Chapter 671: The Heart of Lilith!
A few hours later, Ryuunosuke led the three of them out of the forest.
The mont they erged, every gaze on the shore snapped toward them.
In the end, whether they fought or not depended on one person’s decision.
"Captain, nothing happened here while you were inside," Najenda reported at once as she hurried up. "The attack we predicted never ca."
"Mm." Ryuunosuke nodded, smiling faintly. "I understand. You all did great work."
Then he raised his voice slightly, letting it carry.
"Alright. Let’s go find Adam."
"Go find Adam?"
Confusion spread across the crew like a ripple.
They had only just arrived, fought a battle against Lilith’s weak and feeble Guardians, and now, before they had even done anything at the real target, they were leaving again.
"Captain Ryuunosuke, why not just attack Lilith directly?" soone blurted out. "Could it be you still..."
"It’s over."
Jay walked up, clearly anxious, trying to cut in, but Ryuunosuke answered before he could even finish.
At the sa ti, Ryuunosuke took out a bead.
Jay’s pupils contracted.
"That... that’s the Heart of Lilith!"
His voice turned hoarse.
"You just... That’s impossible. How could you..."
Jay went completely blank.
The others might not understand what that bead ant.
But he did.
He knew better than anyone.
His entire plan, the battle, the bait, the pressure, it all existed for this one thing.
And now it was in Ryuunosuke’s hand.
There was only one way to obtain it.
Kill Lilith.
Lilith would never hand her core to anyone voluntarily. Never.
Controlling the Heart of Lilith ant controlling Lilith’s life and death.
She would not make that choice while alive.
So how?
How terrifying was this captain?
He killed Lilith without Jay even sensing a trace?
"Any doubts?" Ryuunosuke asked, calm as still water. "It’s simple."
"After I went in, I t Lilith."
"Then the battle began."
"Under the AT Field, Luffy and the others are relatively safe."
"And at the sa ti, you can’t sense any fighting aura at all."
His tone never changed.
Then he snapped his fingers.
Gaino appeared instantly.
"Captain!"
Gaino perched on Ryuunosuke’s shoulder, eyes bright with anticipation.
"Here." Ryuunosuke tossed the bead upward once, then flicked it toward Gaino. "Eat this."
"Digest it properly. I’m counting on your power when we go find Adam."
"Gulp..."
Gaino swallowed the Heart of Lilith without the slightest hesitation.
The mont it went down, an oppressive aura surged from his body, rolling outward like a wave.
"Captain, I need ti to digest this," Geno said quickly, voice low. "This should give enough power."
After speaking, Gaino vanished from sight.
He returned to the Ark of Eternity, and a violent aura spilled from the ship itself.
Even though the fusion had only just begun, the change was already enormous.
At that point, Jay no longer had any doubts.
Without the Heart of Lilith, a transformation like that was impossible.
"By the way, Mr. Jay," Ryuunosuke said, still composed. "Let’s go find Adam."
"Lilith is dead now."
"Adam shouldn’t be much stronger than Lilith."
"Good." Jay’s mouth twitched. "Let’s go. We’ll find Adam."
Then his eyes sharpened, and he added firmly, "But this ti, no matter what the operation is, I hope Captain Ryuunosuke won’t leave behind again."
"We’re partners."
He made it very clear.
He knew Ryuunosuke had deliberately kept him behind earlier.
He could not object before, because they were business partners, not family.
If the other side did not trust him, there was nothing he could do except put his stance on the table.
"No."
Ryuunosuke shook his head and rejected him outright.
"Mr. Jay is the focal point of our operation. Anything I believe might threaten Mr. Jay is off limits."
"I’m not careless."
"At minimum, I keep Mr. Jay in a safe position."
Ryuunosuke’s refusal was clean and absolute.
Even before he ever spoke to Lilith, he had already begun suspecting Jay.
What happened today only confird those suspicions.
With that in mind, Ryuunosuke had no intention of letting Jay move freely.
Otherwise, by the ti they realized they had been played, they would not even know how it happened.
And it was not that Ryuunosuke feared Jay turning against him.
If Jay beca an enemy openly, fine.
That was one more enemy on the battlefield.
What Ryuunosuke refused to accept was a hidden knife in the shadows.
Jay’s expression tightened.
"Captain Ryuunosuke, if you don’t trust ... then just say it."
"I don’t think this kind of disguised control over my freedom is a good thing. Am I wrong?"
He finally stopped holding back.
If this continued, Ryuunosuke would seize total initiative.
And Jay’s earlier arrangents would beco aningless.
The Heart of Lilith was already taken.
Roger, the leader of the Guardians, had seen it.
Ace had carried him out.
It was obvious Roger could not stand after what happened inside.
He was not dead, but the lingering aura inside his body scread one thing.
Severe injury.
anwhile, Ryuunosuke’s two brothers were completely fine.
So Ryuunosuke’s explanation was almost certainly true.
Jay could not let this continue.
"If Mr. Jay wants to give up on cooperating with ," Ryuunosuke said, eyes narrowing as he smiled, "then I can only regret it."
"I have a habit. I don’t like being held back."
"And Mr. Jay, in your current spirit state, is a burden to my team."
He tilted his head slightly, smile still there, but colder.
"And if I’m deceived, I’ll repay it properly."
Jay opened his mouth.
He wanted to argue.
But no words ca out.
Ryuunosuke had already seen through too much. Anything Jay said now would not matter.
Their only remaining trump card was to break cooperation entirely.
But that would an facing the full wrath of the Dragon Hunter Pirates.
Even Gowther alone, who had been watching Jay the entire ti, was already a serious threat.
In the end, Jay chose not to compromise further.
"Captain Ryuunosuke, I don’t know what you heard from Lilith."
"But she is the enemy."
"Information from an enemy is unreliable."
After that final attempt, Jay turned around and returned to the Ark of Eternity without another word.
The others also moved back to the ship.
"Nojiko," Ryuunosuke called, "we’re heading to Morbig Island. You have the location, right?"
"Set sail."
After giving the short order, Ryuunosuke led the three kids into the cabin.
Kuina and Aka went inside as well.
The remaining crew stayed outside to make preparations, while keeping a careful eye on Jay.
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