Chapter 449: The Crocodile

Everyone exchanged uneasy glances, but no one answered Crocodile’s question.

“That man always travels alone; he never leaves behind such things.”

Katakuri, seeing Crocodile still unwilling to give up, couldn’t help shaking his head—under such circumstances, Eyeshade had no chance of survival.

He couldn’t help speaking up:

“Calm down first.”

“Even if the Cross Guild is destroyed and Britannias is buried by the Heavenly King, we still have Wano.”

“Even after Kaido’s death, we could strike straight into Wano, using its natural defenses…”

Bubu-bu—!

A ringtone from a Den Den Mushi shattered the silence.

Crocodile’s body stiffened slightly; his eyes, moments ago nearly dead with despair, blazed back to life.

Concern breeds confusion.

Neither he nor Katakuri had remembered the Den Den Mushi!

Crocodile slowly pulled a Den Den Mushi from his chest, answered it, and a cold, blade-like voice emerged:

“It’s me.”

“Mihawk.”

“You’re not dead?!”

Katakuri was stunned.

The Heavenly King’s power had been proven two years ago.

A single strike could erase an entire nation from the map, even indirectly raise global sea levels.

It could effortlessly cover an area hundreds of kilometers wide, with terrifying speed and force.

Logically, even the emperor-level monsters of Britannias couldn’t possibly escape the Heavenly King’s range in such a short time.

Once struck, even a monster like Gao Wen—nearly invincible—would have no chance but death.

But now…

“How is that possible?!”

“Nothing is impossible.”

On the other end of the line, Mihawk’s voice was calm, yet his words shattered Katakuri’s assumptions:

“It was a Devil Fruit user.”

“Among Gao Wen’s Knights of the Round Table, one possesses a unique Devil Fruit ability.”

“He can teleport a person thousands of miles in an instant.”

Katakuri understood:

“So that man had hidden such a trump card?! Of course—he’s felt the power of the ancient weapons; he wouldn’t have been unprepared.”

“What about Gao Wen?!”

Crocodile cared only about Gao Wen.

Even though Crocodile refused to admit it, he knew one thing:

If anyone on this sea was closest to the Throne, it was Gao Wen—only Gao Wen!

Others might dominate regions, even challenge the Four Emperors or Marine Headquarters, but before Gao Wen, they could only kneel.

Yet precisely because of that,

Crocodile could not accept that man falling to hell in a manner bordering on humiliation.

“He… escaped too, didn’t he?”

Crocodile himself hadn’t realized:

Since that battle two years ago, Gao Wen had become his obsession.

Only by standing again before that man could he prove he had severed ties with his past and reclaimed his will to climb to the top!

But—

The answer Crocodile received was negative:

“No.”

“Gao Wen didn’t flee like us when faced with doom—he stayed in Camelot and faced the Heavenly King’s assault head-on!”

“Is he insane?!”

At that moment, both Crocodile and Katakuri thought Gao Wen’s confidence had crossed into madness.

That was an ancient weapon!

A being beyond reason, towering above humanity!

“He won.”

Mihawk’s words fell, and the deck fell utterly silent.

For a long moment, neither could grasp the meaning of Mihawk’s words; after fifteen seconds of silence, Crocodile’s voice trembled:

“You said… what?!”

“Gao Wen won.”

Mihawk’s voice carried uncontainable excitement:

“He withstood the Heavenly King’s assault with human flesh—and walked away unscathed!”

“Twice!”

“That’s impossible!”

Katakuri fiercely denied this absurdity.

The Heavenly King’s power could vaporize everything within hundreds of kilometers—if Gao Wen could survive that, what could possibly kill him…?

This wasn’t just strength—it was pure myth!

Mihawk had no intention of explaining further; he continued:

“Whether it’s true or not, go to Britannias and see for yourselves.”

“By the way.”

“With the Cross Guild destroyed, our alliance has lost all meaning.”

“I plan to stay in Britannias—to climb the highest mountain of swordsmanship.”

“For you, this is also the best choice. The world’s bipolar structure is now set; future power on this sea will only survive by choosing one side or the other.”

“The World Government won’t tolerate you—but Britannias will.”

Doo—!

Mihawk ended the call without another word.

The Den Den Mushi’s standby tone echoed on the deck.

Everyone remained lost in the shock of Gao Wen surviving the ancient weapon; their hearts churned, unable to settle.

“So… you’ve already surpassed even such inhuman beings?!”

Crocodile let out a sigh of awe, a faint smile tugging at his lips:

“My instincts were right!”

“A monster who trusts only his own strength, who climbs to the top with his own blade—how could he possibly fall so easily to the World Government?!”

How could a monster who trusts only in his own strength and climbs to the top with the knife in his own hand possibly lose so easily to the World Government?!

Katakuri opened his mouth, thoughts racing, countless words rising to his tongue—yet in the end, only one simple phrase emerged:

“If a god ever existed on this sea, it must have been like this!”

If there had ever been a god upon this sea, he must have been no greater than this!

Crocodile lifted his gaze toward the distant sea.

Waves churned; a storm loomed.

The air fell silent; thunder rumbled within the clouds, wind howled across the sea.

He slowly rose, letting the sea wind whip his long coat into the air!

His bangs danced wildly in the gale, yet could not hide the fire reigniting in his ambitious eyes.

“If that monster hasn’t fallen, how could we possibly fall here?!”

Blood surged in Crocodile’s chest; he turned to Katakuri, ready to roar, “Let’s seize Wano!”—but a member of Baroque Works interrupted him.

“Boss, wherever you go next, we follow you!”

Mr. 5, sensing Crocodile’s burning ambition, tossed his cigarette into the sea and stood quietly aside, awaiting Crocodile’s next command.

From Baroque Works to now, they had faced death countless times—they had long since made Crocodile their lord, to whom they entrusted their lives.

From Baroque Works until now, they had faced death together countless times, and long ago regarded Crocodile as their leader to whom they entrusted their lives.

“That’s what I wanted to say!”

Marianno, wearing her red cap, stood straight, her small frame rigid with determination, gripping her paintbrushes tightly, her expression serious.

Marianno, wearing a small red hood, stood straight, her tiny frame serious as she followed Crocodile, both hands tightly gripping her sketchbook, adopting a solemn expression.

Crocodile reached out, gently ruffling Marianno’s cap, then changed his mind:

Crocodile couldn’t help but reach out and press his hand against Marianno’s hat, gently rubbing it before changing his words:

“We’re going to Britannias!”

"Let's go to Britannias!"