Judgment at the Old Wing Entrance

"Hand over the child."

Garling's blade tip hung in front of the entrance to the Old Wing, the patterns on the back of the blade creeping up the ground into the well corridor. The receding cold mist was cut by those patterns. Lumi held the child who had just registered his name in her arms, and the iron plate under her feet made a soft sound.

Bonney stood at the front, the dagger in her hand still damp with the frost from the Cold Storage Room. She didn't look at the dagger, but only at the Black Gate mark on Garling's shoulder.

"They have names now."

Garling looked at her; the family crest on his cloak shone brightly in the Golden Light of the Sky Screen.

"A name is only valid if it is recognized by the Throne."

Bonney shoved Lumi behind the bear, gritting her teeth as she said, "The Sky Screen has already admitted it, and the world has heard it. Who do you think you are to revoke it?"

Sabo held the water pipe horizontally, flames rising along the sheet metal as he stared at Garling's hand holding the knife.

"Your personal visit shows that these children are more troublesome to live than you think."

Garling ignored Sabo; his gaze fell on the Little Bear, then shifted to the bear's chest.

"Buccaneer's remains, an incompletely archived copy of her personality, a second-generation Azure Jade Scales adaptor, and nine unnamed materials—we've finally gathered them all today."

Bear raised his hand, shielding Bonney and Lumi behind him.

"They are not materials."

You've said that once already.

Garling raised his sword, Red Mark simultaneously lit up on the walls on both sides of the Old Wing entrance, and a golden notification immediately popped up in the Sky Screen.

[Intervention by the Supreme Commander of the Holy Knights has been detected]

[Rescue mission in the Old Wing Well Corridor enters mandatory review phase]

[Review Question: Does Figarland Garling have the authority to conduct a remand trial on a registered underage witness?]

[A. Possesses, because he is the supreme commander of the Holy Knights]

[B. Possesses it, but requires secondary authorization from the Throne]

[C. No possession; witness protection takes precedence over the old order]

[D. Must be confirmed voluntarily by the witness]

Bonney saw the options and immediately shouted, "Choose C!"

Lumi looked up, the baby in her arms was still breathing erratically, and she was so anxious that her words were all choked together.

"I also chose C. They've already registered; they can't be taken back."

Garling's knife tip pointed forward, and the Red Mark on the ground crossed the threshold, forcing Bonney to retreat.

"The questions presented by the Sky Screen will offer you choices, but the battlefield won't wait for your discussions."

Sabo stepped onto a broken pipe against the wall, flames spreading from the sole of his shoe and blocking the Red Mark.

"Then you try it yourself."

The bear didn't rush after them. He looked down at Bonney and said, "Take Lumi into the well corridor, and don't look back."

Bonney grabbed his sleeve, her voice catching in her throat.

"Dad, are you trying to do it all by yourself again?"

The bear glanced at her and placed its hand on the Little Bear's shoulder.

"Little Bear, protect Bonney."

The Little Bear's mechanical eyes lit up.

"Protect, Bonney, protect, the child."

Bonney's hand hadn't even loosened its grip when the split -Sky Screen display had already broadcast the problem to the world.

In Marineford, Akainu stood before the battle platform, lava dripping from between his fingers onto the floor, only to be blocked by Hina beside him using Seastone.

"Navy Independent Review Group, option C."

Sengoku slammed the document on the table.

"Marine Headquarters Original Archives Group, option C."

Garp didn't sit; he stood by the window, his fist pressed against the wall.

"I also choose C. Anyone who dares to call their child 'material' will have to step over me first."

At the exit of Sabaody, Luffy was pushing the last batch of laborers outside when he heard the problem with the Sky Screen. He looked up and shouted, "C!"

Zoro parried the remnants of the Knights with a single strike, frowning as he said, "Stop shouting, Straw Hat, hold on."

Robin clasped her hands together, her arms extending from behind Luffy's shoulders to hold the edge of his Straw Hat.

"The patterns are still warm; Garling wants to use your answer to find the coordinates."

Luffy pressed down on the brim of his hat, his voice piercing through the Sky Screen.

"I'll still choose C. I won't let him take the person away."

On the outer edge of the Holy Land, Shanks' ship was tilted by the slash marks, and Benn Beckman knelt beside the mast, his gun still pointed at the Red Mark in the distance.

Shanks wiped the blood from his lips and looked at Garling in the Sky Screen.

"According to the old records of the Figarland family, children from collateral branches are not under the jurisdiction of the Main Unit Seal, and witnesses are even less under your jurisdiction. I choose C."

Upon hearing this, Garling finally turned to look at Shanks in the Sky Screen.

"You used a stolen surname to teach me family rules?"

Shanks placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, but did not draw it.

"You're the ones who treat surnames like locks; I'm just telling the world that locks can rust too."

Golden Light spread Sky Screen, and the votes for option C climbed across all the screens.

[Most key testimonies are consistent]

[Answer: C]

[Registered minor witnesses are protected]

[Judgment by the old decree of Saint Garling, temporarily dismissed]

The Red Mark at the entrance of the Old Wing immediately retreated to the threshold, but the Main Unit Seal on the back of Garling's hand shone even brighter. He looked at the line of judgment, and slowly turned the hilt of his sword around in his palm.

"Dismissing the trial does not equate to dismissing the interception."

Sabo's expression changed.

"He wants to destroy the entrance."

Garling swung his sword down, but the blade didn't strike the child. Instead, it sliced through the load-bearing beam above the well corridor, causing the entire Old Wing passage to emit a piercing metallic groan. The child in Lumi's arms was startled awake, and his cries echoed across the Sky Screen.

The bear raised its paw, intending to slap everyone out of the well corridor, but the Red Mark under Garling's feet curled back, pinning the entire section of ground to its spot.

"The Paw-Paw Fruit's spatial ejection needs a landing point; I will now seal the entrance to the Old Wing."

Bonney grabbed Lumi and pulled her back, angrily saying, "You say there can't be a trial, so you're going to bury her alive instead?"

Garling raised his sword, aiming his second strike at the cooling pipes deep within the well corridor.

"Unregistered air, unregistered roads, unregistered doors—all can be cleaned up."

Vegapunk's voice squeezed out from the Sky Screen, carrying an electrical buzzing sound.

"Don't let him cut the cooling pipe! The baby has just emerged from hibernation; a backflow of temperature could be fatal!"

Kizaru's light flashed briefly outside the entrance before being deflected by the Red Mark. He pulled his hand back from the light and looked at the black marks burned into the edge of his glove.

"This old man turned the entrance into Judgment Arena; you can't even get in by walking."

Sabo turned around and called out, "Mr. Bear, could you push the load-bearing beam aside?"

The bear raised its paw and pressed down on the sinking iron beam, a dull thud coming from its shoulder and back as metal was subjected to pressure.

"I can hold on, but time is running out."

Bonney immediately looked up at the Sky Screen.

"Set a question, quickly set a question! Since he's using rules to block the door, then use rules to dismantle the door!"

The Sky Screen shimmered with Golden Light, and a new question was forcibly pushed to us.

[Urgent Q&A: What is the minimum condition for legally lifting the blockade of the Old Wing entrance after it was sealed off by the Judgment Arena?]

[A. Defeat Saint Garling]

[B. Destroy the Main Unit Seal]

[C. The blocked witness publicly refuses to have the door sealed and completes name verification]

[D. Withdraw the order from the Throne]

Lumi was holding the child, her shoulders still trembling, but when she heard the word "witness," she immediately moved forward.

Bonney stopped her.

You can't go there.

Lumi looked at the children who had just woken up, then at the load-bearing beam that was being held up by the bear.

"I refused to Transfer Order just now, so it's my turn this time."

Sabo blocked Garling's approaching blade, slicing the flames away. He turned and shouted, "Lumi, don't be reckless. The question says there are no witnesses, and you're not the only one."

Robin's voice came from Sabaody.

"Everyone in the Old Wing is under lockdown."

Luffy immediately chimed in, "Then let's shout it together!"

Garling raised his sword, aiming his third strike at the edge of the Sky Screen projection.

"Noisy bugs."

Shanks' sword intent collided with the slash through the projection, the Sky Screen shook, and the Red Hair Pirates' ship was torn up by the aftershock, but Shanks did not retreat.

"Garling, are you afraid they'll talk together?"

Garling's gaze finally hardened.

"Shut up."

Shanks smiled, the blood at the corner of his lips being blown away by the wind.

"You're getting impatient."

In the Old Wing Well Corridor, Lumi handed the child in her arms to Bonney, then leaned against the wall and stood under the Golden Light of the Sky Screen.

"My name is Lumi, and I refuse to seal the door."

The first child, held in Dr. Kaven's arms, still had a hoarse voice, but he spoke up.

"My name is Aino, and I refuse to be locked out."

Dr. Eve knelt down in front of the second child and held his hand.

"Say your name, don't be afraid."

"My name is Toran, and I refuse to close the door."

Bonney supported her third child, her eyes reddening.

Speak slowly, Sky Screen can hear you.

"My name is Miiru, and I refuse to close the door."

One name after another echoed in the well corridor, the Red Mark began to recede from the threshold, but Garling's sword had already fallen toward the last load-bearing beam.

The bear whispered, "Sabo."

Sabo understood. He inserted the water pipe into the ground, and the flames pushed back along the beams and pillars, forcefully holding up the sinking steel.

"Quick!"

The last child was carried by Little Bear, the sound so soft it was almost drowned out by the friction of steel.

"My name is Nairu, and I refuse to close the door."

[Name verification complete]

[Door seal lifted]

Kizaru's light path passed through the entrance and finally connected to the well corridor.

"Oh dear, I made it!"

Bonney was about to breathe a sigh of relief when Garling raised his left hand, and a red line cracked in the Figarland emblem on his palm.

Shanks' expression darkened on the other side of the Sky Screen.

Don't touch that mark.

As Garling looked at the children being guided by the light path, each word he uttered seemed to be peeled from an old decree.

"Since witnesses cannot be judged, then the rescuers will be judged."

[Secondary access to the Main Unit Seal detected]

[Change in trial objectives]

[Target: Bartholomew Bear]