Bright campfires rose amidst the gloomy ruins of the castle. Since the thousands of stolen shadows had been released from Moriah, the massive zombie army had reverted to inanimate, cold corpses. In the courtyard, only Moriah's three cadres remained, scurrying to serve their new guests.
"Dr. Hogback, keep that wine barrel steady! If a single drop hits the floor, this lady will have your head!" Absalom hissed, though his voice lacked its usual bite. Wrapped in bandages and still numb from Enel's electricity, he didn't dare complain. He cast a wary glance at Leona. The red-haired woman's knife skills, even while cooking, gave him a bone-deep shiver.
Leona stood focused before a massive cutting board, her dark brown leather apron tied tight. Her deboning knives danced in a rhythmic blur, carving intricate patterns into a mountain of steak. The firelight reflected in her vertical pupils, showing a pious solemnity reserved only for her craft. Nearby, a milky white broth tumbled and steamed in a giant iron pot.
At the head of the long table, Ace sat cross-legged. He hoisted a barrel of rum, clinking it against Moriah's glass.
"Reclaiming your Haki will be a painful road, Moriah," Ace said, taking a heavy gulp. "But compared to the despair of the New World, or watching your brothers die while you stood helpless, physical pain is a luxury."
Moriah's spirit had visibly returned. Though his frame remained bloated, the decadence in his narrow eyes had been replaced by the flickering embers of revenge. He looked at the Black Blade Shusui resting beside him.
"I lost everything once," Moriah replied in a low, raspy tone. "But if you're willing to bet on me, I have no reason to back down."
The banquet roared through the night. Buggy played high-stakes gambling games with Absalom, winning a pile of "antiques" scavenged from the island's trash, while Hogback and Jeno debated the finer points of merging mechanical structures with human anatomy. Shark sat in the periphery, a small arc touching his lips. Used to the dead silence of the deep, this chaotic warmth was a sensation he had long forgotten.
The following morning, thin mist clung to the harbor. The Eclipse's black hull bobbed gently against the stone dock. Moriah stood on the shore, flanked by Perona and Absalom. He had donned a neat swordsman's outfit; though his belly was still round, his posture held a dignity that had been absent for a decade.
"I will hold this territory, Ace," Moriah said, gripping Shusui. "The next time we meet, the swordsman of Wano will be waiting."
"I'm counting on it," Ace replied from the bow. "Contact the Chat Channel with any intelligence from the Government."
"Little Eclipse, starting up! Full speed ahead!" the ship's mechanical voice rang out.
The mechanical oar arrays extended, clicking into place before tearing through the dark water. Accompanied by the hauntingly beautiful melody of Brook's violin, the pure black warship vanished into the edges of the Florian Triangle.
Three days later, the gloom finally broke. Sunlight spilled across the ink-colored deck for the first time in weeks.
"Gah! Extra! Big news! Gah!" A News Bird circled the mast, flapping its wings frantically.
Carina flicked a coin into the air and caught the stack of papers. As she flipped to the front page, her purple eyes narrowed, and her breathing hitched.
"Everyone, get over here," she said, her voice dropping to a serious register. She spread a thick stack of bounty posters across the center table. "It seems the World Government has officially released the hounds."
The crew gathered in silence. At the very top was a photo of Ace—one hand punching forward, flames roaring in the shape of a Vermilion Bird.
[Captain: Portgas D. Ace]
[Nickname: The Outlier]
[Bounty: 1,570,000,000 Berries (DEAD OR ALIVE)]
A heavy silence fell over the deck.
"1.5 billion..." Buggy's jaw hit the wood, his body collapsing into a pile of disconnected parts as his head spun in mid-air. "Are the Marines insane?! Did Ace burn down Mary Geoise while I was sleeping?!"
"The Outlier," Sabo murmured, looking at his own poster: Flame Dragon Sabo, 820,000,000 Berries. "It's a 'kill with praise' tactic. By giving Ace a heretical title and a bounty higher than most Yonko commanders, they are baiting every fame-hungry wolf on the sea to hunt us."
Enel snorted, gripping his Golden Staff until his veins throbbed. His poster read: God Enel, 750,000,000 Berries. "God Enel? Their taste in names is as pathetic as their strength," he hissed, clearly incensed at being ranked below Sabo.
Carina continued flipping through the stack:
[Mad Monk Urouge]: 380,000,000 Berries.[Star Clown Buggy]: 220,000,000 Berries.[Swordmaster Leona]: 210,000,000 Berries.[Mechanic Jeno]: 90,000,000 Berries.[Ghost Fox Carina]: 56,000,000 Berries.
"Ninety million?!" Jeno slammed a fist onto the deck, his face flushed. "My technology is only worth ninety million? This is an insult!"
Ace stood apart from the noise, holding his own poster between two fingers. He looked at the image of himself—full of tyranny and ambition. He understood the game the Gorosei were playing. They were building him up as the ultimate target to ensure he had no peace.
"The Outlier, huh?" Ace let out a soft laugh and tossed the paper into the wind. He turned his gaze toward the horizon, where the mandatory path to the Sabaody Archipelago lay.
"If they want me to be the target of this era, so be it," Ace said, his eyes burning with a cold, predatory light. "Let them see what happens when the hounds finally catch the predator."
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