"Jinbe, you look quite pathetic right now."
Walking to the entrance of a cell, Karl looked at Jinbe, who was chained to the wall with his hands and feet shackled, and spoke with a smile.
"Lord Karl, you've seen something unsightly."
From the hysterical shouts just now, Jinbe, who knew that the intruder was Karl, couldn't help but say with a bitter smile.
"...Brat, do you remember me?"
Before Karl and Jinbe could catch up, a familiar yet strange voice suddenly sounded from the dark corner of the prison.
A golden hook was the first thing that entered Karl's vision.
Then, a figure two and a half meters tall, wearing a black and white striped prison uniform, walked out from the darkness.
Seeing the person's figure, a friendly smile appeared on Karl's face, and he took the initiative to greet him, "Long time no see, Senior Crocodile."
"Senior... heh, I didn't expect a monster like you to maintain such annoying politeness."
Looking at that familiar smiling face, Crocodile, who should have hated him very much for the past three years, found that he couldn't get angry now.
It's not that he wouldn't hit a smiling face.
The brat before him had reached the pinnacle, becoming one of the highest peaks in the world.
And it had only taken him a short year.
That year was exactly one year after he had been arrested.
In other words, the first step of this brat's ascent was by stepping on his head.
The title of a Warlord of the Sea had become the other party's first world-class title—the world's number one bounty hunter.
But now, no one mentioned the world's number one bounty hunter anymore.
The titles for this brat were only Overlord of the Seas, the fifth Emperor of the Sea, God-Slayer, Knight King, and Dragon Knight.
In three short years, what kind of legendary adventure had he experienced to have so many titles?
When they met again, as a senior, he was not on the same level as this junior.
"Hmph... what are you doing here?"
After realizing that he was not worthy of being this brat's opponent, Crocodile sat down opposite Jinbe and said lightly.
"Senior Crocodile..."
Hearing this, a playful smile appeared on Karl's face, "If I say I'm here to save you, would you believe me?"
After finishing, under the astonished gazes of Crocodile and Jinbe, Karl turned and looked at the cells one by one. Because they had just been taught a lesson by the tangible, destructive pressure of his Conqueror's Haki, they now didn't even dare to breathe loudly. His calm voice sounded so deafening in this silent Infinite Hell:
"...Do you want freedom?"
"..."
As Karl's words fell, the breathing in the entire Infinite Hell hitched slightly.
The next moment, the entire level of hell boiled over again.
"Of course!!!!!"
"Get me out of here, Knight King!!!"
"Let me out! I'm willing to give you whatever you want!"
"I want to follow you, Knight King! I want to get out and kill Whitebeard!"
"Save me, save me..."
".........."
A hysteria that surpassed the previous one, a voice as if tearing one's throat, entered Karl's ears.
While roaring and shouting, these major criminals used their heads and bodies, or the shackles on their hands and feet, to hit the iron doors of their cells.
Boom—!
Not until Karl once again released his powerful and unparalleled, yet still not knocking out a single person, Conqueror's Haki.
Did these crazed major criminals gradually regain their reason and slowly quiet down.
But their pairs of eyes, shining with red light, were fixed on Karl.
Those who couldn't see Karl were also watching him with their Observation Haki.
In response, Karl nodded in satisfaction, "Good. I have felt your desire for freedom."
"I can let you regain your freedom, but..."
His tone paused slightly, and just as those people were about to shout in excitement, Karl's lips curled up slightly, revealing a mischievous smile, "As a price for your freedom, your hearts, I will confiscate them for the time being."
Hearing this, all the major criminals were slightly taken aback.
Before they could ask their questions, Karl said to Nami and Aphelandra, "Let's begin!"
"Yes, Lord Karl!"
Nami nodded, and Aphelandra said respectfully.
"ROOM—"
Aphelandra raised her right hand, palm down, and created a hemispherical surgical domain that enveloped the cells in a radius of several hundred meters.
Swish—Crack crack!
Then, she took out a golden dagger from her body, and with a light wave, she cut the iron door of the cell in front of Karl to pieces.
Walking into the cell, Aphelandra first undid the iron chains on Jinbe, whom Karl had specifically instructed not to harm.
Then, she turned and made a move on the defenseless Crocodile, slapping his heart.
The next second, a heart, with the surrounding muscle tissue also cut open and enclosed in an ice cube, was taken out from Crocodile's body by Aphelandra.
Crack!
Karl, on the other hand, used his internal-destruction-level Armament Haki to crush the shackles on Jinbe's hands and feet, and said, "Jinbe, you are more knowledgeable and stronger."
"Next, please assist Nami in taking these guys' hearts."
"`...I understand."
Jinbe, who had witnessed Aphelandra taking a heart with his own eyes, instantly understood Karl's purpose for coming to the Infinite Hell.
Jinbe, who had originally wanted to dissuade Karl from releasing these major criminals, immediately nodded with a serious expression.
To repay Karl for saving him, he would definitely protect Nami's safety next.
"And you, Senior Crocodile, I'll be counting on you next."
After taking the heart from Aphelandra, Karl also said to the horrified Crocodile with a smile, "Those guys who have lost their ability to fight shouldn't be a problem for a Logia powerhouse like you, right?"
"...The Op-Op Fruit. This brat is really lucky!"
Looking at Karl holding his heart, Crocodile said with an ugly expression, "I can help you, but when can I get my heart back?"
"You can rest assured about that."
Under Crocodile's gaze, with a black line on his forehead, Karl tossed the heart in his hand and looked at the major criminals hidden in the darkness, who had also seen the scene of a heart being taken and were either horrified or terrified, and said lightly, "If you want to get your heart back, you just need to do one thing for me."
"In the future, I might use your power, or I might not need your help for the rest of my life."
"But your heart, I will always keep it in a different dimension. Besides me, no one can touch it."
"Even if I take your heart, I will not force you to be my subordinate, nor will I restrain your freedom."
"You can bet on my credit, and you can only believe that I will keep my word."
"Hand over your heart, and you can get freedom; if you don't, there's only death."
After finishing, Karl handed Crocodile's heart to Nami, and then from Nami's hand, it was passed to Baccarat in the different dimension.
Then, after undoing Crocodile's Seastone shackles, before leaving the cell with Marguerite, Karl finally said to those major criminals, with what was a devil's smile in their eyes, "By the way... a reminder. After your heart is taken, it's best to say your name, so that I won't mess up the order of the hearts."
<><><><><><
Read Advanced Chapters on : patreon.com/Kaizo247
~ Every 150 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]