The wind died down.
Everything around returned to its original state.
Kuzan stared at the perfectly restored sky, frozen in place. He didn't know if the spectacle he had just witnessed was a hallucination, as they, unlike Kong Tai, couldn't truly see what lay beyond the spatial rift.
Moreover, the temporal wind that had swept through had completely frozen them, body and soul.
But the terrifying aura that had penetrated his very soul, making him tremble, still lingered in his heart.
"What in the world was that?"
He turned his gaze towards Kong Tai, who floated unharmed in the sky, and Cateres beside him, whose life force had completely vanished.
He knew.
Their mission had utterly failed.
"What kind of ability does this guy have?"
From Cateres's words when they first met, he knew Kong Tai wasn't a Devil Fruit user.
As for other abilities, like how Kong Tai blocked Cateres's attack, an attack that could severely wound even him, he had no idea.
And the black energy beam that killed Cateres, though he didn't know what it was, he could sense that it felt more dangerous than anything he had ever encountered in his life.
Everyone called them Admirals monsters.
Compared to this guy, they weren't monsters; this guy was.
With Cateres's death, the female souls that had stood before him, and the countless souls in the shadow of the ruins that were no longer a town but had been utterly devastated by the battle.
It was as if they had instantly lost their souls.
They stood still, their blood-red eyes gradually fading, revealing clear, black-and-white irises.
A blue luminescence.
Like fireflies in a summer forest, it emanated from them.
First a single point, then a patch, then connected into a sea, gradually illuminating the entire town, the entire island.
This luminescence should have been cold, but at this moment, it radiated a faint warmth, bringing a sunshine-like warmth to everyone on this frozen island.
They seemed to have found complete liberation, their madness slowly receding. They turned, looking at Kong Tai in the sky, their eyes filled with unprecedented gratitude.
Then, slowly... slowly, they knelt down.
This scene.
Was silent.
But it stunned everyone who witnessed it.
Including Kuzan.
"This is our captain."
At some point, their companions had entered the town. Ah Hua and the others went towards Guina, while Robin walked alone to Kuzan's side.
She gazed at the gradually rising luminescence around them, not looking at Kuzan, but looking up at Kong Tai in the sky, a gentle smile gracing her lips.
She chuckled softly, "Captain, he's the most special person I've ever met. Although he's only a little over 17, his thoughts, in my opinion, surpass everyone I've ever met in this world."
"I don't know why he's so powerful, but his steadfast, sun-seeking heart has always guided us, guided our team."
"Do you know?"
Turning, Robin looked at Kuzan for the first time.
She was no longer the little girl who only knew how to run away, but a member of the Silver-Hair Adventurers. This team gave her unparalleled security, giving her the courage to face the figure before her who had given her hope, but was also her nightmare.
"What?"
Kuzan turned to look at Robin, a flicker of memory in his eyes.
Seeing Robin always reminded him of his old friend, Jaguar D. Saul.
He remembered that gentle giant friend who always loved to laugh.
He especially remembered "Ohara," and what kind of justice he should be pursuing.
Turning, he glanced at his companions who had joined Guina, then looked towards the distant, pitch-black sea, which, under the moonlight, gleamed with a cold light.
Robin continued, "Our captain! He really hates pirates, real pirates."
"I know that."
Kuzan turned and gave Kong Tai a deep look.
This guy truly hated pirates; the extent of his crackdown on them since he set sail was proof enough.
"So!"
Robin turned back, staring at Kuzan, her tone serious, "Our captain really dislikes the term 'Pirate Crew.' He always believed he wasn't a pirate, nor did he believe our team was a pirate crew."
"You're not a pirate crew, then what are you?"
Kuzan became more and more confused as he listened, turning to Robin with a bewildered expression.
"The captain calls our team... an Adventurer Crew."
"Adventurer Crew?"
"Yes."
Robin nodded and continued, "A team that adventures and plays on the sea."
"But you pose a threat to the World Government. You killed the king of a World Government affiliated nation, killed a Shichibukai, and killed... Marines."
"Don't these people deserve to die?"
Robin stared into Kuzan's eyes, a sneer on her face, "You can't possibly not know who these people are and what they've done, can you!"
"Uh..."
Kuzan was speechless at Robin's words.
Of course, he knew who the people Kong Tai had killed were; they were indeed deserving of death.
While he personally agreed with this, from the perspective of the World Government and the Marines.
Whether it was the Marines, the king of a World Government affiliated nation, or a Shichibukai, they were not people who could be killed by just anyone who appeared.
Only the World Government could kill these individuals, and only the World Government.
Therefore, he could only remain silent.
"Alright."
Robin waved her hand and continued, "I don't want to discuss this issue with you further. I'm not asking you, or the Marines, to acknowledge us. I know that as long as there's an existence that harbors hostility towards the World Government and poses a threat, you will define them as pirates."
"For example... a 9-year-old girl like me can have a bounty of 79 million Berries."
"Isn't that right?"
Silence, still silence.
Kuzan had his own thoughts, his own pursuits, and his own sense of justice.
He knew the World Government well, having learned after the Ohara incident.
Otherwise, his justice wouldn't have transformed from burning to lethargic.
But this world couldn't exist without the World Government, without the Marines. Anyone rational living in this world knew this.
If humanity, the sea, and the world were without rules, without order.
It would descend into complete chaos.
Chaos was not a good thing for the sea, for this world, or for the common people.
Therefore, even though the World Government was rotten to the core, and even though there were many in the Marines who did nothing but eat and drink, or even colluded with pirates.
Still, the world couldn't do without the Marines, couldn't do without the World Government.
Because they were the primary rules and order that maintained this world from descending into complete chaos.
"What I want to talk about are some of our captain's ideals."
Just as Kuzan was lost in thought, Robin spoke again.
"Your captain's ideals?"
"Mhm!"
Robin nodded and spoke the words Kong Tai had told her.
"No one in this world can stop people from going out to sea, whether they're seeking wealth, freedom, or simply wanting to adventure and play on the sea."
"You can't possibly classify every person who goes to sea as a pirate, can you!"
"In our captain's view, pirates are an extremely evil profession, not simply whoever your World Government decides to call one. That's not defining pirates, but defining those your World Government wants to kill."
"And those who go out to sea, our captain divides them into two categories: one is evil pirates, these people truly deserve to die. The other category is like us, people who want to adventure and play on the sea, and do heroic deeds along the way."
"People like us, the captain calls them 'Adventurer Crews,' abbreviated as 'Adventurer Group'."