A Deviated Course, an Unexpected Romance

A month later, off the coast of Dressrosa.

On the azure sea, two pirate ships flying skull flags had their sails fully spread as they desperately fled away from the dreamlike island behind them.

On deck, the pirates burst into wild laughter at having survived the ordeal.

Meanwhile, Dressrosa's shore had descended into chaos.

"Something terrible has happened! Princess Scarlet has been taken by pirates!"

"Guards! Where have all the guards gone?"

"The soldiers guarding the harbor have all been killed! This is a disaster!"

Kyros, the army commander who had rushed over upon hearing the news, glared furiously at the pirate ships on the horizon, which were about to vanish from sight.

He tore off his upper uniform in one motion, revealing his muscular body, and prepared to leap into the sea and pursue them by swimming with his tremendous strength.

Just then, a scene unfolded that left everyone on the shore, including Kyros, utterly dumbfounded—

The two pirate ships that were about to escape from view seemed to be suddenly gripped by an invisible giant hand. They were forcibly lifted from the sea like fish caught on a hook, irresistibly rising into the air and swiftly disappearing into the low-hanging clouds.

Immediately afterward, terrified screams rang out from within the clouds. One black speck after another fell from the sky like dumplings dropped into a pot, splashing into the sea with despairing sprays of water.

Kyros's expression on shore turned grave to the extreme. He pushed his Observation Haki to its limits, locking tightly onto the clouds above. He could clearly sense that Princess Scarlet's presence was still above those clouds. Several unfamiliar presences had also appeared there, one of them powerful and profound like a torch in the darkness, enough to make his heart tremble.

His mind