...
Outside the light curtain, reactions to witness this "Holy Land Great Escape" varied widely.
"That fish-man… is incredible!"
Shiki floated in the air, stroking his chin, his face showing undisguised admiration and schadenfreude: "He actually turned Mary Geoise upside down!
But… I'm even more curious—who's that God's Knight who helped him?"
His sharp gaze swept toward the Five Elders and the God's Knights, trying to read something from their faces, but those old foxes and knights remained expressionless, showing no cracks.
Roger also put away his usual carefree attitude, nodding seriously: "That fish-man is a real man!"
Then he fell into thought, his gaze lingering on the corner where the mysterious knight had disappeared on the light curtain…
"But... who could that knight who helped him be? And why?"
For Some reason, Roger's intuition made him glance toward the distant, grim-faced Saint Garling.
In that instant, the silhouette of the mysterious knight on the light curtain somehow vaguely overlapped with his memory of Saint Garling.
Especially the posture when young or in battle… there was a faint resemblance!
But the idea was too absurd. He shook his head and temporarily pushed it down.
Fisher Tiger's heroic feat—and his equal rescue of slaves of various races during his escape, including large numbers of humans—greatly shattered the world's stereotypical impression of fish-men as "ferocious and brutal" through the light curtain.
Many began to reflect: were the barriers and hostility between races largely rooted in ignorance and misunderstanding?
That fish-man hero had challenged the "gods" for the freedom of "people," regardless of what kind of people they were.
The light curtain switched scenes; time advanced to the day after the assault incident.
The Holy Land Mary Geoise still reeked of charred smells and lingering panic.
Some areas lay in ruins. Craftsmen and slaves who hadn't managed to flee were trembling under the whips of Celestial Dragon overseers, nervously carrying out cleanup and repairs.
Harald's towering figure appeared before a pile of rubble. He looked at the scene, his massive brows tightly furrowed.
Beside him, Saint Sommers stood with arms crossed, coldly complaining about the government's "negligence" and "lax security"…
That lowly "scum" from an inferior race had actually defiled the Holy Land.
Just then, steady footsteps approached.
The commander of the God's Knights, Saint Figarland Garling, arrived slowly from the other side with two young men.
Unlike his grim expression when facing the ruins!
At this moment, Saint Garling's face actually bore a rare smile—almost describable as "beaming with triumph." His eyes overflowed with undisguised pride and joy.
"Harald, perfect timing that you're here."
Saint Garling's voice was even gentler than usual: "Come, let me introduce you."
He stepped aside, bringing the two young men forward.
When those two nearly identical faces—handsome with a unique noble air and resolve—clearly appeared on the light curtain…
"Hiss!!"
"What?!"
"Two... Red-Haired Shanks?!"
"No! One is Shamrock! Then the other…"
…
Instantly, countless gasps and incredulous exclamations rang out inside and outside the light curtain!
At the God Valley site, an uproar erupted!
Those two faces were exactly identical to Red-Haired Shanks! The only differences might lie in temperament and subtle expressions.
The one on the left had an indifferent expression, calm and unruffled eyes, dressed in Celestial Dragon-style lavish robes—it was the previously seen Shamrock Saint.
The one on the right, standing to Saint Garling's left, wore simple yet neat knight attire. His red short hair was slightly disheveled, his face carrying a faint, barely noticeable sense of detachment!
His head was wrapped in bandages, his expression as indifferent as Shamrock's…
"His name is... Shanks!"
Saint Garling pointed to the red-haired youth on the right, his tone filled with the excitement and pride of "regaining what was lost."
"He is Shamrock's twin brother, and also the bloodline of my Figarland family that wandered away—my own son!"
Harald's huge pupils contracted; his face was full of shock.
He looked at Shamrock, then at Shanks—if not for knowing Shamrock's aura, he could hardly tell them apart!
"Because of some... past accidents and twists of fate, the brothers were forcibly separated."
Saint Garling continued, his tone carrying a trace of emotion at "fate's tricks," but far more the satisfaction of reuniting with lost kin.
"Shanks suffered in the lower world… but no matter. Now he's back!
As long as he can obtain the 'Deep Sea Contract,' I believe his strength will soon catch up to Shamrock's!"
He looked at his two sons standing side by side like mirrors, pride practically overflowing from his eyes.
The Figarland family's finest bloodline—now with twin stars united. This was simply fate's greatest gift to him!
The future God's Knights, and even the higher power structure of the World Government, would surely have a place for them!
Outside the light curtain, the real Saint Garling—seeing his "future" self standing triumphantly with two sons!
First he froze, then an indescribable surge of immense ecstasy overwhelmed his reason…
"Hahahahaha!!"
Saint Garling burst into hysterical, utterly unrestrained laughter. His voice was filled with incomparable smugness, arrogance, and mockery of fate!
Pointing at the distant Roger, barely able to breathe from laughing so hard, yet his mocking words landed clearly on everyone: "See that?! You lowly, despicable pirates! See that?! Roger!!"
Saint Garling's face twisted with excitement, his eyes flashing with madness: "My sons! In the future they've returned! Two of them! Both mine! Both the proudest bloodline of Figarland!
Even if this is 'future,' not 'now'—so what?! Fate has already pointed the way! What belongs to me will eventually return to my hands! Hahahaha!"
"You filthy bugs struggling in the mud will never touch it!"
His manic laughter and arrogant demeanor enraged Scopper Gaban and the other Roger Pirates members. Even Whitebeard, Golden Lion, and the others furrowed their brows…
Yet the directly named Roger—unusually—did not explode in anger or retort.
He simply folded his arms, narrowed his eyes, and first showed a thoughtful expression.
Then, as if a bolt of lightning flashed through his mind, his eyes suddenly widened. The corners of his mouth slowly curved into a smile mixed with sudden realization.
He raised a hand to signal his furious comrades to calm down. Then, in a voice not loud but clear enough for everyone to hear, he spoke slowly and leisurely: "Hey… points king, opportunist king, petty king…"
Those three "kings" hit like ice water, instantly cutting off Saint Garling's wild laughter. His face darkened in an instant.
Roger ignored him and continued in that infuriatingly relaxed tone: "Know why I didn't curse back right away? Because I suddenly thought of something… really interesting."
He deliberately paused, sweeping his gaze across the crowd…
Finally locking onto Saint Garling's face, which had shifted from ecstasy to ashen. Roger's smile grew even brighter—though to Saint Garling it looked utterly detestable:
"Aren't you curious? Just now on the light curtain… that one in Mary Geoise who helped the fish-man Fisher Tiger, freed so many slaves, and even deliberately destroyed the slave collars…"
Roger enunciated each word clearly: "…that mysterious one, face wrapped in bandages, with a wound at the corner of his eye…"
"The Go～d's～Kni～ght! Who could it be?"
After saying this, Roger flashed an extremely punchable grin…
Roger: (ಡωಡ)
The moment Roger finished, the entire scene went blank. Then Scopper Gaban—seeming to realize something—looked at Saint Garling with a wicked grin…
"Someone seems to have forgotten—back at Marineford, Shanks was one of the Four Emperors of the pirate world~ He's definitely not any knight!"
The atmosphere was already bizarre enough, and Scopper Gaban piled on with this brutal truth.
And in that instant… Saint Garling could laugh no more.
At this moment, in Saint Garling's eyes, Roger and Scopper Gaban—and Rayleigh who had stolen his wife ↓
...