Aside from Bon Clay, who was acting alongside the Straw Hat crew, all the Baroque Works operatives with Devil Fruit abilities were shot dead by Maude.
The continuous stream of experience points pushed the Devil Fruit level on Maude's Hunter's Notebook past the fifth star and was on the verge of forming the sixth star frame.
Maude had a feeling.
If the Devil Fruit's power successfully broke through six stars—
Then his development idea for the Shadow Casket might become a reality.
The substantial gains put Maude in high spirits, not to mention that a boss-level experience was still waiting for him to claim.
He wondered if any of the fruits he had brought along would yield a windfall, perhaps capturing one or even two "devils".
As for three or more?
That was almost impossible.
Unless—
With his godlike, third-person omniscient perspective as a transmigrator—
Setting aside the method of guiding Law to use the Ope Ope no Mi to 100% obtain Devil Fruits—
The chance of a devil's power successfully attaching to nearby fruit was astronomically low. The idea itself was already unrealistic, let alone achieving a 100% success rate.
However—
In this world, there existed something like the Luck-Luck Fruit.
Its ability allowed the user to extract fortune from others, convert it for self-use, or transfer it to another target.
As long as fortune was sufficient, the one possessing it could make the impossible possible—
Including the probability of a devil's power attaching to nearby fruit.
This was the only method Maude could think of as a transmigrator.
In fact, he believed that after the Marineford War, the Blackbeard Pirates' large-scale hunting of ability users was likely carried out using a similar method.
If anyone in the Blackbeard Pirates had a power akin to the Luck-Luck Fruit—
In Maude's opinion, the ship doctor Doc Q was the most probable candidate.
Maude originally wanted to open the pouch to see if he'd won the jackpot, but Vivi's sudden arrival made him change his mind.
He pushed open the clock face and appeared before the Straw Hat Pirates.
His unexpected entrance left the Straw Hat Pirates stunned.
Vivi, flying toward the clock tower, was equally shocked.
She had mentally prepared herself to face the gunner, never expecting to be greeted by Maude instead.
Thus, the scene of Vivi flying directly into the clock tower unfolded.
However, despite Maude's presence, the crisis was far from over.
Vivi, gritting through the pain, quickly straightened herself. She had no time to notice the two corpses nearby.
When she looked at Maude, she hadn't even opened her mouth before he spoke.
"Do you want to stop all of this?"
"..."
Vivi's eyes trembled, staring at Maude.
Regardless of what all of this entailed—
After witnessing the Royal Army and the Rebel Army slaughtering each other, Vivi could only place her hopes on the man before her.
Because she already understood—
Even if Luffy defeated Crocodile, it wouldn't stop the blood-crazed armies.
Neutralizing the bomb would only alleviate the immediate danger.
If the war wasn't stopped soon, hundreds of thousands would still die.
That was a result Vivi could not bear to see.
But there was nothing she could do.
Whether against the countless soldiers risking their lives, or the custom-made bomb with a diameter of over three meters—
Her strength, her capabilities—were all... too insignificant.
The helplessness she felt in the plaza now became the last straw to cling to.
"I want... to stop all of this!"
"Stop the explosion!"
"Stop the war!"
"But... I'm too weak... I can't do anything..."
"If it weren't for Luffy and the others, I wouldn't have even made it here..."
Tears welled in Vivi's eyes. The shell of strength she'd clung to finally shattered under the crushing weight of responsibility.
"As you wish."
Maude tossed the massive black bomb in his hand, as if it were a light egg weighing only a few dozen grams.
The casual motion made Vivi and the Straw Hat Pirates below break into cold sweats.
Maude caught the bomb steadily.
Only about three seconds remained before the second hand reached the end.
"After all, I'm also within the blast radius."
Maude smiled at Vivi before flexing his arm and hurling the oversized bomb into the sky.
Whoosh—!
With astonishing strength, the custom-made bomb shot through the air like a rainbow piercing the sun, disappearing from sight in an instant.
It was expected to explode in two seconds.
If detonated high in the air, no one would be harmed.
"Thank goodness..."
Vivi collapsed to her knees, her tears splashing onto the dusty ground.
Below the clock tower, the Straw Hat Pirates stared wide-eyed at the figure above.
"Such terrifying strength."
Had they not seen it themselves, they could never have imagined Maude throwing such a heavy bomb as if it were a marble.
At least the bomb that could annihilate the entire plaza was finally dealt with.
They relaxed—until—
"Wait."
Usopp adjusted his goggles, exclaiming, "The bomb... hasn't exploded!"
Before Maude threw the bomb, Usopp saw through his goggles that only three seconds remained on the timer.
Yet three seconds had passed—
The bomb hadn't exploded.
"It didn't detonate?!"
The Straw Hat Pirates tensed again, their brief relief shattered.
On the clock tower—
Maude and Vivi realized the same.
"No explosion?"
Vivi bolted upright, staring at the tranquil sky, unable to see the bomb.
Maude calmly said, "Most likely, Crocodile set it for a delayed detonation. What a cruel joke."
"If it falls..."
Vivi's face went pale.
Maude raised his flintlock pistol, its jade-white barrel gleaming.
"It won't."
He squeezed the trigger.
Bang!
The Haki-imbued bullet shot skyward.
Everyone's eyes followed the trajectory.
The absurd notion struck them—
Was he trying to shoot down a bomb far beyond their vision?
Yet before they could fully comprehend—
A distant explosion boomed from the sky.
A tidal wave of air pressure crashed down, toppling soldiers and horses alike.
"Is this... really something a human can do?"
The Straw Hat Pirates stood agape.
It was truly masterful skill.
On the clock tower—
Vivi clutched her mouth, disbelief filling her eyes.
This man... really did it.
Maude holstered his gun and glanced at Vivi's shocked face.
"The explosion is stopped—but the war still rages on."
Vivi stiffened and turned to the plaza.
Despite the explosion's force, the soldiers had resumed their killing.
They were blinded by rage.
Not even a thunderous explosion could quell them.
"Why..."
Vivi's face drained of color.
"I don't want to see anyone else bleed..."
"Please, stop fighting!!!"
Her desperate cries were drowned out by the cacophony of battle.
Maude watched her, his voice calm.
"Words can inspire—but not quell anger. Only a downpour can douse their flames."
He glanced at the clear sky.
Without unconventional methods, rain would never fall.
"If the rain won't come—then I'll bring it."
He stepped forward onto a shadowy bridge conjured by his powers.
"Perona, follow me."
Floating up from the stairwell, Perona obeyed, though clueless about his intentions.
-------
Want to read waaaay ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/EmperorGarus [remove the parenthesis ( )]
There are more than 400 advance chapters available for you!