Upon hearing Lloyd's question, Rosward's body convulsed as if struck by lightning, trembling uncontrollably.
He swallowed hard and forced an awkward laugh, saying, "Saint Lloyd, maybe you heard incorrectly…"
"Hm?"
With a single glance from Lloyd, Rosward's tone shifted immediately. "I'm sorry, Saint Lloyd! I truly didn't recognize you earlier, please forgive me!"
Rosward, who had never bowed to anyone in his life, suddenly knelt before Lloyd. Monet watched in stunned disbelief, her entire worldview shattered.
Lloyd gazed down at Rosward with icy eyes and said, "Is an apology all you think is enough? What do you take my Figarland Family for?"
As he spoke, a faint crimson aura spread from Lloyd's body. Rosward's face turned pale, and he froze, nearly trembling into tears.
Lloyd didn't actually want to kill Rosward here — not yet. He had no authority to execute a Celestial Dragon. That power belonged to his uncle, Saint Garling.
But anyone who spoke of annihilating Lloyd's entire family couldn't be left unpunished, especially a Celestial Dragon. The matter touched on the Figarland Family's dignity within the Holy Land.
With that in mind, Lloyd bent down and gathered Monet and Sugar in his arms again. Then, spreading his wings, he swept Rosward off his feet and sent him crashing into the snow.
Rosward lay there too afraid even to breathe. His gaze remained fixed anxiously on Lloyd's retreating back, bracing for the judgment he knew was coming.
"Once you return to your territory, find Saint Garling yourself and beg for forgiveness."
With that, Lloyd beat his wings and soared into the sky, disappearing from Rosward's sight in an instant.
Once they were safely back on family ground, Lloyd handed the Monet sisters to a maid, instructing her to help them wash up and change into fresh clothes.
The maid nodded and led them away.
The walk was quiet. The maid seemed unsure of who the Monet sisters were, so she remained silent until Monet couldn't hold back anymore.
"Um… big sister," Monet asked softly, "who is this Saint Lloyd?"
The maid turned and looked at Monet in surprise. "You were brought back by the Young Master? You don't know who he is?"
A flicker of sadness passed across Monet's face. "To be exact, we were bought by him."
The maid's eyes widened in understanding. "So that's it — you're slaves."
The word "slaves" struck Monet like a blow to the chest.
Young Sugar didn't fully grasp the meaning of the word, but she could see her sister's sudden distress. Timidly, she reached out and tugged at Monet's clothes, whispering, "Big sister…"
Monet forced a small smile. She wasn't alone; at least she still had Sugar.
The maid didn't look down on them because they were slaves. Instead, she explained the answer Monet wanted earlier.
"This is the Figarland Family's territory. Saint Lloyd, the Young Master, is the family's sole heir."
Among the Celestial Dragons, the Figarland name was widely known. But most ordinary people didn't recognize the significance — to them, all Celestial Dragons were "heavenly beings."
Yet Monet had just seen what it truly looked like to be above heaven.
Thinking back to Rosward's fear earlier, Monet asked, "Big sister… are there ranks among the Celestial Dragons?"
"There are," the maid replied with reverence, "but it's not something people like us should concern ourselves with. You only need to know that in the Holy Land, our Family Head, Saint Garling, is someone who holds the power of life and death over even other Celestial Dragons. And in time, Saint Lloyd will be the same."
The maid's voice trembled with awe.
"Did you know? Saint Lloyd isn't just the Figarland Family's heir, he's also the Navy's Admiral."
Monet's shock deepened. She barely had time to comprehend the idea of someone holding life and death over Celestial Dragons when the maid dropped this next bomb.
"He's the Navy's Black Dragon Admiral!?"
Startled, the maid leaned down and covered Monet's mouth, whispering fiercely, "Quiet! Don't shout here!"
Monet blinked several times, quieting herself.
After a pause, the maid continued.
"Don't be deceived by how young the Young Master looks. He's incredibly strong, in ways we can hardly understand. He became an Admiral not because of the family name, but entirely through his own strength. That's what the Guard Captain Carlos told me."
At the mention of Carlos, the maid flushed slightly, though she tried to hide it.
Sugar looked up at her with concern. "Big sister, your face is so red. Are you feeling unwell?"
The maid waved her hand quickly, insisting she was fine, but it was obvious she was covering something up.
Monet was too overwhelmed with new information to notice the maid's awkwardness.
After a long silence, Monet finally gathered her thoughts.
She had completely abandoned any hope of escape.
Not only because of Lloyd's unimaginable strength, but because she realized being owned by someone like him might actually be a blessing.
The greatest benefit was safety. If she could gain Lloyd's favor, there would be almost no one in the world who would dare harm her or Sugar.
Monet's hometown was remote. The villagers there had never seen a Devil Fruit user before.
When Monet consumed the Sugar Sugar Fruit and her abilities manifested, they branded her a monster — even her own parents feared her.
Only Sugar stayed by her side, clinging to her like before.
Then Pirates came because the villagers had reported her.
Monet was still young and a girl. Even though she possessed the Sugar Sugar Fruit's powers, she had never used them to bully anyone.
But in the end, kindness attracts cruelty.
When the villagers brought Pirates to harm her and Sugar, she unleashed her Devil Fruit power without restraint for the first time.
Those Pirates couldn't use Armament Haki. They had no defense against her elemental abilities.
Still, Monet was too weak. The Sugar Sugar Fruit lacked offensive force.
In the end, she only managed to defeat that group of villagers and a small group of Pirates.
But when the Pirates captured Sugar as a hostage, Monet was left with no choice.
She surrendered, was shackled with Seastone, and sold to Disco.
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Powerstones?? (´ε｀ )
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Patreon = _Zeph