The scalps of the civilians beside Wangchuan prickled the instant they heard those words.
"Y-you... what did you say?!"
An old fruit seller turned deathly pale. The basket in her hands dropped to the ground, scattering fruit everywhere.
"K-kill a Celestial Dragon?!"
A young sailor's legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.
"Is this guy insane?! Does he know what the Celestial Dragons mean?!"
"A Marine Admiral! A Marine Admiral will come!"
"Forget him! Run! This man is dead!"
"Another lunatic... just like that Straw Hat kid before!"
The crowd parted to either side like an ebbing tide. Within a few breaths, the already sparse street became even emptier.
Everyone hid in the shops lining the street, deep in the alleys, and behind tree roots.
They peered out from behind cover, looking at Wangchuan as though he were already dead.
In the middle of the street.
The Celestial Dragons' procession was still moving forward.
"What a lowly creature."
"That filthy blood has sullied my eyes."
He rode on two people's shoulders.
The two wore rags and heavy iron collars around their necks. Chains were attached to the collars, their other ends clenched in the Celestial Dragon's hand.
Their backs were covered in whip marks and brands. Their knees bent, their steps staggered.
There was no light in their eyes.
Only a hollow emptiness, alive yet already dead.
The Celestial Dragon's name was Saint Babette Marcus.
He came from the Celestial Dragons' Babette Family.
Riding those two slaves, he was enjoying a stroll beneath the sunshine of the Sabaody Archipelago.
Then he saw the person standing ahead.
In the middle of the street.
A young man wearing a black coat.
His hands in his pockets.
He did not move aside.
He did not kneel.
He did not even