Upon hearing the words of Saint Figarland Garling through the Den Den Mushi, every member of the Celestial Dragon Guard present turned pale.
Saint Garling was truly furious.
He had openly belittled a Marine Headquarters Admiral right in front of them.
Without question, that completely shattered the dignity of the Marines before the Celestial Dragons.
"Did you hear what Saint Garling said, Cero?!"
Saint Charloss raised his head arrogantly and looked toward Cero in the distance with a smug expression.
"Kneel and apologize, you filthy lowlife! Don't think wearing an Admiral's coat gives you the right to act superior in front of me!"
After the brief panic passed, the Celestial Dragon Guards quickly regained their composure. Soon, disdain appeared in their eyes once again.
So what if he was a Marine Headquarters Admiral?
In front of the Celestial Dragons, the dignity of the Marines meant nothing.
"Hmph, a Marine Headquarters Admiral daring to disrespect Saint Charloss deserves punishment."
"Anyone who opposes the will of the Celestial Dragons is automatically in the wrong."
"The orders of the Celestial Dragons are absolute. They must always be obeyed."
Even if Cero was furious, he would never dare attack Saint Charloss or any of them.
This had happened before.
There were Marines who grew dissatisfied with the Celestial Dragons, spoke disrespectfully, or even attempted to attack them.
But without exception, every single one of those people disappeared.
Completely.
Silently.
As if they had never existed.
Among them had even been candidates for Marine Admiral.
No matter how powerful the Marines were, they still served under the World Government.
At the end of the day, they were merely a military force supported by the authority of the World Government.
Without that authority, the Marines were nothing.
And the Celestial Dragons, the so called World Nobles who stood at the top of the World Government, had ruled the world for centuries.
The power of the World Government was their power.
To damage the dignity of the Celestial Dragons was to damage the dignity of the World Government itself.
Their authority had long become inseparable from the rule of the World Government.
Any thought, action, or intention aimed against the Celestial Dragons was treated as a direct provocation against the World Government, a challenge to the greatest power structure in the world.
No one dared bear those consequences.
And no one could.
Of course, the world had begun changing recently.
Many nations affiliated with the World Government had already secretly or openly withdrawn and chosen to cooperate with the rising Sky Island Alliance.
But what did that matter?
In the eyes of the guards, the so called Sky Island Alliance was nothing more than a gathering of pirates, rebels, and criminals once hunted by the World Government.
A pathetic alliance of strays.
Not worth fearing.
The only reason the World Government had not erased them yet was because they were currently purging traitors hidden within their own ranks.
Those fools actually believed this was a chance to overthrow the World Government, the strongest organization in existence.
Ridiculous.
Most Celestial Dragon Guards inherited their positions through generations.
From the moment they were born, their purpose had already been decided.
Protect the Celestial Dragons at all costs.
No matter who stood before the Celestial Dragons, whether it was their parents, spouses, children, or anyone else, they had to eliminate them without hesitation.
If a Celestial Dragon ordered them to commit suicide, they were expected to obey immediately without even the slightest pause.
That was the education they received from birth.
The Celestial Dragons were supreme beings.
Disobedience was forbidden.
This belief had been carved deep into their minds, instincts, and subconscious.
Because of that, no matter how twisted, cruel, or unreasonable an order was, the guards would obey without question.
They felt no guilt.
No shame.
No anger.
No sadness.
They were merely extensions of the Celestial Dragons themselves, emotionless human weapons created to obey every command unconditionally.
Every year, countless guard candidates were eliminated.
And elimination meant death.
Their deaths passed unnoticed, like dust scattered by the wind.
No one cared.
No one even bothered counting them.
To the Celestial Dragons, these guards were livestock.
If one died, they could simply raise another.
And to the guards themselves, the Celestial Dragons were heaven.
If heaven ordered death, then death was the only answer.
Once, a Celestial Dragon had spoken words that perfectly reflected the mentality of the entire World Government:
"Any guard who fails is disloyal to this world itself. Their existence was a mistake from birth. They do not deserve to live."
...
A sick world.
The enslaved genuinely believed their oppressors were correct.
That level of indoctrination was terrifying.
Through centuries of absolute rule, the World Government had branded fear deep into the souls of the people.
Even many rebels who managed to resist that conditioning still carried instinctive fear toward the Celestial Dragons, the World Government, and the Marines.
That fear had seeped into their bones.
For hundreds of years, anyone brave enough to openly resist the World Government had been exterminated.
What remained were either obedient cowards or people forced to hide their true thoughts while resisting in secret.
When obedience became the only path to survival, rebellion itself became a flaw eliminated through natural selection.
For centuries, the world had been molded by a mastermind named Imu.
Using the World Government and the Celestial Dragons, he had slowly turned humanity into subjects trained to obey.
Those who refused had long since vanished, just like Ohara.
Cero slowly shook his head as he scanned the guards before him.
His Observation Haki had already revealed every thought in their minds.
Changing this world truly would not be easy.
The minds of countless people had already been completely reshaped by the World Government.
It was difficult.
But difficulty was meaningless.
"Hey, hey, brother Garling, you're going a little too far with that."
Saint Garling frowned while staring at the Den Den Mushi.
"Know your place. The one speaking to you right now isn't Marine Headquarters Admiral Cero."
A cold smile appeared on his face.
"It's a Devil Fruit user strong enough to arrive at Elbaf instantly and personally beat you into the ground."
A terrifying killing intent burst from Saint Garling's eyes.
"Cero, you're courting death."
===
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