Inside the casino, the air was freezing—a sharp contrast to the desert outside. The walls were lined with mirrors that didn't show Amine's reflection, only his 'System Stats'.
[Warning: You are entering a 'No-Edit Zone'. Stylus functions suspended.]
"Welcome to my parlor, little Prophet," Crocodile's voice echoed. He was sitting on a throne of solid gold, shrouded in cigar smoke. Beside him stood Robin, her expression unreadable.
Before Luffy could move, the floor collapsed. They fell into a pit, landing in a cage made of cold, dark bars. The moment Amine touched the bars, he felt a soul-crushing weakness.
"Sea-Prism Stone?" Smoker, who was also trapped in the cage, growled.
"Worse," Crocodile laughed, walking toward the bars. "This is 'Source-Code Steel'. It doesn't just drain Devil Fruit powers; it drains the 'Ink' from your very soul. You can't draw your way out of this one, Amine."
Amine looked at his golden stylus. It was dull, the light gone. For the first time, he felt truly powerless. He looked at Luffy, who was lying weak on the floor.
"Robin..." Amine whispered, looking at the woman standing behind Crocodile. "The Void Century... you know the cage has a 'Backdoor', don't you?"
Robin's eyes flickered for a microsecond. She looked at the cigar ash on the floor, which was forming a pattern—a hidden line of code that only a Scholar could read.