On the distant sea horizon, the Red-Haired Pirates' ship, the Red Force, floated quietly at the very edge of sight.
Shanks stood at the bow with a spyglass in hand, straining to look toward Lulusia's harbor.
It was too far.
Even with his eyesight, he could only barely make out the thick smoke rising from the port. As for the details of the battle—he couldn't see them clearly at all.
"Captain, we can't get any closer." Beckman walked up beside him, voice steady. "If we go further, there's no guarantee we won't be detected by Kizaru's Observation Haki. A Marine Admiral, plus at least five Headquarters Vice Admirals, and those unidentified monsters… if we jump in blindly, the risk is too big."
Shanks lowered the spyglass and let out a sigh. "I know, Beckman. It's just… I can't shake this uneasy feeling."
He admired Ronan's nerve, and he also had a faint sense that what that young King of Lulusia was doing might bring a different kind of change to this sea. He didn't want that sapling to be strangled by the World Government before it ever had the chance to grow.
"What we can do is limited." Beckman analyzed calmly. "At its core, this conflict is a head-on collision between Lulusia and the World Government. If we, the Red-Haired Pirates, interfere rashly, the nature of it changes completely."
Shanks nodded. He understood Beckman's concern.
Time trickled by in a tense wait. Then, all at once, Shanks' spyglass caught a shocking scene in the waters outside the harbor—those enormous ships that represented the World Government's authority and the Celestial Dragons' privilege were split apart under a massive slash, breaking into pieces as they slowly sank!
"That's…?!" Shanks' pupils tightened, disbelief spreading across his face. "They… destroyed the ships?! All of them?!"
Beckman saw it too. The cigarette in his mouth nearly fell out, a flash of alarm in his eyes. "Cutting off the enemy's retreat—ruthless. They're going all the way. They're ready to fight to the death!"
Shanks lowered the spyglass, his expression complicated. Destroying the Celestial Dragons' vessels and the Marine fleet wasn't just resistance anymore—it was a declaration of war against the World Government, a message to the entire world that Lulusia Kingdom was determined to oppose them.
After seeing the fleet destroyed, some of Shanks' unease finally eased. He'd been worried Lulusia would be crushed under the World Government's weight… but now it seemed they weren't helpless at all. If anything, their response was even more decisive than he'd imagined.
"Looks like this little King of Lulusia has even more guts than we thought…" Shanks murmured.
After a little while longer, through Shanks' spyglass, he immediately spotted several figures shooting out at high speed from the direction of the harbor!
At the front was Marine Admiral Kizaru—Borsalino himself. He looked downright bedraggled, and on either side of him were two Marine Vice Admirals, both with torn uniforms and weakened auras.
Only those three.
No other Vice Admirals in sight.
Shanks slowly lowered the spyglass and let out a long breath. The tension that had been stretched tight at last eased.
"Looks like… we were worrying too much." He turned and gave the crew behind him a complicated smile. "Kizaru retreated. He only took two Vice Admirals with him, and from the look of it… they didn't come away with any advantage."
Lucky Roo took a bite of meat and mumbled, "Captain, so you mean Lulusia won?"
"Won?" Shanks shook his head. "Against a joint encirclement by the World Government and a Marine Admiral, forcing an Admiral to withdraw in that state is already a victory. At the very least, they endured the first and most brutal wave."
He paused, his tone carrying both emotion and an inexplicable anticipation. "After this, Lulusia Kingdom—and King Ronan—will truly resound across the world. A force that dares to oppose the World Government and sends an Admiral back empty-handed… this sea is about to kick up new storms."
Yasopp wiped down his beloved rifle with a grin. "Then should we go meet this impressive neighbor? Maybe share a drink?"
Shanks shook his head again and gave a decisive order. "No. We're leaving. We're heading back to the New World."
Under his companions' puzzled gazes, Shanks explained, "We have no ties with Lulusia. If we approach rashly now, it'll be easy to cause misunderstandings. That young King of Lulusia just survived a life-or-death battle. If the Red-Haired Pirates appear at this moment, he might see us as a new threat—or think we have ulterior motives."
Beckman nodded in agreement. "Captain's right. Lulusia Kingdom needs time to digest this battle and brace for the World Government's retaliation. And we have our own road to walk."
Shanks cast one last look toward that sea filled with floating wreckage.
"Let's go." He turned and headed for the cabin. "I believe that King and we will meet again on this sea someday. And when that day comes… it may be the moment the new era truly begins."
With that, the Red Force slowly turned its bow and sailed toward the New World.
Not far from the harbor, in the ruins of a high-rise that had barely avoided total collapse, a figure trembled with excitement. The lens of the Visual Den Den Mushi in his hand recorded every single moment of what had just happened—every world-shaking scene.
He had feathers and a beak like a bird.
It was the president of the World Economy News Paper: "Big News" Morgans!
"This is unbelievable! This is insane!!" Morgans lowered his voice, speaking in an excited whisper to the assistant beside him, who was also staring in stunned silence.
"The Celestial Dragons' hunting tournament, the God Knights showing up, three Marine Vice Admirals dying in battle—and now, nineteen Celestial Dragons publicly executed!! My god! Every single one of those is a headline that can shake the world! And now they're all stacked together—right here—happening in front of my eyes!"
He'd originally only received a vague tip that the World Government was going to make a "big move" against Lulusia. Driven by a newsman's sharp instincts, he had personally infiltrated the area. He'd expected big news… but never, ever something this earth-shattering.
He had witnessed with his own eyes how the Celestial Dragons turned the harbor into a slaughterhouse. He had witnessed how Ronan rallied his people to rise up in resistance. And he had witnessed how those nineteen Celestial Dragons—who called themselves "gods"—were executed like livestock.
This wasn't just news anymore.
This was history—a seismic upheaval capable of changing the world's entire balance!
Morgans could already imagine the monstrous waves that would follow once he broadcast these images and reports to the whole world.
The World Government's authority would suffer an unprecedented blow. The Celestial Dragons' halo of "holy and untouchable" would be smashed to pieces. And Lulusia Kingdom—and King Ronan, only eleven years old—would become the focus of the entire world's gaze.
(End of Chapter)
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