since its start.
That meant that regardless of the situation he was about to encounter in this Dungeon, he had already wasted a significant amount of valuable time.
This was quite irritating, but Orion tried not to dwell on it too much and instead focused on what he could do now. He still did not clearly understand what was happening, nor how the situation had ended up with Doflamingo invading Dressrosa, but in any case, he could not allow his loved ones to be harmed.
The first thing he had to do was ensure the safety of Scarlett, Viola, and King Riku, and only then could he focus on investigating the situation and deciding how to act.
With that in mind, Orion tightened his grip on Giolla's soft hand and said,
"Giolla, there's no time to explain everything right now. I'll explain it properly later. For now, what you need to know is that we're being attacked by enemies—stay alert at all times."
Giolla saw the solemn expression on Orion's face and nodded firmly, sharpening her senses and readying herself for battle. She trusted Orion blindly, and if he said they were under attack, there was nothing to doubt.
Seeing that Giolla was alert, Orion nodded in satisfaction. He then opened the map to check the positions of the people he was looking for, but to his surprise, the map showed only a single marker: Giolla's, standing right beside him.
For a moment, Orion thought the system was malfunctioning, but he quickly realized that his map likely did not function inside the Time Dungeon he was in.
Even so, Orion did not rely on his map to such an extent that he was incapable of acting without it, so he immediately activated his Prism Eyes while simultaneously releasing his Observation Haki. Then, still holding Giolla's hand, he sprinted out of the kitchen at full speed, following a route he knew like the back of his hand.
As he drew closer to the outer areas of the castle, Orion began to hear distant screams, and when he finally emerged into one of the courtyards overlooking the great capital city of the kingdom, he witnessed a sight that made his pupils constrict: in the darkness of the night, Dressrosa was engulfed in flames.