A thin yet sturdy iron wire moved rhythmically through the keyhole of the handcuffs as Caesar Clown's hands trembled nonstop.
For someone as intelligent as Caesar Clown, a simple skill like picking locks was hardly difficult.
Click!
In the silent cell, a crisp sound came from inside the handcuff lock.
Caesar Clown jumped in fright, but the handcuffs restraining him also sprang open.
The instant the Seastone handcuffs came off, Caesar Clown anxiously scanned his surroundings.
When he saw that the Den Den Mushi monitoring the cell showed no reaction—
"Phew, that scared the hell out of me. This was even more dangerous than conducting an experiment."
He wiped the sweat from his forehead.
Then, using the same method he had used on the handcuffs, he unlocked the shackles on his feet as well.
The moment another crisp click rang out—
With excitement in his eyes, Caesar Clown pretended to walk into a surveillance blind spot before turning his back.
As he quickly removed the handcuffs and shackles—
The weakness caused by the Seastone immediately vanished.
Feeling that he could freely use his Devil Fruit ability again—
"Hypnosis Gas."
White smoke instantly filled the entire cell.
As the surveillance Den Den Mushi was hypnotized—
Caesar Clown immediately transformed into his elemental form and swiftly flew toward a gap in the ship.
Ding ding ding!
The emergency assembly alarm rapidly rang throughout the warship transporting prisoners.
The chaotic footsteps reflected the panic of every Marine aboard.
Large amounts of poisonous gas continuously surged through the interior of the warship.
Just as the entire warship descended into utter chaos—
Caesar Clown, fully transformed into his elemental form, sped at full speed toward the outskirts of the Vortex Triangle Sea Area.
If he had been on a ship, he would certainly have been trapped in these strange currents.
But for a flying Logia Devil Fruit user, currents that could affect ships were useless.
Caesar Clown needed to leave this sea area as quickly as possible, for no other reason than that Marine Headquarters was far too close.
As a scientist once specially hired by the World Government, Caesar Clown knew exactly how terrifying those monsters in the Marines were.
Although he had escaped the greatest danger, he could not let down his guard even in his excitement.
"Shurororororo, I finally escaped! Beautiful freedom, a beautiful future—Caesar Clown is here!"
He let out wild laughter as he fled.
Thinking of his upcoming cooperation with Doflamingo, as well as all his plans for the future—
Caesar Clown sank into a fantasy, one in which he had already surpassed Vegapunk and become the greatest in the world.
Just as he happily prepared to head for the designated location according to his agreement with Doflamingo—
While Caesar Clown was immersed in his fantasies and failed to notice, white mist had begun to appear around him at some point.
When the mist changed from a thin layer into a dense fog that made it difficult to see ahead—
"Huh? What's going on? Why is there such a thick fog? Is this some new geographical phenomenon?"
He halted. The changes in his surroundings had clearly aroused Caesar Clown's suspicion.
Just as he prepared to fly higher into the sky to avoid the dense fog—
"Mr. Caesar, you really flew fast. I nearly couldn't catch up to you."
The sudden voice behind him made Caesar Clown's entire body tense.
"Did the Marines catch up? Impossible. How could they be this fast?"
Countless thoughts instantly shattered Caesar Clown's earlier fantasies.
"Who's there?"
As sweat instantly soaked his back, violent Poison Gas abruptly spread around him.
"Oh my, Mr. Caesar, don't be so nervous!
First, I'm not here to capture you. Second, I only came here because I want you to become my lackey."
Caesar Clown abruptly pulled away.
When he turned around, he saw a young man dressed in casual clothes standing before him.
The moment he heard that the man was not here to capture him, Caesar Clown let out a huge sigh of relief.
But before his anger could rise at the word "lackey"—
"Reaper's Sound."
A sound resembling the footsteps of the Reaper suddenly spread across the sea.
Standing opposite Roy, Caesar Clown felt a sudden wave of dizziness wash over his head.
The terrifying sound waves made him feel as though he could truly see the Reaper approaching.
Caesar Clown's gaze went blank for an instant.
"Cloud Burst Heavenly Star."
Massive amounts of sea clouds floating in the sky instantly began gathering around Caesar Clown.
A huge ball of sea clouds dozens of meters in diameter quickly enclosed Caesar Clown.
Caesar Clown, who had been dazed for an instant, saw this.
"What was that just now? Conqueror's Haki?"
Bullying the weak, fearing the strong, and being greedy for life and afraid of death—this was Caesar Clown's true nature.
The terrifying sound waves just now had made Caesar Clown feel as though he had seen death itself.
"No, I'm definitely no match for this guy. I have to escape quickly."
Suppressing his trembling body, Caesar Clown came back to his senses.
He suddenly discovered that everything around him had grown dim.
Roy's earlier test had indeed robbed the cowardly Caesar Clown of any courage to resist.
After deciding to flee at all costs, he chose a direction he could barely make out.
"Void World."
Caesar Clown had originally intended to absorb and empty all the mist.
But even Caesar Clown had not expected that the mist around him was entirely composed of sea clouds containing Seastone particles.
As Caesar Clown used his ultimate move—
Roy watched with a baffled expression.
Caesar Clown was instantly restricted by the Seastone particles he had absorbed, then fell straight into the denser sea clouds below.
"Damn, I thought he'd struggle a little, but that was it?"
Watching Caesar Clown, who was about to fall into the sea—
Roy rubbed his head.
"I wonder if this counts as walking into the trap."
Before you continue