After hearing Rosinante's words, Charlotte Linlin's face twisted into an expression of sheer, seething rage.
This fury was far greater than when she learned Katakuri intended to leave the Big Mom Pirates, far greater than when Rosinante had provoked her earlier.
Her eyes blazed with such wrath that it looked like she wanted to tear Rosinante into pieces on the spot.
"Rosinante! You… you dare to slander the nun like that?!"
Before the last word had even left her mouth, Charlotte Linlin's massive fist, brimming with Armament Haki and backed by her monstrous strength, came crashing toward Rosinante as if to crush him to dust.
In the instant she attacked, Rosinante also released the life seal restraining his body.
A surge of pure, potent life energy burst forth from within him, flooding his limbs and mending his fatigue. His body was instantly refreshed, combat-ready.
"Bang!" Rosinante's fist shot forward, meeting Linlin's in midair.
The collision released a violent shockwave that split the floor beneath their feet and sent cracks racing up the load-bearing pillars around them.
Neither side gave an inch in that clash of raw strength.
"Mom's angry!" Oven said anxiously.
"Linlin, let Rosinante finish his words first!" Streusen spoke with a thoughtful look, studying Rosinante.
This energy… life force? From this young man's body, it was gushing out endlessly, restoring his stamina completely—and even boosting his endurance in battle.
No wonder he had been so reckless. With a trump card like this, if he fought Linlin here in earnest, there was a real chance Totto Land itself might be destroyed.
"Mom, please calm down. Let Rosinante finish talking before you deal with him!" Daifuku urged.
"Exactly, Mom, let him finish first!" Others chimed in, worried she might relapse into her berserk state. Their faces showed real concern as they tried to keep her calm.
Hearing the voices of Streusen, Daifuku, and the others, Charlotte Linlin finally pulled her fist back, though her expression remained as dark as a brewing storm. From that brief exchange, she already knew—Rosinante was not someone she could easily crush.
"That's all I know. Believe it or not, that's up to you." Rosinante's tone was flat, unyielding.
His life seal was open now—if there was going to be a fight, better to do it immediately. Dragging things out would only work against him.
"Rosinante, do you think you can just make up lies without any proof and walk away unscathed?" Linlin's voice was icy.
She was forcing herself to keep her anger in check. Carmel wasn't just a mother figure to her—she was the first person to truly understand and accept her. Linlin would never allow anyone to defile that memory.
If not for her crew's restraint—and the fact that Rosinante was clearly no pushover—she would have already torn him apart.
"If it's proof you want, I have some. The World Government's Cipher Pol organization should have files on the mountain hag. You can check with them." Rosinante said coolly.
"Rosinante, you'd better take responsibility for your words. If I find out you've slandered the nun, then no matter who you are, no matter where you hide, I'll make you wish you were dead!" Linlin's Conqueror's Haki exploded outward, drenching the room in suffocating pressure. It was as though the world itself had gone dark.
"Don't try to intimidate me with that—I'm not impressed. I can guarantee every word I just said is the truth." Rosinante's own Conqueror's Haki erupted, meeting hers head-on.
The two forces slammed into each other, black lightning crackling violently around them.
"A clash of Conqueror's Haki!"
"This is even stronger than before!"
"He's completely unfazed by Mom's Haki!" The Charlotte family members were shocked.
"Alright, since we've finished talking, let's have the final fight. The sooner it's over, the sooner I can go home and rest." Rosinante said nonchalantly.
"Get lost! Once I've verified your words, then I'll settle accounts with you!" Linlin snapped.
Right now, she had no time for him. She couldn't tolerate anyone defiling the nun's name, so her top priority was to disprove Rosinante's claim.
Only once she had torn down his words could she feel at ease dealing with him.
For now, she would let him leave.
"Looks like we're not welcome here. Katakuri, let's go!" Rosinante smiled, pulling a small stone from his pocket and crushing it in his palm.
Silently, a black hole appeared behind him.
The sight of it sent a ripple of shock through the Big Mom Pirates.
"What is that?" Daifuku asked in surprise.
"The Hole-Hole Fruit ability of Bins'!" Baron Tamago answered.
"No wonder Rosinante was so reckless. That ability can open wormholes even inside Cake Castle!" Oven exclaimed.
"Is it because of that stone?" Mont-d'Or wondered aloud.
After all, even a spatial fruit like the Hole-Hole couldn't just open wormholes anywhere. Yet the instant Rosinante crushed that stone, the warp opened—there had to be a connection.
Then, from the black hole, a figure stepped out.
"Your Majesty!" the newcomer scanned the room before bowing respectfully to Rosinante.
"Well then, goodbye, members of the Charlotte family. I hope next time we meet, it won't be like today—full of fighting. I'm a peace lover, after all." Rosinante smiled faintly.
A peace lover? This man had just turned Cake Castle upside down, and he called himself a peace lover?
The Charlotte family members' expressions twisted with a mix of disbelief and fury.
Rosinante ignored them, stepping into the black hole with Katakuri. In the blink of an eye, they were gone.
"No matter what it takes, find out the truth! I want the truth!" Linlin's voice was low and full of menace.
"Don't worry, Mom. Even if we have to topple the World Government, even if we have to wipe out Cipher Pol, we'll get to the bottom of this!" Daifuku vowed.
"That's right, Mom—we'll get to the truth no matter what!" Oven and the others agreed.
The Charlotte family feared nothing—not the government, not the seas. When Linlin gave the order, they roared in unison.
"Huff… huff…" But as they shouted their pledges, Linlin suddenly began snoring.
Seeing this, the family members' expressions changed.
It seemed the clash with Rosinante had taken more out of her than they'd expected—enough to make her fall asleep almost instantly.