"Shut up, Garp!"
Sengoku slammed the table and roared at Garp before letting out a helpless sigh.
"The Celestial Dragons are indeed despicable, but the Marines must answer to the World Government."
Garp ignored Sengoku's outburst, taking a calm sip of tea before speaking slowly.
"Sengoku, then tell me—what should the Marines do? If everything Borsalino said is true, then the threat she poses is even greater than all four Emperors combined."
"This…"
Sengoku fell silent.
Garp was right—if the opponent could cripple Kizaru with a mere glance, combined with the many other unknown powerful individuals at her side, the Marines simply did not have the strength to face her head-on.
Vice Admiral Tsuru shared the same thoughts.
If Sengoku had considered this possibility, then she had as well.
It was an undeniable fact that the Marines could not ignore.
However, Akainu, who upheld Absolute Justice, had no such doubts.
To him, evil must be eradicated at all costs.
And he refused to believe that such an absurdly powerful person truly existed in this world—otherwise, how could they have remained hidden until now?
"Is there even anything to consider?!"
Akainu's voice thundered, his expression fierce, like an enraged guardian deity.
"I will not allow the justice of this world to be trampled upon!"
Hearing Akainu's declaration, Sengoku and Tsuru fell silent.
Regardless of how the Marines chose to proceed, the World Government would never let the murderer of a Celestial Dragon go unpunished.
At that moment, the Den Den Mushi on the table rang.
Seeing its distinctive features, everyone immediately knew who was calling.
Sighing once more, Sengoku picked up the receiver.
A booming voice soon came through.
"Sengoku, have the criminals who dared to defy the World Government been captured?"
Sengoku glanced at Kizaru, then responded,
"There was an unexpected development. Borsalino was defeated."
He did not hide the truth.
Given the caller's authority, they would soon learn all the details regardless.
...
At the summit of the Red Line, in the very center of the Holy Land Mariejois, within an opulent palace, five elderly men were gathered.
One of them was currently holding a Den Den Mushi—the same one speaking with Sengoku.
These men were the highest rulers of the world—the Five Elders, the supreme leaders of the World Government.
Hearing Sengoku's report, the elder holding the receiver frowned deeply.
"Kizaru was defeated? Explain. Did multiple Emperors interfere?"
Sengoku then recounted Kizaru's report in full.
However, the Five Elders showed no concern over these details.
To them, nothing was more important than the authority of the World Government.
They would never allow anyone to stand above them—otherwise, they would be unable to answer to Lord Imu.
"Sengoku, I don't care how the Marines handle this.
"The only thing I want is results."
"And frankly, I refuse to believe that the enemy is as powerful as you claim."
With those words, the elder abruptly hung up.
As the Den Den Mushi's eyes closed, Sengoku fell silent.
Everyone except Akainu had grim expressions.
Especially Kizaru.
Among them, he was the only one who had personally experienced Eriri's overwhelming power.
Yet, just as he had thought before—the decisions of the World Government and the Marines were beyond his control.
After several moments of silence, Sengoku finally spoke.
"Issue the bounties."
...
At the border between the South Blue and the first half of the Grand Line, within the Calm Belt, the Voyage was anchored in the tranquil sea.
Beside it, a small boat measuring only a few meters in length floated on the water.
On this small boat, Eriri and Yukino sat together, each holding a fishing rod, quietly fishing in the sea.
It had been one day since they left the Sabaody Archipelago.
Since the Marineford War was about to begin, Eriri's group had no plans to leave the first half of the Grand Line yet.
Instead, they decided to watch the war unfold before heading to the South Blue.
Eriri's planned world tour route began with the East Blue.
From there, they would cross Reverse Mountain into the first half of the Grand Line.
Once they had finished exploring the first half, they would travel through the Calm Belt to the South Blue.
After their journey through the South Blue, they would return to the Sabaody Archipelago and enter Fish-Man Island.
While there, Eriri planned to see if she could lure some cute and beautiful mermaids away.
Her primary target for abduction was the Mermaid Princess, Shirahoshi.
After Fish-Man Island, they would head to the New World, exploring the second half of the Grand Line, as well as the West Blue and North Blue.
If the Celestial Dragons continued to provoke them, Eriri had already made up her mind—after touring all the seas, she would ascend to the Holy Land, Mariejois, and erase every wicked Celestial Dragon from existence.
At that moment, Eriri's fishing float suddenly twitched, signaling that a fish had taken the bait.
A spark of joy flashed across Eriri's face, and she gripped her fishing rod tightly, ready for action.
Moments later, the light movements of the float turned into a full submersion beneath the waves.
Without hesitation, Eriri pulled up her rod, and with a splash of seawater, a 50-centimeter-long fish emerged, hooked at the end of her line.
"Yukino, I caught another one! That makes two more than you now."
Eriri grinned, turning to Yukino beside her.
"You better step up, or you're going to lose~"
"Don't celebrate too soon. The match isn't over yet."
Yukino glanced at Eriri's fish, unwilling to accept defeat.
"It's just two fish. It's not like you're twenty ahead."
With that, Yukino ignored Eriri and focused seriously on her fishing float.
The two were competing in a fishing contest—whoever caught more fish before dinner would be declared the winner.
Size didn't matter, only the final count was taken into account.
The loser would have to fulfill one unconditional request from the winner.
An hour had passed since the competition began.
With the latest catch, Eriri had caught eight fish, while Yukino had only caught six.
A two-fish difference might not seem large, but considering it was a third of Yukino's total catch, closing the gap wouldn't be easy.
Since fishing was meant to be a relaxing activity, neither of them used any supernatural abilities—doing so would eliminate all the fun.
The time was now past 4:00 PM.
With only an hour left until dinner, unless Yukino had an extraordinary stroke of luck, it was almost certain that she would lose today's match.
As time ticked away, another thirty minutes passed.
Over the past thirty minutes, Yukino successfully caught three more fish, one more than Eriri during the same period.
This gave her hope for a comeback.
If she could maintain this pace for the next hour, she would surpass Eriri by one fish and secure victory.
Thinking about this, a subtle smile of excitement appeared on Yukino's face.
But would things really go as smoothly as Yukino imagined?
As time passed, Akino, Arifureta, and the others came to the small boat to check on the competition.
However, they didn't stay for long—after seeing the number of fish caught on both sides, they returned to the Voyage.
Another thirty minutes passed, and once again, Yukino caught one more fish than Eriri, finally tying the total score.
Now, she was already thinking about what request to make of Eriri once she won.
However, in the final thirty minutes, the situation took a turn.
Under Yukino's increasingly frustrated expression, the competition came to an end.
Final tally:
Eriri: 15 fish
Yukino: 14 fish
Winner of today's fishing contest: Eriri!
"Yukino, I won~"
Eriri pinched Yukino's delicate chin, her face full of satisfaction.
"As for my request… I'll tell you tonight~"
"I got it."
Yukino expressionlessly pushed Eriri's hand away, but her ears were flushed red.
It was clear that she had already anticipated what kind of request Eriri would make.
After spending so much time together in the Saekano world, Eriri and Yukino's relationship had already progressed naturally.
Logically speaking, things should have already moved further, but due to Yukino's shyness, Eriri had never been able to take the final step.
But after tonight, that would no longer be the case.
Tonight was bound to be a long night.
...
The next morning.
Eriri slowly opened her drowsy eyes, still half-asleep.
Instinctively, she squeezed her right hand, only to find it pressed against an incredibly soft surface—though slightly flat, the texture was beyond exquisite.
The sensational touch made Eriri's fingers unconsciously move, enjoying the feeling even more.
A few seconds later, a soft whimper came from beside her.
At the same time, a small hand gently grasped her right hand, stopping its movements.
Fully opening her eyes, Eriri was met with an adorable face, flushed red.
Seeing the tempting lips that were so close, Eriri couldn't resist and gave them a quick kiss, before smiling sweetly.
"Good morning, Yukino~"
...
The Voyage sailed smoothly through the Calm Belt, moving steadily across the sea.
At this moment, four round tables were set up on the deck, each filled with an array of delicious food.
Some of these dishes were made with ingredients brought from the Saekano world, while others were freshly sourced from the sea.
Eriri and the others sat at the tables, divided into four groups, happily enjoying their meal.
It was now noon—12:00 PM, the perfect time for lunch.
However, just as everyone was enjoying their meal, the once calm sea suddenly began to ripple.
As time passed, the waves grew larger and larger, and their range expanded rapidly.
Suddenly, a colossal entity surged out from the depths of the sea.
This monstrous creature, standing several thousand meters tall, was none other than a giant Sea King from the ocean's depths.
Its emergence created massive tidal waves, transforming the calm waters around the Voyage into a scene reminiscent of the Grand Line's most treacherous seas.
As the giant Sea King lowered its head to gaze down at the Voyage, its enormous mouth, filled with rows of razor-sharp teeth, loomed over the ship.
Despite the Voyage's impressive hundred-meter length, it appeared no larger than a single one of the creature's fangs in comparison.
The Sea King's arrival was clearly noticed by Eriri and the others, who were still enjoying their breakfast.
However, none of them displayed the slightest concern.
Instead, they began casually critiquing the creature as if they were spectators at an exhibition.
Utaha Kasumigaoka tilted her head back, curiously observing the towering Sea King that blocked out the sky.
Without looking away, she spoke to Yuzuru Hanyu, who was seated at the same table.
"Yuzuru, is this the giant Sea King you were talking about earlier? It's certainly massive—just the part above water alone must be at least two to three thousand meters tall."
"Yeah, that's right. But this is my first time seeing one too—it's absolutely breathtaking."
Yuzuru Hanyu's eyes sparkled with excitement as she gazed at the creature.
"I wonder how long it takes to grow this big?"
"Well, it certainly wouldn't be a short time."
Utaha Kasumigaoka nodded confidently.
"I'd say the Sea Kings in this world are probably a type of long-lived species."
At that moment, the giant Sea King suddenly opened its massive maw, preparing to swallow the Voyage whole.
However, just as its mouth neared the ship, it was instantly blocked by the energy barrier surrounding the Voyage.
In the next instant, the barrier retaliated.
The Sea King's mighty fangs shattered instantly, reduced to dust before they could even touch the ship.
Yet, this was only the beginning of the barrier's counterattack.
This protective shield contained a trace of cosmic energy.
Even a single strand of this power was far beyond anything in this world.
Like a devastating chain reaction, the force of the counterattack surged through the broken fangs, spreading directly into the Sea King's body.
Cracks instantly formed across its skull, and before it could even react, the energy completely obliterated its brain.
A torrential downpour of blood rained from the sky, but before a single drop could touch the Voyage, it was repelled by the barrier, instead drenching the surrounding sea in a deep crimson hue.
With just one impact, the colossal Sea King, standing thousands of meters tall, lost its life.
Unlike its shattered fangs, its body did not immediately disintegrate.
Instead, its enormous corpse collapsed onto the ocean's surface, triggering towering waves hundreds of meters high.
However, when these gigantic waves crashed toward the Voyage, they were completely deflected by the energy barrier, leaving the ship unscathed.
Regardless of how chaotic the outside world became, even as the Voyage was spun through the air in a full 720-degree rotation due to the force of the waves—
Inside the ship, nothing changed.
Eriri and the others remained seated at their tables, continuing to enjoy their delicious lunch while casually watching the scene unfold outside, as if they were watching a holographic movie.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon:
Patreon.com/DaoOfHeaven