Chapter 247: Forbidden Domain
In a room with a pure white background, yet somehow dim enough to feel oppressive, a man whose face could not be seen sat alone.
He wore an old grey-white shirt. Judging by the messy wrinkles on the fabric, he was clearly not someone who cared much about appearances.
Before him lay mysterious formulas and blueprints that ordinary people would never understand.
[Exploration of the Lineage Factor Theory]
[The Origin and Transfer of Devil Fruit Abilities]
[On the Possibility of Intelligent Machines]
[The Utilization of Seastone]
[Weapon Reconstruction]
Knowledge, exploration, invention, armaments across countless fields.
Each one was enough to make the world scramble madly for it.
Each one had the potential to set off a massive wave of chaos.
Yet the man tossed them aside as casually as scrap paper.
If any other scientist saw such waste, they would curse until their throats went hoarse, even if those things were the man's own creations.
But the man did not care at all.
His entire attention was fixed on the stack of documents before him.
Dense data covered the pages.
From the diagram of human brain circuitry, it was clear that this research concerned neural pathways.
The way he braced both hands against the table, his gaze unmoving, made it obvious that this data troubled him.
Even though his face remained hidden.
"Truly incredible."
The man muttered to himself.
"Unlike Devil Fruit power, one can interfere with the physical world simply through differences in brain circuitry...?"
His voice was hoarse and low, like that of a patient who had gone without water for a long time.
Yet beneath that roughness was the fervor of a fanatic.
Like someone celebrating the discovery of a new continent.
"The human brain is a forbidden domain. To think it could have such a wonderful use."
"But why can't I replicate this brain region to match that child's?"
"What is missing?"
His fingers lightly tapped the documents.
"Still, I am very curious."
"To develop a brain region alone, to privately open this forbidden door without permission... what kind of evolutionary pattern will it follow?"
"I truly look forward to it."
"The desire represented by the left brain, and the morality represented by the right brain. The two squeezing against each other, followed by a slow shift in emotions."
His voice grew softer.
"How will this unbalanced rationality change after that?"
"I really can't help wanting to explore further..."
"Vegapunk!"
A voice interrupted Vegapunk's rambling thoughts.
The door was pushed open.
Blinding sunlight streamed in, and Sentomaru, wearing his haramaki, walked into the room.
"About the plan you proposed last time, the higher-ups want you to explain the details again."
After saying that, Sentomaru turned and walked back out.
Vegapunk said nothing.
He impatiently gathered the documents on the desk and tucked them into his clothes.
Then he silently left the room and closed the door behind him.
...
Axel looked at the laughing Doflamingo with a cold expression.
"We are not the same."
His tone was detached.
Doflamingo smiled.
"How are we different?"
"What you want is to destroy the world," Axel said. "I have no such intention."
He paused slightly.
"To me, that sounds troublesome and foolish."
Doflamingo was not angry.
"You really do know a lot of things."
His smile deepened.
"I'm curious. How did you manage that?"
From Axel's exploration of the castle and his previous actions, Doflamingo could judge one thing.
Axel definitely could not read minds.
If he could, he would not have taken so many unnecessary actions.
Furthermore, a person generally only possessed one Devil Fruit ability.
Although the ability Axel displayed was strange, and even included immunity to seawater, it was clearly related to some form of energy manipulation.
He should not possess something like mind reading.
Under such circumstances, how did he know so many of Doflamingo's secrets?
It was just as incomprehensible as how Axel had known Vergo's identity from the start.
"You don't need to know."
Axel sneered.
"Either you help me block Marco, or I'll throw this baggage down."
His gaze shifted slightly.
"She's getting in the way of my escape."
The baggage Axel spoke of was naturally Sugar.
Aside from the terrifying power of the Hobby Hobby Fruit, Sugar had no combat ability to speak of.
If she fell from such a height, the result was obvious.
It would probably be difficult to even recover a complete corpse.
Hearing Axel say this, Sugar began to struggle unwillingly.
Muffled cries came from her throat.
But she was too weak.
She could not even break free from the blanket wrapped around her.
"Weren't your previous actions centered around those foolish people below?"
Doflamingo's voice carried a mocking edge.
"You should understand what will happen if Sugar dies."
"All those turned into toys will return to their original forms. This country will fall into turmoil again. Then I will purge those who resist one by one."
His smile became crueler.
"You could say your choice concerns the survival of an entire nation."
"What does that have to do with me?"
The detached words left Axel's mouth naturally.
So naturally that even he felt the answer was a little strange.
Yet according to the logic of his mind, it was the most appropriate response right now.
Huh?
That's strange.
This answer is a bit odd.
Did I really say that?
Axel's thoughts drifted for a moment.
Is it because I've been overusing my ability?
Is my mind tired?
Ah, whatever.
I'll deal with the troublesome matters first.
Doflamingo was not surprised by this answer.
While fighting Axel, he had already sensed it.
They were essentially the same type of person.
"I told you," Doflamingo sneered. "You're the same kind of person as me."
"Then throw her."
"Kill Sugar."
"With so many people below buried with her, I'm sure she won't be lonely."
Whether it was despair or resignation, Sugar stopped struggling.
Her head peeked out from the blanket, and her expression was unreadable.
She looked like an abandoned cat or dog left in a park, gazing toward its master with earnest eyes, unable to understand why it had been discarded.
But anyone who saw it could feel the sorrow coming from her.
"I won't let you do that."
Marco, who had been ignored until now, spoke.
Sugar was the leverage that could prevent Doflamingo from escaping.
From the previous battle, Marco was confident he could win one-on-one.
But if both Axel and Doflamingo chose to flee, he was not certain he could stop them both at the same time.
Then Axel moved.
Sugar felt the pull of centrifugal force.
Even though she had prepared herself, tears still welled up in her eyes uncontrollably.
However, Axel did not throw the tightly wrapped Sugar toward the ground.
Instead, he tossed her upward in a slow parabolic arc.
The way he threw her was clearly not meant to smash Sugar into the ground.
At that speed, both Doflamingo and Marco had plenty of time to catch her.
.....
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