"Angelina!"
"Look at the collars around our necks!"
"They're only going to remove them on the day of the banquet! Do you understand what that means?!"
Hancock's voice echoed through the quiet slave quarters, startling the girls around her.
Angelina instinctively reached for the iron collar locked around her neck, her expression turning pale.
"What… what does it mean…?"
Hancock clenched her fists.
"It means they no longer fear us escaping!"
"It means they've already decided our fate!"
"They've already priced our lives!"
Her words struck Angelina like a hammer.
"But… but what can we possibly do…?"
Angelina forced a smile, but it crumbled almost immediately.
Hancock had seen through her from the very beginning.
Angelina had never truly believed she could repay Saint Caslot.
She simply wanted to survive.
She wanted to perform well during the banquet, hoping Saint Caslot might suddenly show mercy and spare their lives.
Deep down…
She understood everything.
She knew this entire place was built on lies.
She had suspected the truth long ago, yet she desperately refused to accept it.
Instead, she clung to the empty promises made by the nuns and the false kindness displayed by the so-called Saint Caslot.
After all…
What could a powerless girl accomplish inside an estate guarded by countless World Government guards?
Nothing.
She couldn't do anything.
"Angelina!"
"Pull yourself together!"
Hancock grabbed both of Angelina's shoulders and looked directly into her eyes.
"We still have a chance!"
Angelina's trembling eyes widened.
"A… chance?"
Hancock nodded firmly.
"Yes!"
"We're leaving together!"
"A few hours before the banquet begins, Saint Caslot personally unlocks every performer's slave collar with a special key."
"If we memorize that key, we can steal it."
"There are only two possibilities."
"He either carries the key on his person…"
"…or he stores it somewhere inside his mansion."
"Tomorrow we'll confirm which one it is."
"I've already learned that every guest attending the banquet is a Celestial Dragon."
"That means nearly every guard inside the estate will be focused on protecting the banquet hall."
"If we can obtain that key…"
"Then we'll escape while everyone's attention is elsewhere!"
For the past four months, Hancock had never once given up.
She had quietly observed everything.
Every patrol.
Every shift change.
Every servant's route.
Every habit of Saint Caslot.
Again and again, she refined countless escape plans.
Now…
The opportunity she had waited for was finally approaching.
"But… security is still too tight…"
Angelina lowered her head helplessly.
Every previous escape attempt had ended in failure because the estate was heavily defended.
None of them were even sixteen years old.
Against trained guards…
They stood no chance.
Hancock smiled confidently.
"That's why we'll become Celestial Dragons."
Angelina froze.
"What…?"
"We'll steal Celestial Dragon clothing."
"As long as we're dressed like them, nobody will dare question us."
"No one in Mary Geoise would ever suspect a Celestial Dragon."
The more Hancock explained her plan, the brighter her eyes became.
During these four months, she had reached one undeniable conclusion.
Within the Holy Land, the authority of the Celestial Dragons was absolute.
If that authority could imprison them…
Then it could also become the key to their freedom.
The only remaining obstacle…
Was obtaining the key that unlocked the slave collars.
"Excuse me…"
A hoarse voice suddenly drifted over the stone wall.
"Who's there?!"
Hancock instantly moved in front of Angelina, her body tensing as she prepared to fight.
She had become so immersed in explaining the plan that she had unknowingly raised her voice.
"Don't be nervous."
"I'm just another slave… chained up like all of you."
The rough voice sounded again.
Moments later, a blond man with filthy, tangled hair slowly climbed over the wall.
His ragged clothes were stained with dirt.
The iron slave collar around his neck proved his identity immediately.
He was a slave.
Just like them.
"I heard everything."
"Your plan is excellent."
"If you're escaping…"
"Take me with you."
"I can help."
The blond man spoke without hesitation.
He seemed completely certain Hancock would not reject him.
Hancock silently observed him.
For a brief moment, she considered eliminating him to protect their secret.
But killing him would only attract unnecessary attention.
Besides…
An additional helper might improve their chances.
"Fine."
"What is your name?"
The blond man answered without hesitation.
"Tesoro."
…
The day before the banquet.
"I've confirmed everything."
"The key never leaves Saint Caslot's possession."
Hancock spread out a rough map she had secretly drawn during the past several months.
"Angelina will approach Saint Caslot during the performance."
"She'll steal the key."
"Halfway through the banquet, we'll regroup and escape together."
"We've also recruited another ally."
"He'll obtain a guard's armor and provide support outside the estate."
Hancock carefully explained every detail of the operation to her two younger sisters.
Although the plan was incredibly dangerous…
They had no alternative.
"Understood, Sister… but…"
Marigold and Sandersonia still looked uneasy.
"No excuses."
Hancock's gaze was unwavering.
"There isn't time to hesitate."
"These four months of comfortable treatment…"
"They were never acts of kindness."
"They were meant to weaken our spirits."
"To make us forget we're warriors."
"And once we've become obedient…"
"The torture will begin."
"There has never been such a thing as a free meal."
Her words instantly awakened the determination inside her sisters.
"When everything is finished…"
"We'll regroup beside the fountain in front of Saint Caslot's mansion."
"You two will keep watch while Angelina and I complete our tasks."
"Marigold."
"Sandersonia."
"We are daughters of Amazon Lily."
"We are Kuja warriors!"
Her voice carried absolute conviction.
Everyone had a clear responsibility.
Hancock would steal the Celestial Dragon clothing.
Angelina would steal the key.
Marigold and Sandersonia would assist Hancock.
Tesoro would secure armor from a guard and prepare their escape route.
Every role was essential.
Not a single mistake could be allowed.
"Yes, Sister!"
The operation…
Had officially begun.
Night fell.
Saint Caslot's mansion.
Unlike its usual cold silence, the luxurious estate was overflowing with laughter.
Celestial Dragons from every district of the Holy Land of Mary Geoise had gathered together.
Every one of them shared the same twisted hobby as Saint Caslot.
After all…
For people who possessed everything in the world…
Finding new forms of entertainment was surprisingly difficult.
"Saint Caslot."
"Have you prepared any exceptional dancers for tonight?"
One Celestial Dragon casually raised his wine glass while smiling.
This wasn't his first time attending one of Saint Caslot's banquets.
Truthfully…
Even among the Celestial Dragons, Saint Caslot was infamous for inventing disturbingly cruel games.
"Hahaha."
"As always…"
"I won't disappoint you."
Saint Caslot gently swirled the wine inside his crystal glass before laughing proudly.
Even he had begun looking forward to tonight's performance.
"Hahaha!"
"You truly are an artist, Saint Caslot."
The other Celestial Dragon laughed in admiration.
"Compared to your imagination…"
"Our little games are unbearably dull."
Luxurious chandeliers illuminated the magnificent banquet hall.
Crystal glasses collided.
Fine wine overflowed.
The grand banquet officially began.
Every Celestial Dragon present wore clothing embroidered with gold, jewels, and precious fabrics.
Their extravagant appearance radiated wealth.
Yet beneath all those treasures…
Most of them resembled bloated swine draped in priceless ornaments.
Indeed…
Obesity was remarkably common among the Celestial Dragons, whose lives revolved around endless indulgence and absolute privilege.
Saint Caslot slowly stood from his seat.
"Well then."
"Let's move on to the main attraction."
He had little interest in meaningless conversation.
Neither did the other Celestial Dragons.
Socializing had never been the purpose of tonight's gathering.
They had come for amusement.
Because in their eyes…
The suffering of slaves was merely another form of entertainment.
"Begin the music."
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