Under Orion's overwhelming pressure, Hawkins didn't dare delay and immediately spread out his Tarot cards to begin divination.
On the deck, all eyes were fixed on him.
Luffy, Ace, and the others watched this scene, their initial excitement gradually fading, replaced by an indescribable gravity.
They had never seen Fleet Admiral Orion like this before.
No earth-shattering techniques, no world-destroying power—just an ordinary gun and a few casually spoken words created a suffocating pressure more intense than any battle they'd witnessed.
Hawkins took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
His slender fingers slowly hovered over the cards before finally pointing at one.
He slowly opened his eyes and flipped the card over.
On the card, a gorgeously dressed jester stood at the edge of a cliff, above a bottomless abyss, yet wearing a smile of ignorant fearlessness.
[The Fool]
"The probability of death... remains zero." Hawkins' voice was hoarse.
He tried to keep his tone steady, but the faint tremor at the end betrayed his inner unease.
"Is that so?"
Orion raised his gun again, the dark muzzle aimed between Hawkins' eyebrows.
Without the slightest hesitation.
"Bang!"
The gunshot rang out once more.
The bullet precisely pierced through the space between Hawkins' eyebrows, drawing a thin line of blood.
He still didn't fall.
Another withered scarecrow dropped from his body.
Simultaneously, among the kneeling, surrendered pirates behind him, another crew member suddenly stiffened, eyes wide, and silently collapsed.
"Indeed, its accurate."
Orion ejected the empty shell and reloaded, his movements elegant as if performing a sacred ritual.
He looked at Hawkins, whose face was now as pale as paper, and spoke with a smile.
"Continue."
These two words struck Hawkins' heart like two invisible sledgehammers.
Cold sweat instantly drenched his forehead.
His proud divination ability had now become the sword of Damocles hanging over his head.
Every time he divined "life," it meant one of his crew members would die in his place.
With trembling hands, he spread out the Tarot cards again.
This time, his hands shook so violently he nearly dropped the cards several times.
The result remained zero.
"Bang!"
Orion's gunshot arrived right on schedule.Another crew member fell.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Gunshots rang out repeatedly on the silent deck, like the death knell of the Grim Reaper.
Each gunshot was accompanied by the fall of a scarecrow and the extinguishing of a life.
The crew behind Hawkins dwindled from over a dozen to just a few, until only one remained standing alone.
His spirit was mercilessly crushed through this relentless repetition.
His perpetually dead-fish expression had long been twisted by extreme terror.
He looked at his hands, trembling so violently he could barely hold his cards, then glanced at the last crew member behind him—shivering uncontrollably, too terrified to make a sound, eyes filled with despair.
He knew that once this final scarecrow was used, once this last crew member died in his place, it would be his turn next.
Even if the divination still showed zero percent mortality rate, he would undoubtedly die.
Because, in the face of this man's will, card divination was utterly meaningless!
Thud!
Hawkins could no longer hold on, his psychological defenses silently shattering at this moment.
He heavily knelt before Orion, forehead pressed tightly against the cold deck, body trembling uncontrollably, unable to utter a complete sentence.
Throughout the entire process, the interns beside Orion watched with trepidation.
Especially the four siblings of the Vinsmoke family.
The arrogance on Ichiji, Niji, and Yonji's faces had completely vanished, replaced by a fear that struck deep into their souls.
Watching Orion fire shot after shot, completely shattering Hawkins' dignity, they felt their palms constantly sweating.
This method seemed plain and unadorned, without any flourish.
But that soul-crushing pressure, that absolute control toying with a person at will, was far more terrifying than any display of raw power.
They asked themselves—if they were in that position, they would likely break down even faster than Hawkins.
Reiju's pink eyebrows furrowed tightly as she watched the man sitting calmly in his chair, still wearing a gentle smile, finally understanding what it truly meant to be a 'king'.
"Your divination is indeed accurate."
Looking at the completely broken Hawkins kneeling on the ground, Orion, having tired of the game, casually handed the gun to Morgan beside him.
He continued with a smile, "Since you've calculated today's mortality rate is zero, I'll give you a chance to live."
"From now on, you'll remain on the training ship and train alongside them. If your performance satisfies me, I'll accept your surrender and grant you an opportunity to serve the Marines."
...
The training ship set sail again, crossing the Calm Belt before returning to the first half of the Grand Line, Paradise.
Meanwhile.
At Holy Land Mary Geoise.
The relocation of kings, royalty, and nobles from over one hundred World Government member nations to the Holy Land was nearing completion.
Except for a few nations like the Ryugu Kingdom of Fish-Man Island who were still observing, the royalty and nobles of all other member nations had already moved into Pangaea Castle.
They had shed their original royal garments, changing into the distinctive attire of the Celestial Dragons, donning glass helmets to isolate themselves from the air of the 'lower world inhabitants'.
From the moment they entered the Holy Land, they became the noble World Nobles—the Celestial Dragons.
Inside Pangaea Castle, within a newly constructed opulent palace.
The Prince of the Kingdom of Lubunir, accompanied by several fellow newly-ascended Celestial Dragons, strutted arrogantly down the corridor.
"Hahaha, is this the air of the Holy Land? It truly is far sweeter than the world below!"
"From this day forward, we are the rulers of the world!"
Just then, two fat figures, also wearing glass helmets, approached from the opposite end of the corridor.
Normally, they wouldn't wear helmets in the Holy Land, but with the recent influx of people, they felt the air had been contaminated
. Thus, they had donned their helmets again to prevent close contact with these lowly beings from the world below.
Upon seeing them, the Prince of Lubunir instinctively moved to step aside.
But then he realized—he was now a Celestial Dragon himself.
Why should he yield to anyone?
So, he straightened his back and continued walking forward without hesitation.
Inevitably, the two groups collided in the middle of the corridor.
"Hey! You lowly scum from the world below! Are you blind?"
"Who are you calling scum?" The Prince of Lubunir flared up instantly. "I am a Celestial Dragon now! How dare you insult me!"
"A Celestial Dragon?" The other let out a piercing, mocking laugh. "You think you can compare to us? You were just lowly trash from the world below yesterday! We are the descendants of the creators—the true gods!"
"You!"
The conflict between the old and new Celestial Dragons erupted completely at that moment.
The argument quickly escalated into shoving, and soon devolved into a chaotic, disorderly brawl with punches and kicks flying everywhere.
Glass helmets clinked and clattered, and pristine white robes were torn to shreds.
These pampered, physically feeble "gods" now resembled a pack of street thugs, wrestling and grappling on the ground in a farcical and chaotic scene.
Soon, this turmoil spread like a plague throughout Pangaea Castle.
The newly-ascended Celestial Dragons formed one faction, while the original residents of the Holy Land formed another.
The two sides fought fiercely in every corner of Pangaea Castle, locked in relentless conflict.
Just then.
"Fufufufufu..."
A distinctive, bone-chilling laugh abruptly echoed over the chaotic square.
Every Celestial Dragon engaged in the brawl froze mid-action.
They turned to see a tall man with golden hair, wearing a pink feather coat and sunglasses, approaching slowly with his family members.
It was Donquixote Doflamingo.
He surveyed the mess before him, his smile growing increasingly sinister.
"What a magnificent sight, fufufufufu..."
Doflamingo strode to the center of the square, spread his arms, and declared in a tone as if admiring a work of art:
"Since you all enjoy fighting so much, you must determine a winner."
His voice suddenly turned cold, carrying an undeniable authority.
"Now, the game begins. In the end, only one side may leave here alive."
"Otherwise, everyone will be executed on the spot for disrupting the Holy Land's order and threatening the lives and property of other Celestial Dragons!"
"Hehehehahaha~"