Fisher Tiger had a sturdy build, a wide waist, rough reddish skin, sharp teeth, and protruding fins on his back. Yet, he also had a human-like body, making him look somewhat peculiar and fierce.
As Evan observed Fisher Tiger up close, he marveled at the sight. It was only his second time encountering a different race in this world. Realizing his gaze was a bit too direct, he apologized, “Sorry, it’s my first time seeing a Fish-Man, so I’m a bit amazed.”
“No problem,” Tiger said, surprised.
Having traveled the world, Tiger was accustomed to humans’ astonished and contemptuous reactions. What he wasn’t used to was Evan’s sincere apology.
In his adventurous life, he had mostly heard humans’ mocking or disdainful comments. Apologies and gratitude were almost nonexistent. This fact made Tiger instinctively warm up to Evan.
“Are you here for the same reason as me? Do you know what I’m planning?” Tiger asked, puzzled.
Evan smiled, “If it weren’t to storm Mary Geoise, why would anyone go to the trouble of climbing the Red Line in the middle of the night?”
“You’re also planning to storm the Holy Land?” Tiger was moved, and the polite address of ‘Mr.’ made Evan slightly uncomfortable.
“Yes, someone very important to me might have been captured by slavers.”
Evan nodded, clenching his fists, hoping he wasn’t too late.
Perhaps because of Evan’s status as an escaped convict or the initial good impression, Fisher Tiger decided to trust him.
With Evan’s space blocks to aid him, Tiger didn’t need to climb by hand, conserving his strength as they ascended.
As they continued, Evan maintained a large ROOM, alert to their surroundings.
When they reached the top of the cliff, the view opened up.
Under the night sky, the opulent buildings and palaces stood tall, each brick and tile exquisitely crafted, exuding an air of extreme luxury, illuminated by dazzling lights.
Having seen the humble homes of commoners, Evan found this display of wealth and extravagance extremely repulsive.
“So this is the Holy Land, Mary Geoise.”
Evan sighed inwardly. There was nothing noble or sacred about this place; it was a symbol of aristocratic decadence.
The World Government had been in power for so long that its peak turning to decline seemed inevitable, with this lavishness and corruption being the clearest signs.
“Evan, I’ll go free the slaves in the cages.”
Before Tiger could finish, he dashed towards the cages.
Evan thought for a moment and decided to follow.
Both possessed Observation Haki and were agile, so they reached the slave cages without alerting any guards. Perhaps centuries of comfort had made the guards lax, never expecting anyone to challenge the Celestial Dragons’ supreme authority.
Evan frowned; Robin wasn’t here.
Years ago, he had left an indelible spatial mark on Robin’s back. If she were nearby, he would have sensed it.
He wasn’t sure if Robin was in the Holy Land, but she definitely wasn’t in this slave area.
The iron cages holding the slaves formed a long corridor. The slaves, including giants, Fish-Men, and humans of all ages, were relatively clean compared to typical prisoners, especially the women who were given decent food.
However, their eyes were hollow, filled with despair and shame, living a life worse than death.
In a few days, the Celestial Dragons would pick them up and treat them as commodities. Men would become pets or laborers, and women would often end up as playthings.
“I know their pain…” Tiger said hoarsely, gritting his teeth and trembling with suppressed rage.
During his last adventure, the Celestial Dragons captured him and made him a slave. After a harrowing escape, he was now risking his life to rescue the slaves.
“I’ll help, too!” Evan said firmly. If he hadn’t seen this, it would have been different, but now that he had, he couldn’t turn a blind eye.
“Think carefully. By helping me rescue these slaves, you’ll be allying with me and opposing the World Government.”
“I don’t mind.” Evan grinned, already having a bounty of five billion berries. He wasn’t afraid of the World Government’s pursuit.
Tiger and Evan took keys from the unconscious guards, opening the cages to free the slaves.
“Run! Get out of here quickly!”
“Follow the others and escape together!”
“Hurry, before more guards come!”
The freed slaves, feeling reborn, fled desperately.
Eventually, Evan found using keys too slow and started ripping the cage doors open with his hands.
With a final rough tear, he opened another cage, finding three young girls huddled together, trembling in fear.
“It’s okay now…”
Evan reached out to them. His warm smile seemed to reassure the black-haired girl, who hesitated before placing her small hand in his.
After freeing the three girls, Evan noticed the Sea-Prism Stone handcuffs on their wrists, indicating they were Devil Fruit users.
He removed their handcuffs and looked around. Most of the cages had been opened, but more guards were pouring in from the deeper parts of the Holy Land, shouting as they rushed to contain the situation.
“We need to get out of here!”
Evan led them out, kicking over a branding iron used to mark slaves. The coals spilled, and soon, flames began to spread.
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