Early the next morning, at the G-17 Branch military port.
The sea breeze was cool and salty. A well-equipped warship with the G-17 Branch flag had finished resupplying. It sat quietly at the dock, waiting to set sail.
Zephyr stood by the gangway and checked the students' assembly one last time.
Even though they had only stayed here for a day and a night, these rookies were clearly impressed by the wealth and comfort of this steel fortress.
Ain, in particular, kept looking back as she climbed. Her eyes stayed fixed on the comfortable dormitory building in the distance, with its private bathrooms, while she muttered something under her breath.
"What? Lost your soul?"
Zephyr scowled. He reached out, grabbed the back of Ain's collar, and tossed her onto the deck.
"Stop looking! You want to come here and enjoy life? Wait until you graduate. If you don't rank in the top three in overall scores, that kid Aiden won't accept trash!"
"Ah, Instructor! My hair! You messed up my hair!"
Ain scrambled to fix her hair. Blushing, she ducked into the crowd, drawing a burst of laughter from the boys around her.
On the shore, Smoker had two cigars in his mouth and his hands in his pockets. He grinned widely as he watched the scene.
He looked so smug, as if he had built this base himself. He waved and shouted.
"Train hard when you get back! Remember to choose the G-17 Branch after you graduate."
The ship's horn let out a long blast, and the warship slowly left the port.
Aiden stood next to Smoker, watching the warship move farther away. He stretched without caring how he looked and rolled his stiff neck. He looked much more relaxed.
It was time for the base to return to normal operations.
Aiden patted Smoker's shoulder, turned around, and instructed him.
"I'll leave the piled-up paperwork from the last few days to you. You know how it is. I spent all day hosting Instructor Zephyr yesterday, so I need a good rest."
"Huh?!"
The cigars almost fell out of Smoker's mouth. He widened his eyes as he stared at Aiden walking away.
"Hey! Aiden! Was that hosting? You were obviously just eating and drinking the whole time! I'm tired too, you bastard!"
Aiden ignored his protest and walked away.
Late at night.
Smoker cursed while working overtime in his office, facing a mountain of paperwork. Meanwhile, Aiden, the cause of all this, was relaxing on the lighthouse balcony at the highest point of the base.
The view here was excellent. He could see the entire fortress and the dark sea in the distance.
The night wind blew against his coat.
Aiden leaned against the railing, playing with a small glass bottle in his hand. It was the [Youth Elixir] he had bought from the system yesterday.
"Heh heh..."
Under the moonlight, Aiden looked at the small bottle in his hand and showed a silly smile.
He imagined Gion's expression when she received this gift.
If she knew she could stay young forever, would she get so excited that she would hug him right away?
Maybe she would be moved enough to offer a kiss? Or maybe...
"Cough, cough. As long as I can see Gion show a bit of a girly side, these 100,000 points were well spent..."
The more Aiden thought about it, the happier he got. His smile grew wider, and he even let out a few foolish laughs.
However, just as he was lost in his thoughts,
Buzz—
He suddenly sensed a clear wave of Observation Haki sweeping over from the dark sea in the distance.
"Who is it?!"
Aiden's silly smile froze on his face.
A second later, his expression hardened.
Someone dared to spy on him at a time like this?
If someone saw how foolish he looked just now...
"No matter which bastard it is... I have to silence them!"
This humiliating moment absolutely could not be leaked!
Zzzt—
Blue-white lightning arcs jumped across his body.
The next second, Aiden turned into lightning and shot into the night. With a low rumble of thunder, he vanished from his spot.
A few nautical miles away.
An ordinary merchant ship with no markings bobbed in the dark waves.
On the deck, a tall figure in a dark green cloak stood at the bow. His hood covered most of his face, revealing only a firm jaw and a distinct red diamond-patterned tattoo.
Monkey D. Dragon.
Right now, he was looking at the distant lights. He had released his Observation Haki for only a few seconds and was waiting for a response.
In his mind, the other party might probe back carefully or send someone to check.
However.
BOOM!
Without any warning, a bolt of lightning crashed down from the sky and struck the deck railing right next to him.
The lightning lit the deck for an instant.
The current faded, and Aiden's figure appeared. He stood with one foot on the scorched railing, looking down at Dragon. His face was serious, and the lightning around him crackled as if he could strike again at any moment.
His eyes were sharp, but it did not feel like he was facing an enemy. It felt more like he had been caught doing something embarrassing and wanted to silence the witness.
Dragon's expression tightened.
"Wandering around outside a Marine base in the middle of the night doesn't seem like something a former Marine who left the MARINE should be doing."
After seeing who it was, Aiden held back the urge to silence him. In the moonlight, he looked calmly at the man in front of him and directly exposed his identity.
"What, is the leader of the Revolutionary Army so free right now that you have time to come here in the middle of the night?"
Hearing this, Dragon looked surprised.
How was that possible?
The Revolutionary Army was still lying low. Besides the core executives, almost no one in the outside world knew his true identity, let alone the army's specific movements.
Yet this young Marine Rear Admiral in front of him knew about both his past and his current identity?
"Forgive the intrusion, Reaper."
Dragon took a deep breath and forced himself to settle down.
"It seems the outside world still underestimates you."
"Since you know who I am, I won't beat around the bush."
"I came to repay a favor," Dragon said.
"A favor?" Aiden raised an eyebrow.
Dragon nodded.
"Back in the Blacksteel Empire, you looked the other way during the weapon shipment incident. You could even say you allowed Ginny and Kuma to take action, which is how they succeeded."
"That incident caused you to take the blame from Doflamingo."
Dragon continued.
'According to our latest information, Doflamingo hates you for this. He spent a huge amount of money to hire the mercenaries Bakkin and Weevil.'
"That mother and son are dangerous. They took on the mission to destroy the routes controlled by the G-17 Branch and should make their move in the next couple of days. I came today to help you deal with this trouble, and in doing so..."
Dragon stopped and waited for Aiden's answer.
Aiden stared at him for a moment.
Then the corner of his mouth twitched.
"Um... Mr. Dragon."
Aiden pulled out the notebook he had taken from Miss Bakkin and tossed it over.
Dragon caught it without thinking and frowned. "This is?"
Aiden pointed at the notebook.
"Open it and take a look."
Dragon opened the notebook.
He flipped through it until he reached the last page. On it was Joker's signature and a record of a 100 million Berries deposit.
"This..."
Dragon froze.
"If you're talking about them, they became fish food last night."
Dragon said nothing.
Only the sound of the waves hitting the hull remained.
He held the bloodstained notebook and stared at the page for a long moment.
He had rushed over to warn Aiden, ready to help him and repay a favor.
But the people he had come to warn him about were already dead.
For a moment, even Dragon did not know what to say.
Then he closed the notebook and looked at Aiden again.
Aiden had defeated Golden Lion. He had killed Weevil before the mission even began. He also knew too much about the Revolutionary Army and Dragon's identity.
More importantly, even though Aiden was a Marine, he did not treat the Revolutionary Army as an enemy.
Someone like this was exactly the kind of ally the Revolutionary Army needed right now.
"Aiden."
Dragon stepped forward.
"You called me a former Marine who betrayed the organization."
"Do you know why I chose to leave that justice behind and take this path against the World Government?"
Aiden did not answer right away.
Of course he knew the reason.
The God Valley Incident, the Celestial Dragons' hunting games, and the dark truth behind the World Government. For someone who knew the original work, these were no secrets.
But he could not say that directly.
So Aiden only nodded.
"I've heard a little about what happened at God Valley."
Dragon stared at him.
Then his face became more serious.
"It seems the outside world still underestimates you. You even know about the history the World Government erased."
"Since you know about God Valley, you should understand why I left."
"That battle showed me what this world really is."
"The Marines' so-called justice is just a cover for the Celestial Dragons' privileges. As long as the Celestial Dragons control the World Government, there will never be true freedom on this sea."
"Patching things up in this rotten system won't save the world."
Dragon reached out his hand.
"Aiden, you are different from those stubborn Marines. You have strength, and you understand what is really happening."
"Join us. Let's work together to..."
"Stop."
Aiden raised his hand and cut him off.
He looked at Dragon and almost laughed.
A great cause?
Ideals?
Aiden thought of what he knew would happen in the future.
Kuma would be turned into a weapon without a mind, then reduced to a mount for the Celestial Dragons.
Ginny would be taken by the Celestial Dragons, tortured, and only released after falling ill.
Ivankov would be locked in Impel Down for years.
An organization that could not even protect its core members kept talking about saving the whole world.
To Aiden, that was too weak.
He did not say any of that.
He only dropped his smile and stood up.
"Mr. Dragon, your ideal is great, and I admire your courage."
"But have you thought about what a revolution means on this sea?"
Aiden looked past Dragon at the dark sea.
"No matter how many civilians you gather or how many countries you free, you still have to gamble with their lives."
"The path you want to take is built on sacrifice and an uncertain future."
"But my path is different."
Aiden clenched his fist, and faint lightning cracked between his knuckles.
"I will become the strongest on this sea."
"When I become so strong that everyone has to shut up and listen to me..."
Aiden looked back at Dragon.
"That will be true order."
"Our paths are not the same."
Aiden continued.
"However, if the Revolutionary Army needs anything in the future, whether it's intelligence or weapons, as long as the money is right, the doors to G-17 are always open."
"As for anything else, forget about it."
After saying that, Aiden vanished in a flash of lightning.
Dragon was left standing alone at the bow.
He still held the notebook in his hand, staring in the direction Aiden had disappeared.
He had thought Aiden was just a Marine who acted like a warlord for profit, or someone who only cared about himself.
But he was wrong.
Aiden did not want to overthrow the world.
He wanted to stand above it.
He wanted enough strength to force even the World Government to obey.
"He wants to become the strongest man through his own power?"
Dragon lowered the brim of his hat.
"That path may be even harder than a revolution."
...
Aiden reappeared by the railing. The sea breeze flapped his coat.
He looked at the dark sea.
Whether it was the Marines' cover-ups or the Revolutionary Army's dream, neither was the answer he wanted.
In this world where the strong ruled over the weak, only the person standing at the top had the right to make the rules.
If he wanted to stop those tragedies from happening again, and if he wanted to live freely in this rotten world, the only way was to become the strongest
To Be Continued
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