At the mention of her mother, Nico Robin froze for a moment. A trace of nostalgia appeared on her face.
Then she shook her head.
"No."
"Not her? Then who?" Rowan asked, genuinely curious. If the person Robin wanted to bring back wasn't her mother, then who could it be?
"Professor Clover."
"Oh. Professor Clover." Rowan sighed. "Sorry, that's impossible. Give it up."
Professor Clover was the director of Ohara's Tree of Knowledge library and one of the world's foremost authorities on archaeology. After his brother was killed by CP0 when he was young, he devoted himself to archaeology and to uncovering the truth of the Void Century. He was the one who proposed the theory that an enormous kingdom had once existed in ancient times and had left behind the Poneglyphs.
When the World Government ordered him to stop his research, Professor Clover flatly refused.
The World Government's response was equally decisive: they issued a Buster Call.
And so the tragedy that shocked the world took place. Ohara was destroyed under the bombardment of the Buster Call.
Professor Clover and the other scholars were blown apart in that disaster. There wasn't even any ash left.
What was Rowan supposed to use to revive him?
He couldn't do it.
"If you want someone revived, you at least need a body. If there isn't even a body left, how am I supposed to bring him back?"
Hearing Rowan's answer, Robin's expression dimmed.
Truthfully, she had already prepared herself for this before asking. But even so, hearing him say it outright still made her feel miserable.
Other people could be brought back.
But Professor Clover couldn't—simply because there was no body left.
That only deepened her hatred for the World Government.
Whether for revenge or for saving the world, that damned World Government had to die.
After a full day and night of roaring clashes, exchanges, collisions, and deadly blows, the fight between Dracule Mihawk and Shimotsuki Ryuma finally came to an end.
There was no doubt about it—Mihawk had won.
But that didn't mean Ryuma was inferior to Mihawk. It was simply that Gecko Moria had been too weak. Using his corpse as the sacrifice meant Ryuma couldn't bring out his full power.
Even so, Ryuma had still fought Mihawk for an entire day before finally losing by a single move.
Mihawk admitted it frankly. "If you had been at your peak, the one who lost would have been me."
Ryuma laughed loudly. "At your age, my swordsmanship wasn't that strong yet. I believe that sooner or later, you'll catch up to me—and even surpass me."
"Of course."
Mihawk didn't bother being modest, because he believed the same thing.
This fight with Ryuma had shown him clearly that, against a swordsman of that caliber, there were still areas where he fell short.
Once he corrected those weaknesses, his strength would definitely advance another step.
Maybe it wouldn't even take a few years for him to surpass Ryuma.
Once the two of them finished, Rowan strolled over and asked Ryuma, "So, what do you think of the swordsmen of later generations? They didn't disappoint you, did they?"
Ryuma nodded. "They certainly didn't. I never expected there would still be a swordsman this fine in later ages."
"So what now? Are you going back to sleep, or do you want me to fully revive you?"
Instead of looking happy at the prospect of being revived, Ryuma asked gravely, "What are the terms?"
There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. He had understood that long ago.
"Do your part in bringing down the World Government," Rowan said calmly. "How does that sound?"
"Bring down the World Government?" Ryuma's eyes flickered. "I'm already a dead man. And when I died, I didn't really have any regrets. That sort of thing should be left to your generation."
Robin cut in, "Even if Wano is now ruled by outsiders, you still have no regrets?"
"Hm?"
At the mention of Wano being ruled by outsiders, Ryuma clearly lost his composure.
"What happened to Wano?"
Robin answered, "Nothing too special. A pirate named Kaido took over Wano, turned it into a giant weapons factory, and made life unbearable for the people."
Ryuma's face darkened instantly. He turned to look at Mihawk.
He didn't trust Robin, but he was willing to trust Mihawk.
Because after crossing blades with him for an entire day, he knew Mihawk was not the sort of man who lied.
He had seen both his sword and his character.
"Kaido is indeed the guardian deity of Wano now," Mihawk said calmly. "He is, in every meaningful sense, the true ruler."
Robin seized the chance and began describing Wano's misery in detail—how many people didn't even have enough to eat, how Kurozumi Orochi had taken the shogun's seat, how countless people had been dragged into the weapons factories as labor.
She even exposed the incompetence of the Kozuki clan.
Ryuma's face shifted through one ugly color after another.
He truly had not expected that after several hundred years, Wano hadn't improved at all—in fact, it had become even worse.
And the conduct of Kozuki Sukiyaki and Kozuki Oden in particular left him at a total loss for words.
Those people were supposed to be Wano's shoguns?
They weren't shoguns. They were idiots.
Several hundred years had passed, and the Kozuki clan had become this pathetic?
In the end, Ryuma lowered his head to Rowan.
"I beg you, sir. Please help me save Wano. I, Shimotsuki Ryuma, swear to heaven that I am willing to obey your commands and offer this body and this blade to you."
At heart, he was still a man of Wano. Back then, he had been willing to stand against the World Government for Wano's sake. Now he could do the same again for Wano.
For that, he was even willing to offer his loyalty to Rowan.
"Very well." Rowan nodded in satisfaction and patted Ryuma on the shoulder.
The power of Yomi erupted.
Yin and Yang reversed. Death turned into life.
In only a few moments, Shimotsuki Ryuma was fully revived. Black Armament Haki wrapped around the famed blade Shusui like a tide, shining with power.
This was Ryuma at his absolute peak.
Mihawk could see it too. The living Ryuma and the one from moments earlier were on completely different levels.
He had been able to defeat Ryuma before.
Now, that was no longer certain.
In fact, he might very well lose.
And that was exactly why Mihawk felt so exhilarated. For a swordsman, there was nothing more thrilling than seeing a truly powerful opponent.
"Fighting Kaido? Count me in," Mihawk said calmly. He had no interest in saving Wano, but he was very interested in testing himself against Kaido.
He wanted to see just how wide the gap was between himself and one of the strongest beings in the world.
Rowan, of course, didn't refuse.