Out at sea…
At the Germa Kingdom's base of operations—
Bang!
"What did you say?!"
"Reiju and Yonji were captured?!"
Vinsmoke Judge slammed his fist on the desk in fury after hearing the report from the communications officer.
Someone had dared to capture Reiju and Yonji? Did they really think the infamous "Evil Army" title of Germa 66 was just for show?
"Sir, according to the report…"
"The person who captured Lady Reiju and Lord Yonji is reportedly the 'Godslayer' Sora, who recently appeared in the North Blue. His bounty is 1.5 billion."
"Also, he commands a massive ship with terrifying speed and firepower."
Judge's face darkened. He hadn't expected it to be that man.
Sora's killing of the Celestial Dragons had shaken the North Blue. The Marines had even dispatched an admiral, along with numerous vice admirals and rear admirals, to hunt him down.
Because of him, the sea had gone eerily quiet—pirate crews either went into hiding or fled to the Grand Line.
Ironically, many civilians plagued by pirates had started feeling grateful toward Sora.
But Judge wasn't one of them.
He frowned deeply and gave a new order:
"Call Ichiji and Niji. Mobilize the entire Germa force to battle-ready status."
Sora might be strong, but the Germa Kingdom wasn't to be underestimated either.
If Sora handed Reiju and Yonji over, fine. If not? Then Judge would let him experience the might of Germa's scientific war machine firsthand.
Meanwhile, aboard the Divine Slave—
Sora headed to the ship's lower deck to check on the coal and cannon reserves. If a battle with Germa broke out, they had to be ready.
Back on the deck, Reiju looked around at the eerily quiet ship, then turned to Anna and Shalria with curiosity.
"Where is everyone else?"
"There's only the three of us," Anna replied cautiously.
Sora had tasked her and Shalria with watching over Reiju.
Shalria squinted at her and asked directly:
"Why did you surrender so easily?"
"There's only three of us…"
As the person who most wanted to see Sora fall, Shalria was baffled by this.
In her view, Germa's ship was large, well-manned, and should've been able to put up a fight. Why had they given up without even trying?
"You clearly don't understand his strength," Reiju said with a slight smile as she handed her newspaper to Shalria.
"1.5 billion bounty?!"
Anna gasped as she read the headline.
She and Shalria had been on the second floor of the ship during the earlier battle, and hadn't seen Sora fight directly. All they knew was that he was strong.
But this… this put things in perspective.
"A bounty of 1.5 billion is equivalent to a commander under one of the Four Emperors," Reiju explained. "And with his ability to control this ship…"
"Out at sea, few can beat him."
"Lady Shalria, since this was originally your ship, you should understand how terrifying it is."
Reiju gave Shalria a look. She'd already guessed that this vessel had once belonged to the Celestial Dragons—and from who exactly, was pretty obvious.
Shalria gave a bitter expression.
As Rosward's daughter, she knew everything about the ship—how much effort and money had been poured into modifying it.
Originally a top-tier Marine warship, it had been outfitted with the latest technologies developed by the Marines and Vegapunk.
Dual-powered by sail and steam, its speed far outmatched other warships.
And its heavy artillery? Just one side of the ship carried a hundred massive cannons—superior in both range and destructive power.
Most ships wouldn't survive a single full volley.
Father, you've really screwed me over…
Ever since seeing Sora's ability to command the ship with a touch, Shalria had known there was no escaping his grasp.
She had clung to a sliver of hope—until she saw Reiju, of all people, surrender out of fear.
Reality hit her like a tidal wave.
"My father's dead…"
Anna muttered, pale and shaken after reading the paper.
She refused to believe Sora had killed him.
After all, when she left with Sora, she saw her father alive and well.
Sora returned from below deck just then and found Anna pale-faced and teary-eyed, while Shalria looked completely despondent.
"What's going on?" he asked.
"They say you killed my father… it's in the paper," Anna replied blankly.
Sora raised a brow and pointed at Shalria.
"It was probably the Celestial Dragons who silenced him."
That struck a chord.
Anna's eyes widened. She lunged at Shalria and grabbed her by the throat.
Shalria, still reeling and distracted, had no time to defend herself.
Sora's eyes narrowed. He raised a hand—snap! A thick rope dropped from the mast and lashed across Anna's back, leaving a bloody stripe.
"Aaah!"
Anna screamed and collapsed.
Shalria scrambled behind Sora, trembling. She had genuinely felt the shadow of death for a moment.
[Ding! Anna's loyalty increased by 5…]
[Ding! Shalria's loyalty increased by 10… Current: -40…]
The rope wrapped around Anna's neck, lifting her into the air and dragging her in front of Sora.
He gently patted her face with a twisted smile.
"Seems you forgot the rules on this ship."
Here, only Sora had the right to punish or harm anyone. Anyone else who dared would face his wrath.
"I'm sorry, Master…" Anna gasped, holding her throat and pleading.
When she was on the verge of passing out, Sora let her drop to the deck.
"Kneel."
"Y-Yes!" Anna quickly dropped to her knees, trembling.
"You too," Sora added, turning to Shalria.
Shalria's glee at seeing Anna punished disappeared instantly. Her face fell.
But she didn't dare defy him. She knelt beside Anna obediently.
Reiju had watched everything unfold. Her heart pounded—this man was a devil.
Tch… Anna might have a masochist streak, Sora thought, seeing her loyalty go up after being whipped.
And Shalria's loyalty went up too? That's unexpected.
Sora grinned slightly at the system notifications.
But to Reiju, that grin was nothing short of monstrous.
_____
You give me a power stone, and I will give you a mass release deal? And if you like this story, add it to your library and give me a review, and I will reward you with mass release.