An Act of Defiance

"Dead? How boring."

After killing the slave with a single shot, the fat, middle-aged man holstered his golden pistol. He glanced disdainfully at the body on the ground, treating it like a piece of trash. Then, as if he had done nothing more than swat a fly, he continued on his way.

"That guy was a pirate captain with a bounty of 79 million!" someone whispered from the crowd.

"And now he's dead, just like that."

"Quick, get out of the way! He shouldn't have offended a Celestial Dragon!"

The onlookers scattered like mice, fearing the fat man's gaze would fall on them next.

"Moonlight, hide!" Hachi's face went pale. He quickly pulled Moonlight and Robin into the shadows. Only after the fat man had passed did he let out a sigh of relief.

"Who is he?" Robin asked. "Can he really just kill people in the street like that?" Even though she was accustomed to seeing life and death, the sight of someone so casually taking a life and walking away was still hard to accept. What did he take human life for? A joke?

"He is a Celestial Dragon," Hachi explained simply. Hearing those three words, Robin's body went stiff. She understood immediately.

Moonlight looked at Hachi, wanting more information than the fragmented memories of his past life could provide. Sensing his unspoken question, Hachi explained in a low voice, "The Celestial Dragons are the World Nobles who live in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise. They're called the descendants of the gods, the bloodline of the world's creators. In their eyes, everyone else in the world is inferior, no better than ants to be trampled and killed at will. You must never offend them. They are protected by the World Government. If you cross them, terrible things will happen. It's said the Navy's Admirals themselves will be dispatched."

"Descendants of gods? The blood of the creators? Admirals?" Moonlight nodded. According to history, they were indeed the descendants of the creators, but World Nobles? Unoffendable? He couldn't help but sneer.

"Moonlight, I know you're strong, but..." Hachi began to plead.

Just then, a team of nurses arrived to carry away the body of the murdered pirate captain. As they passed, the fat Celestial Dragon suddenly pointed at one of the nurses. "I like her," he declared. "I want her to be my thirteenth wife."

The nurse he pointed at trembled. "But... I have a husband!"

The fat man ignored her and looked at his guard, who bowed low. "Your Highness, what about your other wives?"

"I'm tired of them," the Celestial Dragon said dismissively. "Drive them away or kill them."

"Yes, Your Highness." The guard immediately moved to seize the woman. She was filled with despair but dared not resist.

What does it mean to see everyone as ants? What does it mean to treat life and death as a game? When Hachi had explained it, Moonlight had understood intellectually, but now he was seeing it with his own eyes. To simply see a woman on the street and decide to make her his wife, regardless of whether she was already married, and for her to have no power to resist lest she be killed...

"My wife!" At that moment, a young man rushed out from the crowd. He was the woman's husband. He had only taken a few steps before a gunshot rang out, and the fat man shot him to the ground. The onlookers exclaimed in shock, but none dared to intervene.

"What a pity," someone sighed. "They were just married."

"Let's go, let's go! We can't let the Celestial Dragon see us!"

The fat man, seeing that the woman's husband was still breathing, raised his golden pistol to finish him off. Seeing this, Moonlight drew his sword.

SWOOSH!

A crescent of sword energy shot out. The golden pistol in the fat man's hand was sliced in two, and the force of the slash sent him tumbling to the ground.

"Moonlight!"

"Moonlight, no!"

The sudden turn of events drew the attention of everyone in the street. All eyes were on Moonlight. Who would dare to attack a Celestial Dragon? The entire street fell into a shocked silence. Hachi, Camie, and Pappag all screamed and tried to pull Moonlight back, but he had already acted. Once he had decided to strike, who in the world could stop him?

Cold sweat trickled down Robin's forehead. A Celestial Dragon! But she knew Moonlight. She knew this man could not be stopped.

"Who is he?!"

"He actually hit a Celestial Dragon!"

"This is a disaster! A disaster!"

The crowd erupted in panicked exclamations. It was as if the sky itself were about to fall. The Celestial Dragons were gods, superior to all others from birth. For hundreds of years, it had been they who killed and acted with impunity. The world was their playground. When had one of them ever been struck? Who would dare to offend them? The concept was so deeply ingrained that to see it happen now was unthinkable.

"He's... the Vice-Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates, Moonlight!" Among the crowd, some of the more powerful and knowledgeable individuals recognized him. One of them, a young woman with straight pink hair wearing denim shorts, a white t-shirt, and heart-shaped lipstick, whispered his name. She was Jewelry Bonney, one of the eleven Supernovas who had been making waves in the Grand Line recently—a group that also included Straw Hat Luffy.

"You... you dare to hit me?" the fat man stammered, scrambling to his feet and staring at Moonlight in disbelief. His guards rushed forward, but they were no match for Moonlight. A single, sharp glance was enough to send them collapsing to the ground, unconscious. Moonlight walked toward the Celestial Dragon, step by step.

"Do you want to die?" the fat man asked, his voice dripping with arrogance as he looked at Moonlight as if he were nothing more than an ant.

Moonlight just sneered, about to strike again, when a woman suddenly rushed out from the crowd and ran towards him. It was Jewelry Bonney.

"An enemy?" Moonlight raised his sword, and the moment Bonney rushed forward, the tip of his blade was at her throat. She froze, her eyes wide with shock. This was the strength of the Straw Hats' Vice-Captain? He had not only seen through her movements but had reacted instantly. Bonney swallowed hard and quickly backed away.

Moonlight continued his advance toward the fat man.

"What are you doing? I am a descendant of a god! If you dare to attack me, you will die!" The Celestial Dragon was finally beginning to realize that something was wrong, but he remained aloof, his expression indifferent.

"A descendant of a god? You think you're worthy?" Moonlight sneered. Then, to the shocked and incredulous gasps of everyone watching, he drew his sword.

SWOOSH!

A whirlwind of sword energy erupted, sweeping the fat man off his feet and sending him flying high into the air before he crashed down somewhere in the distance.

Everyone took a sharp, collective breath. The next moment, they scattered like birds, fleeing as if a great catastrophe was about to descend upon them. Jewelry Bonney, a cold sweat on her brow, gave Moonlight one last, deep look before disappearing into the crowd. This man had just attacked a Celestial Dragon. This was even more terrifying than a Buster Call.

"Moonlight, it's over! It's over!" Hachi, Camie, and Pappag were trembling, looking as if the world were ending. "You attacked a Celestial Dragon! They're the descendants of gods! No one dares to strike them! A great disaster is coming!"

Even Robin's face was pale. "Moonlight, we're in big trouble."

"BOOM!"

Just as Robin finished speaking, a huge explosion erupted from nearby. They all turned to see that it had come from the auction house. They rushed over, and just as they arrived...

"Gum-Gum..."

A familiar voice rang out. The auction house suddenly collapsed, revealing the scene inside. Another man in the same bubble helmet and robes as the fat man, this one with a long, drooping mustache and sunglasses, was being beaten to the ground. This man was also a Celestial Dragon. And his attacker was Luffy.

Luffy stood there, his expression filled with righteous fury, glaring at the fallen Celestial Dragon. "Why are people like you called gods?!"

Around him stood Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Chopper, Nami, Brook, and Franky. In front of Luffy, an old man bound in chains stood tall. He wore glasses, had long silver hair, and a straight scar over his right eye. It was the Dark King, Silvers Rayleigh. Luffy had attacked the Celestial Dragon for him. When Rayleigh had been put up for auction, the Celestial Dragon had declared that such an old man wasn't even worthy of being a slave and had tried to kill him. Luffy, seeing this, had exploded in anger.

Seeing this, Hachi, Camie, and Pappag were speechless. They looked at Moonlight, then at Luffy.

"The captain and vice-captain of the Straw Hat crew..."

"Moonlight! Robin!" Zoro and the others called out, seeing them.

"Moonlight!" Luffy said, his expression solemn. Moonlight nodded, understanding. He then pointed to the sky.

Everyone looked up, confused, just in time to see the fat Celestial Dragon that Moonlight had sent flying crash through the ceiling of the auction house and land in a heap. Another one? The already shocked crowd fell into a dead silence.

"People like that are not worthy of being called gods," Moonlight said faintly, meeting the surprised gazes of Luffy and the others. Hachi and his friends quickly explained what had happened. The crew was speechless. They looked at Moonlight, then at Luffy.

"When did these two start acting so alike?"

"You bastards! You dare to strike a Celestial Dragon! You're dead!"

"Kill them! Kill them for me!"

With two of their own beaten, the Celestial Dragons' entourage went berserk. A woman with long brown hair, her face covered by a silk scarf, ordered the execution of Luffy and the others. She, too, was a Celestial Dragon. Countless guards rushed forward.

"Noisy," Moonlight's pupils constricted. A wave of blue energy burst from him.

Hmph.

Wherever his gaze passed, the woman, the guards, and the panicked people in the auction house all collapsed, unconscious. In the end, only a handful of people were left standing.

"This is...!" Rayleigh's pupils shrank in shock. "So this is the Vice-Captain, Moonlight!"

At the back of the auction house, a man with red, spiky hair, a dagger and pistol strapped to his chest, and goggles on his head, stared at Moonlight, his eyes wide. Next to him, a man in a leopard-spotted winter hat and a long-sleeved shirt also stared, sweat beading on his forehead. "He is Moonlight!" These two were also among the eleven Supernovas: Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law.

"I'll take off the collar for you," Moonlight said, looking at Rayleigh. It was for him that Luffy had attacked the Celestial Dragon.

"No need, but thank you very much," Rayleigh said with a hearty smile. The explosive collar on his neck had already been removed at some point.

"You...!" Luffy and the others stared at the old man in shock. He was no ordinary person.

Rayleigh didn't say anything more, just looked at the straw hat on Luffy's head. "That straw hat," he said meaningfully, "is well-suited for a man with a sharp eye." Then he looked at Moonlight. "The Vice-Captain of the Straw Hat crew, Moonlight. You are indeed worthy of the title." Finally, he looked at Hachi and greeted him. "Hey, Hachi, what are you doing here?"

"Rayleigh! Shakky said you'd be here, and she was right!" Hachi said, overjoyed.

The crew, still recovering from the shock of seeing Rayleigh remove the collar unscathed, was surprised again. This old man was the coater they were looking for?

"I never expected to see such a big shot here," Kid and Law muttered, taking in the scene. The appearance of Moonlight had already surprised them, but to see the Dark King, Silvers Rayleigh, was another shock entirely. Luffy didn't recognize him, but they did. This was a legendary figure.

"You inside! You are surrounded! Raise your hands and surrender immediately!" At that moment, the sound of marching footsteps surrounded the building, followed by a shouted command. The Marines had arrived.

"Let's get out of here," Moonlight and Rayleigh said in unison. Rayleigh glanced at Moonlight and then stepped outside first. "Thank you for before. I'll handle this."

"The Marines?"

"Alright!" Luffy and the others were eager for a fight. Kid and Law also stepped outside to see that they were surrounded by a large number of Marines, led by a Vice-Admiral.

"Hmph." Rayleigh appeared, and his eyes swept across the courtyard. An invisible wave of power washed over the Marines. Every single one of them, from the Vice-Admiral down to the lowest-ranking sailor, collapsed, unconscious. In a matter of seconds, the entire naval force had been defeated.

"It's the same power as Moonlight's!" Usopp cried out immediately.