Mock Town, the outlaws, who had been terrified and completely stunned by the fall from the ship, quickly fled towards the various entrances and exits after a brief moment of panic.
Those who ran to the exit crashed into the devastating gravity field, their faces contorted in despair.
And those who ran towards the entrance...
Seeing Gawain Rokumei Kotetsu and with a cold expression, the outlaws completely lost their guard.
"Ahhh, it's that Celestial Dragon!"
"He's insane! He's a madman! He's going to kill people!"
"Kneel down now!"
Thump...
In an instant, at least a third of the people knelt on the ground, and as they knelt, they frantically looked at the crowd around them.
"You all kneel down right now! Those are Celestial Dragon!"
"Kneel down now, I beg you, don't go crazy, or you'll be caught in Buster Call!"
"Damn it, if you want to die, don't take me with you!"
"Stop struggling, kneel down and beg for mercy! He won't kill us all; we haven't offended him!"
In an instant, countless wails reached the ears of the pirates who were still standing. Hearing the chaotic sounds, some of the pirates who were driven to madness by fear and panic finally rushed towards Gawain.
Gawain frowned slightly as he looked at the few scattered figures approaching.
Even though this is a lawless place, the Celestial Dragon's identity still carries immense deterrent power.
Keep in mind that at this very moment, at least 20,000 to 30,000 people have gathered in the streets and squares near the exit of Mock Town, a dense, endless mass of people.
But those who had the courage to rush towards him at the first moment were only thirty or forty staggering fellows...
As they charged, the first group of men who rushed out roared in fury!
But this roar wasn't directed at Gawain!
All that could be heard was their scattered shouts.
"Are you all crazy? They destroyed our ship! They just want to kill people! We've become the Celestial Dragon's toys!"
"Yes, we have to break through. If we all charge together, they won't be able to spare many people. Even if there's a monster like Dark King Rayleigh on the other side, it's impossible for him to kill tens of thousands of us in an instant!"
"Stop fucking kneeling! Stand up and charge with us! If we get out of that gate, we'll survive. After that, it's all down to luck!!!"
"Hurry up, run! Run away!!!"
Such shouts did indeed motivate a group of guys who neither knelt down nor charged forward, but stood trembling in place.
Those guys who were hesitant between the left and right sides split into several groups again after a moment of hesitation.
One group of people immediately ran in the opposite direction; since the front door was blocked, they went to the back door!
Of course, when they went to any of the exits, they only felt new despair.
Another group of people seemed to have lost all their strength, and followed the first one to kneel down to their knees.
This group knelt even more thoroughly than the first group, perhaps because they were worried that being late in kneeling would make them a target for Gawain.
They actually got caught up in the competition with the first group to kneel down!
They were frantically kowtowing, endlessly recounting their past mistakes, seemingly having instantly laid down their weapons and become enlightened...
This comical scene seemed to spur the last few people still standing to make up their minds, and so this last group of people frantically rushed towards the gate.
That's right, even at this point, they didn't dare raise their knives at Gawain; they still only wanted to escape!
At that moment, Gawain, who was carrying Rokumei Kotetsu, took a deep breath. He had really overestimated the pirates on the Grand Line!
But thinking about it, it makes sense. Even in the Sabaody Archipelago, a place where all the worst new generation pirates from the Four Blues gathered, when Luffy had already truly attacked the Celestial Dragon.
All the pirates in the Sabaody Archipelago were thinking about was escaping.
So...
Gawain gently waved the knife in his hand.
"Let's change the plan. Those who are kneeling will stay for investigation, and their fate will be decided based on their crimes."
As for all those standing... cut them down!
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain sprinted forward, charging all the way to the pirates who were trying to run towards the gate from his left.
Brush!
With a swift stroke, Gawain cleanly severed a head.
Behind him, Kuma followed like a shadow, Kuma gaze mainly fixed on each pirate carrying a gun!
That's right, Kuma's main defense is against the pirates' guns and cannons. For Gawain, who hasn't mastered Tekkai and Armament Haki Gawain, stray bullets and cannonballs are the most dangerous!
As for the close combat skills of these pirates...
Keep in mind that when Gawain left Amazon Lily, his fighting strength was enough to easily defeat pirates with bounties of seven or eight million.
After more than a month of rigorous training, Gawain's combat strength has now reached the level of Zoro when he first set sail.
That means he's still quite a distance from being a swordsman, but he can already handle a large portion of pirates with a bounty of less than 30 million!
Therefore, Kuma wasn't too worried about Gawain's safety in close combat.
And Gawain.
Even if he personally killed someone, the nearest group of pirates, after their initial shock, simply scattered and fled in all directions like a swarm of bees.
Nobody brandished a sword at Gawain!
After killing two more pirates, Gawain gently lowered his sword.
After flicking the blade to remove all the dust from the Rokumei Kotetsu, Gawain sheathed the sword.
The pirates who were fleeing rapidly past him and into the distance did not interest him in fighting at all.
At the same time, almost everyone else, like Gawain, stopped what they were doing.
For a moment, Gawain, Gion, Rayleigh, Kuma, and Hancock huddled together, looking boredly at the outlaws who were begging for mercy.
Of course, aside from them, the members of the Black Ice Terrace showed no mercy to any pirates who didn't kneel down.
Especially Lucci and Shiryu; when they get carried away with the killing, they'll casually kill a few guys kneeling on the ground...
The sound of blood splattering echoed continuously, and short screams rose and fell in succession. In less than ten minutes, the area near the entrance to Mock Town had been almost completely cleared out by Shiryu and Lucci.
Beside Gawain, Kuma silently calculated, and then, after the dust settled, he whispered to Gawain.
"There were approximately 27,000 people near the entrance, of whom about 3,000 did not kneel. More people continued to arrive, but once they did, most of them knelt down along with the others..."
"Yeah, they really did kneel down quite readily."
Gawain sighed and shook his head.
"I really wonder how they will treat the poor people kneeling before them when they encounter civilians they have plundered, or when they invade other islands and villages?"
At this point, Gawain gently patted Rayleigh on the shoulder.
"Rayleigh, sometimes I can understand Roger's decisions, whether I put myself in Roger's shoes or in the shoes of anyone other than the Celestial Dragon."
If they want to rebel, the only way is to make rebellion a trend.
However, as someone living in this era, I sincerely hope that this era will not be harmed by these people who are all bark and no bite, arrogant at first but obsequious at second.
Regardless of rise or fall, it is always the honest and law-abiding ordinary people who suffer. But why should they suffer?
Why are they always the ones who get hurt?
"Why..."
After hearing Gawain's words, Rayleigh also sighed deeply.
"If the Great Pirate Era continues, we might actually see the emergence of a hero qualified to take on and change everything."
But the price of this hero is what has kept me up at night for the past decade or so.
Even though I'm called the Dark King, I've gradually grown weary of the feeling of killing.
Maybe... I really am getting old?
"You're quite old, sir, but judging from your physique, you can still see the light of the new era!"
Gawain put his arm around Rayleigh's shoulder and whispered a word of comfort.
At the same time, Yi Xiao, holding the Gravity Blade, slowly approached Gawain's side.
"My lord, why don't I clear out a large enough open platform in the center of Mock Town to settle and deal with those trash who chose to kneel and surrender?"
"Okay, I'll do as you say."
Gawain nodded slightly.
Then, with a slight tilt of his head, a circular open space with a diameter of about 500 meters suddenly appeared in the center of Mock Town, three kilometers away from here.
That was achieved by gravity crushing all the buildings and pirates in that area into dust!
Amidst the rising dust and noise, Yi Xiao gently raised his right hand again, and in that instant, all the people kneeling near the entrance floated and flew to the center of Mock Town.
As for Shiryu and Lucci, one licked his paws contentedly, and the other excitedly wiped his knife, before approaching Gawain to await his orders.
Gawain casually waved his hand at the two of them.
"Before moonrise, clear out Mock Town. Drive anyone who kneels in surrender to the square that Yixiao just cleared out."
"Yes, sir!" ×2!
Shiryu and Lucci immediately set off, leading the Black Ice Terrace members to sweep through the entire Mock Town.
Meanwhile, Gawain and his group strolled leisurely to the center of the square, sat down near the crowd, smoked, and waited for the moonlight to fall.
Kalifa searched through the Mock Town and found some decent tables and chairs, which she placed near Gawain and his group.
The screams from afar grew fewer and fewer, while more and more people rushed to the center of the square and joined the kneeling crowd.
Around 6 PM, Shiryu and Lucci finally returned to the plaza with the last of the pirates.
Upon approaching Gawain, Shiryu reported softly.
"My lord, more than nine thousand people have been killed in total!"
"Hmm, that's roughly one in ten draws..."
Gawain pondered for a moment, then reached out to Shiryu. Shiryu quickly knelt on one knee and bent down, allowing the seated Gawain to pat him on the shoulder.
"Shiryu, now it's your turn. Don't forget what I told you!"
"Yes, sir!"
Shiryu raised his head and managed a smile that wasn't too fierce.
At the same time, Gawain looked at Lucci and Shakky and said.
"And Shakky, I hope we can verify the identities and resumes of these people as soon as possible."
Although they all chose to surrender, there were simply too many people left.
Next, kill the most heinous criminals, then those with a history of robbery, and finally, if there are still too many people left...
Then kill every single one of them whose hands are stained with blood!
As for the remaining number of people..."
At this point, Gawain looked deeply at the pirates who were gradually becoming desperate.
Facing the eager gazes of countless pirates, Gawain lightly flicked his cigarette ash.
"I think leaving 30,000 people behind is enough!"
After saying that, Gawain got up and left, with Gion, Hancock, Rayleigh, Kuma, and Issho following behind him.
Shakky, Lucci, Shiryu, and the Kalifa stayed behind.
Just as Gawain left, the pirates, who had already completely surrendered, suddenly started making a fuss again.
When Gawain announced his decision, he didn't try to hide it from them. Gawain wanted to destroy them, so what did that have to do with them?
After hearing Gawain's words, those in the crowd who were heinous criminals, had experience in robbery, and even had killed people, felt that they had lost all hope!
So they all started yelling and shouting at Gawain with all their might.
Hearing the shouts, Gawain slowly stopped and then turned around.
The moment Gawain turned around, even more people panicked.
You should know that even though they are outlaws, quite a few of them have never killed anyone!
This group of people clearly saw a chance to survive, so when they realized that their hope might be taken away by the noisy, clamorous fellows, they went mad.
"Shut up! Don't anger Saint Gawain. The magistrate has already spared many of us!"
"You filthy scum, I have always been ashamed to be associated with you!"
"Ha, Rossio, you must have done a lot of evil deeds to have a bounty of forty-five million. Bastards like you should die, and don't drag us down with you!"
"I've been doing odd jobs on the ship since I set sail, and I haven't killed a single person!"
Amid the commotion, someone pulled out their knife again and plunged it into the body of the person next to them.
No one knows whether that person, believing they were doomed, wanted to take those who might survive with them.
Or was it that he had never killed anyone before, and therefore worried that those instigators who knew they were doomed would cause them to die as well?
No one knew these things; all that was known was that when the first smear of blood was reflected in the crowd's eyes, those criminals went completely mad.
"Only 30,000 of us can survive!"
"Kill them! The last 30,000 can survive!"
"Come on, I'm determined to survive to the end! Come on!!!"
In an instant, without Shiryu a finger, the square had become a bloody gladiatorial arena.
And Gawain...
Looking at the increasingly frenzied scene before him, he frowned, feeling a slight pang of self-reproach.
Indeed, there's nothing that can't be said to others. There's no need to hide from those bastards the fact that I want to destroy and transform this Lawless Zone.
Anyway, those who are destined to die will die eventually.
But my mistake was in not specifying the quantity!
Gawain has been a decision-maker for far too short a time, and most importantly, this is the first time he has dealt with such a large number of prisoners!
He overlooked one thing: some despair can destroy a person, and some hope can destroy a person just as much!
Just like the limit of 30,000 people, this number has already overwhelmed the nearly 100,000 people in the temporary venue!
So Gawain took a deep breath. He remembered this incident and would definitely take it as a warning!
Gawain took a deep breath and then waved to everyone.
This time he said it in a low voice.
"My regulations regarding the number of participants seem to have been the last straw that broke the camel's back; Mock Town... has completely turned into a dueling arena."
Those who survive to the end in such a meat grinder, no matter how many there are or what their past is like.
They've all become dangerous!
At this point, Gawain looked at Shiryu and sighed.
"Let's change the plan. There's no need for a trial. Let them continue killing."
Once they stop, you take over.
From this moment forward, everyone in the square, not a single person will be left behind!
"Mock Town, let's rebuild it completely!"
After saying that, Gawain turned around and continued walking towards the south shore of Jaya.
He should take Uta's two children, who had been playing all afternoon, to dinner, and he should also get to do his evening exercise.
As for Mock Town...
As he listened to the sounds of hacking and screaming fading into the distance, Gawain remained deeply convinced.
After the stench of blood from this night dissipates from this land.
When the sun rises again tomorrow.
Mock Town will be transformed from a lawless place inhabited by hundreds of thousands of pirates and outlaws into a paradise where hundreds of thousands to millions of good people can live happily!