In an instant, every head in the room turned. Even Moriah's expression shifted drastically; he had deliberately ignored Grimm, yet the fire had still turned to burn him.
All eyes in the tavern were now fixed squarely on Moriah.
After his crew was wiped out in his battle against Kaido, Moriah's bounty had actually risen to 320,000,000 Berries. At least on this island, no one carried a higher price on their head.
Nor did anyone dare mock him for his defeat — they didn't even have the courage to think about challenging Kaido, let alone actually doing it.
Finally, a pirate wearing a bandana could stand it no longer. He cocked a musket nearly 1.2 meters long and shouted, "Let's do this! Take Moriah's head, and we get to join an Emperor's crew! Who knows when we'll ever get a chance like this again!"
He charged forward, squinting through the sight and aiming straight at Moriah. Immediately after him came a second, then a third, all drawing their weapons and screaming as they rushed to attack.
"Exactly! This is our one chance to serve under a Four Emperor!"
"Take him down and join Grimm — then nothing in the New World will be able to stop us!"
It was exactly as Crocodile would say in the future: "Soldiers of that quality can be replaced whenever you want."
If there were idiots like this in the New World, it was no surprise they were everywhere in Paradise.
"You insolent fools! Flying Bats!"
Moriah roared. With a wave of his hand, the shadows covering the ground suddenly dissolved into swarms of bats that flew up to bite and tear at the pirates rushing toward him.
Suddenly, one pirate wielding a long sword slashed through the air, cutting down every single bat in a flurry of steel. He closed in on Moriah with swift, agile movements.
"Your head is mine, Moriah!"
"You're nothing but a parasite clinging to others! Don't get arrogant!" Moriah shrieked in his distinctive, rasping voice.
He pulled a massive pair of scissors from behind his back and clashed them against the man's weapon.
They grappled for nearly two seconds. Moriah gritted his teeth and forced his opponent back, then swung his free hand hard.
The shadows on the ground gathered instantly into a long, sharp spear, which pierced straight through the man's torso.
"Shadow Spear!"
Grimm watched the fight while sipping his drink. The longer he observed, the clearer one thing became: Moriah was far stronger now than he had been ten years ago.
Normally, a person's power grows with age, peaking between forty‑five and fifty‑five, then slowly declining — though old monsters like Garp were exceptions.
Aside from the aging Whitebeard, others like Kaido, Charlotte Linlin, Doflamingo, and Mihawk were constantly improving, destined to reach their absolute prime ten years from now.
Moriah was only around thirty‑five now. In ten years he would be about forty‑five — far from his peak — yet back then he had been incredibly weak.
It could only be said that after his defeat by Kaido, he had grown lazy… and turned into a waste of a man.
But now? He might have been a loser, but he was certainly not useless. He was displaying power worthy of his title: Hero of the West Sea.
After more than half an hour of fighting, most of the tavern had been reduced to rubble.
Moriah finally defeated everyone else, though he himself was in terrible shape. He clutched his swollen stomach; he had taken several direct hits earlier.
After all, there were pirates here with bounties exceeding 100 million Berries. Facing so many at once had put immense pressure on him.
"Damn it…"
Moriah turned with difficulty toward Grimm. "So this is what it means to be a Four Emperor…"
Because of what Kaido had done to him, and now because of Grimm's inexplicable behavior, Moriah now hated all the Emperors with a passion.
But Grimm paid no attention to his hostility and simply smiled. "My apologies. I was just curious… exactly how strong you really are now. Shall I heal your wounds…?"
"Scum!!"
Moriah pressed his right hand to his injury and used his left to control his shadow, shaping it into another spear which he thrust straight at Grimm.
"Shadow Spear!"
The massive, pitch‑black lance tore through the air with a sharp whistling sound — but it carried no Armament Haki at all.
"Heh…"
Grimm chuckled, turned into a streak of golden light, and leaped backward, letting the spear pass harmlessly by.
"Don't run away!"
Moriah roared and drove the shadow forward relentlessly.
Where this sudden confidence came from, no one knew — but from his aura alone, you would think he actually believed he could kill Grimm.
The shadow spear pierced through the bar counter and shattered row after row of bottles, spilling liquor everywhere.
Moriah kept attacking; Grimm kept dodging… without striking back even once.
"Damn it! Why won't you fight back?! Do you look down on me too?!" Moriah screamed.
Grimm ignored him, instead speaking casually to someone unseen.
"Ghost… Ghost… are you ready? Let's test the firepower. Target right in front of us — don't aim for the head, just hit that big belly of his."
"Caitlyn received. I absolutely love long‑range sniping!" came a playful woman's voice in reply.
The instant the words ended —
"Biu!"
A sharp sound cut through the air. Moriah's pupils shrank violently. "Where?!"
Splat!
The shot hit him squarely in the right side of the waist.
Grimm stopped moving. He looked calmly at the bleeding hole in Moriah's body and spoke. "Well? Can't stand up anymore?"
"Damn it…"
Moriah cursed and tried to rise, but a wave of weakness washed over him. As a Devil Fruit user, he knew this feeling all too well.
"It… it's Sea‑Prism Stone!"
He had guessed it already: the bullet that came out of nowhere was made of that very material.
"13mm Armor‑Piercing Explosive Sniper Round," Grimm explained. He looked up at the sky and snapped his fingers, signaling that it was enough — no need for further shots.
"No ability user can remain standing after taking a hit from that. You have the honor of being the very first one to test it."
Am I going to die here?
Moriah was filled with bitterness and unwillingness. He swore vengeance against Kaido… but he never imagined he would run into another Emperor before even leaving the New World.
He also realized he had acted impulsively. The other man had just offered to heal him…
Grimm turned back to the bar and poured himself another drink. "A shame… you knocked over so much good wine."
"Why… why haven't you killed me?" Moriah asked. He could see the killing intent in Grimm's eyes had completely vanished.
Grimm hadn't planned to say much more. But thinking about Moriah's fate in the future, he wondered if he should say something — perhaps change the course of this man's life. It would be interesting, wouldn't it?
"When you walk down a road… do you ever notice the ants beneath your feet?" Grimm asked with a malicious grin.
"Huh?" Moriah frowned. After thinking for a moment, his face twisted with rage. "Are you saying… I'm nothing but an ant to you?!"
An ant… Something you could crush whenever you felt like it… or just ignore and walk past.
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