About an hour later, after taking a winding route and going the wrong way more than once despite encountering no organized resistance, Luffy and his three companions finally found the stairs to Level Three and reached the exit to Level Four. At last, they spotted a certain troublesome little girl who had ditched them earlier and gone off on her own.
"Ah! Thank goodness!"
"It's Annie!!"
Seeing the little girl in a red hooded dress, holding a fearsome plush bear by the paw, Luffy charged straight toward her without a second thought.
"Huh?"
"What are they..."
But after only a few steps, the scene outside startled him into stopping.
Because even someone as slow on the uptake as Luffy could see what was happening at the entrance from Level Three to Level Four: a vast sea of jailers were kneeling in formation!
Yes, if Luffy wasn't mistaken, those really did look like jailers!
"Th-that is..."
"!!"
While Luffy stood there, completely baffled, the candle man, Galdino, and the okama, Bon Clay, who had followed behind him, were so terrified by the enormous dark figures in front of the kneeling jailers that they nearly turned and ran for their lives.
"It's Magellan!"
"This is bad!"
"Li-Luffy!"
"Run!!"
Still, Bon Clay was a loyal friend. He didn't flee right away. Instead, he hurried over and grabbed Luffy, hoping to get him to run with them.
After all, every prisoner in Impel Down knew how terrifying Warden Magellan was. He was a Paramecia-type Venom-Venom Fruit user, a man of poison who could breathe poisonous gas and release huge amounts of toxic liquid from his body. Anyone who touched him or got too close would be poisoned!
His venom could also take the form of dragons that lunged at his enemies. Those who were