Give Me Back My Heart!

"Yes..."

Parker crashed to the ground at the warehouse entrance, rolling more than ten times before finally stopping. Ignoring his body that felt like it was falling apart, he forced himself up and limped away in a hurry.

The steel puppet ignored Parker and turned its "gaze" toward the rusty iron cages.

It raised a hand, and the rotating magnetic field made the cages float across the ground, carrying the children out of the warehouse toward the crowded harbor.

Once they reached a place with plenty of people, naturally, kind-hearted people would save the children.

The steel puppet then walked over to a row of black suitcases standing upright on the floor. It casually laid one flat and opened it, revealing neatly stacked bundles of Beli notes to its Mantra.

The steel puppet casually picked up a bundle from the suitcase, pressed down one corner, and flipped through it. One "banknote" after another appeared beneath the surface.

They were all blank sheets of paper!

"Heh!"

The steel puppet sneered, tossed aside both the suitcase and the bundle of notes in its hand, then turned and left.

Not long after, John opened his eyes in a town inn.

How could a creature like humanity, rotten to the core, ever become better?

John lowered his head and looked at his hands, recalling the changes he had undergone recently.

Ever since leaving Rocks' world-renowned circle, escaping the Death Omen Star of fate, and beginning to deal with small fry like Morgans, he had become somewhat...

Arrogant.

He had lost all reverence for everything.

I can't go on like this. John clenched both hands into fists, his gaze flickering constantly.

He had always believed that, compared to others, his greatest strength was being able to see himself clearly.

If abilities were unequal, how could people possibly be equal?

Once someone possessed overwhelming force and power, even if they began with a sincere belief in the equality of all living things, they would gradually be influenced and changed over time.

They would become arrogant and look down on others.

Others were like that, and John himself... was no exception!

As for those who dared pound their chests and claim they would never be corrupted, they simply had yet to experience what it felt like to possess power and force.

Once they truly experienced the kind of power where a single sentence could plunge others into trouble—or even put their lives at risk—they would understand just how unequal people were.

Humanity was born to be discriminated against.

But if I stay above everyone else for too long, I'll become like the Five Elders and Imu, lose my drive to improve, and ultimately be swept away by the tides of the era.

I need to correct myself!

John rose from his chair and strode out of the inn room.

Meanwhile.

At the boundary between the West Blue and the Calm Belt.

The Treasure slowly crossed from tranquil waters into raging seas. Its mast was broken, its hull riddled with holes—it had been damaged to the limit.

On the deck, Pete and the pirates lay sprawled about. Their lips were cracked, their eyes bloodshot, and they were exhausted beyond measure.

In order to salvage the treasure that might have fallen into the sea, they had spent more than half a month near that island, only returning after their food and water ran out.

Food had not been much of a problem. After all, this was a nest of Sea Kings, and there were plenty of massive prey capable of feeding an entire shipful of people.

Water, however, was a fatal problem. The island was nothing but rocks and could not retain rainwater at all. Yet during the past half month, not a single drop of rain had fallen in the Calm Belt, where rain was normally frequent.

After the rum aboard the ship ran out, the pirates had no choice but to return and find an island to replenish their water supply.

But without Conqueror's Haki to intimidate them, the Sea Kings had gone mad, lining up to attack the ship.

As a result, what should have been a short one-day voyage had become extraordinarily difficult, and several times they had nearly been buried beneath the sea along with their ship.

"We finally made it out alive."

Feeling the familiar sea breeze, Pete felt as though an entire lifetime had passed.

Hearing his sigh, the other pirates either nodded or voiced their agreement.

"Yeah, being alive is great."

"I'm so thirsty. I want water... no! I want to drink an entire barrel of rum!"

"I want an ice-cold cola..."

At that moment, Pete and the pirates had no thoughts of treasure whatsoever. All they could think about was stuffing themselves with food and drink, then heading to the Pleasure District for a good time.

Whoosh—

Just as the pirates indulged in their fantasies, shrill whistles tore through the air, rapidly approaching from afar.

The familiar sound made the pirates leap to their feet. They saw black dots shooting toward the Treasure from starboard.

"Those are... cannonballs!"

"Enemy attack!"

"Men, snap out of it!"

Rather than being alarmed, Pete and the pirates were overjoyed, as excited as if they had found an oasis in the desert.

Enemies meant food and water, and perhaps even... women!

For a moment, flintlock guns fired bullets coated in Armament Haki, while cutlasses slashed out flying blade strikes, detonating the rapidly approaching cannonball barrage in midair.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Smoke filled the air as flames and shockwaves swept outward, stirring up towering waves and making the ships on the sea pitch even more violently.

"Quick! Bring the ship over!"

At Pete's command, the helmsman steered the Treasure through the rolling smoke, only to see...

Five Marine warships!

"Dammit, why are the Marines here?!"

Watching the seagull flags fluttering in the wind, Pete's face turned utterly grim.

His attention had been entirely focused on the incoming cannonballs, and the arrogance of a remnant of the Rocks Pirates had made him completely overlook the enemy's identity.

But now that he saw they were Marines, their instincts as pirates filled them with fear.

"Whatever. For food and water, even the Marines must be sunk!"

Pete gritted his teeth, his face gradually twisting into a vicious snarl under the drive of hunger and thirst.

"Yeah! Sink the Marines!"

"Even Marines are worth robbing!"

The pirates also rallied themselves. In the face of survival, all that bullshit about "evil" and "justice" could get lost.

Pew—

Just as the pirates' savagery flared, one of the warships erupted with dazzling light.

Chaychitz Maffey stood at the bow, her fanged mouth wide open as a laser gathered within it.

"Damned pirates, hand over everything that bastard John took!"

Somaz stood beside her, clutching his chest with his right hand. The empty sensation inside filled him with terror.

His heart was still with John!

He had to take it back!

"Quick, quick, quick! Turn the helm! Dodge it!"

Seeing the brilliant light gathering on the warship ahead, Pete's pupils abruptly shrank as he hurriedly ordered the helmsman to evade.

The Treasure was still some distance from the warships. They were far beyond the range of the Reaction Fruit's power, so they could not affect the enemy at all.

Sizzle—

As the Treasure turned, the laser beam arrived in an instant, grazing the port side before streaking toward the distant sea and triggering a violent explosion.