While Ace was feeling confused, Dadan felt completely at ease upon sensing this wind.
Ace asked, "What is this?"
Dadan: "Don't worry. This wind represents the Monarch of the Wind, the guide of freedom, the Awakened One of the D Clan, the World's Most Heinous Criminal, the leader of the Revolutionary Army, and most importantly, Luffy's father—the Rebel, Dragon, is here."
"To be able to awaken Conqueror's Haki at this age, he truly is the descendant of that man. However, young man, don't overextend your physical strength. Leave the rest to me." Dragon descended, treading upon a hurricane.
Upon hearing Dragon call him "the descendant of that man," Ace immediately pressed for an answer, "What do you mean by 'the descendant of that man'? Do you know who my father is?" But before Dragon could reply, he fainted due to excessive physical exhaustion.
Dadan glanced at Dragon. "You shouldn't have said too much. The matters of the previous generation shouldn't be passed down to the next."
Dragon replied, "He will find out eventually. Having awakened Conqueror's Haki and bearing that name, unless he never sets out to sea, those ambitious individuals will definitely notice him. His father's past will inevitably haunt him. Since you can't stop his determination to go to sea, you can't keep it from him forever."
"However, since you're not ready yet, I won't speak of it. I just wanted to tell you that before trouble finds him, he should be told so he can be prepared."
The others were stunned by this cryptic exchange, but Hera, who knew the plot, roughly guessed that Dragon and Dadan had a disagreement over whether to tell Ace who his father was. This reminded Hera, however, that she had already decided to tell Ace about his father before he set out to sea.
Dragon looked at Brujam and said coldly, "Let's not talk about that for now. You're the one who injured my son, aren't you?"
Brujam threatened sharply, as if to bolster his own courage, "So what if I did? I'm not afraid of you and your parlor tricks." While threatening, his eyes darted around, looking for a chance to escape.
"Since it's you, then repent in your next life." With that, a gust of wind blew toward Brujam. When the wind passed over him, his limbs suddenly vanished, leaving only his head remaining on his torso.
Only then did Hera speak up, "Senior, could you leave him for me to finish? I feel the City of Devouring Time hungering for his time."
"Don't worry, I've preserved his life force; it should be enough for you to devour," Dragon said to Hera.
"Also, I don't know how you know about Ace's situation, but I think you should give Dadan a little more time."
It was only then that Hera realized Dragon's Observation Haki was actually so powerful that it could predict a certain amount of the future and even read other people's thoughts.
Hera could only complain, "Honestly, reading a girl's thoughts isn't something a gentleman should do."
Dragon explained upon hearing this, "I only released my Observation Haki just now while observing the situation; it wasn't intentional."
Hera redeployed the City of Devouring Time and swallowed Brujam, who had been reduced to a ball. The next second, Zafkiel's energy seemed to be fully charged and emitted a glow. The clock face in Hera's eye lit up, and the dark Roman numeral 'II' on it regained its golden radiance.
Seeing this, Dragon remarked with a sigh, "An ability that grows by devouring the time of others? It truly is wicked. However, this sea is never lacking in villains. Young lady, I hope you can restrain your thirst for power."
Hera said, "Don't worry. The time from those villains is already enough for me."
"I hope so. You are Luffy's friend, so I trust you. As long as you don't use this power against civilians, I won't interfere."
After absorbing Brujam's time, Hera also discovered that the quality of time from the strong was much higher than that of the weak. One Brujam was worth about 1,000 small-fry pirates. "It seems I'll have to challenge more powerful people when I set out to sea."
From the side, Sabo also heard the long list of titles Dadan used for Dragon. For him, the ones he cared about most were naturally "guide of freedom" and "Leader of the Revolutionary Army." He quickly stepped forward and said:
"Monarch of the Wind, guide of freedom, Awakened One of the D Clan, the World's Most Heinous Criminal, leader of the Revolutionary Army, Luffy's father—Rebel Dragon, may I ask, I also want to join the Revolutionary Army to pursue freedom. Are there any requirements?"
Dragon was a bit speechless after hearing that long list of titles, which sounded like a menu. "Just call me Dragon. Dadan only said all those titles because she wanted to see me embarrassed. To join the Revolutionary Army, all you need is the will to pursue freedom, the spirit to resist, and a high regard for the bonds between comrades."
"You're a good kid too. When Ace's Conqueror's Haki erupted, I felt a hidden power within you. It might not have burst forth because of your injuries, but you also have the qualities of a king. If you wish, the Revolutionary Army welcomes you."
After thinking for a while, Sabo made up his mind. He turned back and said to Hera, "I'm going to join the Revolutionary Army. I'm not waiting until I'm seventeen; I'm going now."
Although Hera had already anticipated and prepared for this, she still felt a bit sad when faced with the moment. "Then what about Luffy and Ace? Aren't you going to say goodbye to them?"
"No need. Let them focus on recovering. I'll just go with Dragon. Although this ocean is vast, I believe the four of us will eventually meet again."
Hera: "Then remember to read the newspaper every day once you're at sea. When we set out, the papers will be dominated by our exploits."
"Let's not talk about such sad things. Mr. Dragon, please take me to join the Revolutionary Army. I'm still too weak right now; I need to get stronger!"
Dragon watched the two children's sad parting, and the words "There's no rush, we can wait until they wake up before leaving," which were stuck in his throat, remained unsaid.
Since they were already prepared and looking so sorrowful, it seemed a bit inappropriate to say there was no rush now.
"Since you've decided, then let's go. The path of revolution is waiting for us."
Seeing them about to leave, Hera finally couldn't hold back a question she had been curious about. She asked Dragon, "Mr. Dragon, I've always been curious about something. I really can't hold it in anymore, though it might be a bit inappropriate to ask."
Dragon said aloofly, "Ask."
"I heard someone say that the mark on your face was from Garp hitting you with a slipper infused with Armament Haki. Is that true?"
Dragon's expression twitched a few times, and his aloof facade almost crumbled. "How could that be? I'm not afraid of that old man."
Having said that, he took Sabo and flew into the sky, fleeing without looking back.