Location: Grand Line – 4 Days After the Bounty Release
The Red Blade sailed under a sky of gold and rust, clouds curving in unnatural spirals. The waters were warm, yet the air held a chill that kissed the back of the neck like a whispered warning.
They had entered a region the charts refused to name.
Officially, it was a dead zone.
Unofficially, it was called:
The Forgotten Sea.
Strategy Deck – The Plan
"Why are we here again?" Makino asked, arms crossed, glancing at the blank patch on the map.
Shanks spun a dagger between his fingers and pointed to an old rune etched on the relic Ankit had picked up from Aelros.
"It pulsed once. Faintly. But it reacted to something in this area."
Benn placed a second rune stone beside it—one they had found after the battle at Virmor.
"They both match. That can't be a coincidence."
Ankit leaned forward. His system pulsed softly in the back of his mind. The closer they got, the more the pressure behind his eyes throbbed like a second heartbeat.
"I don't know what's calling me," he said, "but it's old. Older than anything I've felt before."
Shanks nodded, unusually serious.
"We're not here to fight. We're here to find a piece of the truth."
Location: The Sea's Heart – Mist Zone
As the ship pushed deeper, the fog thickened into walls.
Sound became muffled. Wind ceased to stir. Even the Den Den Mushi used for communication shivered and retreated into their shells.
Then—
System Alert: "Resonant Zone Entered – High Relic Energy Detected."
Synaptic Overload Risk: 32%
Combat Protocol: Suppress active skills unless under attack.
Ankit staggered briefly, leaning on the mast.
Makino steadied him. "You alright?"
He nodded. "The system's being... careful. This place has a pulse. I feel it."
Then, the mist parted—
And the sea ended.
Location: The Graveplate Expanse
The ship halted before a sudden drop—a cliff in the middle of the ocean.
Below, no water.
Just thousands of half-submerged stone plates, each carved with names in dozens of dead languages.
Some were cracked. Others glowing faintly. One bore the symbol of the Stormmark itself.
Ankit stepped to the bow.
The moment his foot crossed the edge—
System Sync Surge: +2.5%
Initiating Memory Key Reconstruction – Stormmark Archive Thread 1 Unlocked.
His eyes widened.
He saw a time before pirates. Before marines.
Before even the World Government.
Vision – The First Stormmarked
A war-torn world. Fire in the skies. Colossal beasts—neither marine nor celestial—crawling from broken stars.
And in the center stood seven warriors.
One bore twin blades, eyes like a storm. Another wielded a spear of light. The rest were shadows lost in flame.
They were the First Bearers.
Guardians of relics no nation should hold.
The twin-blade warrior turned—
Ankit saw himself.
No—someone who looked like him.
Then the image broke.
System Stabilized.
Stormmark Archive Thread 1 Saved.
Below Deck – After the Vision
Makino wrapped a wet cloth over Ankit's neck as he lay on a cot.
"You saw something, didn't you?" she asked quietly.
He nodded. "I saw… the beginning. Or at least, a piece of it. We're not the first to carry these marks. There were others. A long time ago."
Benn leaned against the wall, arms folded.
"History the World Government erased, no doubt."
Shanks stepped in last, tossing a dented relic shard onto the table.
"Which means we're walking in the footsteps of enemies they thought were extinct."
Elsewhere – Unknown Cliffside
The hooded figure from before stood atop a dead relic monolith, his eyes glowing faint orange under the veil.
He now had four bounty posters in his hand—Shanks, Ankit, Makino, Benn.
A wild grin broke across his face.
"They're nearing the heart. Excellent."
He pulled back his hood.
His face was twisted—half human, half burn-scarred storm matter, pulsating faintly like living metal.
Name: Saris Vant.
Alias: "The Warden of Ruin."
Bounty: 777,000,000 Berries.
On the Ship – Midnight Intrusion
That night, the crew slept fitfully.
Even Shanks had a restless gaze, sitting atop the crow's nest with his sword unsheathed.
Then—
CLANG.
The ship lurched.
From the mist—it appeared.
A massive relic beast made of coral, bone, and molten gold. A sea guardian of the old age—reawakened by the relic pulse.
It slammed its claws into the ship's side.
Ankit was on his feet before the second impact.
System Combat Lock Engaged.
Monster Rank: Relic-Class Aberrant (Grade: S)
Name: Hollow Maw of the Tide.
Caution: Physical strikes ineffective until relic pulse suppressed.
Makino joined him, knives ready. Benn already fired a flare into the air to reveal its shape.
Shanks leapt from the mast, landing beside Ankit.
"Well," he grinned, "guess the sea wanted to test us."
Battle – The Hollow Maw
The beast was huge—twice the size of a sea king, but with no real body. Its outer form constantly shifted—shells snapping, bones reforming.
Every time someone struck it, the impact dispersed like a splash against air.
System: Recommend synchronized relic pulse from all nearby Stormmarks.
Initiating experimental field sync…
Ankit's arms glowed.
The blade in his right hand resonated.
His left blade responded in kind.
Then, as he swung—
A golden slash connected.
The beast screamed—a horrific sound like storms drowning screams.
The others followed up.
Shanks drove his blade into the beast's eye. Makino cut tendons forming along its neck. Benn overloaded a flare into the creature's exposed marrow.
Together, they brought it down.
Aftermath – Silent Waters
The beast dissolved back into seafoam.
The crew gathered around Ankit, who still trembled from the aftershock of syncing both blades.
System Update: Twin Flow Style – Level 10 Reached
Spectral Cut unlocked to Tier II.
Relic Resonance Trait Evolving...
Shanks clapped him on the back.
"You're getting scary, kid."
Ankit smiled weakly.
"I'm still just catching up."
Makino added, "You're catching up too fast."
Benn said nothing, but the way he looked at the monolith grave sea… said enough.
This wasn't just another mystery.
It was the edge of something the world had buried deep.
And they had just peeled off the first layer.
🔹 SYSTEM PANEL – Ankit 🔹
System Sync: 40.9%
Skill Level (Twin Flow Style): 10.0
Spectral Cut Tier II:
Dual echo strikes now carry elemental disruption—shatter relic-based defenses. Cooldown: 6 seconds.
New Trait (Locked): Relic Echo Signature
Increases chance of activating vision threads. Possible side effect: shared hallucinations in party.
Status: Relic Adaption Level 2
+10% defense vs relic-based monsters.
Final Scene – Unknown Location
In a chamber of thorns and relic crystal, a giant orb pulsed.
Figures stood around it—cloaked, masked, silent.
One spoke:
"He's nearing the Gate."
Another hissed: "Then the Stormmarked Trials must begin."