The Mark of a Betrayer
"AAAAAGH—"
Teach clutched his forehead and rolled around on the raft, his screams sending ripples across the dark seawater.
After the pitch-black light entered his skin, it branded a distinct mark in the center of his forehead.
It was a design made up of crossed bones and a cracked heart, black as ink and especially conspicuous against his dark skin.
"Captain."
Lafitte took a few steps closer, and after getting a clear look at the mark, a rare look of gravity appeared on his face.
"This mark really can't be concealed. I tried covering it with a hat, but it seems to show through any covering."
"What?"
Teach grabbed his cloak and pulled it over his head, but the black light of the mark shone straight through the fabric, as if the cloth didn't exist at all.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it."
Teach tore at the skin on his forehead like a madman, but the mark didn't budge.
More frightening still was what the punishment's description said: anyone who saw the mark could sense the betrayal this person had committed.
What did that mean?
It meant that from now on, anyone who saw his face would instinctively know he was a betrayer.
How could he recruit subordinates now?
How could he form his own pirate crew?
Who would be willing to risk their lives following a man the whole world knew to be a betrayer?
Teach could no longer laugh.
The rest of the world, meanwhile, was cheering.
In taverns across the islands, pirates raised their glasses in celebration.
"Serves him right. That's how traitors should be treated."
"Thirty years undercover? Someone like that is even more despicable than the Marines."
"Look at that mark on his forehead. Hahahaha, it's so ugly."
The Underworld betting houses slashed Teach's odds, dropping him from a leading candidate for the Four Emperors straight down to trash-tier.
No one had any faith in a pirate the whole world knew to be a betrayer.
At Marine Headquarters, Sengoku and Tsuru exchanged looks.
"This punishment is actually good news for us."
Vice Admiral Tsuru spoke in a grave tone as she analyzed the situation.
"Teach's plan for Impel Down has already been exposed, and now he's been branded a betrayer. He won't be able to stir up much trouble for a while."
"Don't celebrate too soon."
Sengoku's tone was icy.
"The fact that the livestream went after Teach doesn't mean it's on our side."
He glanced at the sky screen, his voice growing grave.
"Don't forget, it said the Ten Great War Criminals. Teach was only tenth."
"There are nine more ranked above him."
Those words changed the expressions of every senior Marine present.
"Could there be Marines among them?"
Kizaru finally grew serious, the fingers pushing up his sunglasses completely still.
No one answered him, because everyone knew the answer.
The very first question had dragged Garp out for a public execution. It would be a miracle if there weren't any Marines among the Ten Great War Criminals.
The image on the sky screen changed. After Teach's judgment ended, the system did not immediately move on to the next entry in the countdown.
Instead, a new line of text appeared.
[Given the large amount of key information involved in the countdown of the Ten Great War Criminals, the system will activate "supplementary information" mode to ensure sufficient information is provided, and conduct an in-depth analysis of each war criminal]
[Supplementary information: Marshall D. Teach and Impel Down]
[The following images show the list of prisoners Teach originally planned to release after breaking into Impel Down]
The sky screen began displaying information on the prisoners in Impel Down's Level 6 one by one.
Absalom the Corrupt King.
Vasco the Drunkard.
Catarina Devon the Brutal.
Sanjuan the Strongman.
Whenever a name appeared, the sky screen also displayed that person's bounty and past crimes.
This information made viewers around the world gasp.
"If these people are released, who knows what will happen?"
"Every one of them is a monster capable of destroying a country!"
"Teach wanted to release all of them and form his own pirate crew? Was he crazy?"
Inside Impel Down, Magellan's face turned extremely grim as he watched his prison's confidential information being made public on the sky screen.
"The list of Level 6 prisoners is top secret. There's no way the outside world could know this information."
He turned to Deputy Warden Hannyabal.
"Contact Marine Headquarters immediately and request reinforcements. Also, seal every passage to Level 6. I'll personally keep the keys."
"Warden, someone is already contacting them. The Red Hair Pirates have also sent a warning."
"Red Hair?"
Magellan frowned.
"Whatever his motives, our first priority is to prepare our defenses."
The East Blue, Foosha Village.
Lin Qi watched the various data and feedback popping up on the screen, looking as though he hadn't had enough.
"Watching that guy Teach get publicly humiliated was incredible. They dug up every one of his inner thoughts from thirty years undercover. The writer of this 'game' is amazing."
He tossed another peanut into his mouth.
"But if tenth place was already this explosive, what's ninth place going to be like?"
He rubbed his hands together and looked at the prompt on the system interface.
[Question setter, please select the ninth-ranked war criminal]
"Ninth place, huh?"
Lin Qi tilted his head and thought for a moment, a mischievous glint flashing in his eyes.
"Among the war criminals in the Paramount War, there's someone else besides Teach who was also very important."
"That guy who didn't die even after being stabbed by someone from the Whitebeard Pirates, and instead screwed Luffy over at a critical moment."
His fingers typed a name on the keyboard.
"Sengoku's dear grandson, a Marine Headquarters Colonel and a candidate to become a future Marine Admiral."
He pressed enter.
New words flickered into view on the sky screen.
[The Ten Great War Criminals, ninth place]
The whole world held its breath once more.