After all the powerful enemies had been forced to retreat...
On the oasis in Mock Town created by Aramaki's ability, the group began to celebrate.
"Yo, Mirajane."
"Did you know?"
"My strength now can't be compared to what it was before!"
"I've stepped into a whole new realm!"
"I can now stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the founders of the Fairy Tail guild, like Warrod Sequen and Precht Gaebolg."
"The contest for the strongest candidate in Fairy Tail can finally come to an end!"
"The strongest person below Gildarts is, without a doubt, me, Laxus."
The very first thing Laxus did was find Mirajane to show off the fact that he had entered the 'inhuman' realm.
Then, Laxus added, "I'm stronger than Eden now, you know~"
"Is that so?"
"Amazing, amazing, you're so amazing..." Mirajane clapped her hands as if she were humoring a child.
"How long are you going to go on about reaching the 'King' realm faster than me, you bastard?"
With Lucy absent, Eden had taken on the role of the straight man, speaking with a sense of resignation from the side.
"Natsu, go die, will you?!"
"You're the one who's gonna die, Gray!"
On the other side...
Gray and Natsu were already in a tangled brawl on the thick vines, gritting their teeth and furiously trading blows.
"Natsu, your target for that Dragon Slayer Secret Art earlier was me, wasn't it?!" Gray asked Natsu, voicing the question that had been plaguing his mind.
"To think I missed, my apologies!" Natsu said truthfully.
"So you really were trying to kill me, weren't you?" Gray said, already striking an Ice-Make pose, preparing to settle the score with Natsu.
"Since you've found out, there's nothing more to say," Natsu said, as scorching flames once again erupted around him.
Indeed, 'Blackbeard' Marshall D. Teach was just a target of convenience. The one he truly wanted to 'eliminate' was, naturally, this guy Gray...
"You two, calm down!"
Eden walked up to Gray and Natsu with a helpless expression and bonked each of them on the head.
"Ow!"
"You bastard!"
"Not even you can stop us, Eden!" Gray and Natsu turned to face Eden and roared.
Brrrring, brrrring, brrrring...
Just then, the Den Den Mushi in Eden's pocket suddenly rang.
"Shh~"
Seeing this, Eden made a silencing gesture to Gray and Natsu and answered it. "Hello? Erza! What's up?"
"Eden, you bastard..."
Gray and Natsu, who were about to pick a fight with Eden, immediately calmed down upon hearing that the person on the line was Erza. They pretended to be harmonious and said, "Oh, it's Erza? Hahaha, you should have said so! We're getting along great today, Erza!"
Yes, to subdue these two simpletons, Gray and Natsu, it seemed only Erza would do.
"Oh?!"
"Eden, are Gray and Natsu with you?"
At Marine Headquarters, Erza held the Den Den Mushi, communicating with Eden.
"They are."
"Not only that, but Laxus, Mirajane, Juvia, Happy, and our new guild members Nami, Robin, and Aramaki are all here."
As Eden spoke, he aimed the Den Den Mushi in his hand at everyone present and said softly, "The person on the other end is Erza, also a member of our guild, one of our current S-Class Mages. She's currently undercover at Marine Headquarters with the rank of Vice Admiral."
"Already undercover as a Vice Admiral?"
"I have a feeling that one day, Erza will become an Admiral!"
The person who said this was Mirajane. It had to be said, she knew Erza well.
"Erza~"
"I'm stronger than both you and Eden now, you know!" Laxus crossed his arms, still wearing a condescending look, emphasizing his superior strength.
"Laxus, Mirajane, you're all there!"
"In that case, it's perfect. I have something to announce to you all..."
"Because just a little while ago, you successfully defeated the Marine Admiral 'Aokiji' Kuzan..."
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku just held an emergency meeting with all officers at the rank of Commodore and above, a conference of several thousand people."
"After a round of discussion, the following decisions were made!"
"Captain 'Sea King' Eden, bounty: 1.8 billion Belly!"
"Next are the nine great executives of the pirate crew..."
"'Lightning Dragon' Laxus, bounty: 2 billion Belly."
"'Green Bull' Aramaki, bounty: 2.2 billion Belly!"
"'She-Devil' Mirajane, bounty: 900 million Belly!"
"'Fire Dragon' Natsu, bounty: 700 million Belly!"
"'Ice Nudist' Gray, bounty: 600 million Belly!"
Before Erza could continue, the moment she said Gray's epithet...
Natsu couldn't hold it in. He covered his mouth, laughing as he said, "Ice Nudist? Pfft! That suits you perfectly, Gray~"
"I get it, you want to die, right?" Gray understood Natsu's meaning. He used his Maker Magic to create an ice katana, preparing for a beheading.
As Gray and Natsu once again descended into a brawl...
Erza continued, "And finally, 'Rain Woman' Juvia, bounty: 300 million Belly!"
Because Nami, Robin, and Happy did not participate in this major incident, they did not receive cumulative bounties.
"That's great!"
At this, Nami and Happy hugged each other, saying tearfully.
Yes, these two 'cats' did not want high bounties.
"We just defeated Admiral Kuzan, that's all. Does the World Government really need to give us such high bounties?" Eden asked, somewhat shocked after hearing his own bounty had reached 1.8 billion.
"Do you have any idea how many years it's been since anyone defeated an 'active' Marine Admiral on these seas?!"
As Eden finished speaking, the residents of Mock Town who had been saved by Aramaki's oasis immediately shouted their retorts.
"By the way, Eden!"
"Although you haven't officially entered the New World yet,"
"The World Government has already decided..."
"To treat you as the fifth Sea Emperor."
"In other words, ordinary Marines will choose to avoid you upon sight! They are absolutely forbidden from initiating combat without orders from the Fleet Admiral or higher-ups."
Erza thought for a moment before relaying Sengoku's exact words.
"Hahaha..."
"Is that so?!"
"It seems we've finally caught the eye of the World Government's top brass."
Eden chuckled softly upon hearing this.
The plan had changed. He was skipping the Warlord stage and going straight to being a Sea Emperor.
"Huh?"
"Why is Eden the captain?"
"This is ridiculous..."
When Laxus heard that Eden was the captain while he was a top executive, he was so angry his nose was crooked. He got close to Eden, grabbed the Den Den Mushi from his hand, and asked, "Erza, go and explain it clearly to the World Government! I am not Eden's subordinate."
"How could I possibly explain that?"
"Anyway, your bounty posters will probably be distributed across the Four Seas by the seagulls around noon tomorrow!"
"That's all I have to say. I'm hanging up now..."
With that, Erza hung up the Den Den Mushi.
Click.
The Den Den Mushi immediately closed its eyes after Erza hung up.
"In any case, Eden, my bounty is higher than yours," Laxus said grimly, looking at Eden.
"I'm the captain!" Eden replied.
"My bounty is higher!" Laxus continued.
"I know..."
"But I'm the captain," Eden continued.
"You'll regret this, Eden," Laxus said, his magic power surging. The terrifying force shook the sea, causing the oasis created by Aramaki to tremble.
BOOM!!
Eden looked at Laxus, who had suddenly erupted with powerful magic, and chuckled. The magic power within his own body rippled out as he said coldly, "You think I'm afraid of you, Laxus...?"
For a moment, their magic powers clashed violently, causing the heavens and earth to change.
"Eden, your magic power has gotten stronger again?!"
As for Laxus, he was somewhat shocked by the magic power Eden was displaying.
After the battle with Kuzan, Eden's magic power had already climbed to the peak of human limits. It seemed he could cross the threshold into the 'King' realm at any moment; he was just one step away.
Indeed, battle was the best medicine for a breakthrough.
Ever since crossing over into the world of One Piece, Eden had fought against Mihawk, strengthened Erza and Laxus, and battled Kuzan, constantly honing his own strength.
So, what method would Eden use to break through this final barrier to the 'King' realm?!
"It's time to use this."
As Eden spoke, he pulled out a lacrima from his storage space—a Storm Dragon Slayer Lacrima, on nearly the same level as the Sea King Dragon Slayer Lacrima inside him.
"Is that a Dragon Slayer Lacrima?!"
When Eden took out the new Dragon Slayer Lacrima, Laxus, Mirajane, Natsu, and Gray were all stunned. They hadn't expected Eden to pull out something so precious just like that.
"Where did you get that lacrima?" Laxus asked, looking at the Dragon Slayer Lacrima in Eden's hand.
"I bought it from a merchant in Guiltina on the northern continent!"
"I think his name was Jorge Reisen. Rumor has it he's a Dragon Slayer too."
Eden paused for a moment before answering truthfully.
In fact, all the Dragon Slayer Lacrimas Eden possessed were bought from this channel. (Note: The Thunder Dragon King Elexion's Dragon Slayer Lacrima inside Laxus came from the same source.)
"Eden, just how many Dragon Slayer Lacrimas do you have in your storage space?!"
At this, both Laxus and Mirajane asked curiously.
"Don't worry about it."
"I used all the assets I've saved up over the years to buy Dragon Slayer Lacrimas," Eden said.
"You guy..."
As Eden's words fell...
Both Laxus and Mirajane fell silent.
"Originally, I planned to completely fuse the Sea King Dragon Slayer Lacrima inside me with my body before absorbing a second one. But I just can't stand that look on your face, Laxus. So, since there's no other way, let's do this!"
This was about Eden being unable to tolerate Laxus's ugly mug, and thus directly absorbing the second Dragon Slayer Lacrima.
BOOM!
With a brilliant flash of light...
Eden used the properties of his Spatial Magic to fuse the Dragon Slayer Lacrima with himself.
BOOM!
In an instant, the magic power within Eden's body began to boil, surging towards the great barrier of human limits...
Once he successfully broke through, his magic power would directly reach the 'inhuman' realm, also known as the 'King' level.
"It will probably take me another day to completely master the power of this Storm Dragon Slayer Lacrima."
As Eden spoke, he walked over to Laxus and said in a low voice, "In other words, you have 24 hours left to be smug. Cherish it, kid."
"You bastard..."
Laxus's eye twitched, but Eden's provocation had completely calmed him down. He absolutely could not be careless, could not slack off in the slightest. The moment he relaxed, he would be surpassed by Eden and the others. He had to get stronger, much stronger.
Meanwhile...
Robin still couldn't believe that Eden and the others had actually defeated the Marine Admiral, Kuzan.
"They actually won?" Robin muttered to herself, her eyes filled with a hint of bewilderment.
Since Eden could even defeat a Marine Admiral like Kuzan, it meant that she was now completely safe.
She would no longer have to live the anxious, fearful life she had before.
"I told you~"
"Just leave the fighting to us," Eden said softly, noticing Robin's daze and comforting her.
"I just can't quite believe it. Kuzan, one of the government's highest military powers, one of the three Marine Admirals, was actually defeated..." Robin smiled, murmuring the words.
"The three Marine Admirals?"
"There are three more beings on par with that monster from earlier?" Laxus caught the key point in Robin's words and asked.
"Yes."
"The Marines have a total of three Admirals..."
"They are 'Akainu' Sakazuki, 'Kizaru' Borsalino, and 'Aokiji' Kuzan."
"Above them are Fleet Admiral 'Sengoku the Buddha' and the Commander-in-Chief of the World Government forces, former Fleet Admiral Kong."
"Of course, in terms of combat power, it's not to say they are necessarily stronger than Admiral Kuzan, but they are at least on his level."
"After all, they have all served as Marine Admirals."
"Besides them, there is also the Marine Hero 'Garp the Fist', who is said to have repeatedly refused promotion to Admiral and once cornered the 'Pirate King' Gol D. Roger."
"The above is all the high-level combat power of the Marines that I know of," Robin explained everything she knew about the Marines' top fighters.
"Suddenly, I realize we have a long way to go."
"When the time comes, I'll take on one, Eden can handle one after his breakthrough, and Brother Aramaki can take on one. That only matches up against the three Admirals."
"That leaves two Fleet Admirals and some Marine Hero, three people in total. We can't just leave them all to Gildarts, can we?!"
Laxus crossed his arms. He suddenly realized that their side's combat power still seemed a bit lacking.
Although, in Laxus's eyes, no matter who the enemy was, that guy Gildarts would absolutely never lose.
"There's also Erza," Mirajane suddenly interjected.
Yes, if you were to ask who Fairy Tail's number one Erza fan was, it would have to be Mirajane.
"Erza? She's still a bit green," Laxus said with a pout after thinking for a moment.
If Mystogan were here right now, he would definitely point at Laxus's nose and say, "Laxus, I see your eyes have gone blind again."
"..."
Just as Laxus and Eden were feeling that their Fairy Tail guild's combat power was still insufficient and their strength wasn't great enough...
Ace, who was standing beside them and had been listening to their conversation, and Teach, who had just woken up, his body weak and unable to move, were both completely dumbfounded.
"Are these guys serious?"
"Are they planning to take on the entire Marine Headquarters by themselves?"
"And from the way they're talking, it sounds like they have comrades who are even stronger than them?!"
Ace and Teach looked at each other, their eyes filled with deep shock.
At the same time, Teach had also figured out the current situation.
Right. Kuzan was defeated and left on his own.
Doflamingo saw things were going south and ran immediately.
Only he, the miserable Teach, was captured by Ace.
The world where only Teach gets hurt was finally born.
And then...
Thud!
With a soft sound...
Teach, under Ace's iron fist, once again fell unconscious.
"So, Ace, what do you plan to do with this guy?!" Eden asked, looking at Ace who had captured Teach.
Because of his intervention, the Summit War from the original story probably wouldn't happen. Ace wasn't captured by Teach; instead, Teach was the one who got caught...
As for the other members of the Blackbeard Pirates?!
Who knows?
They seemed to have been frozen by Kuzan earlier and just so happened to be in the range of Laxus's Raigo. They were probably on their way to being reincarnated by now.
"I'm going to take him back and let Pops handle him," Ace said seriously after thinking for a moment.
"Didn't this guy kill one of your comrades?"
"So why not just kill him here?" Eden asked, looking at the stubbornness in Ace's eyes, not understanding.
"No!"
"I won't kill him..."
"I want Pops to deal with him personally," Ace said stubbornly.
"What a pain!"
"If I leave it to you alone, I'm afraid this Teach guy will escape before you even reach Whitebeard's territory," Eden said, looking troubled.
From what Eden knew of Ace, this guy would definitely let Teach escape on the way to Whitebeard's territory...
Even worse, Teach would probably turn the tables, capture Ace, and hand him over to the World Government.
At that point, the Summit War would be absolutely unavoidable.
"Huh?"
"Are you looking down on my strength?" Ace looked at Eden angrily and roared.
"Isn't it obvious?" Eden sighed helplessly. "Although I really want to go with you to Whitebeard's territory, because I'm really afraid this Teach guy will escape!"
"But we have other things to do. It's so frustrating~"
"If only Gramps Makarov were here, I wouldn't have to worry so much."
Eden's expression was one of helplessness. If the old man were here, he could ask for his opinion.
As the saying goes, an elder in the family is a treasure.
"Makarov?"
"Makarov Dreyar?"
Upon hearing this name, Ace's expression clearly froze for a moment. He asked Eden.
"What, you know him?" Eden frowned, puzzled by Ace's reaction.
"The Makarov you're talking about, is he usually very short, but when he gets angry, he can turn into a super-giant, even bigger than Oars? That Makarov?!" Ace continued to ask Eden.
"Yes," Eden nodded.
"Uh..."
"He's on Pops' ship right now!"
"He's Pops' new sworn brother," Ace said after a long silence.
"Huh?"
As Ace's words fell, everyone present froze on the spot.
Finally, it was Eden who turned to the dazed Laxus beside him and said, "Yo, Laxus! Great news! You've got a bunch of new uncles."
"Shut up, you," Laxus said wearily, rubbing his tense face.
"Uncles?" Ace looked at Eden, confused.
"This guy's full name is Laxus Dreyar. He's the grandson of our guild master, Makarov Dreyar," Eden explained to Ace.
"Oh! Hey, nephew," Ace, having understood the situation after Eden's explanation, waved at Laxus in greeting.
"Get lost."
Laxus, hearing this, sent Ace flying with a single punch.