"What a terribly twisted sense of humor."
On the dock, Rosse watched the Arabasta-bound ship sail away. Unnoticed, Gion had somehow quietly appeared beside him.
"You're the last person qualified to say that. When did you pick up such bad habits?", Rosse glanced at Gion.
Just because he hadn't seen Gion in the past few days didn't mean she hadn't been doing anything.
In fact, Rosse even suspected that their first time together had been too rushed, to the point it had turned Gion dark.
"How can you call it a bad habit? I was just worried she might hurt you," Gion tried to argue her way out.
"So that's why you were spying from the rooftop? Even if I was unconscious and she had a seastone dagger, she still wouldn't have been able to kill me," Rosse chuckled and glanced at Gion, but he didn't really mind her peeking.
She was the one he'd interacted with the most, through all kinds of battles.
There's a saying that goes: in the clash of weapons, one can truly feel the other's heart.
All the other women had their own little motives, children, kingdoms, obsessions, revenge.
But only Gion, who stayed by his side, was the purest.
Gratitude born from recognition.
That was the deepest emotion in Gion's heart, and on top of that foundation came physical pleasure, and then, over time, affection from prolonged companionship.
But precisely because the base emotion was gratitude, Rosse felt more at ease and more fond of Gion.
In this broken world, gratitude doesn't fade with time, instead, it grows stronger.
Only by staying with him could Gion truly experience the view from the zenith.
With a smile at the corner of his mouth, Rosse bantered with Gion as they walked into Drum Island.
———
[South Blue, Sorbet Kingdom]
The gunfire of revolution echoed throughout the kingdom.
Starting a few days ago, the Sorbet Kingdom's king issued a new policy, splitting the country in two to reduce the heavenly tribute. The north retained the protection of the nation, while the south became a lawless land.
The clamor of the Freedom Fighters rang throughout the southern part of the kingdom and swept northward.
"Ivankov, you actually joined the Freedom Fighters, that's great! And Ginny, it's wonderful that you're okay!", Inside the kingdom's prison, Bartholomew Kuma looked at his comrades outside the cell and couldn't help but cry tears of joy.
"Kuma-boy, Ginny and I came to save you. She already told me what you've done lately to resist the Sorbet Kingdom's new policy. So, how about it, want to join the Freedom Fighters with Ginny and me? Let's fight together for the world's liberation," Ivankov chuckled.
"Ginny, what do you think?", Kuma was deeply moved. When Dragon had first formed the volunteer army, he had already wanted to join. Let alone now, when the Freedom Fighters matched his ideals even more.
"Let's join together," Ginny laughed wildly. She had long known Kuma's thoughts, so even if it was for him, she was willing to do it.
"Then it's settled. We'll join the Freedom Fighters together," Ivankov laughed.
The three slaves who had escaped from Celestial Dragons over a decade ago had once again reunited.
"Purupurupuru!"
But just then, Ivankov's Den Den Mushi rang urgently, as if something extremely urgent was happening on the other end.
"Moshi moshi," Ivankov answered with a relaxed expression, assuming Dragon's team had succeeded in their mission.
["Ivankov, retreat immediately! The World Government has sent reinforcements. They responded unusually fast, we must evacuate within ten minutes,"] Dragon's heavy voice came from the Den Den Mushi, and it was obvious the Den Den Mushi mimicking him was sweating.
"What? The World Government already arrived?", Ivankov's face changed dramatically, 'We are still deep within the Sorbet Kingdom, how can we possibly escape?'
"Dragon, we can't make it to the rendezvous point in time. You take the others and go ahead. I'll stay. We'll keep in touch."
["This…",] Silence came from the other side of the Den Den Mushi.
"Dragon, take as many as you can. I have friends in the Sorbet Kingdom. We know this place well, we'll survive," Ivankov said.
["Alright!"]
Dragon hung up immediately after speaking. Time was tight, and he had to arrange the retreat at once.
"We have to go too. Ten minutes is enough, I know a good hiding spot," Ginny said urgently.
The two quickly rescued Kuma and began fleeing southward from the Sorbet Kingdom.
———
BOOM!
At the southern port of the Sorbet Kingdom, a deafening explosion shook the entire island several times.
No matter where one was in the Sorbet Kingdom, they could see a mushroom cloud rising from the port.
Immediately afterward, ships from the World Government appeared at the port. A tall, imposing middle-aged man, whose appearance somewhat resembled Saint Mars, sheathed his sword and was the first to jump off the ship, a cold expression on his face, "Execute all visible Freedom Fighters members."
"""Yes, Saint Arlin!"""
The CP agents behind him moved out as one, charging into the heart of the Sorbet Kingdom.
"Hmph, a bunch of rats from the sewers dared to touch something that belongs to the Marcus family," Marcus Arlin's eyes were full of rage as he walked slowly into the kingdom.
He was, aside from Saint Mars, the only other member of the Marcus family in the God's Knights.
Unfortunately, due to limited talent, by middle age his strength had only reached quasi-admiral level. Coupled with mediocre administrative ability, it was unlikely he'd ever inherit Saint Mars's position.
Still, in Saint Mars's view, Arlin was more than capable of wiping out a bunch of Freedom Fighters ants.
———
On the other side, Dragon had no intention of clashing head-on with the World Government. Even if he was stronger than Saint Arlin, he dared not take the risk.
For now, his priority was still building strength.
Fortunately, they had escaped quickly, and with Dragon's Devil Fruit ability, he had already led the Freedom Fighters members who could regroup to flee. Only those farther away had been left behind.
Saint Arlin neither knew nor cared. As long as someone displeased him, he killed them all.
The southern part of the Sorbet Kingdom wasn't part of a World Government member nation, so he didn't even need to bear responsibility.
The slaughter Arlin brought continued for three full days and nights.
———
"How could they do this...", In Ginny's hideout, both Ginny and Kuma were in tears, while Ivankov's expression was grim.
They were safe now. Ginny even had the ability to eavesdrop on external Den Den Mushi calls. Just by listening to the reports sent to Saint Arlin daily, they could imagine the scale of the massacre.
"We can't just sit here. The Freedom Fighters's captain has been captured," Kuma said anxiously.
They had just intercepted a call between Arlin and a CP subordinate, learning that the World Government had captured a female Freedom Fighters captain, the only captain on the island aside from Ivankov who hadn't escaped.
Right now, the Freedom Fighters wasn't as powerful as it would be in the future. A captain was already a top-level position.
"Then what can we do? Even if we go, we can't change anything."
Ivankov looked dejected. Of course he wanted to save her. But with Dragon gone, how could they possibly pull it off with just their strength?
"Wait, don't panic. That freak is contacting someone again."
"Who is it this time?"
"Hmm… seems like it's another Celestial Dragon, called Saint Rosse?"
[T/N: During 'Solo Revolution' in Sorbet 'Revolutionary Army' was called 'Freedom Fighters'. So, pardon my mistakes in previous chpaters where I used the term 'Revolutionary Army'.]
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