One Piece: Ascending the Divine Path

There were no lights on in the attic; the only source of light came from the open window behind Knight, through which dim light from outside filtered in.

However, Knight had excellent eyesight and was still able to clearly see the figure wielding a spiked club in front of him.

She wore a white top and red bottom outfit similar to a shrine maiden's dress. Her long, gradient white hair was tied into a ponytail with two orange hairpins. Her hair gradually changed from white to green and then to blue from the top of her head to the ends. She had a pair of red devil horns on her head and wore gold earrings.

An undeniably beautiful woman.

However, she herself would probably scoff at the compliment of being a beauty, since she has always considered herself a man.

You talk about freedom?

Kaido's eldest son, Yamato, was somewhat bewildered at this moment.

But immediately, she gripped the spiked club tightly again, staring intently at Knight. "Kaido sent you, didn't he? What does he want this time?"

Yamato has been running away ever since he was eight years old.

Although she was trapped on this ghost island with nowhere to escape, she still did not stop.

She has always been alone; all those who dared to lend her a helping hand have been executed by Kaido. Now, on this island, there will be no one to help her.

Therefore, she felt that the person in front of her must have been sent by Kaido! There must be some kind of conspiracy involved!

"Kaido can't order me around."

Knight raised his right hand and gently hooked his finger. "Let me show you my sincerity first."

An invisible substance condensed and suddenly covered the two handcuffs on Yamato's wrists.

Yamato clearly felt the sudden movement on her wrists. Her beautiful face instantly contorted in panic, her golden eyes filled with terror. "Hey! You bastard, what are you doing! These are explosive handcuffs!"

Although she didn't know if it would explode, Kaido said it would, and she dared not try to see if it was true or not.

Click.

Two soft sounds.

Yamato, who was initially panicked, was completely stunned.

She lowered her head blankly.

Beneath the wide sleeves, her slender wrists were now completely bare!

"Now, freedom is just one step away."

  

Knight loosened his grip, and the two unlocked handcuffs danced in the air.

"..."

Yamato stared blankly at Knight. With a clang, the spiked club fell to the ground. Trembling, she raised her hands, touching her left wrist with her right hand and then her right wrist with her left hand.

"Is it untied?"

Even now, the white-haired woman's voice still carries a cautious uncertainty.

then.

"It's solved!!"

The voice gradually rose in pitch, "That's great!"

She jumped up excitedly, "I'm finally free!"

Overjoyed, beaming with smiles.

"Whoever you are, thank you so much!"

Yamato thanked Knight excitedly.

"You can speak any louder,"

Knight sat cross-legged, resting his chin on his hands on his knees. "Let Kaido cheer for your freedom too."

"Hmm!"

Yamato then realized it was the dead of night, and she quickly covered her mouth with both hands, crouching down like a thief. "Right, I finally have my freedom, I can't be discovered now!"

Even with her hand covering her mouth, a cheerful laugh still escaped through the gaps between her fingers. "Hehe, I'm finally free!"

She covered her mouth and chuckled.

"Freedom? Let's talk about that after we leave Ghost Island."

Knight said slowly.

"Yes, we can leave now!"

Yamato released his grip and said in a low, excited, and urgent voice, "Let's get out of here right away!"

Although I don't know this guy at all, since he helped me get out of the handcuffs, he must be a really good person!

"It's not the right time yet."

Knight said.

"Not the right time? What do you mean?"

Yamato blinked, somewhat bewildered.

"Now there are two choices."

Knight looked into the woman's clear golden eyes. "First, let's take a gamble. Let's gamble on escaping Wano Country without being discovered by Kaido."

"Secondly, we can wait until Kaido goes to war, and then leave Wano Country without any worries. Which do you think we should choose?"

"Of course we're going to take a gamble!"

Without a second's hesitation, Yamato declared, "I don't want to stay on this island for even a minute longer!"

"But I don't want to."

Knight said, "I want to make sure you get 100% off this island, so I can't take any risks."

Furthermore, there's another thing: Kaido probably still has quite a few Devil Fruits in stock, right?

We can't waste it.

Teacher Kai built such a large fortune, wasn't it all meant to be passed down to Yamato?

"Hey—what do you mean 100%...?"

Knight's answer left Yamato somewhat bewildered. "Who exactly are you? Why did you come to save me?"

"We've met before."

Knight said, "Weren't you just watching from a distance when I was fighting Hanafza a few days ago?"

"How could this be?!"

Yamato's eyes widened in shock, and her tall frame involuntarily took two steps back. "You weren't like this at all back then!"

"You don't need to know too much about Devil Fruits."

Knight said, "As for why I saved you, I heard about you when I came last time. And since one day I will come to liberate Wano Country, I think you, Kozuki Oden, will be of use then."

"Oh!! Liberating Wano Country?"

Yamato's eyes shone with excitement. "That's right! You're right! I am Kozuki Oden! Of course I will help you liberate Wano Country!"

"I see, then we're comrades!"

Knightley nodded. "Now that you understand, let's proceed according to plan."

"All right."

Yamato nodded somewhat disappointedly. "Anyway, Kaido will be going on an expedition every now and then, so I'll just have to be patient for now."

"Do not resist."

Knight said, "I'll take you somewhere."

"Um?"

Before Yamato could even react, a strong sense of drowsiness washed over him.

Does "don't resist" mean this?

So she did not resist.

The next second, Yamato felt a sudden light before her eyes, and she found herself in a city she had never seen before.

"Eh!!"

The woman, who had lived in Wano Country since childhood and had never left Onigashima since the age of eight, was so astonished that her mouth hung open in disbelief.

"Where am I?"

Wide streets, colorful buildings, unique trees, and people arm in arm, cheering and laughing.

"It's so wonderful to be here in this world!"

"Yes, I never dreamed I'd ever drink such fine wine in my life!"

"And there are so many delicacies that even nobles couldn't normally afford, right?"

"Why are you only talking about food? Aren't there beautiful women here too?"

"I wouldn't dare! My wife's here in Dream City too. If she finds out, she'll tear me apart!"

"What's the point of all that? I went to the arena before, and there are always exciting gladiatorial matches to watch there!"

"The scenery outside the city is incredibly beautiful, and I've heard that the monsters in the beast zone can also be defeated. The entrance area provides equipment that can enhance our abilities; I haven't tried it myself, but I've heard it's very interesting!"

"Sigh, if only there weren't eight-hour workdays."

"Stop talking nonsense. If there's no time limit, what about the real world? Are we all just going to lie down and wait to die? Lord Night King has already been merciful enough!"

"Yes, praise befits Lord Night King!"

"Praise be to Lord Night King!"

Yamato was somewhat stunned as he listened to the sounds of people on the street.

These people all look so happy and content.

but.

"Where am I?!"

She looked around blankly.

"This is my world."

A voice sounded beside her, a very unfamiliar voice.

"Huh?"

Yamato suddenly turned his head and saw a glowing humanoid figure beside him.

"Whoa! And who are you?!"

Yamato was startled and instinctively jumped back a distance.

"I just brought you in, and you've already forgotten about me?"

Knight said with great interest.

"Hey! It's you!"

Yamato asked in astonishment, "How could you be like this?"

"To maintain the mystery."

"Huh? What kind of reason is that?!"

Yamato pursed his lips, then excitedly said, "You said this is your world? Then you must be that Night King?"

"You may call me that for now."

Knight said.

"Night King? What a strange name."

Yamato tilted his head. "But whatever, what did those people mean? What does it mean to come into this world?"

"I've said it before, this is my world."

Knight turned to look at those who couldn't see them at all. "I allowed them into this world, and I permit them to enjoy themselves to the fullest."

A few days ago, Luna had already drawn the residents of the Kingdom of Dunas into this world, and Knight had granted them contracts.

Now, tens of thousands of permanent residents log on to this Dream City every night, and the number is increasing by about 10,000 people every day. It has become very lively here.

"Is that so?"

Yamato nodded knowingly, then patted Knight on the shoulder from behind. "You're such a great guy!"

Is he a good person?

Knight chuckled.

That's not entirely wrong.

If I'm not good enough, who is?

We shouldn't deny the good things we've done just because of the means and the ends.

"To facilitate communication and assistance in the future,"

Knight raised his hand, and a ball of light floated in front of Yamato. "Yamato, accept it."

"What is this?"

Yamato reached out and touched the ball of light with some curiosity.

"This is a contract."

Knight said, "Once you accept it, I can contact you anytime, help you anytime, and you can enter this world anytime."

"Oh! That's so thoughtful!"

Yamato happily grabbed the ball of light. "Night King, thank you so much!"

The light engulfed her.

The person who claims to be Kozuki Oden is indeed not much different in intelligence from the real Kozuki Oden.

She even thanked us.

It's so simple that I'm almost feeling guilty.

It can only be said that, besides being threatened, being deceived is also a classic tactic of righteous people in this world; for details, see Harald.

Strictly speaking, it wouldn't be considered lying to her.

Hmm, once I think about it that way, the guilt disappears.

So gullible!