Chapter 129: Doflamingo's Actions, Dragon
Dragon's voice came through the transponder snail with quiet determination. "I will come to Fish-Man Island within a week. Please wait for me, Brett."
The two ended the call, leaving the room in contemplative silence.
"What an incredible man!" Brett murmured with genuine admiration.
Jinbei looked surprised as he processed what had just occurred. "He dares to come to Fish-Man Island in person? No matter what, we're still officially aligned with the World Government on the surface."
Brett smiled knowingly. 'In the original work, Dragon never showed his full strength, but one thing is certain,' he thought. 'As the world's most dangerous criminal and the man the World Government fears most, his power definitely won't fall below the level of the Emperors.'
His willingness to come personally likely stemmed from both trust and confidence in his own abilities.
"Anyway, we need to keep this secret for now," Brett said, looking around at everyone present. "Today's events must not be leaked under any circumstances."
"Of course," Jinbei nodded solemnly.
Although he had never heard of the Revolutionary Army before, any organization determined to overthrow the World Government had probably been on the government's blacklist for a long time. This matter absolutely had to remain confidential.
"Don't worry, Brett," Hack said with a generous smile. "We're experts at keeping secrets and hiding our tracks."
Before the Revolutionary Army officially surfaced and began taking action, most of their work had been underground operations. They were indeed the most accustomed to secrecy and discretion.
Brett wasn't worried about them at all, but he turned to look at Arlong quietly.
"Of course I know!" Arlong said angrily. "Don't think I'm someone who would ruin everything just because of a moment of anger! I won't tell anyone what happened today!"
"Good," Brett nodded with satisfaction.
"Then," Jinbei said with a smile, "Hack, let me give you a tour of Fish-Man Island as it is now. There have been huge changes compared to the past!"
"No," Hack shook his head with a chuckle. "It would be too obvious if I'm with you, Jinbei. We'd better explore on our own."
"Besides, no matter how great the changes are, Fish-Man Island is still Fish-Man Island. It's still our hometown, and it will never feel unfamiliar."
"Hahaha, you're right," Jinbei laughed.
Everyone dispersed after sharing a meal together. Hack began revisiting familiar places, while Brett and the others returned to their respective duties.
They needed to give speeches alongside Neptune to stabilize public sentiment and show the most sincere and harmonious attitude possible.
But before Dragon arrived, Tesoro called from Dressrosa with news.
"That guy Doflamingo is starting to make his move," Tesoro reported. "Latest intelligence says he's occupied a country in the New World, publicly hanged the tyrannical king and his entire family, and crowned himself the new ruler."
"Oh?" Brett raised an eyebrow. 'So he didn't get Dressrosa and changed targets instead?'
It made sense. All Doflamingo wanted was territory in the New World to facilitate his various dealings. His previous choice of Dressrosa was only because that country once belonged to the Don Quixote family - it didn't have to be specifically that kingdom.
"It's a non-affiliate nation located not far from Dressrosa, deeper into the New World," Tesoro continued, his voice cold. "He chose that location deliberately. Seems like that guy doesn't want to give up so easily."
"That's only natural," Brett said casually. "It would be impossible for him to just pretend nothing happened."
"So should we cause him some trouble?"
"Trouble? Why would we need to take action ourselves?" Brett smiled. "Did you forget? We just made a very reliable partner."
"Oh, you mean the Charlotte family, right?" Tesoro said with amusement in his voice.
"The area near Dressrosa should be close to Charlotte family territory, shouldn't it? Perfect timing."
Brett's smile was evident in his voice. "I'll tell Linlin about this. She won't be stingy about helping me."
"My, 'Linlin' so affectionately now? Brett, you sly bastard..." Tesoro laughed. "Are you planning to become one of Linlin's husbands too?"
"Anyway, let's handle this for now." Too lazy for more banter, Brett ended the call with Tesoro.
The conflict with Doflamingo was irreconcilable, so there was no need to show him any courtesy.
Brett immediately called Cake Island.
"Doflamingo?" Perospero, who answered the phone, responded. "I know that guy. He captured a country near our family's territory just two days ago."
"Why did you have a conflict with him, Brett?"
"We're irreconcilable enemies," Brett said concisely. "But because of government protection, I can't attack him directly."
"I understand. Since he's your enemy, he's also our enemy," Perospero said with a smile. 'Brett says they're irreconcilable - should I still advise patience?'
He was just a Warlord, after all.
"I'll tell Mom and have her send someone to drive this guy out. Although it's still some distance from our territory, there's no need for a Warlord to be stationed so close."
"Thank you very much."
The call ended, and Brett was quite satisfied. This was the advantage of having connections in both legitimate and illegitimate circles.
Although the Charlotte family couldn't directly attack the Don Quixote family, they could certainly make life difficult for Doflamingo.
Two days later, while Brett was processing documents in his office that morning, a breeze suddenly began circulating in the room.
Brett looked up. This wind felt unusual.
He activated his Observation Haki and confirmed there were indeed abnormal sounds.
"Since you're here, please take a seat," Brett said aloud.
"This is our first meeting. Please forgive my presumptuous arrival, Brett."
On the sofa across from his desk, the breeze swirled and gradually formed the shape of a man.
He wore a dark green cloak, had a rough but calm face, and bore a red tattoo on his left cheek. He looked like a heinous criminal, but was indeed the Revolutionary Army's Supreme Commander.
"You're Dragon, correct?" Brett said with certainty.
"Exactly," the man nodded gravely. "Just call me Dragon."
"And call me Brett," Brett smiled. "Then let's get straight to the point."
"Dragon, your Revolutionary Army wants to overthrow the World Government and establish a new government, right?"
"Certainly," Dragon nodded.
"Then we do have a solid foundation for cooperation," Brett said seriously. "I believe that if we want to change Fish-Man Island's history of discrimination, we must participate in this kind of transformation."
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