“Of course, there’s nothing wrong with the boots.”
“The problem is, I found some footprints at a crime scene, and I need to check the footprints of every soldier to determine if there’s a traitor among the Navy.”
“What do you think, Captain Hoffman?”
Hailan didn’t hide the information from Hoffman, telling him everything straightforwardly.
“Uh…”
“Solving a case by just looking at boots?”
Hoffman was filled with doubt.
“Yes!”
Hailan’s response was firm and confident.
What should he do now?
Hoffman’s mind was in a state of intense conflict.
Can you identify the killer just by comparing boots and footprints?
He had never heard of such a thing!
He must be trying to trick me!
Saying he found evidence, but in reality, he’s just suspicious and trying to test me.
It would confirm my guilt if I fell into his trap and refused to cooperate.
In that case… let’s do it!
Who’s afraid of whom?
“Well, if that’s the Major’s work, I should certainly cooperate fully.”
Hoffman removed his military boots and handed them to Hailan: “Just know they smell a bit. Hope you don’t mind, Major.”
Hailan frowned slightly.
The system enhanced his sensory abilities, including his sense of smell.
Hoffman’s unpleasant move unintentionally reminded Hailan that he needed to train his smell tolerance. Otherwise, encountering a smelly Devil Fruit user would be pretty unpleasant.
Hailan scrutinized Hoffman’s boots.
His enhanced vision allowed him to see every mark, every detail on the boots.
Like comparing two images on a computer, Hailan reached a conclusion quickly.
“Captain Hoffman, you are under arrest.”
“Huh?”
Hoffman was taken aback, then burst into laughter.
“Major Hailan, you’ve got to be kidding.”
“What did I do to be arrested?”
Hailan motioned for the soldiers to lower their weapons and explained to Hoffman: “Your boots match the footprints at the crime scene by more than 95%. The evidence is conclusive, and combined with prior information, it seems you’re also the mastermind behind Antonio.”
“Based on what?”
Hoffman went from initial tension to calmness.
“The Navy needs evidence to arrest someone, especially an officer.”
“Major Hailan, let’s set aside other details for now. I need you to present solid evidence.”
“This…”
Hoffman’s words made the other soldiers exchange confused glances.
Yeah, where’s the evidence?
Without evidence, on what basis could Hoffman be charged?
Hailan thought momentarily, then said, “Captain Hoffman, have you heard of presumption of guilt?”
“What’s that?”
“In simple terms, presumption of guilt means better to wrongfully kill a thousand innocent people than to let one guilty person go. Conversely, presumption of innocence means better to let a thousand guilty people go free than to wrongfully accuse one innocent person.”
The soldiers were baffled: What is the Major talking about?
But Hoffman’s heart skipped a beat.
He hadn’t heard the terms “presumption of guilt” and “presumption of innocence,” but he knew exactly what they meant. The Judicial Island of the World Government operated on a presumption of guilt.
In fact,
the Judicial Island’s court was even more terrifying than the presumption of guilt because the presumption of guilt at least offered a chance to prove one’s innocence. In Judicial Island, once caught, one was 100% sent to Impel Down. Hoffman started considering how to escape but remained calm on the surface: “So, you want to apply presumption of guilt to me?”
Hailan tossed Hoffman’s boots to a soldier: “Before answering that, I want to ask you a question first, Captain Hoffman.”
“What question?”
“Bad people never care about the law. They do whatever they want.”
“But good people, when catching bad people, have to follow legal procedures.”
“Do you think that’s fair?”
“…”
Hoffman didn’t answer.
“Let me rephrase.”
“Do you think I’m a good person or a bad person?”
Six Powers: Shave!
Hailan and Hoffman flashed across dozens of meters in an instant, repeatedly appearing and disappearing.
Realizing no peaceful resolution, Hoffman finally dropped his pretense: “Young man from headquarters, why must you pursue me?”
“The Victoria Kingdom’s passenger ship was saved, the Sam Pirates were severely damaged, and Colonel Roy committed suicide out of guilt. Isn’t that good enough?”
“Does it matter if I’m here or not for your military achievements?”
Hailan and Hoffman engaged in a high-speed chase, using Shave and Moonwalk, creating a spectacular scene in Victoria Kingdom’s city, drawing the attention of countless onlookers.
“Don’t you know?”
“With great power comes great responsibility!”
Hailan and Hoffman’s Six Powers were evenly matched so that Hoffman couldn’t shake off Hailan.
But Hailan, using his calculation abilities, had already deduced Hoffman’s movements and guessed his trajectory.
After several attempts, he finally guessed correctly.
“But with great power comes great authority!”
Boom!!
Hailan struck Hoffman from midair with iron-hardened fists, sending him crashing to the ground like a meteor.
A three-to-four-meter-wide crater formed upon impact.
“Tempest Kick: Falcon!”
Hoffman made a final desperate attack.
But the cyan slash wave couldn’t hit Hailan from dozens of meters away.
Hailan drew his military knife and precisely stabbed Hoffman’s heart.
With a powerful upward slash, he severed Hoffman’s entire left arm.
“Captain Hoffman of the Navy’s 16th Branch in East Blue resisted arrest violently and has been executed!”
“Soldiers, collect the body!”
Only when Hailan gave the order did the stunned soldiers return to reality.
Having captured Cabaji, Moji, and the rest of Buggy’s pirates, Kuro arrived just in time to witness Hailan’s execution of Hoffman.
In Kuro’s mind, the label “terrifying” was now firmly attached to his commanding officer.
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