Less than twenty minutes had passed.
The ultra-high-speed maglev transport arrived at an unknown location.
A mysterious hatch opened, and El led Charlotte Linlin, Dr. Vegapunk, Ryan, and the others inside.
This was the entrance to the ancient weapon, Pluton.
Strictly speaking, the entirety of Pluton was still buried underground, hidden from the world.
"Beep—Beep—" Ryan, Vegapunk, and the rest of the research team busied themselves, starting to load the Holy Mother Flame onto Pluton.
Before long, on the complex control panel,
one indicator light after another lit up.
"Mamamama, this is really exciting!"
Linlin bared her teeth, her eyes burning.
"Has Apollo, and that woman Ripley gone over here already?"
Gerd looked at Sally and asked with a smile, "If we want to activate Pluton silently, we'll need that female giant's help!"
"El-sama, they have arrived—"
"Papa, Mama, Mama Gerd, Aunt Sally…"
Just then, at the entrance to Pluton's cabin,
two figures—one large and one small—walked in.
One was a tall, voluptuous giant woman with a striking figure, the same braided hairstyle as Gerd, her long hair cascading down her back. She had a beautiful face and a figure like a goddess.
However, a strange pattern extended from the left side of her forehead down across her entire face and body, all the way to her left foot. Rather than making her ugly, it gave her a unique, untamed beauty.
Beside her stood a younger figure, nearly eight meters tall—like a small giant—still slightly immature in appearance.
He was the second of the triplets Linlin had given birth to, ranked thirteenth in the Kukulkan family: Apollo.
Having just turned eleven, he bore wings on his back, flames rising behind his head, exuding a heroic spirit.
His handsome features could almost rival those of the family's fourth son, Willie, renowned as the most handsome prince of the Kukulkan family and beloved by countless citizens.
"Heh, leave the rest to me!" the beautiful giant woman, Ripley, said with a grin.
She was a female giant El had recruited from Elbaf in recent years, and he had bestowed upon her the power of the Paramecia-class Clear-Clear Fruit, which the Hell Trading Company had obtained.
With her naturally colossal size as a giant, the Clear-Clear Fruit's ability became magnified beyond measure.
It was thanks to Ripley's powers that, back then, they were able to transport the island-sized Pluton so silently, without alerting or alarming the World Government.
At the same time, Ripley was also one of the new giant women who had joined El's harem. Over the years, she had successively borne him three children with giant blood.
As for the thirteenth child, Apollo—though he wasn't quite at the level of his monstrous siblings—after undergoing the perfect Lineage Factor modifications, his talents were no less than Medusa's and the others'.
He had even been granted the Paramecia-class Float-Float Fruit by El.
However, when Pluton was transported a few years ago, Apollo had been too young to take part.
The main contributor then was Eden, who, using the Copy-Copy Fruit, replicated the Float-Float Fruit. With Ripley's Clear-Clear powers as a giant, they managed to bring this massive warship back.
"Mamamama, Apollo…"
Seeing her child, the thirteenth son, Apollo, arrive, Linlin couldn't help but break into a delighted smile, calling out to him and the giant woman Ripley, "Good timing, my sweet child—and Ripley!"
Next, they needed Apollo to use the Float-Float Fruit and Ripley to use the Clear-Clear Fruit to turn Pluton into an airborne warship and stealthily strike at the Red Line, firing a shot to blow away the World Government's headquarters.
"El-sama, all set!"
Before long—
Ryan and the others strode over, cackling.
"Ding! Energy source detected. Now charging—please wait…"
Sure enough, right after he spoke,
a synthetic electronic voice echoed in the air.
"Ding! Energy replenishment complete. Would you like to activate the warship Pluton?"
"Activate!"
El's expression was calm. He pressed the activation button and at the same time gave Apollo a signal.
"Leave it to me… Rise!"
Apollo smiled, placing his right hand on Pluton and instantly unleashing the Float-Float Fruit's ability.
"Boom… boom…"
The ground shook.
The entire island collapsed.
That colossal warship, massive beyond belief, rose straight into the sky.
Waves churned, huge swaths of land were torn up, the world in chaos, dust billowing all around.
"El-sama, we're here too!"
Before long, one awe-inspiring figure after another swept in, some flying on their own, others mounted on giant raptors.
They were the likes of Thunder Calamity, Wind Calamity, Fire Calamity, Little Oars, and others…
And they had dragged along two blood-soaked figures in Seastone handcuffs. One of them was unmistakably Fleet Admiral Kong.
"Heh, only two Devil Fruit users?"
Ryan walked over, ready to extract their Fruit abilities.
"Nothing to be done about it. That Saint Garling ate some inferior artificial Devil Fruit. You wouldn't want to bother absorbing that, right?" Thunder Calamity said with a grin.
"These guys sure were tough!"
Little Oars rubbed his head, sighing.
"If it weren't for the scroll El-sama gave me, it wouldn't have been so easy!" Fire Calamity Afar added.
If not for their overwhelming numbers, the fight wouldn't have ended so quickly. The crucial factor was that El's sealed Haki had blasted the newly-arrived Five Elders right back.
"Enough about that…"
Glancing at the unconscious, helpless Kong and that vice commander of the Holy Knights, El said calmly, "Hand over command of the Army, Navy, Air Force, the Pacifista Corps, and the Ability Corps to Moss…"
"Tell Tsuru to deliver the final ultimatum to Garp: if he refuses to lay down arms in G-1 Fortress, then wipe them out entirely!"
"Also, have Kaido send the Red Count and Rusty Chinjao—those two Warlords—to the first half of the Grand Line to aid Dal and the others. Make sure they take care of Sengoku the Buddha and the rest as soon as possible!"
"As for us, we move out immediately. Next stop, —the Red Line!"
"Yes, sir—"
Not only Thunder Calamity, Fire Calamity, and Wind Calamity, but also Linlin, Gerd, and the others all felt a rush of excitement they couldn't quite describe.
After so many years, the day had finally come.
This ocean was about to usher in a new era!
"Invisibility!"
In the next instant, Ripley the giant woman pressed her right hand against Pluton, activating the Clear-Clear Fruit.
From the outside, the warship—colossal as a small island—began to vanish before their eyes.
Meanwhile, Apollo, the thirteenth son of the Kukulkan family, guided by a vivre card pointing toward the Red Line, controlled the now-invisible Pluton, making it streak through the air at astonishing speed toward the distant horizon.
"Wooo—wooo—wooo…"