Annoyed beyond patience by Gern's flippant remarks, Golden Lion lost any interest in continuing the banter.
He took a savage drag on his cigar, forcibly suppressing the rising anger in his chest, and asked bluntly,
"Enough bullshit. Where are we going next? I don't have time to stand here with you feeling the sea breeze."
"Oh?" Gern raised an eyebrow, an amused smile playing at his lips. "The way you're saying that… does it mean you've already decided to become my right-hand man, Golden Lion?"
Hearing Gern bring it up again, Golden Lion didn't answer immediately. His gaze lowered slightly, the drifting cigar smoke obscuring his expression.
This time, he didn't reject it outright—nor did he explode in rage.
Instead, he began rapidly and seriously recalculating the forces Gern currently commanded.
For the past twenty years, he had lain low in the East Blue. On the surface, he seemed cut off from the world, but in truth, he had devoted most of his energy to gathering intelligence on Gern.
Of course, this wasn't love.
Now, that accumulated information unfolded in his mind like a crystal-clear tableau.
Gern Reginald Sigmar himself:Marine Admiral "White Qilin."User of the Heaven-Shaking Fruit.The pinnacle inheritance of Garp and Zephyr's physical combat arts.Peak mastery of all three forms of Haki.Wielder of the black blade Eight Desolations…
His strength needed no elaboration. He already stood firmly at the very summit of the seas—a genuine, unquestionable "King-class" existence.
His core subordinates — the "Heavenly Disasters":
Dracule Mihawk:World's Greatest Swordsman.Power unfathomable.A publicly acknowledged Emperor-class combatant.
Douglas Bullet:"The Demon's Heir."Peak physical combatant, user of the Clank-Clank Fruit, master of all three Haki, with supreme Armament Haki.Likewise possessing Emperor-class strength.
Gern's force was not a simple "one Emperor with two commanders."
It was a terrifying configuration of one "King" leading two "Emperors."
A monstrous lineup.
Secondary core forces:
Enel:User of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit.Master of all three Haki, possessing "Mantra" (top-tier Observation Haki).Already at near-admiral level, with immense potential to break into Emperor-class at any moment.
Bartholomew Kuma:Former Revolutionary Army officer.User of the Paw-Paw Fruit.Formidable strength, racial advantages, top-tier support capabilities paired with terrifying offensive power.Solidly at sub-admiral level.
Gild Tesoro:User of the Gold-Gold Fruit.Dual Haki wielder.In gold-rich territory, his strength skyrockets.Even at baseline, sub-admiral level; with terrain advantage, he can unleash Emperor-class combat power.
Snake Empress Toritoma:Former Kuja officer.Dual Haki wielder.Great swordsman.Firmly at Emperor-commander level.
Lipo:User of the Heal-Heal Fruit.Dual Haki wielder.A Mink, master of physical combat.Balanced support and combat capabilities—also Emperor-commander level.
The more he analyzed it, the more Golden Lion felt a chill creep up his spine.
"This damn brat… has the 'Heavenly Disaster' faction already grown this terrifying on paper?!"
This wasn't the structure of a Yonko crew at all.
This was a war fortress of a faction—with an absolute core (King), multiple apex combatants (Emperors / near-Emperors),and a cadre of elite senior officers (commanders / sub-admirals).
"No wonder… no wonder this bastard dares to say 'one man suppressing the Four Emperors.'He really does have the confidence—and the capital—to back it up!"
"With this level of power, he could uproot and annihilate the forces of any so-called 'Emperor of the Sea' in the New World—completely crush them!"
"Even facing two at the same time, he might not necessarily be at a disadvantage!"
Realizing this, Golden Lion grew even more convinced that Gern hadn't been lying—the resources he promised would not be lacking.
More importantly—
Gern had given him hope.
Hope of restoring his peak strength.Hope of reclaiming his power.
(That was the real reason.)
Once that clicked into place, Golden Lion slowly lifted his head.
His expression changed.
Gone were hesitation and inner conflict.What remained was the decisiveness of a true pirate of the seas—and a faint wildfire, newly reignited.
He manipulated his body, hovering steadily slightly behind and to the side of Gern, like a general ready to march beneath his commander's banner.
He didn't say "yes."
But his tacit acceptance—his posture, his gaze—said everything.
Golden Lion Shiki had implicitly joined the ranks of the Heavenly Disaster.
Seeing the shift in Golden Lion's eyes, Gern knew the old lion had finally made his choice.
"Hahahaha!" He nodded in satisfaction, no longer bothering with verbal confirmation.
"Cut the nonsense," Golden Lion snorted, his tone already different from before."Target. Location."
Gern's smile widened.
He knew he had pulled this former sky-soaring pirate onto his war chariot.
"Target: Trafalgar Law. Captain of the Heart Pirates. User of the Operation Fruit," Gern said plainly, no longer teasing it out."As for the location… according to intel, they should currently be heading toward—"
"—the Sabaody Archipelago."
"No problem."
Seeing Golden Lion fully adopt a cooperative stance, Gern asked directly,"You're not planning to return to Merveille first to arrange things, are you?After all, that's a base you've managed for twenty years."
"Or…" Gern's expression suddenly shifted. One hand moved behind his back, the other lifted as if supporting something immense. He tilted his head skyward and, in an extremely deep voice overflowing with kingly dominance, intoned,
"I, Golden Lion, even burdened by the weight of years—holding Merveille aloft with one hand—am still invincible under heaven?!"
The moment the words fell, the aura exploded.
The sheer presence—the sheer style—was instantly maxed out.
It was the absolute embodiment of solitary pride and overwhelming power.
Golden Lion froze for a split second—then his eyes lit up.
These words… hit him perfectly.They were practically tailor-made for him!
For a moment, he almost raised his head instinctively, ready to accept that line as his declaration upon returning to the seas.
But reality was cruel.
He wasn't Kaido, capable of physically carrying islands—(and even Kaido hadn't carried anything this massive).
Maintaining control over the colossal floating island of Merveille already demanded his full concentration. Traveling long-distance all the way to Sabaody while keeping it airborne?
Impossible.
The cost and the disturbance would be far too great.
So Golden Lion forcibly suppressed the urge to show off. His face returned to calm—
But his eyes burned as he stared at Gern, declaring in a tone that said I'm claiming this:
"Hmph! That line… from now on, it belongs to me."
After arrogantly asserting ownership over the "famous quote," he finally addressed the matter at hand.
"As for Merveille…"
He waved his hand dismissively."I'll have it land somewhere remote in the East Blue for now."
"Dr. Indigo's been with me for twenty years. He'll handle something like that."
His tone carried trust in an old subordinate—and a clean break from the hidden life he'd lived for two decades.
From the moment he decided to follow Gern, he had no intention of returning to those days of numbing himself with hollow plans.
Watching Golden Lion snap into action so quickly—甚至 going as far as "copyrighting" a casual line of bravado—Gern couldn't help but shake his head with a laugh.
This old bastard…His strength might not be what it once was, but his spirit—and his talent for stirring up trouble—hadn't diminished one bit.
"Fine, then it's yours," Gern shrugged casually."So—are you ready? The Sabaody Archipelago is lively as ever."
"Let's go, Marine brat."
Golden Lion grinned fiercely, voice low and impatient.
"I've already… had enough of waiting to rip the things off my head—and my legs."