"Boom—!!" "Boom—!!"
The sound of artillery fire and the shouts of battle echoed throughout Dressrosa. The warriors of the Adrian's side, blessed by the Pump-Pump Fruit of Betty, advanced with the unstoppable force. The flames of war quickly reached the foot of the King's Palace, where Doflamingo was.
It all happened so fast, that the cadres who were hiding in the palace to discuss countermeasures were immediately struck with terror. This defeat is too quick, isn't it? They had nearly 10,000 men deployed outside. How long had it been, and they had already pushed all the way to the palace?
"Doffy, they've reached us! Why aren't we fighting?" Diamante, a top executive, asked anxiously.
"Fighting?" Doflamingo shot back with a sullen look. "Can you beat Demon Heir Bullet?!" His venomous gaze pierced through the glass, looking at the war-torn city below.
Wherever fire raged, it was, without exception, a stronghold of the Donquixote Family. Yet the civilian houses on both sides of the street had all been deliberately avoided by Adrian's forces. The intention was clear.
"Immediately inform the core cadres of the family. We'll escape through the secret passage first and then head out to sea to wait for reinforcements."
Doflamingo showed a decisive attitude far beyond that of ordinary people at this critical moment. Seeing that Adrian and his crew hadn't even made a move yet, and the situation had already become one-sided, he realized that this kingdom—painstakingly managed for eight years, which had brought him untold riches and privileges—was no longer a place they could stay.
What Adrian had told him during the Summit War wasn't just idle talk. That madman would truly destroy the Donquixote Family. Although Doflamingo wasn't a greedy person, in this situation, there was no need to fight Adrian to the death. Because.....against that terrifying combination, comparable to a Yonko's crew, they had no chance of winning at all. Continuing to resist would only lead to pointless casualties.
"But Doffy, our entire family fortune, and the SMILE factory, are all here. Do we really want to just give it up to that kid?" Diamante said, unwilling to let go. They had very little time to react—not enough to take anything with them, especially the SMILE factory. This factory was crucial for maintaining the delicate balance between the Donquixote Family and the Yonko, Kaido. If they lost it, those terrifying guys would likely target them directly.
Compared to Adrian, they were obviously more afraid of Kaido.
"Then you can die here with those useless wretches," Doflamingo said angrily. "As long as I'm alive, we'll have a chance to come back... Don't forget, I still hold the secret of Mariejois. With that, the Celestial Dragons and the World Government will never stand by and do nothing."
Diamante nodded in approval and immediately began contacting every core member. As for those poor fellows on the outskirts, they would serve the Donquixote Family one last time by dragging down the enemy with their lives.
At the same time, "Blur-blur-blur..." The phone in Betty's arms suddenly rang.
After picking it up, Violet's anxious voice sounded. "It's not good! Hurry and report to Lord Adrian! Doflamingo is leading the Donquixote Family cadres and preparing to escape from Dressrosa!"
Although Violet was rushing to the underground trading port where Sugar was located with the Empress at the moment, her hatred for Doflamingo meant her surveillance of him had never stopped. When she discovered that Doflamingo had left the palace with a group of core members and entered the private underground passage, she couldn't wait to report the news. Her ability could only cover the surface, and she knew nothing of the underground situation. She didn't want Doflamingo to slip away so easily from under her nose.
"Don't worry, he can't escape," Adrian said with a slight, confident curve of his lips.
Although his Heart Network was not as terrifying as Violet's, it was more than enough to cover the palace. What's more, his Heart Network was completely unrestricted by topography. Even if Doflamingo's group went underground, he could clearly perceive their location.
After hanging up the call, Violet's face once again showed a look of admiration. This man really didn't need me to remind him; he already knew about it in advance... Although she had only just joined Adrian's command, she, like the Empress and Bello Betty, had begun to attribute a divine answer to his every move. It looked like her special identity as Adrian's third fan, was already one step closer.
Inside the secret passage near the Kings Plateau, Doflamingo was leading a group of core members, quickly moving towards the deep-sea port. But at that moment, a sense of crisis that made his hair stand on end suddenly appeared.
"Pica, quickly use your ability to assimilate..."
Before Doflamingo could finish his words, a loud rumbling noise drowned out his voice. Instantly, the earth shook and the mountains trembled. The thousand-meter-high Kings Plateau shattered into a huge ruin with a deafening bang. Endless smoke and dust rose into the sky, creating a magnificent scene that shocked everyone.
"The Kings Plateau... collapsed?!"
"That man obviously just punched into the air, so why did it have such great power...?"
"This... isn't this Whitebeard's Tremor Fruit ability? How could it be on that boy?!"
"Hey, isn't that the guy Adrian who was mentioned in the newspaper a few days ago?!"
"Is that the one who was offered a bounty of 3 billion Berries by the World Government and killed Whitebeard, the strongest man in the world, at the Summit War?!"
"My God, how could he be here...?"
"What should we do? Should we continue to fight?"
"That man is so scary... I... I want to live..."
It's unclear who was the first to drop their weapon, but just like a chain reaction, the pirates who were still resisting a second ago disarmed one after another in the blink of an eye, kneeling and surrendering. This was all because of Adrian's single, casual blow.
"This... is this the man that Doflamingo hates and fears so much?!" The sudden scene made Violet stagger and fall to the ground. But she didn't seem to feel the pain, her eyes wide as she stared at the tall, upright figure standing proudly.
For years, Doflamingo had loomed over Violet like a mountain. His vicious methods were daunting. Even in the New World, not many people dared to provoke this terrible man who was an insider of the World Government and had a connection with the Yonko, Kaido.
But today, after Doflamingo met Adrian, he behaved like a defeated dog. This made Violet's heart feel utterly surreal.
"Don't be so surprised,... After all, he is a man who even dared to kill a Celestial Dragon!!" The Empress's faint voice, full of admiration, came from behind Violet.