MTLNOVEL Chapter 60: Long Live Lord Roya
A flash of light flared—followed by a burst of black-red lightning erupting from Sengoku's fingertips.
Conqueror's Haki infusion!
This time, even Roya felt genuine admiration.
Sengoku actually infused Conqueror's Haki directly into his fingers… That's not a gamble anymore—that's a man laying his life on the line.
Infusing Conqueror's Haki into weapons to dramatically boost their strength and lethality was already considered a high-level technique—a skill mastered only by legends like Gol D. Roger or the current Four Emperors.
And yet Sengoku had gone even further—not stopping at applying it to weapons, but instead wrapping his own body in it!
Indeed, by wrapping the Haki around one's body, one gained immense control and precision over its power.
But the human body... wasn't built to withstand the raw destructiveness of that Haki.
Sengoku glanced down at his fingertips. As expected, cracks were already forming along them.
These weren't external injuries—they were caused by the sheer strain of the Haki tearing his own flesh from within.
That was the cost—and the power—of true Conqueror's Haki infusion.
With a low grunt, Sengoku unleashed a barrage of Finger Pistols, each strike thundering like a storm.
From his hands erupted a rain of black-red lightning bolts, firing straight toward Roya!
Wherever the lightning passed, it looked as if space itself cracked apart—leaving behind jagged, terrifying trails of ruptured energy.
The scene was so overwhelming that the audience below couldn't help but stare, wide-eyed.
They had never seen such a ferocious and otherworldly display before.
Even Whitebeard, who had long since mastered Conqueror's infusion, was shaken. His eyes were filled with regret.
He knew too well the destructive force of Conqueror's Haki.
No ordinary body could endure this.
Just then, Roya responded.
He didn't move.
He didn't raise a hand.
He just stood there—calm, composed.
And yet, the black-red lightning bolts, once violently charging toward him, suddenly froze.
It was as if someone had seized them by the throat.
What was once a hailstorm of death now hung motionless in the air—like abstract art suspended in time.
Roya had neutralized them all.
Sengoku stared in disbelief.
His most desperate, full-power attack—halted mid-air without explanation.
He looked at his right hand, now shattered nearly to the wrist. One more shock, and it might fall off entirely.
With a weary sigh, Sengoku finally murmured:
"I've lost."
Roya gave a faint sigh of his own.
After a moment of thought, he said:
"Why cling so stubbornly to the idea that Haki must be infused into weapons or the body?"
As he spoke, he gently reached forward and made a sweeping motion.
A soft white glow appeared, clearly visible to all, slowly wrapping itself around the frozen bolts of black-red lightning before him.
This act left Sengoku utterly speechless.
Those black-red bolts were pure manifestations of his own Conqueror's Haki.
Energy incarnate—intangible, volatile, and impossible to control once unleashed.
Yet Roya was not only holding that energy in place, but was now wrapping it in that soft, glowing light.
It was… impossible.
And yet—it was happening.
That gentle white glow was undoubtedly Roya's Observation Haki—not just mastered, but materialized.
To materialize the most elusive of Haki types, then wrap it around someone else's Conqueror's Haki?
That wasn't a technique.
It was a divine skill.
Roya flicked his hand.
Hundreds of bolts of transformed lightning surged toward Sengoku.
The audience gasped.
Sengoku flinched.
But he didn't move.
He didn't dodge.
He didn't resist.
Everyone braced for the end.
Instead—those bolts simply circled around Sengoku, then gently coiled themselves around his shattered right arm.
In just a few seconds, they knitted themselves into a glove of pure energy, completely covering his arm and half his forearm.
The power of the glove tightened, drawing the shattered bones and torn flesh back together.
Sengoku instinctively clenched his fist.
It felt… whole.
As strong and responsive as ever.
He never could have imagined—Roya would use Haki to bind Haki, then wrap it around a body.
Not only had he saved Sengoku's arm—he had given him a new, indestructible gauntlet.
Sengoku was completely humbled.
He gave Roya a deep bow and declared:
"This battle… I lost completely and utterly."
Then he turned to the crowd below and announced in a booming voice:
"From this moment forward, I resign as Fleet Admiral of the Navy!"
With those words, he shrugged off his "Justice" cloak, and it fell heavily to the ground.
Everyone who witnessed that moment understood the truth:
An era had come to an end.
Ace stared in stunned silence.
As he instinctively stood up, he suddenly realized—the Seastone shackles on his wrists and ankles were gone.
At some point, they'd been removed without him even noticing.
And the executioner who had been guarding him so closely… had vanished without a trace.
Ace took two steps forward and approached Roya.
He bowed deeply.
"Lord Roya… thank you for saving my life."
For the first time, Portgas D. Ace stood before the world as a free man.
And the pirates?
They exploded into a thunderous roar of celebration!
"LONG LIVE LORD ROYA!"
"LONG LIVE THE VICE EMPEROR!"
Amid the cheers, Whitebeard had already returned to his quarters, leaving the full brilliance of this moment to shine solely upon Roya.
---
Meanwhile — Sabaody Archipelago, Outer Waters
Far in the distance, Blackbeard narrowed his greedy eyes toward Marineford, voice full of regret.
"That little bastard Roya's too damn crafty. If I had even one warship, I'd have been at Marine HQ already—cleaning up the mess for myself!"
He licked his lips.
"Old man Whitebeard... your Quake-Quake Fruit… ( Gura Gura No Mi ) I'm still craving it."
Then—he heard the deafening cheers drifting over the sea.
The words reached his ears clearly:
"LONG LIVE ROYA!"
A chill ran down his spine.
All his ambition, all his greed—snuffed out like cold water on a flame.
"Wait—what?! It's already over?!"
"Roya?! He won?! That means…"
"That war ended in total victory for him?!"
Panic struck.
"ROW! FULL SPEED! Set course for the New World, now!"
His ragtag crew of convicts and pirates responded in unison, rowing with all their might.
Several large rafts shot forward like arrows, heading toward Mary Geoise.
---
Back in Marineford…
A wooden barrel bobbed gently in the waves, floating into Crescent Bay.
A straw hat slowly emerged from within.
A pair of eyes peered out, scanning the area with excitement.
Then a voice rang out:
"Excuse me—sorry to bother you. Has the public execution of Fire Fist Ace started yet?"
The voice was cheerful and polite.
Several nearby Marine soldiers, still cleaning up debris, turned toward the speaker—mouths agape.
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