[ …What…the heck??? ]
[ ??? ]
[ I was literally just worrying about the Red Hair Pirates—like, "finally Kaka finds good people," and the next second we're doomed? ]
[ And then—boom—you yank my heart out of my chest?? ]
[ Hey, stupid game, give me my feelings back! My anxiety too! Aaaah! ]
[ Did you guys see that? ]
[ Red-Haired Shanks split the sea with one stroke! ]
[ If I get into the game, can I be that strong? ]
[ No wonder everyone says this slaps. "Fun" doesn't even cover it! ]
[ Brothers, I'm in. I'm so in! ]
The "one slash cleaves the ocean" shot from the promo CG kept detonating across the net, wave after wave. Hearts pounded as wildly as that split sea—and stayed that way.
Outside Gu Feng's office, a hurried knock.
Li Jing stepped in, looking grim. "Gu Feng, we have a problem."
Gu Feng had been watching the CG with the live comments rolling by, thoroughly pleased. He glanced at the phone she set in front of him.
"…A cease-and-desist?"
He blinked for several seconds, not quite connecting the dots.
Li Jing filled him in. "There's a user named 'CashCan'tChangeFate'…" She summarized the whole live-room incident, then eyed him, tone complicated. "That was… a pretty heavy-handed promo tactic."
She wasn't scolding. Business is war. Snowwind was smothering them with money and clout; a small shop like theirs had to take side roads and swing odd angles. Mostly, she just hadn't expected Gu Feng to act that fast.
Gu Feng looked at her for a beat. "Jing-jie, if I told you I didn't do this, would you believe me?"
"…Huh?"
"Meaning?"
She froze. Not his doing… then—
She suddenly saw the possibility. Gu Feng nodded, half exasperated, half amused. "Yeah, the letter's here—accusing us of malicious competition…"
He shook his head. "But I really didn't orchestrate it. Tell Snowwind the truth."
Li Jing nodded; with the moral high ground, she wasn't afraid of a giant. Her heels clicked toward the door—stopped—then she glanced back.
"Gu Feng, why are you so unbothered by Snowwind?"
To her, he almost looked… carefree. A little irresponsible, even.
Gu Feng leaned back. "You watched our CG yet?"
She hesitated, then circled back to stand beside him and look at the monitor.
The promo had just faded to black after Shanks's cut. Lines of text appeared on-screen, each one like a thunderclap.
A young Gol D. Roger, after his hometown's destruction, met Silvers Rayleigh and asked, "Wanna turn this world upside down with me?" Rayleigh scoffed—but agreed to sail. Thus the Roger Pirates were born.
…
36 years ago (Roger, 39), at God Valley, Roger crossed paths with the invincible armada led by Rocks D. Xebec—whose crew included young Whitebeard, Big Mom, Kaido, Golden Lion Shiki, Silver Axe, Captain John, Wang Zhi, and more. Roger joined forces with then–Vice Admiral Garp, crushing Rocks's bid to become "King of the World."
…
28 years ago (Roger, 47), Douglas Bullet boarded the Roger Pirates, swearing to surpass Roger and become the strongest in the world.
…
26 years ago (Roger, 49), terminally ill, he invited his crew on one last voyage—to complete the Grand Line.
They clashed with Golden Lion Shiki at the Edd War. Cornered, the Roger Pirates were saved by a freak storm; Shiki's armada was hurled to the depths.
…
24 years ago (Roger, 51), they met the Whitebeard Pirates. After a battle with no victor, Roger knelt and begged to borrow Kozuki Oden for a year.
…
23 years ago, after a year-long trek, they reached the final island: Laugh Tale. The Roger Pirates ruled the Grand Line—the world hailed Roger as Pirate King.
…
The text ended. The screen brightened.
A farewell scene—quiet, beautiful. Two men: Roger and Rayleigh. Between them, a bond that words couldn't carry.
Roger smiled and told his first mate, "I won't die."
Ill and resolute, he turned himself in. Word spread: the Pirate King would be publicly executed in Loguetown, East Blue.
The palette darkened, pressure closing in.
A massive fortress of iron and stone filled the frame; a caption appeared:
Marine Headquarters: Marineford.
The camera tilted toward the heavy sky. Islands drifted in, suspended, pressing toward HQ.
A man with a ship's rudder stuck in his head, golden hair wild as a storm, hovered in midair—like a tyrant of heaven and earth.
Great Pirate: Golden Lion Shiki.
But this Shiki wasn't the jaunty legend from earlier lines. He looked… feverish. Unhinged. He demanded to know how the Marines could have captured Roger—how that was possible.
War broke loose.
Shiki, refusing to believe the Pirate King had been taken by the Navy, unleashed hell on Marineford—only to be subdued by Admiral Sengoku and Vice Admiral Garp together.
After Shiki was thrown into prison, the day of Roger's execution arrived.
Loguetown, East Blue.
That day the little port town became the center of the world—not because of the town—but because of one man.
An endless line of soldiers and shackles. A sea of faces.
At the peak of all eyes, a man in a scarlet cloak stepped forward. Massive frame. One look, and your gut went cold.
The Pirate King.
From the crowd, someone cried out about the location of ONEPICE.
Roger began his final speech.
"Want my treasure?
"If you want it, you can have it all!
"Go find it!
"I left everything… there!"
Two blades crossed his chest. The Pirate King fell.
The Age of Roger ended.
A new era began.
The Great Age of Pirates—set sail.
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