"Lonely Red" Redfield's Observation Haki didn't just let him hear the voices of others—it let him glimpse moments of the future.
This powerful Haki once made him a contender at the top of the sea. But it also cursed him. It stripped him of trust, isolated him from connection, and left him to walk the seas alone.
Perhaps that's why he noticed something strange the moment he met Daemon.
Daemon, who had fused with the Hand of Hermes and carried divine power within his body, was the first person whose heart Redfield couldn't read—not even a trace.
Not even Roger, the Pirate King himself, imprisoned just a few cells away, could hide from Redfield's Observation Haki.
"If I had met you a few decades earlier," Redfield murmured, "we might've been friends."
"If you met me decades ago," Daemon replied coldly, "I still wouldn't have been friends with you."
Raising his hand, Daemon revealed a ring of keys—ones that Shiryu had passed to him in secret.
"I am a Celestial Dragon, destined to stand at the apex of the world. You? Just a wandering worm. We were never equals."
With a flick of the wrist, the keys spun through the air and landed in Redfield's grasp.
Click.
The Haki-restricting Seastone cuffs fell away.
Redfield was free.
"Ahhh… That's more like it," he groaned as he stretched, savoring the freedom.
Neither he nor Roger was surprised Daemon had released him—they'd seen it coming, after all, with Observation Haki.
"So, are you ready to die, Red Earl?" Daemon asked flatly.
"Hardly," Redfield snapped. His tone turned frigid. "Because the one dying… is you, arrogant little Celestial brat."
A wave of Conqueror's Haki exploded from Redfield like a tsunami, cracking stone and roaring across the prison floor.
He launched forward, his fingers coated in obsidian-black Haki crackling with violent lightning.
The move was brutal and practiced:
Shake the opponent's spirit with Conqueror's Haki.
Coat the fist in conqueror's will.
Break flesh and bone in one swift strike.
Even after years of no combat, Redfield still erupted with terrifying, top-tier pirate power.
"He's not weak at all…" Daemon acknowledged as the crimson figure blitzed toward him.
Once upon a time, such power might've ended him in an instant.
But not anymore.
Daemon's palm rose at an inhuman speed—and caught Redfield's wrist mid-strike.
"What—?! Impossible!"
Even Roger's expression changed. Watching the whole thing unfold with Observation Haki, he still hadn't seen the movement.
"Hercules' Belt," Daemon said quietly.
A divine ability that ensured his strength and speed were always superior to his opponent.
He didn't bother explaining it to them.
Crunch!
Daemon's grip crushed Redfield's wrist with casual force.
"Damn it…! He's stronger than Whitebeard… and faster than Roger…!" Redfield's thoughts were a chaotic spiral of disbelief and pain.
He tried to escape, but it was pointless.
With a final, lightning-fast motion—
Crack.
Redfield's throat was crushed in Daemon's grip. His lifeless eyes remained open, staring in disbelief.
Redfield—the legendary, the feared, the lonely—was no more.
Outside the cell, the reactions came in waves.
Esdeath: "Perfect. Flawless. He's a natural-born warrior."
Luo Hao: "Daemon is still new to these divine abilities, correct? That was definitely the effect of Hercules' Belt. It's like a God-Slayer's power—his strength and speed exceed his opponent's baseline. Outrageous."
Sakura Tosaka: "Big brother Daemon is amazing!"
Miyuki Uchiha: "Another legend gone. I wonder what kind of Noble Phantasm Redfield will give His Highness."
Kasumigaoka Utaha: "A true world noble. Frankly, my five-second time-stop ability would suit him better."
Yamamoto Mei: "Now only Pirate King Roger remains. Daemon-sama's Impel Down mission is nearly complete."
Back in the One Piece world…
With Redfield's death, the Hand of Hermes harvested his essence to forge a new Noble Phantasm.
Soon, it materialized:
"I Am the Lord of Life and Death"
Grade: N/A
Type: Intrinsic Enchantment
Redfield, haunted by his mortality, pursued immortality all his life.
The Hand of Hermes elevated this obsession, transforming it into a divine weapon.
Targets are pulled into an inner world.
Within, even the immortal will decay and weaken.
Time, age, and death rule.
"Tsk... So I really am the protagonist of some overpowered light novel," Daemon muttered with a smirk, feeling a bit sorry for whoever faced him next.
He casually shared the new Noble Phantasm in the group chat, triggering more waves of envy and admiration.
Then, his gaze turned to the last cell.
Gol D. Roger.
"So… is it finally your turn?"
Roger chuckled wryly and raised his Seastone-bound hands.
"You killed Redfield like he was nothing. I doubt I'd last any longer. I won't resist."
Daemon was about to move when he suddenly paused.
"Your wife, Portgas D. Rouge, will die in two years from exhaustion. Your son, Ace… will be executed by the Navy twenty-two years from now."
Roger froze.
"What…?"
A monstrous wave of Conqueror's Haki erupted from his body.
Outside, Stussy, Magellan, Akainu, and the others guarding the gates collapsed under the weight of it.
They couldn't even move.
This was Gol D. Roger—the Pirate King.
Inside Level 6…
Daemon slowly revealed more of the future. Things that should have happened in the original timeline.
Roger, stunned but thoughtful, eventually calmed.
"Why tell me all this? Do you want me to die consumed by guilt?"
"No," Daemon said honestly. "I'm not that heartless."
"Then why—?"
Daemon gave him a faint, kind smile.
"Because the future can change."
Roger blinked, stunned.
"What do you mean…?"
Daemon leaned closer, voice steady.
"After you die… I'll raise your 'wife'. I'll protect her, support her and make sure she has all her 'needs'. Same with your son. I'll make sure they're safe. Happy. Loved. So you don't have to carry that regret anymore."