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The Unsevered Future and a Belated Smile
The light screen slowly dimmed, finally freezing on the image of Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban carrying Roger and Garp toward the coast.
That scene was less a triumphant escape and more a desperate retrieval of two lives from the brink of hell, carrying unfinished regrets and heavy burdens.
Outside the light screen, Saint Garling stared fixedly at the image of Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban calmly departing, his brows knotted tightly, fingernails digging deep into his palms.
Regret, unwillingness, and a trace of lingering fear intertwined in his heart.
"What a pity… such a pity!"
He roared inwardly…
Especially Roger! Look at what he went on to do?
He started that damned Great Pirate Era!
Unfortunately, his "future" self and the other two God's Knights had clearly underestimated the explosive power of Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban…
Unlike Saint Garling's frustration, when Rocks himself saw this scene, the corner of his tightly clenched mouth lifted ever so slightly—revealing an almost imperceptible, relieved smile.
The smile was faint and fleeting, yet undeniably real.
"Good… you two are okay."
He murmured silently in his heart, as if the last massive weight had been lifted.
Having personally witnessed his own "future" end—eroded by darkness, saved through the desperate efforts of Roger and Garp, regaining a sliver of clarity only to die from Saint Garling's sneak attack—
After the initial shock, Rocks had quickly calmed down and even achieved a peculiar kind of mental reconciliation.
He had always lived facing death, dancing on the edge of a blade. He had long been prepared for his own fate.
What the light screen showed was merely the worst, most humiliating of countless possible outcomes.
Yet even in that ending, there was still the dignity granted by Roger and Garp's desperate fight, and his own final moment of clarity—perhaps the greatest fortune within misfortune.
What truly concerned him was the fate of those two who should have been enemies.
Seeing them rescued by Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban, seeing they still had a future, a subtle sense of comfort welled up in Rocks' heart.
He had a strong premonition that these two—especially Roger—carried some far greater, more important mission. They absolutely could not die so humiliatingly here in God Valley, at the hands of a petty villain like Saint Garling.
The seas needed them. The era needed them. Perhaps… even some of his own unfulfilled aspirations could be indirectly realized through them.
"Hey, Rocks,"
Roger's muffled voice interrupted Rocks' thoughts.
Roger stood with arms crossed, brows furrowed, staring at the image of himself being carried away unconscious on the light screen…
There was no joy of survival on his face—only full dissatisfaction and regret: "If I'd still had one breath left back then, I would've smashed that bastard Saint Garling's brains out! How could I let him…"
He didn't finish, but the meaning was clear. He was haunted by his failure to stop Rocks' death—even feeling a trace of… anger? Or unwillingness?
Rocks turned his head and glanced at Roger.
"Roger…"
Rocks' voice was unusually calm, even carrying a rare, almost consoling tone: "Everyone has their own path of fate.
Just like you—in the future, you'll start a 'Great Pirate Era' that sweeps the world…"
He paused, his gaze distant: "There must be a reason for that. There must be something only you can accomplish.
And I have my own road to walk, my own ending to bear. We met here, fought, settled our grudges, and then… each of us heads toward our own destinies. There's nothing wrong with that."
His words were a bit awkward, even at odds with his usual arrogant and domineering image, yet they unexpectedly struck a chord.
Enemies and friends? Perhaps. At least in this moment, after witnessing together the absurdity and tragedy of the "future"…
The deep-rooted enmity between them seemed diluted by something more complex, more vast.
The light screen brightened again, returning to the "future" timeline.
Rayleigh carrying Roger and Scopper Gaban carrying Garp raced through the shattered forest and constantly collapsing ground at blinding speed, leaving afterimages.
They had to race against time—Saint Garling and the others had only been temporarily repelled and could pursue at any moment. Even more deadly, the island beneath their feet was on the verge of total collapse.
"Cough… cough cough…"
Roger let out violent coughs on Rayleigh's shoulder and slowly woke. He struggled to lift his heavy eyelids; his vision blurred for several seconds before focusing.
What met his eyes was Rayleigh's tense jawline and the rapidly receding ruins.
Every inch of his body screamed in pain; the weakness from completely exhausting his Haki flooded him like a tide.
But the first words from his cracked lips upon regaining consciousness were a hoarse yet stubborn murmur: "Rocks… where…?"
Rayleigh's body gave an almost imperceptible pause while running.
Scopper Gaban nearby heard and snorted with a labored laugh: "Hey hey, Roger—even in this state, you're still worried about your 'enemy'? That doesn't sound like you."
Garp on his shoulder also seemed to regain a bit of awareness, mumbling vaguely: "So is he…"
Roger ignored Scopper Gaban's teasing and simply stared stubbornly at Rayleigh's profile with questioning eyes.
Rayleigh ran in silence for several seconds as another crack split open in the ground beneath his feet.
Finally, he took a deep breath, his low, clear voice reaching Roger's ear: "Rocks… he was killed. By the time we arrived… it was already too late."
A simple statement, unadorned—yet more impactful than any description.
Roger's eyes instantly dimmed; his lips pressed into a thin line.
He didn't ask who did it—the answer was obvious. He didn't roar in anger.
Only that thick emotion—mixed with unwillingness and regret—silently spread.
He closed his eyes, letting Rayleigh carry him onward through the jolts.
Finally, they burst out of the forest and reached the violently shaking coastline, where seawater was pouring in amid total chaos.
Several ships were racing to set sail—including the Oro Jackson.
The moment Rayleigh and Scopper Gaban leaped onto the Oro Jackson's stern with Roger and Garp, and the ship had barely pulled away from shore by less than a hundred meters…
"RUMBLE!!!"
A dull roar—as if rising from the planet's core—enveloped all of God Valley!
Then, under everyone's horrified gazes, a massive, pitch-black vortex suddenly appeared on the sea surface beneath the main body of God Valley Island!
No—it wasn't just a vortex. It was like a gigantic maw that had abruptly opened, leading to an endless abyss!
Terrifying suction force erupted. Seawater surged madly inward. The remaining land of God Valley, collapsing mountains, ship fragments that hadn't escaped in time, and everything on the sea surface…
All were mercilessly swallowed and dragged down by that bottomless abyss-like existence!
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