ALL NOVEL
Chapter 456: Confronting Uta
Before the Red Hair Pirates arrive, Leo is already trying to stop Uta from executing her plan. She already told Leo what she wanted to do after she knew that Leo is a Pirate now. Uta wants Leo to stop being a Pirate and help her create world peace instead.
Obviously, Leo refuses because what Uta wants isn't a real world peace. No, it isn't even the real world because she wants to make everyone live in the dream world she created. He tried to put some sense into her brain, but she still doesn't change. Uta tried to convince Leo by pulling him into her fake world through a song. The world she created through the song is certainly beautiful and Leo admits it. However, it doesn't change that it is a fake world and Leo prefers living in the real world.
"So, what will you do after you bring everyone here? Your power will disappear if you fall asleep, isn't it? Then will you stay awake forever?"
"That was the plan, but somehow I kept falling asleep every day even after I ate wake-shrooms."
"Wake-shrooms? What's that?"
"It's a kind of mushroom that allows me to stay awake. But I don't know why it doesn't work even after I increased the dose I consume."
Leo grits his teeth and slaps her in the virtual world before grabbing her collar.
"YOU IDIOT! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO CONSUME SUCH A DANGEROUS THING? A MUSHROOM THAT CAN MAKE YOU AWAKE ALL THE TIME MUST HAVE A SEVERE SIDE EFFECT. AND YOU EVEN INCREASED ITS DOSE BECAUSE IT DOESN'T WORK. IF IT DOESN'T WORK, THEN YOU SHOULD JUST STOP. WHAT IF IT KILLS YOU BECAUSE OF OVERDOSE? A MUSHROOM THAT CAN MAKE YOU AWAKE ALL THE TIME IS NO DIFFERENT THAN DRUGS. DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE DIED BECAUSE OF DRUGS?"
"If I die, then so be it."
"What?"
"If I die, then so be it. Everyone will live in my world if I die after pulling them all here."
Leo widens his eyes in disbelief and he gets very angry.
"Then what's the point of creating world peace if you die yourself? Furthermore, that world you created isn't even real. You do know that only their spirits can live here while their bodies are left outside, right? How long do you think their bodies will survive without any nutrients in the real world? 3 days? A week? I can't even stand a day without eating. So what will happen next? What will happen to those poor souls after their bodies died?"
"Their souls will live happily forever here, what's the problem?"
"Really? Fucking hell, you are really crazy."
Leo can't convince her at all at that time. He knows he needs more information as to why Uta does all of this. There must be a reason, a trigger that made Uta so sure that she needs to do this. He knows her since childhood and she was a very selfish person.
So he finds it strange that Uta would care about other people this much. There must be a reason why she changed so much. Although he still can see her selfishness in her method to achieve her goal of world peace.
Eventually, Uta releases Leo from her virtual world because she starts to feel sleepy. Without wake-shrooms, she can't maintain her world for a long time. Leo leaves Uta without saying a word because he knows it's pointless to keep talking to her now.
At night, Leo visits the former King of Elegia, Gordon, who is also Uta's current adoptive father. He wants to know what happened to Uta these past years that could make her do all of this. Leo sneaked into Gordon's room to talk with the old man.
He thought it would be difficult to ask this matter to Gordon. But the old man tells Leo everything easily because he also opposes to Uta's plan. He really loves his adoptive daughter, so obviously, he doesn't want her to do something that will endanger herself.
Gordon has tried to stop Uta, but he failed and couldn't convince her. So he tells Leo everything in the hope that Leo can stop Uta. He starts to tell Leo what happened years ago when Red Hair Pirates visited the Kingdom of Elegia.
Leo is surprised to know that Uta was the one who destroyed Elegia with her Sing Sing Fruit. She released a monstrous entity named Tot Musica that is also known as Demon King of Music. Tot Musica was sealed by the former user of Sing Sing Fruit and Uta unknowingly released it some years ago.
Shanks and Red Hair Pirates managed to fight it for a long time until Uta fell asleep, resealing the monster again. Uta didn't remember anything that happened that day at all. Shanks and Gordon thought that it was for the best because they don't want her to feel guilty for the massacre of the whole Kingdom.
So Shanks decided to take the blame and left Uta in Elegia under Gordon's care. However, she thought that Shanks simply abandon her. Leo thinks that this must be the reason why Uta started to hate pirates and wanted to create a world peace where pirates can't hurt people.
"This Tot guy, how could she release it at that time? If it is simply because of her devil fruit, then it should've been released many times as she keeps using her power."
".... Tot Musica will always try to attract the attention of Sing Sing Fruit's users and affect them into summoning it."
"How?"
"Using a music sheet that contains the song to summon it. It would always find a way to make the user play that music sheet and release it from the seal."
"Then we need to find that music sheet and destroy it. That Tot bastard must be the biggest reason why Uta's mind becomes so twisted that she couldn't think logically."
Leo suddenly frowns when he sees Gordon's expression that seems to feel guilty.
"Old man, don't tell me you know where that music sheet is?"
Gordon stays silent and Leo immediately grabs his collar.
"Oi, old bastard, answer my question! Do you know where that music sheet is?"
".... I know, I kept it."
"WHAT?! THEN WHY DON'T YOU DESTROY IT?"
"I couldn't, I didn't have the heart to destroy a piece of music. It was a beautiful song despite being dangerous at the same time. You are also a musician, so you must've known how I felt."
"No, I don't. No matter how beautiful a song is, it doesn't worth as much as people's lives. There is no song beautiful enough it would be worth sacrificing the world. A song is created to be listened to by people and shake their hearts. What's the point of playing a good song if everyone is dead? Now tell me where that music sheet is and I'll destroy it."
"No, I've secured it in a very safe place. It will be even more dangerous if you destroy it because it will simply manifest again. I have also thought of that, but I also realized that in the past, people must've tried to destroy it too. However, it keeps appearing again and again."
"So you mean sealing it without destroying it is the best choice?"
"That's right."
Leo loosened his grip and clicks his tongue because it really makes sense. As long as Tot Musica exists, then it can create the music sheet again. But for it to still exist for who knows how long, Tot Musica must've been something like an immortal entity.
"Damn, that means as long as Sing Sing Fruit still exists, then that Tot bastard will still exist too. The worst thing is, devil fruit will never disappear. They will keep reincarnating after their users died."
Leo holds his head while gritting his teeth because he can't think of a solution.
"Actually, even though I don't know how to kill Tot Musica, I do know how to defeat it."
"Hmm? Explain!"
"When the user summoned it, Tot Musica will exist both in the real world and the virtual world. If we defeat it in both worlds, then it will get sealed again and won't affect the user for a long time. You could say it gets injured too much that it will fall asleep. Though that is still my theory because I never tried it myself. But the simplest way is to prevent the user from playing the music that will summon Tot Musica."
"How about we take Uta away from this island? That thing is sealed here and the music sheet is here too, right? If she left, then it won't affect her anymore."
"I'm not sure about that. Tot Musica is connected to the Sing Sing Fruit itself. So I'm afraid it will follow its user anywhere."
"Tsk, so troublesome."
"But I think there's nothing wrong with trying that method. If we sealed the music sheet here and Uta is not here, then Tot Musica will have a harder time making its music sheet reach her."
"Hmm, you're right. The problem is how to convince her to leave this island. Damn, it's back to how we can change her mind. Should I just beat her up until she gets back to her sense?"
Leo's little joke stuns Gordon who thinks that Leo will really do it. After all, Leo already has a fight with Uta sometime after he arrived here just because they have different opinions about music.
"Can you not use violence?"
"Well, violence isn't always the answer, but it is the easiest way to solve things sometime. Anyway, I'll think of a solution. Old man, you need to make sure that the music sheet will never appear in front of Uta or it's you who'll get beaten up to death by me."
Leo leaves Gordon's room after making sure the old man will cooperate with him after he made his plan. He walks into the dark corridor and takes out a snail shell from his pocket.
"Let's see if you still can't be rational after hearing all of this, you bratty woman."
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