【One Piece】Dawn in the Darkness

Chapter 280 Guilt

Ace quickly browsed the documents in his hand, and a hint of joy appeared on his face when he saw a paragraph. He hurriedly took the map out of his bag, spread it on his legs, and raised the recording pointer in his hand. After a while, Ace breathed a sigh of relief and fell back on the deck.

With his arms over his eyes, he quietly felt the sound of the sea water hitting the hull, trying to let the rhythmic sound of the waves calm the uneasiness deep in his heart, but it didn't work. Ace closed his eyes and held the wanted poster in his pocket. The words that comforted Luffy on the day of the fire rang in his mind again.

'I don't know what true happiness is for Sabo.'

"Let's wait and see how things develop. Lucci and Sabo are very strong."

'They are not in danger'

sorry……

His throat contracted the next time he tried to respond and drown out the sound of his memories. His nose began to feel sour and his throat was blocked by sobs. He didn't make any sound... He could only keep thinking in his heart...

Luke, I'm sorry...

'If he's unhappy he'll definitely come back to us'

Ace closed his eyes, trying to ignore the guilt growing in his heart, and tightly grasped the wanted poster in his hand.

He could have stopped...

He could have…

Go find his...

He could have…

Bring him back!

A huge wave of energy spread out in the shape of a wave. Time seemed to stop for a moment. Even the waves on the sea seemed to be still. Everything was silent. This silence lasted for a long time...

After a moment, Ace sat up again and collected the documents scattered on the deck. A flame appeared on his hand and he watched the documents in his hand turn into ashes quietly.

He had obtained the information he wanted on the burning reconnaissance ship of the Navy. This was probably the only thing that made him happy during this period of time. Ace looked expressionlessly at the island marked on the map, "Banaro Island". This was Blackbeard's last location.

As long as Blackbeard doesn't move within the next few days, he will be able to get there before he leaves.

"Brew! Brew! Brew!"

Ace turned his head to look at the Den Den Mushi in his bag that was calling. He didn't understand who would call him at this time, but he was in a bad mood right now... The person who called had better be really busy...

"Brew...Crack!"

"Who?"

"Hey, Ace."

Lucci's voice came from inside. Rarely, Ace felt nervous, so he didn't notice the weakness in Lucci's voice.

Ace took a deep breath and steadied himself "Lucci, are you okay? Where are you now?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

There was almost no pause as Lucci answered quickly, which made Ace feel something was wrong. "What's wrong with you? This is not like your usual self."

The atmosphere was silent for a moment, and just when Ace was about to interrupt the uneasy silence, Lucci spoke, a gentler voice than usual came from inside "I'm fine, Ace, I'm near the Seven Water Capital, with Luffy."

"You...know everything, right?" Ace asked nervously and anxiously, "How is your memory? Do you remember anything?"

"I'm sorry, Ace." Lucci said in a low, calm voice, "I lost you."

Ace frowned, confusion swept over him, he didn't understand why Lucci would think this way, he didn't lose us.

Ace took a deep breath and looked at Den Den Mushi firmly, even though he wanted to rush to him right now and shake him hard to make him understand that he didn't lose anything. "There's no need to apologize, Lucci. You haven't lost anything. Whether you have memories or not, you have been our brother from the beginning. The bond between us will always exist."

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds, and then Lucci's gentle voice came from inside, "Thank you, Ace."

Listening to Lucci's thanks, Ace dropped his shoulders and a bitter smile appeared on his face. If he could have stopped him before he was taken away, then none of this would have happened.

"What happened, Ace?"

Maybe his expression was not very good. Ace looked down at the Den Den Mushi in his hand. The Den Den Mushi accurately revealed Lucci's worries. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but tighten the wanted poster in his pocket and said in a hoarse voice, "I'm sorry, Lucci, if I had come to find you at that time...you wouldn't have to..."

"Ace!" Lucci's stern voice interrupted him, and then a gentler voice came from inside, "This is not your fault, Ace, and thank you for letting me find you and Luffy."

"Honestly, Ace." Lucci laughed softly, "I found you and Luffy, that's the most important thing. I'm really happy to meet you, and I'm really happy that you're my brother, so don't worry, Ace, everything is over."

Ace's lips trembled slightly and he wanted to say something, but Lucci's question interrupted him.

"Ace, have you found any news? About Blackbeard."

"Well, I got his exact final location." Ace nodded, his voice low, "They should still be there on 'Banaro Island' now. As long as they don't move within a few days, I can get there. That will be the final destination of Blackbeard and his small team."

"Ace, I hope you can be careful and don't do anything reckless when facing Blackbeard!" Lucci's voice was unusually serious.

Ace frowned and looked at the Den Den Mushi in his hand, not understanding what Lucci meant. "Lucci, what are you talking about?"

"When Blackbeard was on his father's ship, he had been hiding his strength. His devil fruit ability is very strange. As long as he touches our body, our fruit ability will disappear." Lucci said nervously, "Ace, I hope you can wait for me and take action after I arrive. Banaro is only a two-day voyage from the Water City. We will arrive at the Water City soon."

"Really?" Ace was a little happy. This way they would be able to meet soon. "I should be the one saying this to you. It will take me another four days to get to Banaro!"

"That's good!" Lucci sighed tiredly, and then a chuckle came from the Den Den Mushi, "At least you won't do anything rash."

"Hey!" Ace looked at the Den Den Mushi in his hand with dissatisfaction. Its emotions were simulated so realistically that he could almost imagine the teasing in Lucci's eyes. "What do you mean by reckless action!"

"Like you often do, not retreating or doing something stupid even though you know damn well you should."

"This again?" Ace was a little annoyed and couldn't help rolling his eyes, not wanting to hear "You've said it many times!"

"Yes, once again, a tactical retreat is as important as holding your ground." Lucci said in a stern voice, but Ace could totally hear the worry hidden behind him.

"What you describe sounds like running away, Lucci!" Ace scratched his hair and said angrily, "You know, I won't run away from anything. Once I choose an opponent, I won't run!"