"You bastard! You came here just to toy with me, didn't you?!"
The roar of the Golden Lion echoed throughout the entire Infinite Hell.
From the surrounding cells came bursts of raucous laughter.
"Hahaha! What's wrong, Golden Lion?"
"Didn't you hear? That marine brat just played him like a fool!"
"Hah! The mighty Golden Lion, tricked by a marine kid—now that's entertainment!"
"Hahaha, I'd love to see his face right now—must be priceless!"
The jeering rose to a fever pitch. Golden Lion's veins bulged as he bellowed, "Shut your damn mouths! All of you! Or I'll kill every last one of you!"
He yanked violently at his chains, metal clanging through the dungeon.
Then, for a moment, Infinite Hell fell silent—
only for the laughter to return, louder and more mocking.
"Did you hear that? Golden Lion says he'll kill us if we don't shut up!"
"Hahaha! Go ahead and try, old man! You can't even walk out of your cell!"
"Down here in the living hell, all that's left for us is to die. What can you even do, huh?"
"I'm terrified, Golden Lion! Come on, kill me already! I'm begging you!"
The prisoners of Infinite Hell weren't ordinary criminals.
They were monsters—mass murderers, fallen legends, and living disasters the world had chosen to erase.
In this place, Golden Lion's former glory meant nothing.
"Damn it… Just you wait! When I get out of here, I'll slaughter you all!"
He cursed through gritted teeth, glaring toward the figure sitting outside his cell—Brian, leisurely sipping his wine.
Because Brian was looking right back at him—calmly, almost expectantly.
"I'm actually looking forward to seeing you escape," Brian said suddenly, his tone casual but his words sharp enough to make Golden Lion tense up.
Then, without another glance, Brian turned away and proceeded to polish off every last drop of wine and crumb of food on the table, right in front of the chained pirate.
"Hey! You bastard—what the hell did you mean by that?!" Golden Lion shouted after him. "Are you taunting me? Answer me, damn it! Come back here!"
But Brian ignored him completely, walking out without looking back.
Golden Lion's expression darkened. "Tch… could it be he knows I'm planning to escape?"
He looked down at his legs—those damn legs. He'd been working for years to sever them, to free himself from the seastone shackles and flee this prison. And he knew—he was close to succeeding.
But just as he was on the verge of freedom, the Navy had suddenly sent this strange, unpredictable young vice admiral.
"Did they find out?"
That night, the Golden Lion didn't sleep. He lay awake, turning over every possibility in his mind.
After his feast, Brian naturally had no intention of lingering in Infinite Hell surrounded by the stench of filth and blood.
He took the massive elevator up to the Fourth Level—Blazing Hell.
The heat was suffocating, but Brian planned to meet the warden nonetheless. According to Hannibal, the man had a nasty temper—but a "local snake" like him might still prove useful.
Led by a guard through the scorching halls, Brian finally reached the warden's office.
Even before stepping in, he could hear the shouting inside.
"Shiryu of the Rain! What the hell is going on down there?! Why did so many prisoners in Hunger Hell die on the same day?!"
"Probably starved," came a lazy reply.
"Do you take me for blind? They were cut down—by your sword!"
"Then why bother asking?"
"You insolent brat! I'm the warden here! You'll write a full confession this instant!"
The one yelling was an elderly demonkin with a pair of horns curling from his head and wings spread behind his back—Warden Galil.
The man standing before him, calm and indifferent beneath his aviator's cap, was Shiryu of the Rain.
Galil's nostrils flared like bellows, veins crawling across his forehead.
Not because he cared about the prisoners—those scum in Hunger Hell deserved death—but because Shiryu had once again blatantly disobeyed orders.
For a short-tempered control freak like Galil, Shiryu's insubordination was nothing less than a direct challenge to his authority.
Knock, knock, knock.
The sound came from the door.
"Come in!" Galil barked irritably.
Brian stepped through, his gaze flicking briefly between the two men before smiling politely. "Hope I'm not interrupting. I'm Vice Admiral Brian, recently assigned here from Headquarters."
"So you're the troublemaking vice admiral I've heard about," Galil said, tone half amused, half wary. "Sengoku mentioned you. Find a seat."
He reached across the desk, picked up three cigars, tossed one to Brian, one to Shiryu, and lit his own.
Brian caught the cigar with a grin. Without even touching a lighter, he snapped his fingers—fwoosh—and the cigar lit itself.
That little trick didn't go unnoticed.
Both Galil and Shiryu exchanged brief glances. Neither spoke, but their eyes said the same thing—
This guy's no pushover.
Brian leaned back, one leg crossed over the other, puffing smoke with a lazy grin. "I took a stroll with Hannibal earlier. Gotta say, this place is awful. Too hot, too cold, the air's terrible, no taverns, no restaurants, no entertainment… and worst of all, not a single pretty girl around. Working here's worse than hell itself."
Galil stared for a moment—he'd never met a marine quite like this.
Most would tremble in front of him, but Brian sat there like he owned the place.
And the sheer arrogance of his words… it almost made him laugh.
A man who dared talk like this in Impel Down had to have real strength behind him. Only true power gave one the right to act like a bastard.
"Hmph. This is hell," Galil said dryly. "Hell for the living."
"Sure," Brian shrugged. "But that applies to the prisoners. I'd rather not leave here with rheumatism and frostbite. Honestly, the Navy's benefits are way too stingy."
He said it with such casual humor that even Galil's anger began to ebb away.
All the while, Shiryu stayed silent—but his eyes never left Brian.
Galil finally exhaled a long plume of smoke and shook his head. This young vice admiral was certainly something else.
Then Brian shifted gears, turning toward Shiryu. "By the way, you're quite the swordsman, aren't you?" he said lightly. "How about working for me instead? I'll be heading to the West Blue soon as governor. Could use a few capable men to keep up appearances."
The room fell silent.
Shiryu's eyes narrowed. Galil froze mid-drag.
Vice Admiral Brian… was openly poaching one of Impel Down's strongest officers—right in front of his boss.
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