At that moment, chaotic footsteps sounded from the direction of the dock.
A large number of royal guards surged toward the harbor like a tide.
At least three hundred fully armed soldiers quickly formed ranks, aiming their rifles and cannons at the Celestial Dragon's Giant Battleship.
A middle-aged man wearing a magnificent Royal Robe stepped forward from the crowd, his eyes filled with shock, anger, and terror.
King Sinatu—the ruler of this country—had nearly fallen from his throne upon receiving the emergency report of "Celestial Dragon under attack."
He had practically scrambled to gather all the troops he could mobilize, praying desperately that nothing serious had happened.
"Audacious pirate! Do you know what crime you have committed?!"
"Speak—where is Saint Luo?!" the king demanded sternly.
Raiver Sky casually raised his right hand. Under the control of gravity, the head that had rolled into the corner of the deck slowly floated up, traced a parabolic arc, and landed precisely in front of the king's feet.
The head rolled a few times before coming to a stop beside the king's luxurious leather boots.
The eyes, wide with terror, were staring directly at him.
"Looking for him? Here—" Raiver Sky smiled faintly.
King Sinatu stared at the head on the ground, his mind going completely blank.
The head of a World Noble, a descendant of the gods, Saint Luo, was lying at his feet.
Cold sweat instantly soaked through his Royal Robe.
"D-damn it!"
He staggered back a step, raising a trembling hand to point at Raiver Sky, his finger shaking like a withered leaf in the wind:
"You dare... you dare to kill Saint Luo!!"
It's over.
The mere fact that a Celestial Dragon had died within his country's borders was enough for the World Government to permanently remove the Kingdom of Sinatu from the list of Member States.
"Bastard! How dare this pirate harm Saint Luo..."
The guard captain supported the faltering king, his teeth grinding audibly.
He had been patrolling the palace earlier that day but had inexplicably lost consciousness. When he awoke, the Celestial Dragon was already missing.
He had clung to a sliver of hope—even if kidnapped, surely no one in this world would actually dare to kill a Celestial Dragon.
Who would have thought...
"All troops, hear my command—"
The king roared hoarsely:
"Capture this fiend! We may yet atone for our sins!"
He had made a decision that went against his ancestors. If they could capture the perpetrator and hand him over to the World Government, they might still have a chance at survival.
Raiver Sky spoke coldly:
"You fear the Celestial Dragons, you fear the World Government, but do you not fear me?"
Before his words faded, a red glint flashed in his eyes.
Space Severance!
Thump! Thump!
Two soft sounds rang out almost simultaneously.
King Sinatu and the guard captain froze in place, their faces still holding the expressions from the previous second.
Then, their heads slowly slid off and rolled to the ground, lining up beside Saint Luo's.
The remaining guards stared blankly at the three heads on the ground, watching as the two headless bodies slowly collapsed.
No one screamed, because extreme fear had seized everyone by the throat.
They finally understood.
The Celestial Dragons were terrifying, the World Government was terrifying, but the man before them was even more terrifying!
"Hiss—" Jiexi and Jieming gasped sharply. Was this their boss's true power?
Without lifting a finger, merely through a glance, he could kill from a hundred meters away.
Having been slaves for so long, they'd never had the chance to read newspapers and naturally didn't know Raiver Sky's Bounty had long surpassed 2.5 billion Berries.
They were even more unaware that he was the youngest Officer of the Rocks Pirates.
All they knew was that the "boss" they were following was likely far more terrifying than they had imagined.
"Jieming, Jiexi, let's go."
Seeing the royal guards utterly terrified and broken, Raiver Sky paid them no further mind.
With a slight thought, he activated the Directional Void Stream.
The airflow at the ship's stern began to rotate, forming an invisible propulsive force that pushed the luxurious Giant Battleship forward, sailing it away from the port.
On the deck.
"Come here."
Raiver Sky's tone was icy as his gaze swept toward the two Celestial Dragons cowering in the corner.
Saint Donquixote and Saint Shaman trembled violently, scrambling and crawling on all fours to prostrate themselves at Raiver Sky's feet.
Having witnessed their father beheaded and King Sinatu killed with a single glance, what arrogance of the World Nobles remained in them now?
"Jieming, Jiexi—"
Raiver Sky pointed at the kneeling Celestial Dragons:
"Ride them."
The brothers were stunned for a moment before understanding their boss's meaning.
"Yes, boss!"
Jieming was the first to climb onto Saint Shaman's back; the woman, with her hands and feet severed, could only barely support herself with her stumps and body.
Jiexi mounted the obese back of Saint Donquixote.
The two Celestial Dragons began crawling on the deck like dogs, each movement accompanied by humiliated whimpers.
But they dared not resist.
Compared to humiliation, their lives were more important.
As Jiexi rode on Donquixote's back,
He remembered how this very fat man had once ridden on him, whipping him to crawl for amusement.
Now with their roles reversed, Jiexi felt little satisfaction, only a cold, detached calm.
…
Just one hour earlier, at the Marine Headquarters, in the Fleet Admiral's office.
Kong received an urgent communication from the Intelligence Division:
"Fleet Admiral Kong! Something terrible has happened!
Rocks Pirates Officer Raiver Sky has appeared in the Sinatu Kingdom, and his target... is likely the Celestial Dragons!!"
"What?!"
Kong shot to his feet and immediately issued orders:
"Notify the nearest G-3 Branch at once! Full speed to reinforce Sinatu!"
He practically roared the command.
After relaying the instructions, he promptly dialed the Den Den Mushi of Admiral Qiongqi:
"Kleist! Emergency! Raiver Sky has appeared in Sinatu, targeting Celestial Dragons.
Head there at maximum speed immediately! The safety of the Celestial Dragons cannot be compromised!"
He chose Admiral Qiongqi precisely because his Devil Fruit Ability granted him flight capabilities, making him the most mobile combatant in the Marines.
From Headquarters to Sinatu, flying at top speed would take at most two hours.
On the other end, Admiral Qiongqi hung up, grumbling, "These Celestial Dragons, always causing trouble for this old man!"
The next second, his body began to transform.
In an instant, he morphed into a ferocious beast—built like an ox, shaped like a fierce tiger, with wings sprouting from its back.
With a powerful beat of his wings, a gale swept up, propelling him a hundred meters into the sky.
His speed instantly broke the sound barrier, trailing a white shockwave in the air as he streaked toward the Sinatu Kingdom.
Zoan-type Mythical Beast-type Tiger-Tiger Fruit Qiongqi Form!
Qiongqi, one of the Four Fiends of antiquity, shaped like a fierce tiger with wings on its back, known for devouring the loyal and trustworthy.
Such was the mythological description.
…
At the same time, in the territorial waters of the Sinatu Kingdom.
Ten naval warships were cutting through the waves at full speed.
On the flagship, Branch Vice Admiral Bask of G3 raised his binoculars and gazed into the distance.
The coastline of Sinatu was faintly visible.
"We've entered Sinatu's territorial waters... I hope we're not too late."
Bask lowered his binoculars, his expression grave as he muttered to himself.
Just ten minutes ago, headquarters had relayed the latest intelligence: one Celestial Dragon had been confirmed beheaded, two others had been abducted, and the perpetrator, Raiver Sky, was fleeing the port aboard a Celestial Dragon giant battleship.
The news weighed heavily on Bask's heart.