The Future Cannot Be Shackles

"The future cannot be shackles."

Robin spoke first, his voice cutting through the chaotic crowd at the exit of Sabaody and landing on the Sky Screen.

Blackbeard grinned. "Nicole Robin, you're quite clever. Let the world hear what Lin Qi is up to by bringing up things that didn't even happen. Isn't that just putting me in shackles?"

Marco said coldly, "Give Thatch his life first, then we'll talk about shackles."

Blackbeard shrugged. "I acknowledge Thatch's actions, but Impel Down, Whitebeard 'Pops Tremor-Tremor Fruit —I hadn't even done it yet, but Lin Qi made the whole world watch me, blocking my path. Isn't that a judgment on the future?"

Ace stepped forward. "You're not going to Impel Down because the Sky Screen has been exposed, not because you've reformed."

Blackbeard looked at Ace: "Fire Fist, you survived because of this future exposure. If you admit it can save you, then don't deny it can harm me."

Ace's flames tightened in his palm, and he did not immediately refute.

In the Foosha Village Tavern, Lin Qi looked at Blackbeard, his fingers resting on the edge of the keyboard, but he didn't rush to type.

Makino asked, "How do you want to answer this question?"

Lin Qi said in a low voice, "Blackbeard has hit the nail on the head. The future hasn't happened yet, so he can't be convicted directly."

The Village Chief panicked. "Then he killed someone!"

Lin Qi nodded. "Killing Thatch can be investigated, but the Future Plan can only be warned against; it cannot be used as a pre-existing crime for direct execution."

Makino glanced at him. "You speak much more clearly now than when you first arrived."

Lin Qi smiled wryly, "People who have been scrutinized by the whole world will at least learn a lesson."

Akainu looked at the Navy staff. "The recording principle is that future footage can be used as a risk warning and investigative lead, but it must not be used as the sole basis for conviction."

Sengoku added, "However, if the parties involved have already taken relevant preparatory actions, future information can be examined together with existing evidence."

He raised his pen. "This one is important."

Longdao: "The Revolutionary Army agrees; we cannot allow the Throne to use future warnings to invalidate the already exposed evidence of its crimes."

Shanks looked at Blackbeard: "Teach, you want to erase the future plans? Fine, but Thatch's blood and your flight records can't be erased."

Blackbeard's smile faded slightly, but he quickly regained it.

"Red-Hair, don't pretend to be fair. You'd love to see me dead."

Shanks said, "I'd love for you to be publicly scrutinized before you die."

Lin Qi couldn't help but whisper, "That's really Red-Hair."

Benn Beckman glanced at Shanks: "Boss, be careful with the public record."

Shanks didn't change his mind. "Then record it."

New options appear on the Sky Screen.

[History Exam Question Review 2]

[Question: Does reviewing Blackbeard's future war crimes constitute a direct conviction based on future events that have not yet occurred, thus contaminating the chain of evidence?]

[A. Composition, all reviews related to Blackbeard are invalidated]

[B. The following constitutes a requirement for Lin Qi to publicly apologize to Blackbeard and withdraw the inventory.]

[C. Partially constituted; future plans cannot be mentioned again; existing evidence will be handled separately.]

[D. It does not constitute contamination of the chain of evidence, but future footage can only serve as a risk warning and investigative lead; actual criminal evidence requires independent review.]

Blackbeard stared at option D, his expression finally changing.

Who wrote this option?

Lin Qi raised his hand. "After the Common Rules, everyone wrote it together. I just type faster."

Blackbeard looked at Garling: "Weren't you supposed to interrogate him at the Throne? How did you manage to get away with this?"

Garling said coldly, "I'm reviewing the question-setting mechanism."

Blackbeard scoffed, "Then you'd better not let the mechanism dictate your actions."

Dark lines appeared in Garling's eyes, but he did not answer.

Robin looked at Blackbeard: "You're afraid of Option D, because Option D won't kill you directly according to the future, but it will preserve all investigative clues."

Nami continued, "In other words, we'll still investigate what needs to be investigated and guard against what needs to be guarded against."

Usopp raised his hand. "We can even block Impel Down ahead of time."

Sanji, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, said, "He can also make it clear to everyone who he wants to stab."

Zoro looked at Blackbeard: "He's not laughing anymore."

Blackbeard immediately burst into laughter. "Zehahaha, what can't I laugh about? You all chose D, acknowledging that the future cannot be considered a crime, so don't use things I didn't do to criticize me!"

Marco said coldly, "You killed Thatch and betrayed the Whitebeard Pirates; those are enough to condemn you to death."

Ace said, "D, you won't be directly convicted in the future, but you can't escape the consequences of what you've already done."

Whitebeard raised his naginata, and all the captains on the ship fell silent.

"The Whitebeard Pirates, D."

Marco added, "The Thatch case will be subject to an independent review, Teach's future plans are listed in the risk warning."

Blackbeard tightened his grip on the flask, causing the liquor to spill out and onto the deck.

Akainu stamped. "Marine Headquarters, D."

Dragon confirms. "Revolutionary Army, D."

Shanks: "The Red Hair Pirates, D."

Lumi didn't quite understand these complex principles, so she looked up and asked Mia, "What does D mean?"

Mia crouched down. "It means we can't just kill someone because they might do bad things in the future, but we need to investigate the bad things they've already done."

Lumi nodded seriously. "Then I choose D."

Makino looked at Lin Qi: "Civilian Witness Seat, D, record the future early warning boundary."

Lin Qi pressed the confirm button.

[Answer: D]

[The analysis of Blackbeard's future behavior does not constitute contamination of the chain of evidence]

[Future imagery's effectiveness is limited to: risk warnings, investigative leads, and preventative measures]

[Real-world evidence of a crime requires independent review]

[The murder of Thatch, preparations for the Impel Down route, and the intention to steal the Tremor-Tremor Fruit —each enters a separate chain of evidence]

Blackbeard's smile finally crumbled, and he stared at Lin Qi, his tone grim.

"You little bastard, you left me a way out, but then you buried explosives on both sides of the road."

Lin Qi replied, "If you don't take that road, the cannon won't hit you."

Ace said coldly, "He will leave."

Blackbeard glanced at Ace, then suddenly laughed again.

"That's hard to say. The future has changed; who knows where I'll be next?"

A supplementary prompt appeared in the Sky Screen after this sentence.

[Risk warning in effect]

[Impel Down, Marineford, the Whitebeard Pirates of the New World: Defense can be implemented based on publicly available clues]

Magellan appeared in Impel Down, his face ashen as he stared at Blackbeard's flight path log.

"Impel Down has received an early warning; all access points are now on high alert."

Blackbeard's laughter subsided.

Lin Qi looked at him. "You see, the future doesn't condemn, but it can lock the door."

Luffy clapped his hands. "This is great!"

Nami sighed, "Don't use that kind of way of speaking."

Garling stopped pressing Blackbeard and let the Chief Adjudication Platform continue turning the pages of historical questions. The screen quickly flashed across the Shichibukai, the truth about Kuma, the God Valley Index, the Old Archive Red Mark, the witnesses' departure, and the naming of the children.

Each time a page is turned, a censorship mark is automatically added to the Sky Screen.

[Preliminary review: Requires further verification]

[Preliminary review: Involves victim protection]

[Preliminary Examination: Evidence Involving the Throne]

[Preliminary review: Not to be invalidated]

Garling's expression grew increasingly grim.

Vegapunk looked at the markings and breathed a sigh of relief, "The Common Rules automatically distinguish between propositional risk and evidentiary validity; the Throne cannot be destroyed all at once."

Robin, however, remained unconvinced. "It won't continue reviewing everything line by line; that's too slow."

Akainu looked at the Chief Adjudication Platform: "It wants to find the master switch."

Garling raised his sword, and sure enough, rolled all the historical questions into a black seal, pressing it down towards the center of the Sky Screen.

[Throne General Review Application]

[Question: As an anomaly from outside the world, is Lin Qi qualified to continue serving as the question setter?]

Lin Qi looked at the question and his eyebrows twitched.

"It's back to me again."

Makino tied the wrapped towel tightly. "Don't joke around this time."

Garling looked toward the World Witness Seat.

"Every question he poses deviates the world from its original order. He comes from outside the world, possesses information about the future, and has the ability to instigate wars and trials. If the Common Rules continue to allow him to wield the power, the world will forever be dictated by an outsider."

Blackbeard immediately interjected, "I support this. Let's take the pen away from him first."

Luffy snapped, "Shut up!"

Blackbeard shrugged. "Straw Hat Kid, aren't you afraid he'll one day ask you a question about whether you deserve to die?"

Luffy without hesitation, "He won't."

Nami whispered, "Luffy."

Luffy, holding his Straw Hat, said, "Even if he makes a mistake, we'll bring him back to his senses, but we can't give the pen to the Throne."

Robin looked up at the Sky Screen: "The question must avoid emotional trust and shift towards rule constraints."

Akainu said, "The conditions for continuing the qualification can be met."

Longdao: "The World Witness Seat must retain the right to impeach."

Shanks said, "Lin Qi himself cannot refuse to be examined."

Makino looked at Lin Qi: "Can you accept this?"

Lin Qi stared at the screen for a long time before finally speaking, "Yes."

Makino pressed further, "Including if you set questions that harm people in the future, will you really be removed from the exam?"

Lin Qi looked down at his hands, then at the villagers who hadn't yet dispersed outside the door.

"Include."

The final question for the World Witness Seat has emerged.

[Fifth Question from the World Witness Seat]

[Question: Is Lin Qi qualified to continue serving as the interim person in charge of setting exam questions?]

[A. Not available; should be removed immediately]

[B. Not qualified; should be detained by the Throne]

[C. Not available; permissions should be revoked but the Terminal should be retained.]

[D. Temporary eligibility, but subject to Common Rules, public records, victim objections, and a five-seat review and removal mechanism]

Looking at option D, Garling suddenly spoke up, "If any of the five seats is corrupted, the rules will become invalid."

A warning message immediately popped up on the Sky Screen.

[The Throne is attempting to corrupt the World Witness Seat]

[Target filtering in progress]

Lin Qi's face darkened. "Who is it going to target?"

The answer came quickly.

In the Civilian Witness Seat, a black ring lit up at Makino's feet, and Crown Pattern appeared on the Tavern floor.

[Pollution Target: Civil Residents' Witness to Simagino]

[The Throne alleges: He has lived in the same village as the question setter for a long time, and his testimony lacks neutrality]

Garling said coldly, "If the Civilian Witness Seats are invalid, then the Common Rules are invalid."

The black ring began to tighten, causing the water glass beside Makino to fall to the ground and roll to Lin Qi's feet, the hot water spreading along the wooden floor.

Lin Qi reached out to pull her, but Golden Light stopped him.

[The person setting the questions and executing them shall not interfere with the independent review by the witness panel.]

Makino looked down at the black markings on her feet, and when she looked up, she said something to Lin Qi first.

"Don't interfere."

Lin Qi's hand stopped in front of the Golden Light.

On the Sky Screen, new review questions have been displayed.

[Independent review by Civilian Witness Seat]

[Question: Did Makino lose her eligibility as a civilian witness because of her long-standing acquaintance with Lin Qi?]

The first internal trial of the World Witness Seat has begun.