Maude's call.
Law's heartbeat quickened.
In his mind, memories of their parting at Thriller Bark resurfaced, along with the words Maude had left him with:
"One year from now, meet me at Sabaody Archipelago!"
Though it hadn't been a full year yet, the time was close.
Realizing this, Law lowered his gaze to the Den Den Mushi, which bore Maude's familiar features. A flicker of urgency surfaced in his expression.
"Maude."
"Mm. Is anyone else around?"
The Den Den Mushi mimicked Maude's gaze as his voice carried through.
Law didn't respond immediately. Instead, he glanced over his shoulder at the clustered townspeople.
"Room."
A hemispherical operating space unfolded in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, Law appeared on the deck of a mast ship floating on the nearby sea, while his previous position was replaced by an empty wooden barrel.
"Now there isn't."
Having transferred himself to an unoccupied pirate ship using the power of the Op-Op Fruit, Law spoke calmly.
On the other end of the call, even without seeing the scene unfold, Maude understood what had happened the moment he heard "Room."
He didn't dwell on it and instead got straight to the point.
"It's time. As promised, I'm waiting for you at Sabaody Archipelago."
"Alright."
Law's gaze hardened as he looked at the Den Den Mushi, his tone carrying a deeper meaning.
"The major event you mentioned before… Can you tell me now?"
"A war. A large-scale war involving multiple powerful factions."
This time, Maude didn't bother with theatrics—he answered Law's question directly.
"A war?"
Hearing Maude's unwavering response, Law was taken aback.
He had always kept a close eye on both overt and covert developments in the world, yet he hadn't detected any signs of an impending war.
"That's right. Even the Warlords will be involved, which means… Donquixote Doflamingo, like me, will also be there."
"Hmm?"
Law's eyes narrowed slightly as he instantly grasped Maude's implication.
Leaving aside the scale of the war for a moment…
"Maude, are you planning to make a move on Doflamingo during this 'war'?"
"Yes. And this is… an opportunity you can seize as well."
"..."
Law fell silent.
Taking down Doflamingo was the very reason he continued to exist in this world.
Now, Maude had placed before him a possible chance to accomplish that goal.
Yet, his rationality, cold as ice, prevented him from feeling any excitement—only tangled skepticism remained.
After all—
The world's current state was stable, with no visible undercurrents brewing.
If there was any recent turmoil, it would be Maude's elimination of Gecko Moria.
Beyond that, there were no signs of an event significant enough to disrupt the balance of power.
How, then, could such a large-scale war involving multiple factions possibly erupt?
More importantly, Maude had hinted at this a year ago.
Could it be…?
As Law thought further, one possibility emerged.
Maude had been planning to incite a large-scale war for a long time—perhaps even securing his position as a Warlord for that very purpose.
Law remained silent for a moment.
With little time to dwell on the implications, he could only respond in one way:
"We'll talk in person."
"Alright. See you at Sabaody."
Law didn't press further, which slightly surprised Maude.
However, he didn't dwell on it. With a simple acknowledgment, he ended the call.
On the pirate ship's deck, Law stared at the now-dormant Den Den Mushi, deep in thought.
Ever since parting with Maude at Thriller Bark, he had followed Maude's advice, keeping a low profile.
At the same time, he had worked tirelessly to refine his Op-Op Fruit abilities and address the stamina issues that Maude had previously criticized.
And now, Maude had called, summoning him to Sabaody Archipelago.
"A war involving even the Warlords…"
Muttering to himself, Law's mind conjured an image of Maude.
This man…
To him, Maude had always felt powerful and ruthless.
But now, he seemed to carry an air of mystery as well.
If this war truly was about to break out, as Maude claimed…
Then, was Maude really doing all this just to take Doflamingo's head?
No.
Definitely not.
...
Sabaody Archipelago.
Maude gazed at the Den Den Mushi in silence, hesitating for a moment before ultimately deciding against dialing Sabo's number.
"There's still plenty of time. No rush."
Slowly, he placed the Den Den Mushi down.
To draw the Revolutionary Army into the Summit War, the key prerequisite was Sabo regaining his memories.
If Sabo could recall his past with Ace and Luffy…
Then, once the Marines announced Ace's impending execution…
With Sabo's personality, he would undoubtedly throw everything aside to rescue Ace.
That would be the trigger for the Revolutionary Army's involvement.
As for how much of their forces they would commit, even Maude couldn't predict.
If conditions allowed, Maude would prefer to draw their leader, Dragon, into the war as well.
"Maybe… I should get Luffy on the execution platform too?"
He murmured to himself.
That would certainly make things even more interesting.
"In any case, the first step is ensuring Blackbeard delivers Ace to the Marines as planned."
Reaching out, Maude placed a hand over the Den Den Mushi.
Silently, shadows surged from his palm, rippling like a tide before enveloping the Den Den Mushi completely.
"Shadow Casket."
Maude's eyes locked onto it.
Under his command, the shadows constricted, forming a box around the Den Den Mushi.
Yet as the shadows tightened, the anti-eavesdropping Den Den Mushi's corners slowly emerged from the darkness, like reefs breaking through the ocean's surface.
"Still not there yet…"
Maude exhaled softly.
He was attempting to develop an ability that could store valuable items in a shadow dimension.
The space didn't need to be large—just enough to hold a single Devil Fruit.
But achieving this was proving far more difficult than expected.
Even so, Maude was determined.
Because—
During the Summit War, aside from claiming Whitebeard and Doflamingo's heads…
There was one more thing he wanted.
The Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
For that, he needed Law to be involved in the battle as well.
"Before the Summit War begins, I must master 'Shadow Casket.'"
Maude controlled his shadow, letting it continue to wrap around the Den Den Mushi.
If he could successfully obtain the Tremor-Tremor Fruit, then Shadow Casket would be the key to ensuring its existence remained hidden.
This—
This was the foundation of his plan.
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