A few days later.
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
A ship as massive as a mountain slowly sailed into the harbor under the shocked gazes of countless Marines in the inner bay plaza.
World Government officials and a group of high-ranking Marine officers, who had received the news and were waiting, gathered beneath the towering Fortress of Justice.
"It's the ship of the Elbaf Royal Army! The King of the Giant Race, His Majesty Harald, has arrived!"
Amidst the awe-struck gazes of the Marines, a giant standing tall between heaven and earth, over fifty meters in height with a pair of pitch-black long horns on his forehead, stepped off the mountain-sized ship, onto Marineford's embankment, and into the plaza.
Under the gaze of countless people, without waiting for the World Government officials who had arrived early to step forward and inquire...
Harald took the lead and spoke.
His massive voice, like muffled rolling thunder, boomed over the entirety of Marineford.
"Marine high-ranking officers... and all the officials of the World Government! Please, hear me out!"
He suddenly raised his hands and, amidst the shocked gazes of the crowd, gripped the horns on his forehead, gritted his teeth, and with a sudden burst of strength, snapped them downward!
"Crack!"
A scalp-numbing sound of cracking.
The long horns on Harald's head, which symbolized the bloodline of the Ancient Giant Race, were shockingly broken off by Harald's own hands.
In an instant.
A massive amount of blood gushed out from the broken horns, flowing down Harald's face like a waterfall and staining his entire face red.
This sudden turn of events...
...left the Marines in the plaza completely stunned.
Harald, having broken his own horns, held the blood-stained horns in his hands and, like a collapsing golden mountain or a toppling jade pillar, knelt with a heavy thud on the embankment before everyone, deeply bowing his head as the King of Giants.
"Everyone!!"
"Please, let us repay a thousand years' worth of sins!"
"I wish to apologize for all the mistakes the Giant Race has committed until now!"
"So that the children of Elbaf may live in peace and happiness! To coexist with humans! I am willing to prove here that my vow of peace is not false in the slightest!"
His face covered in blood, he shouted in a deep voice, "Please give us a chance at redemption! For this, I would not hesitate even if I were to become a slave!!"
Harald's voice echoed over Marineford.
The entire plaza fell into a dead silence.
Countless people watched in shock as the Giant King broke his own horns and made such a soul-stirring speech.
"Harald! What is he doing?" Garp, still wrapped in bandages, subconsciously stepped forward a few paces, his eyes filled with shock.
"Forget about him for a second, Garp! First, you explain to me clearly..." A large hand reached out from the side and grabbed his arm.
A furious Zephyr stared at Garp with a tight frown, making Garp's scalp tingle.
"What exactly happened at God Valley in the West Blue? As someone who was there, don't you want to tell me? I asked Sengoku, Kong, and Tsuru, and they all used the excuse that they hadn't been there to brush me off and wouldn't tell me. What about you? Are you going to lie to me, or just refuse to say anything at all? Huh?!"
"I..."
Garp wanted to find an excuse to slip away.
But how could Zephyr let him leave so easily?
He had been using his unhealed injuries as an excuse all these days.
Every time Zephyr came, he would feign illness.
But because Harald was coming today, out of curiosity, Garp couldn't help but sneak out of the hospital to see what Harald was up to.
As a result, he did see a very shocking scene.
But it also allowed Zephyr to successfully catch him.
Garp knew it would be hard to slip away this time.
He intended to make up a lie to fool Zephyr.
But while he could punch people with his fists...
...asking him to lie and deceive... "Hehe... You mean God Valley? Haha, that place, hey, it was nothing much. Just... a bunch of Celestial Dragons... *cough cough*... were on a field trip there, and old man Kong... *ugh*... sent me to protect them..."
Garp pursed his lips as if something were stuck in his throat; every few words, he would roll his eyes and think hard about what to say next.
So much so that after talking for a while, he hadn't managed to say anything coherent.
Zephyr couldn't take it anymore; he reached out, grabbed Garp's neck with both hands, and shook him.
"If you can't lie, then tell me the damn truth! You bastard, Garp! Do you think I don't know you've never told a lie in your life?! You're just a straight-shooter, damn it! Hurry up and tell me the truth about God Valley!!"
Garp rolled his eyes wildly as he was being choked.
In the end, he simply feigned fainting, sticking out his tongue and tilting his neck, hanging limply in Zephyr's hands.
Furious, Zephyr slammed him onto the ground and kicked him in the ass.
"You bastard, Garp!"
"Ow-woo-woo!" Garp cried out in pain, clutching his tailbone. He looked at the enraged Zephyr with a bitter smile and sighed:
"Sigh, Zephyr, don't force me. I really can't say. Go ask Sengoku or old man Kong. Don't pressure me here. If I could say it, I would have already. If I talk, I won't be able to stay in the Marines anymore; certain people would definitely make me pack my bags and leave. I made a huge decision to stay below the cliff... Please, don't force me."
By the end, Garp's voice carried a hint of fatigue and bitterness.
Seeing him like this, Zephyr shook his head in disappointment, flicked his cloak, and strode away.
Seeing that he didn't look like he was heading to Fleet Admiral Kong's office or to the newly promoted Admiral Sengoku, but was instead marching toward the harbor...
...Garp quickly scrambled up from the ground. "Hey! Zephyr! Where are you going?"
Zephyr didn't look back.
"Since you're all keeping it from me, I'll just have to find someone who can tell me the truth!"
Garp scratched his head. "Who are you going to ask?"
However, Zephyr ignored him and directly boarded a warship, quickly setting sail.
Meanwhile.
In the first half of the Grand Line, in a certain sea area less than a few hundred kilometers away from Marineford...
...a small island nation, less than five kilometers in diameter, lay peacefully on the sea.
On the island, pointed-roof buildings with red roofs and white walls were everywhere, stretching from the edge of the island toward the center.
Countless houses were built in concentric circles, shrinking inward toward the royal city at the center, creating a spectacular sight resembling a giant whirlpool.
This was the Rulusia Kingdom of the Grand Line.
At this moment, at the eastern coast harbor of the Rulusia Kingdom.
A hooded youth nimbly leaped out of a cargo ship that hadn't even finished docking. With a forward dash, he slipped into the harbor town before the ship's owner could notice.
"Phew... That was close! I almost got caught."
At a corner of a building in the town, Dragon took off his hood and breathed a long sigh of relief.
Only then did he have the leisure to turn around and observe his surroundings.
Before his eyes were red and white houses stretching as far as he could see.
On the long street in front of the houses, many pedestrians were coming and going.
There were various shops on both sides of the street, with owners eagerly hawking their goods and bargaining with customers.
Snotty-nosed children in groups were playing and running in the street, letting out joyful laughter.
The long-lost sense of everyday life allowed the tension from Dragon's successful escape from Marineford to relax.
The scene before him couldn't help but remind him of his hometown, Foosha Village.
Speaking of which, he really hadn't been back in many years.
With a hint of confusion about what to do next after leaving the Marines...
...Dragon began to wander aimlessly through this small island nation in the Grand Line.
However, he failed to notice...
...that when he rushed out of that cargo ship...
...several people also stepped out from another cargo ship belonging to the same company nearby.
They were men in black suits, with a bone-deep coldness in their eyes.