Demon Slayer Virgil [Isekai One Piece]

"Phew, well then..."

After resting sufficiently, Zavia stood up and gazed at the newly rebuilt slave auction house in the distance.

A cold, emotionless expression settled on his face beneath his mask. He raised his right hand, extending his fingers towards the building.

The next moment, the space around the auction house began to distort, and numerous cracks appeared, growing denser by the second.

"I commend your efforts in rebuilding this monstrosity, but alas... This shall be your grave." Zavia uttered one of Vergil's signature taunts, and clenched his fist.

Crack—! Shatter—

With a sound like shattering glass, the space around the auction house, within a radius of twenty meters, fractured and crumbled. Large fragments of space fell away, quickly vanishing into nothingness, along with the building and everyone inside and around it.

"Tch, I knew there would be side effects, but I didn't expect this."

After unleashing his Spatial Shatter ability, a wave of exhaustion washed over Zavia. He nearly collapsed to his knees, barely managing to stay upright by leaning on the Yamato blade.

This was the first time Zavia had used Spatial Shatter in a practical setting. His motive wasn't grand or for show; it was simply an experiment to test its power and side effects.

The results were clear: the technique was incredibly powerful, but even with his current strength, its range was limited to a mere twenty meters.

The side effect was a debilitating fatigue that left him vulnerable for a period of time.

Zavia watched as the "world" slowly repaired the shattered space, his expression remaining impassive. He turned and walked towards Shakky's Rip-off Bar.

To prevent any potential sneak attacks, he distorted the light around him, rendering himself invisible to others.

"Damn it! To think the one who interfered with us was such a powerful individual."

Far beyond the world of One Piece, in one of the worlds within the Cosmic Realm, Roman lay sprawled on a sofa, his body covered in wounds and his face frustrated.

"Hmph~ If he's truly as strong as you say, there's nothing you could have done. This isn't just a matter of rank suppression, but stage suppression."

Behind the bar counter stood a woman with long, dark purple hair and revealing attire. Her eyes, accentuated by dark circles, seemed devoid of life as she looked at Roman.

"Tch, I thought he was just a 'Force Sky,' but it turns out he's a 'Wisdom Sky.' How infuriating." Roman slammed his injured right hand against the sofa, venting his frustration.

"Calm down. 'Void' is already on his way. Don't let your wounds worsen. I've encountered sword spirits that burn souls and drain life force before, but this is the first time I've heard of one that possesses both abilities." The woman exhaled a puff of smoke and sat down, crossing her legs and revealing a generous expanse of pale skin that would make any man's imagination run wild.

"'Void'? To think I would be saved by him."

"Don't be silly. It was the Captain's order."

"The Captain... Tch, I thought..."

Roman's expression turned sour upon learning that Void was coming due to the Captain's orders.

"But speaking of which, this Spatial Crystal is quite impressive. It accurately transported you here. It seems we can 'mass-produce' these. The woman took another drag from her cigarette and walked over to Roman, observing the blue particles swirling around him.

"It's decent, I suppose. It took a lot of effort from the research team within the Troupe to develop."

"Hmph." The woman simply snorted in response.

…

Ding-a-ling~

Back in the world of One Piece, at Shakky's Rip-off Bar on Grove 13 of the Sabaody Archipelago, the wooden door opened.

"Are you done?"

"Yeah, more or less."

"Then my job is finished."

Shakky stood behind the counter, her expression neutral as she looked at Zavia.

"Big brother! What's wrong? You look tired." Arthur, seeing Zavia enter, quickly stood up and ran towards him, his face filled with concern.

Zavia stroked Arthur's head and assured him that he was fine, just a bit drained. Arthur's worries subsided.

Shakky didn't pry further, which surprised Zavia. It seemed Arthur, despite his appearance, was no longer the naive eight-year-old he had been.

Zavia had expected a barrage of questions like, "Where did you go? Why didn't you take me with you?"

But it seemed he had overestimated Arthur's innocence. After all the boy had experienced, it was only natural that he wouldn't be as carefree and trusting as he appeared on the surface.

"Miss Shakky, do you happen to know Mr. Rayleigh's whereabouts?" Zavia sat down on the sofa and asked.

"Old Rayleigh? Do you need something from him?"

"Yes, I'd like to ask him to coat my ship."

"Coat your ship? Are you planning to go to the New World?"

"That's right. There are some matters I need to attend to." Zavia replied, taking a sip of water from his spatial bag.

"Hmm, that's a difficult question. I'm not always aware of Old Rayleigh's movements."

"I see. Then please accept this Den Den Mushi. If he returns, please use it to contact me. And if you need any compensation, is this enough? There's about 70 million berries here."

Zavia felt a sense of helplessness. Rayleigh's unpredictable nature was well-known. Based on the original story, the longest he had been away from the bar was six months.

"No need for the money."

"That's... surprising." Zavia was taken aback by Shakky's refusal.

"Of course, it's not entirely free. In exchange, you'll tell me everything about yourself."

(As expected...)

Zavia was momentarily speechless. He knew there was no such thing as a free lunch.

"As you wish. But as I said before, I can't reveal everything just yet. The earliest would be two years from now."

After careful consideration, Zavia agreed to Shakky's terms. After all, this information would eventually come to light.

"Two years, huh... I'll wait."

Shakky took the Den Den Mushi from Zavia.

"Thank you, Miss Shakky." Zavia stood up and expressed his gratitude.

Having recovered sufficiently, he took Arthur's hand and bid farewell to Shakky, setting sail once more to fulfill his desires.

Since he couldn't go to the New World just yet, he decided to explore the first half of the Grand Line thoroughly, visiting every island and trying all the local delicacies.

As for entertainment, Zavia wasn't particularly interested, but he would leave that to Arthur.

…

Time flew by, and a year passed. It was now the year 1519 in the One Piece world, one year before the start of the main storyline.

During this time, Zavia's notoriety had grown exponentially, reaching a point where he was known throughout the world.

Of course, his infamy was primarily among pirates.

Zavia left a trail of pirate corpses in his wake as he traveled from island to island. The only exceptions were uninhabited islands or those where the residents lived in peace, undisturbed by pirates.

This didn't mean Zavia had reverted to his old ways as a Marine. It was the pirates who foolishly provoked him, bringing trouble upon themselves.

Since they dared to confront him, even drawing their weapons, Zavia would borrow a line from Shanks: "Once you've drawn your sword, you must be prepared to die."

As a result of his actions, Zavia's presence became known throughout the pirate world, earning him the moniker: The White-Haired Sword Demon, Urizen.

More precisely, it was Urizen who was known, as that was the name Zavia used when introducing himself.

Therefore, among pirates, almost everyone knew of Urizen's existence.

Mentioning "Zavia" might not ring a bell, but "Urizen" was a name that struck fear into their hearts.

…

"Ha~ It's been a year already. Time flies."

Zavia sat on a beach chair on a renowned resort island in the first half of the Grand Line. He was still wearing his blue trench coat and mask, his gaze fixed on Arthur, who was playing happily by the shore.

Brrr brrr brrr~ Brrr brrr brrr~ Click~

"Miss Shakky? It's been a while."

Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi in Zavia's pocket rang. He answered it, and the device transformed into the image of Shakky.

"Indeed, it has been a while, Zavia. Or should I say, Urizen?"

"Hmph hmph hmph, surely you didn't call just to tease me?"

"Eh, you guessed right. I called specifically to tease you… Just kidding. Old Rayleigh is back. I told him about your request, and he's willing to coat your ship."

"Thank you for putting in a good word for me, Miss Shakky."

"Don't mention it. If you want to show your gratitude, do so with 'sincerity'... Click."

Before Shakky could finish her sentence, Zavia hung up.

"Hey, Arthur, it's time to go."

"Eh? Where are we going?"

"I'm taking you to the underwater world, the real underwater world."

…

One month later, Sabaody Archipelago.

The Sabaody Archipelago was teeming with Marines. Naval personnel could be seen everywhere.

Why?

The reason was none other than our protagonist, Zavia.

His actions at sea had put the Marines on high alert.

While the news reported that Zavia had only killed pirates, which in a way could be seen as helping the Marines clean up the trash, those who paid closer attention knew otherwise.

Zavia had slain not only pirates but also Marines, particularly high-ranking officials, including some from the Marine Headquarters.

This raised concerns among the Marines. Was Zavia an enemy or an ally?

If he was an ally, then there was no issue. But if he was an enemy, things would be difficult. There was a chance he might decide to eliminate all the Marines in the first half of the Grand Line on a whim.

Therefore, the Sabaody Archipelago was heavily fortified with Marines, their primary objective being to prevent Zavia, the "Great Demon King," from carrying out such an act.

However, the lawless zones had a minimal Marine presence. These Marines were primarily for reconnaissance, not combat.

In other words, the Marines deployed to these areas had little to no fighting ability and posed no real threat. They were simply there to monitor Zavia's presence and report back to Headquarters if he was sighted.

…

Lawless zone, Grove 13, Shakky's Rip-off Bar.

Ding-a-ling~

"Yo, you're here."

"Mr. Rayleigh, it's been a while."

Zavia pushed open the door to Shakky's bar and saw Rayleigh sitting on a sofa, reading a newspaper and sipping from a glass of some renowned liquor.

"You truly surprise me. To think you've gained such notoriety in the first half of the Grand Line." Rayleigh gestured towards the newspaper in his hand, his expression betraying no hint of surprise.

"I suppose. By the way, Mr. Rayleigh, are you still willing to coat my ship?"

"Of course. I keep my promises. Tell me where your ship is located."

"At Grove 11."

"Grove 11, huh... I understand. You haven't changed ships, have you? If it's still the one I gave you, you can set sail tomorrow."

"Of course not. Thank you, Mr. Rayleigh."