Inside the mansion of Thriller Bark, the mad doctor Hogback was hosting Portia and her group for a lavish feast.
Hogback, a genius surgeon, had honed his skills over the years by dissecting and modifying corpses on this island. Thanks to his surgical expertise, the ship's doctor's injuries were stabilized and showed signs of improvement, though they had not yet passed the critical stage. For now, they had no choice but to remain in this eerie mansion.
The mansion was unsettling not only because of its bizarre paintings and decorations scattered throughout but also due to the inexplicably sinister atmosphere that seemed to permeate every corner. Clark, Portia's bodyguard, couldn't shake the feeling that someone or something was watching them with malicious intent. Yet, whenever he glanced around cautiously, he saw nothing but the strange paintings and mounted specimens on the walls.
Adding to the unease was Hogback's maid, Cindry, whose behavior was downright bizarre. She treated her master with blatant disrespect and even refused to use plates, dumping the food directly onto the table instead. Apparently, she harbored an extreme hatred for plates.
All these strange and illogical occurrences kept Clark on high alert.
As the group ate the food scattered across the table, their expressions varied. Suddenly, a giant bat flew in through a window, startling Portia, who let out a small cry. But when the bat landed on the table, she realized it wasn't a bat at all—it was a small dwarf-like creature with bat wings.
Ignoring the group's astonished looks, the dwarf crawled up to Hogback's seat at the head of the table and whispered something into his ear. Hogback set down his utensils with a hint of regret, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and turned to Portia and the others. "It seems our dinner will have to end early. My apologies."
Portia looked puzzled. "What's going on, Dr. Hogback?"
"Your remaining companions have arrived outside the mansion and will be joining you shortly. From now on, I won't be in charge of hosting you. I hope you enjoy yourselves," Hogback said with a strange smile as he stood up. Then, he called out, "Absalom!"
Clark, who had intentionally chosen a seat close to Hogback, was the first to sense something was wrong. He abruptly rose from his chair with such force that it toppled over.
He lunged toward Hogback, aiming to stop him from leaving. But just as he moved, an explosion erupted nearby.
The blast sent Clark flying, blood spurting from his mouth as he slammed into the wall behind him. Two sailors sitting near him were also thrown into disarray by the sudden explosion.
"Clark!" Portia cried out in alarm.
Hogback clicked his tongue and remarked disdainfully, "How rude."
The other sailors quickly realized something was amiss and turned to Hogback, only to be shocked as he vanished into thin air. It was as if he had never been there at all.
Before they could process what had happened, the mansion's main doors burst open. Karslana stormed in with her group, weapons ready, exuding a murderous aura. But she froze in surprise at the sight of Portia and the others calmly seated at the dining table, seemingly in the middle of a meal.
"Portia, you're alive!?" Karslana exclaimed in delight.
"She's my fiancée, of course she's fine," a deep voice suddenly whispered in Portia's ear.
Portia panicked and looked around, but before she could react, an invisible hand gripped her shoulder. In the next moment, just like Hogback earlier, Portia vanished into thin air before everyone's eyes.
"There's someone here who can turn invisible!" William immediately realized. He focused on a faint trail of footprints that had appeared on the carpet near the dining table and whispered to Gin and Selkirk, "Stay sharp."
"What about the lady Marine, Lord Absalom?" a mounted boar's head on the wall suddenly spoke, its tone obsequious.
"She's too feisty—not my type," the invisible Absalom replied in a low voice. "But the rest of you, feel free to go wild!"
His words seemed to serve as a signal. The entire mansion's hall came to life in an instant. The paintings on the walls, the mounted animal specimens, and even the large bear rug on the floor all began to twist and move. They crawled out from the walls and floors, baring their fangs and claws as they charged at the living people in the hall.
One of the young sailors who had followed Karslana into the mansion was standing at the back of the group, closest to the door. Seeing the chaos erupt, he tried to retreat and escape. But just as he stepped one leg out the door, a massive spider web descended from above, sealing both him and the doorway completely.
Karslana, Brook, William, and the others, who were not far from the sailor, turned to look at the sudden commotion. Spotting the web now blocking the door, William instinctively glanced upward toward the shadows on the ceiling. The next moment, a swarm of grotesque creatures with rat heads and spider bodies began raining down from above.
Gin and Selkirk reacted instantly, attempting to dodge. However, seeing William standing still, they hesitated and stopped themselves.
These spider-rat hybrids were about the size of a human arm. Each had a long strand of silk trailing from its abdomen, and they descended rapidly. Their numbers were overwhelming. The moment they hit the ground, they moved with uncanny coordination and agility, immediately starting to wrap the group in their webs.
Only Brook managed to roll forward and escape the spiders' drop zone. But in the blink of an eye, William, Selkirk, Gin, Karslana, and another sailor were all bound tightly in spider silk.
Though William appeared panicked, he was actually calm inside. He knew that even if the webs could withstand the immense force of his Overheat-enhanced strength, he could always escape by using his Logia Devil Fruit abilities to transform and evade.
Brook glanced back nervously at William and the others struggling in the webs. Before he could act, a voice called out behind him: "What are you looking at, skeleton?"
Brook spun around in shock. He now noticed that during the brief moment when everyone's attention had been drawn to the spider creatures at the door, several zombies had quietly entered the mansion's hall.
The zombie addressing Brook had long, disheveled hair and wore a tattered high-collared coat. His abdomen bore several bullet holes, with two curved swords still lodged in them. This zombie, who resembled a rebellious rock star, held a bottle of strong liquor, which he continuously poured into his mouth. However, the liquor simply flowed out of the wounds in his stomach, leaving one to wonder if he was actually drinking it.
Aside from this long-haired zombie, the others who entered were clad in full suits of armor, their faces obscured. As Brook's gaze shifted past the rock-star zombie's shoulder toward the dining table, he realized these zombies' movements and agility were entirely different from the ones he had encountered in the trench earlier.
(End of Chapter)
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