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The fear and terror still lingered in Anuki's eyes even after his head crashed heavily onto the ground.
There was guilt from having his lies exposed, fear in the face of death, and a trace of disbelief. He could not understand how his secrets had been uncovered so easily, nor could he comprehend why his opponent acted so decisively, without the slightest hesitation.
With just a single slash, the self-proclaimed Fleet Admiral and Marines Commander had been executed.
In his final moments, he had still dreamed of making the Marines bigger and stronger, expanding to other islands, reaching the Grand Line, and eventually allowing the Marines to conquer the entire world, establishing a vast Marines Kingdom and becoming the one and only King of the Marines.
But in the end, he died in despair. All his dreams and ambitions turned into nothing but bubbles, bursting apart in an instant.
Perhaps Anuki had once been a Marine fanatically loyal to the Marines, loving them to the point of madness. But the crimes he committed would never be forgotten by the people of the island. Without question, this Marine had stained the name of his organization and would forever be nailed to the pillar of shame, despised for all eternity.
"Yuan… is dead?!"
Only at this moment did the Marines in the rear, those unaffected by the Haoshoku Haki, finally speak in a daze. Their voices trembled with disbelief, as though they were dreaming.
"He's dead! He's really dead!"
As if awakening from a dream, the Marines leaped up in excitement, unable to suppress their emotions.
They realized that this was not a dream, but something that had truly happened.
The Marines threw down their rifles and embraced each other while crying tears of joy.
"That's great! I… I finally don't have to be a Marine anymore! I'm so happy!"
They cried loudly, venting all the depression and resentment buried in their hearts.
No one wanted to be forced into doing something they were unwilling to do. A person's will was meant to be free, never controlled by others.
"My parents are still locked in prison. Now that Anuki is dead, can we rescue them?"
One Marine suddenly realized this and shouted.
"Right! My elder brother is in prison too! He refused to become a Marine, so that madman Anuki locked him up!"
"Mine too!"
The Marines grew excited. Since Anuki was dead, did that mean their families could finally be saved as well?
But suddenly, when they saw Rojen and his group standing before them, their bodies trembled and fear once again appeared on their faces.
"Y-you…"
The people before them had killed Anuki. Didn't that mean they possessed power even more terrifying than his?
If such people chose to control their lives and deaths again, they would have no ability to resist.
"Go. Release your families. From this moment onward, this island is free!"
Just as they were worrying, Rojen spoke with a smile.
In an instant, the Marines burst into tears of joy and jumped excitedly.
"Thank you so much! Thank you!"
They were so emotional that some even knelt on the ground and kowtowed with tears streaming down their faces.
"Get up quickly. Go rescue your families, and tell everyone on the island that you've regained your freedom."
Rojen said with a light laugh.
At that moment, the Marines did not even know what to say. Speaking incoherently, they repeatedly thanked Rojen's group before sprinting away barefoot.
"Brothers! Family members! This island is free!"
"Anuki has been killed! We've been liberated! From now on, we're no longer Marines!"
"Wuuuuuu! Someone killed Anuki! From now on, we're free!"
They ran wildly through the streets, shouting everywhere and spreading the news across the entire island.
The Marines who had previously fainted from the Haoshoku Haki gradually heard the commotion and slowly regained consciousness.
"What happened?"
"I think I vaguely heard someone shouting that Anuki is dead?"
"The Fleet Admiral is dead?! Right, before I passed out, there was a group of people launching an attack on Anuki."
"Could it be… they actually succeeded?!"
In an instant, the Marines who had awakened from unconsciousness shuddered violently. They abruptly stood up and saw Marines everywhere, running through the streets excitedly and spreading the news far and wide.
"No one is stopping them, and Anuki isn't here either!"
The Marines stared blankly at the scene before finally realizing the truth.
"Anuki really is dead!"
Some became so excited that they directly tore apart their uniforms and smashed them onto the ground.
"Damn it, father finally doesn't have to wear this crappy outfit anymore!"
"As for the Marines, father has had enough of them for this lifetime!"
Soon after, those who had just awakened also joined the ranks, spreading the news, announcing it across the entire island.
The people imprisoned in the underground prison were rescued by them. Countless families were reunited, crying as they embraced one another with excited expressions on their faces.
The entire island erupted into celebration. The island, which had been silent for so long, regained its liveliness at this moment.
After the excitement had gradually settled down, they realized that the people who had challenged Anuki and ultimately achieved victory were their saviors.
"Does anyone know where they are? They're the benefactors who saved everyone on this island; we must thank them!"
An elderly man shouted loudly.
"They're in Anuki's base. We just came from there."
"Everyone, come with me. We have to thank our benefactors."
The civilians all nodded seriously. Their lives had regained freedom and returned to how they once were. They absolutely had to express gratitude to this group of sudden heroes.
Thus, everyone on the island who was healthy and able to move organized themselves and headed grandly toward the Marines' base. They wanted to thank Rojen's group. Such life-saving kindness was something they would remember for the rest of their lives.
On the platform deep inside the base, everyone casually found places to sit. Anuki had been a wine lover, especially fond of red wine, so he had a large collection of rare bottles.
After searching around, Jason and the others discovered that some of the wines were truly excellent, extremely valuable, and all collector's editions.
"Take all this wine onto the ship. These Marines may not be strong, but they sure have a lot of good stuff."
Chaporos said enviously. Even though he was a Celestial Dragon, his own collection was not as extensive as this mere Marine's.
"Scum. Trash!"
Chaporos cursed fiercely, completely failing to realize that four years ago he himself had been just as vile.
While everyone was looting the base, the outside suddenly shifted from silence to a noisy uproar.
"Someone's coming?"
The crew members immediately became nervous. After all, they were not experienced robbers, so hearing people approach made them instinctively uneasy.
Robin ran outside to take a look, and her expression immediately changed slightly.
"It's those people. They've come over."
"Huh?"
The crew members were shocked. They came this quickly?
They hurried forward and looked down ahead of them.
However, what happened in the next moment caused their hearts to tremble violently, and their expressions became complicated.
(End Of This Chapter)