Hearing Ortoren's words, Dragon frowned slightly and murmured, "A new era?"
But seeing Ortoren's mysterious look, he didn't press further. Instead, he continued, "Those aren't words a Marine officer should be saying..."
"Then what should a Marine say?" Ortoren glanced at Dragon with a smile. "Swear to defend Mary Geoise with our lives? Swear to defend the Celestial Dragons?"
Dragon paused for a moment, then chuckled. "So you've seen that darkness too? Realized how disgraceful Marine justice really is?"
"It's just as you say. The higher one rises within the Marines, the more one senses the darkness and mire behind that justice. But for now, I haven't come face to face with it yet." Ortoren waved his hand casually, speaking calmly.
"If you don't want to keep living like this, why not join me? We in the Freedom Fighters don't carry such chains..." Dragon extended his olive branch.
Ortoren shook his head. "No need. You have your stance, I have my convictions. The reason I've spoken so much today was simply to plant a seed."
"A seed, huh?" Dragon mulled over the words, casting Ortoren a meaningful glance before falling silent.
...
Time passed quickly. Noon, the hour of execution, was about to arrive. As Ortoren stood in the sea breeze, waiting for the new era to begin, unrest broke out in the center of Loguetown's square.
The crowd grew noisy, a restless energy rippling through them. The Marines on guard instinctively tightened their grips on their rifles, each wearing a stern expression.
Roger had arrived.
From the far end of the square, two executioners wielding long-handled blades escorted a lone figure down the path cleared through the crowd.
That figure was Roger.
He wore a burgundy captain's coat, his hands bound in shackles, his feet chained in iron. With every step, the chains scraped across the ground, releasing a sharp, grating sound.
As that sound drew closer, the once restless square gradually fell silent.
Nearly everyone held their breath, staring at the king of pirates as he walked toward his final moment.
Ortoren had never truly understood what the phrase "regal bearing" meant—until now. Watching Roger stride toward the execution platform, he finally grasped its meaning.
That man was clearly a prisoner about to be executed, shackled hand and foot, escorted toward death by executioners.
And yet, he walked with his head held high, exuding dignity and composure, even wearing a faint, serene smile.
In that instant, everyone seemed to fall under the same illusion: Roger was not a doomed prisoner walking to his death, but a sovereign king striding step by step toward his throne.
That towering execution platform was not his place of death, but the stage of his coronation.
"Such bearing... truly rare," Dragon whispered in awe.
"So that's it..." Ortoren's eyes gleamed with sudden realization, as if he had finally understood.
Yes, in that moment, he understood why Roger—the man the World Government had arbitrarily branded "Pirate King"—would later be acknowledged as such by the world's great pirates.
Before this, though the World Government had proclaimed Roger as "Pirate King," the powerful figures of the New World never considered him worthy of the title. His name had yet to reach the level of universal recognition.
Now Ortoren understood: Roger's true ascension as Pirate King was not in the past—it was today.
Today, Roger would be crowned king. The reason he would be recognized by the world as Pirate King was because on this day, he ascended his throne, and with blood and life, ushered in the Great Pirate Era.
"To walk calmly and boldly toward death... that too has its own romance," Ortoren said softly, a faint smile curling his lips.
By then, the broadcast equipment in Loguetown had long been running. Under the watchful eyes of the entire world, Roger advanced step by step toward the execution platform.
Garp and other Marine high officers stood before him.
But Roger did not stop. Steadfast and composed, he walked on.
Only when passing by Garp did his steps pause for the briefest moment. Smiling, he turned to him and asked, "Tell me, Garp—when does a man truly die?"
Garp froze at the words, a sense of foreboding creeping into his chest as he fixed Roger with a wary gaze.
Roger chuckled softly.
"Farewell..."
As the words fell, he stepped onto the stairs of the execution platform. Under Garp's stunned, conflicted gaze, he slowly ascended to the highest point.
...
Meanwhile, atop a building in the Sabaody Archipelago where the live broadcast played, Dark King Silvers Rayleigh sat on the roof's edge with a small bottle of liquor in hand, drinking as he watched Roger's execution.
Seeing Roger ascend the platform with unhurried composure, Rayleigh couldn't help recalling the last words Roger had said to him when they parted.
"I will not die, Rayleigh."
"Ha..." Exhaling the tang of alcohol, a faint smile tugged at Rayleigh's lips. Gazing at Roger on the screen, he murmured, "Farewell, Roger."
...
At Loguetown's execution platform, Roger reached his journey's end. He sat cross-legged atop the scaffold, surveying the crowd in the central square like a king looking down upon his subjects.
Soon, he spotted a familiar straw hat in the crowd. Beneath it was a head of red hair, Shanks.
At that moment, Shanks and Buggy were clinging to each other, both consumed by grief and reluctance. Noticing Roger's gaze, they began to weep openly.
"Here to see me off? What adorable little ones..." Roger smiled to himself.
He lifted his eyes toward the road's end, straight out to sea. In that instant, his gaze seemed to cross mountains and rivers to the world's far edge, where Rouge watched him with gentle eyes.
Only then did a trace of regret and reluctance flicker in Roger's eyes.
As a pirate, his life had been complete and glorious. But as a husband and father, he felt he had failed miserably.
As noon neared, the executioner behind him asked, "Any last words?"
"Ah..." Roger raised his shackled wrists. "My wrists are itching like crazy. Mind taking these things off?"
The executioner snapped, furious. "What nonsense are you spouting?"
"How stingy. Do you really think I'd run at a time like this?" Roger shrugged, faintly annoyed.
...
Meanwhile, atop the bell tower, Dragon could no longer hold back his curiosity.
"Since it's come to this, what exactly did you mean by 'a new era'?"
"It's almost here..." Ortoren smiled with open anticipation, but didn't answer directly.
Frowning, Dragon glanced at Ortoren, then at Roger on the platform, utterly unable to make sense of his words.
In the final minute before noon, an ordinary-looking young man in his twenties suddenly seemed seized by fate and courage. He raised his hand and shouted toward the scaffold, "Roger!!!"
In an instant, everyone's attention was drawn to this bold voice.
From the bell tower, Ortoren couldn't hold back anymore and burst into loud laughter.
"Ahahahaha! So who is it? Fate? Or did Roger plan this all along?"
"What are you doing?" Dragon stared at Ortoren's uncontrollable laughter in shock, completely bewildered.
Before Dragon could get an answer, the young man, eyes blazing with fervor, bellowed, "Where did you hide all the treasure you found!?"
Hearing this, Roger on the scaffold laughed as well.
"Wahahahahaha..." After a hearty laugh, he declared in a voice full of force, "You want my treasure? If you want it, you can have it all! Go find it! I've put all my treasure there!!!"
At that moment, Roger's gaze swept across the vast, boundless, azure sea.
All the treasure, all the answers—lay within these waters.
The instant Roger spoke, Garp came to his senses and roared in fury, "Execute him! Execute him now!!"
The executioners' blades crossed and pierced Roger from behind. Blood flowed from his body, staining the platform a desolate crimson.
Feeling his life racing away, feeling death draw near—
Roger showed no fear. If anything, an expectant smile touched his face.
Because in that moment, he could already see it: at the edge of his vision, at the horizon's end, the gates of a new era had swung wide open.
Towering waves, enough to turn the world upside down, surged in with unstoppable force.
In that moment, the Pirate King was truly born.
In that moment, the new era truly arrived!