"Teacher Zephyr... Weevil isn’t going anywhere!"
A hurried voice rang out from the distance.
Everyone at the harbor immediately changed expression.
At a moment this tense, not even Fleet Admiral Sengoku would dare utter such words.
Saying something like that now...
Wasn’t it practically forcing Zephyr to defect from Marine Headquarters?
For a moment, every Marine present looked grim.
Only Spandine and the CP0 agents wore increasingly amused smiles.
This was exactly the outcome they wanted.
If possible, they would have loved for Zephyr to defect from Marine Headquarters on the spot.
Then they could force Sengoku and the others to suppress him personally, staging the perfect spectacle of sacrificing one’s own for the sake of justice.
As countless thoughts flashed through everyone’s minds, all eyes turned toward the approaching figure.
When they finally recognized who it was, many of them couldn’t help but shrink their pupils.
The person who had said those words was the last one they had expected.
"Ain! W-What did you just say?"
Binz roared furiously, his face turning livid.
"Have you lost your mind?"
"Don’t forget that we survived Weevil’s slaughter only because Teacher Zephyr traded one of his arms for our lives!"
"And now you’re choosing to side with our enemy?"
"Can your conscience really accept that?"
All along, Binz had believed that Ain, another survivor of that tragedy, would stand on the same side as them.
Instead...
Her words were completely beyond his comprehension.
"Binz, enough!"
Zephyr raised a hand to stop him.
After a series of changing expressions, he let out a long sigh, as though all the strength had left his body.
"Ain."
"As your teacher, I respect your choice."
"But I’d still like to know..."
"Why?"
"Was I wrong?"
"Teacher..."
"I only feel that this world is unfair..."
"...that justice itself has been disgraced."
Zephyr’s low voice echoed across the harbor.
By the end of his sentence, despite trying to restrain himself, his voice had risen several degrees.
Many Marine officers felt their hearts tremble.
Expressions of guilt spread across their faces.
If they truly had a choice...
They would all stand with Zephyr.
But...
Did they have one?
Watching the atmosphere shift, Spandine’s smile widened.
"Heh... Zephyr."
"Don’t forget."
"The Marines are merely the World Government’s public face—a tool created to carry out the Five Elders’ decisions."
"In that regard..."
"Your beloved student understands her duty much better than you do."
"Recruit Ain."
"Repeat yourself loudly."
"Tell your teacher Zephyr exactly who isn’t going anywhere."
Everyone’s attention immediately focused on Ain.
Even Sengoku and Garp looked anxious.
At a moment like this, one wrong word could push everything beyond saving.
Still breathing heavily from rushing back, Ain had only received Binz’s urgent message on the way here.
She hadn’t even had the chance to ask what had happened before arriving.
Only now did she realize everyone had misunderstood her.
"N-No!"
"Teacher Zephyr, you’ve misunderstood!"
"Weevil really can’t leave."
"He literally isn’t going anywhere!"
"..."
Silence fell over the harbor.
The first time she said it, perhaps people could misunderstand.
But the second time...
With the emphasis she placed on those words...
Anyone with a functioning brain could understand what she meant.
Especially after remembering who had led this mission—
The unconventional newly appointed Marine Admiral, Admiral Glutton Lucas.
Everyone’s hearts skipped a beat.
What had he done this time?
The smile on Spandine’s face froze.
His expression darkened as he barked,
"Recruit Ain!"
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
"Weevil is the Five Elders’ chosen candidate for the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"Of course he isn’t leaving!"
"And weren’t you accompanying that arrogant rookie Admiral to invite him?"
"So where is Weevil now?"
As those words fell, everyone’s nerves tightened.
They all looked toward the Marine warship approaching the dock.
The sight before them made their eyes widen.
At that instant...
Everyone finally understood why Ain had repeatedly insisted that Weevil couldn’t leave.
After all...
How was someone with no legs supposed to walk?
Lying on a stretcher was a figure wrapped head to toe in bandages like a mummy.
His legs...
Were completely gone.
Everyone was dumbfounded.
Only moments ago, Spandine had repeatedly emphasized that Weevil was the Five Elders’ chosen candidate for the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
The very man who had massacred Marine recruits...
The monster who had severed one of Zephyr’s arms...
Everything pointed to an overwhelmingly powerful individual.
And now...
The future Warlord had indeed arrived at Marineford.
Only...
He had been carried in on a stretcher.
The contrast was simply too absurd.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku!"
"You have to uphold justice for us!"
Miss Bakkin, who was also covered in bandages and leaning on a cane, burst into tears.
"Weevil is just a child!"
"He only joked around with the new Marine Admiral, Admiral Glutton Lucas..."
"And look what happened to him!"
"This violates the agreement between the Seven Warlords of the Sea and the World Government!"
"If Marine Headquarters doesn’t give us a proper explanation..."
"Who would ever agree to become a Seven Warlord again?!"
Her crying instantly shattered the tense silence.
Seeing both Weevil and Miss Bakkin—people they had regarded as valuable assets—reduced to such a miserable state...
Spandine was the first to recover.
"You damned new Admiral!"
"You actually dared attack someone personally chosen by the Five Elders!"
"You’re openly disregarding the agreement with the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"How can the World Government maintain any credibility after this?"
"If you don’t give us an explanation today..."
"Don’t blame us for taking action!"
"Taking action?"
Lucas leapt down from the warship.
After calmly taking another sip of liquor, he said,
"Oh..."
"So you’re the fellow who pretended to be CP0 last time."
"You also said it yourself."
"I’m new."
"I don’t really understand all these rules."
"When I arrived on Uth Island..."
"I hadn’t even taken out the invitation letter before Weevil attacked me."
"So if I fought back..."
"That happened before he officially became a Seven Warlord."
"Besides..."
"Everyone here can testify."
"He’s just a child."
"From beginning to end..."
"I never laid a finger on him."
"So how can you say I beat him?"
"That’s right."
Vice Admiral Onigumo stepped forward.
"I can testify for Admiral Lucas."
"When Weevil suddenly went berserk and attacked Admiral Lucas..."
"The Admiral simply stood there without moving."
"As for why Weevil ended up like this..."
Onigumo paused for a moment before speaking with complete seriousness.
"I think..."
"He probably fell by accident."
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