As soon as he finished speaking, Doflamingo excitedly lowered his head slightly to look at Gawain, who was shorter than him.
But Gawain...
Facing Doflamingo's downward gaze, he smiled and raised his head, his grin growing increasingly unrestrained as the silence deepened.
While laughing heartily, Gawain gently shook his head.
"You're the one who thinks you're crazy, but I'm not, Doflamingo."
Or rather, haha, even you... aren't the real madman you think you are!
At this point, Gawain raised his hand, and his body grew even larger under the support of the lightning.
Once he was a head taller than Doflamingo, Gawain stopped spreading the lightning.
Then, he placed his right hand on Doflamingo's shoulder.
He increased the force, and kept increasing it, until Doflamingo's back bent slightly before Gawain stopped.
Looking at Doflamingo, who seemed to be under immense pressure but didn't seem to care at all, Gawain spoke slowly and deliberately.
"For madmen, purpose should not be the driving force behind their actions."
Pure happiness is what matters.
But you, haha, I sensed your arrogance and indifference.
But you're not happy at all!
After saying that, Gawain released Doflamingo and then gently shook his head.
"You know what, Doflamingo, I've admired a few real Joker."
The reason I use the word "admiration" to describe them is precisely because, amidst their madness, they also showed me a kind of purity!
For us, no matter how pure an idea may be, it is worthy of respect and appreciation.
Pure kindness, pure justice, pure perseverance, pure courage, and so on.
Even pure madness is the same.
But you..."
Gawain smiled contemptuously, and then pressed down on Doflamingo's shoulder once more.
Seeing the hint of dissatisfaction and resentment in Doflamingo's expression, Gawain smiled.
"You are far inferior to the real Joker I have ever seen, those who were pure madness."
You talk about madness and cruelty all the time, and you also practice it in your life.
But you're so impure!
On the one hand, you harbor a deep hatred for the word "betrayal".
On the other hand, you also harbor hatred towards the Celestial Dragons and ordinary people.
You hate the common people who once plunged you into the abyss, and you hate their disgust and alienation from you.
You still hate the Celestial Dragons who refused your return, and then sprinkled the final frost on you who were already in the snow.
Of course, being described as a traitor by those you hate also makes you deeply resent the word "hatred."
You... tsk tsk, your hatred is too intense, and your sense of purpose is too strong. It's not pure at all!
You're not the real Joker!
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain released Doflamingo and pulled two cigarettes out of his pocket.
With a practiced ease, Gawain placed another cigarette in his mouth and offered it to Doflamingo.
Looking at the unbranded tobacco so close to him, Doflamingo gently took it.
After taking a drag of his cigarette, Doflamingo's eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, were fixed on Gawain's pupils!
"You seem to know everything about me."
He said this, his face gleaming with unwavering certainty.
At the same time, Gawain pursed his lips and responded.
"I probably know you better than you know yourself."
"Heh, then you should understand that what you perceive as my hatred is far from sufficient to describe my purpose and ambition!"
"But you have a purpose, and you have ambition, and that's enough."
Gawain responded to Doflamingo's words without hesitation, and then, with the same confident expression Doflamingo had once worn, continued to speak to Doflamingo.
"You may not know this, but I have talked about you with Mjosgard, and I have also briefly mentioned your deeds in conversations with the Five Elders."
Leaving aside what happened after you Awakening Conqueror's Haki, that's when you started being wanted, and everyone at sea knows everything that followed.
Who told you to be the infamous Heavenly Yaksha?
But before that, hehe.
Doflamingo, tell me, why did you kill your father?
"Because his choice cost me my mother!"
Doflamingo answered Gawain's question immediately, without a trace of hesitation in his eyes.
Doflamingo never considered himself a person with a weak heart, because after experiencing so many things, his personality had long been as solid as Seastone due to various reasons!
After receiving the answer, Gawain nodded in understanding and then continued to ask Doflamingo.
"Very good. Because of what happened to his birth mother, he has placed the core of his hatred on his own father."
After all, you're right. Everything you've experienced since you were six, including losing your mother when you were eight, stems from all the wrong choices Homing in the past.
From this perspective, what you did seems to be the right thing to do.
"Now, tell me more about your brother. After your father, why did you kill your last blood relative?"
"Because of betrayal!"
Doflamingo grinned and responded to Gawain with a cold smile.
This time, Gawain paused for a moment, giving himself and Doflamingo Ge some time and space to think.
After a brief silence, Gawain finally continued.
"Very well, all your actions have a reason. Your hatred for betrayal created the reason for Rosinante's death."
But... haha, are you sure everything you said is true?
Do you think the reasons you believe are the real reasons you've always done things that way?
No, that's not how you are. If you always do what you think is right, what will you use to make people laugh?
"And if you can't make people laugh, how can you call yourself Joker?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain smiled and flicked his cigarette ash, while Doflamingo across from him fell into complete silence.
So, after flicking away the ash, Gawain continued speaking to Doflamingo.
"Before this, I truly believed that the reason you killed your father and brother was the two reasons you mentioned before."
But just now, after hearing what you said before, I suddenly understood another side of you!
A person who always does the right thing is not Joker, but someone who does absolutely wrong things for reasons that may not be right.
You might be somewhat worthy of the madness and hysteria implied in the name "Joker"!
Just now, you told me that you were going to destroy Mary Geoise, that you were going to destroy Imu Celestial Dragons that Im had been taking care of like pigs.
You also need to destroy the World Government's rule over the Four Blues.
Tsk tsk, a bastard like you wouldn't want to destroy this world in order to revolutionize it.
You're just... still remembering the humiliation of being cruelly rejected by the Celestial Dragons.
The reason I killed your father is because he was Celestial Dragon!
The reason I killed your brother is because he was Celestial Dragon!
If your subordinates, like Baby5 or other oddballs, were to attack you with all sorts of terrifying weapons...
You would easily forgive her because they are your true family!
As for your family from the past, perhaps Mary Geoise deeply hurt you, and that incident caused you to lose your last refuge, your mother...
You no longer consider any Celestial Dragons as family.
Think carefully about what I said, compared to your explanation.
You simply disliked the Celestial Dragons, so when a suitable reason arose, you personally killed your father and brother, both former Celestial Dragons.
And in the future...
No matter how far you follow me, you will never give up the chance to kill me!
If I fail on my path, you are destined to deliver a fatal blow to my decline.
And if I succeed...
"At that time, I, the last 'Celestial Dragon,' will become your only target, you madman!"
After saying that, Gawain released Doflamingo and leaned against a tree trunk not far away.
While lazily smoking, Gawain scrutinized Doflamingo.
With the sunglasses on, Gawain couldn't see Doflamingo's eyes clearly.
But he noticed that the corners of Doflamingo's mouth were trembling slightly and frequently.
I don't know how long he remained silent, perhaps because the cigarette butt he was holding burned his fingers.
After taking a deep breath, Doflamingo nodded expectantly.
"Well said, Saint Gawain, your words have even given me some inspiration."
For example, she showed me a side of myself that was different from what I thought I was like – Fufu!
But those things are at best your analysis of me; you haven't given me the answer you should have given me.
Come on, have mercy and tell me, if I really did keep a gun pointed at your back, you Celestial Dragon, as you say.
Do you still have the courage to tolerate someone as dangerous as me, even for a short time?
Why not?
Facing the increasingly expectant Doflamingo, Gawain clapped his hands lightly.
"Tsk tsk, you're always trying to provoke me. You clearly decided to stay on my ship a long time ago, you even called me Saint Gawain, and you brought me a suitable gift."
But in front of me, you always try to maintain your disdain and arrogance.
You are such a proud person, and that is why you deeply resent Mary Geoise, who shattered all your pride.
Or perhaps, you hate your father... for shattering the life you should have been so proud of... a life that could have been the same as mine today, or even better?
As soon as he finished speaking, Gawain reached out and beckoned lightly, while Doflamingo Ge approached Gawain with a cold smile.
"After getting close enough, "Gawain said softly.
"I'm too lazy to lie to anyone, so I can tell you this openly and honestly."
You are the dangerous element I threw onto the ship, a threat that will put all the cadres on high alert.
Of course, you also reminded me, keeping me constantly aware of your potential dangers, which allows me to more accurately assess myself and make decisions.
But aside from this purpose, you mean nothing to me. If necessary, I wouldn't mind sacrificing you to obtain something more important to me!
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Doflamingo finally showed a somewhat unconvinced expression. Meeting Gawain's disdainful gaze, Doflamingo proudly raised his head.
"Fufu, am I not even worthy of your attention?"
Although I possess very little, it is, after all, the territory of a country and more than forty percent of the land and interests of the underworld.
As long as I exist, no one may see my value, but if I disappear, I guarantee the entire ocean will be thrown into chaos because of me!
Therefore, my great Saint Gawain.
What interesting benefits do you want to gain by using someone like me?
After saying that, the proud Doflamingo revealed an extremely arrogant expression. Gawain could tell that Doflamingo was truly proud of everything he possessed.
On one hand, after losing his Celestial Dragon status, Doflamingo rose from the ashes and reclaimed Donquixote, the kingdom Dressrosa once ruled!
Before the Donquixote Family became Celestial Dragons, Dressrosa was Donquixote Family kingdom, and they were the kings there!
After the Donquixote Family became the twentieth king, they relinquished their kingdom, making Dressrosa the territory of the King Riku family.
Now, Gawain can see that Doflamingo's emotions have always been divided regarding Dressrosa.
On one hand, Doflamingo is proud that he has taken back what his family had lost. Although he no longer belongs to the family and is no longer Celestial Dragon, he has taken back everything Donquixote had through his own efforts!
On the other hand...
Dressrosa is something the Donquixote Family disdains to possess...
This fact also serves as a constant reminder to Doflamingo that he is merely parroting others!
This is why Doflamingo infiltrated the dark world, becoming the Joker and causing chaos underground.
Compared to Dressrosa, the Underworld is his true essence, and that is his proudest achievement!
There, Gold-Gold Fruits he casually tossed out became the focus of the World Government's attention!
There, he used arms deals to inject his influence into the Four Emperors' pirate crews and the Navy!
Of course, that was just Doflamingo's own idea, and Doflamingo himself felt that those ideas were not worth mentioning.
Therefore, when he countered Gawain, he only mentioned territory and power, without mentioning his alternative influence.
In short, Gawain has realized one thing, which is...
The proud Flamingo standing before him was now beginning to show weakness.
So Gawain stared intently at Doflamingo for a while, and just as Doflamingo seemed a little anxious, Gawain laughed.
"Can what you're talking about compare to immortality?"
"What!"
In that instant, Doflamingo's eyes widened in shock!
He stared intently at Gawain and asked, word by word.
"The immortality you speak of... what do you mean by...?"
"It refers to the Op-Op Fruit, Doflamingo."
Gawain's answer instantly shattered Doflamingo's original plan, because he thought of many things he had discussed with Gawain, but he didn't know that Gawain knew the secrets behind the Op-Op Fruit!
This fact is terrifying, because the current host of the Op-Op Fruit doesn't even have a bounty on his head.
Understanding the connection between the Op-Op Fruit and Doflamingo means that Gawain is at least aware of everything Rosinante has done.
In that case, Doflamingo cannot guarantee whether Vergo's existence has been discovered by the big shots.
After all, in Doflamingo's view, if even Gawain knew these things, then the Cipher Pol, the Navy, and the World Government would all be in serious trouble.
I suspect that everyone in the right knows what he thought was a secret!
If that's the case, then all the secrets Vergo has passed on to him over the years, including Vergo's prediction of the success rate when he devised the plan to kidnap Dressrosa in exchange for the Shichibukai, based on his understanding of the Navy, would probably be problematic!
If even those things are problematic, then why would the Navy and the World Government continue to execute his plan?
For a moment, Doflamingo froze completely in place.
Just as Doflamingo froze, Gawain continued with a smile.
"That kid Trafalgar is paying close attention to you, but for the Op-Op Fruit to create Perennial Youth Operation, the Devil Fruit's owner must voluntarily sacrifice their life."
So, Doflamingo, do you think I could trade my life for Trafalgar's promise to me?
If possible, then what do you think...?
Are you qualified to compare with my future immortality?
After saying that, Gawain casually waved his hand and called out to Doflamingo, who was completely stunned on the spot.
"Alright, that's enough of our conversation. Come with me, Doflamingo."
Although everyone on the ship will definitely not like my decision, please treat me the same way you treated Kaido from now on.
Although you are not qualified to cooperate with me, I will allow you to stay by my side if you can provide me with benefits.
However, please try to rein in your ever-expanding, arrogant, and wicked feathers.
Otherwise, hehe.
I'll personally beat you into a chicken!