Dragon looked at the young man before him, momentarily lost in thought.
Just as they were on the verge of despair, this young man—his son, whom he hadn't seen for many years—appeared before him!
More than just a simple appearance, the crucial thing was that this child had eaten a vital Devil Fruit!
Hope was not yet extinguished!
Everything was not over yet!
"Hmph!"
The young man, Luffy, snorted two jets of hot air from his nostrils and said with a look of determination, "I'll handle that guy!"
He clenched his fist. "Let's hurry back and save Grandpa and the others!"
"Idiot!"
Shanks scolded him, exasperated. "It's not time yet! You're still far too weak!"
Perhaps, this truly was fate!
Whether it was the Dragon of the End, or the Devil Fruit Luffy had eaten!
Roa had obtained all of Joy Boy's legacy, and they, on the other hand, had obtained all of Davy Jones's legacy!
Although their positions had been reversed, at least there was now a possibility of a fight!
It was just that this child was still too young. Although Roa was only one year older than him in actual age, Roa was clearly an exception—a super monster whom no one could compare to!
"Eh! How long do we have to wait?!"
The young Luffy looked anxious.
"At least, until you can defeat us!"
Shanks said seriously.
Although it sounded somewhat shameful, they did still possess one huge advantage.
The monster Roa, having conquered one half of the world, would, if nothing unexpected happened, push the things he did in the Red Line Continent's half of the world across the entire globe.
In that case, the whole world would become a true hell on earth.
People suffering torture would yearn for someone to save them more than ever before.
Just like the Sun God Nika in the beginning and Joy Boy eight hundred years ago, people's prayers would transform into genuine power!
Shanks gazed deeply at the young man before him.
Luffy, will you be the one to carry this prayer?
Will you be the savior of this era?
"Then take this!"
While Shanks was pondering, Luffy had already thrown a punch at him without hesitation.
The result was that Shanks effortlessly caught the boy's fist, twisted it, pressed it down, and pinned Luffy to the ground, leaving him unable to move.
"Ouch!"
The young man instantly winced in pain.
"You're still far too weak."
Shanks let go with a hint of helplessness.
Except for Roa and his exceptional subordinates, Luffy's strength was already remarkably powerful among his peers.
But he was still far from enough.
"Luffy,"
Dragon looked seriously at his son. "We will dedicate ourselves to training you, so you can master the true power of that fruit as quickly as possible!"
"Only then will you have the power to save your old man and Mr. Zephyr!"
"Oh! Bring it on!"
The young Luffy nodded heavily. "Old man!"
Dragon's mouth twitched. "I keep telling you, I'm your father."
"Father?"
The young man looked bewildered. "What's that?"
Dragon's eye corner twitched.
Although he had sent the child to the old man's side shortly after he was born, he wondered, Old man, Mr. Zephyr, how exactly did you teach him?
"Hahahaha!"
Although it seemed a little inappropriate now, Shanks couldn't help but laugh out loud.
It was, perhaps, finding joy in hardship.
Dragon shook his head. They would take it slow.
Then, he turned his head and looked at the other person on the black dragon's back. "Dr. Vegapunk, we will have to rely on you next."
"Don't worry!"
Lilith, the evil manifestation of Vegapunk, patted her ample chest and said with a sweeping promise, "That guy Roa is too dangerous for this world!"
"I will give you my full support!"
Hearing this, Shanks and Dragon both looked visibly more relaxed.
Although she was just a satellite, Vegapunk was still Vegapunk—the world's greatest scientist!
"But,"
Lilith said seriously. "I have to make it clear first. Without sufficient funding and material support, even I can't do anything!"
"About that—"
Shanks scratched his head, looking a little helpless.
That truly was a big problem.
As for their Straw Hat Pirates, they were notoriously poor.
Although he knew the location of the Final Island, the Great Treasure had long been taken by Roa.
Dragon's New Revolutionary Army wasn't much better off. Although they had retreated to the half of the world that originally belonged to the World Government, they were still like rats in the street in that half.
They had indeed developed a certain degree of power during the time they cut their losses, but they could hardly be described as wealthy.
However, now that they had finally welcomed a great scientist like Vegapunk, they had to support her research, even if it meant sacrificing everything they had!
"As for funding, leave it all to us!"
Dragon said solemnly.
In short, they needed time now!
On the other side.
While the world was deeply shaken, two equally massive Sky Ships flew side-by-side in a certain sky in the New World.
"So, using Uranus's current energy as a foundation, you'll soon be able to develop a new type of energy comparable to the Solar Furnaces of the Super Ancient era, right?"
Roa leaned haphazardly on his throne, looking down at the few trembling scientists below.
Besides Vinsmoke Judge and Caesar Clown, Vegapunk and his satellites also wore respectful expressions.
Vegapunk and his satellites had all been turned into evolved Ghouls by Roa, holding 100% absolute loyalty to him.
"Yes, Boss!"
Although he had just joined the Catastrophe Corporation, Vegapunk was the first to step forward and speak without yielding to anyone. "Judge's research was already close to completion, and coupled with the semi-finished energy I created, the envisioned perfect energy is now within reach."
"Hmm, not bad."
Roa slowly nodded methodically.
Well, how to put it?
Nowadays, Ancient Weapons, especially truly offensive weapons like Pluton and Uranus, didn't seem so important to him anymore.
Roa didn't think the power he currently possessed was inferior to the Ancient Weapons.
But of course, having them was better than not having them.
While they wouldn't be a lifeline, they would certainly be the icing on the cake.
"In that case, it seems it's time to dig up Pluton."
Roa suddenly recalled that the final battle with the World Government had already concluded, but Pluton was still buried underground in Wano Country.
Joy Boy's decisive power left for later generations had turned out to be completely unnecessary.
It was an Ancient Weapon after all. Since he had nothing else to do, he might as well go dig it up. It might still have a chance to appear when fighting the Dragon of the End later.
Thus, Catastrophe City and Uranus simultaneously began moving in the direction of Wano Country.
And Roa, after sending Vegapunk and the others away, truly fell into boredom.
After defeating the World Government, only the final enemy remained on this planet.
He hadn't initially paid much attention to Shanks. Although the Dragon of the End, Níðhöggr, was in his hands, an organism was ultimately just a weapon. Even the Ancient Weapons needed someone to guide them, or they would only fall into a rampage.
Shanks was indeed a formidable person, who could be regarded as the epitome of cool in the original work.
But his strength was completely outdated.
Now, all it would take for Roa to dispose of him would be a snap of his fingers.
However, with Luffy now in the picture, things were different.
Although it seemed that, due to the butterfly effect brought about by Roa, Shanks didn't know Luffy at all, and they could even be said to be strangers.
But Roa had a very strong intuition that Luffy would eventually become involved with Shanks.
Just as Shanks was now involved with Dragon!
Roa learned about this from Zephyr.
Speaking of which, Roa still felt quite regretful.
Dragon had become vigilant.
After rebuilding the Revolutionary Army, he separated all his cadres. Everyone was only accountable to him, and they did not manage each other.
Furthermore, Dragon himself was elusive, communicating mostly through single-line phone calls.
The result was that even though Roa had people within the New Revolutionary Army, he couldn't know Dragon's every move, unlike with the previous Revolutionary Army.
It was also a pity that Shanks was well aware of his ability to create Ghouls; otherwise, he could have used Zephyr to determine Dragon's whereabouts.
Was this also fate?
However, while he was somewhat concerned, Roa felt no sense of anxiety.
Regardless, they only had Luffy and Níðhöggr to rely on. What kind of storm could they possibly stir up?
The only thing worth noting was Luffy.
Roa was almost certain that the kid was the savior of this era.
But even saviors could fail. Wasn't Joy Boy taken out by Imu?
If Luffy could grow to his peak, he would certainly surpass Joy Boy. It was just unknown how far he could go?
Honestly, he was quite looking forward to it.
"Hmm?"
Just as he was yawning and imagining the future, Roa suddenly sensed something.
He lazily opened his mouth and said, "Since you're here, why don't you come in."
The palace doors were pushed open, and two figures slowly walked in.
Robin looked at the handsome young man sitting crookedly on the throne, her eyes filled with unprecedented complexity.
Only after personally witnessing the power Roa currently possessed did she understand what despair meant.
The aura Roa exhibited after his evolution was actually above that of the immature Níðhöggr!
Shanks absolutely could not defeat Roa, even with Níðhöggr!
Imu had become Roa's puppet, and Uranus and Pluton would soon be fully revived in a true sense. A single Níðhöggr was completely insufficient.
Trying to save this world through sheer force was likely an extremely difficult task now.
So, they could only try a different approach.
Robin took a deep breath.
She walked up the steps.
Behind her, Hancock bit her lip slightly and quickly followed.
"Oh?"
Roa raised his eyebrows, looking at the two women with considerable surprise. "Interesting, I haven't seen this kind of emotion before."
"Robin, are you about to tell me something very amusing?"
"Roa,"
Robin stood before Roa, looking down at the strikingly handsome young man. "I will fall in love with you."
The statement was shocking!
Even Roa was genuinely stunned for a moment.
"Oh?"
Then, Roa's eyes instantly lit up. "Robin, you really are planning something very interesting."
"Roa,"
Robin leaned down slightly, reaching out to caress Roa's cheek. "Have you ever felt it—true, pure, unreserved love—you, who has been an absolute strongman since birth?"
"Hmm,"
Roa rubbed his face against Robin's smooth, delicate palm. After a slight pause for reflection, he said with some emotion, "I guess I really haven't."
Countless people in this world feared him, and just as many hated him.
A minority worshipped him, and an even smaller number were loyal to him.
Of course, there were also those who considered him a friend or partner.
But "love"—that word did seem a bit too distant from Roa.
He had been an orphan in both lifetimes, never having experienced the love of parents or family.
As for women, that was even funnier.
The only love he had ever felt from a woman was the false yet intense love he sensed after turning Toki into the first evolved Ghoul, twisting her will, when he had first traversed to this era.
"What a pitiful man."
Hancock stood beside Robin, let out a soft sigh, then leaned down and hugged Roa into her embrace, allowing Roa's face to press tightly against her chest.
A flash of obvious disgust crossed the woman's face, but in the next moment, she forcefully suppressed the emotion.
Robin said they had to truly love this man.
They had to make him feel true, pure, undisguised love.
A man would always show some favoritism towards a woman who deeply loved him.
Roa didn't resist. He raised his arms around Hancock's waist, rubbing his cheek slightly, choosing a more comfortable position.
"So,"
He narrowed his eyes and said languidly. "Are you going to teach me what love is next?"
The absolute strongman, and the resulting loneliness. Those who teach me love are—
Trying to deal with me like Sukuna, huh.
However.
Roa rubbed his face again.
He didn't mind this method of dealing with him.
Bring it on.
"Yes."
Robin hugged Roa from the other side, and the two women sandwiched Roa between them.
The woman spoke very candidly. "I want to protect this world, but force cannot stop you. So, Roa, you're bored now, right?"
"Then let's play a game, a love game."
"That sounds like it could be very interesting."
Roa curved his lips into a smile.
It seemed he wouldn't be bored anymore.
Having played the tyrannical CEO forced-love game too much, an occasional pure-love one might have its own distinct flavor.
What did it feel like to love someone?
Roa was actually quite curious.
However, Robin, the outcome for those who 'fed the demon with their bodies' was not very good, you know.
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