Deep within the Smile Factory, the battle for the fate of Dressrosa's forgotten continued. Usopp maintained a constant barrage of projectiles from his slingshot, but Trebol used his own body as a shield to protect Sugar. The sticky officer seemed unfazed by the threat of injury, while the young girl, Sugar, continued to eat her grapes with eerie calm, appearing entirely unconcerned by the chaos around her.
High above the factory floor, Richie navigated the air using Moonwalk, carrying Miss Goldenweek on his back. They circled like predators, waiting for a momentary lapse in Trebol's defense. The officer had already been struck by two Tempest Kicks, and blood dripped from his chest. However, the thick, disgusting mucus covering his body acted as a protective layer, obscuring the true depth of his wounds and making it difficult for Miss Goldenweek to land a decisive blow.
Suddenly, Kyros, who had been waiting for the perfect moment to strike, lashed out with a thin chain. The metal links wrapped around Trebol's arm with a sharp snap, causing the mucus-covered man to stagger. As he struggled to regain his footing, Trebol let out a series of high-pitched, grating laughs that echoed unpleasantly through the room.
Usopp seized the opening instantly. "Firebird Star!" he shouted, launching a flaming bird of prey directly at Sugar.
Sugar proved she was more than just a protected asset. She leaped into the air with surprising agility, narrowly dodging the fire and landing directly on the chain Kyros was holding. Moving with predatory speed, she rushed down the length of the chain toward Kyros and Rebecca.
"Why isn't this toy following my orders?" Sugar wondered aloud, her palm reaching out to touch them.
Kyros reacted with fatherly instinct. He shoved Rebecca backward, clearing her from Sugar's path, but in doing so, he left himself exposed. Sugar's hand clamped down on the toy soldier. Despair washed over Kyros as he realized he was caught.
"I recognize you now," Sugar said with a cruel smile. "You're the soldier who escaped eight years ago! Do you really think bringing your daughter here will change anything? Do you honestly believe the Straw Hats can defeat the Young Master? Today, I'll turn your daughter into a toy as well!"
Rebecca froze, her mind reeling. She could not remember her past, but the mention of a daughter and the soldier's sacrifice sparked a sudden, painful realization. "Mr. Soldier... are you my father?!" she cried out, tears streaming down her face.
"Rebecca, run!" Kyros roared. He braced himself for the contract, knowing that once Sugar spoke the words, his will would no longer be his own.
Just as Sugar was about to finish him, Richie soared overhead. Miss Goldenweek flicked her paintbrush with expert precision, splashing a dark pattern onto Sugar's hood. The girl froze instantly, her hand sliding off Kyros as the psychological weight of the "Betrayal Black" paint took hold of her mind.
Rebecca scrambled forward and pulled the toy soldier into a tight embrace. "I won't let go! I know who you are now!"
Trebol, meanwhile, had stopped laughing. He flooded the floor with fresh mucus, drowning out the painted patterns that Miss Goldenweek had previously placed on the ground to trap him . freed from the interference, he glared at the young painter.
Miss Goldenweek remained calm. Her Colors Trap had grown more potent alongside her physical training, now capable of affecting even those with significant willpower. "You drew a pattern on Sugar's head?" Trebol screamed. "I won't let you get away with this! Sticky Meteor!"
He flung a mass of slime at Sugar's hood, desperate to wash away the paint, but Usopp was ready. "Gunpowder Star!" he yelled, his shot igniting the slime in mid-air. The explosion forced Trebol back, his frustration mounting as his attempts to help Sugar failed.
"Sugar! Take off that cloak!" Trebol commanded.
"I don't want to!" Sugar snapped back, influenced by the paint to defy her ally. She went back to eating her grapes, ignoring the danger.
Trebol tried a different tactic, attempting to use reverse psychology to break the "betrayal" mindset. "Fine! I forbid you from taking it off! Do not touch that cloak!"
"I'll do what I want!" Sugar shouted, and in her defiance, she ripped the bear-patterned cloak from her shoulders and threw it to the ground.
Usopp panicked, firing more gunpowder stars to stop her, but Trebol blocked them with a wall of slime. In the confusion, Rebecca and Kyros tried to rush Sugar once more. However, as soon as they made physical contact, Sugar's natural defense reflex triggered. With a flash, Rebecca was transformed into a small kitten toy.
A heavy silence fell over the room. Kyros, Usopp, and Sugar all blinked, their expressions turning blank for a moment as the memory of Rebecca was erased from their minds. Sugar, now free of the painted cloak, shook her head as her normal personality returned.
"What just happened to me?" Sugar asked, looking around in confusion.
"Sugar! Be careful!" Trebol warned. "That painter girl used some kind of hypnotic trap on you!"
"Hypnosis?" Sugar looked at the discarded cloak on the floor, seeing the black mark Miss Goldenweek had left. She felt a surge of anger at being manipulated.
Kyros stood still, his toy heart aching with a pain he couldn't explain. He felt as though he had lost something of immense value, but no matter how hard he searched his memory, he found only a void. Beside him, the kitten toy that was Rebecca let out a soft meow, unable to speak or remind him of who she was. She watched her father, realizing with a heavy heart that he had truly forgotten her existence.
Miss Goldenweek narrowed her eyes, focusing back on the primary threat.
"Usopp, leave the snot-nosed man to me!" she said firmly.
Richie dove toward Trebol, weaving through the officer's sticky projectiles. Miss Goldenweek quickly applied fresh paint to her own body, drawing a complex, shimmering pattern in seconds. As the paint set, her eyes glowed with a faint, colored light, and her aura surged with newfound power.
"Soru!"
She vanished in a blur of speed. Trebol, despite his Observation Haki, could not track her movement in time. Before he could react, Miss Goldenweek reappeared directly in front of him, her brush poised like a weapon.
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