"So this matter requires you to step in again?"
Crocodile, who was still sharing the same ship with Doflamingo and had not yet returned to his own territory, naturally received the news as well.
Doflamingo smiled. "This is nothing less than Lord El placing his trust in me. It's a perfect chance for me to prove my worth."
Far from seeing it as a nuisance, Doflamingo viewed this as an opportunity to show his value before El.
To be honest, the strength of the El Pirates was rising steadily and visibly.
Doflamingo himself was no weakling, yet a lingering worry remained: would he eventually become irrelevant within the crew?
From the current trend, the El Pirates were growing stronger by the day, and El's own power was increasing bit by bit as well.
There was a real chance his fear might one day come true. He had a feeling that the time when his strength would no longer rank among the top in the crew was fast approaching.
Before that happened, he had to demonstrate more of his capabilities to El—even make the Captain see him as someone indispensable.
"Change course immediately—we're heading straight for the Sabaody Archipelago!"
When El called, Doflamingo did not hesitate for a single moment. Even Crocodile dared not delay anything concerning their Captain's orders.
Fortunately, the vessel provided by the Kuja Pirates was truly excellent, so they traveled at a good speed.
They arrived roughly half a day after El and Hancock had reached the archipelago.
Since they had set sail from Amazon Lily right after El's group, plus only a short delay for switching ships, they were not far behind at all.
That was also because Doflamingo had no intention of making El wait. He had pushed the ship to its absolute limit all the way here.
"Lord El…"
Doflamingo and his men arrived looking weary from the journey. He did not even spare a glance at the auction house owner standing beside El.
Though this was a chance to make a good impression, the whole mess had started because of this very establishment.
The owner could not escape blame for causing trouble. Doflamingo was just glad he had cut ties with the man in time—whatever happened now was no longer his responsibility.
"Lord El, you summoned me…" Doflamingo spoke respectfully. The message sent to him had not included all the details.
"I need you here to deal with someone," El said plainly. "I don't intend to step in personally right away. You will face him first. No matter how it turns out, I will take over afterwards."
Doflamingo's eyes flickered thoughtfully. "You mean…?"
A vague suspicion began to form in his mind. Could it be that Lord El had taken an interest in this troublemaker? Was he thinking of recruiting him into the crew?
Doflamingo truly had the makings of a valuable right-hand man, even if he was not the one leading the crew.
"…You have your eye on that blind man?"
He already had a rough idea of what had happened.
"Exactly," El nodded. "That is why it would be inappropriate for me to act directly. You go and confront him instead."
"Understood! Leave it to me, Lord El!" Doflamingo thumped his chest confidently. "I will not let your plans fail!"
"Good." El looked him over. "I trust you, but do not be careless."
"Lord El, are you saying…?"
"This man is no ordinary fighter. As for you…"
El's assessing gaze made Doflamingo feel slightly uneasy. He knew very well that his own strength was not yet among the absolute peak of the New World.
Still, in these waters, how many could truly stand against him? Especially someone strong enough to catch El's attention—surely there were not many who could defeat him outright…
"Is that so? Then I shall see just how worthy this man favored by Lord El really is!" Doflamingo retorted, clearly not convinced he would lose.
El shook his head lightly, looking unimpressed by Doflamingo's overconfidence. "Do as you will.
Just remember—caution never hurts. I will be nearby, but I will not intervene immediately."
Even after hearing El's warning, Doflamingo remained fully assured of his own abilities.
He knew his own strength well, and he was familiar with every major power currently known across the seas.
Yet according to the information he had received, this blind swordsman had no recorded identity.
That meant he was a complete unknown—no famous name from the history of the Grand Line. That made things far simpler.
Doflamingo knew there were indeed powerful warriors living in seclusion, but what were the odds of running into one of them just like that? He refused to believe it.
Hancock, on the other hand, had also hoped to fight on El's behalf, but now she understood his reasoning. This was Lord El's way of looking out for her!
The thought warmed her heart, and any disappointment over not being able to act herself vanished instantly.
Doflamingo arrived just in time. The very next day, as he had done many times before, the blind swordsman returned.
No one knew exactly what about this auction house had offended him, but having such a formidable figure blocking the entrance had become quite the spectacle.
In recent days, this auction house had become one of the biggest topics of conversation across Sabaody. Everyone knew it had made a powerful enemy.
Though few could say exactly who this blind swordsman was, all agreed he was not someone to be dealt with lightly.
Even with such strong backing, it seemed the auction house could not easily solve its problem.
And so, the onlookers got exactly the show they were waiting for. For days, the swordsman had trapped the place—no one could enter, and no one could leave.
Business had ground to an awkward halt, with many auctions being canceled entirely.
Most perplexing of all: after all this time, no one had yet managed to uncover the true identity of this blind man.
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