Never to Be Forgotten Again
The line of golden text on the Sky Screen hung in the sky above the entire world, shining brighter than any previous verdict.
[Now, he will never be forgotten again]
The words remained there for five full seconds. For those five seconds, no one spoke or moved.
Then the system's rewards began to appear, line by line.
[Reward recipient: Mr. 2 Bon Clay]
[As Bon Clay remains imprisoned on Level 5 of Impel Down in the current timeline and has yet to make the sacrifice he made in the original timeline, the system has determined that he is eligible to receive rewards directly]
When that line appeared, there was a stir in the cells deep within Impel Down.
Ace jerked his head up.
"He's on Level 5?"
Jinbe opened his eyes as well, a light in his gaze.
"That boy Bon Clay is in this very prison."
"Just a few levels above us."
The rewards continued to scroll across the Sky Screen.
[Reward one: The title Flower of Friendship. This title grants a permanent passive ability. When Bon Clay fights to protect his companions, the transformation effects of his Mane Mane no Mi will break through their original limits, allowing him to copy a target's physical combat skills and Haki strength at the same time for thirty minutes]
Fruit ability researchers around the world all gasped at this reward.
The Mane Mane no Mi had originally been able to copy only appearances. Now it could copy physical combat skills and Haki as well.
That meant that as long as Bon Clay had touched someone's face, he could become a copy of them with identical combat strength for thirty minutes.
"The upper limit of this ability depends on whose faces he's touched." On an island somewhere in the New World, Eustass Kid stared at the Sky Screen, his brow knotted.
"What if he's touched an Admiral's face?"
Killer stood behind him, his voice low beneath his mask.
"Then he can become an Admiral."
"An Admiral for thirty minutes."
The second reward appeared on the Sky Screen.
[Reward two: The system will open a temporary safe passage for Bon Clay inside Impel Down. The passage will activate in twenty-four hours, at which time Bon Clay may choose to leave Impel Down or travel to the location of any one of his companions]
The world fell silent for a beat.
Then it erupted.
"He can get out!"
"The man in the swan costume can get out!"
"The system opened a way out for him!"
In the Sabaody Archipelago, Luffy sprang to his feet when he saw the reward.
"Bon Clay can get out!"
His voice was so loud that even the nearby trees shook.
Zoro leaned against a wall, the corner of his mouth twitching.
"In twenty-four hours."
"It says he can go to wherever any one of his companions is."
"Who does it mean by companions?"
Luffy glanced at him and smiled.
It was a simple, direct smile, the kind of happiness that needed no explanation.
"I'm Bon Clay's companion."
In the freezing hell of Level 5 of Impel Down, Bon Clay curled up in a corner, a thin layer of frost covering his body and white ice crystals crusting his swan leotard.
He looked up at the small projection of the Sky Screen on the ceiling of his cell, tears and snot frozen into bits of ice on his face.
"My name."
His voice trembled, not from the cold, but from something else.
"The whole world saw my name."
Several prisoners beside him were also half frozen to death. One of them gave him a hard nudge with his elbow.
"Hey, swan man, that's you up there, right?"
"That's me."
"You're the one who opened the gate for Straw Hat?"
"Not yet. That's in the future." Bon Clay wiped the ice from his face with his sleeve, but as he wiped, he started crying again.
"But if that day really comes, I'll still do it."
"Are you crazy? Locking yourself in Level 6?"
Bon Clay didn't answer. He stared at the description of the safe passage reward on the Sky Screen, his lips trembling for quite a while. Then his mouth spread wide.
He smiled.
It was exactly the same smile he had worn in the scene shown on the Sky Screen.
There were tears and snot, and it was messy and not pretty at all.
But there was something about that smile that made it impossible to look away.
"Straw Hat."
He spoke softly to the little projection on the ceiling.
"Wait for me."
The rewards on the Sky Screen ended there, but the system did not immediately switch to a preview of the next regret.
Instead, it showed an additional scene.
The scene was short, lasting only a dozen or so seconds.
It showed Bon Clay saying goodbye to Luffy in Alabasta.
Luffy stood on one ship and Bon Clay on another, the two ships moving farther and farther apart.
Bon Clay held up his arm, marked with a large circle with a cross inside it. It was the mark of their friendship.
"We'll meet again someday!"
He shouted into the sea breeze, and the wind carried away half his words, but Luffy heard him.
Luffy raised his arm too, bearing the same mark.
"We will!"
The scene froze on the two of them, the sea between them growing wider, each raising an arm and smiling.
The Sky Screen displayed one final line of text.
[Friendship needs no reason, nor does it need anything in return]
[All it needs is for two people, when they part, to believe they will meet again]
People around the world watched the words, and many made a sound that was part laughter, part sigh.
It was a warm sound.
In the tavern, Lin Qi watched the global emotion data panel on the screen. All the values were moving in a very healthy direction: sadness had fallen, being moved remained high, and joy and hope were rising together.
"Perfect."
He nodded in satisfaction, picked up a fresh can of beer, and pulled the tab.
"Bon Clay's episode depends on his characterization more than any other in the entire top ten regrets series."
"Rouge brought the tears with family love, Boa Hancock provided a change of pace with romance, and Bon Clay landed a critical hit with friendship."
"All three kinds of affection are covered. The audience's emotions have been kneaded into perfect submission."
He took a sip of beer and burped.
"All right, seventh place is done. Time for sixth."
He looked at the list recommended by the system and swiped his finger a few times.
"Sixth place."
His relaxed expression changed to something else, somewhere between seriousness and anticipation.
"This person's regret is even quieter than Bon Clay's."
"So quiet that even the original work covered it in just a few scenes."
"But those few scenes were enough to stay with me for a lifetime."
He pressed confirm.
The image of Bon Clay slowly faded from the Sky Screen, and new golden words began to gather in the night sky.
[Top ten regrets, sixth place, soon to be revealed]
[Hint: This regret concerns a promise that can never be kept, and a ship that waited twelve years on the other side of the Red Line]
Somewhere in the waters of the New World, a gigantic whale let out a long cry toward the Red Line.