Super Card System C.530: Choice

“Hannyabal, that fool!”

Magellan was unaware of Hannyabal’s demise, but he felt infuriated nonetheless. He couldn’t help but curse inwardly. How could Hannyabal take the liberty of releasing Head Jailer Shiryu!?

However, Magellan’s gaze towards Shiryu was complex because, if he were in Hannyabal’s shoes, he might have made the same choice.

The reason was simple: Magellan needed the power of Shiryu now!

After clashing with Ian, Magellan realized that his strength might be enough to suppress other Supernova Pirates, but when facing someone like Ian, he was at a loss.

Without eliminating the mastermind, even if he subdued the accomplices, what use would it be?

Ian was already so powerful. If he were to reach the sixth level and rescue Jinbe and Crocodile, with three Shichibukai joining forces, Magellan would be unable of stopping them.

Magellan finally understood why Fleet Admiral Sengoku’s orders were merely to hold off Ian until the peach rabbit Vice Admiral arrived. In Sengoku’s eyes, Magellan simply couldn’t handle Ian.

With this realization, Magellan found his initial thoughts somewhat laughable.

“Well, I can grant you a pardon!” Struggling to get up from the ground, Magellan said to Shiryu, “Join forces with me to kill the Black Dragon Ian, and I can request your release from the World Government!”

While Magellan and Shiryu were talking, Ian did not make a move but watched with interest.

He was curious about how Shiryu would react and what decision he would make.

Originally the Head Jailer of Impel Down, Shiryu had almost equal strength to the Warden Magellan, making Impel Down known as the “Iron Wall” due to these two aces. However, unlike Magellan, Shiryu was bloodthirsty, often killing prisoners on the spot without reason. His personality was extremely twisted, and even though he wore the guise of a prison guard, he couldn’t hide the fact that he was a downright villain.

Because Magellan witnessed Shiryu indiscriminately killing people, he couldn’t help but arrest him. For Magellan, although the prisoners in the Impel Down deserved severe punishment, as long as they followed the prison rules, there was no need to execute them… Shiryu’s actions were excessive.

Now, with Ian dominating the battle, Magellan had to choose to join forces with Shiryu, especially after Shiryu’s Flying Slash had just saved him. Given the circumstances, Magellan planned to use this situation to his advantage.

However, Magellan’s thoughts didn’t necessarily reflect Shiryu’s perspective. Ian was eager to know what choice Shiryu would make… after being imprisoned in the sixth-level prison for so long by Magellan, especially now that the Blackbeard Teach hadn’t appeared in Impel Down. Therefore, Shiryu’s decision was even more intriguing.

So, Ian didn’t interrupt; he just observed.

In response to Magellan’s proposal, Shiryu didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he said, “Can you retract your poison? Wearing a gas mask, I can’t even enjoy my favorite cigar!”

Magellan looked at the prisoners and supernovas who had been knocked out by the poison cloud behind him. Then, he glanced at Ian and silently opened his mouth, inhaling deeply. His chest swelled high, and the remaining poison cloud, which wasn’t much, was entirely sucked into his body.

Now, in the fourth-level prison, apart from Ian, Magellan, and Shiryu, there wasn’t a single person standing. This included the prison guards; all had been knocked out by Magellan’s poisonous gas.

Of course, even though only three people remained on the scene, in the monitoring room of Impel Down, many guards were nervously watching the confrontation between the three, discreetly swallowing their saliva.

It wasn’t just the guards in the monitoring room; in other parts of the prison, people were also paying attention to the situation. This included prisoners who had obtained black Den Den Mushi for eavesdropping and those within the unknown territory of the Newkama Land in Impel Down!

When Ian and his group infiltrated Impel Down, triggering a prisoner riot on the first level, some in the Newkama Land had already noticed their activities. Accessed through the sewers of Impel Down and traversing the “impossible paths,” the secret society of prisoners on the purported 5.5th level of Impel Down, known as the Newkama Land, had been the destination for many prisoners mysteriously disappearing over the years due to the so-called “Devil’s Invitation.” Operated by the Newhalf Queen Ivankov, this was a secret organization.

After being falsely accused by the World Government and arrested, Ivankov was able to escape, but he chose to remain in Impel Down. He pulled prisoners in, secretly developing the revolutionary army’s strength.

Over the years, the Newkama Paradise had become a substantial secret organization. Although they stayed within Impel Down, they were well-informed about the events transpiring in the prison. They knew things only the guards were aware of and even things the guards were oblivious to!

Therefore, when the riot occurred in Impel Down, they quickly observed it through the surveillance footage.

Initially, they were just interested spectators, enjoying the development of the situation. At that time, they didn’t believe the intruders would have a favorable outcome, given the insurmountable obstacle of Magellan’s presence.

However, when Ian and his group stormed through the third level like an unstoppable force, the Newkama members couldn’t sit idly anymore. The strength of the jailbreakers far exceeded their expectations…

So, they immediately informed the Newkama Queen, Ivankov…

When Ivankov arrived at the monitoring room, he initially didn’t pay much attention. He found the intruders wearing Marine uniforms to be quite amusing.

By eavesdropping on the conversations of the prison guards, Ivankov and the others learned the identity of the intruders—they were none other than the Shichibukai Ian, the Black Dragon.

When Ivankov first heard Ian’s name, he didn’t feel much. Having spent quite some time in the prison, although Ian’s name vaguely struck a chord, Ivankov didn’t immediately connect it to the child from Shimotsuki Village in the East Blue.

Although the people in the Newkama Paradise could occasionally steal discarded newspapers to keep up with the outside world, they couldn’t acquire every issue. Unfortunately, they missed the one where Ian’s photo was revealed. While they were aware of the new Warlord named Ian, they didn’t know what he looked like.

That is until… until Ian and his group reached the fourth level, and due to the intense heat, they took off their Marine uniforms and he put on his bear ear hat…

“Is… is that a bear hat!?” Ivankov’s eyes almost popped out when he saw Ian’s hat on the surveillance footage. However, the person in the footage wasn’t Bartholomew Kuma but a young man Ivankov didn’t recognize. Instantly, Ivankov recalled the hat that Kuma had once given out…

“He… he is Ian!? The kid we met in Shimotsuki Village back then!?” Ivankov stared at the screen dumbfounded, finding it hard to believe. “He… he’s already one of the Seven Warlords!? The Black Dragon Ian they talk about is really him!?” 𝖋𝖗𝖊𝖊𝔴𝖊𝖇𝔫𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖑.𝖈𝖔𝖒

In that fleeting moment, Ivankov felt as if time was a relentless force…

In the blink of an eye, that once genius-like child had grown up? And not just grown up but reached such astonishing heights?

When Ivankov saw Ian slashing Magellan with his blade, he became even more convinced that the person in the footage was indeed the same child from before. After all, that child had learned swordsmanship in the dojo…

“Yiya!!” Ivankov couldn’t help but spin around in place, then joyfully placed hands on hips, laughing heartily, “A miracle! This is a miracle! That bear guy, he really has an eye for people!”

After pausing, Ivankov immediately realized that this was an excellent opportunity to leave Impel Down. So, he loudly declared, “Sweethearts! Get your weapons ready; we need to support that Ian boy!”

Seeing Ian and his companions on the screen being affected by Magellan’s poisonous fog, Ivankov thought Ian might need his help. Since he didn’t fully understand Ian’s current abilities, he decided to provide support. Moreover, seizing the opportunity of Ian’s jailbreak, Ivankov intended to lead the Newkama prisoners and leave this cursed place.

However, before the Newkama prisoners could respond to Ivankov’s call, a new twist occurred in the surveillance footage.

After Magellan had retracted his poison gas, Shiryu removed his gas mask, revealing a sinister smile. He took out a cigar, placed it in his mouth, leisurely took a puff, and then exhaled the smoke, saying, “Infinite loneliness is so boring that it makes one want to die. So, Magellan, I hope you can keep your promise!”

In other words, he agreed to Magellan’s deal.

“Humph, just don’t make it a habit!” Magellan snorted coldly, turned his head, and looked at Ian.

However, before he could speak, his body suddenly shook. He felt a sharp pain and, lowering his head, saw a blade protruding from his right abdomen, coming out from the front!

On that blade, there was a trace of crimson blood…

“You…!” Magellan, in disbelief, twisted his head to see Shiryu, who had ambushed him from behind with his sword…