The deep blue glow faded, and the two landed lightly on the rubble-strewn street in Area 14.
Carina raised her head and looked around, her pale blue fox eyes widening slightly.
This place and Area 42 were two completely different worlds.
There were no gleaming bubble buildings, no tidy streets, no leisurely tourists. In their place stood shabby, crumbling buildings, narrow, dark alleys, and garbage and sewage everywhere. An indescribable smell filled the air-blood, decay, urine, alcohol, and a rotten stench of sin.
Pirates squatted on street corners in groups of three or five, brazenly sizing up every passerby.
Tattoos, scars, and missing limbs were their shared badges of honor. A few slave traders were conducting business nearby, haggling over the ragged women and children locked in iron cages as though they were merchandise.
Faint screams and raucous laughter drifted from afar. Who knew which unlucky soul had lost their life in the Colosseum this time?
Boer gently slipped an arm around Carina's shoulders, his voice calm and unhurried:
"If the Celestial Dragons' privileged district itself is the greatest evil and darkness in the Sabaody Archipelago-" He paused, his gaze sweeping across the chaotic neighborhood. "Then the chaos in Areas 11 through 29 beyond it all exists to serve them."
Carina nodded, only half understanding.
"Slave trading and lawless slaughter, in a sense, all serve the Celestial Dragons." Boer continued, his voice carrying no anger, only the calm of someone stating facts.
"They need entertainment, toys, and proof of their unique status as 'gods.' And these-" He lifted his chin toward the pirates and slave traders. "Are the tools that provide those services."
Carina followed his gaze.
Those pirates were eyeing them maliciously—their striking Fox Mink looks and slender figures made them look like two unaccompanied pieces of "rare merchandise."