A jumble of footsteps rang out at the stairway to Level 3, mingling with the footsteps from Level 1 and masking one another instead.
On Level 2, Kuzan and the others paid no attention to what was below, their gazes all fixed on the enormous stairway entrance.
"They're here..."
Garp's and Kuzan's gazes turned utterly grave as they stared intently.
A few breaths later, a figure dressed in a white kimono appeared, carrying an air of nobility, with a dense crowd of criminals following behind him.
"Heh, Kuzan. It's been days."
"I've missed you dearly. I just wonder whether you'll still dare act so arrogantly toward me this time!"
Roy appeared and spoke first.
His voice carried mockery, along with a hint of provocation.
Even with Garp, Kuzan, Magellan, and three other vice admirals standing before him, he showed not a trace of fear, or even the slightest concern.
This was the first time Roy had truly appeared before the many Marine Soldiers other than Magellan and Kuzan.
His bearing was cold, like that of a noble prince, but his aura was far too evil, making him seem more like a demon.
Magellan gritted his teeth. "Roy, you bastard! You still dare be this arrogant?"
"Heh, Magellan. I've beaten you twice already. What can you do now?"
Roy did not even glance at him, his gaze resting steadily on Kuzan and Garp.
"Right now, this master and disciple are the only ones who interest me."
Magellan wanted to say more, but Garp raised a hand to stop him.
Garp looked at Roy with a dark gaze, his voice colder than ever before.
"Roy, is it? I'll grant that you're someone of note."
"But you released those monsters from Level 6 of Impel Down, who committed countless atrocities. Don't you have even a shred of conscience?"
"Someone like you is a born demon, a calamity, a born executioner. You shouldn't exist in this world."
As his words fell, the Marines present roared in unison, as though they had rehearsed it countless times:
"Calamity Roy, you killed jailers and freed criminals! Heaven and earth will not tolerate you! You deserve ten thousand deaths!"
Their voices thundered, steadily suppressing the momentum of Roy's side, while also aiming to disgust their opponents.
At this, a slight smile appeared at the corner of Garp's mouth.
The criminals present, however, all looked displeased.
Just because they called them criminals who deserved to die, did that mean they truly deserved death?
Roy remained calm.
Only after the Marine Soldiers finished shouting did he speak disdainfully.
"Heh, you call me Calamity. Is that by the Marines' definition, or this world's?"
"What is good, and what is evil? Don't you find yourselves disgusting?"
Garp's expression darkened, and he sneered. "Roy, why are you still making excuses?"
"Releasing these criminals is evil. Killing Marines and jailers is evil."
"Even talking to someone born evil like you is a waste of my breath."
Roy's expression did not change. He gave Garp a long look, then suddenly laughed. "Heh, some people put on a uniform and really think they're justice itself."
"I hear that despite being the Navy Hero, Garp, you have a son named Monkey D. Dragon. He used to be a Marine too, didn't he?"
Garp's expression stiffened, and his smile vanished instantly.
He did not understand how Roy knew. He wanted to stop him, but it was already too late.
"But if the Marines truly stand for justice, why did your son Dragon defect from the Marines and establish the Revolutionary Army to oppose the Marines and the World Government?"
Roy raised the corners of his eyes slightly and spoke pointedly.
"Could it be that you actually recognize the Marines as evil too, and you had Dragon establish the Revolutionary Army so you father and son could join forces against the World Government?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the situation, which had been unfavorable to Roy, instantly reversed.
Marine Soldiers and criminals alike looked at Garp in disbelief.
Garp clenched his fists, his eyes filled with shock, lingering fear, and disbelief. For a moment, he could not speak.
The sight stunned quite a few people.
They had expected Garp to refute it, but didn't his silence look like an admission?
For a time, even the strictly disciplined Marine Soldiers could not help murmuring among themselves.
"What? Vice Admiral Garp's son Dragon defected from the Marines and even founded the Revolutionary Army to oppose us Marines and the World Government? When did this happen? How come we didn't know?"
"Wait, have you forgotten? There really was a Marine named Dragon in the class before Admiral Sakazuki and the others.
"The Marines wanted to groom him into an admiral back then, but he left for some unknown reason. So he went off to establish the Revolutionary Army..."
"Huh? Then could what that Calamity Roy said be true...? But this is far too strange.
"Vice Admiral Garp is the Marine hero, yet his son defected from the Marines and established the Revolutionary Army to oppose the Marines and the World Government. Doesn't that mean something's wrong...?"
"Hiss... watch what you say."
Sometimes, a rumor took only a sentence to spread, while debunking it took endless effort.
Garp had never voluntarily made the matter Roy mentioned public, though that did not quite count as deliberately concealing it. After all, many of the older Marines knew.
But Garp was the Navy Hero, and Fleet Admiral Sengoku, Zephyr, and Admiral Kuzan, who were close to him, had all subconsciously overlooked the matter.
Yet Roy had exposed it outright at this particular moment, practically throwing military morale into chaos.
Seeing this, Roy's smile deepened. "Heh, our famous Vice Admiral Garp, the Navy Hero. Why aren't you saying anything now?"
"Ah, if I were a Marine, I'd feel it wasn't worth it."
"As a rank-and-file soldier, I fight for my life on the front lines, only for you to tell me the enemy is among us."
"Just what is this justice fighting for?"
He had originally disdained using such methods to sow discord, but that old bastard Garp had started calling him evil and saying he deserved death the moment he arrived.
In that case, he could hardly be blamed for showing no courtesy.
They would see whose reputation gave out first.
Sure enough, once he finished speaking, the atmosphere changed again.
The criminals wore disdainful, mocking expressions, as though they truly pitied those Marines.
On the Marines' side, apart from Garp's adjutant Bogard, even the other two vice admirals had something amiss in their gazes.
Damn it, whether Roy was Calamity or not no longer mattered.
They only wanted to know whether what he said was true.
If it was, weren't they being stabbed in the back by their own people?
Seeing the situation turn unfavorable, Kuzan could finally no longer stand by.
He stepped forward, and cold air instantly swept across the scene.
"Everyone, shut up! Vice Admiral Garp quelled the God Valley Incident and captured Pirate King Roger! He's also my teacher, Kuzan!"
"If you suspect there's something wrong with him, are you also questioning me, Marine Admiral Kuzan?"
At his words, the Marines present withdrew their gazes, looks of realization appearing on their faces.
That was right.
Vice Admiral Garp was the Navy Hero. He could capture even the Pirate King, and he was Admiral Kuzan's teacher. How could there possibly be anything wrong with him?
They had actually doubted him just now. Damn them!
"Everyone, the matter of Dragon is complicated. I stake my position as admiral on my guarantee that it has nothing to do with Vice Admiral Garp."
Seeing the situation improve, Kuzan softened his tone. "Right now, our priority is still to hold off this demon."
As he spoke, his gaze turned toward Roy, killing intent surging constantly.
"Roy, you truly live up to the name Calamity. Even your ability to bewitch people is first-rate. But my Marine Soldiers aren't fools."
"Today, I have four thousand Marines, while you have only a little over a thousand criminals. How will you withstand us?"
"All Marines, hear my orders! Prepare for battle! Today, we slay Roy, this Calamity, this demon who undermines military morale!"
Hearing this, the Marine Soldiers raised their weapons and aimed them in unison at Roy's side.
But they did not know that Roy's words had ultimately left a shadow in their hearts.
When the right opportunity came, that shadow might erupt, and then there truly would be no undoing it.
Garp finally came back to his senses as well. Only coldness and killing intent remained in his eyes as he looked at Roy.
"Roy, you brat. You nearly succeeded in framing me."
"Today, I'll see whether your strength is as tough as your mouth!"
As he spoke, his aura erupted, and he prepared to kill Roy himself.
The Marines numbered over four thousand, while their opponents had less than half their numbers. The advantage was clearly theirs.
The Marine Soldiers, weapons in hand, charged first.
Yet Roy merely sneered at the sight.
"How sanctimonious! I've certainly seen your talent for fooling people now."
"In the end, you just want to attack me, yet you still have to find some righteous excuse. Disgusting!"
"All criminals, whether you can leave Impel Down today and gain the freedom you want rests on this battle! Charge with me! Freedom is right before your eyes!"
As his words fell, the fifteen hundred-plus pirates behind Roy went completely wild and, spurred on, charged straight into battle.
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