Robin: "???"
What... what is this?
A... a teapot?
After a strenuous quarter of an hour of struggle, he only reeled in this black, ugly thing?
She had been excited for Roland earlier, thinking he was about to get a big catch, but...
"It was the same at Twin Capes... Why does this man always catch such strange things?"
Robin couldn't help but think, her expression peculiar.
What puzzled her even more was that at this moment, Roland showed no annoyance at not catching a big fish and instead reeling in a teapot. On the contrary, he was completely satisfied and couldn't put the teapot down.
"Alright, let's stop here for today. In any case, the information you provided was a great help. I owe you a favor. If you need anything in the future, you can come find me!"
Roland held the teapot in one hand, reeled in his line, and stood up.
...
...
At this moment.
The Royal Palace Hall.
King Cobra sat upon the throne.
Listening to his daughter Vivi's speech, he couldn't stop nodding.
"King Cobra, the situation outside has been completely brought under control, all thanks to Princess Vivi. She will surely be an excellent queen in the future!"
Igaram, the captain of the guard, exclaimed excitedly.
"Indeed!"
King Cobra nodded.
"As a father, there's not much more I can do, but at least I must hand this country over to Vivi completely intact!"
"Your Majesty, those guys are coming!"
Chaka, the vice-captain, suddenly looked grave.
As his words fell.
Several dull thuds were heard.
The elite Kingdom Army soldiers guarding the hall screamed as they were sent flying back into the hall.
The high-ranking cadres of Baroque Works, led by Crocodile, swaggered in.
"How dare you! Crocodile, this is the Royal Palace, not a place you can trespass into!"
Igaram, the captain of the guard, sternly rebuked him.
"Crocodile, you've finally shown your true colors! These guys around you are criminals from Baroque Works, and you are Baroque's mysterious boss!"
Chaka shouted.
"Gu~ heh~ heh~ heh~"
Crocodile chuckled sinisterly.
"There's no need for such grandstanding words now. We both know full well that only one side can walk out of here today. However, before that, I have a few questions I want to ask you!"
"Speak. I also have questions I want to ask you!"
King Cobra faced Crocodile fearlessly.
"I truly didn't expect that the princess of a dignified country would condescend to go undercover in Baroque Works. Cobra, you've truly raised a good daughter!"
Crocodile couldn't help but clap his hands.
"Thank you for the compliment. I also think my daughter is the best in the world!"
Cobra said.
"However... even if Princess Vivi is an undercover agent in our organization, she absolutely couldn't have accessed the core of the organization. I'm very curious, where exactly did you get this information? You seem to have been prepared for our actions today!"
Crocodile's gaze suddenly turned cold.
He could probably guess that there was a traitor in his own ranks.
"No comment!"
Cobra remained neither humble nor arrogant, then continued.
"Crocodile, you've been lurking in Alabasta for many years, playing the role of a hero while committing various evil deeds with Baroque Works. Is your only goal truly just to seize control of this country?"
Ever since Vivi's analysis yesterday that Crocodile's goal might not just be to seize power.
Cobra had been sleepless, constantly pondering this question, and he came up with a possibility.
That was Alabasta's biggest secret!!!
A secret that Queen Lily, eight hundred years ago, chose to protect rather than become a noble World Noble.
Once that secret was exposed, Alabasta would inevitably become a target, invaded and plundered by various forces.
Especially the World Government, after all, that secret concerned the ancient weapon Pluto, capable of destroying the world.
"Gu heh heh heh, what else? What other purpose do you think I have!"
Crocodile also did not answer directly.
However, from the subtle changes in his expression, Cobra already had the answer.
Although he didn't know how Crocodile knew, there was no doubt that he knew that this country had that.
The people of Alabasta naturally did not understand the deeper meaning of this conversation between Cobra and Crocodile.
However... some things, even a three-year-old child could understand.
"Hey, hey, hey, you're kidding, right? This, this, this... Is this true?"
"Crocodile... Mr. Crocodile is actually the boss of a criminal organization!"
"The mysterious president of the notorious Baroque Works is actually Crocodile!"
"This kind of thing is simply unbelievable. Mr. Crocodile is a hero who has driven away pirates countless times!"
Throughout Alabasta, the people who heard the broadcasted conversation were all incredibly shocked.
Many who had previously received help from Crocodile were unwilling to accept the reality, shaking their heads repeatedly.
"There's nothing hard to believe. The facts are already before your eyes!"
"That's right! That's right! King Cobra and Princess Vivi all said so..."
"Crocodile himself has already admitted that he is the president of Baroque!"
"The several years of drought in our Alabasta were all caused by that guy behind the scenes!"
"Damn Crocodile, a dog can't change its ways. How could a pirate ever become a hero!"
"The Shichibukai Crocodile, he played the role of a national hero, but his goal was to seize this country!"
"If he succeeds, Alabasta will become a pirate nation. How… how can we let him succeed?!"
More ordinary citizens were filled with righteous indignation, their anger boiling.
People from the cities closer to Alubarna picked up their weapons and set off to provide support.
At this moment.
Not only were the people of Alabasta acting, but also the Marine G6 Branch.
Last night, Chaka had contacted the Marines and connected to the Kingdom's broadcast signal.
Vivi's speech, as well as Cobra's conversation with Crocodile, were heard word-for-word by the Marines at the base.
"A Shichibukai usurping the country! Crocodile, as a Shichibukai, is not only the president of Baroque Works, but he also planned and intended to seize Alabasta! This matter is truly too big! Tina doesn't know what to do!"
Marine Beauty Colonel Hina was so shocked that her beautiful eyes widened, at a loss for what to do.
"The Shichibukai are personnel affiliated with the World Government, yet they… If the matter of Alabasta gets out, it will inevitably cause a huge uproar!"
A middle-aged Marine female Rear Admiral's face was extremely grim.
"Tina, you immediately lead a team to Alabasta. We absolutely cannot let Crocodile's conspiracy succeed. I will immediately report to headquarters and let Tsuru… the base commander decide!"
...
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