246 Sabo, Bad News

"Only when the Sun Candle body exceeds 500 meters can he break through the world's shackles."

Currently, Lynch's body is only 274 meters. As he progresses, the growth rate slows down. The Sea Kings he eat, now under a kilometer long, hardly grow anymore. 

Sea Kings under 1,500 meters only increase by one or two centimeters with each consumption.

To keep growing, he must seek out larger Sea Kings, and to find them in large numbers, he will likely need to go to the Calm Belt, the home base of the Sea Kings. 

Lynch plans to spend several months there, but before he leaves, he needs to ensure nothing goes wrong in his absence.

Yesterday, news reached him that Sasuke had joined Ace's pirate group and become the vice captain. Lynch could only sigh.

"I asked you to be a spy, but you ended up becoming second-in-command? Are you planning to take over the whole thing?"

"Sir, we've found you!" Mark jumped onto the roof urgently. "Vice Admiral Momonga sent word from Marine—something happened to the Revolutionary Army!"

"Doesn't something always happen to those guys from the Revolutionary Army? Is this different?" Lynch asked, not particularly concerned. The Marine mostly focuses on the Four Emperors and pirates, leaving the Revolutionary Army to handle their own battles.

"This time is different!" Mark's eyes widened in panic. "Dragon... he's dead."

Lynch's pupils dilated briefly before returning to normal. "Send SWORD personnel to investigate thoroughly. I want all the details!"

"Yes, sir."

Once Mark left, Lynch lowered his head and pondered.

The sea... things are about to change.

In the afternoon, two familiar old friends arrived in West Blue, requesting to see Lynch.

Sabo! Koala!

Sabo was covered in dust, his clothes torn, and some of his wounds were still healing. His eyes were red.

Koala looked well-protected, with no visible injuries except for the exhaustion on her face. 

The 18-year-old Koala was a far cry from the awkward girl she had been in the Celestial Dragons' prison. It truly was a transformation that marked her adulthood.

Her short orange hair peeked out from beneath her beret, framing her bright eyes and delicate features. Although her figure wasn't as developed as Robin's, her potential was clear.

Koala stood quietly behind Sabo, her head lowered, her fingers nervously tracing the sapphire ring on her hand as she seemed lost in thought.

Compared to the last time they met, both of them looked much worse now. Standing before the Emperor of West Blue, they felt an immense pressure.

Finally, Sabo found the courage to step forward, bowing deeply and saying, "Mr. Lynch, I'm sorry to bother you."

"I heard about the Revolutionary Army. What happened?" Lynch asked

"With Dragon's cautious nature, how could something like this happen?"

"Mr. Lynch, do you remember the batch of captured Revolutionary soldiers you transported when you were Admiral?"

"Of course I remember," Lynch replied, surprised to learn this incident was connected to him.

Sabo continued, "Dragon had kidnapped a Celestial Dragon and used himself as a middleman to demand the release of our prisoners from the World Government."

Sabo's face tightened with anger. "One of those prisoners was turned into a spy for the World Government. He sold them a lot of information about the Revolutionary Army, including the location of our base."

Sabo, still young and filled with righteous indignation, clenched his fists as he recalled the betrayal.

That night, the four army commanders and the commander-in-chief, Kuma, were absent from the base camp. Only Dragon, Sabo, Koala, and a fishman cadre who taught karate remained.

A team with terrifying strength attacked under the cover of darkness.

"Wait, can you describe the leader again?" Lynch asked.

Sabo paused and then said, "Now that you mention it, the person looked like an older version of Shanks."

Lynch considered the possibility. "Do you know about the Knights of God?"

Sabo shook his head. "Never heard of them."

"They are a special force made up of the strongest Celestial Dragons," Lynch explained.

"Their duty is to protect the rule of the Celestial Dragons and they have the authority to execute them if necessary."

Lynch also kept something to himself: this force operates at the same level as the Five Elders and only answers to Im.

Why did Im suddenly target the Revolutionary Army? The world had already been altered by Lynch's rise, and many events unfolded differently than in the original timeline. The fates of countless people had changed because of him.

At the same time, Lynch no longer had complete knowledge of the future, and he couldn't predict what would happen next.

"There's actually such a force? Aren't the Celestial Dragons all trash?" Sabo was stunned. This didn't match his usual view of the Celestial Dragons.

Through Sabo's story, Lynch learned everything.

The island quickly fell to the Knights of God, who were nearly unstoppable. They overwhelmed the island, killing countless revolutionary troops and destroying years of hard work.

Before Dragon was seriously injured and vanished, his final words to Sabo and Koala were to go to West Blue and seek Lynch's protection.

Looking out at the sea, it was clear that only Lynch had the ability and willingness to protect them.

Later, to cover Sabo and Koala's escape, Dragon, in his severely injured state, fight on the Knights of God alone.

After hearing Sabo's story, Lynch's expression grew complicated.

To be honest, his relationship with Dragon wasn't good, and they were more like half-enemies. There had been too many issues between them.

But as the saying goes, "Those who understand you are often your enemies." 

Dragon had entrusted Sabo and Koala to Lynch, even though they were on opposite sides. From this, Lynch could see that Dragon had a certain nobility.

"Since Dragon entrusted you to me, you can stay in West Blue safely," Lynch said. "Don't worry, as long as I'm here, no one can harm you."

"Thank you for taking me in," Koala replied, her voice full of gratitude. She looked pitiful, yet relieved.

"However, given the circumstances, Dragon's chances of survival are slim. You should be mentally prepared," Lynch said.

"No! Dragon will be fine!" Sabo shot back, his eyes burning with determination. To him, Dragon was like a father.

"I'm sorry, I went too far," Sabo quickly apologized, lowering his head.

"It's alright, it's only natural," Lynch replied.

"You must be exhausted after escaping from the Grand Air Force to West Blue," Lynch said, calling for the guards. "Take them to rest."

"Yes, sir!"

As Sabo and Koala were about to leave, Sabo suddenly rushed back, kneeling before Lynch with a thud.

"Mr. Lynch, please find a way to save Dragon!" 

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TO BE CONTINUED

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