Chapter 288: Luffy Punches in Anger

Translator: PapaSmurf0700

After Luffy showcased his Haki, causing people to faint and even knocking out Disco, the auction house boss, a deep, unsettling silence enveloped the venue. The remaining staff members were too scared to move forward, especially the auction house's second-in-command who had previously been groveling before the Celestial Dragons. He now cowered to the side, clutching a Den Den Mushi, unsure of what to do next.

The audience, comprised of princes and nobles, watched the unfolding scene with detached amusement, as if they were spectators at a theater rather than potential targets in a dangerous confrontation. In their world, the notion of someone daring to challenge the Celestial Dragons was unheard of.

In a dark corner of the hall, Eustass Kid watched the scene unfold with a smirk, clearly entertained by Luffy's boldness. "You are so arrogant, Straw Hat."

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Clang! The sound rang out sharply, not once but twice, as the chains on Lisa and Fili fell away, shattered. In that moment, the reality of their liberation sank in. They were free. As they rose to their feet to thank the man who had liberated them, terror suddenly flashed across their faces.

"Careful!"

Boom!!!

The warning came just in time. Saint Charlos, his face twisted in fury, had already drawn his gun and fired at Luffy. But before the bullet could reach its target—

Zap!

A bolt of lightning cleaved through the air, intercepting and disintegrating the bullet. Nami, holding her Clima-Tact charged with electricity, landed gracefully nearby. She fixed a stern gaze on Charlos and said firmly, "I don't want to fight you, though. But don't even think about running into Luffy like this."

"Damn it!!!"

Enraged by the thwarting of his attack, Charlos erupted, firing again at Nami. But to a seasoned pirate like Nami, with a high bounty, such a desperate attempt was futile. Her calm demeanor only fueled Charlos's rage further.

"I am a noble Celestial Dragon, a descendant of the great Creator!" he bellowed, his voice boiling over with entitlement. "I can get everything I want! I've decided, I want you to be my slave too!"

Pointing accusingly at Nami, he declared, "I will brand you with the Hoof of the Flying Dragon. Like all my slaves, you will always crawl on your belly..."

"And those two over there..."

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Charlos ranted wildly, and the other Celestial Dragons beside him nodded as if this behavior was normal. The surrounding princes and nobles seemed to agree, but Nami's anger grew with each word.

"What were you trying to do to me just now, you monster?" Nami's voice was cold, her past scars invoked by Charlos's words. The tattoo once marking her as Arlong's property had been hidden, but not forgotten.

"You're just like Arlong… thinking you can own people!" Nami twirled her Clima-Tact; electricity crackled ominously around it as she glared at Charlos, who continued his tirade.

It was like a ghost from the past had reappeared—the arrogance in Charlos's voice mirroring Arlong's years ago.

"You all... just wait..." Nami was on the verge of unleashing a thunderous attack, but then she felt something familiar on her head—a straw hat.

"Luffy..." She turned to see Luffy moving past her, walking determinedly towards Charlos. Tears welled in her eyes from the mix of emotions.

"No, protect Saint Charlos!" The knights finally sprang into action, realizing the threat, but they were too late.

Zap!

Thunder struck each knight before they could reach him.

"What is he planning?" The nobles, now realizing the gravity of the situation, stared open-mouthed at Luffy, who stopped just three meters from Charlos.

"Is this guy serious?" Eustass Kid watched, his own fear palpable even though he was accustomed to violence. He knew well he wasn't ready to face a Marine Admiral.

But it was too late for regrets.

Charlos, fearless and foolish, taunted Luffy again. "How dare you touch my property? I'll make you the lowest of slaves!"

"Even if you beg now, you'll live in agony."

"As a Celestial Dragon, I command it!" His words echoed with a sense of finality, oblivious to the storm he was about to unleash.

"Slave? On your knees? Celestial Dragon?" Luffy echoed the terms with a mix of confusion and rage, his voice rising slowly. He adjusted his straw hat, finally fixing his gaze on Charlos. His mind raced with images of those oppressed and hurt—Nami's tormented past in her hometown, Vivi's struggles, an old man desperately begging, a doomed pirate, and Lisa's cry for help.

As these images flashed through his mind, Luffy's right fist clenched tightly, pulling back with growing force. "No one in this world is a slave!!!" he declared, his voice booming with fierce anger, loud enough to echo outside the auction house.

"Gomu Gomu no—Pistol!!!" Luffy's shout accompanied his swiftly stretching fist, now sheathed in a metallic glove, as it rocketed forward, crashing into Charlos's face.

Blood sprayed from Charlos's mouth as his eyes rolled back; a high-pitched scream escaped his lips. Luffy's powerful strike sent him flying. The force of the blow created a shockwave, propelling the Celestial Dragon through the air. He traced a dramatic arc across the room, witnessed by the stunned crowd, before crashing against the auction house door.

Charlos tumbled across the ground, coming to a halt at someone's feet. Despite his disfigured face and the dirt staining his once-pristine white clothes, his unique hairstyle made him recognizable.

Meanwhile, back in the auction hall, amidst the chaos and shock, Saint Rosward's voice pierced the silence, shrill with urgency: "Call a Marine Admiral—immediately!"

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"It looks like our cooperation has begun, Big News Morgans," Bai Ye said cheerfully into the Den Den Mushi, his foot firmly on the fallen Celestial Dragon.

Turning to the news reporter Bob who had accompanied him, Bai Ye's voice carried a tinge of disdain. "The world's aristocracy, the descendants of the Creator, the supreme beings of Mary Geoise, the kings of the sea, the Celestial Dragons have come to this. Isn't this the biggest news in the world?" he challenged. "Why are you still standing there? Take a picture!"