The Scarlet Earl: Parting Ways

"Wow, Robin, you defeated Rob Lucci?" X 2

Nami and Usopp, who was lying on the spider stretcher, were both surprised. After all, Lucci was an opponent that Luffy had to use cheat Luffy to beat back then. As for Robin... although it's a bit rude to say it, she is not good at one-on-one fighting. It's a miracle that she was able to defeat Lucci in one-on-one!

"To be precise, Mr. Lucci deliberately lost to me."

Even without Haki, Lucci is still a renowned close-combat master on this sea, relying on the Six Powers! Even two years ago, Lucci wasn't easy to deal with, and most importantly:

"From beginning to end, Mr. Lucci did not use his Devil Fruit powers."

"So the only one I defeated was Mr. Lucci, who didn't have Devil Fruit ability or Haki. — But even though he was a puppet, he felt just like the real Mr. Lucci."

To be fair, the Straw Hat crew all know that CP9, led by Rob Lucci, isn't 'bad guys,' and they're currently working for Roman. Especially given the recent confrontation with Big Mom, Roman has already sent them all to the East Blue to protect his family, just in case. Therefore:

"I was wondering how I ended up back on Enies Lobby and was attacked by Mr. Lucci. Was it all just an illusion?"

"Although it's an illusion, it's a real environment until it's shattered. Falling into the sea will cause you to suffocate, and falling into lava will burn you. So never let your guard down."

As the group continued forward, the surrounding environment soon changed to:

"Hey, isn't this Fish-Man Island?"

After all, it was a place I hadn't been in for long; the familiar underwater environment was filled with colorful coral formations. —Meanwhile:

"Roman, Nami, Zoro, Robin,"

Luffy waved happily in their direction from afar.

"I'm so glad you're all alright!"

"What about me?!"

Lying on the self-propelled 'Paper Dance Spider Stretcher', Usopp, on his deathbed, suddenly sat up! "I've just bled and been injured, you can't treat me like this!"

"Hehehe, aren't you full of energy?"

·········

"Looks like you've found quite a few partners."

Behind Luffy were Franky, covered in smoke and grime, Carrot, looking dejected, and Pedro, who was smoking. Nami, curious, asked them:

What kind of opponents did you encounter?

"Waaaaah, Nami ~~"

Carrot threw herself into Nami's arms.

"When someone ran into Wanda, they got a really bad beating!"

"Hmph, you know they're the enemy and you can't even fight them, yet you still have the nerve to call yourself a warrior of Zou?"

The one-eyed jaguar ranger glared at the bunny girl. If he hadn't arrived in time, Carrot was only hiding and dodging when facing 'Wanda,' would have been in danger.

"If it were Wanda, it would be normal for Carrot to lose."

Wanda is like an older sister to Carrot. Even disregarding strength, Carrot's inability to fight back makes victory impossible.

"Franky, Pedro, who are your opponents?"

When asked about Roman's question, Franky shrugged, looking relaxed.

"I encountered 'Caesar Clown' from Punk Hazard, what a terribly annoying enemy."

"I encountered Baron Tamago, a combatant of the BIG MOM Pirates. This time..." Jaguar touched his left eye, which was covered by his bangs, "Although he's just a clone, I guess I've avenged this eye."

"So, now we still have Sanji, Brulee, Chopper, Brook, Jinbe..."

Just as Luffy was counting heads on his fingers, a steady voice came from the giant coral next to him.

"I'm here."

As the towering Jinbe jumped down from the coral, he glanced at his companions in front of him: although Sanji was not there, Jinbe had already vaguely guessed the truth, after all, he had just encountered someone who could not possibly be there.

"This isn't Fish-Man Island, it's some other place, isn't it?"

"That's right, and everyone we meet here could be an 'illusion'..."

Roman stepped forward and briefly explained the current situation to Jinbe, who nodded in agreement.

"I see, no wonder I said Sanji wasn't the type to poison food. But—"

Jinbe looked up at his companions.

"How do I know if you are 'illusions'? After all, according to Roman, illusions have the same thoughts, abilities, and even memories as the original."

"Of course, it's all about 'feeling'!"

Roman waved his hand, dismissing Luffy's answer— Luffy, born with the ability to 'Voice of All Things,' could certainly rely on his 'feelings,' but others didn't have that ability. However:

Boom--

Cold and arrogant! Protective and warm!

Two different auras mingled and rose from Roman's body, while a layer of metallic light covered his entire body.

"Copycats don't have an aura of Haki unless the 'The Red Earl,' who is the mastermind behind all this, bestows it upon them. But such Haki would not match the original owner's temperament, and the difference can be detected by carefully sensing it."

"····I see,"

Jinbe nodded, and at the same time, a metallic sheen emanated from his body. Clearly, he was proving his identity.

"Hehehe, welcome back, Jinbe!"

"By the way, who is the opponent you encountered here...?"

"Just a madman blinded by false hatred," Jinbe waved his hand Jinbe. No matter how much drugs Hody Jones was on, he couldn't possibly be a match for him. The 'BOSS' of this level had been Jinbe dealt with by Jinbe.

"Then let's continue—"

"That's really impressive,"

?!

Brush - X3

In an instant, Luffy, Roman, and Zoro simultaneously whirled around, their fists, swords, and katana attacking mercilessly behind them! But:

All three attacks missed! Because:

"Don't get excited, young man."

?!!

This time, the sound came from...

"Front!"

When the three main fighters turned around again, a tall man stood not far in front of the Straw Hat crew. He wore red suit trousers, a red robe, and a huge blue rose on his chest. Although his hair was white, his confident smile was full of wicked charm.

"Who are you·····"

"Boss Red!"

The little Tanuki Pajon happily ran towards the other person, making it clear to everyone that the old man was who he was.

'The Red Earl' Patrick Redfield!

"Is it you?"

Zoro pointed his katana at his opponent.

"Setting up these playful battles along the way?"

"What is your purpose?"

Luffy, on the other hand, is much more direct; if he doesn't understand something, he just asks the other person.

"What I want is the 'thing' inside your brains."

"Why!?"

Luffy clutched his head in horror; someone actually wanted his brain...

"Did you think we were going to eat 'monkey brains'?"

Roman couldn't help but complain, "It's obvious they want our 'memories'!"

"That's right,"

Following 'pirate custom', the Red Earl opposite him first introduced his abilities.

"My innate Observation Haki is extremely strong; it's like background noise... I can hear the inner thoughts of others. And then—"

The scene flashed before Roman, and he instinctively donned the White Knight! Before anyone else could react, Luffy 'suddenly' dodged to the side! But a hand still landed on his head.

"Is Haki to have Future Sight?"

Luffy did indeed 'foresee' The Red Earl's actions, but the Red Earl simultaneously 'read' Luffy 'Future Sight. And his speed was too fast! Even though Luffy had dodged in advance, his hand still changed direction halfway and touched the top of Luffy's head.

Of course, this was just about speed, not lethality! But it was enough, even if:

"One-Sword Style: Iai: Death - Lion Song!"

"Momo - 60x Electromagnetic Acceleration Sword!"

Brush--

Two violent and ferocious attacks passed in front of Luffy! Two huge sword marks hundreds of meters long were instantly left on the ground, but their target had instantly retreated to its previous position.

"Like this, I can even read a person's memories."

"The environment and enemies you encounter are all manifestations of what I wrote your memories on leaves."

Wow, that's fast!

What exactly is your purpose?

Facing the serious Luffy, the Red Earl, who was holding an umbrella in one hand, gently patted his cloak with the other.

"The answer is simple: I just wanted to test my 'props'."

?

"As a newbie, you've been through quite a few big events, Straw Hat Luffy."

"Thanks to you, I've also gained access to important characters like 'Neptune,' 'Vivi,' and 'King Riku,' fantastic material..."

?!

"This is really bad; they could easily stage a repeat of Alabasta..."

Robin was the first to realize that Mr. 2 Bon Clay's Mane Mane no Mi was one of the key reasons for the success of Crocodile's plan back in Baroque Works. And the Red Earl's ability went even further, creating clones that were difficult even for his closest confidants to detect...

This is terrifying to think about!

What exactly are you up to?

Nami had already opened the book in her hand. Whether it was Vivi, Rebecca, or Shirahoshi, they were all members of the Straw Hat crew. The Alabasta incident must not be allowed to repeat itself.

"If I had to pinpoint my goal: I want to become king."

The Red Earl spread his hands.

"That is, 'King of the Pirates'!"

!

In an instant, Luffy charged forward without a second thought! His clenched fist lashed out without hesitation.

"I'm the one who's going to become the King of the Pirates—?"

"Your heart is too upright."

!?

The voice of the Red Earl came from behind Luffy, and at the same time, a merciless kick sent Luffy flying hundreds of meters away into a coral building with a loud 'boom'.

"Three-Sword Style: Ultimate - Bull Needle!"

Three samurai swords charged forward like demons, their blades extending into three long, bluish-green beams, each over ten meters long. A suffocatingly fierce aura spread out, filling the Fish-Man Island Plaza, which had once held tens of thousands of people.

With a piercing whistle as the blade tore through the air, the chilling bull horn, carrying a sharp glint of light, pierced towards the Red Earl first, its intense killing intent and ghostly aura chilling and suffocating.

"Bullet Wave - Bullet Rain!"

Meanwhile, Jinbe, with the greatest environmental Jinbe, reached out and grabbed, instantly unleashing seawater from the nearby river that blasted towards the Red Earl like countless high-pressure water cannons! He attempted to restrict Red Earl's space from all directions. However:

"A weak attack!"

He suddenly swung the umbrella in his hand, and the sharp, blood-red sword energy expanded outwards in all directions like a ring.

Pfft!

The enormous, crimson sword light easily engulfed Zoro's sword light and Jinbe's water cannon, then mercilessly continued to expand, instantly splitting the massive plaza, which held tens of thousands of people, in two. Then, seemingly unsatisfied, it continued its journey, cleaving the adjacent ocean in two, creating a deep, bottomless chasm. Seawater then poured into these chasms, instantly creating violent whirlpools and tsunamis...

As the attack struck, Zoro and Jinbe were forced to raise their swords and arms in defense, and were sent flying backward by the massive crimson sword light! If even they were affected, then the others were even more so:

"Paper Dance - Momo - 10x Haki Compressed Wall!"

Clang!!

While his shielding ability was undoubtedly invincible, the Straw Hat crew's formation... spread out in a row, making it impossible for Roman to use his shielding ability to cover everyone. Therefore, he had to use double-layered Haki to withstand the attack.

Fortunately, this sword strike dealt area-of-effect damage, so Roman wasn't completely unable to withstand it. However, unlike Zoro and Jinbe, who only needed to defend themselves, Roman was facing a massive 'wall,' which inadvertently increased the impact range he was exposed to. The Red Earl's sword strike left his hands numb from the shock.

"This is so disappointing..."

The power of a single sword strike can cleave islands and shatter the sea!

Even without the so-called 'copying' ability, the Red Earl is still one of the strongest individuals in this world.

"I might as well just kill you all here."

?!

"Boss,"

The little raccoon next to him stepped forward in surprise, trying to stop the Red Earl.

"There's no need to kill them..."

After spending so many days together, Pato had grown to love the Straw Hat crew's relaxed, cheerful, and loving atmosphere. He had always thought his master was just 'playing' with the Straw Hat crew, but now it seemed...

·····

"Pato, come here."

As the little raccoon ran towards the Red Earl, it transformed into a giant pen and fell into the Red Earl's hand. The Red Earl used this 'pen' to write memories on a leaf, ignoring the Straw Hat crew who were on high alert.

"In order to achieve our goal, we must give up some unrealistic things."

"The path I'm about to embark on is a 'path of carnage'..."

?

Amidst the bewildered gazes of the Straw Hat crew, the Red Earl tossed the leaf in his hand upwards, and with a thud, it transformed into:

A raccoon wearing a pink hooded coat!

The appearance of Pato.

And the real Pato—

With a gentle toss forward, the pen in my hand fell to the ground and turned into Pato.

"Boss...?"

"He's enough for me,"

The Red Earl placed the copied 'Pato' on his shoulder, then looked down at the little raccoon that had once accompanied him.

"I don't need you on my future path."

"Why!?"

Goodbye, Pato.

Brush--

With a flash of crimson light, the Red Earl left with his 'Pato'.