In the New World.
"Flame Demon, Flame Swordsman, Sun God, God of Fire..." Caesar Clown listed, looking at the massive stack of newspapers in front of him.
For the past few days, every single article in every single paper was about the cataclysmic events at the Sabaody Archipelago and Mary Geoise.
"That's quite a lot of titles," Caesar said, stroking his chin. "But to have such power at his age, he must have a special bloodline or be from a special race. If only I could get his blood, my research might be able to advance further."
"If you want my blood, you can come and try!"
A strange voice echoed in the room. Caesar froze and turn around abruptly.
Not far behind him, a neatly dressed young man was sitting casually at a table.
When the scientist saw the man's face clearly, his body completely stiffened.
A moment later, Caesar's entire body swelled to several times its normal size, his head becoming enormous and revealing a mouth full of sharp teeth.
"Cy-Cy... Cyrus!"
Due to extreme shock, Caesar's voice became shrill and high-pitched.
"Caesar-sama!" The guards in protective suits stationed outside heard Caesar's scream and rushed in, but when they saw Cyrus sitting there, they all stood frozen on the spot, completely at a loss for what to do.
Cyrus glanced at them, then stood up and walked over to Caesar Clown's side.
He picked up the newspaper on the table next to the trembling scientist and began to read it quietly.
No one dared to move.
They all stood frozen, simply watching Cyrus read the paper.
"That bastard Morgans, he gave me the title of 'Flame Swordsman'?" Looking at the contents of the newspaper, Cyrus's expression was unfriendly.
"Do you have a Den Den Mushi?" he asked, turning to look at Caesar.
"Ah~~" Caesar was stunned for a moment.
After coming to his senses, he nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, quickly floated to the side, and brought a Den Den Mushi to Cyrus with both hands with a fawning expression plastered on his face.
Glancing at the seemingly sensible Caesar Clown, Cyrus reached out and picked up the receiver.
Buru buru!
A moment later, the call connected, and the Den Den Mushi transformed into the distinct shape of a bird's head.
"Cyrus?" Morgans's voice came through.
"What's this about 'Flame Swordsman'?" Cyrus asked with an unfriendly tone.
"Huh? Didn't you say you wanted a low-key title?" Morgans replied.
"When did I say that? I clearly said I wanted a title that befits my status."
"Did I misunderstand?" Morgans's tone was somewhat surprised. "But it doesn't matter, because the seas don't recognize that title right now, esteemed Sun God."
"I'm not Nika!" Cyrus retorted sharply.
"Then what about the World Government's 'Flame Demon' title for you?" Morgans asked.
The bird was actually trying to continue chatting with Cyrus like this!
"You bastard..."
"But what is this 'Nika' you mentioned?" Morgans, befitting a top-tier journalist, keenly picked up on the specific word that had just come out of Cyrus's mouth.
If it came from the man who destroyed Mary Geoise, it had to be something extraordinary.
Caesar and his men in protective suits stood quietly to the side, but the things Cyrus and Morgans were bickering about left Caesar somewhat speechless.
'To think such a prominent figure would care about something like a newspaper epithet.'
Even if Cyrus had no title whatsoever, absolutely no one would dare to ignore him now.
"It's nothing. I'm on Punk Hazard right now. Spread this news as quickly as possible," Cyrus said, shifting the topic.
"Huh?" Hearing this, Morgans's tone was filled with utter astonishment. "Punk Hazard, the former secret research facility of the World Government? Wasn't that place abandoned? I heard some kind of research accident happened there."
"You're talking too much," Cyrus warned.
"My apologies. I'm just curious about everything concerning you. Nowadays, your every move draws the attention of many, many people. After all, you're now a big shot with a bounty of 9.9 billion," Morgans said with a clear hint of a smile in his voice.
"9.9 billion, you say? If I turned myself in to the World Government, do you think they'd actually pay the bounty?" Cyrus asked, raising an eyebrow.
"They most certainly would. If you went to them now, forget 9.9 billion—even if it were 99 billion Belly, the World Government would hastily cough it up and respectfully see you on your way," Morgans replied immediately.
"After all, they must be terrified you'll destroy the other half of Mary Geoise."
"Is that so? Spread the news that I'm on Punk Hazard. Also, help me spread another piece of news across the entire world. Tell everyone that in half a year, I will be holding a Hunter Exam."
"A Hunter Exam?" Morgans's tone clearly began to fill with intense excitement.
His instincts told him this was definitely going to be another massive story.
"What are the specifics?" he pressed.
"How would I know the specifics? Contact Crocodile later and have him arrange it."
"Understood!" Morgans said, sensing the clear impatience in Cyrus's tone. "However, by announcing your location this time, are you sending a message to your people?"
"Partly. Just go do it."
"Alright, I'll arrange for people to handle the print right away. Also, do you have any other instructions?"
"No, just hurry up!" Cyrus hung up and casually stuffed the Den Den Mushi into his chest pocket.
The exchange had indeed been a bit too violent.
Even the God of Den Den Mushi couldn't withstand the pressure of his aura and had died in the line of duty, leaving Cyrus to pity that he couldn't find the snail's family to give them a death benefit.
"Um, Cyrus-sama, are you truly planning to spread the news that you're here?" Seeing Cyrus put the dead Den Den Mushi away, Caesar's lips twitched as he asked the question.
"Yes, is there a problem?" Cyrus turned his head.
"No problem, of course not!" Caesar immediately shook his head.
"Good. You have a failed Devil Fruit that Vegapunk created, right? The one made using Kaido's Lineage Factor."
As soon as Cyrus said this, Caesar's eyes went wide with complete disbelief.
"How did you know about this?"
Very few people should know about this kind of highly classified information!
"Bring it here." Cyrus waved his hand dismissively.
"Yes, please wait a moment." Caesar naturally didn't dare to object in any way, it was just a failed experiment, after all.
Soon, a strange pink Devil Fruit with blue rings on it was brought before Cyrus.
"My lord, this is the Devil Fruit that Vegapunk created in the past, but this fruit is indeed a failure," Caesar explained, standing obediently to the side.
He knew very well that if Cyrus wanted to, he could easily destroy this entire island, so he was being very honest.
"You think it's a failure too?" Cyrus picked up the Devil Fruit and looked at Caesar Clown as he asked.
"Of course. My abilities are no less than Vegapunk's. If he thinks it's a failure, I naturally look down on it too," Caesar declared at once.
Cyrus glanced at the scientist before returning his gaze to the Devil Fruit in his hand.
"Logically, there shouldn't be two identical fruits in this world. How can Lineage Factor replicate these Devil Fruit abilities?" he asked after looking at it for a few moments.