Redfield shook his head at Brook. There was no way this government spy would simply surrender to the Hell Pirates so easily!
"Poor thing, were you an orphan raised by the World Government? If you've been completely brainwashed, then there's nothing I can do. But I promise you this— from now on, we are your family!"
Brook had no choice but to let the Memory Seahorse devour her memories. But before that, Redfield would take a look at what secrets lay within her mind.
"Captain Brook, I truly despise the Celestial Dragons. Time and again, they have violated my body. I have no family. I only want to pursue a life of freedom. Please, take me with you— make me part of your family and free me from their control!"
Stussy screamed hysterically, her desperate cries even affecting someone as shrewd as Shakky. If Redfield hadn't been shaking his head, even Brook might have been fooled by her performance.
Would a CP agent, trained for over a decade, really defect just because of a few words? What did she take him for— some kind of naive prince who could talk his way into flipping even the most hardened enemies, like those bosses who'd held onto their convictions for decades?
Brook walked up to Stussy, who was crying her eyes out, and gently stroked her head. Stussy thought she had been accepted—but the next moment, a sharp pain struck her neck, and she lost consciousness instantly.
"Captain Brook, you—!!"
Shakky and the others were taken aback. Wasn't he planning to recruit this poor agent? What happened to making her part of the family?
"Did you really think a few words could turn a government-trained assassin against her masters? You're too naive. I'll admit, her acting was top-tier."
Brook tossed Stussy over to Redfield and the Memory Seahorse. First, they would extract her memories—then erase them.
"So she was just acting? Tsk, what a waste of my emotions. I even shed a tear for her."
Shakky dramatically wiped away a nonexistent tear, while the ever-gullible Linlin had actually been fooled into crying. The rest of the crew, all tough men, subtly turned away to hide the fact that they, too, had been momentarily moved.
Redfield scanned through Stussy's memories and recited her past for all to hear.
"Stussy, age 17. Taken at six years old for training, mastering Rokushiki. At 14, she was selected as a CP9 candidate.
Later, she caught the attention of the Celestial Dragons. With both beauty and strength, she was taken to Mary Geoise and trained further, becoming a CP0 candidate, the so-called 'strongest shield.' Exceptionally gifted, she mastered Seimei Kikan within two years and developed advanced Rokushiki techniques, with Shigan being her strongest move.
Upon completing her current mission, she was to be officially inducted into CP0, with a chance to become the youngest female CP0 agent in over 700 years."
Hearing this, the crew finally understood the caliber of the agent before them.
No wonder she called Big Mom 'Linlin'—she was actually a year older than her! Her racial talent for maintaining her beauty was truly astounding.
Rob Lucci had slaughtered 500 soldiers and a pirate crew at age 13, earning his place in CP9 and the title of its youngest, strongest member in 800 years.
Compared to him, Stussy's stats weren't any worse. The World Government really did have an eye for talent.
"Write down the training methods for Seimei Kikan and advanced Rokushiki. From now on, they belong to us."
Brook sighed in relief. Fortunately, Stussy was still young and hadn't learned Haki yet. Otherwise, she would've been a much more formidable opponent. If she had resisted, even surrounded by the Hell Pirates, she would've been tough to subdue.
But instead of fighting back, she'd gambled on her acting skills to complete her mission—allowing Brook to capture her so easily. Had she succeeded and returned to CP0, learned Haki, and further honed her skills, her strength would've reached an entirely new level.
Brook let the Memory Seahorse consume three years of Stussy's memories, reverting her mind to when she was just a 14-year-old CP9 candidate—before she was selected by the Celestial Dragons.
This way, he wouldn't have to train her from scratch. Erasing all 11 years of memories would have left him with a six-year-old girl, and even with her natural talent, she'd need years of retraining.
...
When Stussy woke up, she found herself in an unfamiliar place. Instinctively, she leapt to her feet, warily eyeing the strangers around her. As a CP9 candidate, she immediately recognized them as pirates.
Wasn't she supposed to be on Island, training in Rokushiki with her fellow candidates? She had been the strongest among them, on the verge of becoming a CP9 recruit and taking on real missions.
Brook was prepared for this. He pulled out a Sound Dial containing Stussy's own voice—recorded when she cursed the Celestial Dragons—and played it back while watching her reaction. If this didn't work, he'd let the Memory Seahorse erase even more memories.
Stussy listened to the voice coming from the shell, a familiar yet unbelievable sound—her own voice, cursing the Celestial Dragons?
As a CP9 candidate, her main task was training, but they had already begun indoctrinating her with loyalty to the Celestial Dragons and the World Government.
"Stussy, have you forgotten your own words? You cursed the Celestial Dragons, and now you're being hunted by the World Government, the Marines, and CP itself. We saved you. What now? Will you attack us? Or do you want to go back and die at their hands?"
Brook's words hit her like a hammer. That voice was definitely hers. Did she really curse the Celestial Dragons?
"How… how could this be?"
Had she already made such a grave mistake? Before she could even begin executing justice in the shadows, had she already signed her own death warrant?
"Did you lose your memory? You told us yourself that you wanted to be part of our family!"
Brook pulled out another Sound Dial, this one containing Stussy's desperate plea to join them and escape the Celestial Dragons' control.
I lost my memory? I cursed the Celestial Dragons? I wanted these pirates to be my family?
Stussy touched her tear-streaked face. Had she really been crying? Had she truly joined them? Become a pirate?
Otherwise, why was she in this unfamiliar place? Surely these pirates wouldn't have dared to infiltrate a secret CP training facility just to kidnap her.
"Where am I? Who are you people?"
Even as a CP candidate, her training kicked in—first, assess her surroundings.
"This is Elan Island in the New World. We are the Hell Pirates—your new family. You no longer need to fear the Celestial Dragons."
Brook calmly explained, relieved that Golden Ark's crew hadn't come ashore. Otherwise, they might have figured out what had happened.
But even if they had, what could they do? Fight back? No—Stussy's life was far better now, even if she didn't remember it.
"The New World...?"
Stussy started to believe them. Her training island had been hidden somewhere in the Grand Line. How had she suddenly arrived in the New World? This was beyond her comprehension.
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+122 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg