The corpses of Jack the Drought and Catarina Devon lay to the side.
With them as a reference, the words Maude had casually spoken on a whim now presented a sliver of hope for Shiryu and Ulti.
To face death without fear, or to cling desperately to life?
The choice between life and death was now laid bare before Shiryu and Ulti.
Yet, there was no guarantee that Maude wasn't merely toying with them.
Instinctively, both Shiryu and Ulti hesitated.
Maude took note of this, the corners of his lips curling slightly.
Hesitation meant consideration.
Compared to an outright refusal, this reaction still left a shred of possibility.
However, Maude had mostly spoken on impulse when offering this choice, and he could change his mind at any moment—taking Shiryu and Ulti's experience points instead.
"I heard…"
Maude suddenly turned his gaze to Ulti.
"That Kaido of the Beasts enjoys using sheer force to make powerful and renowned pirate captains swear fealty. If they refuse to submit, he simply kills them and takes their crew and treasure for himself."
His eyes gleamed as he continued, "That's not just a rumor, is it, Ulti?"
"What exactly are you trying to say…?"
Despite being tormented by unbearable pain, Ulti's gaze at Maude was as vicious as if she could crush his skull with her glare alone.
Maude chuckled and said seriously, "Nothing much, really. I just suddenly feel that Kaido's methods make a lot of sense."
"You want to emulate Kaido-sama!?"
Realizing Maude's intention to force her into submission through strength, Ulti's large, bright eyes instantly filled with ridicule.
"You think you can compare yourself to Kaido-sama? Keep dreaming!!! If Kaido-sama were here, a single 'Thunder Bagua' would leave you sprawled on the ground with no chance to resist! Do you get it, you idiot? You absolute fool!!!"
Maude's words had clearly provoked Ulti. Her blunt nature took over, causing her to momentarily forget her dire situation.
Her extreme reaction showed that, deep down, she truly believed Kaido was the strongest existence in the world. No one was worthy of being compared to him.
"Is this woman an idiot?"
Shiryu furrowed his brows at Ulti's reckless words, thinking silently to himself.
Law cast a cold look at Ulti and was about to squeeze her heart again to remind her of her position.
But Maude raised a hand to stop him, prompting Law to ease his grip instinctively.
"This woman still doesn't understand her situation. She needs to be taught a lesson."
Law glanced at Maude, his long fingers pressing slightly into the thin membrane of Ulti's heart.
If Maude withdrew his signal, Law would immediately crush her heart, making her experience excruciating pain once again.
"No need."
Maude smiled lightly and shook his head at Law before looking at Ulti, who was still brimming with defiance and mockery.
"I'm suddenly very curious. If I were to personally place Kaido's severed head in front of you, how would you react?"
"I already told you…"
Ulti raised her head, the veins on her pale neck bulging as she spoke coldly:
"You, who probably can't even scratch Kaido-sama's skin, should stop dreaming!!! If it weren't for that axe-wielding woman deceiving us with her 'non-Devil Fruit user' act… Do you really think I couldn't bash your brains out right here and now!?"
This woman, who latched onto whoever she deemed an enemy like a rabid dog, had seemingly given up on survival entirely. Her glare at Maude was fierce, and her words were unrelenting.
Law's brows furrowed tightly. He wanted to shut this foul-mouthed woman up, but without Maude's order, he hesitated to act on his own.
Since Ulti's temper flared up, Shiryu had remained silent, though he had already concluded in his mind that she was a dead woman walking.
"Surrender, and you might live…"
Shiryu's eyes flicked to Catarina Devon's corpse and the heavily injured, unconscious Blackbeard.
The grand future Blackbeard had painted for him, filled with ambition, had collapsed before it even began. What cruel irony…
But no matter what—
Shiryu had no intention of stopping here.
If there was still a chance to gamble…
He silently lowered his head, an image of Lafitte's smug, boastful expression flashing through his mind.
Maude looked at the snarling Ulti and raised a hand, pinching his chin as a contemplative look crossed his face.
After a moment, Maude pressed his index and middle fingers together and flicked them upward. The curtain by the window shifted slightly, allowing a sliver of sunlight to stream into the room.
The bright rays illuminated Ulti from the neck down.
A faint rustling sound followed—
The parts of Ulti's body touched by sunlight immediately began to turn to sand.
"Mm?!"
Runty was startled, but she quickly regained her composure and continued to glare coldly at Maude.
Seconds passed.
The sunlight seeping into the room had already reduced Ulti's entire body below the neck to a pile of insignificant sand.
Yet, she remained alive, fully conscious.
This was the power of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit.
Once someone's shadow was taken, their body would not die even if exposed to sunlight and reduced to a mere finger. As long as the shadow was returned within the time limit, the body would instantly regenerate.
"You're still of some use."
Maude took a few steps forward and gazed down at Ulti calmly.
As the curtains continued to open, the sunlight slowly crept up to Ulti's chin.
Rustle—
Her chin began to dissolve into sand, followed by her lips, nose, and lower eyelids…
The warm, gentle sunlight now seemed like a slow and relentless execution.
Ulti's face remained fierce, but inside, she was freezing cold.
As the sunlight crept past Ulti's eyes, Maude suddenly struck, delivering a kick to her temple.
Boom!
Half of Ulti's head flew off, crashing into the thick stone wall, nearly punching through it.
Even Shiryu, who had witnessed the horrors of Impel Down, felt a chill at Maude's ruthless act.
By contrast, Law remained unfazed.
After all, he was accustomed to slicing his enemies into a dozen pieces before casually tossing them aside. Though his ability didn't cause physical harm, the psychological damage was significant.
After sending half of Ulti's head flying, Maude returned her shadow.
In an instant, her sun-disintegrated body regenerated completely.
Then, Maude swiftly extracted her shadow once more.
"Law, cut her into eight pieces."
Maude glanced at the unconscious, shadowless Ulti.
"Eight might not be enough."
Law raised his index finger, activated his domain, and took the liberty of slicing her into sixteen pieces.
With no Seastone cuffs on board, even after removing her heart and shadow, they had to use this method to restrain her movements.
Maude glanced at the sixteen-piece Ulti but said nothing. In front of Shiryu, he stuffed her shadow into Catarina Devon's body.
Seconds later—
Catarina Devon's eyes snapped open. She slowly rose from the ground and looked down at herself.
"Huh? Why am I wearing such ugly clothes? And this body… what a disaster!"
As she spoke, she ran her hands over her face a few times before suddenly widening her eyes in disbelief. "And what's with this face? It's so ugly it makes me sick!"
The moment she awakened, the zombie carrying Ulti's soul wasted no time in openly disparaging her own body.
Such a blunt personality—when she gets ruthless, she even criticizes herself.
"Maude-sama, this body is simply awful. Help me switch to another one!"
After finishing her rant about her terrible form, Ulti looked at Maude pitifully.
"We'll talk about it later. For now, get out."
"Ugh… fine."
Ulti whimpered but obediently left the room.
As soon as she was gone, the room fell into silence.
Maude then turned his gaze toward Shiryu.
Meeting Maude's gaze, Shiryu's heart tensed as he spoke in a deep voice, "So this is why you haven't killed us yet?"
"Not entirely."
Maude's gaze locked onto the stars above Shiryu's head as he said flatly, "So, what is your choice?"
"Submission."
Shiryu took a deep breath and answered without hesitation.
Not only did he want to preserve his life, but he also had unfinished business he wished to complete.
"Even if you choose to submit, I won't return your 'heart' or your 'shadow' to you."
"That doesn't matter. Even if I lose part of my 'freedom,' I will prove my worth to you."
At this moment, Shiryu's expression exuded confidence.
As long as Maude was willing to give him a chance, he was certain that his abilities would not disappoint.
And what he wanted was simple—so long as his desires were fulfilled, that was enough.
Maude looked down at Shiryu, then after a moment, slowly nodded.
Seeing Maude's reaction, the tension that had gripped Shiryu's heart finally eased.
His loyalty to Blackbeard had only stemmed from Blackbeard's potential for success.
Yet, Blackbeard had failed spectacularly—he hadn't even managed to complete the first step of his plan…
When Shiryu had encountered Blackbeard in Impel Down, he had thought that Blackbeard was the man he had been waiting for.
But reality had proven him wrong.
And perhaps the man before him now was the one…
"For now, head downstairs. Law, move Shiryu to the first-floor hall."
Having accepted Shiryu's submission, Maude saw no reason to waste more time on him and directly ordered Law to transport him.
Law nodded, activating his spatial ability and instantly relocating Shiryu downstairs.
—Shwoop!
...
First-Floor Hall.
Shiryu, having appeared out of thin air, immediately found himself sprawled on the floor.
He quickly lifted his head and was met with the sight of four formidable figures—Aokiji, Gaya, Shakky, and Lafitte.
"…"
Shiryu fell silent.
Seeing Shiryu appear out of nowhere, Aokiji and the others were momentarily surprised before instinctively preparing for combat.
"I'm on your side."
Feeling the immense pressure from the four, Shiryu barely managed to squeeze out those words.
...
With Shiryu now dealt with, Maude turned his attention to the last person who needed handling—Blackbeard.
The information hovering above Blackbeard's head was not what Maude had expected. Instead of a Devil Fruit ability, it indicated 'physique.'
This surprised Maude at first, but he quickly understood why.
Given Blackbeard's naturally abnormal body and his remarkable endurance, it made sense that his strongest attribute was his physique. After all, he had not possessed the Dark-Dark Fruit for long.
Thus, it was reasonable that his highest star rating pertained to his body.
Maude focused on the nine shining stars above Blackbeard's head.
The intensity of their orange glow was even greater than Ulti's.
"A nine-star physique… If Ulti's orange light represents a beginner level, then Blackbeard's must be intermediate. I wonder if his experience points will be enough for me to condense my tenth star…"
Maude pondered silently.
After a few seconds, he turned to Law and asked, "Do you need a break?"
He was concerned that Law's current stamina might not be sufficient to conduct research on Blackbeard's body.
"No need. If it's just a 'scan,' it takes far less energy than surgery."
Law shook his head and carefully placed Kikoku on the table.
Maude nodded. "Then let's begin. Let's see… just what kind of structure this guy's body has."
"Room."
Law wasted no time. He immediately activated his ability, creating a domain with only a three-meter diameter that enclosed the unconscious Blackbeard.
The smaller the domain, the greater the precision and power.
"Scan!"
Law's eyes gleamed with intensity as he focused on Blackbeard.
Inside the domain, a deep blue light beam slowly moved across Blackbeard's body, starting from his head and descending toward his feet.
The scan progressed at a painstakingly slow pace, highlighting Law's caution and thoroughness.
Maude watched quietly from the side.
Previously, they had studied the bodies of the Celestial Dragons. Now, it was Blackbeard's turn.
It was interesting—Celestial Dragons considered themselves gods, while Blackbeard, a bearer of the D. name, was known as the natural enemy of the gods.
First, they had studied the 'gods,' and now they were examining the 'enemy of the gods.' Quite amusing when put that way.
Minutes passed, and the scan concluded.
Law deactivated his ability and panted heavily.
His stamina had only partially recovered since returning to the Thriller Bark after Dressrosa. Yet, after extracting a Devil Fruit and now meticulously scanning Blackbeard's body, he was once again completely drained.
If it weren't for Maude's rigorous training, he might have already worked himself to death.
Maude looked at the exhausted Law and held back his urge to immediately ask about the results.
After waiting two or three minutes, Law's breathing finally steadied.
"Well?"
Seeing Law regain his composure, Maude asked at once.
Law gazed at Blackbeard's body, his eyes filled with intrigue, and instead of answering directly, he asked, "Maude, do you know what a 'chimera' is?"
"A chimera?"
Maude's expression turned strange upon hearing that.
Because of certain events in the world of Hunter x Hunter, he was not only familiar with the term 'chimera' but understood it quite well.
"I have some knowledge of it. So, you're saying that Blackbeard's body… is related to 'chimeras'?"
"Yes."
Law gave Maude a surprised look, not expecting him to know about chimeras.
"If I hadn't read about them in an old book, I wouldn't have believed such a thing could exist… In recorded medical history, there are only a handful of cases involving chimeras."
Saying this, Law carefully examined Blackbeard's body once more.
"This is my first time seeing a living chimera with my own eyes."
"I see…"
Maude stroked his chin. While surprised, a thought suddenly struck him, and he asked, "Law, if we use Blackbeard's body as a reference, could your Ope Ope no Mi ability… create chimeras?"
"Hmm?"
Hearing Maude's question, Law fell into deep thought.
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