The power of dreams! Buckingham was having too much fun to leave!
At that moment, only one thought filled her mind.
What was this? Was it forbidden to look directly at a god?
"Just who are you-"
She had barely managed to voice her terrified question when, the next second, her body began to collapse in on itself.
That was no figure of speech. It was what was actually happening to Buckingham.
She felt as though every bone in her body was about to shatter, and she curled up uncontrollably.
Her body twisted beyond her control, and her consciousness gradually sank into chaos.
She lost consciousness completely and collapsed where she stood.
Then, at last, the mass of flesh reshaped itself, and Buckingham appeared where she had fallen, completely unharmed.
At first, Buckingham just sat there in a daze.
Then she confirmed that she could see again, that she could feel her body again, and that she could make sounds again.
"Aaaaah!!"
An unimaginably piercing scream instantly rang out across the sky.
Buckingham began to back away.
One step, two steps. On the third, her legs gave out and her knees buckled, and she almost fell to the ground.
She curled up into a ball.
Her whole body trembled, tears streamed down her face, and she howled hysterically.
"Please spare me!"
She begged, "I'll do anything you want, just please spare me-"
That feeling of terror and despair, of being fully conscious yet able only to watch as her body was twisted at will, and that agonizing pain that had made her wish she could just die-Buckingham never wanted to experience any of it a second time.
Then Buckingham saw a light.
A small ball of light appeared out of thin air before her, giving off a soft white glow.
Basking in its radiance, Buckingham felt a peace and tranquility she couldn't explain.
Trembling, she raised her right hand and grabbed the ball of light.
Buckingham felt something seep out of the light and into her body.
She could have refused, but she didn't dare.
A dazzling light swallowed her.
Then, in the next instant, before Buckingham could even react to what had happened, the scenery before her abruptly changed.
When she opened her eyes wide in terror, she saw a dark, damp cell. Heavy shackles had been fastened around her, and even her injuries had returned.
"Hah... hah..."
Buckingham gasped for breath.
What on earth was going on?
Had everything just now been a dream?
"Mom! You're awake!"
Her foolish son's weak voice came at once from the neighboring cell.
"Weevil-"
Buckingham, who had always doted on her son, immediately looked toward the voice and saw him shackled tightly to the floor, unable to move.
"What on earth happened-"
She had no idea what had happened. Thinking Weevil might know something, she was about to ask him.
But then.
Buckingham's pupils dilated.
She couldn't move!
Something she couldn't understand flowed into her body through a channel she likewise didn't understand!
Her consciousness began to grow hazy, as though she were half asleep and half awake. It was as if something were squeezing her consciousness out of her brain.
Her body sat up without her permission!
Then it turned to look at Weevil in the next cell.
Buckingham heard herself say, "Weevil, don't resist."
"Oh, okay, Mom."
The dutiful Weevil answered without a second thought.
Don't, Weevil!!
Buckingham's eyes widened in anguish.
But it was no use. The next second, Weevil had already lost consciousness.
Immediately afterward, Buckingham's vision blurred, and she found herself back in that boundless, empty space.
"Wow! Mom! What is this place?"
Beside her, her foolish son was looking around excitedly.
"..."
Buckingham's body trembled incessantly.
She was no longer out of control of her body. And judging by how Weevil had lost consciousness just now, this was probably some kind of mental space.
But it no longer mattered.
Because she knew that, whenever the master of this world wished, she could be dragged back here at any time.
Even her body in the real world could be controlled!
An inescapable collar had already been fastened around her neck. There was nowhere left to run.
"Mom, what's this?"
Weevil's astonished cry made Buckingham turn her head instinctively.
She saw a familiar ball of light floating quietly before her foolish son.
Buckingham opened her mouth, then fell silent for a few seconds.
At this point, did she have another choice?
She couldn't let Weevil experience that unbearable suffering too, could she?
She said, "Weevil, grab it. Don't resist it."
"Okay!"
Weevil obeyed his mother's order without question and grabbed the ball of light.
And so, the dazzling light swallowed him too.
Neither Weevil, swallowed by the light, nor Buckingham, watching her foolish son, could see that two people had actually been watching them all along.
One of them said, "In that case, this mother and son are puppets in the palm of your hand as well, Lord Naito."
It was a gentle, composed woman's voice.
Naito said lazily, "They'll do, I suppose. How is your Haki training coming along?"
The woman said gently, "I've become reasonably proficient in Observation Haki, but as for Armament Haki, I still can't use hardening."
Naito lifted an eyelid. "Tsk, that's a little slow. We started learning Haki together, didn't we?"
The woman merely bowed her head respectfully. "Of course I can't compare to you."
"Forget it. That's enough for now. We'll put your training on hold. If things go smoothly at Impel Down, you'll come with me to the New World. You still need a Devil Fruit, so we should get you one soon."
"Yes."
"Mm, that's settled."
Naito yawned and stretched. "Seriously, why am I so sleepy even in a dream?"
Naito, seventeen years old, had transmigrated exactly one year ago and was a Paramecia Dream-Dream Fruit user.
Chapter 3: The power of dreams! Buckingham was having too much fun to leave!
A massive Marine warship cut through the waves on its way back to Marine Headquarters.
On deck, the recruits were playing around in groups of three or five.
The final assessment had been completed without a hitch, and even the unexpected powerful enemy had been defeated. Even someone as strict as Zephyr was unwilling to be hard on the recruits who had survived the ordeal.
Apart from the personnel needed to operate the warship, the recruits could have a good rest today.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Naito sat blankly on the railing, his eyelids still drooping. His eyes were completely lifeless, like a bot's.
He was doing curls with a barbell in his right hand, a barbell with weight plates piled on both ends like two small mountains.
"How heavy is that thing?"
A Marine watching Naito work out clicked his tongue in amazement. "The railing's about to crack under the weight!"
Beneath Naito, the sturdy wooden railing was indeed making strange noises, a clear indication of how heavy the barbell was.
In fact, the muscles in Naito's arm were already trembling, and sweat was pouring off him. He seemed to be approaching his limit.
Yet Naito's right hand continued rising and falling like a machine, without the slightest hesitation.
"I told you, don't compare yourselves to Naito. This guy's a monster, but..."
Binz squatted in front of Naito with narrowed eyes, waving his right hand in front of Naito's face as he spoke.
Naito gave no reaction. His eyes didn't even move.
"No matter how many times I see it, it's still weird."
Binz couldn't help raising his voice. "Is he really not asleep?"
"Heh heh."
A Marine grinned and made faces as he chuckled quietly. "Still don't believe it, Binz? Why don't you try punching Naito again?"
Binz's body shuddered at once, and his face turned a little pale. "I'll pass. If Naito reacts and punches me again right now, I'll be bedridden for at least two weeks."
Whenever Naito threw himself wholeheartedly into training, he entered this peculiar state. He was almost completely oblivious to the outside world, training single-mindedly like a machine until he was utterly exhausted.
At first, everyone had found it strange, and Binz had volunteered to try to "wake" Naito up. He had promptly lost several front teeth to a punch.