Nowadays, Lloyd's face alone could be considered a world-class pass, especially within the CP organization directly under the World Government.
The moment Lloyd revealed his face, Jabra and the others immediately knelt from the bottom of their hearts.
It had nothing to do with Lloyd's terrifying strength alone. More importantly, Lloyd was a Celestial Dragon, and one of the highest-ranking figures among them.
Even if they forgot their own identities, they could never forget who Lloyd was.
Jabra and the others, who had only just stood up, dropped to their knees again with a heavy thud. Blueno was even more excessive, directly sliding forward on his knees until he stopped before Lloyd.
Lloyd had long grown accustomed to scenes like this. Standing casually with one hand in his pocket, he looked down at Blueno and the others with faint amusement.
"So people from CP9 are performing circus acts in a place like this? You lot are surprisingly versatile."
The group instantly broke into cold sweat upon hearing his words.
Lloyd's gaze slowly shifted toward Kalifa, who remained kneeling on the ground.
"And you, I heard your cleaning skills are famous around here. One person doing the work of an entire team."
Kalifa's body trembled slightly. Her voice carried obvious nervousness as she replied,
"I have embarrassed myself, Saint Lloyd. We were short on money and had no other choice but to work here..."
Lloyd casually waved his hand, interrupting her.
"There's no need to explain. Relying on your own abilities to survive is worthy of praise. Besides, with your capabilities, if you truly wanted money, there were much faster methods."
His lips curved slightly.
"For example, becoming pirates."
The moment those words fell, Blueno and the others abruptly raised their heads. Their expressions changed drastically as they shouted in unison,
"No! We would never become pirates! We have never even considered it!"
The smile on Lloyd's face deepened slightly. He raised his hand lazily.
"Good. Stand up."
To Blueno and the others, Lloyd's words were absolute commands. None of them dared hesitate for even a second as they immediately rose to their feet.
Blueno swallowed nervously before speaking carefully.
"Saint Lloyd... may I ask if you came here to arrest us?"
The instant he finished speaking, Kalifa ruthlessly stomped on Blueno's foot with her high heel.
Blueno's face instantly turned purple from the pain, but in front of Lloyd, he did not even dare scream. He could only grit his teeth and endure it silently.
After being stepped on, however, Blueno finally realized how idiotic his question had been.
Who was Saint Lloyd?
He was the Fleet Admiral.
The sole heir of the Figarland Family.
Would a figure like him personally come to arrest people like them?
Even CP9 could only be considered insignificant insects in Lloyd's eyes.
Putting aside his status as a Celestial Dragon, Lloyd's achievements alone were enough to terrify the world.
He was the man who personally annihilated Xebec and the Three Emperors.
Lloyd let out a soft chuckle.
"Arrest you? Why would I do that? You are not criminals."
Blueno and the others froze.
After hesitating briefly, Blueno cautiously asked,
"Saint Lloyd... do you not know that we are currently fugitives?"
The question was honest.
In front of Lloyd, they could not even summon the courage to lie.
Lloyd slowly swept his gaze across their faces before speaking indifferently,
"As members of CP0, how can you call yourselves fugitives?"
"CP0!?"
This time, even Kalifa lost her composure.
"Saint Lloyd, we are CP9..."
Lloyd raised an eyebrow slightly, and the atmosphere instantly turned heavy.
"Hm?"
Kalifa immediately shut her mouth, not daring to utter another word.
At that moment, all of them finally understood Lloyd's meaning.
From this moment onward, they were no longer fugitives.
They had been directly promoted into CP0.
No paperwork was required.
No official orders were necessary.
One sentence from Lloyd was enough.
This was true authority.
Word as law.
Once they realized it, an indescribable emotion surged through their hearts, causing their bodies to tremble uncontrollably.
In truth, becoming fugitives had always been the World Government's mistake.
Spandam had shifted all responsibility onto them to save himself.
Even so, they had never dared resent the World Government. From the day they were born, they had already been branded by it. That mark could never be erased.
They never expected justice.
They only hoped one day to regain their identities and return to serving the World Government.
Yet Lloyd had not only restored them, he had elevated them even further, allowing them to leap directly from CP9 into CP0.
For people like them, this was no different from ascending to heaven in a single step.
Even Lucci, a once-in-a-generation genius, might not have entered CP0 so easily under normal circumstances.
Not to mention that they had failed the mission involving the blueprints of the Ancient Weapon, Pluton, a mistake severe enough to destroy their futures entirely.
At this moment, none of them even knew how to express their gratitude toward Lloyd.
Because to someone like him, even their lives held little value.
There were countless powerful figures willing to die for Lloyd.
Compared to those people, they were insignificant.
And Lloyd never cared about gratitude.
He simply rewarded those who deserved reward and punished those who deserved punishment.
Before Lloyd arrived at Water 7, Spandam had already been stripped of his authority by Spandine and confined to his home.
Lloyd had merely mentioned the incident involving Water 7 once, and Spandine immediately understood everything.
Without Lloyd saying another word, Spandine personally removed his son from power.
It was the smartest decision possible.
Spandine understood clearly that the fact Lloyd was still willing to speak to him meant he remained under Lloyd's protection.
As long as Lloyd acknowledged him, nobody could touch either him or his son.
After all, the trouble caused by Spandam this time was far too serious.
It involved the Ancient Weapon, Pluton.
If the Gorosei pursued the matter later, Spandam's future would be utterly ruined.
Fortunately, since Spandine had already punished him in advance and Lloyd did not pursue the issue further, it meant Lloyd was satisfied.
And as long as Lloyd was satisfied, nothing else mattered.
Lloyd looked at Blueno and the others, who were still overwhelmed with excitement, and let out a faint laugh.
"Enough standing around. Aren't you supposed to buy medicine for Lucci's injuries? Let's go together."
As soon as he finished speaking, Lloyd's body transformed into a dark vortex and vanished from the spot.
Through the Door-Door Space created by Blueno's powers, the group immediately saw Lloyd already standing outside.