"He fell?"
Everyone present couldn’t help but twitch at the corners of their mouths.
They had seen people lie through their teeth before...
But never with skin this thick.
The future Seven Warlords of the Sea had supposedly fallen on flat ground, broken both legs, and somehow ended up wrapped head to toe in bandages.
Who would believe that?
Not even Vice Admiral Onigumo would believe his own story.
Only Garp’s eyes lit up as he was the first to speak.
"The Warlord really is just a kid."
"He’s far too careless when he walks."
"I wonder how high he had to fall from to end up like that."
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, hurry and have the doctors treat him."
"We can’t let the poor child suffer any lasting injuries."
Sengoku froze for a moment.
The muscles on his face twitched as well.
But at this point, there was no choice but to go along with it.
"Ahem..."
"Garp’s right."
"Kids are naturally mischievous."
"Falling down is perfectly normal."
"Vice Admiral Hina, hurry and bring the doctors over."
"That’s right!"
"The old woman herself said he’s just a child."
"It’s only natural for children to be a little reckless."
"Hahaha! This kind of thing happens all the time."
"I’m sure he’ll recover just fine."
The crowd instantly erupted in agreement.
Hundreds—no, thousands—of Marines echoed the same sentiment.
Watching the situation become completely one-sided, Miss Bakkin was dumbfounded.
Even Spandine felt the urge to cough up blood once again.
Was this some kind of massive "Saying black is white " performance?
"Sengoku!"
"You’ve gone too far!"
Spandine roared hysterically.
"You’re all lying through your teeth!"
"If someone can fall and end up like this..."
"Then show me!"
"And another thing!"
"Why has Zephyr gathered over ten thousand Marines at the Recruit Training Camp?"
"If you can’t give me a proper explanation..."
"I’ll personally report this to the Five Elders!"
Seeing this, Miss Bakkin’s face immediately lit up with delight.
"That’s right!"
"CP0, you have to stand up for Weevil!"
"He’s the Five Elders’ chosen candidate for the Seven Warlords of the Sea!"
"What they’re doing is a direct insult to the Five Elders!"
Sengoku and the others immediately fell silent.
They could certainly lie with a straight face.
But...
They genuinely had no explanation for the rest.
For a moment, no one knew what to say.
"They’re practicing square dancing."
Lucas calmly took another sip of his strong liquor.
"So many people gathered in the square..."
"Obviously they’re preparing to practice square dancing."
"As for how he ended up like that..."
"I can use you as a demonstration."
Hum—
The surrounding space trembled violently.
Even the flowing air seemed to freeze.
An indescribable pressure gripped everyone’s hearts like an invisible hand.
Brilliantly colored magic circles bloomed beneath Lucas’s feet.
Layer upon layer of dazzling magic circles stretched skyward.
In an instant...
Nine colossal magic circles occupied nearly half the sky.
Standing below them, Spandine felt every hair on his body stand on end.
It was as if an ancient beast had fixed its gaze upon him.
Looking up at the nine-layered magic formation dominating the heavens...
His breathing nearly stopped.
He had never imagined Lucas would act so completely outside the rules.
One disagreement...
And he immediately prepared to attack.
And what kind of ridiculous excuse was this?
Over ten thousand people gathered together...
To practice square dancing?
What the hell?
Even Sengoku and the others couldn’t help changing expression.
But at a moment like this...
The only thing they could do was leave everything to Lucas.
"CP0!"
Miss Bakkin cried out in terror.
"You saw it too!"
"This is exactly the attack that left Weevil in his current condition!"
"You have to uphold justice for us!"
The faces of the CP0 agents instantly turned pale.
Even the Five Elders’ chosen Seven Warlord couldn’t withstand such an attack.
How could they?
As each second passed...
The magical power gathering overhead became increasingly overwhelming.
It felt like Mount Tai itself was pressing down from above.
Standing beneath it, Spandine felt as though an invisible hand could crush him at any moment.
"Ready?"
Lucas casually took another drink.
"Use your Armament Haki first."
"Otherwise..."
"You might end up permanently crippled."
Every CP0 agent turned deathly pale.
Spandine himself began trembling uncontrollably.
Looking at the massive magic circles hanging overhead like the blade of an executioner’s axe...
He finally broke.
"N-No..."
"Admiral Lucas..."
"I think Vice Admiral Onigumo was absolutely right."
"Weevil..."
"He really did fall by accident."
"I’ll report everything exactly as it happened to the Five Elders."
"If there’s nothing else..."
"We’ll be leaving now!"
Before anyone could respond, Spandine turned around and ran for his life.
His retreat was so swift and fluid that everyone present stared in stunned silence.
Was this what people meant by—
"If you can’t beat them, join them?"
Otherwise...
How else could he lie with such complete sincerity?
Feeling the terrifying magical power still hanging overhead...
The remaining CP0 agents no longer dared linger.
They scattered in every direction.
None of them wanted to become collateral damage.
Within moments...
More than a hundred CP0 agents had vanished without a trace.
Miss Bakkin, who had been desperately clinging to her last lifeline, was completely dumbfounded.
She had never imagined that lifeline would snap so quickly.
Then...
Lucas’s gaze shifted onto her.
She shuddered violently before blurting out,
"He..."
"He really did fall by accident!"
As her words faded...
The magnificent magic circles covering half the sky slowly dissipated.
The crushing pressure enveloping Marine Headquarters disappeared along with them.
Everyone at the harbor finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Looking once more at the heavily bandaged Weevil lying on the stretcher...
It was the first time they realized that using overwhelming force in the name of justice...
Actually felt pretty satisfying.
At that moment, Ain finally squeezed through the crowd.
"Teacher Zephyr..."
"I’m sorry."
"I came back too late and caused you to misunderstand."
"But..."
"If you still insist on leaving..."
"I won’t stay behind by myself."
Zephyr gradually came back to his senses.
Looking at the severely wounded Weevil on the stretcher, he still found the entire situation difficult to believe.
Feeling everyone’s expectant gazes—and seeing the anxious look on Ain’s face—
He suddenly burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"Lucas has already prepared such a wonderful gift for me."
"So why would I leave?"
"Lucas, you little brat..."
"You’re really good at lying with a straight face."
"But I like it."
"It seems I wasn’t wrong about you after all."
As soon as those words fell...
Everyone’s faces lit up with joy.
Adjusting his gold-rimmed glasses, Lucas replied,
"Old Man Zephyr..."
"I wasn’t lying."
"You gathered over ten thousand people."
"The square dance still has to be done."
"Otherwise..."
"How is Fleet Admiral Sengoku supposed to explain it to the Five Elders?"
"Oh, and remember to bring Old Man Sengoku with you."
"What if the Five Elders ask him to dance first?"
The smile that had just appeared on Sengoku’s face instantly froze.
As expected...
In the end, he was still the one taking all the damage.
Before he could say anything else...
Tsuru’s adjutant hurried over, his expression having changed dramatically.
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