The One Left in the Coffin

"I have no idea."

The child was lifted onto the deck by Dr. Kuja; the cushions were not removed, and the splint on his right leg remained in place.

Boa Hancock stood two steps away.

"Treat them first, we'll check their identities later."

He just asked me who I am.

You can choose not to answer for now.

"But I want to know."

The Little Patch Red Knot was still wrapped around his wrist.

"The paper says consciousness resides within me, so why can you speak?"

The child looked down at his chest.

I wake up every day.

"From when?"

"After you left."

When did I leave?

"The coffin was opened once, and the red thread ran away. I called out from inside, but no one came back."

"Did anyone cough that day?" Mo'er asked.

"Have."

What did he say?

"Tell those who ran away not to look back."

The Little Patch shrank into a ball on the spool.

"I didn't hear you."

"Because you've already gotten into the Straw Hat."

Did he see me run away?

"He tucked the thread out."

Mo'er steadied himself on the edge of the table.

"The person who coughed recorded their consciousness in Straw Hat, but a part of their body still remained capable of perception."

Vegapunk examined the spare core structure.

"Long-term independent perception may form a new self; twenty-two years is enough."

The child asked, "Did I grow out later?"

That's one way to understand it.

"Whose body was it first?"

"The laboratory pieced together multiple birth records to replace Ace; it had no natural corresponding owner."

I've lived here for twenty-two years.

"It belongs to you now, provided you're willing to keep it."

"Don't cut it."

"I can't cut it."

"Don't put the Little Patch back in either."

Little Patch lifted the Red Knot.

"I didn't want it back."

You just said you wanted to see me.

Seeing you doesn't mean we'll get back together.

"It says on the paper that you can only keep one of the two."

"The paper also says Garp Receipt for it, but it's wrong."

The child stared at the red thread wrapped around his wrist.

What's your name?

"Little Patch."

Who took it?

I'll use it myself first, please write it down for me.

Why is it called that?

"I'm always the one who fills in for others."

Are you still going to get it done?

"No more repairs."

"Then why not change it?"

The Little Patch sits upright on the spool.

"This name came out with me, and I want to keep it."

The child should raise their wrist a little higher.

"Can I choose something different?"

"Certainly."

"I've remained in the coffin."

Don't call him "Little Liu".

"Why?"

"Sounds like half of me."

That's called Lingering Voice.

Mo'er looked up.

The child continued, "He sent the sound out, and I kept the rest."

Lin Qi opened the new Protection Page.

[Temporary protected name: Lingering Voice]

[Source: My own choice]

[Record separately from Little Patch]

[Forced merger prohibited]

The Throne immediately raised a conflict.

[The same experiment number must not generate two subjects]

"There can only be one identification number, but there can be two victims."

Robin separated the lines about body and consciousness on the paper.

"You actively separated them, allowing each side to exist for twenty-two years separately. You cannot forcibly erase one side after they have had the opportunity to express themselves."

The Throne replied.

[Consciousness copies do not possess independence]

Little Patch asked, "Who are you referring to as the instance?"

The page points an arrow to the Lingering Voice.

Lingering Voice clutched the blanket to her chest.

Why me?

"Because you remain inside my body."

Doesn't the body resemble the person more?

Little Patch changed his mind after saying that.

I'm not saying I'm the real person.

"Then who is it?"

"Let's not fight over it."

Lingering Voice untied one loop of the red thread on her wrist, but didn't loosen it completely.

Do you remember what's outside the coffin?

"I don't remember."

"I remember."

Do you remember what's inside the Straw Hat?

"I don't remember."

"I remember."

"Then each of us will take a section."

Lin Qi sets the questions.

How should the identities of two victims who, after being forcibly separated in an experiment, continue to develop independent wills, be confirmed?

[A: Only one side of the body should be retained]

[B: Only the consciousness record is retained]

[C: Force merge; if merge fails, destroy one of them]

[D: Separate protection, with both parties deciding for themselves whether to contact, cooperate, or remain separate in the future.]

"D."

Little Patch and Lingering Voice both spoke at the same time.

Garp pressed the button on the Navy Seat.

"Anyone who dares to choose one of the top three, come and talk to me first."

Sengoku said, "You are not a representative now."

"Akainu has already pressed it."

Akainu withdrew his hand.

"Navy Seat Option D: The identity conflict created by the experiment cannot be borne by the victims."

Long completed the confirmation of his Revolutionary Army Seat.

Makino asked for Lingering Voice.

Should we choose Kuja as the medical reception location?

I'm already here.

You can still refuse to register.

Lingering Voice looked at Boa Hancock.

"Will they lock children in coffins here?"

"Won't."

Do you have a cup?

"There is a cup for drinking water."

Is it black?

"You can replace them all."

"No, I was just asking."

Boa Hancock asked the doctor to show her the blank pages of the medical record.

"Whether to register is up to you."

Can I change my name after registering?

"Able."

"Then I'll go to Kuja first."

The Civilian Witness Seat choose option D.

Lumi confirmed the medical protection conditions.

Buggy pressed the final vote.

"The Pirate Seat agree; two separate orders should be issued for each entity, and the money should never be collected twice."

Nami asked, "Why do you always manage to get back to money?"

"These are basic rules for delivery personnel."

The five votes have been cast.

The spare core paper detached from the Little Patch Red Knot and split into two pages in mid-air.

One page retains all records from when Little Patch entered the Straw Hat.

Another page falls on the Lingering Voice record, filling in every breath and awakening over the past twenty-two years.

There is no ownership link between the two pages.

Only one communication line was left open, which could only be activated with the consent of both parties.

Lingering Voice touched her wrist.

"If I turn it off now, will you disappear?"

"Won't."

"I'll give it a try."

The communication line went out.

The Little Patch remains on the spindle.

The Lingering Voice was restarted.

"It's still there."

Why would I lie to you?

"They often say that too."

"If I say something wrong in the future, you can turn it off."

Lingering Voice pulled her hand back under the blanket.

After the backup core on the White Ship failed, a large section of the stitches on Blank's body came undone.

More than seventy Black Cups were restored to being struck independently.

A Sha immediately began asking questions one by one.

"Those who can hear should not ask the children first, but rather ask themselves whether they want to leave the boat."

A cup tapped.

The other one knocked twice.

Zixuan registration assistance.

One "I'm willing to move," two "I'll stay for now," and three "I need to explain further."

The removal speed increased again.

642.

710.

Eight hundred and three.

Nami stared at the frozen time.

"Six hours left, at the current pace it's still not enough."

Blank said, "The people at the bottom of the ship can wake them up."

Mo'er looked at the Lingering Voice.

"Have you seen him?"

Never seen his face before.

Where is he?

"Under the coffin."

"Still alive?"

Lingering Voice touched an old mark on his chest.

"He knocks on my head every time I wake up."

Did you knock today?

"No."

The Little Patch answers the call on the reel.

He coughed.

"When?"

"When the Lingering Voice came out."

Mo'er unfolded the seventh line of Paper Thread again.

The Echo of coughing in the black water overlapped with the data from the White Ship, the source of which was located directly below coffin number 1,968.

Vegapunk rotated the projector.

The bottom of the White Ship is not a complete hull plank.

At the deepest part, a narrow coffin lay horizontally, its exterior wrapped with red thread bearing the names of the deceased.

The half of the Chinese character Ace is also included.

Lingering Voice, "Is he still waiting for Ace?"

"Not necessarily."

Mo'er looked at the old maintenance number on the narrow coffin.

He was hiding the names of all the children who were found.

A cough came from inside the White Ship.

Then came the second sound.

The narrow coffin was not opened.

The people inside only knocked on the bottom of the boat three times.

After Lingering Voice, he lifted the blanket and tried to sit up.

Boa Hancock raised her hand to signal the doctor not to stop her.

"Do you understand?"

He said, "Don't save him."

"Why?"

The fourth strike landed.

The lid of the entire White Ship was closed tightly inwards.

Lingering Voice stared at the bottom of the boat, his lips moving twice before he finally uttered a sound.

He said that once he comes out, all the names will return to the children.