As Roa arrived at Elbaf, many people around the world received the news.
In Marijoa, the Five Elders were holding their meeting again.
"In the waters near Hachinosu Island, someone witnessed the fleet of the Calamity Company, and its course is set for Elbaf!"
"I suppose he's worthy of being the successor to Rocks, isn't he? Just like that bastard Rocks, he's set his sights on the power of Elbaf!"
"Harald may be unruly, but his strength is indeed extraordinary! He's almost on par with that damn Rocks! That damned brat won't succeed so easily!"
"But, he's Roa! The Roa who has never failed since his debut! What if, I mean, what if he really gets the power of the giants…"
The spacious conference room fell silent.
At the same time, at the New Marine Headquarters, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, who was preparing for a new round of "victories," also received news from headquarters. He hesitated for a moment, then shook his head helplessly. Elbaf was too far from New Marineford, and the journey would take him through the territories of several monsters. The Marines were beyond their reach. All he could do was pray that Roa wouldn't truly manage to subdue Elbaf.
Harald, it's all up to you!
Later, in Totto Land.
"Mama mama! Is that boy finally back? As soon as he returns, he sets his sights on Elbaf!"
Charlotte Linlin was furiously attacking a giant cake. "But Harald isn't so easy to deal with!" As someone who had lived in Elbaf and had been silently observing that giant kingdom for decades, Charlotte Linlin knew better than most how powerful the giant kingdom was.
"Mama mama! Roa, I'd like to see how you're going to handle this!" While gloating, she seemed to be urging someone else, "My children! Hurry up! After conquering this sea area, you can go to the South Blue! Go and bring back that descendant of the Bakaria tribe!"
Before they parted ways, Roa had told her where the last descendant of the Bakaria tribe was. She couldn't wait to give birth to a Bakaria child!
"Oh! The memories!"
Roa gazed at the huge island in the distance, his voice filled with emotion. "Wasn't it eight years ago that I came here? It's been so long in the blink of an eye." Back then, the Captain was still alive. Now, even his ashes are gone.
Even more nostalgic than him were Dorry and Brogy. Just looking at the giant tree on the island in the distance, their cheeks twitched slightly, and there were faint tears in their eyes. They hadn't returned for a full seventy years. Although they felt they were fighting for honor at Little Garden, it was nothing. It was a warrior's fate. But when they saw their homeland again, a strong longing suddenly surged in their hearts. This was where they were born and raised. It was where they came from and where they would return.
But… The two of them instinctively lowered their heads and looked at Roa, who was sighing on the snail's head. What would this return bring?
But, this guy has really been to Elbaf?
"Is this Elbaf?"
Teach excitedly held up his binoculars, carefully observing the island in the distance. "Ze ha ha ha ha! What a huge tree! The world's largest Treasure Tree Adam really lives up to its name!"
"But what's with that sword? It's too big!"
Bege was also looking ahead, and when he saw the huge longsword that had pierced through the second canopy of the Treasure Tree Adam and was slanted into the ground below, he couldn't help but marvel. "Can anyone really use such a big weapon? The ancient giant race wouldn't even be big enough!"
The ancient giant race might not be, but the giant race, or even the ancient giant race plus the Nika Fruit, might be. The legendary Sun God of the giant race should be the first Nika.
"The world's strongest kingdom. It's truly exciting."
Moriah muttered softly. Since following Roa, he had seen quite a bit of the world. But the Giant Kingdom, this mysterious country, was still full of temptation for him.
"Be careful." Roa said with a smile. "This country is home to monsters." That guy Harald was a powerful figure whom even the Captain had acknowledged. Even his current self would probably find it difficult to win in a fight against him.
"No matter what kind of enemy, as long as you give the order, Boss! We will not hesitate!" Behind Roa, Bullet said seriously.
"Hahaha! Then what are we waiting for!" Roa waved his hand triumphantly. "Let's move the ships in closer!"
Oh, wait.
"Move the snails in closer!"
So the Great Snail Fleet rumbled forward again, and it wasn't long before they approached the huge island. It was then that everyone felt the immense pressure from the island. Especially that exaggeratedly large Treasure Tree Adam, which stood tall and proud. Its dense canopy almost blocked out the entire sky.
"It's truly exaggerated!"
Doflamingo looked up. His mouth was so wide open in shock that his jaw almost dislocated. "How do people live under such a big tree? Isn't all the sunlight blocked?"
"Hmm?" Roa turned his head slightly in surprise. "Did I not tell you? The Elbaf people all live in the trees."
"What?!"
This country was simply too mysterious to outsiders. Even though Harald had been dedicated to communicating with the outside world for many years, because of the world's closed traffic and people's fear of giants, the results were not significant. Information about Elbaf's interior was often still a secret to people overseas.
In any case, the great fleet had already approached the coast. Because they came from the direction of Hachinosu Island, the area the great fleet arrived at was the same port where Roa had arrived with Rocks back then.
"Such memories."
Roa couldn't help but sigh again.
However, what happened next was not as nostalgic.
Let's go back a few minutes. Just like how they had seen the Rocks Pirates' ship at a glance eight years ago, the giants stationed at this port saw the huge snails surging toward them on the sea at a glance. Although they were not as famous as the Rocks Pirates back then, by now, no one in the New World should not know what these snails represent.
"That's! That's the Germa Kingdom's great fleet!"
"It's Roa! Calamity Roa is here! It's really him!"
"He's finally here! Hurry and notify His Majesty Harald!!"
In recent times, the monsters who had divided the New World were expanding their territories without any scruples! Every day, newspapers from the New World would publish news like which country Shiki had taken over, or which island Kaido had occupied. There was activity in almost every sea area, except for the one where Elbaf was located. And coincidentally, Roa had not started his actions yet, so everyone knew that this area was his choice. And now, this guy was finally here! He was here with the purpose of conquering Elbaf!
We can't let him be so presumptuous!
While contacting the palace, the giants also quickly grabbed their weapons and rushed to the dock to prevent this group from using force to invade Elbaf. So, when the Great Snail Fleet approached, what Roa saw was a group of giants on guard at the port.
"Calamity Roa! Stop! Elbaf does not welcome you!"
The giants roared with all their might.
"Huh?"
Roa frowned slightly. "This is too much of a double standard. Weren't you so casual with Captain Rocks?" Although the Captain and the Giant King Harald were good friends, he and the next generation of the Giant King, Loki, were also good friends.
"Boss! I'm coming!" Bullet said, eager to try. Although King was very close to Elbaf, he still didn't make it to this landing operation. So, it was his time to show off!
"Wait!" At this moment, the giant Brogy in the back said in a deep voice, "Don't mess around!"
"That's right! We'll talk to them!" Dorry also quickly nodded and said. The two of them knew very well that these ordinary giant warriors would never be able to stop Roa. They had to minimize the losses to their country as much as possible.
"That would be great!" Roa nodded happily. "What are you waiting for?"
Wasn't the purpose of bringing these two guys all the way back from Paradise for this very reason?
Dorry and Brogy took a step forward. Dorry first shouted, "Wait! Don't act rashly! You are no match for these guys!"
"That's right! Contact Harald and tell him to come down and deal with this!" Brogy also shouted in agreement, the fat on his face trembling.
Then.
"There are giant races who have sided with the Calamity Company!"
The giants at the port were immediately enraged. "You two traitors of the giant race! How dare you still bark here?"
"They must not be giants from Elbaf! How could an Elbaf giant warrior be so spineless!"
"That's right! They must be giants from the South Blue! Just like that woman Ida! The giants of that tribe are weak! Many of them have joined the Marines!"
The giants had no idea who Dorry and Brogy were.
Roa subconsciously turned his head and looked at Dorry and Brogy. The two giants who had just made a bold statement froze.
Wait, they've only been gone for seventy years. There shouldn't be that many new generation giants who haven't seen them, right? How could they not recognize them?
"Look closely!" Dorry patted his plump chest. "I am Dorry! Dorry of the Giant Soldier Pirates!"
"I am Brogy!" Brogy, who was beside him, also shouted. The fat on his face trembled. "We're back!"
Then.
"Who are you trying to fool! Do you two fat pigs think we're idiots?"
"That's right! Do you think we don't know what Captain Dorry and Captain Brogy look like?"
"Roa! Don't be so despicable! You even found people to impersonate Captain Dorry and Captain Brogy!" The giants were filled with righteous indignation, and the weapons in their hands were shaking.
"Ugh—"
Dorry and Brogy were both instantly speechless. Was this respect or disrespect?
Roa also couldn't help but crack a smile. Was this a case of shooting themselves in the foot? He let them eat to their heart's content all this time.
"There's no other way."
Roa took a step forward and placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Then I'll say hello for us."
"Roa! Wait!"
The two giants' expressions changed drastically. They tried to stop him, but it was too late. The crimson blade was slightly unsheathed.
Boom!
A thunderclap suddenly erupted! Crimson lightning shot into the sky like a chaotic dance of dragons, shaking the entire sky. The two giants instantly felt a ringing in their heads, as if they had been hit by a heavy hammer.
"Conqueror's Haki!!"
Dorry's face changed drastically. Brogy was also in disbelief. "This level of Conqueror's Haki?"
What kind of monster was this human! How could his aura be this strong! In their era of sailing the seas, they had never encountered a monster of this level!
The sea was in turmoil, and the air was trembling. It was a good thing that he used his willpower to concentrate the Conqueror's Haki. Otherwise, guys like Doflamingo, Bege, and Enel would not have been able to withstand it. Even the giants on the distant coast would have been affected.
At this moment, the Conqueror's Haki, which had been condensed into a bolt of lightning, bent in mid-air. It instantly swept over the second canopy of the Treasure Tree Adam, aiming with extreme precision at that huge castle.
Boom!
The moment the crimson lightning struck the ground, the entire castle trembled violently.
"Hmm?"
Inside the castle, a man of ridiculously huge stature suddenly looked up. "You brat! Are you so impatient to announce your arrival to me?"
"It will be troublesome to fight in the sunlit world. Tell them to wait in the underworld! I'll be down there soon!"
On the sea.
"This! This!" Looking at Roa's lightning-clad back, Teach's voice was filled with fanaticism. "He's truly worthy of being the Boss! This kind of power! It's amazing!!" So powerful, so extraordinary! If he couldn't get that long-desired fruit, it seemed it wouldn't be so bad to stay under this man's command for a lifetime!
Enel was even more dumbfounded. So this was Conqueror's Haki? So powerful! Just a little bit of the aftershock made his whole body feel numb!
While everyone was in awe, Roa, with his back to them, was also secretly relieved. It was a good thing that the castle was quite close to them. Otherwise, his Observation Haki might not have been able to lock onto it. He was very strong in Conqueror's and Armament Haki, but he was a bit lacking in Observation Haki.
And it was at this moment that a giant's roar came from the coast. "Stop! Roa! His Majesty Harald has given you permission to land! He will meet you in the underworld!"
The underworld? The frozen ground on the lowest level?
How stingy, Harald. Don't you even want to invite us to sit in your palace?
But whatever. It's a good thing that they can meet.
He casually sheathed his sword, the Tiger Soul, and Roa waved his hand with a smile. "Then let's land." He thought for a moment. "Leave the great fleet here. One snail is enough." If they were to fight Harald later, the scene would be very large. If he brought the entire fleet, it would suffer immense damage.
So, the large snail carrying all the officers detached from the fleet and landed directly on this legendary island.
"Is it a winter island? It's so cold!" Doflamingo shivered.
"So, this is the real Giant Kingdom?" Bege looked up at the dense canopy above.
And Roa looked down at the giants standing to the side with grim expressions.
"Follow us!"
The giants stiffly said these words, and without waiting for Roa's reaction, they turned and walked into the snowstorm, heading toward the depths of the island.
Roa smiled and didn't mind, letting the large snail follow them. The underworld of Elbaf was extremely cold because it never saw the sun. It was covered in snow and ice all year round. Paired with the huge wild beasts that occasionally appeared, it had a unique flavor. Roa, who had never been here before, watched with great interest, as if he was on vacation.
Not long after, the giants led Roa's group to a stronghold on a snowy plain. There were a few "cabins" here that were too big for humans.
"This is the place. His Majesty Harald is coming down from the sunlit world!" The giants said stiffly to Roa.
Just as Roa was nodding slightly.
One of the cabins' doors was pushed open, and an overly large boy emerged from behind the door.
"Who is it?"
The expressions of the giants leading the way changed instantly. "Prince Loki!"
What a coincidence! Why was this person playing in the underworld today! When the King was not away, didn't he usually stay in the sunlit world?
Roa's lips suddenly curved into a smile. "Yo, long time no see, my good friend."