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Chapter 638: Forget It, I Forgive You
Chapter 638: Forget It, I Forgive You
The sight of Saleria rising to his feet even startled Lida. "He survived Kuro's full Mystic Art? Not only did he avoid turning into a bloody pulp, but he's actually standing again?"
Klah adjusted his glasses. "The vitality of a Mythical Beasts species? Truly impressive."
"Ha... Ha..."
His legs trembled violently.
His spine screamed in agony.
Every cell in his body seemed to rupture and die.
Bent at the waist, Saleria gasped for air, hands braced on his knees. Blood poured from his mouth in thick clumps, almost gelatinous, likely mixed with other bodily fluids.
His five fingers slowly, agonizingly spread apart, as though shackled by invisible weights.
A white-gold spear materialized in his palm, solidifying into his grip.
Swoosh!
The spear lifted, pointing directly at Kuro. Saleria raised his head, blood streaming from his lips, his voice unwavering: "I will... save the world."
"Tch."
Kuro clicked his tongue. "The world's still a child. Why be so cruel? What did it ever do to deserve saving?"
His Mystic Art wasn't something easily endured. Though Saleria avoided becoming meat paste, his Mythical Beasts body should have shattered every internal connection—bones reduced to dust.
Yet here he stood.
"Willpower? Fascinating."
Kuro spat out a wisp of smoke. His right hand gripped the hilt at his waist, drawing Autumn Water in a flash of black radiance. Baring his teeth, he snarled: "What the hell is with all these stubborn wills?!"
Zooosh!
He vanished mid-air, leaving a black streak that slashed toward Saleria, cleaving downward in a single strike.
Saleria stared unflinchingly at Kuro. In his bloodshot eyes, Kuro's gruesome figure gradually merged with a familiar, distant face.
Same recklessness. Same overwhelming dominance in another's gaze.
Thirty years ago, Saleria himself looked exactly like this.
...
Back then, the "Great Sin" Saleria wasn't a Devil Fruit user at all—just a pirate who reveled in slaughter and plunder.
Flames. Ruins. Screams. A malevolent grin.
"Please... spare me!"
A bloodied civilian clutched Saleria's ankle, begging.
Tch!
A blade pierced the man's skull.
"Tch."
The young Saleria yanked his sword free, slung it over his shoulder, and grinned at his crew: "Oi, my men! Search thoroughly—leave not a single coin!"
"Oooh!!" The pirates' roars mingled with crackling flames, a cacophony of madness.
Gruesome. Reckless. Unstoppable. That's how the civilians saw him.
Killing. Plundering. Eventually earning a 300 million Beri bounty, becoming the Navy's top target.
Then he got caught.
Until one day, chaos erupted at Impel Down—the infamous prison where only one person in history had ever escaped. Amid the turmoil, Saleria escaped too.
But at eighty years old, he could no longer endure the Grand Line's brutality. Forced to wander to a remote island, he planned to start anew.
As an outsider, the island's residents despised him. Not that he cared to socialize. While he'd grown too old for sailing, pillaging villages remained well within his capabilities.
Steal some cash, find a new place to live lavishly—what's wrong with that?
...
It was a blizzard day when Saleria first encountered her.
A young girl with pale blue hair, crouched in a corner of a house, preparing to strike.
"Hey, Lord. Eat this."
She offered a rice ball, gently extending it toward Saleria.
"Scram, brat." His hoarse voice dripped malice as his hand tensed, ready to crush the foolish child.
"Eat it. When you're hungry, you should eat. I noticed you've been here two days, only eating snow. That's bad for your health. I made this myself."
Smiling, she ignored his filth, grasping his hand to place the rice ball in his palm.
That smile—unchanged. No disgust. No pity. Just pure, innocent kindness, the gentlest light in this world.
In that moment, Saleria hesitated.
He didn't strike.
Days passed. The girl brought rice balls daily, their bond deepening. Eventually, she invited him home. That day, she joyfully declared she finally had a "grandpa."
Grandpa.
Saleria, whose life froze decades ago, childless, suddenly became a grandfather.
The title felt awkward.
Especially since the girl was an orphan—her parents killed during a pirate raid. Her home, though tidy, remained rudimentary.
Why help others when her own life was so hard? A complete stranger?
"Why?" Saleria voiced his confusion.
"Huh? Why?"
She tilted her head, matter-of-factly replying: "When someone's in trouble, they need help. Why overcomplicate it? I have the ability to help, and you needed help, Grandpa. So I helped. That's normal, right?"
Her words rang pure, unburdened by ulterior motives.
The light in her eyes made Saleria look away.
He was an old pirate. He could crush this girl, crush everyone in this town. Yet compared to her...
He felt like a weakling.
...
The longer Saleria lived with the girl, the more uneasy he became.
Perhaps it was her innocence clashing with his wickedness. Or her parents' pirate-killed fate. Or his own pirate past.
Eventually, his unease peaked, forcing him to confess his identity.
Perhaps he didn't deserve this warmth and peace.
"Huh? Grandpa's a pirate? A fugitive? Doesn't matter! You've already paid for your sins. What matters is knowing what you did. Hehe, I knew I was right."
The girl smiled shyly, speaking under Saleria's trembling gaze:
"Look, Grandpa—you changed. Pirates can too, right? They have their hardships. If they all become good, the world won't fight anymore. When I grow up, I want to make that happen! Pirates and Navy coexisting peacefully... wouldn't that be saving the world? Yeah! I've decided—I want to save the world!"
The light in her eyes made Saleria feel like he'd seen a deity.
From that moment, Saleria resolved: in his remaining years, he'd fulfill this girl's ideal.
Until...
Fire. Screams. A spear.
That day, Saleria ventured out to gather herbal medicine. The girl's weak body, ravaged by lifelong malnutrition, needed care.
To his surprise, he found a Devil Fruit while foraging—a treasure that might save her life. Even if it failed, the Devil Fruit could grant her strength, helping her achieve her dream faster.
But when he returned... his 'deity' was gone.
A pirate had pierced her with a spear.
The sight drove Saleria mad.
When he came to, the pirate lay dead. But the girl... no matter what he did, she wouldn't wake.
"Grandpa..."
In his arms, she smiled: "I made a mistake too. I tried convincing those pirates... didn't expect to die myself. Is this what death feels like? Did Father and Mother feel this too?"
"People really can't understand each other, can they? Can't they stop fighting? What a shame... I wanted to save the world..."
"You can! You absolutely can! You're my Saleria's granddaughter! Whatever you want—you'll achieve it!"
No matter how he screamed, that angelic smile never returned.
His 'deity' was gone. But her ideal remained.
As long as he lived...
Saleria picked up the Devil Fruit he'd foraged and bit into it.
The Devil Fruit of Universal Devotion—Mythical Beasts: Sin Angel Form.
Perhaps fate willed it. This Devil Fruit would become his atonement.
He activated its ultimate ability, merging his essence with the girl, reviving her as a 'living' puppet.
Corpses could be used this way. She'd only be a puppet.
But it didn't matter.
"I'll show you. A world without conflict. A world free of sin. A perfect, peaceful world. I..."
...
"I Will Save The World!!!"
A two-year-old vow merged with present words. Saleria's eyes blazed as his roar shook the entire icebound island.
The white-gold spear in his hand erupted with light, piercing toward Kuro.
Boom!!!
Blinding light and shockwaves rippled outward, trembling the island.
The tallest mountain peaks began avalanches, cascading like tsunamis of snow.
But the avalanches halted. Snow lifted into the sky, hovering motionless.
In the battlefield, Kuro appeared behind Saleria, blade still raised mid-swing. Saleria remained frozen mid-thrust, the white-gold spear dissolving into motes of light.
Kuro straightened his back, sheathing his sword. He reached for a cigar, only to find it half-shattered.
"Forget it."
He spat out the broken stub, lit a fresh one, and exhaled smoke. "I forgive you."
Pah!
Saleria's body crashed heavily to the ground.
(End of Chapter)
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