Kill Oliver Instantly And Head To The Capital Of Seven Waters

Oliver had never encountered such a technique before, and he was caught off guard.

Suddenly, an invisible, transparent room appeared. In an instant, Arias swapped places with one of the blades. The dragon blade slashed down, and Oliver's head rolled to the ground.

The entire process took less than three seconds.

Oliver's strength was useless; he didn't even have a chance to showcase it.

As his head hit the ground, the gladiatorial arena shattered and disappeared. Everyone outside only saw a black cover appear momentarily, with Oliver and Arias vanishing. Then, as the cover dissipated, Oliver's body was separated from his head, and Arias calmly sheathed his sword.

"Oliver is dead?"

Dickens was so terrified that he almost fell to his knees when Arias's cold gaze met his. But Arias said nothing further. He simply turned around and left with Hancock and the others.

As they departed, Arias's voice echoed, "Your son spoke rudely, so I punished him. Since you've shown some respect in your conduct, we won't trouble you further. But if you continue to pursue this, it will mean war."

Dickens watched as they left, standing still for a long time. He had only one son, and though that son was a troublemaker, he was still his son. Now, he was gone, killed because of his reckless behavior.

With a heavy heart, Dickens returned to the palace, exhausted.

In the palace where the nobles resided, Oliver's deputy was initially shocked by the news of his death, but soon after, he felt overjoyed—he could finally take over!

However, what he didn't notice was a young woman whose legs trembled when she heard the news. Oliver, so powerful, had died just like that. She feared that the man who killed him might come after her next.

Arias was unaware of these reactions. There were too many conflicts caused by his or Hancock's presence, and he had no interest in investigating them further. In the end, this world was ruled by strength.

"Arias, why didn't you kill them all?" Hancock asked, as she believed anyone who offended them should be eliminated.

Arias replied, "Dickens has a good reputation as a ruler. Killing him would create complications with the World Government. We've just cleared our name with the Kingdom of Goa, so it's best to keep a low profile for now."

This was why Arias had merely threatened Dickens. If Dickens chose to let the matter drop, it would be as if nothing had happened. But if he dared to complain to the World Government, Arias would make sure he regretted it.

Of course, Arias didn't intend to let Dickens off completely. He had his black puppet for tasks like these—there was no need to dirty his own hands.

Returning to the Dawn, they found the ship unharmed. Arias also taught Chopper a training method, and after learning of Chopper's ambition to become a doctor, promised to find medical books for him.

Their next destination was Alabasta, but since Robin had not yet entered the Grand Line from West Blue, Arias wasn't in a hurry. Instead, he directed Salome to sail straight to the Capital of Seven Waters.

In the meantime, Zoro's strength improved rapidly with his new Qi Sense, and he had even begun to use Armament Haki, though it was still limited. Under his influence, Kuina also developed Qi Sense, but the others hadn't yet progressed.

On their journey, regardless of whether the pirate crews they encountered were hostile, Arias would leave the fighting to Hiyori and the others, with Yamato ensuring their victory.

Arias, meanwhile, returned to his refining room to work on expanding the capsule space.

After a month of sailing, they finally arrived at the Capital of Seven Waters. Arias had completed the first improvement to the capsule. He let the others disembark while he sailed to a secluded area, stored the Dawn in the capsule, and then swam ashore to reunite with the group.

Upon landing, a puppet emerged from the capsule and quietly set off in another direction. Inside the puppet's capsule were a power device, a Seastone air film device, and a large amount of Bailey. With this puppet, Arias could operate in the shadows, leaving the puppet to attract Marine and World Government attention while he stayed out of sight.

After regrouping with everyone, Arias didn't head straight for the shipyard to find Tom and Franky. Instead, they toured the island, enjoying the sights and local delicacies before eventually arriving at the enormous shipyard.

"The shipyard here is massive!" the younger ones exclaimed. Even Hancock, who had seen North Blue's shipyard, was impressed by the scale of the Capital of Seven Waters.

But Arias knew that the best shipwright wasn't here. As they wandered, he made his way to the garbage dump, where Tom was working.

In the dump, a blue-haired boy was busy modifying scrap materials, unaware of Arias and his group approaching.

"Are you building a maritime weapon?" Arias asked, surprising Franky, who looked up in shock. How could this stranger know his design just by glancing at his work?

Arias smiled, recognizing the weapon's potential. With his knowledge of weapon refining and ship modification, he casually pointed out a few improvements. Franky made the adjustments and found that the weapon's functionality had significantly improved.

"My little brother, you've got some serious shipbuilding skills!" Franky's attitude toward Arias changed immediately. At 24, he was five years older than Arias, so calling him "little brother" felt natural.

As they discussed shipbuilding and weapon refining, Franky felt like a whole new world had opened up to him.

Just as their conversation deepened, footsteps approached. "Fram, you're making this stuff again? Master Tom's going to scold you!" It was Iceburg, also known as Mr. Iceberg.

Franky, who often clashed with Iceburg, responded, "That stuff is just kid's play! Real men build battleships!"

Ignoring the argument, Iceburg noticed Arias and asked, "Who might you be?" Arias and his group stood out, especially since Tom and his apprentices were often shunned by others.

"He's a great shipwright," Franky immediately said, "and he's got ideas that even Master Tom hasn't thought of!"

"Oh?" Iceburg was intrigued. Franky's shipbuilding talent was well-known, so for him to speak so highly of Arias meant something.

"Arias," Arias introduced himself. "I've heard of Mr. Tom and came to visit."

Iceburg thought for a moment. Unlike Franky, he paid attention to maritime news and recognized the name Arias—the young man married to Amazon Lily's Emperor.

Realizing the significance of his guests, Iceburg quickly invited them to Mr. Tom's workshop, where they would meet the legendary shipwright.