One Piece: Rising to Fleet Admiral Through a Coup

Shamrock, momentarily stunned by Xayuki's offhanded remark calling him "Stinks," gripped the hilt of his rapier tightly. Though he wanted to lash out, he restrained himself.

It wasn't fear of Xayuki's overwhelming power—capable of using Conqueror's Haki to send Gunshi and the six God's Knights flying—that held him back. Rather, he knew that losing his composure now might jeopardize their larger mission.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Shamrock stepped forward, bowed slightly, and said, "Figarland Shamrock, here under Lord Imu's orders to welcome Fleet Admiral Xayuki."

Xayuki glanced around, his brows furrowing. Ignoring Shamrock's greeting entirely, he turned to Gunshi and said, "Miss Gunshi, it seems you didn't deliver my message. If Imu truly wishes to meet me, then show me your sincerity!"

As if anticipating this demand, Gunshi turned slightly and waved her sleeve, signaling decisively: "Bring him up."

At her command, several heavily armed palace guards standing a short distance behind the God's Knights immediately turned and hurried away.

Moments later, they returned, dragging a disheveled Spandine with them.

"Kneel!"

One of the guards kicked Spandine forcefully, driving him to his knees before Xayuki.

"You can't treat me like this!"

"I'm Spandine! I've rendered great service to the World Government!"

Spandine struggled to stand, but two guards pressed him down, forcing his head low. Even so, he continued to thrash and roar indignantly: "Let go of me! Damn you useless fools!"

After a fierce struggle, Spandine failed to rise but managed to lift his head.

However, he didn't look at Xayuki. Instead, he turned toward Shamrock and Gunshi, who were watching coldly from the side.

"Hahaha! Who would have thought!"

"Who would have thought that the World Government, standing atop the Red Line for 800 years, would stoop to compromise with a traitor! The God's Knights? The Five Elders? Bah! One day, you will all pay a heavy price for this humiliation. Xayuki dared to rebel today; tomorrow, he'll trample the World Government underfoot..."

"Silence!"

Gunshi's eyebrows shot up in anger as she waved her sleeve. In an instant, her Devil Fruit power activated—a bandage-wrapped arrow shot out silently, wrapping around Spandine's neck and hoisting him high into the air.

Shamrock quickly intervened, stopping Gunshi from killing Spandine outright. Suppressing his earlier irritation at being ignored, he spoke calmly: "How to deal with him is up to you, Fleet Admiral."

"Just Spandine?"

Xayuki glanced at the man struggling mid-air, his voice calm but tinged with cruelty. "That's not enough, Shamrock. You have to pull the weeds out by the roots. If I'm not mistaken, Spandine has a son, doesn't he? What's his name... Spandam? Yes, that's it!"

"Xayuki!"

Spandine, his neck still bound, struggled violently and roared: "I'll take responsibility for my actions! Spandam has nothing to do with this!"

"You can't say that."

Xayuki gestured for Gunshi to lower Spandine, then stepped forward to stand over the man, who was now gasping for air on the ground. Looking down at him, Xayuki said, "If I kill you here, it will absolutely involve your idiot son. He'll harbor a grudge against me, and the Five Elders will exploit that, using him as an excuse to irritate me. Even if I respond with fury, they can always claim it was a personal act of revenge by Spandam!"

"Spandine, I won't deny your cleverness. You managed to align yourself with the Five Elders and even got them to order Enies Lobby to pass judgment on me. If it weren't for the connections I've built over the years, your scheme might have succeeded."

"But unfortunately for you, no amount of scheming could have predicted my rebellion, nor the swiftness with which I took full control of the Marines in just one day!"

"Victory goes to the victor, defeat to the vanquished. Accept your fate."

"Of course, I should thank you. If it weren't for your interference, I might not have made up my mind so quickly."

"As a token of my gratitude, I'll make sure you and your son are reunited!"

Hearing this, despair flashed in Spandine's eyes. He roared in madness: "Xayuki, you—"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Before Spandine could finish, one of the palace guards stepped forward, raised his gun, and emptied the magazine into Spandine's head with cold efficiency.

The sudden turn of events caught everyone off guard. Shamrock instinctively reached for his sword, ready to draw it.

"Fleet Admiral Xayuki!"

Before Shamrock could unsheathe his weapon, the guard who had fired the shots straightened up, saluted Xayuki, and declared: "Please forgive me for executing him in your presence. Emptying a magazine in one second isn't my limit—I only wished to demonstrate my loyalty to you!"

"What...?"

Xayuki blinked in confusion.

Over the years, he had hoped to cultivate loyal followers within the Holy Land. However, the Marines stationed there had been selected by Commander-in-Chief Kong before Xayuki's rise, and his rank as a vice admiral had limited his access to the Holy Land.

If he couldn't win over the Marines stationed in Mariejois, let alone the palace guards, how could he have planted loyalists here?

As if sensing Xayuki's thoughts, the guard quickly removed his heavy helmet, revealing a young face.

"Fleet Admiral Xayuki, this is our first meeting, but I've long admired your deeds. Everyone says you never turn away those in need!"

"My parents were brutally murdered by pirates years ago. Though my sister was rescued, she was left severely disabled from her injuries. Every day since, I've yearned for revenge, but..."

At this, the guard kicked aside his helmet, his expression resolute. "I want to take this opportunity to ask you to take me away from the Holy Land."

"I understand," Xayuki nodded. "You want to leave the Holy Land to avenge your parents and sister, correct?"

"Yes!" The guard nodded firmly.

"Very well," Xayuki said, stepping aside to clear a path. "The road lies before you. Walk it boldly."

The guard was momentarily stunned by Xayuki's straightforward response. Then, unable to contain his emotions, he saluted and shouted: "LOYALTY!"

Xayuki waved his hand dismissively. "Go."

"Yes, sir!" The guard responded with another salute before striding toward the elevator, ignoring Shamrock and the others completely.

Just as he reached the elevator's entrance, the guard suddenly turned, dropped to his knees, and shouted with a trembling voice: "Lord Xayuki, if I succeed in avenging my family and survive... may I... may I serve under you?"

Xayuki nodded. "You already are, soldier."

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