Just as the Marine warship carrying Gern Reginald Sigmar and Dracule Mihawk slowly departed the harbor of G-10 Base, setting course for Paradise on the other side of the Red Line—
At the very apex of world power, Mary Geoise, within the palace compound of the Jaygarcia family—
Inside a chamber lavishly adorned to the extreme yet permeated by an unmistakable chill, one of the Five Elders, the War God of Science and Defense,Saint Jaygarcia Saturn, sat behind a massive desk carved from the polished bones of a colossal beast.
Before him lay mountains of World Government administrative documents and cutting-edge research data, yet he paid them no attention.
Instead, his full focus rested on a stack of top-secret intelligence reports concerning the Revolutionary Army.
The deeply wrinkled face bore no expression whatsoever. Only within his sunken eye sockets did an occasional glimmer of cold, rational light pass through—as though he were not reading reports about a force threatening the very foundations of the world, but merely reviewing inconsequential experimental records.
Moments later, his finger slowly slid across a document detailing the movements of the Revolutionary Army's Northern Army.
When his gaze reached several blurred photographs and an attached personnel list, his motion paused ever so slightly.
In one of the photos stood a figure of extraordinary height and massive build, cloaked in green.
The annotation beside it read:
Mixed-blood Buccaneer Tribe. Revolutionary Army officer. Bartholomew Kuma.
"Buccaneer…"Saint Saturn quietly uttered the word in a low, hoarse voice.
Almost unconsciously, his eyes narrowed, a trace of emotion—complex and unreadable—flickering across his gaze.
His thoughts were pulled back to the era of God Valley, to that time when a small slave had once shouted at him—
His eyes then drifted downward, settling on another name closely tied to Kuma's.
Ginny.
According to the report, she was the Eastern Army commander of the Revolutionary Army, and had a deep personal connection with Kuma.
At that moment, something utterly unnatural appeared on Saint Saturn's otherwise emotionless face.
A smile.
Infinitesimally faint—yet chilling to the bone.
There was no warmth in it whatsoever.Only the pure, ruthless "appreciation" of a scientist gazing upon flawless experimental material.
At present, Saint Saturn was personally overseeing an extremely confidential life project—
An attempt to bypass the act of consumption altogether and directly inject Devil Fruit ability factors into infants still developing within the womb,to explore entirely new possibilities regarding the inheritance and fusion of Devil Fruit powers.
Such research demanded vast numbers of "test subjects" and merciless selection.
Originally, he had merely been going through reports as a matter of routine, selecting the next batch of slave women to be "requisitioned."
But the appearance of Kuma and Ginny sparked a far more "efficient" and "interesting" idea.
A powerful mixed-blood Buccaneer—
His very bloodline carried immense research value.
If he were to become a father, then his offspring would undoubtedly be top-tier experimental material.
Far superior to children born from ordinary slaves.
(NTR is too disgusting, so this version directly establishes that Ginny is already carrying Kuma's child, and that Bonney is Kuma's biological daughter. A man who spends his life running toward freedom should never be treated otherwise.)
"A Buccaneer hybrid… a Revolutionary officer…"Saint Saturn murmured to himself, his fingers lightly tapping against the bone desk.
"Perfect."
"That woman… Ginny…""Once she's brought in, she can be handed off afterward to the idle trash among my family's lower ranks—let them use her as a slave plaything."
With that casual line of thought, Saint Saturn calmly decided another person's miserable fate.
"As for that Buccaneer hybrid…"
The cold light in his eyes intensified.
"He himself is an ideal source of experimental data.""Even acquiring his physical records alone could yield remarkable results."
Once born, the thought spread through his mind like poisonous vines, impossible to stop.
Using the authority of the Five Elders to capture a Revolutionary Army commander was hardly difficult for the World Government—especially when it would also strike a blow to the Revolutionaries' morale.
A perfect two-for-one.
Having reached his decision, Saint Saturn did not hesitate.
He extended a hand and pressed a concealed button along the inner edge of the desk.
A special golden Den Den Mushi slowly rose from the surface.
The shell bore the insignia of the World Government, its line connected directly to the Holy Knights.
"Buru-buru…"
The call was answered almost immediately.
The Den Den Mushi's appearance shifted, becoming indistinct yet solemn, radiating an unquestionable aura of nobility and power.
Facing it, Saint Saturn spoke in his characteristic hoarse voice, devoid of any emotion.
"There is a mission that requires the deployment of a Holy Knight."
"Target: the Revolutionary Army's Eastern Army commander—the woman codenamed 'Ginny.'"
"Capture her alive if possible. Most importantly—wait until she is carrying the child of the Buccaneer hybrid, Bartholomew Kuma."
"Location: the East Blue, or any region where the Revolutionary Army may surface."
"Authorization: highest operational clearance granted. CP0 may be mobilized if necessary.""Execute with absolute secrecy and maximum efficiency."
There was a brief silence on the other end.
Then came a short, lethal reply:
"Edict received."
The call ended, and the golden Den Den Mushi slowly sank back into the desk.
...
Meanwhile—
Ten thousand meters beneath the sea in the New World, Fish-Man Island stood quietly within an eternal blue abyss.
A double-layered bubble membrane gently enveloped the entire island, while the roots of the Sunlight Tree Eve filtered surface sunlight into a hazy veil that cascaded over this dreamlike realm.
Coral forests bloomed like living flames across the seabed, schools of exotic fish weaving through them like flowing jewels.
Castles and streets that seemed torn from a fairy tale shimmered beneath rippling waterlight, as though time itself had slowed here.
A small Marine warship slipped silently through the bubble membrane and came to rest at the edge of the harbor.
Gern stood at the bow.
Within the water-sealing barrier, his Justice coat fluttered softly.
He gazed at the scenery before him—both familiar and subtly changed—and a faint, almost imperceptible emotion passed through his eyes.
"…It really has been a long time," he murmured.
The last time he had stood here was many years ago.
Now, upon returning, the stars of an Admiral gleamed on his shoulders.
Though the Marine flag still flew over Fish-Man Island, it was unmistakably branded with the names—
"White Qilin.""Heaven-Shaking."
Marks belonging to him alone.
"So this is Fish-Man Island," Mihawk said as he stepped up beside Gern, sharp hawk-like eyes sweeping over the wondrous land with mild curiosity."The last time, we left in a hurry. I didn't take it all in."
"Didn't expect your flag to be flying here."
"A paradise ten thousand meters under the sea—and one of the mandatory routes to the New World," Gern nodded, his tone tinged with nostalgia."This place used to be absolute chaos.""Now… thanks to me, it's far more stable."
Before long, the warship docked at a designated port.
Having already received word, the guards of Ryugu Palace were waiting.
At their head stood a towering ribbonfish merman—Prince Fukaboshi, Neptune's second son.
The moment he recognized Gern, his expression turned deeply respectful, even excited.
"Admiral Gern!""Welcome once again to Fish-Man Island!"
"Father has already been informed of your arrival. A banquet has been prepared at Ryugu Palace—please, we sincerely hope you will honor us with your presence!"