Sabaody Archipelago.
Gulp, gulp, gulp…
Aeridar lay on a Yarukiman Mangrove tree, his legs crossed, drinking from a bottle of expensive red wine.
He read the latest newspaper. "April 5th, the Spade Pirates' 'Fire Fist' Ace engaged a division of the Marine G-4 Branch at Nandia Island. The Marines had three battleships sunk, one Rear Admiral, and two Captains severely wounded. Over a thousand soldiers and officers were killed or wounded. While escaping, he sank another battleship and damaged one more from the Marine 63rd Branch's reinforcements, severely wounding their commanding Rear Admiral. His bounty is 250 million Berries."
A smile played on Aeridar's face. "Sinking four battleships and single-handedly routing the Marines' G-4 Branch pursuit, as well as the reinforcements from another Marine branch. Truly worthy of a Flame-Flame Fruit user. He's finally reached this point, Portgas D. Ace… no, I suppose it's Gol D. Ace."
"But that bastard Sengoku! Sending me to recruit Ace? Does he think I'm his subordinate? Bastard!" Aeridar's expression suddenly changed as he cursed. "Luckily, I was planning to check out this popular character anyway, and I got a good deal from Sengoku, so it's worth it. Also, it seems the Pacifista project has reached a critical stage, otherwise they wouldn't be looking for someone to replace Kuma."
Aeridar's face kept shifting expressions. A stranger would think he was practicing the opera face-changing act.
After leaving Shiki, Aeridar had originally planned to return to Alvis Island but received a Den Den Mushi call from Sengoku halfway there. The two traded insults for a while before getting down to business. Sengoku eventually revealed his true purpose.
Sengoku's proposal was exactly what Aeridar wanted. After squeezing a lot out of Sengoku, he agreed to the mission of recruiting Ace for the Seven Warlords of the Sea. He heard Garp's loud protests in the background, so it seemed Garp was also worried about his grandson's safety.
After learning that Ace's pirate crew was still some distance from Sabaody Archipelago, Aeridar returned to Alvis Island to give Dr. Dalt the [IQ] he got from Merveille. He hoped that the substance, which accelerated animal evolution, would be effective for the biological weapon project and speed up his research.
The reason Aeridar stopped fighting Shiki wasn't because he was afraid of his strength, but because he had already gauged his current power.
Shiki was still very strong, but his strength had declined severely compared to the other legends of his era. Moreover, in three years, his strength would drastically decline, thus he was no longer a threat to Aeridar.
When Aeridar saw the floating islands and then Shiki, he came up with a plan—one that might sustain his kingdom for a very long time. However, the plan was still a rough idea, and some key details were missing, so it wasn't the right time yet. Shiki couldn't die just yet.
Pere pere pere… Pere pere pere…
Click.
Aeridar put down the newspaper and answered his Den Den Mushi. "This is Aeridar."
"Captain, Fire Fist Ace has arrived! He's at Grove 19!" The voice on the other end of the Den Den Mushi made Aeridar smile.
"Alright, I got it," Aeridar said calmly and hung up.
....
Grove 19, Coast.
A pirate ship with a strange horse figurehead slowly came ashore. The anchor and ladder were lowered, and the pirates on board joyfully disembarked.
"Oh my God, this is Sabaody Archipelago! It's so beautiful!"
"This place is a dream! It's so dreamy!"
"What's the deal with all these bubbles?"
"I heard there's an illegal zone here. Are we in one of those?"
"Hey, hey, don't scare me!"
"You idiot, what are you worried about? We're pirates!"
The pirates looked around, some in delight, others in nervousness, and a few even started horsing around.
"Captain Ace, what should we do now?" a pirate asked.
"Well, I heard we need our ship coated to go to Fish-Man Island, so let's get some food first!" Ace said with a grin.
"What does eating have to do with coating?!" The pirates collectively waved their hands and roared.
"I'll leave the coating to you guys. I'm going to eat!" Ace said with a wide smile, waving as he turned and ran off.
"Captain! Captain!" the pirates behind him shouted.
One hour later, a restaurant on Grove 24.
Clink, clank, clink…
"Waiter! One more deep-sea giant squid!"
"Waiter! Another one of those pizzas!"
"Another order of macaroni, please!"
"This pork rice is really good. Waiter, another serving!"
On a large round table, besides the delicious-looking dishes, there were various empty plates and bowls. Ace, with his hat hanging around his neck, was stuffing his face. His face was covered in food crumbs.
"Who is that guy? He can eat so much!"
"He's so skinny, where does all that food go?"
"Hey, with that table manner, he's probably a pirate, isn't he?"
"That's possible. And… he looks kind of familiar."
The restaurant's patrons whispered to each other, astonished by Ace, who had already eaten enough for ten people.
Thump!
Suddenly, Ace, who was still devouring his food, lowered his head and buried his face in his pork rice. The restaurant fell silent. No one knew what was happening.
"Hey, hey, sir!"
"Gulp… D-did he die suddenly?!"
"No way! He was just fine! Is it some kind of acute illness?"
"Oh my God, is it contagious?"
Just as the people in the restaurant were about to panic…
Nnggrrr… Nnggrrr…
A snoring sound came from Ace.
"..." Everyone fell silent, staring speechlessly at the sleeping Ace.
Ace then lifted his head, blinked with a dazed look, and wiped the rice and sauce off his face with a towel from the table. "Damn it, I accidentally fell asleep," he sighed.
"He actually fell asleep!" The crowd collectively raised their hands and roared.
"How is that even possible? Falling asleep while eating!" a patron said in astonishment.
"And he's still eating!" another one added.
"By the way, what are they making such a fuss about?" Ace asked the waiter, chewing on a slice of pizza.
"Uh, n-nothing at all. We're just glad you're okay," the male waiter said, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
"What an interesting guy," Aeridar said from a corner of the restaurant, taking a sip of his lemonade as he watched Ace continue to eat.