"Brigadier... Brigadier General?"
Hannibal's mouth hung open, unable to believe his ears.
When Rorschach arrived during the day, he was still a colonel.
The sun hadn't even set yet, and now he's a brigadier general?
"Rorschach... Brigadier General Rorschach, hehehe, this..."
Hannibal licked his lips, leaning closer to Rorschach, rubbing his hands together, "Can you tell me the secret to rapid promotion? I want to move up too, preferably becoming the warden by tonight."
Rorschach glanced at Magellan, who stood behind Hannibal with a livid expression, and chuckled, patting Hannibal's arm.
"Wanting a quick promotion is simple? I have a method right now that can make you the new warden before dinner starts."
"Really?"
Hannibal's eyes instantly lit up.
His throat moved, his breathing grew heavy, and he looked at Rorschach as if he were gazing at a peerless beauty, asking in a near-pleading whisper, "What method? Tell me quickly, Brigadier General Rorschach."
Rorschach shrugged, smacked his lips, and stroked his chin, "Well, I do have a method, but... why should I tell you?"
"Huh?"
Hannibal was stunned, his mouth opening and closing as he forced a smile, "Aren't we friends, Brigadier General Rorschach? If I can become the warden of Impel Down, then whatever you ask, I'll do my best to fulfill."
"Whatever I ask?"
Rorschach smiled.
"Whatever you ask."
Hannibal vowed, pounding his chest with a resounding thud.
His eyes darted around.
If he could become the warden, wouldn't the entire Impel Down be under his command?
Then, Sadi-chan's admiration would shift from Magellan to him.
Maybe even Domino would look at him differently, maybe even fall for him.
With both beauties in his arms, he would truly reach the pinnacle of life.
"Hehe, just thinking about it makes me feel like I might get a nosebleed."
Hannibal's face flushed, drool almost dripping from the corner of his mouth.
Rorschach glanced at Magellan, whose face was growing darker by the second, silently expressing sympathy for Hannibal, then coughed and said, "It's simple. You just need to defeat the current warden standing behind you before dinner tonight."
Hannibal's eyes sparkled, his right fist slamming into his left palm.
"Ah! So it's that simple?"
"Just defeat the current warden before dinner, and of course, I'll be promoted from deputy warden to the new warden. Why didn't I think of such a convenient method before?"
"Eh? Wait... who is the current warden?"
As Hannibal spoke, he suddenly felt the air around him grow foul, almost nauseating.
The light above dimmed, and he slowly looked up to see a large hand reaching down, grabbing his head.
Hannibal's eyes bulged, his mouth agape, "Ma... Ma... Magellan Warden!"
"Hannibal, tell me, who is the current warden?"
Magellan sneered, lifting Hannibal off the ground by his head, his legs dangling like an overly plump puppet.
"It's... it's... you..."
Hannibal was on the verge of tears.
"Who am I?"
"War... Warden."
"You know I'm the warden, yet you dare to spout such treasonous words? Huh? And recklessly promise to fulfill any request? How many times have I told you? Being the warden of Impel Down means being responsible for the entire prison!"
Magellan's face was a mix of disappointment and anger, hiccuping in frustration.
"Damn it! Hiccups again! I'm going to die, I'm going to be poisoned to death."
Hannibal foamed at the mouth, his limbs twitching.
"Ha ha ha, if you like it, then eat to your heart's content! Don't hold back! Impel Down has plenty of food.
Being in the Calm Belt, we have Bullglasses hunting Sea Kings every day, bringing in loads of meat to the storage room."
In the scorching heat of the Hell level, outside Magellan's office.
The wide corridor was lined with dozens of long tables.
Rorschach's 200 marines, along with some Impel Down guards and the ship captains and guards from the
warships docked outside, filled the entire corridor.
Near the edge of the blood pool, a large round table over ten meters in diameter was piled high with various meats, vegetables, fruits, and fine wine.
A dozen or so marines in snow-white cloaks, along with Magellan, Hannibal, Sadi, Domino, and others, sat around the table, feasting and chatting merrily.
Rorschach, Law, and Hibari, who had just woken up, were also at the table.
Rorschach was busy demonstrating the art of 'eating without speaking' to everyone at the table.
Plates piled high with fruits and meats were being devoured by him like a whirlwind.
Everyone could only see his cheeks constantly moving, his hands a blur as they reached for food.
Standing beside the table were two rows of tall, blue-robed Bullglasses, continuously delivering food in an assembly line.
The Bullglasses kept moving, and so did Rorschach.
As he ate, his innate high-level Life Return activated.
The vast amounts of food were instantly converted into energy, repairing the damage he had sustained earlier.
As he continued to eat, his skin turned red and hot, steam rising from his body, distorting the air above him.
His stamina was rapidly replenished, and his Armament Haki gradually recovered.
The excess energy was converted into lightning power, filling every cell in his body.
Rorschach's lightning power had been nearly depleted in his clash with Bullet.
Accumulating lightning required a lot of stamina and time; it wasn't something that could be fully restored in one meal.
This feast was just to replenish some of his lightning power for emergencies.
Watching Rorschach's astonishing display of gluttony, the seven or eight vice admirals and rear admirals sitting across from him exchanged glances, their faces filled with awe.
One of them, a giant vice admiral over twelve meters tall, was Vice Admiral Lonz from headquarters, who had sparred with Rorschach before.
Yes, the same Lonz who, in the manga, tried to decapitate Whitebeard with an axe, only to have his weapon shattered and his head slammed with a quake punch.
"Ha ha ha ha! That's you, Rorschach! Although I saw your incredible appetite last time, it seems it hasn't diminished at all! Truly the man who defeated Shiryu!"
Lonz laughed heartily, his booming voice shaking the air.
He held a massive bone-in meat, taking a bite over a meter long, grease dripping from his mouth.
"Vice Admiral Lonz, want to have an eating contest? See who can eat more."
Rorschach paused to stuff a watermelon into his mouth, crunching it down in a few bites, then smiled at Lonz.
Lonz laughed heartily but shook his head, waving his hand, "No contest. Although I'm a giant, compared to
your appetite, I'm still a bit outmatched."
He raised an entire barrel of wine, smiling at Magellan, "Everyone, raise your glasses, let's toast to Rorschach's promotion to brigadier general!"
"To Brigadier General Rorschach! We are truly impressed by your strength."
The naval officers responsible for guarding the waters outside Impel Down raised their glasses, smiling.
Most of them had seen Rorschach before.
Even if they hadn't, they had heard of his exploits.
Rorschach's fame within the Marine system, while not yet at the level of the admirals, was comparable to
some of the veteran vice admirals.
For such a rising star in the Marines, destined to join the upper echelons if he didn't fall prematurely, no one wanted to miss the chance to befriend him.
"Thank you."
Rorschach smiled, reaching for his wine glass.
Law, who had been silently eating, suddenly reached out, took the wine glass, and replaced it with a glass of juice.
"What are you doing, Law? Give me the wine."
Rorschach was puzzled.
"Minors don't drink wine. Have some juice."
Law downed the wine in one gulp.
"Drinking wine, I'll let you drink wine. Do you want to offend everyone here?"
Law muttered under his breath.
"Big Brother Rorschach, you should listen to Law and have some juice. If you get drunk, things might get out of hand."
Hibari covered her mouth, giggling beside him.
"Huh? Such a big guy drinking juice? Don't be ridiculous, Rorschach! A real man drinks this!"
Magellan, who had had a bit too much to drink, placed a large hand on Rorschach's shoulder, took the juice, and replaced it with a fifty-centimeter-tall cup—more like a bucket—filled with golden liquor.
The aroma of strong alcohol wafted from the cup.
"Such strong wine, what is this?"
Rorschach felt the alcohol fumes rush to his head.
Just the smell was enough to make him feel a bit lightheaded.
"This is Sea King Wine, brewed by the martial artists of the sea, the Bullglasses, using Sea King ingredients. Let me tell you, this is a specialty of Impel Down, not sold outside. At most, we send some to Marine
Headquarters each year."
Magellan poured himself a barrel, downed it in a few gulps, and sighed contentedly.
He was clearly a seasoned drinker, able to hold his liquor.
"Warden Magellan is right, Sea King Wine is strong. I, Lonz, vouch for its potency with my honor."
Lonz was even more exaggerated, lifting a large barrel and pouring it into his mouth, finishing it in a few
gulps, then grabbing another, his face turning red.
"Come on! Drink up, Brigadier General Rorschach. Today's banquet is for you. If the guest of honor doesn't drink, it's no fun."
"Yeah, yeah! This is your victory banquet."
The naval officers egged him on.
"Uh... then I'll have a little."
The enthusiasm was overwhelming, and Rorschach felt it would be impolite to refuse.
He picked up the large cup, poured a small glass, and raised it to his lips, about to drink.
Suddenly, he felt a tickle at his waist.
He turned to see Hibari reaching out, scratching his side.
"Big Brother Rorschach, you really shouldn't drink. Your alcohol tolerance isn't great. If you get drunk and start causing trouble, it won't be good."
Hibari whispered, ducking under Rorschach's arm, looking up at him.
Rorschach chuckled, ruffling her hair.
"Just a small glass of wine, how could I possibly get drunk so easily?"
With that, he raised his glass to everyone, smiling, and downed it in one go.
Slap.
Law facepalmed.
(End of Chapter)
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