The waters of the Calm Belt were incredibly tranquil, almost entirely devoid of ripples.
Amidst this dead silence, Ian's consciousness awakened.
A strange floral scent mingled with the salty sea breeze.
He opened his eyes. Above him was a boundless, cloudless azure sky, and beneath him were several gargantuan Sea Kings, devouring the wreckage of a ship in the water.
Ian's body was currently drifting along with the faint ocean currents.
He looked down. A bowl-sized hole pierced straight through his chest, clearly the cause of death for this body's original owner.
Just then, a super-sized Sea King lurking in the deep ocean was attracted by this "fresh corpse" on the surface.
Its island-like massive body broke through the water, kicking up a localized surge of waves. Its giant, tooth-filled maw, resembling an abyss, lunged toward Ian to swallow him whole.
A foul, bloody gale rushed against his face.
In the next second, the "corpse" moved.
He instantly spun around and threw a punch. The massive Sea King took the blow directly to the head, its hundred-meter-wide skull instantly obliterated by the strike.
Copious amounts of blood slowly saturated the surrounding seawater, drawing in even more Sea Kings to fight over the meal.
Only then did Ian take his time to deal with this battered vessel.
A tremendous aura of life instantly permeated every cell. The flesh and blood around the gaping hole in his chest grew wildly, healing completely in the blink of an eye. The drained blood within his body began to flow once more, and his silent heart resumed its beating.
In the distance, the silhouette of Amazon Lily gradually became clear. That unique floral scent was wafting over from the island.
Ian instantly pinpointed his location.
Before he could fully absorb the fragmented memories left in this body, the flapping sound of wings approached from afar.
A News Coo, wearing an aviator hat and carrying a satchel around its neck, hovered above him.
Ian took out a gold nugget and tossed it over.
The News Coo's eyes lit up, and it immediately dropped its entire stack of newspapers down to Ian.
Ian caught a newspaper and unfolded it. The front-page headline featured a bold, enlarged black-and-white photograph that took up the entire page.
The man in the photo had unruly black hair and a smattering of freckles on his face. His hands were bound by Seastone shackles, yet his expression still burned with an unyielding fire.
The headline was even more shocking.
[Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, "Fire Fist" Portgas D. Ace, Arrested by the Marines]
[To Be Publicly Executed in Seven Days at Marine Headquarters, Marineford!]
"Ace..."
Ian softly muttered the name. This name reminded him of a previous promise.
His thoughts were pulled back to the Dragon Raja world.
...
The scene shifted to the past.
Tokyo, the top floor of Genji Heavy Industries. Inside that spacious, somewhat empty Japanese-style room, the bustling night view of Ginza could be seen through the window.
Ian sat cross-legged on the tatami mat, idly flipping through an ancient tome.
The red-haired girl, who was always quietly hugging her gaming console, wasn't playing games today.
She sat beside him for a long time, hugging her knees, looking as if she wanted to say something but hesitating.
Finally, as if making a tremendous resolution, she carefully handed an open manga book to him.
Ian shifted his gaze from the ancient tome to the open pages. In the drawing, the freckled man of fire, bearing a giant skull tattoo on his back, was locked up in Impel Down.
Ian looked up at the girl beside him.
Erii was also looking at him with a complex gaze that mixed hope, anxiety, and pleading.
Her voice was very soft, carrying a hint of trembling that even she hadn't noticed.
"Ace was caught. Can you take me out so we can save Ace together?"
Seeing the light in her eyes, Ian suddenly found it quite amusing.
He didn't ask why. He simply reached out and rubbed her soft red hair just like he always did, feeling the strands slip through his fingers.
He casually agreed.
"Alright."
...
Pulling his thoughts away from the memory, Ian's gaze returned to the azure sea before him.
"So this is the place."
In that case, before fulfilling the promise, there was still one essential preparation to make.
His figure silently sank into the deep blue seawater.
Soon, he arrived at the core of this planet.
Following the familiar process, endless matter was converted into a massive amount of EMC.
When Ian opened his eyes again, his power had returned to its absolute peak.
His immense divine sense spread out like an invisible giant net, instantly enveloping the globe. The entire world unfolded before Ian.
He saw it. In Level 6 of the great underwater prison, Impel Down, Ace was bound by chains, yet the fire in his eyes had never extinguished.
He saw it. At Marine Headquarters, Marineford, a hundred thousand elites had assembled, and the three Admirals had gathered. They were preparing for the war that would turn the world upside down.
He saw it. In the New World, the old man known as the "Strongest Man in the World" was issuing his final order for war.
Ian shifted his gaze away from these centers of the storm, eventually stopping on an island floating with countless giant bubbles.
The Sabaody Archipelago. The Straw Hat Crew was currently facing off against the "Tyrant," Kuma.
According to the plot, Monkey D. Luffy would be sent flying by Kuma's Paw-Paw Fruit ability.
And the destination of his flight was exactly the sea region Ian was currently in—Amazon Lily.
"The protagonist is about to be delivered right to my doorstep, and the stage is already set."
Ian suddenly chuckled.
"However, for such a grand spectacle, it seems we are still missing the most important spectator."
His figure vanished from the depths of the planet's core. In the next instant, he silently returned to the surface of the sea near Amazon Lily.
He gently swiped at the space in front of him.
Riiip—
The space tore open in response.
On the other side of the rift was the night view of a modern metropolis, filled with flashing neon lights, heavy traffic, and towering skyscrapers.
That familiar prosperity and clamor belonged to Tokyo in the other world.
Ian took a step and entered the Dragon Raja world.
...
Meanwhile.
In the Dragon Raja world, Tokyo, inside the Japanese-style room on the top floor of Genji Heavy Industries.
The surroundings were quiet, save for the faint electronic sound effects coming from a gaming console.
Erii sat cross-legged on the tatami mat, focused intently on playing her game, her crimson hair cascading down like a waterfall.
Suddenly, a tear appeared in the air in front of her without any warning.
Erii's hand movements froze.
In the next second, a figure with a familiar aura slowly walked out from the rift, carrying a faint, lingering scent of salty sea breeze.
Erii slowly raised her head, her crimson eyes instantly filled with that familiar figure.
The gaming console in her hands dropped onto the tatami mat with a clack.
"Ian-sama?"
Ian looked at her, a hint of a smile appearing on his face, his voice gentle.
"Erii, get ready. We're going to save Ace."