Chapter 251: Aftermath, and a New Recruit
The sound of the staff clattering to the floor finally woke Hancock. She opened her eyes, saw Elder Nyon's stunned expression, and let out a shriek of pure, unadulterated mortification.
"GLORIOSA! How dare you enter my bedchambers without permission!" she screeched, throwing a nearby lamp at the old woman's head. With her other hand, she frantically tried to hide the newspaper behind her back, but in her haste, it slipped from her grasp and fluttered to the floor.
Elder Nyon looked down. The front page was dominated by the handsome, defiant face of the dark-haired young man. But... his face was completely covered in lipstick prints. And scrawled all over the margins in childish handwriting were the words "Hancock ♡ Lord Shane."
"GET OUT!!!" Hancock screamed, kicking the old woman out the window. She slammed it shut and slid to the floor, her chest heaving, her face burning with shame. "What am I doing...?" she whispered, but her eyes were drawn back to the newspaper. Her fingers unconsciously traced the lines of his face, and a lovesick, dreamy look returned to her eyes. "Oh, Lord Shane~" If only he would come back and kick me a few more times...
Fish-Man Island, Ryugu Palace.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" the Minister of the Left burst into the throne room, a newspaper in his hand. "Big news! The biggest news!"
King Neptune, who was entertaining a guest, looked up. "What is it?"
"Look at this!"
"This..." The king's eyes went wide, and he shot to his feet, a cold sweat breaking out on his brow. Lord Shane's audacity... is it possible... that my theory about Joy Boy... is true?
His guest took the paper. He read it, his face a mask of shock, then fell into a long, troubled silence.
"Jinbe?" the king asked. "What's wrong?"
"Your Majesty," the Warlord, "Knight of the Sea" Jinbe, said, his voice heavy with a guilt that had festered for years. "There is something I have never told you. When the Curtain Call crew passed through Fish-Man Island... I was here, in the Sea Forest. I knew they had arrived. And I hid from them."
"You were here? Why?"
"It is a long story," he said with a sigh. "Years ago, I was a fool. Out of a misguided sense of loyalty to my former crewmate, I accepted the position of Warlord in exchange for Arlong's release from Impel Down. He went to the East Blue and brought misery and death to countless innocent people. And Lord Shane's home... is in the East Blue."
Arlong had died at Shane's hands, but at the time, Shane had been just a child. Jinbe could only imagine the horrors he must have endured. And it was all his fault. He had unleashed that demon upon the world. He had wanted to apologize, but he had been too ashamed, too afraid.
"Is that all?" the king said, then roared with laughter. "Jinbe, my friend, you sorely underestimate that man! He is the man who killed a Celestial Dragon and declared war on the World Government! Do you really think he would hold a grudge against our entire island for the crimes of one man?! If he hated us, he would have destroyed this palace when he was here!"
"He is right," the Minister of the Left added. "One of his top three officers is a Fish-Man, Jack. Do you think he would give such a position to a man of a race he despised?"
"..." Jinbe was silent for a long time. Then he stood and bowed. "You are right. I have been a fool. But... even if Lord Shane does not hold a grudge, I must still clear my conscience." He looked up, a new resolve in his eyes. "I will go to him now, and I will beg his forgiveness. And then... I will offer him the loyalty of myself and the Sun Pirates."
Seven days passed. The world was still reeling from the Sabaody incident. The seeds of rebellion had been sown. The 800-year-old wall of divine authority had begun to crack.
"I'm an idiot! A complete idiot!" Bartolomeo was on his knees, slapping himself in the face, tears of regret streaming down his cheeks. "I missed it! I missed the live broadcast of Lord Shane executing the Celestial Dragons!" He'd gotten drunk at the barbecue restaurant and had been captured by the Pacifistas. By the time his crew had rescued him, the show was over. He had missed his chance to witness history, to join his idol's crew. There's no excuse!
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