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Deep inside the volcano's mountainous interior, the base was scorching hot and hard to bear. Yet, inside, hundreds of pirates were bustling around, tirelessly working. They smelted the mined ores into molten iron and forged them into weapons and armor.
Glancing at Rowen's surprised expression, Ryokugyu chuckled. "At first, Orrick Sama really did intend to execute you publicly, just as you said, but later, he decided… that was too unreliable."
Hearing this, Rowen narrowed his eyes. "You're not… afraid, are you? Afraid of me, even like this?"
"You're absolutely right." Ryokugyu nodded without a hint of shame. "We're afraid! This is a war over world supremacy, not some petty pirate squabble... We fear any unexpected variables."
"If we can, we'll crush them while they're still in the bud!" Under Rowen's heavy gaze, Ryokugyu calmed his tone and said steadily, "If you want someone to blame, blame yourself, Soryu (Azure Dragon)... for being too dangerous."
"Personally, I'd love to execute you publicly, as a formal declaration of war against the World Government. But if that risks Orrick Sama's grand plan, then my personal desires don't matter."
'What was this, hoisting a rock to smash your own foot?' Rowen squinted slightly, curling his lips in bitter amusement. If only he looked easier to deal with, he might've been given a sliver of hope.
The more ceremonial and grand the execution, the more preparation it required… and the more openings it might offer him.
"You're an Undying, Soryu (Azure Dragon). We're not dumb enough to think the ocean can drown you..." The cage was placed onto a metal cart. Ryokugyu waved the pirates away and personally grabbed the cart handles.
"But magma is different. Its extreme heat burns all things. Even Kaido can't survive in magma; it's just a matter of how long he lasts."
Kacha...
With steady arms, Ryokugyu pushed the cart slowly forward, keeping a close eye on Rowen, inch by inch, toward the dark slide ahead.
"END POINT..."
Suddenly, Rowen opened his eyes and calmly spoke a single term.
Kacha!
Ryokugyu twitched. The cart stopped.
"What did you just say?"
"I said, if I'm not mistaken, this place is an END POINT, right?"
Ryokugyu's expression changed rapidly. He didn't reply.
Seeing this, Rowen continued. "There are three active volcanoes in the New World, each acting like a pressure valve, maintaining the balance between the surface world and the underground magma layer."
"If all three erupt at once, the pressure imbalance would cause all the subterranean magma to surge upward, engulfing everything, turning the New World into a sea of fire and wiping out all life."
"That's why these three volcanoes are known as END POINTs, 'places of ending.' Now tell me, do you know what level of resolve we have for this war?"
Rowen smirked coldly as he looked at Ryokugyu. "If you push us into a corner, we'll detonate the END POINTS and die together."
"Believe me… that's absolutely something we're capable of doing."
Ryokugyu's eyes went wide in horror. He looked up, stunned.
Detonate the END POINTs?! So the Marines… had such a hidden card?!
But before he could speak, Rowen went on. "And our confidence comes from this, first, Dyna Stones are completely controlled by the World Government. The small amounts on the black market are nowhere near enough to trigger a volcanic eruption."
"Second, the END POINT locations are of such critical importance that only top Marine and Government officials know their coordinates."
"Even when 'Blackbeard' wanted to destroy the world years ago, Aokiji personally scouted those areas. No one dared approach, so the sites have remained a state secret."
"But now… there's an unplanned variable."
"Orrick, that bastard, Nibelung Orrick."
Rowen's smirk widened as he watched Ryokugyu's tense face.
"The Chief of CP0 also knows the END POINT locations. As a Celestial Dragon's dog, if he wants to act… do you think they'd refuse him? And one of those END POINTs is right here in the New World. From the G-1 Branch, it's about 7 to 10 days' sailing."
Ryokugyu's expression turned grave. Suddenly, in a blur, he dashed away. Before the surrounding pirates could react, his fingers turned into bullets and pierced their skulls, one after another.
Even in death, those pirates had no idea what had happened. Their thoughts were still stuck on what they'd just overheard.
'END POINT?! This volcano… is that dangerous?!'
Ryokugyu returned, face dark, fingers still dripping blood.
"What the hell are you trying to say?!"
"I'm saying," Rowen replied with a chilling grin, "Since we've all prepared the same trump card…"
"Why don't we just die together?"
"Vegapunk conducted research. There's no risk of eruption at this END POINT for at least a hundred years. If this volcano erupts unexpectedly, there's no way the World Government will sit idly by."
"If this volcano were to erupt... how likely is it that the World Government, upon realizing Orrick is meddling with the END POINT, would intervene? And if they fail to stop him, how likely is it that they would choose mutual destruction?"
Ryokugyu's heart trembled. He recalled the Marines' long-standing reputation, iron-blooded, unyielding, and absolute in their dominance.
As he himself had said: this was a war to decide who ruled the world.
If they could claim victory by letting the New World perish in flame, would the World Government make that trade?
The answer… was self-evident.
"Is that so? But do you even have the ability to pull it off?"
Ryokugyu's body radiated a dangerous aura. His unkempt shoulder-length hair fell over his hardened face, voice laced with killing intent.
"No need to test me, Ryokugyu. Believe it or don't, your choice." Rowen smiled casually, completely unfazed by the incoming wave of Haoshoku Haki.
Then his tone chilled.
"Come on. Make your choice."
Ryokugyu fell silent.
Believe him? Or not?
This man was tied up, devoid of any strength or powers. Could Rowen truly cause a volcanic detonation like this?
But the moment the doubt entered Ryokugyu's heart… He already knew the answer.
…
Wano Country, Flower Capital
Orrick, just about to eat, frowned when the Den Den Mushi rang.
"Ryokugyu. What's the matter?"
"My deepest apologies, Orrick Sama!"
Ryokugyu glanced at Rowen, who was resting with his eyes closed in the cage not far away, and whispered into the Den Den Mushi:
"Soryu (Azure Dragon) has figured out... this is an END POINT!"
"..."
A long silence followed.
After a while, Orrick replied calmly:
"Let me guess, he's threatening to detonate it?"
"Yes!" Ryokugyu gritted his teeth in frustration.
"He's damn dangerous! Everything was flawless. Even the pirates working here didn't know!"
"No... that was my mistake." Orrick slowly shook his head.
"What makes Soryu (Azure Dragon) so terrifying isn't just his power, it's how well he understands human nature."
"When I altered the plan mid-mission and had you reroute him to a nearby volcano for incineration instead of the public execution... he got suspicious."
"Because if this location wasn't important, why would we even know it had a volcano?"
Hiss--!
Ryokugyu sucked in a breath of cold air, his eyes wide in disbelief.
"So… by changing our plans because of him, we actually walked into his trap?!"
'This level of scheming, Was he even human?'
"It's not quite a trap. He just deduced it. That's why I said it was my carelessness." Orrick rubbed his temples in frustration.
They had already abandoned the high-risk plan of publicly executing Rowen in Wano, only to now be completely outmaneuvered by him.
The Marine's Soryu (Azure Dragon) was, without a doubt, a terrifying man.
"What should I do now? Should we take the gamble?" Ryokugyu looked toward Rowen. His body was laced with Seastone dust, his powers completely sealed, and his remaining stamina too weak to break the chains.
Right now, if it weren't for his Undying ability, even a child could kill him.
'Could he really detonate the END POINT?'
Orrick was thinking the same thing.
His appetite gone, he set his chopsticks down and closed his eyes in thought.
A long pause later, he spoke:
"Ignore it. Proceed, throw him in."
Hearing Ryokugyu's now heavy breathing on the other end, Orrick's eyes gleamed sharply.
"The END POINT has been exposed, it's now compromised. So why not pass the decision… to the World Government?"
"One way or another, someone dies. Let's see, do they have the guts?"
'Gulp…'
Ryokugyu swallowed hard.
He understood the logic. But with Orrick saying that…
Didn't that mean he believed Soryu (Azure Dragon) really could trigger the volcano?
This monster... when exactly does he reach his [limit]?!
(End of Chapter)