Magellan froze for a moment, staring blankly.
"W-What do you mean?"
"If that pirate were to slip down to Level Five and trigger a riot… whose responsibility would it be?"
Longinus guided him patiently, step by step.
"The one responsible for Level Five… that's me, isn't it?"
Magellan jolted awake, cold sweat instantly covering his back.
"Another question: what just happened that drew most of our attention away—allowing that pirate mixed among the guards to slip down to the next level without anyone noticing?"
"The fight that almost broke out between me and Jin."
Magellan answered mechanically, then suddenly snapped out of it.
"You're saying… that pirate was deliberately released by Jin?!"
"Exactly. No wonder he kept provoking you—he wanted all our attention locked onto the fight."
"It's still hard to say for sure," Longinus replied conservatively. "But he does have that motive."
"No—there's no 'maybe'! He definitely did it!"
Magellan gritted his teeth. "He's been unhappy with me for a long time. He must be trying to use this chance to push me down completely!"
"That bastard's insane! To deal with me, he's willing to intentionally spark a riot? No way—I'm confronting him right now!"
Just as Magellan stormed forward, Longinus caught his arm.
"Don't be reckless. And what would confronting him accomplish? All of this is still just speculation. Without evidence, Chief Warden Yalvis isn't going to strip him of authority over a single escaped pirate."
"Ah! Brother Longinus, you should've reminded me earlier! If I'd taken custody of that pirate ahead of Jin, maybe I could've interrogated him and gotten the truth!"
Magellan complained verbally, but his form of address had already changed again—showing just how much trust he now placed in Longinus.
"It wouldn't have helped. Even if you had taken him, you still wouldn't have gotten anything out of him."
"Huh? Why? Don't tell me Jin has enough charisma to make pirates die loyal to him?"
"Of course it's not about charisma. I saw confusion and emptiness in that pirate's eyes. If I'm not mistaken… he was nothing more than a puppet. The one truly manipulating him—and cooperating with Jin—should be someone else entirely."
"What?! There's another person conspiring with Jin?"
Magellan's face drained of color. For the first time, the great prison felt unfamiliar—unsafe.
"I've been puzzled from the beginning. Sure, Golden Lion's escape emboldened the inmates. But after so many escapees were executed these past days, that should've deterred most of them. Why would the situation worsen?"
"Brother Longinus… you mean those 'escapees' were also puppets just like the pirate earlier?"
Magellan no longer doubted him at all; he simply followed Longinus's reasoning downward.
"Don't you find it too coincidental that the pirate who escaped this morning and the one who appeared just now were so close in timing? It's very possible the first pirate was a smokescreen released by the hidden manipulator—so you would subconsciously dismiss the possibility of a second escape happening so soon."
"My guess: the true mastermind wanted all of you focused on the upper three levels, to lock you into a fixed mindset. That way, you'd habitually overlook someone like that pirate named Ivan."
"And of course, there's another factor—pirates on Levels Four and Five are much stronger. The manipulator likely can't control many puppets of that caliber. Which is why they kept using inmates from the upper floors to test your reactions."
"This is still only my hypothesis, but before confirming anything, we must avoid acting rashly. Otherwise, we alert the enemy."
"Brother Longinus, you're the smart one. I would've never thought of all this."
Magellan nodded repeatedly. "Just tell me what you want me to do!"
"For now, forget everything I just told you. Don't let Jin sense anything wrong."
Longinus patted him on the shoulder, then calmly walked past him toward the Chief Warden's office.
"Huh? No way—acting clueless? I'm bad at this. Maybe… I should hide in the bathroom instead?"
Magellan hurried after him anxiously.
"It's too late. Just act like you always do."
Longinus waved him off, thinking internally:
If the enemy doesn't sense danger… how can I force him into a corner?
This is perfect. I was wondering how to begin. But with this incident unfolding so nicely, all I need to do is guide the flow. Even if something goes wrong later, no one will ever suspect me.
As Longinus and Magellan entered together, Shiryu tilted his head with a mocking smirk.
"Since when did you two get so chummy? Color me surprised."
"Major Longinus is an honored guest of Impel Down. Why shouldn't I treat him with respect?"
Magellan shot back.
"If you're happy, that's what matters."
Shiryu lowered his hat brim, smiling eerily.
Sitting at the top seat, the giant Chief Warden Yalvis forced a stiff smile.
"Major Longinus, I've already heard the report. Thank you for your contribution to the prison."
Longinus smiled warmly.
"I'm simply doing my duty."
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku was right—you truly are reliable!"
Heavy footsteps echoed through the hall.
Stained faintly with the smell of blood, Jin walked in.
"Jin, did you kill the prisoner already?"
Yalvis frowned.
"…Yes."
Jin responded flatly, then added in a dull tone,
"This time, I failed in my supervision."
"He really did silence the witness!"
Magellan clenched his fists, glaring at Jin.
Yalvis sighed and shook his head.
"Forget it. The Mimesis Fruit is indeed troublesome. Without someone like Major Longinus, who's proficient in Observation Haki, most people simply can't detect its tricks."
"Proficient in Observation Haki, huh? That's rare."
Shiryu said harshly, though inwardly he was startled.
Seeing through a Mimesis-Type ability at a glance—that's far beyond normal Observation Haki…
"Indeed. To be able to—"
Jin suddenly stopped midsentence.
A gaze—brazen and unhidden—was fixed directly on him.
That idiot. Why is he staring at me? Did he notice something?
"Enough idle talk. I gathered you all to produce a plan to completely suppress the escape crisis."
Yalvis announced.
"That's easy. Kill all the prisoners."
Shiryu snorted.
"As long as there are no pirates left, none can escape. This sea never lacks scum anyway. A cleanup every so often keeps things tidy."
Yalvis's mouth twitched violently.
Ignoring him, he turned to Hannyabal.
"What's your proposal? If you offer something useful, consider it a chance to redeem yourself."
Noticing the implication in the Chief Warden's tone, Hannyabal immediately perked up, even sucking in his big belly.
"I believe we should fabricate a false report! Since Golden Lion's escape inspired the inmates, then we should announce that the brave and fearless Guard Commander Hannyabal successfully recaptured Golden Lion and threw him back into his cell! And to make this more convincing, I think I should reluctantly put on the Chief Warden's uniform and parade around the prison for a few days—"
"Should I put on the Deputy Chief's uniform and follow behind you as well?"
Yalvis asked through clenched teeth.
"Yes! It's perfectly normal for a former Chief to be demoted after an oversight. You truly think of everything, Deputy Chief!"
Hannyabal said joyfully.
Beside him, Magellan had already closed his eyes in despair.
There's no saving this place… we're doomed… goodbye.
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