The JoJo Pirates were now one of the 'Seven Warlords of the Sea!'
The moment Rosinante heard this, he instantly understood why Vergo had been so desperate to avoid attracting Giorno and Jolyne Cujoh's attention. Vergo was a fake Marine, while he himself was the real deal!
Vergo feared that if the JoJo Pirates got involved, the situation would spiral out of control, and his identity as a spy hidden within the Marines would be completely exposed. That was why he had tried so desperately to silence him.
But Vergo... the roar of justice was not something you could quiet!
"Help! I'm a Marine!!!"
Robin was startled when the man she suspected of being Doflamingo's biological brother suddenly shouted those words.
"Oh?" Liam said, sounding amused. "Really?"
"Don't listen to his nonsense!" Vergo spun around, pointing angrily at Rosinante. "His name is Donquixote Rosinante! He's Donquixote Doflamingo's younger brother!"
'Damn it...'
Rosinante felt as if a sword had pierced his heart. That identity was the one thing he could never deny.
'So he really is Doflamingo's younger brother...' Robin noted to herself.
Vergo adjusted his sunglasses and said calmly, "Giorno, Jolyne Cujoh, you've seen it yourselves. The Marines are currently dealing with the Donquixote Family, and I'm in the process of arresting this man. He's an expert liar and full of tricks. You may be Warlords, but you're not as familiar with people like him as we are. Leave him to me. Whatever you were doing before, just continue on your way."
He was trying to brush them off and get rid of these troublesome people as quickly as possible. Once they were gone, he could stop holding back, beat Rosinante unconscious, and hand him over to Doffy.
"I see..." Liam nodded. "So he's a really crafty fellow."
"Exactly."
"In that case, we'll just continue what we were doing..."
Rosinante's heart tightened with anxiety, but Vergo grabbed his jaw again, preventing him from shouting.
Vergo secretly breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to drag Rosinante away. But then Liam pointed toward the pile of pirate treasure chests lying in the snow before the ruined red fortress they had been heading toward.
Smiling, Liam said, "We found a little kid hiding inside those boxes earlier. Playing hide-and-seek? That's pretty interesting. Heh heh heh..."
'What?!'
Both Vergo and Rosinante's pupils contracted simultaneously.
'Law?' Vergo stared at the treasure chests.
'It's Law!' Rosinante screamed internally. 'They already discovered Law hiding inside the chest? That's impossible! I used the Calm-Calm Fruit to silence the box!'
Then, realization struck him. 'Observation Haki!'
Damn it... Giorno's Observation Haki was absurdly sharp.
Liam crooked a finger, and the pile of treasure chests suddenly stirred. One of the boxes buried at the very bottom began shaking, slowly floating out of the pile and drifting toward them.
On the way to the island, Liam had already switched to the Magnet-Magnet Fruit and had B.I.B. copy the ability. The moment they arrived, B.I.B. had spread a magnetic field across the island that interfered with Den Den Mushi communications. As long as they remained here, no signals could enter or leave.
Since the treasure chests had corners and edges reinforced with metal, Liam could casually draw them over using the Magnet-Magnet Fruit.
Neither Vergo nor Rosinante made a move. Vergo believed he had successfully earned Giorno's trust, while Rosinante was too worried about Law's safety to act.
"There's definitely someone inside."
The chest hovered beside Liam. Robin reached over and lifted the lid.
Inside was a boy wearing a fluffy spotted hat, curled up at the bottom. The shaking had just woken him up.
"Mr. Corazon, what happened...?" Law opened his eyes and immediately saw a beautiful woman looking down at him.
He jumped in shock. "Who are you?!"
Kneeling at the edge of the chest, he stared in astonishment. The chest was floating in midair!
Rosinante shouted, "Giorno! Jolyne Cujoh! This boy is being hunted by Doflamingo. You must hand him over to the Marines!"
"Mr. Corazon!" Law looked panicked. "What exactly is going on?"
He noticed Vergo standing beside Rosinante, the man disguised as a Marine who had brutally beaten both of them earlier. And who were this other man and woman?
Vergo continued to play it cool. "He's right about that much. This boy does need to be handed over to the Marines. Here, I'll take custody of him."
"Oh, sure." Liam casually reached into the floating chest, grabbed little Law, and held him out toward Vergo.
Vergo extended a hand to receive him.
"Don't even dream about it!" Rosinante roared. Throwing himself forward, he slammed into Vergo and sent him flying.
Vergo planted one hand on the ground, flipped gracefully back onto his feet, and brushed the snow from his hand, sneering inwardly. 'Idiot. By attacking me like that, you've just confirmed that you're standing against the Marines.'
"You bastard! Are you working with him?!" Law struggled frantically in Liam's grip, but the man's hand felt like a steel vise. No matter how hard he fought, he couldn't break free.
Furious, he opened his mouth and bit down.
'Crack!'
A sharp pain exploded through Law's gums. It felt as though he had nearly shattered every tooth in his mouth.
'What kind of skin is this?! Why is it so hard? Is he even human?!'
Liam casually tossed little Law back into the floating chest.
"Huh?" Robin knocked lightly on the wooden chest and discovered that it made absolutely no sound.
"Damn it!" Law angrily tried to bite her approaching hand, but Liam pressed a large hand down on his head, pinning him against the edge of the chest. His soft face was squished completely out of shape.
"Lemme go! Let me go..."
Liam said, "Stop biting people and I'll let go."
"Damn it! Damn it..." Law continued struggling, but Liam kept his word and released him.
Robin reached out again. Law shrank back instinctively, but she continued extending her hand, gently pressing it against his face, the face covered in white patches that had spread across his entire body.
"Careful," Vergo warned.
Law's expression darkened, bitterness and hostility flashing through his eyes. Yet the beautiful woman showed no discomfort whatsoever. She calmly placed her hand on his forehead, her fingertips lightly brushing his skin.
"Amber Lead Syndrome..." she murmured. "How old are you?"
The words struck Law like a hammer. Suppressing the overwhelming sorrow welling up inside him, he retreated further, trying to escape her touch. "None of your business! And he's right, you should be careful..."
"Why?" Robin asked curiously. "Amber Lead Syndrome isn't contagious."
That simple sentence made Law tremble from head to toe. Tears instantly filled his eyes, and he took several deep breaths to stop himself from crying.
Seeing this, Rosinante felt a weight lift from his heart. A relieved smile appeared on his face. At least these two pirates bore no hostility toward poor Law. That was enough. That was good enough.
'Click.'
Rosinante pulled out a lighter. Calmly, he said, "You can call it a lie or an excuse if you want, but I wasn't lying earlier. It's true that my name is Donquixote Rosinante, and it's true that Doflamingo is my biological older brother..." He lit a cigarette and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke. "But I am also a proud Marine."
"Don't believe him," Vergo warned, his expression turning gloomy.
Rosinante looked toward Law in the floating chest and smiled. "Sorry, Law. I lied to you. I just... didn't want you to hate me."
"Why are you even bringing that up?!" Law shouted. "I already knew that a long time ago!"
"Really?!" Rosinante's face lit up with joy, a massive burden lifting from his shoulders. "That's wonderful... It's wonderful that you don't hate me..."
Robin, having watched everything unfold, felt she had figured out the truth. She turned toward the man claiming to be a Marine.
Liam suddenly looked enlightened. "Oh! So you're actually the good guy." He then turned toward Vergo, whose face darkened further.
"I told you! He's a master liar!"
"Oh." Liam immediately turned back to Rosinante. "Then you're the good guy." He scratched his head. "Man, this is difficult. It seems like everyone's a good guy."
Robin secretly shook her head. Liam was messing with people again.
Law pointed furiously at Vergo. "He's the one lying! He's Doflamingo's spy inside the Marines! He's the bad guy!"
"Can you all stop for a second?" Liam complained. "One says the other's evil, the other says he's a spy. Who am I supposed to believe?"
Rosinante simply smiled faintly, the cigarette resting between his lips. As long as Law survived this ordeal, he had no regrets.
Meanwhile, Vergo's heart sank lower and lower. He was about to argue further when Giorno suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Got it!" he grinned. "How about this? Since both of you say the other works for Doflamingo, let's have each of you repeat a sentence." He smiled brightly. "'Doflamingo is my son, and he's trash, scum, and a bastard.' How about that?"
Law immediately shouted without hesitation, "DOFLAMINGO IS MY SON, AND HE'S TRASH, SCUM, AND A BASTARD!!!"
"Don't teach children to swear," Robin sighed helplessly, lightly tapping Liam's cheek with her fist.
"I'm not a child!" Law protested, though not very forcefully. Then he turned toward Rosinante with a face full of anticipation. "Mr. Corazon, hurry up and say it too!"
"Fuu..." Rosinante exhaled a cloud of smoke. "Doflamingo is indeed trash, scum, and a bastard. I wish I could throw him in prison this very moment. But he's not my son. He's my biological older brother."
"Mr. Corazon!" Law was so frustrated he looked ready to jump out of the chest and punch him. "Is this really the time to act cool?!"
"Heh..." Robin crossed her arms and looked toward Vergo. "Well then, Marine-san. That only leaves you."
By now, Vergo had already shed his Marine uniform, exposing his muscular upper body. Every inch of it was coated in jet-black Armament Haki.
Coldly, he said, "You want me to insult Doffy? Dream on. You people understand nothing."
As soon as he finished speaking, he swung his Haki-coated fist directly at Liam.
(End of Chapter.)
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