The horrifying scene instantly brought the noisy atmosphere inside the bar to a complete standstill.
Carrot, who stood closest to the incident, stared blankly at the three mangled masses of flesh on the floor.
She could not comprehend what had just happened.
Only moments ago, those three men had been standing there alive and well. In the blink of an eye, they had been crushed into grotesque piles of meat.
On the stage, Violet's expression turned grave.
"A Devil Fruit user..."
Her voice was low and serious.
"And judging by this display, an extremely powerful one."
Her eyes immediately swept across the bar.
Using her powers, the dim surroundings became as clear as broad daylight.
Soon, her gaze settled on Lloyd sitting quietly in the corner.
The ability of the Glare-Glare Fruit allowed Violet to perceive the thoughts hidden within people's hearts.
The reason she noticed Lloyd was simple.
Among everyone present, he was the only person she could not see through.
In her eyes, Lloyd resembled a terrifying abyss.
A bottomless black hole radiating destruction and danger.
She did not even dare focus on him for too long.
Violet clenched her teeth.
"What a terrifying man..."
"Who exactly is he?"
After the brief silence, the customers finally recovered from their shock.
The entire bar erupted into screams.
People frantically rushed toward the exit, pushing and trampling over one another in panic.
The situation descended into chaos almost instantly.
A stampede was on the verge of breaking out.
Seeing this, Violet quickly regained her composure.
Although she was no longer the princess of Dressrosa, she still served as the kingdom's Minister of Justice.
She could not simply stand by and watch.
Raising her voice, she shouted,
"I am Violet, Minister of Justice!"
"I'll handle this matter! Everyone, please remain calm!"
Unfortunately, the terrified crowd could no longer hear her.
People continued shoving and scrambling toward the exit.
The disorder only intensified.
Watching the scene unfold, Lloyd's brows furrowed slightly.
Slowly, he rose from his seat.
Violet had been observing him the entire time.
The moment she saw him stand, her heart skipped a beat.
Recalling the horrifying ability he had just displayed, she feared that if he became irritated enough, he might simply crush everyone present into bloody pulp.
At that moment, Carrot sprang through the crowd.
Lightly stepping across several heads, she performed an agile flip before landing beside Lloyd.
Looking up at him, she spoke in a guilty voice.
"About earlier... sorry. I caused trouble for you."
Smack!
"Mmph!"
Carrot immediately covered her forehead.
A pitiful expression appeared on her face.
"You flicked me again..."
"Those guys just wouldn't leave me alone..."
Although she sounded as though she was complaining, there was an unmistakably spoiled tone in her voice.
Lloyd glanced at her.
"What trouble?"
"This insignificant matter isn't even worth mentioning."
He looked at her claws.
"What exactly are those claws for?"
"Wouldn't it have been easier to make them shut up permanently?"
Carrot froze.
Lloyd continued indifferently,
"I thought you were fairly clever."
"Now it seems you're completely clueless."
This time, Carrot did not argue.
She simply puffed out her cheeks and muttered quietly,
"Oh..."
Watching from nearby, Wanda shook her head with a faint smile.
Only after Carrot cast a pleading glance toward her did she speak.
"Carrot, if you encounter scum like that in the future, you don't need to waste words."
"Just make them shut up."
"Reasoning with trash accomplishes nothing."
Carrot immediately nodded.
"I understand, Wanda!"
From the stage, Violet watched everything unfold.
Her suspicions became even stronger.
The Devil Fruit user had undoubtedly been Lloyd.
He had clearly intervened because of the young Mink girl.
However, his methods were horrifying.
He had killed those men without hesitation.
Everything about him radiated danger.
What Violet did not know was that the man before her considered himself the embodiment of authority itself.
To Lloyd, his will was law.
At this moment, however, Lloyd had already grown impatient with the chaos around him.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"It's too noisy."
The instant those words fell, Lloyd's eyes opened fully.
Buzz!
Buzz!
Buzz!
An overwhelming wave of Conqueror's Haki exploded outward like a raging tsunami.
The pressure swept through the entire bar.
Several speakers shattered instantly.
The noisy atmosphere disappeared without warning.
Everything seemed frozen.
The next moment, people began collapsing one after another.
Like wheat being harvested, bodies dropped across the floor.
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
Within seconds, the entire crowd lay unconscious.
Wanda and Carrot stood closest to Lloyd.
Yet neither of them felt the slightest discomfort.
Looking at the countless unconscious figures scattered throughout the bar, both women were visibly shocked.
Wanda suddenly recalled the incident back on Zou when Carrot had collapsed beneath a single glance from Joy Boy.
At the time, Pedro and Sicilian had explained that the ability was called Conqueror's Haki.
The disposition of a king.
A power possessed by only one in several million people.
Yet Lloyd's mastery of it far surpassed ordinary users.
The fact that she and Carrot remained completely unaffected proved how precise his control truly was.
Aside from them, only one other person remained standing.
Violet.
Of course, that was because Lloyd had intentionally excluded her from the attack.
At this moment, the shock in Violet's heart exceeded even Wanda's.
Unlike them, she fully understood the terror of Conqueror's Haki.
Doflamingo, the tyrant who had seized Dressrosa, possessed the same power.
It was an ability capable of crushing the spirits of the weak.
Yet Lloyd's control was on an entirely different level.
He could selectively target individuals while leaving others untouched.
That level of mastery was terrifying.
Lloyd slowly surveyed the unconscious crowd.
Then his gaze shifted toward Violet on the stage.
The moment their eyes met, Violet's body trembled.
Only then did she realize why she had remained conscious.
He had allowed it.
Regret surfaced in her heart.
She should never have come to this bar tonight.
Ordinary criminals were one thing.
Someone like Lloyd was another matter entirely.
For a woman of her strength, standing before him felt like placing herself on a dinner plate.
Lloyd stepped over the unconscious bodies and approached the stage.
Soon, he stood directly before her.
Looking up at the tall figure before her, Violet subconsciously swallowed.
Suppressing her anxiety, she spoke.
"I am the Minister of Justice..."
Lloyd interrupted her immediately.
"Take me to the Royal Palace."
Violet's expression changed.
The moment she heard his destination, alarm bells rang in her mind.
Carefully, she asked,
"May I ask what business you have at the Royal Palace?"
Lloyd answered without the slightest hesitation.
"I'm going there to sleep."
"If you take me there, it'll save me some trouble."
Violet blinked.
"Sleep?"
She stared at him in disbelief.
"Are you treating the Royal Palace like a hotel?"
"Why not?"
As he spoke, Lloyd casually pulled down the collar concealing part of his appearance.
The moment Violet saw his face clearly, she froze.
Her eyes widened instantly.
Then she let out a sharp cry.
"Celestial Dragon Marshal?!"