Hancock was utterly stunned.
The brand on her back was the thing she cared about most. It was not just a symbol of humiliation, but a shadow that had haunted her since childhood.
"Is it true?"
Boa Marigold instantly appeared before Ryuuto, staring at the Growth Factor in his hand. She asked in disbelief.
"You'll know once you try it."
Ryuuto wasted no words. He tossed two vials of the Growth Factor to Marigold, then took the last one and threw it to Hancock.
"Ah... Be careful!"
Seeing Ryuuto's casual attitude, Marigold gritted her teeth and carefully caught the two vials.
"So this is the Growth Factor? It can really remove the brands on our backs?" Hancock held the vial and examined it. The syringe was only ten centimeters long, looking quite small and delicate. Inside, a red liquid flowed continuously, giving it a somewhat mystical appearance.
"Ryuuto, I suppose I shall deign to use this," Hancock said, suppressing her excitement and looking at him with her usual arrogance.
"The way to use it is to first remove the skin with the brand, then inject this into your body. The Growth Factor will cause a new, unmarked patch of skin to grow back," Ryuuto explained, amused by Hancock's attempt to act aloof.
*Rip!*
Before Ryuuto could even finish, Marigold had already reached behind her back and torn away a piece of skin. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she immediately injected one of the vials into her body.
As the Growth Factor was injected, a red line instantly began to travel across the surface of Marigold's skin. It looked truly miraculous.
After a couple of breaths, the red line finally found its destination. As it traced a path across her back, a faint red glow began to emerge. Marigold felt the pain intensify for a moment before it was quickly replaced by an itching sensation...
"It's really working!" Marigold exclaimed excitedly. She could feel the skin on her back regenerating at a rapid pace.
*I knew I was right to bet on him,* Marigold thought to herself. This man before her was incredibly mysterious, and the things he produced were truly extraordinary.
"Really? Let me see!"
Hancock couldn't restrain herself. In an instant, she was behind Marigold, observing carefully.
Hearing Marigold's words, Elder Nyon also got up from her seat, leaning on her snake staff. *This thing feels a bit like Vegapunk's technology,* she thought as she walked. *I heard years ago that he developed something called the Lineage Factor.* As the chief advisor of Amazon Lily, Elder Nyon always kept up with developments from all corners of the world.
Hancock saw that in just a short time, Marigold's back had been completely restored. The torn skin was fully healed.
Most importantly, the Hoof of the Celestial Dragon was truly gone.
"It's really gone!" Elder Nyon said, her voice filled with pleasant surprise.
Hearing Elder Nyon's confirmation, Marigold was overjoyed, happily clutching the remaining vial of Growth Factor in her hand.
Seeing that the Growth Factor was real and effective, Hancock's heart soared with joy. She looked up at Ryuuto, no longer able to suppress her affection for him. She suddenly threw herself into his arms.
"Thank you... I am so moved!" Hancock hugged Ryuuto tightly, her face blushing as she whispered in his ear.
"I..." Ryuuto's hands felt awkward for a moment. "It's what I should do." He slowly placed his hands on her back, returning the embrace.
*This is more like it!* As he held the beauty in his arms, memories of the previous night flooded back into his mind.
"Alright, alright. You should get rid of your brand, too," Ryuuto said softly, gently patting Hancock's back.
"Mhm!" Hancock nodded firmly.
"Ryuuto, you do it for me."
No longer hiding her feelings, Hancock slowly turned around, slipped her clothes off her shoulders, and presented her flawless white back to Ryuuto.
Staring at the red brand, Ryuuto felt it was nothing short of blasphemy. He couldn't help but think of how much the young Hancock must have suffered in Mary Geoise.
"Those damned Celestial Dragons!" Ryuuto cursed inwardly.
Then, wielding Yubashiri, Ryuuto carefully removed the branded skin. Throughout the process, Hancock didn't make a single sound of pain. In her heart, she must have felt a sense of release and excitement.
After doing this, Ryuuto injected the Growth Factor into Hancock's body. Now it was time to witness the power of science.
Before long, Hancock's back was restored to its pristine, unblemished state.
"I'm so happy!" Hancock stood before a mirror, looking at her back, her voice trembling with emotion. In the mirror's reflection, she could no longer see the Hoof of the Celestial Dragon that carried so many painful memories.
"Ryuuto, you're so good to me." Hancock walked slowly toward him, her mind filled with images from the night before. Her exquisite face showed a mix of gratitude, affection, and shyness.
Ryuuto returned her gaze with a brilliant smile.
Boa Marigold and Elder Nyon looked at Ryuuto with a newfound approval in their expressions. After all, Marigold had treated him with nothing but hostility at the beginning. As for Elder Nyon, she had found him utterly despicable. The feeling was akin to watching a prized pig root up the cabbage she had painstakingly cultivated for years.
In the faint morning light, the handsome young man's face was fixed in a smile as he looked at them all.
"Hancock, could you undo the petrification for me?" Seeing the time was right, Ryuuto brought the petrified statue of Ace before them.
"Oh, I almost forgot! This person is Ryuuto's friend. I will release him at once," Hancock started, as if seeing the petrified Ace for the first time in the room, and spoke hastily to Ryuuto.
She then hurried over to Ace's statue. She placed her right hand on it, and a flash of pink light passed over it.
Petrification released!!
"Where am I?" The first thing Ace did after being freed was reboot his brain. Then he saw the three women in front of him.
"The Pirate Empress?! Ryuuto, look out!!" Ace shouted, flames erupting from his hands as he stared warily at Hancock.
"It's alright, Ace! It's all a misunderstanding!" Ryuuto glanced at Hancock and her sisters, who were staring speechlessly at Ace, then quickly began to explain.
"It's a long story..."
Meeting Ace's gaze, Ryuuto could only give him the most condensed version of events.
Beep... beep... beep...