Once Vice Admiral Toller and the two Rear Admirals had departed with their troops, Rowan turned his gaze back to the World Noble, Vaskeriel-sei.
Feeling Rowan's eyes on him, Vaskeriel's heart hammered against his ribs. Ignoring the searing pain in his body, he increased the speed of his kowtowing. By now, the stone slab beneath his forehead was stained with fresh blood. It was clear that Rowan's previous display of intent had etched a deep, paralyzing fear into the Celestial Dragon's soul.
Rowan made no move to stop him. Instead, he raised his tobacco pipe and took a leisurely puff, letting the smoke drift into the air. After a moment, he glanced toward one side of the street and smiled.
"Arrived already? It seems those old fossils in the Five Elders really do care about this mess."
About ten minutes later, following the direction of Rowan's gaze, a tall, lean silhouette appeared on the deserted street, walking at a steady, unhurried pace.
The man wore a dark blue shirt under a white suit vest, with a green-patterned sleep mask pushed up onto his forehead. His expression was one of total lethargy. However, the moment he came into view, Cavendish—still perched on the rooftop—felt his chest tighten.
"He's here... he's finally here. The Navy's Highest Combat Power, Admiral Aokiji Kuzan!"
As Aokiji drew closer, Cavendish involuntarily swallowed a mouthful of saliva. Though Aokiji looked as lazy as ever, he projected a crushing pressure that left a pirate of Cavendish's level feeling suffocated. The aura of a Navy Admiral was simply too overwhelming.
Seeing the Admiral, a flicker of hope reignited in Vaskeriel-sei's heart. An Admiral! Whenever a World Noble is attacked, an Admiral must be mobilized! This man is surely here to save me! The hope burned brighter than it had when the Marine branch troops arrived. But the conversation that followed between Rowan and Admiral Aokiji caused Vaskeriel's face to freeze instantly.
"Kuzan-boy. I didn't expect it would be you they sent," Rowan chuckled, exhaling a plume of smoke. Truthfully, Rowan had expected Kizaru; that brat rarely turned down a direct order from above.
Aokiji shrugged helplessly. "Arara... Mr. Rowan, you know how it is. If I didn't come, the Five Elders wouldn't let this go easily. They might have even started pestering Fleet Admiral Sengoku directly."
"I'm sure you wouldn't want to see that, Mr. Rowan. So, I had to make the trip."
After speaking, Aokiji glanced at the dazed Vaskeriel-sei kneeling on the ground. "Mr. Rowan... this fellow isn't going to die on me, is he?"
"Don't worry. He won't die yet," Rowan replied calmly, not even sparing the Noble a glance. When he had struck, he had intentionally avoided the major arteries. The blood on the neck looked terrifying, but it wasn't enough to cause fatal blood loss.
"Arara... that's good then. As long as he's alive, I can report back to the Five Elders. After all, those old men only told me to bring him back alive."
"Whether he's missing an arm or has a broken leg, the Elders didn't specifically mention anything about that."
Hearing this, Vaskeriel-sei shuddered violently.
What do you mean 'as long as he's alive'?! What do you mean 'missing an arm or a broken leg doesn't matter'?! He couldn't fathom why a Navy Admiral would say such things upon arrival. Why would the Five Elders make such a decision? Just who was this old man?!
Given the Elders' current stance, Vaskeriel realized with a jolt of terror that if the old man had killed him, the Five Elders might have just offered a few words of reprimand and moved on.
He stole a glance at Rowan's calm face and felt a wave of lingering fear. Thank God he had only directed his initial malice at the tavern owner and only threatened to break the man's legs. If he had been any more arrogant earlier, the outcome might have been very different.
Vaskeriel looked up tentatively, caught Rowan's eyes, and immediately ducked his head back down, trembling. He didn't dare provoke this "Great Master" further. If the man got annoyed and decided to take a limb, Vaskeriel wouldn't even have a place to go to cry for justice.
Rowan smirked. He crouched down again, using his hot pipe to lift Vaskeriel's blood-smeared face. "Now... you finally recognize your place, don't you?"
"I'll give you one final warning: crawl back to Mary Geoise immediately. If I ever see you outside the Holy Land again, it won't be just a 'small lesson' like this time."
Hearing this, Vaskeriel felt as if he had been granted a divine pardon. He kowtowed several more times with genuine gratitude. "Don't worry, Great Master! I will never do it again! Thank you for sparing me! Thank you... thank you..."
"Now beat it," Rowan said with undisguised disgust.
Vaskeriel scrambled to his feet, trembling, and scurried behind Aokiji. Looking at the "God" of the world acting like a terrified street rat, Aokiji exhaled a cold breath of air to freeze the wound on the Noble's neck. He didn't like the guy either, but he couldn't let him die on his watch.
Done with the "first aid," Aokiji greeted Rowan. "Well then, Mr. Rowan. If there's nothing else, I'll be taking this fellow back."
After receiving Rowan's nod, Aokiji stretched, placed his hands behind his head, and slowly led the pathetic Vaskeriel-sei away. Even as he followed Aokiji, Vaskeriel couldn't help but steal glances back, checking if Rowan was chasing them. To him, Rowan was now more terrifying than a demon from the abyss.
Before they had gone far, however, Rowan's calm voice rang out once more.
"Hey! Brat! I'm choosing to let you go this time, but it's not because you're a World Noble. If I hear that you're still out there committing atrocities, even if you hide inside Mary Geoise and never come out, I can still take your life. Do you believe me?"
Aokiji raised an eyebrow at the statement, then leaned down to whisper in Vaskeriel's ear: "Lord Vaskeriel-sei, Mr. Rowan isn't threatening you. If he truly wishes it, he is entirely capable of going to Mary Geoise to do exactly that."
Aokiji released a bit of frost as he spoke. Vaskeriel, feeling as if he had been shoved into an icebox, shivered uncontrollably. He turned back and forced a smile that looked worse than a sob, bowing his hunched body. "Don't worry, Great Master! I'll turn over a new leaf when I get back! I'll never do anything bad again!"
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