Facing Daren's smug, half-smiling expression, Stussy felt like burying herself in a hole. Her beautiful face flushed a deep red, glowing with a mix of embarrassment and frustration.
Her toes, painted a striking crimson, curled tightly against the floor as if trying to dig a way out.
She didn't even know why she had been so impulsive. Maybe it was the sudden wave of panic that surged the moment she saw Daren's back, the guilt eating at her, or the strange warmth she felt when he shared his power so openly with her.
Her mind had turned to mush, and before she realized it, the words had just slipped out.
And now...
With her toes digging into the ground, Stussy seriously considered just turning around and running.
"You don't have to stress so much," Daren said, settling back into his seat, cigar between his fingers and a smile on his lips. "There are plenty of people out there who'd kill to see me. It's perfectly normal for you to feel that way."
Hearing that, Stussy let out a breath of relief. Gratitude welled up in her chest.
'Didn't expect this bastard to actually be this considerate… changing the subject just to save me the embarrassment.'
Her expression quickly returned to normal. She lit a slender lady's cigarette, exhaled a faint plume of smoke, and frowned slightly.
"But if you reveal your ability like this... aren't you afraid the World Government will target you?"
Daren waved dismissively.
"It's not exactly a secret. Even if you didn't tell them, those five scheming old geezers would've found out eventually."
"Rather than letting them dig something up on their own, better to feed them the truth and satisfy their curiosity."
After all, there was no way to keep his awakened ability, Magnetic Field Rotation, a secret from everyone.
And truth be told, Daren never intended to hide it.
When fully unleashed, Magnetic Field Rotation allowed him to tap into power beyond imagination—raw, overwhelming physical might that was enough to tear the leader of the God's Knights apart in his berserk state. That alone was enough to make the World Government—and the Five Elders—think twice.
But the real issue was the cost.
Every use of Magnetic Field Rotation consumed not only stamina but his very life force. That meant Daren had to use it sparingly and with extreme caution.
In that sense, Magnetic Field Rotation was like a nuclear weapon.
And what's the most powerful kind of nuclear bomb?
One that hasn't exploded yet.
By killing Saint Michael, he had already sent a strong enough message to the World Government.
And now, with early success in developing a low-frequency version of Magnetic Field Rotation—something he could integrate into daily training—he had a path forward. Slowly but steadily, he could raise his power without burning himself out.
What he needed now was time. Time to grow stronger, to evolve.
In this quiet standoff with the World Government, the balance would eventually tip in his favor.
And once his body, strength, and speed reached their absolute peak—when he could fight at near-Magnetic Field Rotation levels even without activating it—that would be the moment he shattered the deadlock and carved a path straight into Mary Geoise.
"Of course, the most important thing is..."
Daren looked up, his expression turning serious as he gazed at the blonde beauty in the black nightgown. A faint smile tugged at his lips.
"I can't let my woman walk into danger."
"Tch, who are you calling your woman!"
Stussy scoffed and turned her face away with a cold snort.
"All of this was just you, that bastard, using my secret to threaten me!"
Still so stubborn.
Daren chuckled, clearly amused.
"Oh? But just now, in bed, you sure didn't seem—"
"You damn bastard!"
Stussy glared at him, face burning red, grinding her teeth. She looked like she'd explode if he dared to finish that sentence.
"Alright, alright, it's my fault. I was the one who shamelessly clung to you. I surrender, okay?"
Daren raised both hands in mock surrender, knowing better than to keep provoking this vampire woman.
He understood how women were—and smartly shifted the conversation instead of pressing further.
"But being stuck like this isn't a long-term solution. We need to figure out a way to get Dr. Vegapunk out from under the World Government's control."
"That way, you'd finally have the leverage to stand up to the Five Elders… without constantly being at their mercy."
Stussy froze for a moment, her brow furrowing as her expression darkened. She shook her head slowly.
"I don't know where Dr. Vegapunk is. All I know is that a little over a year ago, his lab on Punk Hazard suddenly exploded."
"When I got the intel and rushed over, the entire research facility on the island had already been reduced to ashes—nothing remained."
"As for Dr. Vegapunk and the research team under him... they vanished in that explosion. No one's heard from them since."
She stared quietly at the lady's cigarette between her fingers, her voice low and a little hoarse.
"But I'm sure Dr. Vegapunk is still alive. With knowledge and technology five hundred years ahead of the world, there's no way he'd die so easily."
"The more likely scenario is that the government realized someone was secretly targeting Vegapunk. So the Five Elders decided to erase all traces and relocate him along with his entire team."
Daren exhaled a stream of smoke, his tone calm.
"I've looked into Vegapunk's possible whereabouts."
"The kind of research he's doing requires massive equipment and a secure, independent environment. The World Government wouldn't stick him in any Member Nation."
"If it's that secret, it would have to be on some remote island."
"Most of the routes in the first half of the Grand Line have already been charted. That makes the New World a more likely place for the lab."
As he spoke, Daren stood up and walked to his desk, spreading out a world map on its surface.
"A completely isolated island, hidden routes, far from both Member and non-Member nations…"
He traced along the map with his fingers, pointing out clues and prompting Stussy without being too direct.
"Wait! I remember now!"
Stussy's eyes lit up as a memory clicked into place. She stepped quickly to Daren's side and pointed to a spot on the sea chart.
"This island! I definitely saw it in CP0's internal files at least once. But then, for some reason, all related records vanished overnight!"
"At the time I thought it was just a routine purge... but now that I think about it, something felt off."
"The person responsible for maintaining those files also disappeared—just like the files themselves."
Stussy stared at the egg-shaped outline of the island on the map and murmured,
"Could this be... where Dr. Vegapunk is?"