Blackbeard Pirates' Arrogance!

"Zehahaha..."

"Captain, can we finally ditch that crappy raft?"

Burgess, the Blackbeard Pirates' champion, asked with a sinister grin.

"That would be great. Then we wouldn't have to sit on that crappy raft and risk getting swept away by the waves," Burgess said excitedly.

"Of course."

"Other than the one billion Beli, that warship will be ours too."

Blackbeard Teach said confidently.

Clearly.

This had all seemingly been part of Blackbeard's plan. The reason he had demanded that Sengoku send only one warship was certainly not just for the one billion Beli. He had also set his sights on the warship itself.

After all, Blackbeard Teach and his crew were heading to Impel Down next. Their current raft definitely could not get them there.

Unfortunately.

The one who had come this time was Roya!

On the warship's deck.

"Rear Admiral Roya, those are members of the Blackbeard Pirates. Should we move closer?" a Marine asked for Roya's opinion.

"Move closer," Roya ordered decisively.

"Understood. Follow Rear Admiral Roya's orders and bring the ship over immediately," the Marine commanded.

"By the way, Rear Admiral Roya, should we move the one billion Beli out now?" the Marine continued.

"One billion Beli?"

"Who said we were giving them one billion Beli? Why move it out?"

Roya said with a smile.

Clearly, Roya had never intended to give Blackbeard the one billion Beli he wanted.

Just as Sengoku had repeatedly warned him, these pirates were all cunning, greedy scoundrels—especially Blackbeard.

"Huh? Rear Admiral Roya, wouldn't that be against protocol? Fleet Admiral Sengoku—"

Before the Marine could finish, Roya cut him off. He shot him a sharp glare and said, "Against protocol?"

"N-No... Rear Admiral Roya, you have the final say..."

The Marine shuddered involuntarily. After all, Roya was a rear admiral and the leader of this mission, so he naturally did not dare argue. He simply could not understand why Roya wanted to do this. Their opponents were vicious pirates, after all.

But since Roya had said so, all they had to do was carry out his orders.

Soon.

The warship docked.

All the Marines disembarked and formed two neat lines to welcome Roya ashore. The spectacle was no less imposing than the arrival of an admiral or vice admiral.

"Listen up, Blackbeard Pirates! This is our Rear Admiral Roya!"

A Marine walked at the front and called out.

"Hahahahaha!"

"You finally showed up. I was getting tired of waiting!"

"I never expected someone so young to become a Marine rear admiral. Looks like Sengoku thinks highly of you."

Blackbeard laughed arrogantly, not taking Roya seriously at all. That was precisely the kind of man Blackbeard Teach was—conceited and self-important. His words also carried a hint of provocation toward Roya.

At the same time, Blackbeard Teach and his other crew members slowly approached while escorting Ace, who was shackled in Seastone restraints.

Covered in wounds, Ace's hair hung loose and disheveled. He kept his head lowered and said nothing.

Roya did not waste words with Blackbeard. He held his head high, a confident smile spreading across his lips.

Blackbeard?

Mocking me?

Then shouldn't I give you a taste of my power?

The moment he stepped off the warship.

Roya, walking with slow and confident strides, directly unleashed his Conqueror's Haki.

Boom...

An invisible pressure swiftly bore down on Blackbeard and his crew.

By now, Roya had mastered Conqueror's Haki to perfection. Not only could he direct its oppressive force at chosen targets, he could even use its physical, tangible attacks!

However, he did not unleash it at full strength, nor did he use the power of tangible Conqueror's Haki.

Even so, this ordinary level of Conqueror's Haki was enough to shock Blackbeard's crew!

"Conqueror's Haki?!"

"This guy... isn't simple..."

"And Conqueror's Haki at this level... it's already approaching the highest tier!"

Blackbeard's face instantly darkened, and his brows furrowed deeply, wiping away his earlier playful expression.

Though Blackbeard had once been an ordinary crewman aboard Whitebeard's ship, he was actually an expert at hiding his strength. He had remained on Whitebeard's ship solely while waiting for the chance to obtain the Dark-Dark Fruit.

The moment he felt Roya's Conqueror's Haki, his instincts told him that Roya was definitely no ordinary man. Still, he could not help but wonder why someone who looked so young had already mastered such powerful Conqueror's Haki.

Blackbeard's other crew members were just as tense. If they had not been capable villains themselves, Roya's Conqueror's Haki might well have knocked them unconscious.

And not just them.

Even the dispirited Ace widened his eyes in disbelief and muttered, "This guy... has Conqueror's Haki too..."

As the only son carrying the bloodline of the Pirate King Roger, Ace had awakened Conqueror's Haki when he was young. He was therefore extremely sensitive to it.

Meanwhile.

The Marines who had come aboard the same warship as Roya were utterly awestruck by him.

Click!

Van Augur, a Blackbeard Pirates crew member, immediately raised the rifle in his hands, aiming its muzzle at Roya as he prepared to fire.

"Wait!"

"Van Augur, don't attack. This man isn't simple!"

Blackbeard Teach hurriedly stopped him.

If Roya had not revealed his Conqueror's Haki, Blackbeard Teach himself might have launched an attack, let alone Van Augur and the others.

But for someone as cunning as Blackbeard, once he knew his opponent possessed great strength, he naturally would not let his own men act rashly.

Besides, his purpose today was not to kill Roya and the Marines. His main goal was still to obtain the Seven Warlords title and the one billion Beli.

Before completing his next major scheme, he would not easily fall out with the Marines!

"You're Rear Admiral Roya, right?"

"You're quite strong. I like you."

"Let's get down to business."

"Ace is right here. You brought the Seven Warlords position and the one billion Beli I asked for, didn't you?"

Blackbeard was straightforward and asked outright.

"Of course. But according to our agreement, you must hand Fire Fist Ace over to us first." Roya nodded.

"Fine! Burgess, bring Ace over," Blackbeard ordered.

"Got it, Captain."

Burgess escorted the bound Ace over, and several Marines hurried forward to take custody of him.

After confirming that Ace had been safely escorted onto the warship, Roya glanced at Blackbeard Teach and slowly took a few steps forward.

"Teach, your Seven Warlords title has already been approved by our Marine Headquarters."

"As for the one billion Beli..."

At this point, Roya deliberately paused, then said with a half-smile, "The people above agreed to give it to you, but I never agreed to."