Vic found himself standing on a stone path about a meter wide. One end of the path led to the mountainside, and the other end led to the steps of a high platform. The platform was round, surrounded by a ring of stone steps that helped people climb up. On the platform, he could vaguely see a hunched figure, motionless.
The stone path was divided in two by pools of water on both sides. Vic stood in the middle of the stone path without making any other moves, remaining still and adapting to any situation.
Since someone had spoken, he decided to have a conversation with that person before making any further comments.
"I've noticed something unusual about the hot springs on this island, so I've come to investigate. Who are you, and where are you located?"
"Of course I'm the master here. I'm sitting cross-legged on this high platform; can't you see me?"
The aged voice rang out again, and with it, the faint aura grew slightly stronger, only to fade away again afterward.
Upon hearing the sound, Vic looked at the blurry figure on the platform. He couldn't tell it was a person before, but now, combined with the voice, he realized it was sitting cross-legged on the ground, making it look like a person, albeit a rather short one.
Vic walked along the stone path toward the high platform. He noticed that the edges of the stone path were engraved with special patterns, which were clearly designed uniformly when the mountain space was excavated, and the things left behind were for some purpose.
The entire mountain space wasn't very large, just a large cone-shaped space with a diameter of about 100 meters. Vic didn't walk fast on the stone path, afraid that there might be some unknown dangers or traps here.
"Old man, what are you doing in this dark and gloomy place?" Vic asked tentatively.
"Young people shouldn't be so curious; it won't help you live a long life! Maintaining a humble heart is what you should be doing."
The aged voice rang out again, this time with a hint of sinister intent. Vic kept staring at the figure on the high platform and found that the figure was motionless, like a statue.
"What kind of young person isn't curious? The world has always been a place for young people."
Vic continued walking forward. Under his Observation Haki, the figure showed no signs of life, and no matter how he sensed it, it didn't seem like a living person.
"That's not necessarily true. Young people can only represent the world on the surface. The true King of the World has always been hiding himself, manipulating the world!"
Vic was shocked to hear this; the existence of someone here who knew about Imu was completely beyond his imagination. Vic guessed that this person knew some history from the Void Century.
The stone path was only so long, Vic had already slowed down, but he still made it to the steps below the platform.
Here Vic saw two fist-sized holes on a step, above the pools on either side of the stone path. Water jets inside the holes connected to the two pools below, as if two pools were circulating.
"You mean the Pirate King Roger didn't die, and he went into hiding?" Vic asked knowingly, trying to extract more information.
After finishing his sentence, Vic continued forward and stepped onto the stairs. After climbing a few steps, he found himself enveloped by two suddenly appearing red rays.
Vic immediately stopped advancing and became fully alert. From Vic's angle, all he could see was a huge steel head with two curved horns on either side of it.
The red ray was emitted from the eye sockets of the steel skull; the area below the head was blocked by the steps and could not be seen. Ten seconds later, the steel skull retracted the red ray.
Vic couldn't find any information about this steel head in his memory, but it appeared to be made in the style of the Giant Race of Elbaf.
This is because Vic traveled through time early; he did so at the end of the Wano Country arc. If he had traveled any later, he would have known that this was the same thing as the giant steel soldiers that attacked Holy Land Mary Geoise 200 years ago.
"Of course not him. Eight years ago, Roger brought a man here. He was from that tribe and could read Ancient Script. He obtained some information from here!"
Just as Vic was pondering what that steel head was, the aged voice rang out again, this time mentioning that Roger had arrived.
" Roger came to this space and translated the Poneglyph from here, so the other person must be Kozuki Oden. Are there more Poneglyph here? Where are they?"
Vic realized that the person in question was Kozuki Oden, and then he scanned the space again, searching for the Poneglyph.
"You know about the Poneglyph?" The mysterious man seemed to have guessed what Vic was looking for.
"I've heard of it, but I don't know much about it," Vic said frankly.
"You've gained its approval, you can come up to the platform. Here's what you're looking for."
"Gain its approval?" Vic asked uncertainly, but no one answered him. He guessed that the two beams of red light from earlier might have detected something.
Vic stopped talking and continued upwards. With his current strength, he shouldn't encounter any danger, but he had been influenced by the atmosphere here and was being a little too vigilant.
Continuing upwards, a body appeared beneath the metal head, also entirely metal, leaning motionless against the cave wall, as if it wasn't the one that had emitted the red light earlier.
As Vic looked at the iron lump, it increasingly resembled the Giant Race of Elbaf, possessing a profound sense of history unlike any other Giant Race that had emerged from elsewhere.
"How could there be such a giant mechanical soldier here, placed alongside the Poneglyph? Could it be something Joy Boy left behind to guard the Poneglyph? Or is it also a product of eight hundred years ago?"
Why didn't Roger take it with him? Was it out of energy? Or was the time not right, and he was waiting for that moment in the future?
Although Vic had never seen this thing before, he used his quick wit and the information he had to deduce some useful things.
"Old man, you've been here all this time?" Vic thought of what the man had said about seeing Roger and Oden eight years ago. At that time, Roger must have retraced the Grand Line after Oden joined, in order to find the Poneglyph scattered throughout the Grand Line.
"Yes, I have lived alone in this space for almost two hundred years, and now I am nearing the end of my life."
"It's just in time that you've arrived here. You are my successor, and from now on, you will continue to protect everything here!" The aged voice carried a hint of relief and cruelty.
"What a joke! I didn't come to this world for these inanimate objects. You want me to stay here? You can try!"
After speaking, Vic drew the Blood Wither from his waist, and a powerful sword intent emanated from his body, causing the firelight on the cave wall to flicker violently.
At that moment, his Haki declaration echoed throughout the mountain space.
"Cough cough cough cough! You young man, you're so easily teased! Put the knife away, you've scared this old man half to death!"
The old voice was really coughing, as if it were coughing up its lungs.
Vic didn't sheathe his sword; he was still waiting for what would happen next.