Dignity, Freedom, and a Secret Maneuver

Impel Down, Level 6.

"Hey, am I seeing things?"

"No, I saw it too..."

"Hahaha, this is a once-in-a-millennium event!"

Amidst the clanking of chains, one after another, fierce-looking Great Pirates rushed to the cage, watching Roman, led by Magellan, riding a cloaked slave and wearing a bubble hood, arrogantly swaggering through the city.

With that look and that expression, he's definitely Celestial Dragons!

"Hahaha, to think we can see World Noble here? Do these spineless bastards think this is the Sabaody slave market?"

"This is a great opportunity to teach this young master a lesson—"

In an instant, an overwhelming aura of killing intent and hostility assaulted Roman from all directions! Although imprisoned and tormented, this sixth level held Great Pirates with fortunes exceeding hundreds of millions. Even through the cages, their imposing presence could instantly render an ordinary person an idiot! However:

"Ward Magellan,"

Roman casually turned his head to look at the tall figure to his left.

"The food in Impel Down is pretty good, isn't it? These scumbags still have the energy to glare. —Should I report a cut to Impel Down's military budget?"

"Please, please don't do that, Saint Roman."

The tall warden replied calmly, then turned his head and opened his mouth:

Puff!

A mouthful of venom was sprayed into the cell next to him. The World's Greatest poison instantly covered the face of a fierce-looking criminal, causing a terrifying scream to erupt from the cell.

"Aaaaaah, Magellan, you lackey of this World Government ~~~"

"Cough cough... Antidote... Give me the antidote..."

"Listen up, you scum!"

"I have the right and the ability to execute you on the spot, and you better remember that."

The towering warden surveyed the group, and the large group of notorious Great Pirates with bounties starting at hundreds of millions immediately felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over their heads. After all:

Magellan's venom... even a royal-level expert wouldn't want to withstand it physically. Besides, with everyone currently wearing Seastone handcuffs, their Haki Devil Fruit ability are greatly reduced. If they continue with their trash talk, they'll only suffer the consequences.

"This is where Ace is imprisoned, Saint Roman."

Amidst the angry but silent gazes of a group of Great Pirates and the thoughtful stares of top experts, Roman rode his cloaked mount to a cage.

"Ace, someone wants to see you."

"This is Celestial Dragons, Tokevich Saint Roman."

Facing Magellan's words from outside the iron cage, the man, whose arms were suspended by Seastone chains and who was sitting Pang Lei on the ground, slowly raised his head.

"I don't know anything about the sky—?!!"

"It's you!?"

Seeing Ace speechless with shock, Roman jumped off his mount and stepped forward.

"We meet again,"

"The son of the King of the Pirates."

After saying that Roman raised one hand and gestured to Magellan beside him.

"Warden, could you please open the cell door?"

"... This is against the rules, Saint Roman."

"Warden, I'm making a plea to you. You wouldn't want to see us talking to each other in 'commands,' would you?"

······

Click,

As the Seastone prison door opened, Roman looked once again at Magellan, who had a sour face.

"Then, could you give us a little time to talk alone?"

!

"You've crossed the line, Saint Roman."

Magellan lowered his eyelids, his aura, like that of a monstrous Arlong, rising with gurgling liquid! At this distance, he could easily kill Roman with a mere flick of his wrist if he so desired. But Roman remained completely unfazed:

"I know what I'm doing, Warden Magellan! Or rather—"

Roman raised his chin.

"You want to be the first warden to kill Celestial Dragons?"

!!

"All right,"

Seeing that Roman wouldn't budge an inch, Magellan turned and left with a dark expression. —As for the Great Pirates in the cages around them, even the most foolish among them wouldn't dare provoke the other side at this point.

As Magellan disappeared around the corner, Roman led the cloaked figure behind him into the prison.

"You... you were Celestial Dragons..."

Even after regaining his senses, Ace still couldn't believe his eyes as he looked at Roman, a crew member on his brother's ship.

The Devil Fruit user warned him in Alabasta and then let him escape on Banaro Island... could it be...? And judging from Magellan's submissive demeanor just now, even among the Celestial Dragons, he must be of a very high status!

"My identity is not important,"

Roman sighed as he looked at the man covered in wounds.

Has Vice Admiral Garp seen you?

"····Yes."

Did he offer you a spot in the navy?

"····Yes."

"So... you refused?"

"····Yes."

"Sigh, "Roman sighed again.

"Ace, you... I really don't know what to say."

"Now that things have come to this, you don't still have the naive idea that you can solve everything by dying, do you?"

Facing the silent Ace, Roman rubbed his hair. This guy was really... stubborn and inflexible. He wondered how Luffy could have such a slow-witted brother.

Of Luffy's three brothers, Sabo is the most rational, Ace the most reckless, Luffy is somewhere in between: being able to bend and stretch is what makes rubber... I'm getting ahead of myself.

"I came here originally to ask you if you regretted it. But seeing you like this, I'm too lazy to waste my time."

Snap,

With a snap of his fingers, a cloaked figure standing silently behind Roman removed his cloak, revealing:

A face exactly like Ace's!

???

"Hey, hey, hey, no way..."

"I've learned something new. Celestial Dragons actually came to openly 'break out of prison'?"

"Tsk tsk tsk, no wonder he's the son of the King of the Pirates, he's got connections everywhere~~~"

In the face of the sounds around him, Roman simply looked at Ace quietly.

"Your only fate is death! No matter how much you struggle, you can't change the fact that Whitebeard has fallen into a trap. So—"

"Why not spare your life? Whether it's to atone for your sins or to make amends, at least you'll have a chance to regret it."

Swish~~

Roman swiftly folded a piece of white paper into the shape of a key. —It must be said, most locks in this world are still at the oldest three-spring stage; Roman could open them in seconds.

"Come with me."

When Roman handed him the key, Ace stubbornly tilted his head away.

"Thank you, but—"

"Hahaha, the son of the King of the Pirates is someone's dog? This is truly a world wonder!"

"Ace, just give in to this Celestial Dragons guy! He almost turned against that old devil Magellan for you!"

"Oh, not bad at all. Seeing the 'son' of the King of the Pirates... no, I should say Whitebeard being ridden around by the Celestial Dragons, this life has been worthwhile!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, I'm starting to get a little envious, Celestial Dragons guy. Look at my muscles—"

"Get lost! She clearly 'likes' the delicate, pretty type~~"

Amidst the surrounding mockery and ridicule, time ticked by. Faced with the key Roman offered, Ace stubbornly kept his head down. Beside him, the blue-skinned Fish-Man — Jinbe, the Knight of the Sea —also sighed.

"Saint Roman".

A calm yet undeniably authoritative voice sounded from behind; Magellan had returned without anyone noticing.

"A futile attempt. Do you think this man would bow down to you Celestial Dragons?"

"No,"

Roman shook his head.

"I never expected him to bow down to me."

Roman was simply hoping that Ace would suddenly realize his responsibilities as a man.

Freedom is important? Face is important? Whitebeard's reputation is important? —Then the lives of the Whitebeard Pirates are not important? Vice Admiral Garp's more than ten years of nurturing and protection are not important? Rouge, who died after suppressing her pregnancy for two years for him, is not important? And Luffy, who is like a brother to him, is not important?

Would any one of these people want Ace to fight to the death here?

No! Absolutely not!!

As long as Ace's life could be saved, they would gladly go, even if it meant becoming a Marine or Celestial Dragons's lackey! On the other hand, Ace...

A man who is single-mindedly focused on his own stubborn desire to "repay a debt of gratitude" and his self-righteous sense of "dignity" is nothing but a piece of trash! He won't even bow his head for the sake of his family and friends.

Roman knew that when he was injured Awakening after Observation Haki, and when Nami was infected with the virus, Luffy knelt down before the people of the Drum Kingdom without hesitation in order to seek medical Luffy —even though they were just a group of weaklings that he could easily kill.

"Ace, you don't deserve to be Luffy's brother!"

You're just a little brother.

Splash—

The key in his hand transformed into a longsword, and in the instant everyone was stunned, Roman suddenly turned around and thrust it out!

Puff!!

The longsword pierced his chest, and the freckled, black-haired man opened his mouth blankly, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Roman, without hesitation, pulled out his sword and walked towards the outside of the cage.

"Get me out of here, Warden Magellan."

P. S.: I just accidentally typed the wrong chapter title yesterday; it doesn't affect reading...