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Sadi was full of confidence.
Blackbeard was a Shichibukai, and his abilities carried real danger. In the past, Sadi would have been wary of someone like him, doubting she could even rival Marshall D. Teach alone, let alone stand against the entire Blackbeard Pirates.
But she didn't think that way anymore. Because of Ikki, Sadi had gained far greater power than before, and even if the Blackbeard Pirates came, she wasn't afraid.
Besides, she wasn't the only powerful person in Impel Down. Its warden, Magellan, was an extremely powerful individual in his own right. Sadi was on Ikki's side now, and she didn't hold much affection for Magellan, even seeing him, in some quiet way, as an obstacle standing between her and the warden's seat. Still, for the moment, the two of them remained on the same side and could work together.
Between herself, Magellan, and the rest of Impel Down's soldiers, Sadi felt that Blackbeard's arrival would be like walking straight into a trap.
'Blackbeard, the guy who's been such a thorn in Lord Ikki's side,' she thought, a wicked smile spreading across her face. 'Since you're coming, hurry up. I'll show you exactly what despair looks like.'
Not far away, sitting in his warden's seat, Magellan wore a wicked smile of his own.
"Blackbeard Teach, I don't know if you'll actually show your face here," he said. "But if you do, you'll never leave Impel Down alive." He looked up, watching Sadi's retreating figure. "With her around, I can rest easy about a great many things. Perhaps she could even be the one to succeed me as warden."
Even now, Magellan was still struck by what Sadi had shown him during the uprising at Impel Down. Her strength was on an entirely different level from what she'd once possessed, and he found himself glad, deeply so, that he'd sent her to train under Ikki when he had the chance. If not for that, Impel Down wouldn't have a warden this powerful today.
It was a pity, though, that no matter how much Magellan valued her, Sadi's heart already belonged to Ikki. Her every thought seemed shaped by him now, which meant she held no real loyalty left for Impel Down. These days, Ikki was the only guiding principle behind everything Sadi did, in every choice and every action she took.
If he ever asked it of her, she would walk away from Impel Down without a second thought. Magellan's hope of keeping her loyal to the Marines and the World Government was, in the end, doomed to fail.
After leaving Magellan's office, Sadi didn't head straight for Level Six or back to her post. Instead, she went to find her best friend, Domino.
Domino was busy sorting through documents when Sadi arrived, and she looked up, puzzled and a little surprised. Sadi shouldn't have had time to be here, not with everything waiting for her elsewhere.
"Sadi-chan, what brings you here? Have you finished all your work already?" Domino set the papers down and asked, "Magellan's had you handling matters concerning Level Six, hasn't he? That can't have been easy."
Sadi's performance had been outstanding. The riot on Level Six, stirred up by Bullet, the Demon Heir, had been put down thanks to her. But the aftermath of that riot had left plenty still to be settled. Level Six was full of unruly criminals, which made it difficult for ordinary Impel Down staff to handle the cleanup themselves.
The most vicious prisoners down there had been locked away long enough that their strength had faded considerably from what it once was. Even so, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.
Even inmates who couldn't wield Conqueror's Haki could pin an ordinary Impel Down guard in place with nothing but the weight of their aura alone, leaving the guard unable to so much as move, let alone actually finish the job of restoring order down there.
But Sadi's outstanding performance in Level Six had changed things. The criminals down there feared her now. If she were the one to oversee the cleanup, those who respected her strength would think twice about causing trouble, and even the more arrogant ones, the ones who hadn't feared her before, had come to admire what she could do. Either way, the pirates were far less likely to act out.
Under those circumstances, if Magellan hadn't assigned the cleanup to Sadi, he wouldn't have been much of a warden. And Sadi, for her part, was glad to take the job on. Spending time among the prisoners on Level Six now would only serve her well later, once she became warden herself. If she could bring these pirates to heel today, they'd cause far less trouble for her once she held the position.
Becoming warden of Impel Down was a task Ikki had set for her, and she meant to see it done perfectly. She would have still been down on Level Six if Magellan hadn't called earlier about several urgent matters.
"I haven't finished my work on Level Six yet," Sadi said, her expression serious. "I'm here because there's something important I need to tell you. I'll head back down once we've talked."
Important as the work below was, Domino was her closest friend, and that came first.
Sadi told her what she'd heard from Magellan, that the Blackbeard Pirates might be coming to Impel Down, so Domino could prepare herself mentally. An invasion was unlikely, but if it caught Domino off guard, she might freeze up, and Sadi didn't want to see her hurt again the way she'd been during the riot. As her best friend, she wasn't willing to risk that.
"Something you need to tell me?" Domino asked quickly. "Wait, is it something serious?"
Domino and Sadi had known each other a long time, long enough that Domino recognized this look. Normally, Sadi carried herself with an easy, carefree air. She didn't wear an expression like this unless something significant was genuinely at stake.