Acquired

Noki was delighted to hear that. Perhaps because he had stolen Blackbeard's opportunities, crew members who should have belonged to Blackbeard were joining him one after another.

"Good!" Noki immediately agreed.

Shiryu held a cigar between his lips and exhaled a cloud of smoke. "So, do you have a plan?"

"I have a rough one, but you are the warden of Impel Down after all. There are many things I'll need your guidance on."

"Easy enough."

"..."

Noki and Shiryu spoke in secret for a while.

By the time they returned to the office on the first floor above ground, the sky had darkened and night had fallen.

In the office lounge, not only were Ain and Domino there, but Magellan was as well. Although his office was not on this floor, guests rarely came to visit, so how could he not show himself?

When Domino saw the two return, she complained to Shiryu of the Rain, "Warden, even when you get carried away fighting, you should know when to stop. This is Rear Admiral Noki's first time at Impel Down, and you dragged him off to do hard labor. What kind of terrible impression will that leave?"

Ain's gaze lingered on Noki for a long time. Only after repeatedly confirming that he was completely unharmed did she finally relax.

"You are Deputy Warden Magellan?"

Noki looked up. Magellan deliberately kept some distance from the others, probably afraid that his poison gas would affect them.

"That's right. It's me."

As an old lecher, Magellan loved beautiful women most. Whenever a pretty female prisoner occasionally arrived at the prison, he would sneak a few extra looks. Now that he saw Ain and Noki together, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

What a feast for the eyes!

"Cough, cough!"

Domino deliberately coughed twice.

Only then did Magellan come to his senses. Smiling, he said, "Rear Admiral Noki, a tiger father truly has no dog son. Back then, Rogers was exceptionally powerful and had few rivals. Now, at such a young age, you already possess the strength to contend with Warden Shiryu. You are destined for great achievements in the future!"

Shiryu's face darkened as he snorted. "I wasn't using my full strength. Magellan, do you think I couldn't take down this brat if I went all out?"

Noki smiled faintly. "Warden Shiryu did indeed go easy on me. Otherwise, I wouldn't still be alive and standing here."

Magellan nodded. "Indeed." Just as he was about to continue, his stomach churned like stormy seas again.

"I won't say any more. I need to use the toilet first. You all chat!" Magellan grabbed two rolls of toilet paper and rushed into the restroom in a panic.

Domino turned to Noki. "Rear Admiral, you and Ain should stay here tonight and leave tomorrow. I'll prepare rooms for you."

Noki exchanged a glance with Shiryu. "Sure. Sorry to trouble you, Deputy Chief Guard Domino."

Afterward, Shiryu sat on the sofa with Raindrop in hand, picked up a cotton swab, and began wiping the blade again without saying a word.

The first floor above ground in Impel Down had guest rooms, but almost no one ever stayed in them. The reason was simple: who would come all the way to a prison just to visit?

Knowing that Noki had not eaten dinner, Domino specially had someone prepare a meal and send it to his room.

As Ain watched Noki eat, her eyes brimmed with affection. She stepped forward, wrapped her fair, slender arms around his waist, and held him close.

Noki ate as he asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Ain pressed her face against Noki's back, her lips moving slightly. "Before I knew it, Noki had gained the ability to rival the warden of Impel Down. You're not far from becoming an admiral now, are you?"

Noki's expression grew somewhat complicated. "Ain, I understand what you mean. I originally promised that we would get married once I became an admiral, but you know the situation I'm facing. I'm afraid we'll have to delay it a little longer."

Following the impulse in her heart, Ain hugged him even tighter. "We... have been living together for a long time. I trust you, Noki. Since things have changed so much, maybe our plans should... change too." Her face grew redder and hotter.

Noki understood Ain's thoughts. They were both in the prime of youth. According to his original plan, he would only consider marriage after overthrowing the World Government. Even if everything went smoothly, that would still take several years.

But he knew that plans could not always go smoothly. Even with all his advantages, he still would not dare guarantee that he could overthrow the Celestial Dragons within ten years.

In another ten years, he would be over thirty, while Ain would be nearing forty. That was indeed rather late.

Then again.

Since Ain possessed the powers of the Backward-Backward Fruit, the two of them could actually remain young forever. Thinking about it that way, even reaching forty did not seem like much of a problem...

However, with how often they were physically intimate every day, let alone enduring for ten years, even enduring two or three years would be nearly impossible for a hot-blooded man like Noki.

"Mm..."

Noki took a deep breath. "At most, one year. Ain, give me some time to stabilize my forces. By then, forget marriage—even if you want a child, I'll give you one."

"Really? You're not allowed to lie to me."

Ain's watery eyes filled with surprise. It was not that she was overly possessive or insecure. Noki simply attracted too many women. She was truly afraid—afraid that someone else would take Noki away from her.

She knew that Nico Robin, Tereina, Boa Hancock, and even countless women whose names she did not know were all eyeing her Noki covetously!

One careless mistake could lead to a terrible outcome.

That was why she hoped they could make things official sooner and thoroughly solidify their relationship. And if they had a baby, then... then that would be even better.

"I won't lie to you."

Noki answered with a serious expression.

"Mm!"

Ain excitedly planted several loud kisses on the man's face. She knew Noki's personality. If he said something in such a solemn tone, he would never go back on it!

Late at night.

Ain nestled in the man's warm, sturdy embrace, her body slightly curled up, her head resting on Noki's strong but not overly thick arm. A sweet smile hung on her lips as she slept exceptionally peacefully.

Noki glanced at the clock beside the bed, lowered his head to kiss Ain's forehead, then slowly pulled his arm free, got out of bed, draped the Navy coat Little Black over himself, and quietly left the room.

Elsewhere.

Inside the monitoring room beneath Impel Down.

"Warden Shiryu?"

The staff member stationed there was flattered by Shiryu's arrival. "It's so late. Is there something you need?"

A murderous glint flashed in Shiryu's eyes. "Go back and rest. I'll guard this place tonight."

"How can we do that?"

"Warden Shiryu, you should go rest instead. We're used to this schedule. We can handle it."

In truth, Shiryu had volunteered to guard the monitoring room more than once. He often came here in the past, though usually around noon or in the afternoon. This was the first time he had come so late.

The reason Shiryu came before was naturally to massacre prisoners. Every time, he chose moments when Magellan was using the toilet or resting, avoiding discovery.

As for why he never acted at night.

Shiryu was clever. Anyone could guess that nighttime was the easiest time to do bad things. If he appeared frequently at night and Magellan or the chief guards noticed even the slightest clue, they would immediately suspect him. That was why he spread his actions across different times of day.

"I told you to rest. Are you going to defy my orders?" Shiryu said in an unquestionable tone. Murderous intent radiated from his body, frightening everyone into trembling.

"We wouldn't dare. Then we'll leave it to you, Warden."

The staff wisely withdrew one after another. They knew that Warden Shiryu was solitary by nature and disliked sharing a room with a crowd, so they always left him alone in the monitoring room.

They trusted Shiryu, believing that aside from his fierce appearance and aura, he was gentle inside. Otherwise, why would he help relieve their burdens every few days?

After a while.

The monitoring room door was pushed open.

Shiryu looked up at the newcomer and said coldly, "You're late."

"Sorry."

The newcomer was Noki. "Something minor came up. Let's go."

"Mm!"

Shiryu took out a ring of keys from his coat pocket and locked the monitoring room door. Other than the chief guards and Magellan, no one else could open it.

That way, no one would know what happened in Impel Down tonight.

Shiryu took Noki into the elevator that went directly to the depths underground, arriving at the darkest, dampest, and most mysterious floor of Impel Down—a floor concealed from the outside world, where countless pirates known as monsters or legends were imprisoned. The sixth underground level of Impel Down!

Noki and Shiryu used Silent Step and Soru almost at the same time.

Shiryu led the way, with Noki following behind. Without making a sound, they arrived outside a prison cell.

This cell was highly unusual. What it held was not a living person, but an enormous block of solid ice.

The man encased in the ice was huge and muscular, wearing a Viking helmet with broken horns. His incomparably fierce eyes were filled with rage and hatred.

"This is one of the men you came for—the World Destroyer, Bondi Waldo."

Noki nodded and extended his hand. Countless streams of darkness emerged and rushed toward the ice.

"Wait!"

Shiryu drew Raindrop, murderous intent overflowing from his body. "It's rare to get a chance to kill such an important figure. We can't waste his blood."

A scarlet blade flash streaked out.

The massive block of ice split in two, and the portion containing Bondi Waldo's head rolled down.

Noki was rather speechless. "Warden Shiryu, his blood has already frozen solid. Even if your blade wants to drink, you'll have to wait until the ice melts."

Shiryu kept a cold face and did not reply.

Noki ignored him for the moment. Darkness spread across the floor as he activated Dark Hole, drawing Bondi Waldo's entire body into the dark space, along with the power within him.

"Is that enough?"

"Mm, it's done. Let's go to the next cell."

The two left the prison cell.

From the dark bars across from them, two or three pairs of bloodshot eyes peered out.

"My god, what did I just see? The great warden of Impel Down is actually slaughtering prisoners! If we tell that brat Magellan about this, you'll become one of us too, hahaha..."

Shiryu moved with astonishing speed. Just as those people were about to raise their voices and spread the news, before they could even finish speaking, all their heads fell to the ground.

Noki silently released Dark Hole and took all their corpses, helping Shiryu dispose of the evidence.

The two continued moving at high speed and reached the next target cell.

This cell was also a single room.

The person inside was bound to the wall by countless thick chains and high-purity Seastone, unable to move. Seemingly sensing human presence, he suddenly opened his eyes. Even Noki could not help but draw a sharp breath upon seeing those demonic eyes.

"The right hand of the Pirate King, Douglas Bullet!"

Seeing Noki's expression, Shiryu sneered disdainfully. "A brat is still a brat. Are you scared by something on this level?"

"It's only respect for strength. I heard that he challenged a Buster Call by himself. Although he was defeated in the end, he inflicted massive losses upon the Marines. His crimes are unforgivable. I'll kill this man myself!"

After speaking, Noki drew Golden Scale from his waist. Perhaps because the surroundings were too dark, the blade did not emit even the faintest glimmer.

As Bullet watched Noki approach, his eyes turned blood-red. A powerful aura burst from his body, making the chains around him tremble. His hoarse voice scraped against the ears like a demon's. "Brat, do you want to kill me? If you have the guts, let me out and we'll settle this in a fight! Don't you feel ashamed of winning through such cowardly means?!"

Noki smiled faintly.

Bullet was indeed among the strongest. Setting aside the protagonist's plot armor from the original film, his strength was comparable to that of an Emperor of the Sea.

But he was merely a musclehead with a simple mind.

"Do you think I'm an idiot? Why would I ignore an easy, effortless method and risk my life fighting you?"

Bullet gritted his teeth. "A strong man should decide victory and defeat openly and honorably! If you don't dare fight me, you're admitting that you're inferior to me!"

He was not afraid of death. What he feared was dying in such a cowardly manner.

Bullet had an obsession. He had to surpass the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger. If he died here, his entire life would be declared a complete failure.

He was unwilling!

Unwilling to end everything this way!

Noki admitted it openly. "You're right. I can't beat you right now. But so what? As long as I can kill you, that's enough!"

"No!!"

Bullet used every ounce of his strength, desperately struggling against the chains. But the chains and Seastone specially designed for him were not merely for show.

He could only watch helplessly as the sharp blade drew closer and closer to the top of his head...

"Splurt!"

Bullet's enormous head rolled away, scarlet blood gushing upward from his neck like a small fountain.

The sight stirred something within Noki. Sooner or later, he would defeat one—or even several—people stronger than Bullet and stand at the pinnacle of the world!

Shiryu smoked his cigar and quietly admired the scene. Though he too wanted to experience the feeling of killing a powerful man like Bullet, he had chosen to leave the opportunity to Noki.

Perhaps that was the wager he had placed.

Shiryu had a feeling that the youth before him would stir up a violent storm in the future.

Of course, that did not mean Shiryu acknowledged Noki. "Promising" was a more appropriate term.

The current Noki was still not worthy of his recognition!

Noki skillfully released darkness and devoured everything Bullet had.

He then followed Shiryu to the fifth underground level of Impel Down.

As mentioned before, because the extreme cold made Den Den Mushi unable to survive here, this was the most loosely guarded floor in the entire prison.

And the corpses Shiryu left behind after massacring prisoners were hidden here.