One piece : Celestial Rose

The next morning had arrived. It was time for Mark to leave the Holy Land and go on an adventure.

Mark was currently packing his bags—no, Mark's servants were packing his bags for him.

"Have you made your decision? What do you want to be during your journey?"

Saint Saturn asked his successor about his plans.

"Yes, teacher, I have decided to become a pirate."

"As a pirate, I can experience this filthy world more deeply."

Mark spoke to Saturn on a denden mushi; he had decided to head out of the holy land and become a pirate.

His plan seemed logical to Saint Saturn. Pirates were definitely more in touch with the lower realm.

But pirates and celestial dragons were opposite forces; he couldn't let Mark become a regular pirate.

"I will allow you to become a pirate during your journey."

"But you must not be a no-name pirate; you will become a warlord of the sea."

Opening two wanted posters Saturn looked at the two criminals on it.

"A few days ago the warlord Hanafuda was defeated by Portgas D. Ace."

"Hanafuda is no longer a warlord; I will recommend you as the next warlord."

This was the arrangement Saint Saturn had come up with. As a warlord, Mark can be a pirate while also staying connected with the holy land.

Mark himself had no issues with this arrangement.

He will hide his identity during his travels; having a warlord status meant the marines would ignore his actions.

"Seems like you agree."

"Then I will call Sengoku and recommend you as the next warlord."

"Sengoku will know your identity, but nobody else will."

Saturn smiled.

"This way you can experience the sea in its true form."

"You will understand how filthy the lower realm is and how insignificant the insects living there are."

"Go Mark, fight who you want, kill who you want, enslave who you want."

"Tell us when you have had enough; we will welcome you back to the holy land."

After giving his blessings, Saturn cut the call and started communicating with Sengoku.

Mark sighed and rubbed his hair. He could finally leave the holy land; he had a few years until they called him back.

'I will use this time to build my army; when I return, I will capture Im's throne.'

Mark's dream was to sit upon the empty throne; he was going to backstab Im the first chance he got.

But before attacking Im, he needed to build a massive army. So massive that it puts the void century war to shame.

Joy Boy had lost to Im even after he awakened Nika and had every race on the planet fighting against Im at the same time.

Defeating Im was going to be extremely difficult. To beat Im, Mark had to gather the strongest people in this world under him.

'The first step to building my army is to get a position of power.'

Warlord of the Sea was such a position, and a marine ship should be arriving soon, to make him an official warlord.

_Tick_

Mark's fax Denden mushi suddenly spit out a paper. Taking it out of the snail's mouth, Mark read the instructions.

"A marine vessel is waiting for me just below the red line."

"They are here to make me an official warlord; I should meet them."

Pocketing the instructions, Mark took one last look at the Rose residence and left his house.

From the moment he steps out of this house, his identity as a celestial dragon will be hidden.

He felt emotional, but he moved forward regardless after waving his parents goodbye.

Mark walked alone for a while before he reached the edge of the red line and looked down.

'The marines are waiting for me down there, but I can't take the elevator.'

'I am no longer a celestial dragon; I don't have the authority to use it.'

Looking down from the edge of the red line, Mark noticed just how high up this place was.

Holy Land was built on top of this giant red rock, which was around 10 kilometers above sea level.

If Mark wanted to go down, he had to climb around 10 kilometers before reaching the ocean.

"That's far too long; I am not climbing that much."

Mark cracked his neck.

"I have a better idea; I will fly down."

"Life return, hair glider technique!"

The hair on Mark's head grew at an astonishing rate; it stretched and contracted until it was in the shape of a hand glider.

Taking a step back, Mark ran and jumped off the edge. Yet instead of falling off the cliff, Mark started gliding down.

The hand glider made of hair stiffened and took Mark flying like a bird; the cold winds were rapidly hitting his face.

"!!!"

Adrenaline coursed through Mark's veins as he zoomed through the air, quickly approaching the ground.

Mark had taken a leap of faith. His self-made hand glider had no brakes, and neither did it have a control system.

It ran on only one thing: Mark's faith in his abilities and his confidence in the technique of life return.

"Vice Admiral Doll, somebody just jumped off the red line."

Down on the ocean, a marine ship was parked, and the sailors onboard had noticed Mark jump off the cliff.

They quickly notified their captain, Vice Admiral Doll, about this situation.

Doll climbed on top of the observation deck, picked up a telescope, and took a closer look at the man.

"That's the newly appointed Warlord we are supposed to meet."

Doll recognized Mark from the poster.

"Get ready to save him."

She commanded her men. But after knowing who this was, some of her men were hesitant about following her orders.

That was a warlord, which means he was a legal pirate. He was someone who could loot, murder, and burn when he wanted.

Many justice-filled marines hated the existence of warlords.

"Vice Admiral Doll, sorry, but I don't think we should save him."

A scarred marine said with his head down.

"We can't kill him, but we can let him fall to his death."

"That way, there will be one less scum in the sea."