Chiffon had personally witnessed Saint Lloyd's terrifying strength.
Even someone as powerful as Katakuri, a man who possessed the qualities of a king and could wield Haoshoku Haki, could not summon the slightest thought of resisting Saint Lloyd. Compared to him, Chiffon was even more powerless.
Knowing she had no way to fight back, she closed her eyes in resignation and awaited her fate.
Meanwhile, Shanks seemed to realize something. A strange expression appeared on his face as he watched Lloyd's movements.
Under everyone's gaze, Saint Lloyd narrowed his eyes slightly and parted his lips.
A subtle sound wave spread from him.
The vibration passed through Chiffon's abdomen, scanning the outline of the unborn child within and transmitting the information directly back to Lloyd's mind.
The next instant, the hand resting on Chiffon's stomach turned completely black.
A faint hum echoed.
Chiffon suddenly felt an unusual lightness in her abdomen and instinctively opened her eyes in shock.
Shanks glanced at her noticeably flattened stomach and silently thought to himself,
"As expected."
The darkness surrounding Lloyd's hand slowly faded before he withdrew it completely.
Everyone present remained bewildered, unable to understand what had just happened.
Several moments later, realization finally dawned on Chiffon.
Her face twisted in anguish.
"My child!"
"My child!!!"
Her desperate scream echoed across the deck.
The surrounding pirates froze as they watched her break down like a woman who had lost everything.
Lloyd frowned slightly.
Without hesitation, he raised a hand and tapped the side of her neck.
Chiffon's eyes immediately closed.
Her body lost all strength and fell backward.
"Chiffon!"
Katakuri rushed forward and caught her before she hit the deck.
After confirming she was still breathing, he quietly let out a sigh of relief.
She had merely fallen asleep.
Shanks swallowed hard before cautiously asking,
"Brother... did you take away her child?"
Lloyd casually shook his hand.
"To be precise, I erased it."
He paused briefly before adding,
"Have you ever heard of a painless abortion?"
Shanks blinked.
"...That sounds absurdly effective."
A faint smile appeared on Lloyd's face.
"Shanks, when your future child is born, I can personally assist with the delivery."
He took a sip of wine before continuing in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Being involved in the birth of my niece would be quite meaningful."
The corners of Shanks' mouth twitched.
"Brother, are you joking?"
"Your method sounds like something that should only be used in an emergency during childbirth."
Lloyd looked at him strangely.
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
"I can stop bleeding."
"As long as I'm there, I guarantee your wife won't lose a single unnecessary drop of blood."
"..."
Shanks was speechless.
After several seconds, he finally sighed.
"As expected of you, Brother."
"I hereby grant you the title of Saint of Obstetrics."
"Keep it low-key."
The people around them blinked repeatedly.
The two brothers were discussing childbirth as casually as if they were talking about tonight's dinner.
Meanwhile, one of them had just erased an unborn child moments ago.
The contrast was unsettling.
After a while, Shanks looked toward Chiffon sleeping peacefully in Katakuri's arms.
"What do we do when she wakes up?"
Lloyd answered without even looking over.
"Nothing."
"Unless she completely lets go of Teach and the child, she won't wake up."
Only then did Shanks remember Lloyd's special ability.
After all, Yasopp was still wandering around looking confused half the time because of its effects.
Katakuri waited respectfully until their conversation ended before stepping forward.
"Saint Lloyd."
He bowed deeply.
"Thank you for sparing my sister's life."
"I sincerely appreciate your mercy."
Truthfully, Katakuri felt almost nothing regarding the unborn child.
The baby had not even been born yet.
To him, Chiffon's survival mattered far more.
As long as his sister lived, that was the best possible outcome.
Lloyd waved a hand dismissively.
"Your sister isn't truly a pirate."
"And she has a good relationship with Pudding."
"There was never any need to kill her."
With that, Lloyd returned to his seat.
The ever-observant Buggy immediately stepped forward and refilled Lloyd's glass before he could ask.
After witnessing Lloyd's methods firsthand, Buggy's fear had reached an entirely new level.
One terrifying thought refused to leave his mind.
If Lloyd could precisely erase an unborn child through a person's abdomen...
Then couldn't he erase someone's organs just as easily?
The image of his stomach, heart, and lungs suddenly disappearing flashed through Buggy's head.
His entire body shuddered.
A strange phantom pain spread through him.
This ability was far too outrageous.
How could something so horrifying belong to the Fleet Admiral of the Navy, a symbol of justice?
The contradiction nearly broke his brain.
As Buggy continued his frantic internal complaints, he failed to notice Lloyd staring directly at him.
"Hey."
Lloyd's voice suddenly rang out.
"What are you thinking about?"
Buggy nearly jumped out of his skin.
He snapped back to reality instantly, his face turning pale.
For a moment, he felt as though his soul had left his body.
Almost instinctively, he turned toward Shanks with pleading eyes.
Seeing his old friend's miserable expression, Shanks sighed and stepped forward.
"Brother, stop frightening Buggy."
"He's naturally timid."
Lloyd tilted his head.
"Is he?"
"He really is."
Shanks nodded seriously.
"To be honest, if you weren't my brother, even I would probably be afraid of you."
A look of relief appeared on Shanks' face as he spoke.
Lloyd simply shook his head and chuckled.
Then Shanks walked over and sat beside him.
Taking a large gulp of wine, he looked up at the crescent moon hanging in the night sky.
For a while, neither brother spoke.
Eventually, Shanks broke the silence.
"Brother..."
His voice was quieter than usual.
"Can you tell me what kind of person he was?"
"Or at least what he looked like."
He hesitated briefly before asking,
"Do I resemble him?"
Naturally, Lloyd knew exactly who Shanks was talking about.
Even so, he feigned ignorance.
"Who?"
Shanks stared at him.
"You know who."
"I don't."
Shanks clenched his jaw before reluctantly muttering,
"...Your uncle."
The atmosphere instantly changed.
Lloyd's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Presumptuous."
"Would you like me to remind you of the family rules?"
Seeing the veins bulging on Lloyd's fist, Shanks immediately lost all courage.
He lowered his head.
His voice became barely audible.
"...My father."
Lloyd snorted before taking another sip of wine.
After a brief pause, he asked,
"Do you see the moon?"
Shanks looked up.
"Yes."
Lloyd nodded.
"Your father's face is roughly shaped like that."
"What?!"
Shanks nearly choked.
His mind instantly pictured Saint Garling's face.
The image was so absurd that his expression became incredibly strange.
That bone structure would be terrifying.
Lloyd glanced at him and smirked.
"I'm talking about the hairstyle and beard."
"Put them together and they resemble a crescent moon."
"It's quite distinctive."
Shanks rubbed his forehead.
"That's still pretty strange."
Lloyd chuckled.
"When you see portraits of the previous heads of the Figarland Family, you'll realize Saint Garling's hairstyle is actually relatively normal."
Shanks suddenly felt much better.
"Then it's fortunate our hair didn't inherit that tradition."
"Heh."
Lloyd leaned back slightly.
"That's probably because you take after your mother."
"As for me..."
His eyes flickered briefly.
"It might be the result of that experiment."
Shanks fell silent.
The atmosphere became noticeably heavier.
Lloyd, however, merely smiled.
"It's all ancient history."
He raised his glass.
"Now then, let's continue talking about your father."
"He was an incredibly stubborn man..."
...
Meanwhile, within the territory of the Figarland Family...
Saint Garling had just finished his bath.
As he stepped out, he suddenly sneezed.
"Achoo!"
He frowned immediately.
For some reason, he had a strange feeling that someone was talking behind his back.
===
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