Chapter 669: Father Son Relationship!
The moment Ace spoke, Roger's smile stiffened.
For a heartbeat, he genuinely did not know how to face him.
This was the Pirate King. The man who once stood at the peak of the world.
Yet now, in front of his own son, he looked completely at a loss.
Even watching from the side made Ryuunosuke feel awkward, a kind of secondhand discomfort crawling up his spine.
But even if he was the eldest brother, he could not interfere.
Whatever happened between a father and a son had to be handled by the two of them, with their own hands.
"As the leader of the Guardians, it's only natural that I'm here," Roger said after steadying himself. "On the contrary, why are you here?"
"I came to help my big brother with what he's doing," Ace answered without hesitation.
"You…" Roger cut him off before he could continue. "And what can you do?"
Ace's mouth opened, ready to fire back.
Then he stopped.
For a moment, he could not find the words.
Because he knew the truth.
If he were not Ryuunosuke's younger brother, he had no right to be here at all.
Even those strange trees outside were not something Ace could handle casually.
Roger's question was not just an insult.
It was an interrogation of Ace's real reason for coming.
Ace's eyes narrowed.
"I thought me being here had nothing to do with you, right?" he said coldly. "You should focus on being the Guardian leader."
"As for anything else, I don't think you have the right to say a word."
It was resentment.
Years of it.
And the more Ace found a home with the Whitebeard Pirates, the more that resentment toward Roger dug in like an old thorn.
"True. I don't have any other thoughts," Roger said quietly.
Then he continued, blunt as ever.
"Back when I made my plans, I had Garp help take care of you and your mother."
"When I made that decision, I never imagined we would meet again."
Over on the other side, Ryuunosuke and the others had already sat down on the ground, cracking melon seeds like they were watching a theater performance.
But this was not entertainment.
This was everything to Ace.
Ryuunosuke wanted answers about Jay, but Ace mattered too.
If this ended with unresolved wounds, it could become a regret that followed Ace for life.
"Lilith," Ryuunosuke said, turning calmly, "let's continue the part about the First Generation."
"Let them settle their own business."
Lilith nodded slightly, her attention returning to him.
Meanwhile, Roger looked back at Ace.
"You came here with Ryuunosuke. So you should know what kind of trouble you'll face after stepping into this place, right?"
"I know," Ace replied with a careless expression. "If my big brother can't handle the danger, I might die."
"Then why come at all?" Roger pressed.
"Ryuunosuke knows this too."
"If you die, how do you think Ryuunosuke will take it?"
"When he was already imprisoned, he watched his little brother die too."
"Have you ever considered the consequences of your actions?"
Roger's voice rose into a shout.
"Consequences?" Ace's eyes sharpened like blades.
"What right do you have to talk to me about consequences, like some father who did his job?"
"If you knew it would turn out like this, did you consider the consequences back then?"
"No. You just did whatever you wanted, based on your own ideas."
"So tell me, as a father, are you really qualified to stand in front of me and lecture me?"
Ace had not wanted to engage him at all.
But Roger kept talking, talking, pushing, and then he chose a lecturing tone.
That finally stabbed straight into the deepest place Ace kept buried.
His restraint shattered.
"You…" Roger started, seeing Ace's expression.
Then he stopped.
Because when the words reached his throat, only one thing came out.
"I'm sorry."
And that was the problem.
Whether Roger was right or wrong, those words were necessary.
He had always felt indebted to Ace.
So before the argument even began, he had already lost.
"Sorry?" Ace's voice dropped, rough and heavy.
"You shouldn't be saying that to me."
"It's for Mom."
"I don't want to hear anything from you, and I don't expect you to change."
"Right now… I just don't want to talk to you."
As he spoke, Ace's shoulders sagged, as if something inside him had quietly deflated.
He had imagined this moment before.
He had imagined what he would do if he ever met Roger.
But now that he was actually facing him, all the grievances and rage felt like they had nowhere to land.
Just looking at Roger made it impossible to let it out.
Ace did not understand why.
He only knew it made him feel sick.
"After this is over, I'll go to your mother," Roger said, his tone turning melancholy. "And I'll stay with her forever."
"I'm tired of this."
"And no matter how high you climb, power has no limit."
"Just like human desire…"
Ace's eyes flashed.
"Do you think doing something like that makes you noble?"
"Do you know how helpless my mother was when you weren't there?"
"Do you know what kind of situation you threw us into back then?"
"If you want to be with her, then go now!"
"Then I'll forgive you!"
Ace turned fully toward Roger.
Hatred filled his eyes, sharp and raw.
Now?
"Ace," Roger said calmly, opening his arms, "you want to kill me, don't you?"
"If so, then do it."
His expression was steady.
A faint smile even appeared on his lips.
That smile pushed Ace over the edge.
This man was using his own death as a way to atone, leaving every ugly piece behind for Ace to carry.
"Boom!"
Flames erupted from Ace's body.
The fire that had been blue white surged higher, burning brighter, turning into a fierce bluish white blaze.
Even Ryuunosuke and the others watching from the side could feel the terrifying pressure rolling off Ace's flames.
"Ace!" Sabo shouted, taking a step forward.
Sabo's parents had been disgusting too, obsessed with status and desperate to curry favor with the Celestial Dragons.
Yet Sabo still never laid hands on them.
They died, but not by his will, and not by the Revolutionary Army's hand.
So Sabo understood Ace's impulse.
But if a loved one really dies, no matter what happened before, no matter how much of a bastard they were, would Ace truly be happy?
Ace did not hear him.
"Go to hell!"
He swung his fist and charged straight at Roger.
Puff!
Ace's fist punched through Roger's heart.
Roger's body jerked violently.
He looked down at the fist in his chest, then back at Ace, as if forcing himself to keep his eyes open.
"Would that make you feel a little better?" Roger murmured. "No… probably not…"
"Back then I… wah…"
He could not finish.
Ace's flames had already burned through his insides.
The moment Roger opened his mouth, blood poured out uncontrollably, and he could not form a complete sentence anymore.
.....
[Check Out My Patreon For Advance Chapters On All My Fanfics!]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]