As soon as these words left her mouth, Koala's cheeks—which were already flushed—turned an even deeper red.
Koala: "Betty, you're talking like that again… Don't tell me you really are interested in Arton?"
Belo Betty: "Aren't you interested in Arton, too? If not, why would you come along to look for him?"
Koala: "I— I only wanted to learn more about the Revolutionaries' future and gain more power… Not anything related to romance…"
Belo Betty: "Fufu, I know, I'm just teasing you, Koala. That said, about romance… indeed, I do feel quite positively about Arton in that respect."
Koala: "R-Really? But you two have never even met in real life."
Belo Betty: "Even so, it doesn't stop me from admiring him!"
Belo Betty lifted her head, looking skyward. Beneath her sunglasses, her eyes shone with a certain light.
Belo Betty: "A man unafraid of the World Nobles, unafraid of the World Government's might—a man who intends to overthrow the World Government—how could that not be fascinating? Someone like that, who can help our Revolution… isn't that more than enough to be appealing?"
Koala stared blankly at Belo Betty—who seemed like some devout fanatic—for quite some time, her face full of disbelief. She never imagined she'd see such an expression on the face of the usually composed, mature Betty. But after thinking about it for a moment, Koala understood.
Belo Betty, as the Eastern Army Commander in the Revolutionary Army, had been around a long time. She was doubtless one of those most desperate for the fall of the World Government. Now Arton had appeared—like a lamp lit on a dark sea of revolution. For someone like Belo Betty, who'd sailed that gloomy sea for so many years, this lamp was naturally extremely attractive. In fact, if one's will weren't strong enough, they'd likely rush like crazy to track Arton down.
'Probably not just Belo Betty. If word of Arton reached some of the more senior members of the Revolutionary Army, they'd act just as Betty is acting now. But… do we really depend on Belo Betty alone to win Arton's favor?'
Koala pursed her lips, feeling like it might not be fair to have Belo Betty shoulder all that responsibility. At that moment, Betty reached out and patted Koala on the shoulder.
"I told you—don't overthink this. Don't forget, I'm already 32. Going by age, I'm well past the best time for marriage. Arton's appearance is beyond wonderful. If he hadn't come along, maybe I would stay single for my entire life. And as a husband, he's perfectly suitable."
With that, Belo Betty pulled out a transponder snail and started dialing a familiar number—she intended to have the Revolutionary Army go look for Moda, who was far away in the Lulusia Kingdom. Koala looked at Betty's calm expression and fell into thought.
…
A separate conversation in the Marine Women's chat group.
Ain: So this is what the World Government is actually like? Completely unimaginable… If it weren't for Arton, I might have spent my entire life not knowing any of this.
Hibari: How did it come to this? This is so different from the World Government I imagined. If we keep working for them… can we truly uphold justice?
Ain: A single power that can casually wipe out an entire country… I don't have to spell it out for you, Hibari, perhaps, since you haven't been in the Marines for very long, this might be a good time for you to make a different choice.
Doll: Ain, watch your words…
Ain: Oh? You think that working for a government like this can really bring about the justice we believe in? Initially, I found it strange how the World Government would betray Teacher Zephyr— but now that I know about Imu's existence and how easily they can destroy the Lulusia Kingdom, it all makes sense…
Gion: Ain, I know you're upset about that future scenario with Zephyr-sensei and the Government, but that hasn't happened yet—so can we not speak with such emotion for now?
Ain: I'm very calm, Gion. I'm speaking in a perfectly calm tone. Honestly, I'm quite curious, if we let slip Imu's existence, would Imu do this "light extinction" to us as well?
Sadi: Hey hey, don't say such terrifying stuff. I know nothing about Imu or whoever…
Domino: Regarding Imu, we'd best not mention that name publicly either, or discuss it too much…
Hibari: But… even if we don't speak Imu's name, Imu does exist, right? And that means we're effectively serving them. But is that really justice?
Gion: Admittedly, Imu's existence is controversial. But if we Marines vanished, the seas would fall into chaos, and far more innocent people would be harmed. Even if the World's hidden master is Imu, the Marines still have their duty.
After leaving that message, Gion let out a long sigh. Although she was on the front lines as a Marine officer, she was constantly forced to be a counselor of sorts these days— it troubled her. Deep down, she felt some resentment that Arton had leaked info about Imu and such.
Ain: Maybe Gion's words do have some truth. The Marines can treat Imu like an overgrown World Noble if they want. The Marines have already catered to World Nobles anyway…
Doll: That's enough, Ain. You've said enough for today.
Ain: Anyway, all of us here know about Imu now. So be careful, everyone— watch what you say in your sleep, so we don't slip up.
Satie: Crap—I talk in my sleep!
Domino: Oh dear… well, Sadi, how about you sleep with me from now on.
Satie: I absolutely love you, Domino!
…
Seeing these messages, Doll gave a long sigh. She had this uneasy feeling that at this rate, Hibari might end up like Ain, too. But there was nothing she could do. If we strictly define justice, Imu's presence definitely didn't feel just. Doll found she couldn't refute Ain's words.
"If this keeps up, Ain might actually leave the Marines. This is bad… I hope Arton stops riling her up. And Tashigi… her view of Marine justice is shaken too—and she's captured by Arton. I can't imagine how that'll turn out once she returns…"
She gave another sigh.
"Hina's been in the Marines a while; maybe she's more likely to take Imu's existence in stride. But… will Arton spare Tashigi and Hina the same way he did before?"
"…No good; we have to think of a way to free them from him."
Mumbling that to herself, Doll's face tensed in worry. Next to her, Kujaku spoke:
"Right now Arton's focus is on that World Noble. Maybe he won't do anything to Tashigi or Hina. Let's at least try to catch up with Arton's ship. Then next time Arton makes a move, we won't show up too late."
Hearing that, Doll glanced at Arton—who was still torturing the World Noble in the live feed—and silently nodded.
"For now, that's the only option…"
…
Meanwhile, Arton continues in his Diary-
[Come to think of it, yes, Belo Betty did rescue the Milk-Girl Moda. That part is accurate. At the time, pirates were attacking the Lulusia Kingdom, and Moda was about to be killed by them.]
[Had Betty not shown up, Moda would've been done for—since she was clutching that jar of milk the entire time, the pirates thought she was hiding some treasure. When they discovered it was just milk, they got furious.]
[But ironically, Moda had been safeguarding the milk meant for a Vice Admiral in Marine Headquarters. And yet the Government at the top of the Marines—Imu—wiped out her entire homeland with a single strike. I wonder how Moda's Marine parents felt when they heard…?]
Tashigi: "…"
Hina: "…"
Gion: "Ugh…"
Ain: "Heh… so that's our so-called justice. Moda's parents faced the same betrayal as Teacher Zephyr."
Stussy: "Reading all this, I wonder how many young Marines might want out. I should start investigating—maybe I can recruit them."
Doll: "Arton, please… can't you stop talking…? Ugh!"
Smoothie: "The Marines are just a joke."
Whitey Bay: "Yes, that's the Marines for you—full of contradictions."
Makino: "Vice Admiral Garp… is he really working for something like this…?"
Belo Betty: "So that's how I appeared in Lulusia Kingdom, apparently. And what about Sabo— why was he in Lulusia?"
Koala: "Wait, from Arton's words, does it sound like Sabo shouldn't be thanked by Moda? Did he do something questionable…?"