"Who can tell me, where has the Snake Princess gone?!"
"An entire night and she hasn't returned! Don't any of you have the sense to go look for her?!"
In the main hall of Amazon Lily, the short-statured Gloriosa was livid, her snake-headed staff pounding the stone floor with sharp, angry clacks. Confronted by her fury, the Kuja warriors could only mutter incoherently, unable to form a proper response.
Sandersonia and Marigold exchanged wry smiles. They hadn't expected their elder sister to be absent the entire night. To be precise, they didn't even know when Hancock had slipped away. Their own attention had been wholly consumed by the... processing... of Charlos.
"And Leo?! Wasn't he headed to the Snake Princess's chambers? Where is he now?!"
"And Charlos! You actually dared to..."
At this point, Gloriosa's small frame swayed, a wave of dizziness threatening to overwhelm her. She'd been gone a single day, and the island had descended into chaos. But Hancock's whereabouts were now a secondary concern. The paramount issue was the certain, devastating retaliation from the Marines and the World Government.
She had arrived just in time to see the grotesque, barely-recognizable form of Charlos being swallowed whole by a Sea King. There was no recovering the body. No hiding the evidence.
He was a Celestial Dragon.
If the outside world learned the Kuja had committed this ultimate transgression, Marine battleships would darken their horizon by dawn. The Island of Women would be erased, becoming a mere line in a history book.
"Find the Snake Princess! Now!" Gloriosa roared, her frustration boiling over.
"What is this noise in's hall so early?" A cool, arrogant voice cut through the tension from the entrance.
At the sound, all eyes snapped to the door. The next moment, everyone froze, stares fixed.
There stood their Empress, Hancock. And beside her, Leo. And behind them... seventeen women of staggering beauty. They moved with Hancock, chatting and laughing as if they were lifelong sisters. Seeing Vivi, Nami, Robin—whose beauty truly rivaled Hancock's—even Gloriosa felt her old face twitch in surprise.
But her expression quickly hardened. "Snake Princess! Where did you go last night?!" It was rare to see the aloof Hancock display such an unguarded, almost soft demeanor. A dreadful suspicion crystallized in Gloriosa's mind. A night gone... could it be...?
"Does need to account for her movements to you?" The moment she crossed the threshold, Hancock's mask of imperial coldness slid back into place. She met Gloriosa's gaze head-on, without yielding an inch.
"Sister, please," Sandersonia interjected quickly, playing the peacemaker. "Gloriosa was just worried."
Hancock scoffed, turning her head away from the old woman. Then, with a naturalness that stunned the room, she reached out and laced her fingers through Leo's, leading him toward the elevated throne.
The action was so casual, so possessive, that Gloriosa and every warrior present turned to stone.
He's holding her hand? Just like that?
It wasn't until Leo actually sat down—settling into the throne that was the sole province of the Empress—that the spell broke.
"Outrageous! This is utter defiance!"
"Hancock! You are the Empress! That is your seat!"
"Leo! Get down from there! That is not your place!"
Gloriosa's staff trembled as she pointed it at them.
"Silence!" Hancock's voice was a whip-crack of cold authority. "You know you are an is Empress. Your role is to obey." She then addressed the entire hall, her proclamation ringing with finality. "From this moment, Leo is the master of Amazon Lily. His word . To defy him is to defy me. The penalty is death."
Having issued the decree, she promptly leaned against Leo's shoulder, gazing up at him with a soft, intimate smile that ignored the entire audience.
Gloriosa shook with sheer, apoplectic fury.
What kind of sorcery did he work in one night?!
To make her give away her kingdom so easily!
"Leo, you—"
"Gloriosa." Leo cut her off, his tone dismissive. "Relax. I want Hancock. The island is still yours."
His ambitions lay with the pivotal women of this era, not with a patch of dirt in the Calm Belt. As for the other women on the island... well, the tales of Kuja beauty were greatly exaggerated. Aside from Hancock and her sisters, the pickings were slim.
His words were a slight balm, but Gloriosa soon processed the deeper meaning, and her face darkened again. What was the practical difference between possessing the Empress and possessing her domain?
She stared at Hancock, her voice laden with suspicion. "Snake Princess... last night... the two of you..."
"she belongs to Leo." Hancock didn't let her finish, her voice brimming with triumphant satisfaction as she declared it to the world.
"Gloriosa!" Sandersonia and Marigold lunged forward to catch the old woman as she staggered.
Gloriosa's face contorted, but the memory of what Leo had done for Hancock—healing the brand, soothing the scars—made her bite back her rage. She knew their pain. She understood. But...
"Enough of that!" she snapped, forcing the topic. "The Celestial Dragon! What is your plan? If the World Government traces this to us, you know what comes next!"
The color drained from every warrior's face. Their martial prowess and the Calm Belt were feeble defenses against the absolute power they had provoked.
Hancock looked over their frightened faces and let out a derisive sniff. "What is there to fear? Whatever she does, they will forgive her. Because she is too beautiful."
She struck her classic pose, looking down on Gloriosa from over her shoulder.
"So beautiful..."
"They will surely forgive you..."
Gloriosa's eyes momentarily glazed over, hearts appearing in them, before she shook herself back to fury. "This is no time for your narcissism! If an Admiral comes, we are finished!"
Seeing the genuine panic on Gloriosa's face, Hancock's smirk finally faded, replaced by a flicker of concern. Killing Charlos had been cathartic, but the old woman's fears were valid. As Empress, she was responsible for thousands of lives. She looked instinctively to Leo.
"Leo? Do you have a plan?"
"If the World Government investigates determinedly, they might find clues," Hancock said, her voice losing some of its confidence. Faced with the twin titans of the Marines and the World Government, even the Pirate Empress felt helpless. All her hope now rested on the man beside her.
"The World Government won't trace this here quickly. And if they do, I can keep you safe." Leo met her anxious gaze with a calm smile.
He wasn't bluffing. As long as his connection to Hancock remained hidden, the island was safe. And in a worst-case scenario, his Cloud-Cloud Fruit powers could lift the entire island and teleport it away. It was a last resort—the Kuja were rooted here—but it was an option.
"she knew you had a plan." Hancock's faith was absolute. She leaned in and gave his cheek a quick, affectionate kiss, her radiant smile returning. If Leo said it, it was true.
"Snake Princess! You...! You are the Empress! Such a display!" Gloriosa spluttered.
What kind of potion had this man given her? She was utterly transformed!
The Kuja warriors looked anywhere but at the throne, awkwardly shuffling their feet.
"Gloriosa, please don't worry," Vivi said, stepping forward gracefully, her voice a gentle, calming presence. "If Brother Leo says he has a way, then he does."
"Yeah, Granny Gloriosa," Makino added, her smile warm and disarming. "Since we're new here, why don't you show us around your beautiful island?"
Confronted by a wall of gentle, smiling faces, even the sharp-tongued Gloriosa was rendered speechless. After a long moment, she sighed in defeat.
"Fine. Fine." She looked directly at Leo, her expression grim. "Leo, when that day comes, I hope you can truly protect this island."
With that, she turned and stalked towards the exit.
"Well? You girls wanted a tour, didn't you? Stop dawdling!"
"Coming!"
"Right behind you!"
Nami and the others shot Leo a quick, triumphant glance before following the old woman out.
Once they were alone, Hancock knelt before Leo, looking up at him. "Leo, please don't be angry with her. She only acts that way for the sake of the island."
She was worried he felt insulted.
"It's fine," Leo said, his smile easy as he gently stroked her hair.
He then lifted his gaze to the two sisters still standing in the center of the hall. "Sandersonia. Marigold."
"Yes?!"
"We are here, Lord Leo!"
They snapped to attention, their voices filled with a new, profound respect. If this man could make their formidable elder sister so pliant, they wouldn't dare show the slightest disrespect.
"Take Kaya to a private room now. She will help you."
As the two sisters stood in confusion, Kaya stepped forward before them. "Big sisters," she said with a gentle smile, "I can help you remove that unsightly thing."
In front of the other Kuja warriors, she avoided saying the specific word.
Sandersonia and Marigold froze as if struck by lightning, their bodies trembling violently.
Could it be...?
They instinctively looked toward Hancock. Seeing her slight, confirming nod, they hesitated no longer. Under the bewildered gazes of their fellow warriors, they hastily followed Kaya out of the main hall.
Watching their retreating backs, Hancock let out a soft sigh in her heart. After today, the three sisters would finally be able to live freely in the sunlight, no longer shackled by the shadows of their past.
"Don't dwell on it. It's all over," Leo said softly, giving her shoulder a reassuring pat. The Celestial Dragon was dead, the branded marks would be erased. Nothing but a good life awaited Hancock and her sisters now.
"Mmm." Hancock nodded, nuzzling against his hand like an affectionate kitten.
The display sent a fresh wave of stunned swallows through the assembled Kuja warriors. It had only been a day! It was as if their Empress had been possessed by some entirely different spirit.
Noticing their bewildered stares, Hancock's eyes suddenly lit up with a familiar, imperious glint. "You there! All of you, come here!!"
The tone, the voice that brooked no argument... yes, this was the Empress they knew. The warriors exchanged glances and quickly scurried forward. "Empress! What are your orders?!"
Hancock rose to her full height, regarding them with serious intensity. "Since she is now Leo's woman, it follows that from this moment, all members of the Kuja are also Leo's women."
Her statement landed like a physical blow, causing the entire group to blush furiously. Even with their limited exposure to men, Hancock's meaning was impossibly plain.
Leo, sitting beside her, nearly choked on his own breath. He stared, a deeply awkward expression on his face, at the line of Kuja warriors before him. His eyes skimmed over them—Lilith, Cosmos, Daisy, Blue Fan, Belladonna, Sweet Pea, Broom... Stop!
He suddenly felt a headache coming on and sharply averted his gaze.
Misinterpreting his pained look as indecision, Hancock decided to take charge. "All of you! Go and bathe immediately, and then—"
"Wait a second!!" Leo shot up from his seat.
"What is it?!" Hancock frowned, her beautiful eyes filled with genuine confusion. "Leo, is it because there are too few? If there is anyone on this island you desire,you can command them to serve you."
She puffed out her chest with confident finality. If Amazon Lily had one resource in abundance, it was women. She would ensure he never lacked for novelty.
"Hancock, having you is enough," Leo waved his hand dismissively, trying to laugh it off.
"Eh?!" Now it was Hancock's turn to be shocked. She looked at him with deep suspicion. Since when had Leo become so... reserved? His own crew was full of beautiful women.
Wait a minute...
A realization dawned on her. Her face darkened slightly, and she shot him a playful, knowing glare.
"Margaret!"
"Empress! I am here!"
From the very back of the group, a guardian warrior with short blonde hair, wearing a leather top and an extremely short skirt, stepped forward promptly.
Hancock placed her right hand on Leo's chest, a sly, teasing curve gracing her lips. "Well, Leo? What do you think of Margaret?"
This vixen, Leo thought to himself. He took a moment to properly appraise Margaret. In all of Amazon Lily, aside from Hancock herself, Margaret was undoubtedly one of the few true beauties. And, crucially, she was a canon character. Even placed among the women of his own crew, her looks would solidly hold their own.
"Not bad at all," Leo nodded in approval.
Upon receiving his praise, Margaret below shyly lowered her head, certain images she couldn't control suddenly flashing unbidden through her mind. Had... had Lord Leo taken a liking to her?!
"I knew it," Hancock whispered in his ear, her voice laced with playful mockery.
"Margaret," Hancock declared, her tone leaving no room for argument. "Go and bathe and change immediately. Later, you will serve Leo together with me."
"Yes—... Eh?!!" Margaret let out a short, sharp scream, her jaw practically hitting the floor.
T-t-together with the Empress...? To serve Lord Leo... together?!
The other Kuja warriors turned to stone once more, their minds utterly shattered by the command.
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T/N :
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