Super Card System C.524: A Knife in the Back

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Buggy, with a face full of snot and tears, was berating Ian. The pitiful appearance seemed as if he wanted to vent all the resentment he had accumulated towards Ian over the years.

Finally, he pointed at Luffy and said to Ian, “And, you brought this guy too! Do you even realize that if it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have been captured by the Marines?”

“Huh? Is it because of me?” Luffy, with a puzzled expression, tilted his head and said, “How!?”

Ian was speechless for a moment. In his mind, he thought, “Buggy, if you knew that the one who captured you was my sister, I don’t know if you would drop dead here from shock.”

Interrupting Buggy with a wave of his hand, Ian asked him coldly, “So, are you going to help me or not?”

“I… I…” Buggy hesitated for a long time, then suddenly turned his face away, bit his glove with his mouth, tears falling, and said, “I will help!” 𝑓𝘳ℯℯ𝔀ℯ𝓫𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓵.𝘤𝘰𝓶

A wise man takes the opportunity to be a hero. Buggy was well aware that from the moment he saw Ian, he had no choice. Ian, as the nightmare of his lifetime, had left an infinite shadow in his heart. He was very sure that if he dared to utter a ‘no,’ Ian would definitely throw him back into prison.

So, Buggy shamefully yielded once again.

“That’s more like it!” Ian happily patted Buggy’s shoulder. He didn’t know if it was because he had been out for a long time, but he felt a nostalgic sentiment towards the people he had met in the East Blue. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have taken them with him when he saw Cabaji and the others.

“If possible, please protect me too! If I have to go to Level 5, I might be able to be of some help!”

Just then, a voice suddenly rang out from the adjacent cell next to Buggy. Ian turned to look and found a man wearing glasses.

“Who are you?” Luffy asked, tilting his head.

“It’s me, Mr. 3!” The man with glasses quickly grabbed his hair on top, forming a ‘3’ with his fingers to remind Luffy.

Bentham, who had transformed into the appearance of Vice Admiral Momonga in the middle of all this, couldn’t help but burst into laughter when he saw Mr. 3. He quickly touched his face, transforming back, and said, “Hey hey, Number 3! It’s me! Mr. 2!”

Chuckling, Mr. 3 also burst into laughter. He had initially sought help upon recognizing familiar faces from the Straw Hat Pirates, including Luffy and Zoro. However, he hadn’t expected that among the prison breakers, there were also his former colleagues from the Baroque Works!

Now things were looking up. There was no need for a formal request; the group promptly released him.

Ian hadn’t crossed paths with Mr. 3 before. When he initially went to Alabasta, Mr. 3 seemed to be on an external mission. However, upon seeing two Baroque Works members, Ian suddenly recalled that Crocodile was also imprisoned in Impel Down. If it weren’t for Mr. 3’s unexpected appearance, Ian might have forgotten. Thus, he couldn’t help but ask… about his friend!

“Yes, Lord Ian!” Mr. 3 showed great respect to Ian, responding, “In fact, we were captured together initially. I was imprisoned on the second level, while our boss and Mr. 1 were locked away on the fifth level. After all, he was once a Shichibukai, and his crimes were more severe.”

At this point, Mr. 3 suddenly knelt in front of Ian and implored, “My Lord, considering that he followed you to face Doflamingo back then, I beg you to also save our boss!”

“Oh!?” Ian looked at Mr. 3 with some surprise and said, “I didn’t expect you to be quite loyal to him!”

“It’s not that simple!” Mr. 3 self-mockingly chuckled, saying, “Impel Down is a living hell. I’m stuck on the second level, wishing for a quick death. I have no idea if our boss is enduring even more misery on the fifth level. I just can’t bear the thought that, even if he must atone for his sins, he shouldn’t be subjected to such torment.”

Ian didn’t respond, only saying, “Let’s go, we’ll talk more when we reach the fifth level.”

So, Mr. 3 dared not say anything more, stood up, and followed behind the group.

As they continued forward, Ian and the others encountered more ferocious creatures: the foolish-looking, human-faced lions, constantly muttering strange words. These creatures appeared in groups, and despite their seemingly silly demeanor, once they caught someone, they would bite and devour them. In the second level of the prison, dozens of people were said to lose their lives annually, becoming these creatures’ snacks.

Unfortunately for these human-faced lions, they weren’t facing the lone warrior, Luffy, who had historically fought valiantly. Instead, they were confronted by Ian, leading a substantial force.

Considering the prisoners released from the first and second levels, excluding those who went to guard the passages and eliminate the prison guards, there were still over a hundred individuals following behind Ian. The snowball effect was in full swing.

The prisoners, who had long lived in the shadows of these ferocious creatures, unleashed their pent-up rage upon them once freed. They swarmed in groups, surrounding a single human-faced lion. While the lion was occupied with biting one person, the others attacked from the sides, using sticks and axes to break the lion’s legs. Then, they pinned it to the ground, raining down various weapons until it was a bloody mess.

The scene was somewhat gruesome. The human-faced lions killed by the prisoners often still had a fellow inmate’s body clamped in their jaws. Nami found it difficult to watch and clung tightly to Ian’s clothes, avoiding the sight.

However, Ian didn’t find anything amiss. The inmates inside the prison were probably the most longing for freedom. Regardless of whether they were former pirates or criminals, ultimately, they were still human. Once they saw the hope of freedom, such eruptions were normal.

In the process of fighting for freedom, some people died, and others survived. This, too, was quite normal.

However, Luffy and the others couldn’t help but feel a lingering unease as they watched the scene. Luffy said, “If we had been captured on Sabaody Archipelago, we might have ended up here, huh?”

…

In the monitoring room of Impel Down, the scene of Ian and his group was observed by the guards. Besides recognizing Ian, they also identified the others.

“Trafalgar Law from the Heart Pirates, Urouge from the Fallen Monk Pirates, and the Straw Hat Pirates!”

“God, they are all pirates with bounties exceeding a hundred million! How did they end up associating with Ian, one of the Seven Warlords!?”

“Now even Buggy’s Pirate Crew has appeared!”

“That vice admiral is indeed a fake! The one impersonating him is the wanted criminal Mr. 2 from the Baroque Works!”

“It seems they are here for the imprisoned Jinbe and Crocodile on the fifth level!”

“Should we immediately transfer these two? If Black Dragon Ian rescues them, we’ll be facing three Shichibukais!”

Hearing this possibility, the guards in the monitoring room couldn’t help but shudder collectively. They then frantically sprang into action, contacting the guards on the fifth level of the prison.

However, the fifth level of the prison was known as the Floor of Freezing Hell. With the frosty weather and freezing temperatures, even the guards hesitated to stay there. It was uncertain how long it would take for the guards to mobilize and transfer the two Warlords.

Fortunately, at this moment, some good news finally arrived.

A guard who had been continuously communicating with the Marine Headquarters suddenly jumped up, shouting, “Connected! Finally connected! The interference is gone, and we’ve established contact with the headquarters!”

Little did they know that the disappearance of interference meant that outside, Enel had successfully completed his mission. He had completely obliterated the Marine warships surrounding the prison.

Regardless, the current situation in Impel Down had finally been reported to the Marine Headquarters.

When fleet Admiral Sengoku received the report about Impel Down, stating that the Black Dragon Ian had suddenly appeared, infiltrated the prison, and triggered a massive riot among the inmates, even Sengoku couldn’t help but leap up!

“Damn it! What the hell is going on!?” Sengoku angrily pounded the table, shouting into the microphone, “How could Ian get close to Impel Down!? Are you all blind? How could you let his ship approach!?”

“Y-your Excellency, we couldn’t do anything!” The guards at Impel Down lamented, their faces gloomy. “They arrived on the warship of Vice Admiral Momonga, but both he and Pirate Empress Boa Hancock were impersonated by these people. We failed to notice, allowing them to enter Impel Down. Now they’ve reached the second level and are heading towards the third. It seems they intend to rescue Jinbe and Crocodile. We can’t resist them at all, we urgently need reinforcements!”

Upon hearing this, Admiral Sengoku’s mind thundered, and he was momentarily stunned. Right, why didn’t he think of this? Jinbe and Crocodile, who had fought alongside Ian against Doflamingo on Dressrosa, surely had some connection with him. It was only natural for Ian to rescue them if they were captured!

Sengoku had been extremely occupied recently with the plan to eradicate the Whitebeard Pirates, and he had overlooked this crucial point. It was a loophole. Additionally, Ian had left Marine Headquarters heading toward Sabaody Archipelago, leading Sengoku to believe he intended to return to the New World from Fish-Man Island. Little did he anticipate that Ian would abruptly change course and infiltrate Impel Down!

Negligence! He had been negligent!

Now, Admirals Kizaru and Aokiji had already been dispatched to support Admiral Akainu in the New World against Whitebeard’s forces. Originally, Sengoku planned to gather the remaining Warlords and lead an elite Marine force to the Edd War Sea. But now, with Ian stabbing them in the back at Impel Down, the situation became complicated.

Undoubtedly, Ian’s timing was impeccable. The war was not taking place in Marineford, but in the New World. Sengoku had intended to dispatch reinforcements after assembling the remaining Warlords, but Ian, unexpectedly, struck at Impel Down.

Careless! He was careless!

Now, Sengoku faces a dilemma. If he sent support, at least five or six Vice Admirals would need to go together to have a chance at stopping Ian. Dozens of warships would also be necessary. This meant the Marine’s war effort in the New World would undoubtedly be affected.

However, if he refrained from sending reinforcements and Ian broke through Impel Down, it would be the Navy’s second disgrace. The consequences might be more significant than the escape of 2 former Warlords.

How could he explain this to the World Government? How could he justify it to the world?