When Iceberg arrived at the outer city of Seven Rivers City, the sight before him made his heart sink. The massive walls that had once withstood countless violent tsunamis were now battered and broken. Cracks spiderwebbed across the stone, and gaping breaches scarred the surface, as if a monstrous beast had torn into them with savage force.
Fortunately, the dense rain of artillery shells had not struck the residential districts inside the city. Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
Standing below the walls, Iceberg's expression darkened like the sky before a storm. His fists clenched tightly. He understood all too well that this was a warning from the World Government, a naked threat. If he failed to meet their demands today, the next wave of shells would fall without mercy upon the helpless, innocent citizens. The thought filled him with profound anger and a crushing sense of powerlessness.
Taking a deep breath, Iceberg forced himself to calm down. Then he climbed the city wall with firm, hurried steps. Every stride felt like walking on blades, heavy and painful, yet there was no hesitation in him at all.
The instant Iceberg's figure appeared atop the wall, Spandine, who had been watching closely, flashed a venomous glint in his eyes. The man's previously controlled expression twisted with seething hatred, and a chilling aura radiated from him. He raised a hand toward the officer beside him, signaling that it was time to act.
Without delay, the officer lifted a prepared loudspeaker and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Iceberg, mayor of Seven Rivers City! You dared to conspire with the World Government's wanted criminal Eli Winters and his accomplices to openly murder our noble government officials! Do you truly think you can escape the World Government's judgment after committing such heinous crimes?"
At this moment, Iceberg instead grew calm. He inhaled deeply and shouted back, "This was done by Eli Winters and his people. It has nothing to do with me."
This was a strategy he and Eli had discussed beforehand. They would place all responsibility on Eli, allowing Iceberg to distance himself from the incident. After all, Eli feared no pursuit from the World Government.
Hearing Iceberg's words, Spandine nearly lost control of the murderous intent surging within him. His fists tightened, veins bulging on his forehead, eyes locked onto Iceberg as if he might order the bombardment of Seven Rivers City at any second. In the end, reason barely restrained him.
He shot a cold glance at the officer beside him, who shuddered and quickly shouted again, "Whether your words are true or not, we will investigate thoroughly. But for now, you will come with us to headquarters for a full investigation!"
Faced with such uncompromising force, Iceberg's expression turned grim. He knew the worst outcome had finally arrived.
Originally, he had planned to push all responsibility onto Eli and then use various means to bring Seven Rivers City into cooperation with the World Government. In that case, the World Government would have no reason to move against the city.
As the largest and most advanced shipbuilding city in the world, Seven Rivers City was indispensable. Every year, the World Government relied on it for the construction and maintenance of vast numbers of ships. Successfully winning over Seven Rivers City would have been a tremendous gain. But Spandine clearly had no intention of letting him go.
Iceberg stood still, brows tightly furrowed, his heart in turmoil.
He did not fear death. If it were only a matter of his own life, he might have made his choice long ago. But if he were captured, his teacher and junior brother would never stand by. They would do everything possible to rescue him, placing themselves in grave danger.
With that thought, Iceberg's gaze hardened, as though he had reached a decision. He straightened his back and shouted in a loud, resolute voice, "Though those World Government officials were not killed by my hand, they did die because of Seven Rivers City. As the mayor of this city, I bear an inescapable responsibility. Today, I am willing to atone with my life!"
Before the words even finished echoing, Iceberg swiftly drew a finely crafted pistol from his waist. Without hesitation, he pressed the barrel to his temple, finger tightening on the trigger.
At that critical instant, Spandine's face changed dramatically. Panic surged as he shouted, "Stop him!"
Almost simultaneously, a figure moved like a phantom. Rulthius let out a light chuckle. "He wants to die? Not that easy."
Before his words fully faded, Rulthius vanished from his spot. In the blink of an eye, he appeared before Iceberg, striking with lightning speed. His hand precisely pinned down Iceberg's finger on the trigger, shattering the suicide attempt.
"You…" Iceberg cried out in shock, but before he could react further, Rulthius had already seized him and brought him aboard Spandine's warship.
Facing one of the men he believed responsible for his son's death, Spandine wanted nothing more than to kill Iceberg on the spot. But Iceberg still had value. Suppressing his fury, Spandine spoke coldly, "Hand over the Pluton blueprints, and I will spare your life."
Iceberg took a long moment to recover from the shock. Then Spandine's icy words pierced his ears, sending a chill through his heart. Even so, he forced himself to remain calm and replied, "My lord, I have truly never heard of the Pluton blueprints you speak of."
"Hmph." Spandine sneered, a vicious smile spreading across his face. "Deny it if you wish. I have plenty of ways to make you talk. I will arrest everyone connected to you. By then, even if you want to hand them over, it will be too late."
Iceberg's heart clenched. He had not expected such ruthless cruelty, threatening his loved ones without hesitation. If he knew this man was Spandam's father, perhaps he would not have been so surprised.
Cornered, Iceberg could only respond helplessly, "My lord, I truly know nothing of such an item. If it exists, perhaps my teacher might know, but he has already left with Eli Winters and the others."
Spandine's hawk-like eyes stared at Iceberg as if to strip him bare. Suddenly, a sinister, satisfied smile appeared. "Keep being stubborn. It makes no difference to me. Let me think. Ah yes, you still have a junior brother, don't you? Once I capture him, we'll see how long you can keep this up. Men, take him away and teach him a small lesson. Just don't kill him."
Iceberg's face filled with panic as he shouted desperately, "My lord, I truly know nothing! Even if you capture my junior brother, it will change nothing!" His pleas fell on deaf ears.
In truth, Spandine no longer cared where the legendary Pluton blueprints were. Revenge was the only thing on his mind. Asking Iceberg about the blueprints was merely a pretense, meant to placate the CP0 members and prevent them from interfering with his plans.
Turning to Rulthius, Spandine said coldly, "Go and bring back the one called Franky."
Rulthius nodded. Since this involved a task personally assigned by Saint Skardell, he was willing to comply.
Elsewhere, more than two hours after Eli Winters and his group left Seven Rivers City.
"Boss, the Angel's Judgment is incredible!" Big Pan said excitedly, sitting comfortably on a custom-built fishing platform. It was perfectly designed, comfortable to sit on, convenient for fishing, with catches either placed directly into a massive aquarium or sent straight to the kitchen. Absolute perfection.
"Haha, not bad, right?" Old Tom said proudly beside him.
"Absolutely. Your craftsmanship is unmatched," Eli said from the other side, sipping fruit juice brought by Chiyo.
As the three fished leisurely, the ship's loudspeaker suddenly sounded.
"Captain, a small boat is approaching rapidly from the west," the lookout, Simon, reported.
"Oh? Simon, can you tell who it is?" Big Pan called out.
"I don't recognize him, but he's wearing a uniform. Looks like someone from Judiciary Island," Simon replied.
"Let's go take a look," Eli said.
Big Pan immediately set down his rod and ran to the western side of the Angel's Judgment.
Tom frowned with concern. "Eli, do you think something happened back in Seven Rivers City?"
"It's fine. I left a safeguard on Iceberg. He'll be alright. I'll go see what's going on," Eli said reassuringly.
Tom nodded, though the worry on his face remained.
When Eli reached the western side of the ship, the speedboat Simon mentioned had already closed to within a hundred meters. It stopped about ten meters away. A man stood up and shouted, "Are you the Sky Sovereign, Eli Winters?"
"I am."
"My lord ordered me to deliver this to you," the man said, pulling out a Den Den Mushi from a box and tossing it over. "He wishes to speak with you."
Eli caught it one-handed and saw it was already connected. The Den Den Mushi displayed a square face with curly hair, dark and gloomy.
"Heh, Eli Winters," a voice cold as ice came through.
Eli frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "And you are?"
"You killed my son. Do you know who I am now?" Spandine snarled.
"Oh, it's you," Eli said casually. "Go on. What do you want?"
Eli's indifference stabbed deeply into Spandine. He nearly lost control. "You damned animal! How dare you! Spandam was my only son!"
"Oh. And?" Eli replied lazily.
"Bastard! If you have any sense, crawl to me and repent, or I'll make you regret it!" Spandine roared.
"Oh."
On the other end, Spandine was shaking with rage, eyes blazing as if ready to erupt.
In a low growl, he said, "Eli Winters, don't be smug. Iceberg is in my hands now, and my warships have reached Seven Rivers City. One order from me, and the city becomes rubble. You call yourself righteous. I wonder how much the lives of an entire city mean to you."
Hearing that Iceberg had been captured and that Seven Rivers City faced destruction, Tom grew anxious and was about to speak. Big Pan stopped him with a shake of his head, signaling him to trust Eli.
"Heh, you seem very confident," Eli said calmly. "Since you want to see me so badly, it would be rude not to go."
"Then I'll be waiting," Spandine said darkly, and cut the call.
As the Den Den Mushi went silent, Tom immediately asked, "Eli, what do we do now? Will Iceberg be alright?"
"He'll be fine. I'll go get him back first. You bring the Angel's Judgment back to Seven Rivers City," Eli replied evenly.
Those who knew Eli well understood. This time, he was truly angry. People like Spandine, who had no bottom line, were exactly the kind Eli despised most.
Eli wasted no time. Though he had left a spatial mark on Iceberg and knew his life was not in danger, rescuing him sooner was better.
Eli's figure blurred, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished from the Angel's Judgment.
When he appeared again, he was in a damp, dark room.
The two men currently whipping Iceberg froze in shock at Eli's sudden appearance. Before they could shout or question him, darkness swallowed their consciousness. Their bodies slowly collapsed under an unseen force.
Looking at Iceberg, battered and bloodied, Eli sighed softly.
"You came," Iceberg said weakly, surprised.
"If I hadn't, you'd probably be dead," Eli replied dryly.
Iceberg coughed awkwardly and said nothing.
Eli checked his condition, frowning slightly. The injuries were severe. Without treatment, there would likely be lasting damage.
"Bit of a mess, huh?" Eli said, giving Iceberg a look before feeding him a healing pill worth one hundred Prosperity Points.
After taking it, Iceberg's complexion improved significantly, though he was far from fully recovered and would need time to rest.
Eli had originally planned to deal with Spandine while rescuing Iceberg, but for now, getting Iceberg out safely was the priority.
Recovering some strength, Iceberg said, "Can you check whether my junior brother has been captured? They planned to use him to threaten me into handing over the Pluton blueprints."
Eli nodded and extended his senses. Franky was nowhere on the ship, nor was Spandine.
"Your junior brother isn't here. He hasn't been captured. I'll take you back to the Angel's Judgment first," Eli said.
Hearing that Franky was safe, Iceberg finally relaxed. It seemed Franky had followed his instructions.
Eli did not delay. He placed a hand on Iceberg's shoulder. Their bodies blurred and vanished from the room in an instant.