"What… did you just say?"
Nico Olvia's eyes widened in horror, her voice trembling.
Jaeger's cold statement—declaring that all the other archaeologists would be killed, sparing only her—left the place in stunned silence.
The other archaeologists looked at each other, their faces twisted with desperation.
They had clung to the hope that perhaps—just perhaps—this Celestial Dragon, infamous for destroying entire kingdoms, might show mercy. But that hope was vanishing before their eyes.
One of them, a younger scholar who had always admired Olvia from afar, suddenly burst out.
"Why her?! Why only Olvia?! Why are you sparing her alone?"
Jaeger gave him a look of absolute disdain, as if the man had asked the stupidest question in the world.
"Because she's beautiful," he said, shrugging. "Why else? You think I'd spare any of you useless men instead of a woman like her? What, send you to Wano to dig rocks?"
"What? That's… that's your reason?"
The archaeologist's mind blanked. His lips quivered, and an overwhelming storm of emotions churned inside him—anger, envy, heartbreak.
The woman he loved from a distance, who never so much as brushed his hand, was now being taken by a monster like Jaeger… simply because of her beauty?
No. No, I won't let this happen!
He clenched his fists, heart burning with fury. But when he glanced toward Admiral Akainu and the red-hot magma coating his body, reality crashed down hard.
His courage turned to dust. Legs trembling, he collapsed to the floor in fear.
"Tch."
Akainu scoffed at the spineless display. With a slow, deliberate motion, he raised his molten arm—ready to obey Jaeger's orders and incinerate every last one of them.
"Wait! Please, wait!"
Olvia threw herself forward, grabbing Jaeger's arm with trembling hands.
"If you want something—anything—take it from me! But please, spare their lives! I'm the one who led this expedition. I'm the one responsible!"
Jaeger raised an eyebrow, clearly amused.
"Anything? Even if it means your daughter becomes a slave of the Celestial Dragons?"
"My… daughter?"
Olvia froze, her heart lurching.
How did he know about Robin?
Even the World Government shouldn't know that. She had entrusted her child to distant relatives in O'Hara when Robin was only two. They had never crossed paths since.
Her mind raced.
Of course, she loved her daughter. But Robin was far away—safe, for now. The people in front of her, her colleagues and friends… they would die here if she didn't act.
She looked Jaeger straight in the eye. Her voice was firm.
"If it means saving them, then yes. Do what you will—with me, with my daughter. Just let them live."
Behind Jaeger, Kozuki Toki held her daughter Hiyori in her arms and watched in silence. Her eyes softened.
In Olvia, she saw herself—trapped in desperation, offering everything to survive. But Jaeger had treated her well. He gave her power in Wano. He helped her grow stronger.
She could only hope Olvia's fate would be kinder.
Yamato, meanwhile, stood to the side, her arms crossed and her brows furrowed. Her eyes darted between Olvia and Jaeger.
Another bad woman… stealing Jaeger away.
"Jaeger-sama."
Akainu spoke up, awaiting final confirmation.
Jaeger grinned.
"No need to kill them. Send them to Wano for mining. Twenty years of labor. After that, they're free."
Olvia gasped. Jaeger effortlessly hoisted her into his arms and strode away, chuckling. "Akainu, I will open the spatial crack. Let's not waste time."
"Understood."
Akainu bowed slightly.
As Jaeger disappeared into the ship's luxurious cabin with Olvia, the remaining archaeologists stood in stunned silence.
It was brutal. Cruel. But they were alive.
Tears welled in their eyes, a mix of guilt and gratitude.
She had sacrificed herself… to save them.
The young archaeologist who loved Olvia could only watch helplessly. Joy at surviving mingled with heartbreak as he watched the woman he admired vanish into Jaeger's arms.
SLAP!
His head snapped sideways.
Akainu's hand, still steaming from residual heat, had struck him with terrifying force. Boils instantly erupted across his face.
"Ahhh—!!"
The man screamed, stumbling back, but Akainu grabbed him by the neck like a misbehaving dog.
"What were you staring at?" Akainu growled.
"You think you're worthy to even glance at someone Jaeger-sama has claimed?"
The archaeologist tried to answer, but his mind was lost to pain and fear.
"The others get twenty years. You? You get fifty."
The man fainted from the pain and despair.
Kozuki Toki stepped forward, her tone gentle.
"Shall I guide you, Admiral Akainu?"
"Please, Lady Toki."
He bowed respectfully to the woman Jaeger entrusted with Wano.
Yamato, however, was not so composed.
She clenched her fists, muttering angrily.
"Another bad woman trying to steal Jaeger again…"
"Isn't it the other way around?" Gion said from nearby, unimpressed.
"He kidnapped her. He's the bad guy."
Yamato spun toward her, eyes wide with accusation.
"Hey! You're the bad woman! Trying to take Jaeger too!"
She grabbed her massive club and pointed it at Gion with righteous fury.
"Apologize to Jaeger and leave him alone!"
"What the—are you nuts?" Gion took a step back, bewildered.
She turned to Akainu. "Who even is this white-haired brat? What's her deal?"
Akainu sighed, half-amused. "That's Yamato. Daughter of the Beasts Admiral… Kaido. She's not technically that young—just raised strangely. Think of her like a big child."
"Pfft! She is an idiot."
Gion laughed, looking at Yamato with mock pity.
"Listen, kid. Go home. Let the adults talk. Jaeger's gonna choose someone like me over a childish fool like you."
"I'm not a child! And I'm not stupid!"
Yamato's face turned beet red with rage. She couldn't put her feelings into words—but the sight of another woman trying to steal her place beside Jaeger pushed her over the edge.
She stomped the deck in frustration.
BOOM!
The warship trembled violently.
Yamato shot forward like a bullet, moving with a burst of speed that made the air crack.
Her target was Gion. Raising her spiked mace high, she brought it down hard—aiming straight for the Vice Admiral's head.
"So fast!?"
Gion barely had time to react. Shocked by Yamato's explosive movement, her eyes widened. Instinct kicked in, and she pulled out her sword, Kinpira, raising it just in time to block.
CLANG!
The clash rang out across the sea. Steel met steel, the air vibrating from the impact.
Kinpira, one of the world's famed swords, held firm against the blow.
But the sheer force behind Yamato's strike—an overwhelming power like a mountain crashing down—sent tremors up Gion's arms.
Her legs buckled slightly under the pressure. Strength had never been her forte; she was a dexterous fighter, not a powerhouse.
What the hell is this girl made of?!
Gion gritted her teeth, stunned. She's Kaido's daughter, sure—but this strength… it's monstrous!
Yamato's voice roared in her ears.
"Get away from Jaeger!"
Fueled by a wrathful surge of power, Yamato's aura exploded again—amplified by Jaeger's repeated enhancements. The air twisted violently around her.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
The sheer wind pressure split the sea apart. Gion was launched like a meteor, trailing shockwaves across the sky before vanishing into the churning waters below.
Yamato exhaled and glanced toward the sea with a satisfied grin.
"You're at that level and dare to compete with me for Jaeger?"
She turned and began walking toward the cabin. There was still one more woman aboard—the one with the same white hair.
Behind her, Kozuki Toki watched in silence. The corner of her mouth twitched.
"Just like Stussy back then… Gion didn't stand a chance."
Toki couldn't help but sigh. Yamato's overwhelming strength sparked a flicker of envy in her.
She and her daughter Hiyori had trained under Jaeger just as diligently—yet they couldn't compare. Was this the cruel gap between effort and talent?
She turned to Akainu with a casual smile.
"I'll take the slaves to the mine, Admiral. You should probably go fish your Vice Admiral out of the sea."
Akainu raised an eyebrow at the trembling group of archaeologists.
"They're all men… Are you sure they're not too weak to handle it?"
Toki chuckled softly. Then, with a stomp of her foot, she cracked the steel deck beneath her.
"Relax. Under Jaeger-sama's personal training, even pirates with bounties in the hundreds of millions wouldn't dare look down on me."
Akainu gave a low hum of approval.
"Hmph. I misjudged you. Seems Jaeger's got a lot of hidden dragons crouching at his feet."
With that, he dropped a half-conscious scholar onto the deck and barked an order to the remaining marines.
"You heard me! Go retrieve Vice Admiral Gion!"
"Yes, sir!"
The warship turned around.
Toki, meanwhile, cradled her daughter and glanced coldly at the archaeologists.
"Pick him up and follow me. From now on, this man is your slave. If you want a break, make him work for you."
The group flinched at her command. Some opened their mouths to protest—but seeing no compassion in Toki's eyes, they silently lifted the unconscious man and followed her into the dimensional rift.
"I've been corrupted by Jaeger-sama too…"
Toki murmured to herself, watching their hesitant steps.
"But this is what it means to live freely. To enjoy power without shame. Oden… if only you'd understood that."
As the rift closed behind them, calm returned to the deck.
Inside the cabin, Yamato had already barged into Jaeger's quarters, inserting herself into his ongoing "battle" with Olvia.
On the soaked deck, Gion sat wrapped in a navy-issued blanket, shivering. Her long, wet hair clung to her face. She looked more like a drowned rabbit than a Vice Admiral.
Akainu stepped over and raised an eyebrow.
"Didn't Yamato knock you away earlier? Got your mind made up that fast?"
Gion pouted.
"So what? That white-haired brat got on my nerves. She came out of nowhere swinging a club! I was just teasing Jaeger-sama a little… What's wrong with a little jealousy?"
Akainu folded his arms.
"Yamato's Kaido's daughter. Unpredictable. Even Jaeger-sama's personal secretary Stussy got slammed into a wall by her back in Wano."
Gion scowled.
"Tch. I'm Vice Admiral Gion, damn it. And Jaeger-sama is… well… he's actually kind of good-looking. Not at all like other Celestial Dragons. Maybe a genetic mutation?"
Akainu narrowed his eyes.
"Honestly? I'd prefer Jaeger-sama favor someone from the navy rather than a pirate's daughter."
"Excuse me?!" Gion's voice cracked, part outrage, part embarrassment.
She crossed her arms and mumbled,
"Not like it matters. He didn't even look at me just now."
Akainu's tone turned reassuring.
"He will. Jaeger-sama is… compassionate."
Just then, his den-den mushi rang. He picked it up immediately.
"Jaeger-sama?"
A calm voice replied on the other end.
"Send Gion in."
The call ended.
Akainu turned back to Gion with a stiff smile.
"See? Told you he was interested."
Gion froze.
"What? Right now?!" Her fists clenched in disbelief and… humiliation.
"Olvia's already there. Yamato too. And now me? There's three of us! This is my first time, dammit!"
Akainu remained expressionless.
"No one's forcing you. You can return to HQ. I doubt Jaeger-sama would punish you harshly, not with Vice Admiral Tsuru protecting you."
That struck home.
Gion looked down. Memories of Tsuru's tearful plea—after Garp and Sengoku's deaths—flashed through her mind. Slowly, her fingers uncurled.
"I'll go."
She turned and began walking toward the cabin, muttering under her breath.
"So this is the legendary Nerona Jaeger. The man who seduced hundreds of princesses… A prince in title, but a villain at heart. I should've known better than to expect anything pure."
•••
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