Chapter 279: Caesar
"..."
Upon hearing Rhodes' command, Law gently opened his palm, and an invisible ripple expanded outward.
"ROOM!"
A flash of light seemed to cut through the void itself.
Monet, caught mid-charge, didn't even have time to transform into her elemental form before she felt a sudden emptiness in her chest.
As if something vital had been taken from her.
She looked down and saw Law holding a translucent cube, inside which a heart continued to beat rhythmically.
An instinctive feeling told Monet that it was her own heart.
"Am I... going to die?"
Watching Law reach out and grasp the cube containing her heart, Monet felt a surge of intense pain and suffocating pressure.
She understood that she would soon be reunited with the Young Master.
Monet wasn't afraid of death.
But at the moment of her demise, she suddenly felt a pang of concern for those poor children.
Seemingly understanding the look in Monet's eyes, Rhodes said calmly, his expression unchanged,
"Those children will be properly taken care of."
Hearing this, as Law gently crushed the heart in his hand, a look of relief flashed across Monet's face. Her eyes dimmed, and her body fell heavily to the ground.
"..."
Rhodes gazed down at Monet's corpse, suddenly feeling that Doflamingo's life hadn't been entirely wasted. At least he'd earned the loyalty of subordinates willing to die for him.
"I wonder if Doflamingo himself realized how fortunate he was."
Rhodes shook his head inwardly before saying calmly,
"Let's go."
He took the lead, walking forward.
Now that they were close enough, his Observation Haki detected a peculiar gaseous presence—likely belonging to the Logia-type Gasu Gasu no Mi user, the scientist Caesar Clown.
Caesar, still in the laboratory preparing poison gas to eliminate both Rhodes and Monet, was completely dumbfounded.
He hadn't even finished preparing the lethal mixture, and Monet had already been killed.
Suddenly, an overwhelming sense of dread washed over him, as if he were being stalked by some prehistoric predator.
The experienced Caesar immediately understood—this was the sensation of being locked onto by powerful Observation Haki.
"I'm finished."
Caesar felt a flash of panic, but without hesitation, he made his decision:
"Run!"
Although he possessed the Logia-type Gasu Gasu no Mi, his primary profession was scientist, not warrior. His combat abilities were practically nonexistent.
Facing the infamous Thunder God Swordsman, he didn't even have the courage to stand and fight.
However,
he had barely taken two steps when the laboratory door was suddenly sliced open, and a figure in white walked in, his gaze calmly fixed on Caesar.
Whoosh!
Caught in that penetrating stare, Caesar felt a chill run down his spine, as if he'd been thrown naked onto a glacier. An icy sensation shot from his feet to his head, freezing him in place.
"Run? Let's see how far you can get."
A mocking voice reached his ears. Caesar swallowed hard, cold sweat pouring down his face, his voice trembling as he stammered,
"I-I wouldn't dare... I wouldn't dare..."
As he spoke, Caesar finally succumbed to the terrifying pressure emanating from Rhodes, his legs buckling as he collapsed to the ground.
Rhodes felt somewhat disappointed—he hadn't expected Caesar to be so spineless. But perhaps that was better.
Cowards were easier to control.
Since the Marines would arrive soon, Rhodes didn't waste time with conversation, signaling Law to act immediately.
Law nodded slightly, drew Kikoku, and walked toward Caesar.
From Caesar's perspective, it was like being a pig trapped on a butcher's block.
"No, please, no..."
Caesar pleaded weakly, but with Rhodes standing nearby, he didn't dare make the slightest move to resist.
"Relax. It won't hurt."
Law spoke calmly, but in Caesar's eyes, those words sounded demonic.
His body trembled violently as he watched Law thrust his blade through empty air.
"Scalpel!"
A strange light flashed, and a diamond-shaped cube appeared, extracted from Caesar's chest.
"Huh?"
Caesar's expression froze, suddenly recalling how Monet had just died. Panic gripped him, and he asked cautiously,
"This... this is my heart?"
"That's correct."
Rhodes said calmly,
"Thanks to Law's Ope Ope no Mi abilities, even though we've removed your heart, you're still alive and functional."
"You're an intelligent man. You should understand what this means."
After speaking, Rhodes decided his explanation needed reinforcement. He extended a single finger, generating a barely visible thread of electricity.
This wisp of electricity was extremely faint, flickering in mid-air as if it might dissipate at any moment.
But when this thread of electricity made contact with the heart Law was holding—
"AHHH!"
Caesar immediately convulsed uncontrollably, his pupils dilating, foam forming at his mouth. He nearly lost consciousness.
Rhodes hadn't expected the scientist to be so fragile—and he'd also underestimated the damage from directly electrocuting someone's heart. He quickly withdrew his power, coughed, and said,
"Alright, I think you fully understand your situation now. Do you have any objections to my terms?"
"..."
Caesar was still gasping from the electric shock. After a long moment, barely able to breathe properly, he said in a resentful tone,
"Lord Rhodes... I never said I wouldn't cooperate..."
Seeing his heart literally in the other party's hands, he understood his position perfectly. Rhodes hadn't needed to add that demonstration!
"Prepare all the equipment for manufacturing SAD. I want everything transported to Dressrosa."
Rhodes ignored his complaint and casually issued his command.
When dealing with a spineless coward like Caesar, the only effective approach was overwhelming force. The stronger you appeared, the more fear he would feel—and the less likely he'd be to betray you.
"M-My lord, there's a considerable amount of equipment. We'll probably need several ships to transport everything..."
Caesar was gradually recovering, though he remained weak and shaken.
Rhodes smiled faintly, closed his eyes briefly to sense Dressrosa's direction, then used his Doa Doa no Mi powers to open a dimensional gate leading directly there.
The portal opened wide.
After a moment, footsteps echoed from within the spatial passage.
Jinbe emerged, leading a large contingent of Dressrosa soldiers through the gateway. They saluted in unison:
"Lord Rhodes!"
"This... this door leads directly to Dressrosa?"
Caesar's eyes widened as he instantly grasped the implications, feeling a deep sense of powerlessness rising within him.
With Rhodes possessing this spatial ability to traverse vast distances, even if he somehow managed to escape and join Big Mom or Kaido's crews, he'd still be hunted down and captured, wouldn't he?
Terrifying.
He's practically a demon!
Caesar lamented silently, while simultaneously realizing that the approaching Marines would probably pose no real threat to Rhodes.
This Thunder God Swordsman was far more dangerous than the world imagined.
Having completely resigned himself to his fate, Caesar cooperated efficiently. With his assistance, Jinbe and the soldiers quickly began systematically dismantling and moving the equipment.
Rhodes watched quietly from the side—such mundane tasks certainly weren't his responsibility.
Suddenly, his gaze caught something vaguely familiar. He called out,
"Wait..."
He stepped forward and took a fruit from Caesar's workbench.
The fruit was apple-shaped, covered with swirling light green patterns. Rhodes examined it closely and suddenly realized what he was holding.
Wasn't this the artificial Devil Fruit that Momonosuke had eaten in the original timeline?
(End of Chapter)
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