On the open ground in front of the dismantling house, the entire Franky Family had lost their ability to fight. They were bound by invisible chains of compressed air, lying on the ground, unable to move.
Right in front of Iceburg, Rorschach had Penn open the large chest for inspection, revealing that only five billion Berries remained inside.
"Speak up! Where did that lunatic go? Where's the other five billion Berries? Did he take the money and run, leaving you all behind to cover for him?"
Hibari angrily questioned the immobilized Zambai.
"Shut up, woman! I won't let you insult Big Bro Franky—he's not that kind of person!"
Zambai shouted stubbornly, his neck stiff with defiance.
"Brigadier General Rorschach, what should we do now? These people…"
Penn awaited Rorschach's orders.
Rorschach closed the chest lid, blocking Barry's money-shaped eyes, then sat on top of it. He turned to Penn and asked, "Penn, do you know the punishment for stealing a large sum of navy military funds and attacking navy personnel?"
Penn thought for a moment before responding loudly, "At the very least, it's a sentence of ten years or more. These individuals will be sent to Enies Lobby for trial, and then imprisoned in Impel Down."
"Im… Impel Down?"
At the mention of the infamous prison, the once-defiant Zambai and his companions visibly paled.
Fear, panic, and despair flashed across their faces, and some even began to sob uncontrollably.
To ordinary people, Impel Down was synonymous with hell.
But Penn wasn't finished.
He continued in a solemn tone, "And for the primary offender who stole military funds—if they fail to return the full amount—the punishment is death."
The words "death penalty" struck like a bolt of lightning.
The Franky Family trembled violently, their hearts turning ice-cold.
Even Barry, Tilestone, and the others felt their entire bodies tense up.
Iceburg's expression grew incredibly heavy.
Sweat beaded on his forehead, revealing his inner turmoil.
"Big Bro Franky… will… will be sentenced to death?"
Zambai's face turned deathly pale, his eyes filled with terror.
"No! Don't kill Big Bro Franky! Navy, we beg you!"
Kiwi and Moz, still lying on the ground, could no longer hold back their tears.
Iceburg forced himself to remain calm and walked up to Rorschach.
"Brigadier General Rorschach, may I have a few words with them?"
"Of course, Mr. Iceburg."
With Rorschach's permission, Iceburg's expression darkened as he crouched down in front of Zambai and asked in a serious tone, "Zambai, tell me—where did Franky go?"
Zambai, overwhelmed by fear, was on the verge of losing all rational thought.
"Snap out of it! If you don't want Franky to be sentenced to death, tell me where he went—right now! There might still be a chance to fix this!"
Iceburg's sharp reprimand finally pulled Zambai back from his state of panic.
Tears welled up in his reddened eyes as he stared at Iceburg, his voice almost pleading.
"Mayor Iceburg, please! You have to save Big Bro Franky! He can't die…!"
"Enough nonsense! Where is he?"
"He… he took the five billion Berries and left by sea. He said he was going to buy Adam Wood…"
Zambai's voice choked with sobs.
The moment he heard that Franky might face the death penalty, sheer terror consumed him.
Escape was impossible.
With that navy officer's strength, even if Big Bro Franky himself were here, he probably wouldn't stand a chance.
Zambai now only hoped that Big Bro Franky wouldn't come back.
"As expected! That idiot!"
Iceburg clenched his fists, wishing he could punch Franky right now.
But at this point, complaining was meaningless.
What mattered now was figuring out how to resolve this situation.
The best outcome would be to minimize the impact and keep things from escalating to the level that the "Ship Slayer" had mentioned.
Otherwise, Franky would be in serious danger!
With that thought in mind, Iceburg forced a smile and approached Rorschach, speaking in a calm, friendly tone:
"Brigadier General Rorschach, may I have a private word with you?"
"Sure. Where to?" Rorschach stood up.
"My office."
Rorschach nodded, gave Hibari some brief instructions to watch over the Berries, and then left with Iceburg.
Kalifa attempted to follow, but a single cold glance from Rorschach made her freeze in place, a chill running down her spine.
Ten minutes later, at the mayor's office in the Galley-La Company headquarters…
"Please, have a seat, Brigadier General Rorschach. Would you like something to drink? I have wine, tea, and juice."
Iceburg gestured for Rorschach to sit while he walked over to a mini-fridge in the corner.
Rorschach's sharp eyes caught sight of a few familiar bottles inside, making his eyes light up.
"Iceburg-san, is that… cola? I'd love a bottle, please."
"Yes, it's cola."
Iceburg smiled, took out a bottle, and handed it to Rorschach before sitting down.
Rorschach looked at the familiar glass bottle, opened the cap with anticipation, and took a large gulp.
"Ahh… refreshing. Yep, this is cola. A nostalgic taste of carbonated bliss."
Spanning across two worlds, Rorschach had finally tasted a flavor he thought he might never experience again. It stirred something deep within him.
"You seem unfamiliar with cola, Brigadier General," Iceburg observed with a smile.
"Yeah, my hometown is in the North Blue. This kind of trendy drink doesn't seem too popular there."
Rorschach took another long sip and exhaled in satisfaction. Then, with a subtle smile, he turned his gaze toward Iceburg, who seemed hesitant to speak.
"Iceburg-san, you seem quite concerned about this Franky guy."
Iceburg chuckled. "Haha, well, no matter what, he's still a resident of Water 7. As the mayor of this city, I have a duty to look after everyone here."
"So, the reason you wanted to meet privately… is all about Franky?"
"Yes."
Iceburg didn't bother hiding it anymore and spoke in a serious tone.
"Brigadier General Rorschach, first and foremost, on behalf of Water 7, I apologize to the Navy. This incident is my failure as mayor. I failed to manage the city properly, which led to the theft of naval funds and this entire conflict."
"As a gesture of my apology, Galley-La Company is willing to compensate the Navy with two hundred million Berries. Additionally, I will personally ensure that the missing five hundred million Berries taken by Franky is fully repaid.
All I ask is that you show some leniency and not hold Franky and his people accountable too harshly—they're just uneducated brutes who don't know any better."
"Wow, Iceburg-san, you're incredibly generous. So, not only do I lose nothing, but I also gain an extra two hundred million Berries just for coming to Water 7?"
Rorschach leaned back on the couch, casually spinning the cola bottle in his hand.
The one-liter bottle of cola looked comically small in his grip.
"That's exactly right. What do you think?" Iceburg watched Rorschach's expression closely.
Rorschach didn't respond.
He simply kept twirling the cola bottle between his fingers.
The office fell into a heavy silence.
The atmosphere became tense, and Iceburg's heart sank further and further.
Just as he was about to grit his teeth and offer even more Berries, Rorschach suddenly looked at him with a half-smile.
Then, his next words shattered the room like a bombshell—Iceburg's face instantly went pale.
"Iceburg-san, the blueprints for Pluton… they're with Franky, aren't they?"
(End of Chapter)
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