40 Chapter – 40 People Deserve a Second Change, right?

ASL Hideout, Mt. Colubo

"Ace… Luffy… I am really glad that both of you are safe," said Sabo as he hugged the two guys.

"Hey… hey—wait—" Ace was a little embarrassed but didn't resist.

Luffy grinned, "Shishishishishishi…" and wrapped his arms around Sabo and Ace, saying, "We succeeded in rescuing you… now you don't have to go back!"

"That—" Sabo's expression became complicated.

Ace noticed Sabo's troubled expression and asked, "What's bothering you, Sabo? Are you thinking of going back?"

Sabo looked down and replied, "If I don't, my father... he would send the military. He's a noble, and he has the power to mobilize them to some extent. It would have been fine if he hadn't discovered us or if he hadn't found out about you two, but now..."

"Don't be an idiot Sabo, do you think we care whether your old man sends military or pirates?" said Ace. "Even if we have to fight the entire nation, we will do that!"

Luffy nodded, "Yes we'll just have to kick their butts! I'm not letting you go back, Sabo."

Ace said, "Exactly. We'll face it together. No matter how tough it gets, we can overcome it. Didn't Naguri teach us that?" 

"That's true, but..." Sabo muttered, thinking to himself, 'Dealing with a wild animal in the forest is one thing, but facing a nation's organized military is a different story. We can't possibly fight an entire military force; we'd all probably end up dead!' He couldn't bring himself to vocalize these thoughts and decided to change the topic, "An… Anyway, I'm really glad that the two of you are safe. I heard something nasty from Sterry about burning the Grey Terminal or something, and I was really worried. But I guess he was just spouting nonsense; there's no way they would do something like that."

At this moment, Ryuma, who had been silent, interjected, "Hate to break it to you, Sabo, but the matter of 'Burning the Grey Terminal' is not nonsense. It's really happening."

"Huh?" Sabo was taken aback and tried to retort, "What do you mean? There's... there's no way they would..."

"As absurd as this sounds, it's true," said Ryuma. He added, "It will happen tomorrow night."

"You... you must be joking. There's no way. People live in the Grey Terminal. No matter how cruel or indifferent the people of High Town are, they wouldn't do something like that. It's not possible! It's just not possible!" exclaimed Sabo in panic.

Ace and Luffy exchanged confused glances as they tried to grasp the conversation between Ryuma and Sabo, and it had something to do with, 'Burning the Grey Terminal.'

After a moment of silence, Ryuma questioned Sabo, "Do you know who the Celestial Dragons are?"

Sabo nodded lightly and explained, "I don't know much, but I have heard that they are the Gods, the creators of this world, and they live atop the Red Line, everyone in the High Town seems to admire them."

"About being God or creator or something, that's just what they like to call themselves to make themselves look good. In truth, they are just trash people, far trashier than the vilest criminal of this world, most of them are," said Ryuma. He added, "Anyway, one of the Celestial Dragons is visiting the Kingdom of Goa in a few days. To avoid showing the 'bad' side of the Kingdom of Goa, the royals and nobles have decided to 'burn' down all the 'trash,' which also includes people living there. Of course, they won't dirty their own hands; they are using others, a bunch of greedy criminals who would be willing to do anything."

"This... this has got to be a lie...!" exclaimed Sabo. 

"It's not... the people of the High Town, they are far too gone and selfish to care about the lives of 'trash.' To them, the lives of some low lives don't matter as long as they can live in their crystal mansions and please the Celestial Dragons. Heck, they consider the people of the Grey Terminal as an embarrassment and are willing to go to any length to make sure that the so-called 'Noble Celestial Dragons' don't see this embarrassment," explained Ryuma.

Sabo didn't want to believe the words Ryuma said, but after hearing his explanation and reasoning, and adding to what Sterry told him, only one thing came to his mind, "They... they really are going to do it?"

Ryuma nodded, "Yes," and added, "And... I don't think I need to reveal the identities of the criminals that are being used for this task, right?"

"It's the Bluejam pirates, right?" muttered Sabo. This was the only relevant explanation. It made more sense since his father had some form of contact with Bluejam and his henchmen. 'Now everything made sense. They wanted me to return before burning the Grey Terminal...!' There was fear, anger, sadness – all kinds of emotions on his face.

Ace and Luffy also noticed the expression on Sabo's face, and they knew that something really bad was about to happen.

After a prolonged silence, Sabo lifted his gaze and declared, "We must stop them. We can't let them burn down the Grey Terminal. There are people there, and they'll all die if we allow such a thing to happen!"

He grasped his metal pipe, determined to leave the treehouse and head to the Grey Terminal to warn its inhabitants. He couldn't let them perish. They might not be the best group, but they didn't deserve to be burned alive for the sake of pleasing some so-called 'Gods!'

Ace and Luffy exchanged glances and nodded in agreement. "We're coming too!"

Ryuma sighed and said, "At least let me finish, Sabo. I haven't completed."

"What else is there?" asked Sabo, growing a little impatient.

"I did mention that the fire would occur, but I didn't say the people in the Grey Terminal would die," clarified Ryuma.

Sabo, perplexed, asked, "Huh? What do you mean?" If a fire were to break out in the Grey Terminal, wouldn't the people living there die? Furthermore, this fire was intentionally started to eliminate the 'trash,' so it's evident that people would die—they were being killed!

Ryuma shook his head, reassuring, "Don't worry. None of the people living there will die. An organization fighting against corrupt leaders and the government is working behind the scenes to ensure the lives of the Grey Terminal residents. They've already arrived at the Kingdom of Goa, and they will rescue all the people in due time."

"Really?" Sabo's eyes brightened.

Ryuma nodded, "Yes. I can assure you because currently, I am also working for them. I won't go into too much detail, but rest assured, everything is being dealt with careful planning. 

If you were to warn the residents of the Grey Terminal, it would complicate matters. If the people of High Town were to somehow learn that someone is planning to rescue these people, they might take drastic actions, endangering the lives of the Grey Terminal residents as well as the people trying to save them. I know this is hard for you to watch, but please have faith in me. I assure you, none of them will die."

Ace chimed in, "Since it's Ryuma... well, I guess we can only trust."

Luffy nodded, "Shishishi, I trust Ryuma. Since he said that nothing would happen to them, then nothing would happen."

After pondering for a moment, Sabo also nodded, "Hmm... alright." He trusted Ryuma and decided to believe in his words.

Ryuma smiled, "Good." Then, he paused for a while and returned to the previous topic, "Now that that's out of the way, let's talk about your family situation. Considering how stubborn your father is, obviously, you can't stay here for too long, right?"

Sabo looked down and clenched his fist. He didn't want to admit it, but he felt like he didn't have much choice in the matter. If he wanted to ensure that Ace and Luffy wouldn't get caught up in his family issues, he had to stay away from them.

Ace frowned as he looked at Sabo. "Don't tell me you're going back to that place..."

Luffy muttered with a downcast tone, "Saboo..."

Sabo smiled and reassured them, saying, "Ace, Luffy, don't worry about me. I'll be fi—guhaaa!"

Before he could finish, Ace punched him in the gut, saying, "Haven't I already said not to worry about us...! Don't go back! If you keep saying you're going back to that place even though you don't want to, I will seriously kick your butt before kicking the butt of your father and then kicking the butt of the rest of the kingdom!"

Luffy nodded, adding, "Yeah, and don't worry about me too. I'm made of rubber; their attacks won't work on me!"

Tears started to flow down Sabo's cheeks. He was genuinely happy to have brothers like Ace and Luffy. But Sabo knew that no matter what they said, he couldn't risk their lives. This matter was far bigger than they imagined. He knew his father, thinking, 'He won't give up so easily...!'

Ryuma also noticed Sabo's troubled expression and said, "I do have a plan to solve that problem of yours. It would not only allow you to stay with Ace and Luffy without any issues, but you also wouldn't have to worry about your father threatening their lives. Do you want to listen?"

Sabo looked at Ryuma, intrigued. "A plan?" If there was a way to solve that problem, he would be willing to do anything. He didn't want to be separated from Luffy and Ace either. However, Sabo also didn't want to risk their lives because of his selfishness. If there really was a way to get the best of both worlds, he would do anything.

Ace and Luffy also looked at Ryuma, curious about the 'plan.' This was the plan he had mentioned before they went to rescue Sabo. He hadn't explained any details back then, but now that the three of them were together, it was time to listen to the plan.

Ryuma smirked and began to explain, "So, it's like this…"

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After explaining the plan, Sabo's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but ask, "Will something like that really work? And even if it does, how long is it going to take?"

Ryuma shrugged, "Well, this is a tried and tested approach, so I'm confident it will work for them as well. As for how much time it will take, probably months, maybe even a year or two, can't say for sure. The good thing is, you won't have to be separated from Ace and Luffy and that problem of yours will also be solved. What do you think? Do you want to use this approach? The decision is yours since they are your relatives, and most of the responsibilities will be yours. All I'm going to do is make arrangements; the rest is up to you."

"Well..." Sabo hesitated, and asked, "Can people like them even change?"

Ryuma said, "Everyone deserves a second chance in their life, right?" He had gotten a second chance in his life, so Ryuma believes that others deserve a second chance too to change their ways and become better humans. Okay, maybe not everyone deserves a second chance. There are irredeemable fools like Kurozumi Orochi, Spandam, most of the Celestial Dragons, and whatnot. 

However, Ryuma does believe that if people like Saint Donquixote Mjosgard can change and turn for the better when given a chance; if someone like Wapol can redeem himself after enduring suffering, then people like Outlook III, Didit, and Sterry deserve a chance to change as well.

They may change and become better individuals, or they may not change and remain the same kind of selfish people they are. But, at the very least, they do deserve a chance. Ryuma is not someone to take such an opportunity away from them, considering he too was given a second chance at life and now strives to become a better person compared to his previous life.

Ace and Luffy remained silent, giving Sabo the opportunity to make his decision. The choice is his to make; as long as he can stay with them and be happy, they are comfortable with any choice he makes.

After giving it some thought, Sabo nodded, "Alright, if my father, mother, and Sterry can change into better people, then I will do what's necessary…"

Ryuma smiled, "Very well then."

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Early Morning of the Next Day, somewhere in the depths of the Forests of Mt. Colubo, three people, including a middle-aged man with long black hair and a thin mustache, a fair-skinned middle-aged woman with slanted eyes, a pointed nose, and an oval-shaped head, along with shoulder-length blonde hair that curls at the back and parts at the front, and finally an eight-year-old boy with a round face, flat nose, and brown hair styled in a bowl-shaped haircut, were hugging each other. Their bodies shook as they stared at the Giant Tiger standing in front of them, with saliva dripping from its mouth.

The woman spoke while stammering, "Outlook... is... this is a dream, right? There's no way there is such a big tiger trying to eat us, right?"

The middle-aged man named Outlook III tried to speak, but no words came out of his mouth. He wanted to agree that this was indeed a dream, but everything felt so real. He couldn't deny to his wife that the three of them were about to become the Giant Tiger's dinner!

Meanwhile, the eight-year-old child pointed at the giant tiger, his hand shaking in fright. "T… t… t…" he wasn't able to speak anything beyond 'T,' and he had also wet his pants.

That's right, these three people are Outlook III, Didit, and Sterry—the father, mother, and adopted brother of Sabo. For some reason, they are unable to figure it out, and the three of them found themselves in the forest with the giant tiger salivating over them when they woke up.

They don't understand their situation, but they are aware that they might not be able to live another day. However, they don't want to die. So, the survival adventure of Outlook III, Didit, and Sterry will start from here on.

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