"Ah!!"
Lucas let out a painful scream as his sponge-like, Expansion body rapidly shrank back to its original shape, lying on the ground, wailing.
This effect was created by Luo Chen's ability being added to his swordsmanship.
The crimson aura attached to his fruit has the ability to erode the minds of enemies. If one's own strength is insufficient, one may even be corrupted by that aura and become a walking corpse.
At this moment, Luo Chen's sword strike landed on Lucas, causing not physical harm but a profound questioning of his soul.
"Ah..."
Lucas wailed, his mind replaying long-forgotten memories.
'Hey, Lucas, what's your dream when you grow up?!'
This was a scene from his childhood that flashed through his mind.
A snotty-nosed little boy wearing open-crotch pants asked Lucas, a boy who was sitting by the river deep in thought.
'Me?! My dream when I grow up is to become a great pirate like Rocks, someone the world will fear and admire.'
' Rocks? That world-renowned maritime tyrant, Lucas, your dreams are certainly grand!'
'And you, Dennis, what's your dream job?'
My dream is to inherit my Pops's shop and make my rice balls recognized by the world!
' Dennis, you have big dreams and ambitions too!'
'whee!!'
Let's work hard together and strive towards our dreams!
'Um!!'
In the video, two little kids are sharing their dreams by the river, with the flowing water serving as a witness to their shared aspirations.
The scene shifts, and the two snotty little kids in open-crotch pants have grown into strong young men. They bid farewell to each other and bravely take their first steps toward their own dreams.
Goodbye, Dennis. I hope your rice ball shop will be able to expand to the Grand Line next time we meet, so that I, too, can enjoy that familiar taste of home.
Lucas, aboard his small sailboat, waved to Dennis on the shore.
'I will. I hope your fame will reach your hometown by then. In advance, I wish you widespread renown!'
"Then, just wait for my good news. Goodbye..."
The two engaged in a manly farewell ceremony, without any attempts to stop each other. They showed no sadness at each other's departure, but instead smiled and wished each other well in farewell.
Then, the scene shifts to more than ten years later.
'Why... why? Lucas, why have you become so cold-hearted? They were your fellow countrymen, how could you be so cruel? Why? Can fame completely change a person's character?'
Dennis stared in disbelief at the horrific scene before him, his hands trembling, at the devastation inflicted by his childhood friend.
Following his gaze, Lucas, nearing middle age, stood in a pool of blood, with rows of cold corpses at his feet. These were the villagers Lucas had murdered. At this moment, Lucas stared fiercely at Dennis opposite him, a cruel and sinister smile playing on his lips.
"Thief, hahaha, why? There's no why, Dennis, my friend."
From the moment the Navy placed a bounty on my head, our kinship and friendship were severed. It's an honor for you to die here and add a little more to my bounty, do you understand, Dennis? Hahahaha...
With a sinister grin, Lucas slowly approached his friend Dennis, who had long since lost the will to resist, and slowly raised his knife to kill him as well.
'Heh heh heh, is that so? I understand. Come on, the things you've done today, the tragedies you've caused, will be paid for by someone sooner or later. I'll be waiting for you in hell, my best friend... Lucas!! Hahahaha...'
brush...
Before Dennis's laughter had even subsided, the intolerant Lucas turned on him, sending his best friend to his death.
In return, the Navy's fear of him deepened, and the bounty soared to its current 250 million Beli. The newspapers also sensationalized his heinous torture, and behind the bounty was a tombstone built of innocent lives.
"Hahaha, I can't believe it, Dennis, what you said actually came true! But so what? I'm Lucas, the great pirate with a bounty of 250 million! Even if I'm about to die, it's none of your business, you bunch of ghosts, coming after me..."
Lucas gradually succumbed to his inner demons during the final interrogation, slowly being consumed by the spirits of those who Sacrifice in the atrocities he had committed within himself.
'Hehehe, give me back my life! Lucas, you damned villain, you're finally going to die! Come on, come to hell and stay with us forever!'
' Lucas, I've come to demand retribution for dismembering our entire family. Come here, come and join us...'
The spirits of the dead he had murdered seemed to have truly crawled out of hell to seek revenge on him.
"Get the hell out of my way... I'd rather die than die at the hands of you bastards... Get the hell out of my way..."
Lucas's eyes were bloodshot, veins bulging on his body, and he shouted angrily at the illusory figures in mid-air.
"Captain!! What's wrong with the captain? Why did he suddenly go crazy? Did that guy do it?"
Around the pirate ship, on several lifeboats, all of Lucas's men looked at him on the ship and suddenly roared at the empty sky as if they had gone mad.
They cried out in fear, looking at Luo Chen with terrified eyes, as if they had encountered some kind of tiger or ferocious beast, avoiding him at all costs.
clatter...
clatter...
clatter...
"It's over... Lucas, I will put an end to your life filled with sin... Sword Blade Armament... Kill!!"
Luo Chen walked up to him, looked down at him and said something, then waved the Rain Burial to end Lucas's life.
Clang...
As Luo Chen's Armament Haki -infused Rain Burial pierced Lucas's heart without any resistance, Lucas breathed his last, unwillingly.
Then, as if bound by some strange curse, his body withered rapidly, eventually turning into a dried-up corpse, which then turned into dust and scattered around with a whoosh.
"What?! Is this a side effect of using that strange sponge ability he just used? Or has he been overdrawing his physical strength and life force to fight me from the very beginning?!"
Forget it, he's already dead anyway, there's no point in thinking about it anymore. Next...
Luo Chen watched the whole scene unfold. He was somewhat surprised that Lucas's body had turned to dust and wondered what had happened. After thinking for a moment, he stopped investigating and turned his attention to the pirate henchmen on the nearby lifeboats.
"Oh no! Even the captain failed! We have to escape, or it will be too late!"
When Luo Chen's terrifying gaze swept over them, everyone trembled violently. They panicked and tried to escape as quickly as possible, to get away from Luo Chen, who they considered even more terrifying than the Great Demon King.
"Run away..."
Everyone frantically grabbed their oars, wishing they had more legs to escape this sea area.
call out...
"Huh..."
The pirates were about to leave, and before they had even gone a short distance, Luo Chen used his Flash ability to appear in front of them, staring at them with a teasing expression.
"I said, where are you planning to run off to? I, the master, haven't even given the order yet, how dare you leave?!"
When Luo Chen's gaze made their scalps tingle, their legs trembled, and they were almost about to wet their pants, Luo Chen finally spoke, saying to them with an unyielding and domineering Haki.
"No, we wouldn't dare! Lord Luo Chen, you haven't given the order yet, how could we leave? We just wanted to wander around and see if there were any enemies so we could report back to you, wouldn't you agree?!"
One of the pirates fawned over Luo Chen, then gestured to his companion beside him.
"Yes, yes, we were just going to inspect the situation at sea and then come back to report to you..."
His companion, after being touched by his hand, understood what he meant and quickly continued his words.