I the King of bandits of the East Sea

Under the night sky, Stussy knelt on one knee, her heart shaken.

She had been summoned by Sig with a single sword strike and had sprinted over in haste. Some time had already passed, but Sig had yet to make his next move.

This, instead, made Stussy's heart burn with anxiety.

The greatest fear is the unknown.

A battle-hardened Stussy could not imagine what kind of methods this terrifying, devil-like man Sig would use to deal with her after discovering her attempt to escape.

Plop.

Suddenly, a faint sound came from beneath her. A cold, slimy, and nauseating sensation touched her calf.

Out of the corner of her eye, Stussy glanced downward, and her body instinctively shuddered with goosebumps.

It was the tentacle of an octopus, already wrapped around her calf.

At the same time, Sig himself felt a wave of agitation and nervousness.

If not for believing in the support of the Revolutionary Army, and wanting to practice some compatibility, Sig would never have dared to make a move on Stussy in the first place.

Now, Sig was caught in a dilemma.

He lowered his head and looked down at Stussy, who was kneeling before him. At this moment, the woman's face was suddenly filled with panic, making her appear pitiful and vulnerable. This sight sent a chill through Sig's heart.

Even now, Sig could not judge from her expression alone whether this woman's emotions were genuine or if her acting was just that impeccable.

If it weren't for the fact that he had eavesdropped on Stussy's conversations with CP0 using the black Den Den Mushi, Sig might have doubted whether he was overthinking things.

Without the help of the Revolutionary Army's powerful enforcements, Sig had no effective means of subduing Stussy.

"Here we go again, my least favorite acting showdown," Sig thought, his heart trembling as a dangerous idea formed in his mind—an idea that could be described as recklessly testing the boundaries of death.

Even just imagining it made Sig's scalp tingle.

However, without the Revolutionary Army's assistance, this was the only viable path left to Sig.

The 100% Barehanded Blade Catch could only immobilize Stussy for a short time.

If he waited idly, both of them would simultaneously escape the immobilized state. With Stussy's reflexes, Sig would absolutely meet his end in an instant.

"If this continues, I'm definitely going to die. This is a sure death. The crash is inevitable."

"This woman is too terrifying. Her acting is so good, there's not a shred of hope left for me!"

"This is it for me! I'm doomed!"

Once again, Sig faced his own inner fears and allowed himself to succumb completely, letting his terror consume him entirely.

Thump thump thump thump thump thump thump!

The Emperor's Engine was suddenly activated, and the deep, drum-like sound of his heartbeat pierced through the long night.

Stussy, kneeling on the ground before him, widened her eyes slightly, and the fear on her delicate face deepened.

This sound—Stussy had heard it before.

It was, without a doubt, the beginning of her nightmare.

Back during the great fire in the Goa Kingdom, this strange sound had emanated from Sig's body.

At the time, Stussy had thought that Sig was merely bluffing.

Then Saint Charlmark almost lost his life, and she herself, having underestimated Sig, ended up in her current, humiliating predicament.

"What is Sig planning to do?"

On Stussy's face, the terror grew more and more intense.

However, Sig's inner turmoil was not much less than hers.

"It's over, it's over. I've taken this step, and now I'm finished."

Out of the corner of his eye, Sig glanced at the still, silent night surrounding him, his heart making a decisive resolution.

Lifting his long sword, he preemptively deactivated the 100% Barehanded Blade Catch. The long sword returned to its sheath at his waist.

At this moment, Stussy was completely unrestrained.

Thump thump thump thump thump thump!

Sig's heartbeat raced again, the volume and frequency of the Emperor Engine far exceeding what it had been before. The heavy sound quickly spread through the night.

Sig had never learned any proper hypnosis techniques. No matter how hard he tried to hypnotize himself, the effect was far less than expected. In reality, he had pushed himself into a life-or-death situation.

Only with the volume and effect of the Emperor Engine at this level could he achieve its maximum potential.

This was the only glimmer of hope Sig could think of.

"So much noise, you must have noticed by now, right? Dragon."

Sig roared inwardly.

Either he would succeed in intimidating Stussy, making her too afraid to act, or the sound of the Emperor Engine would attract the attention of the Revolutionary Army's powerful forces.

It seemed that Sig had bet correctly.

Sig suddenly loosened his restraint, completely catching Stussy off guard. She remained half-kneeling, her body frozen in place, but her mind was alert with alarm bells ringing.

"Is he planning to use the Inferno Unmatched Overheated Wave Cannon on me? Can I block it this time?"

Stussy had no confidence in herself.

She had already experienced Sig's multi-layered strategies, and now, with his unexpected retreat, it seemed as though he had let his guard down—yet there was an unmistakable terrifying aura emanating from him.

"Should I try a finger gun to test him, or...?"

In her hesitation, her body trembled slightly, her eyes turning toward a ship in the distance.

In her line of sight, a figure cloaked in dark green appeared quietly in the night.

Dragon's expression was oddly complex.

He had just sensed Sig's Emperor Engine sound and came running, only to find Sig and Stussy standing on the deck at three in the morning, one standing, the other kneeling. Beside them were... octopuses, squids, crabs, lobsters?

What strange play is this?

Dragon decided not to overthink it and chose to pretend nothing was happening. He vanished into the night with even greater speed.

Sig: "......"

Everything seemed to have returned to square one.

"Forget it, forget it. In the end, it all comes down to the superb acting skills of the Emperor."

Sig sighed lightly in his heart, suppressing the tension within. He then fixed his gaze on Stussy before him.

"Isn't this just the Death Stare that makes people's hearts race? I'm a master at it!"

The two stood in place, their gazes silently meeting in the air.

Thump thump thump thump thump thump!

The oppressive sensation that made one's scalp tingle returned. The air itself seemed to turn solid. Stussy, standing so close, felt that her breath had become slightly more difficult to draw.

Stussy tensed her entire body, her gaze cold, ready for battle.

Sig made no move. He simply stared silently, seemingly unconcerned by the coldness in Stussy's eyes. His expression was as emotionless as ever.

In the next moment, his low and icy voice echoed:

"Go, cook all this seafood."

The moment his words finished, Sig turned and began walking toward the cabin.

His steps were slow, excruciatingly slow. Just like that, with his back completely turned to Stussy, he gradually walked away without any sign of alertness.

It was as if everything that had happened that night was a trivial matter.

What Stussy couldn't see was that, while Sig's back was turned, his fingernails were digging deeply into his own thigh, his body tensing as he held back any sign of discomfort, taking care not to make a sound.

He wasn't trying to drag things out. It was just that his legs felt like they were filled with lead, and he simply couldn't move faster.

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next volume is Volume 3 : The Grand Line