One Piece: TWN 1: The Child Welcomed by the World

In the year 1470 of the Sea Calendar, an extraordinary event took place. Or, more accurately, it was an extraordinary event for Imu.

Imu had been spending her time playing with butterflies in the Flower Chamber when she suddenly sensed something unusual through her Observation Haki.

More precisely, she heard something.

The Red Line beneath her feet seemed to be expressing an overwhelming sense of joy, as though it were celebrating the arrival of someone extraordinary. The sudden discovery made Imu's heart tighten.

She immediately expanded the range of her perception, only to discover that the surrounding seas were displaying similar reactions. The waters were filled with an excitement she had never encountered before.

What was happening?

For perhaps the first time in a long while, Imu felt a genuine sense of unease.

She even considered summoning the Five Elders to investigate. Surely, something significant must have happened for the entire world to react this way.

Could it be that Joy Boy had been resurrected?

If that were the case, just how powerful had the current Joy Boy become to provoke such a reaction from the world itself?

However, after thinking it through, Imu quickly dismissed the possibility. There were still many years remaining before the time foretold by the prophecy.

Perhaps this was some contingency Joy Boy had left behind.

Regardless, she decided to investigate personally. Sending those five old fools would probably accomplish nothing. They might spend days searching without discovering anything useful.

With that decision made, Imu left the Flower Chamber and flew towards the location where she had sensed the growing excitement, following the strange voices coming from the Red Line and the surrounding seas.

The closer she approached, the clearer those voices became.

At first, they were indistinct, almost like distant murmurs. Gradually, however, she began to make out what sounded like a name being repeatedly called.

Although she couldn't distinguish every syllable at first, one thing soon became apparent.

It wasn't Joy Boy.

Imu relaxed considerably upon reaching that conclusion, though she still increased her speed.

As she drew closer, the voices finally became unmistakable.

"Lucifer! Lucifer!"

"Hahahahaha!"

The sound of jubilant laughter accompanied the repeated calls.

When Imu finally arrived at Reverse Mountain, she discovered the source of the commotion.

It was an infant.

Not merely a young child, but a newborn.

Yet, despite his tender age, there was something undeniably extraordinary about him.

Black and red lightning crackled around his tiny body, an unmistakable manifestation of Conqueror's Haki. However, its range was astonishingly limited, confined to the immediate vicinity of the infant.

It was almost as though the world itself had placed a protective barrier around him, preventing his overwhelming aura from spreading too far and attracting unwanted attention.

Unfortunately, the reactions of the Red Line and the surrounding seas were far too pronounced to go unnoticed.

Perhaps that was precisely why only someone capable of hearing the Voice of All Things could discover his existence.

And that was what had ultimately brought Imu here.

As she gazed at the infant floating in midair, an inexplicable feeling suddenly arose within her.

She couldn't explain it, but she instinctively understood something.

Regardless of whether she or Joy Boy ultimately emerged victorious from their long-standing struggle, both of them would eventually be defeated by the child before her.

It was an almost absurd conclusion, considering that the one responsible for such an overwhelming reaction was nothing more than a newborn.

Yet Imu trusted her instincts.

After all, she had lived for eight hundred years. She had witnessed countless events and understood better than most how unpredictable the world could be.

Over the centuries, she had gradually come to accept that she might never become the true master of this world.

As for Joy Boy, she doubted he would ever achieve that either.

However, there was one thing she absolutely could not accept: allowing the world to descend into the chaos and disorder that Joy Boy's ideals might bring.

But now, the appearance of this child presented her with another possibility.

Rather than continuing to struggle against an uncertain future, why not personally guide this extraordinary infant and teach him how to become the master of the world?

As for eliminating him before he could grow into a threat, the thought never even crossed her mind.

Imu didn't believe the world would allow someone so extraordinary to appear without providing him with some form of protection.

Besides, she had never been particularly obsessed with power.

Who exactly was Imu?

She was someone who could spend her days playing with butterflies, content to remain secluded within the Flower Chamber for centuries.

Her ascension to the Empty Throne had never felt like the fulfilment of some grand personal ambition. Rather, it seemed to have happened because the other nineteen members of the original Twenty Kings had reached the end of their lives, leaving her as the only one capable of assuming the position.

Otherwise, why would she have entrusted the entire administration of the World Government to those five fools?

She hardly paid attention to the affairs of the world, preferring to spend her time in the Flower Chamber. The Five Elders had made more than their fair share of foolish decisions over the years. If Imu had genuinely cared about every detail of their administration, she might have disposed of them long ago.

Even if she had once possessed a stronger desire for authority, eight hundred years was an awfully long time. Whatever ambition she might have harboured at the beginning had probably faded considerably.

Perhaps, deep down, this had never been the life she truly wanted.

At this point, Imu could accept almost anything, provided the world was not plunged into complete chaos.

Since that was the case, what was wrong with personally raising this child?

After all, if he truly possessed the potential she sensed, guiding him properly might be the best decision she could make.

Having reached her conclusion, Imu approached the floating infant and gently gathered him into her arms.

The moment the child sensed her goodwill, the black and red lightning surrounding his body gradually disappeared. His overwhelming Conqueror's Haki slowly subsided, just as she had expected.

Imu lowered her gaze towards the infant, a faint look of satisfaction appearing on her face.

She had made her decision.

Without lingering any longer, she turned around and flew at high speed towards Mary Geoise, carrying the newborn in her embrace.

Meanwhile, Lucifer, who was now resting in Imu's arms, could vaguely sense that he was being held by someone.

Unfortunately, he had already lost consciousness after continuously releasing his Conqueror's Haki. As a result, he remained unaware of everything that had happened around him.

To understand how he had arrived in this world, one first needed to understand his previous life.

Lucifer had been abandoned by his biological parents immediately after birth, leaving him an orphan.

Growing up in an orphanage, he had been taught from an early age to be kind, honest, and obedient. More importantly, he had been repeatedly reminded that orphans like them had no one to rely on.

They couldn't afford to offend people outside the orphanage. If they got into trouble, there would be no parents to defend them, no family to stand up for them, and certainly no guarantee that anyone would take their side.

Consequently, Lucifer's childhood had been far from pleasant.

During elementary school, he had frequently been bullied. However, unlike most children in his circumstances, he initially refused to endure it quietly. Whenever someone went too far, he fought back.

Unfortunately, young Lucifer had never properly understood his own strength or the consequences of his actions.

On one occasion, after he retaliated against his bullies, their parents became involved. Rather than investigating what had actually happened, they joined forces to complain to the school, placing all the blame on Lucifer.

The result was simple.

He was expelled.

Fortunately, the orphanage director managed to find him another school. Before allowing him to enrol, however, the director repeatedly warned him not to cause trouble again.

Lucifer listened.

He gradually learned to suppress his temper and endure situations that he would once have confronted directly.

Thankfully, his circumstances at the new school were somewhat better. Nevertheless, being an orphan continued to make him an outsider. Other children often excluded him, and as the years passed, Lucifer became increasingly withdrawn and unsociable.

Unfortunately, as he advanced into the higher grades, his increasingly isolated personality once again made him a convenient target for bullying.

This time, however, he had learned his lesson.

Remembering what had happened during his childhood, he chose to endure everything in silence.

He continued living that way until he finally graduated from university.

After years of studying and struggling, Lucifer had expected that finding a job would finally allow him to live a somewhat better life.

Instead, he discovered that his troubles were far from over.

At work, he faced constant suppression and unfair treatment. His efforts were frequently overlooked, and the people around him seemed perfectly willing to take advantage of his willingness to endure.

Only then did he truly understand how unfortunate his life had been.

Yet what could he do?

He needed money to survive. Without a family to support him or anyone he could depend on, he had little choice but to lower his head and tolerate the circumstances.

Watching anime gradually became one of the few ways he could escape the frustrations of everyday life.

Still, Lucifer wasn't someone who couldn't adapt.

That was simply how life worked. If you couldn't make the world adapt to you, then you had to learn how to adapt to the world.

At least, that was what he had always believed.

Unfortunately, fate seemed determined to test the limits of his patience.

By sheer coincidence, Lucifer eventually encountered the very people who had bullied him during his younger years.

And what did those people want?

They intended to steal the proposal he had spent several consecutive nights working on, then present it as their own achievement to claim the credit.

For more than a decade, Lucifer had endured humiliation, suppression, and injustice.

He had swallowed his anger time and time again, convincing himself that tolerating everything was the only practical way to survive.

But there was a limit to how much a person could endure.

At that moment, something inside him finally snapped.

All the frustration he had accumulated over the years erupted at once.

For the first time in a long while, Lucifer confronted those people without holding back.

His former bullies were clearly taken aback. They had grown accustomed to seeing him as someone who would quietly accept whatever they did. They hadn't expected him to suddenly stand up for himself after all these years.

Their surprise quickly turned into anger.

Unable to tolerate Lucifer's resistance, they grabbed whatever objects were within reach and began attacking him.

That decision proved to be a mistake.

Their actions completely ignited the ferocity Lucifer had suppressed for so long.

He immediately retaliated, managing to take one of them down.

Seeing that Lucifer was no longer someone they could casually intimidate, the others stopped holding back. Their attacks became increasingly vicious, and the confrontation quickly descended into a brutal fight.

Despite the injuries he sustained, Lucifer continued fighting.

Eventually, he seized an opportunity and managed to grab a fruit knife.

With it in his hand, he stabbed one of his attackers several times.

However, the injuries he had sustained were already too severe. His body had reached its limit, and he could no longer maintain his strength.

In the end, Lucifer collapsed.

His entire body was battered and covered in blood, but strangely enough, he felt something he had never experienced before.

Exhilaration.

For the first time in his life, he had genuinely released the frustration that had been weighing on him for so many years.

It was a pity that he hadn't managed to take down a few more of them.

Still, exchanging one for two wasn't a bad deal.

At least, that was how Lucifer saw it.

His mood had never been better.

The pain no longer mattered. Neither did the injuries or the consequences of what he had done.

After more than a decade of swallowing his anger, he had finally allowed himself to fight back.

The pent-up frustration that had haunted him for so long had finally found an outlet.

As his consciousness gradually faded, Lucifer felt an unfamiliar sense of relief.

His vision grew increasingly blurred, his thoughts became disjointed, and eventually, he lost consciousness completely.

However, when he regained a little awareness, the first thing he heard was something resembling cheers.

More importantly, those cheers seemed to be directed at him.

Lucifer was momentarily confused.

Someone was actually cheering for him?

Someone genuinely thought what he had done was worth celebrating?

The realisation struck him deeply.

For most of his life, he had been treated as someone insignificant, someone who could be pushed around without consequence. Whenever he encountered injustice, he had been expected to endure it.

Even when he fought back, the people around him had made him feel as though he were the one in the wrong.

But now, for the first time, he could hear voices celebrating his actions.

It was as though someone had finally acknowledged him.

The last knot in Lucifer's heart finally loosened.

The overwhelming emotions that had accumulated throughout his life surged together, and something deep within him awakened.

Conqueror's Haki.

That's right.

At that very moment, Lucifer awakened the rarest form of Haki, the innate power of a king.

Yet he still hadn't realised that he had crossed into another world.

As far as he was concerned, he hadn't died after all. Someone had apparently witnessed what he had done and was cheering him on.

The thought brought him a strange sense of satisfaction.

Unfortunately, his body felt unbearably exhausted.

He had barely regained consciousness before sleep overwhelmed him once again.

And so, Lucifer fell asleep.

When he finally woke up again, however, he immediately realised that something was terribly wrong.

His body felt strange.

His surroundings seemed unfamiliar, and even the way he perceived the world had changed.

After a brief moment of confusion, Lucifer discovered the truth.

He had somehow become a baby.

Not only that, but he was currently being held in the arms of an extraordinarily beautiful woman.

She wore an elegant, floor-length dress whose hem brushed lightly against the ground. Its refined design was conservative without appearing dull, complementing her graceful figure and giving her an air of effortless elegance.

Her silver-gold hair flowed down her shoulders like a cascading waterfall, shimmering softly beneath the light. Each strand appeared almost ethereal, lending her an otherworldly beauty.

Her face was equally breathtaking.

It was as though an exceptionally skilled artist had carefully sculpted every feature, leaving not the slightest imperfection. Her fair skin possessed a delicate, healthy glow, while her slender eyebrows framed a pair of striking red eyes.

Those eyes were particularly captivating. Beneath their beautiful appearance lay an almost unfathomable depth, accompanied by a gentleness that made her expression seem unusually warm.

She was undeniably beautiful.

Silver hair and red eyes.

That combination was practically Lucifer's favourite.

Unfortunately, there was one rather significant problem.

He was currently a newborn.

Even if he wanted to do anything, his tiny body simply wouldn't cooperate.

Still, there was no need to rush.

There would always be time in the future, wouldn't there?

While Lucifer was quietly examining the woman holding him, Imu noticed that the infant in her arms had begun moving.

A faint smile appeared on her beautiful face.

"You're awake."

She adjusted her hold on him, looking directly into his eyes.

"From now on, I will personally guide you."