Third Personality

Night fell in utter silence.

Lying on the bed, Longinus calmly opened his eyes, straightened up, and sat down. The Seven Star Sword, radiating a ghostly green light, drilled out of his palm, its blade giving a soft hum.

"Three years have passed, and you still haven't given up? Every time I use your power, you make me relive that nightmare from three years ago. But... you should know that Allen is me... yet I am not Allen!"

"He's only a part of my soul, Demi... I'll get him back, but only after I gain control of the power I possess!"

The ghostly green light gradually dimmed, and the hum grew quieter and quieter. Then the blade melted back into Longinus's body.

Longinus paid it no mind. Compared to three years ago, this demonic weapon had become much more obedient. In the end, it was nothing more than a mindless idiot.

At present, he possessed an absolutely rational Main Personality, as well as two secondary personalities completely controlled by the Main Personality.

He called the secondary personality formed from Allen's soul fragment the Kind Personality. This was also the foundation of his confidence in joining the Marines. When it came to acting, who could outdo one's true self?

Moreover, in the state of the Kind Personality, he could perfectly display this body's natural talent.

It was the innate Observation Haki shared by Aisha of Sky Island and Queen Otohime of Fish-Man Island. When the other party was off guard, it could even see through their heart.

Although it couldn't compare to Big Mom's absurd talent, it was still an extremely advantageous start by any standard.

As for the otherworldly soul that had crossed through time and space, it not only knew the future trajectory of this world, but also served as the host inhabited by the Seven Star Sword, possessing an extremely terrifying killing intent. He called it the Slaughter Personality.

This personality was also the root of his strength, because... the lives slain by the Seven Star Sword had even their vitality and souls devoured, ultimately nourishing Longinus's body in return.

The main reason he had been able to strengthen his physique to the point of matching a Zoan Devil Fruit User in just three years was that... there were hardly any Sea Kings left in the surrounding waters.

This was precisely why Longinus had no intention of eating a Devil Fruit. Since he already possessed a stable and reliable source of strength, why give up the entire sea for the sake of a single Devil Fruit?

After all, Longinus knew that near Fish-Man Island, ten thousand meters beneath the sea, there were super-giant Sea Kings measuring several thousand meters in length. They were his greatest reliance for reaching the summit of the world.

As for souls... the effect of Sea Kings was far inferior to that of humans. Of course, he was mainly referring to the souls of strong individuals.

That was why Longinus had set his sights on Impel Down and wanted to use his identity as a Marine to find opportunities for slaughter.

With an absolutely rational Main Personality, he could not only switch between soul states at any time, but also, when he created a new identity in the future, ensure that even the most profound Observation Haki could not see through his disguise.

Furthermore, under the pressure of his soul, tripled in strength, the Main Personality possessed an effect similar to a leader's aura. Otherwise, those Young Cadets wouldn't have treated every word he said as gospel.

Although this leader-like aura only worked on people whose spiritual will was far weaker than his own, Longinus saw it as eliminating his final concern about joining the Marines— the Celestial Dragons.

Longinus knew very well that unless he defected from the Marines like those transmigrators who seemed to flee at the drop of a hat, the problem of the Celestial Dragons was a major dilemma no Marine could avoid.

With the suppression of his soul, at least he wouldn't have to worry about killing a Celestial Dragon out of impatience.

In Longinus's view, unless one could overthrow the World Government, killing a Celestial Dragon would accomplish nothing. It would only make things worse. Even if the killer was strong enough to escape the pursuit of a Marine Admiral, the people he had "saved" would suffer even greater hardships because of the Celestial Dragons' resentment.

Longinus did not consider himself a good person, but he had even less disdain for becoming a hypocrite who waved the banner of goodness while committing evil deeds.

In short, he had no intention of killing a Celestial Dragon. But if his other identity killed one, that had nothing to do with him.

After all, Lu Xun once said that, legally speaking, an alias and the original identity were two independent individuals!

The next day, golden sunlight tore through the clouds and shone upon the sea, while the gentle breeze brushed across everyone's smiling faces.

People who had experienced life and death were always stronger than before. Although the gloom brought by death had yet to disperse, they had managed to survive the Giant Rhinoceros Pirates and even carried out an incredible counterattack. Compared to the towns slaughtered by the Giant Rhinoceros Pirates, they were already extremely fortunate.

And all of this was thanks to one person— a former outsider!

"Longinus, we really have you to thank for yesterday!" the mayor said, half ashamed and half grateful. "Or rather, we've had you to thank for everything these past three years!"

"If you and everyone else hadn't rescued me three years ago, I would have died of exhaustion after struggling against the waves. How could I have lived until today?" Longinus shook his head, refusing to take credit.

"That's right! The luckiest thing that ever happened to Falling Leaf Town was finding you washed up on the shore three years ago and bringing you back to town," the mayor said with a sigh.

The people of the town had gathered here not only to continue yesterday's celebration, but more importantly, to see Longinus off.

"Big Brother Longinus, you have to come back and visit us often!" a little boy with a runny nose said reluctantly.

"What are you talking about? Big Brother Longinus is going to become a Marine Admiral. A big shot like that will be busy capturing evil pirates every day. How would he have time to play with a little brat like you?" Baki waved his hand. In his mind, a Marine Admiral was certainly a great hero who devoted every moment of his life to justice.

Longinus merely smiled, unwilling to shatter the beautiful fantasy in his heart.

"Then I... when I grow up, I'm going to join the Marines too! I'll fight like Big Brother Longinus and protect everyone like Big Brother Longinus!" The little boy wiped away his mucus and waved his small hand as he declared "heroically."

In response to the townspeople's blessings, Longinus laughed freely. "Well then... everyone, I'll be leaving now. If nothing unexpected happens, I should join the Marines G2 Branch. If you ever need anything, come find me there!"

Nearly all the townspeople waved goodbye through their tears. "Longinus, you have to work hard and become a Marine Admiral! Falling Leaf Town may not be your hometown, but we'll always be proud of you!"

Longinus waved his hand and strode toward the sea without looking back.

The few pirates who had survived by sheer luck because they knew how to operate a ship followed timidly behind Longinus and boarded a vessel that had originally belonged to the Giant Rhinoceros Pirates.

They lowered the sails and took the helm. The ship carrying Longinus gradually vanished beyond the coastline.

One last note: a reader asked yesterday whether this was a story with two male protagonists. Of course not. Those two guys died yesterday (﹡o﹡). The protagonist is a brand-new consciousness born from the fusion of those two souls— namely, the absolutely rational Main Personality. The two secondary personalities are completely controlled by him, and there won't be any melodramatic personality-splitting plotlines in the future either (●''●).