On the deck of the Angel's Judgment, space suddenly twisted as if seized by an invisible force. A moment later, Eli Winters stepped out of the distortion, emerging like a phantom from the void.
At that very moment, Robin was reclining on a deck chair, basking lazily in the sunlight. She happened to witness the scene in full. Her beautiful eyes lingered on Eli, and a faint smile curved her lips.
"It looks like our captain's little outing was quite profitable," Robin said lightly, her gaze settling on the subtle smile at the corner of Eli's mouth. From that expression alone, she could sense his good mood.
Eli laughed heartily and strode over, dropping himself onto the deck chair beside hers. "Haha, I ran into a few generous benefactors and helped myself to some nice things."
As the two chatted, Big Pan walked out from inside the ship, a fishing rod in his paw. The moment he spotted Eli, the drowsiness on his face vanished, replaced by a bright grin. That grin, however, carried a trace of grievance.
"Boss, next time you go out, can't you take me with you?" Big Pan hurried over, looking at Eli with exaggerated disappointment.
"What nonsense are you talking about? I went to handle business, not to have fun," Eli said, kicking him lightly. "Besides, I brought gifts back for everyone."
The word "gifts" instantly erased Big Pan's sulking. He leaned in shamelessly, grinning from ear to ear. "I knew it. Boss, you're the best."
Eli pushed the panda's chubby face away in disgust, then casually waved his hand. In the next instant, a mountain of treasures appeared on the deck. Gold bars, jewels, books, and weapons piled up in glittering heaps.
All of it had come from the vaults of the Celestial Dragons. None of the items were truly priceless, but taken together, their value was enough to build two or three ships like the Angel's Judgment.
Naturally, Eli had only taken from the more ordinary Celestial Dragons. These people held little real power. To put it bluntly, they lived off their status and did nothing of substance. Taking their wealth meant they had neither the influence nor the ability to redirect their anger toward the civilians exploited by the World Government.
The commotion on deck quickly drew the rest of the crew. Everyone gathered around, happily picking out items they liked.
Aside from the treasure, Eli had also found two Devil Fruits in the vaults. They were not rare, but they were more than sufficient for cultivating subordinates.
He planned to hand them over to Rob Lucci and his group to give them a boost in strength.
While Eli and the others were joyfully dividing the spoils, chaos had erupted on the other side of the world.
Seven or eight Celestial Dragons stormed into the headquarters of the Mary Geoise Guard Force, all reporting the same thing. Their homes had been robbed.
The officer on duty nearly fainted when he heard the reports. Something major had happened. That was the only thought in his mind. He dared not delay, immediately assembling troops and rushing to the affected residences, hoping to find some trace left behind by the intruder.
Even as he went, he knew the odds were slim. Anyone capable of infiltrating the heavily guarded Mary Geoise without a sound was no ordinary thief. Someone like that was unlikely to leave evidence behind.
As expected, after inspecting every vault, they found nothing. The treasure rooms were spotless. Even the doors showed no signs of being opened, as if the thief had appeared and vanished out of thin air.
With no other choice, the incident was reported up the chain of command.
Since the Guard Force ultimately fell under CP0's authority, the report ended up on Saint Shigedel's desk.
The moment he read it, Saint Shigedel flew into a rage. At last, he understood why Eli had sealed the space when they met.
"That bastard," he snarled. "So that's where he vented his anger."
Despite his fury, Saint Shigedel could do nothing about Eli. His anger burned like wildfire, yet he had nowhere to direct it. In the end, he could only suppress it by force.
Taking a deep breath, he reported everything in detail to the Five Elders. The five old men were equally troubled by the news.
"His strength has grown to this level already," one of them said in disbelief.
"And that spatial ability of his is utterly unfair," another snapped. "He comes and goes as he pleases. We have no way to deal with him."
"Even if all five of us acted together, we probably wouldn't be his match now," the third said grimly.
The five exchanged looks, each seeing the same helplessness and anxiety on the others' faces. None of them had imagined Eli Winters would grow this fast, or that his spatial powers would be so impossible to guard against.
And this was without knowing that Eli had already awakened control over time. Had they known, despair might have set in.
After long deliberation, the Five Elders finally decided that, until Lord Im awakened, they would take a hands-off approach toward Eli. Since they could not defeat him, it was better to let him cause trouble elsewhere than to entangle themselves with him.
In the end, the World Government chose only to update the bounties on Eli and his crew, taking no further concrete action.
As for the theft involving the Celestial Dragons, the officer on duty was made the scapegoat and executed. That was deemed sufficient compensation. As for the stolen money, there would be none.
Soon, the latest bounty posters spread across the world.
Eli and his crew received their copies as well, and the ship was filled with lively discussion.
Dream Exploration Adventure Crew
Eli Winters
Position: Captain
Age: 16
Devil Fruit: Paramecia-type Spatial Fruit
Haki: All three types
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 6,000,000,000 Berries
Big Pan
Position: Companion
Age: 10
Devil Fruit: None
Haki: All three types
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 3,390,000,000 Berries
Delros Fiona
Position: Swordsman
Age: 19
Devil Fruit: Paramecia-type String Fruit
Haki: All three types
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 2,080,000,000 Berries
Dotae
Position: Helmsman
Age: 27
Race: Fish-Man
Weapon: Devil Fruit weapon, Ton-Ton Fruit gauntlets
Haki: Observation and Armament
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 1,360,000,000 Berries
Simon
Position: Lookout
Age: 28
Race: Fish-Man
Weapon: Devil Fruit weapon, Bomb-Bomb Fruit trident
Haki: Observation and Armament
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 1,330,000,000 Berries
Delros Filina
Position: Navigator
Age: 19
Devil Fruit: Logia-type Cloud-Cloud Fruit
Haki: Observation and Armament
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 1,140,000,000 Berries
Chiyo Mochizuki
Position: Cook
Age: 18
Devil Fruit: Zoan-type Bird-Bird Fruit, Mythical Model: Three Blue Birds
Haki: Observation and Armament
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 850,000,000 Berries
Vinsmoke Reiju
Position: Doctor
Age: 15
Devil Fruit: Paramecia-type Poison Fruit
Genetic Modification: Awakened
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 760,000,000 Berries
Kli
Position: Musician
Age: 15
Devil Fruit: Paramecia-type Bubble Fruit
Classification: Extremely dangerous
Bounty: 430,000,000 Berries
Nico Robin
Position: Historian
Age: 19
Devil Fruit: Flower-Flower Fruit
Alias: The Devil Child
Bounty: 370,000,000 Berries
Total Bounty: 17,650,000,000 Berries