A slightly dazzling yet incredibly gentle golden light pierced through the darkness.
The crisp sound of silver bells chiming filled the air, followed by the warmth of blood splattering.
"Judgment Hammer Strike!"
A slash descended from above, the radiance enveloping the cross blooming like a flower of hope in the dilapidated dungeon!
The light cascaded down, bathing the entire dungeon in a soft glow.
Standing amidst it was Jake, his body wreathed in an aura of sacred purity.
His faintly golden eyes flickered slightly as he saw Monet about to be struck by Bell's retaliatory attack.
With a single step, ripples shimmered in the space behind him.
Monet vision blurred momentarily—then she found herself safely on the ground.
And standing before Monet now was Jake, who had just activated the Priest Character Trial Card!
At this moment, Jake was enveloped in Holy Light, his expression revealing a faint gentleness as he looked at himself.
Behind him stood Bell, who had lost his left arm and was now consumed by fury.
The intense pain seemed to have robbed Bell of his ability to think.
Facing an opponent who could sever his arm with a single strike, Bell let out a roar, grabbed his broadsword and charged forward recklessly.
Yet Jake didn't even turn his head.
With a mere flick of his hand, an overwhelmingly dense ball of light shot forth, blasting Bell's entire body into a charred wreck.
All the blood and filth seemed to have eyes of their own, avoiding Jake and Monet entirely.
Witnessing this scene, Monet gazed at Jake, her eyes brimming with an indescribable joy.
Before Monet could speak, hurried footsteps echoed from behind, accompanied by the twisted faces of pirates illuminated by flickering torches.
"Bell's been taken down? Damn slaves! Causing trouble at a time —if the master finds out, we'll all die here! Hurry! Before he arrives, chain these bastards up!"
At the command of a gaunt old man, the bloodstained pirates surged forward one after another.
They brandished their weapons without hesitation, their expressions twisted as they faced the slaves.
Here, even killing a few of the slaves wouldn't be a problem for them.
Seeing this, the old man's worries eased slightly.
As long as everything was settled before the master arrived, a few dead slaves wouldn't matter.
But in the next instant, an overwhelming radiance merge into a wall, brutally crushing everything in its path.
Before the old man could react, all the charging pirates had been flattened to the ground by the luminous barrier, annihilated in an instant without any chance of resistance.
The perpetrator of this carnage now rested a tarnished dagger, still shimmering with golden light, against the old man's throat.
Terrified by the dagger's decrepit yet mesmerizing glow, the old man's legs gave way, his face drenched in cold sweat.
With a smile more pitiful than a cry, he looked at Jake, his expression pleading.
"L-lord, if we've offended you, allow me to offer our sincerest apologies. We never meant to provoke someone of your power. There must be some misunderstanding. If you wish to leave, we'll prepare the finest ship for you, along with the best log pose and charts. T-this is the Joker, Doflamingo's business. Please... please just go."
The old man's words were well-crafted—addressing Jake's immediate needs while subtly issuing a threat.
This was Doflamingo's territory.
If he wanted to avoid trouble, he'd best leave now.
Generally speaking, almost everyone would agree to this proposal and Jake was no exception.
But seeing the desperate gazes of the slaves behind him, Jake decided to help them a little—at least give them a chance to escape.
However, just as Jake turned his head, the old man suddenly pulled out the pistol hidden in his pocket.
With the smell of gunpowder filling the air, the bullet shot fiercely toward Jake.
Watching the bullet, a faint golden light flickered across Jake's body.
In the next moment, the bullet was deflected by some invisible force, striking into the darkness behind the old man.
The old man's face twisted in terror as he cried out to the crowd, almost sobbing.
"No! It wasn't me! I didn't want to fire the gun!"
At the same time, an eerie and maniacal laughter echoed from behind him.
"Fufufufufu! What an unexpectedly delightful surprise! Though the North Blue is my stronghold, I rarely visit these backwater areas. Who'd have thought that on a whim to patrol today, I'd stumble upon such an amusing scene! I'll give you one chance—join the Donquixote Family, become one of my own and I'll pardon this insolence of yours. I might even release all these slaves."
Before Doflamingo could finish speaking, merely hearing the initial words made Jake's brow furrow.
In an instant, a blindingly radiant light flashed forth!
His power lasted only five minutes.
Even if he agreed to Doflamingo's offer now, once the latter realized he held no real value, he might very well go back on his word.
Moreover, his ability was unique—it wasn't a Devil Fruit at all.
He had no desire to associate too closely with someone like Doflamingo.
In that split second, a deep violet force descended from nowhere, pressing down heavily on Doflamingo.
It was a common skill among the Priest—the Sin Eater's "Burden of Sin"!
Feeling the terrifying pressure bearing down on him, Doflamingo's lips twitched slightly.
The intensity of this attack was far beyond what he had anticipated!
Damn it! This bastard strength was definitely not inferior to his own!
What kind of Devil Fruit was this?!
First a shield of light and now an ability akin to gravity!
Some rare mythical zoan type?!
How could someone possibly be captured by those trash? Something's off!
A CP agent? Or one of Kaido's men?!