As the word "death" escaped Carl's lips, he retracted his gaze, while atop the roof, Apoo's eyes suddenly widened, turning blood-red.
Thud!
Apoo collapsed like a ragdoll, sliding from the rooftop to the ground. His internal organs had been shattered by the soundwave, causing blood to pour from all seven orifices. His death was gruesome.
This marked the sixth Supernova pirate killed by Carl. News of these events quickly spread across the Sabaody Archipelago. When the locals learned that so many Supernovas—pirates who were like monsters—had fallen in such a short time, many rookies who had come to have their ships coated decided to flee instead. Some abandoned their deposits, caring only about leaving the area and distancing themselves from the man who seemed like a demon.
That day, the people of Sabaody were reminded of the legend of Admiral Black Dragon.
Area 41
The Straw Hat Pirates' ship, the Thousand Sunny, was docked in this region. Luffy and his crew had already returned.
On their way back, Zoro had learned from Shakky about the identity of the old white-haired man. He was none other than Silvers Rayleigh, the former first mate of the Roger Pirates—the "Dark King."
Although Luffy and the others had learned about Rayleigh during the auction, Zoro had been absent, as he was fighting in the streets at the time. Ironically, Zoro's actions had prevented the Celestial Dragons from participating in the auction, making the rescue of the mermaid, Camie, far smoother.
When Rayleigh appeared, Shakky had immediately recognized him, and the group left the auction house openly to find Zoro. However, the Roswald family still met their doom at the hands of the Straw Hats. Their punishment was even harsher than in the original timeline, with Charlos being killed outright.
On the Sunny, Rayleigh was using his remaining hand to hammer away at repairs. Luffy sat nearby, grinning.
"If only Ace were here," Luffy said cheerfully. "He'd love to meet you!"
Rayleigh paused for a moment, then asked, "Ace... he's Roger's child, isn't he?"
"Yeah! We grew up together. He's my brother! Oh, I have another brother, too. His name's Sabo, but he doesn't want to be a pirate. I think Dad likes him the best!"
Rayleigh fell silent for a moment before speaking softly, "The Roger Pirates owe your father a great debt."
"Huh? Uncle Rayleigh, what do you mean?"
Rayleigh smiled faintly, setting the hammer aside and rubbing his old back with his fist.
"Nothing much. That straw hat on your head—where did you get it?"
At the mention of his straw hat, Luffy's grin grew even wider. He adjusted it on his head and said, "Uncle Rayleigh, you recognized this hat, didn't you? The person who gave it to me was one of your old crewmates. His name is Shanks! My dad told me this hat used to belong to the Pirate King, Roger!"
"Oh? Luffy, how did Shanks give this hat to you?"
Luffy thought for a moment and then recounted the story. When he was a child, Shanks had visited Dragon, Luffy's father, to see Ace and his mother, who had been entrusted to Dragon by Roger. Shanks had brought the Gum-Gum Fruit, stolen from the World Government, intending for Ace to eat it. However, Ace gave it to Luffy and Sabo to inspect, and during their play, Luffy accidentally ate it.
Shanks, upon learning this, had merely muttered Luffy's name and accepted the situation. Before leaving, he entrusted the straw hat to Luffy.
After hearing the story, Rayleigh gazed at Luffy with a meaningful look and said, "Luffy, I heard from Shakky that your dream is to become the Pirate King, is that right?"
Luffy's grin turned to a resolute expression. He stood and declared loudly, "That's right! I'm going to be the Pirate King!"
A voice from nearby interrupted, "Hey, Luffy! Becoming the Pirate King is my goal! You'll just have to settle for being the Pirate King's brother!"
Luffy froze, his eyes widening in surprise before a huge smile broke across his face. "Ace!?"
Ace stood on a patch of grass nearby with his crew, grinning as he called out, "Yo, Luffy!"
The Straw Hats turned to look at him. Nami tilted her head curiously. "So, that's the brother Luffy always talks about?"
Zoro crossed his arms and nodded. "Yeah. He's as impressive as his bounty poster makes him look, don't you think, curly-brow?"
Sanji raised an eyebrow and shoved his face toward Zoro. "Moss-head, don't you dare bring up the bounty posters again!"
Before Zoro could reply, Usopp and Chopper burst into laughter, rolling on the deck. With two loud thuds, Sanji dealt swift kicks to the pair, forcing tearful apologies.
Ace walked closer, glancing at Usopp and the others. Smiling, he said to Luffy, "You've found some really interesting crewmates."
He then looked at Zoro and added, "And you—to kill a Celestial Dragon. That's quite the accomplishment."
Zoro, unimpressed, shrugged. "Are Celestial Dragons supposed to be strong? That guy was pathetically weak. I didn't even plan to kill him."
Ace chuckled. "Well, you're not wrong. They're not exactly fearsome opponents."
Luffy clenched his fists. "But they're so annoying! I punched one, too!"
Since Ace's arrival, Rayleigh had been observing him. Though Ace bore little resemblance to Roger in appearance—likely taking after his mother—Rayleigh couldn't help but notice that Luffy looked more like Roger, especially with the straw hat.
Ace turned toward Rayleigh and suddenly bowed deeply. Rayleigh blinked in surprise. "What's this?"
Raising his head, Ace said softly, "Uncle Rayleigh, it's an honor to meet you. My mother told me that my father often spoke of you as his most trusted companion."
Rayleigh's gaze grew distant, his mind drifting back to memories of Roger. For a moment, he was lost in thought.
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+210 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg