Firs Island.
This was a place where Alucard had staked out for nearly half a month in an effort to get close to Vegapunk. His original goal was to acquire Seastone bullets, and he knew that this island was one of the locations that housed the incredibly dangerous weapon comparable to an Ancient Weapon: Dyna Stone.
There were three such spots for this material, and the one Alucard knew of was this island.
No news about Dyna Stone had reached the global press yet, which confirmed that the substance was still in the research phase.
It could also be interpreted that Vegapunk was still conducting research on the substance, meaning there was a high probability of obtaining intelligence on him, or even finding him, by going to Firs Island.
Alucard hadn't realized how quickly he was using up his specialized bullets. When he coincidentally opened the ammunition chamber today and saw only a few Seastone blast rounds left, he ordered his subordinates to find a way to contact Vegapunk and procure new rounds.
While Alucard could certainly go and stake out the location himself, staking out was never an enjoyable task, and since he had so many subordinates now, he might as well use them.
Inside the ruins, Alucard's crew had already engaged in a heated discussion about this mission. They finally decided that Urdaha would lead a few subordinates specializing in stealth and reconnaissance to Firs Island.
And then, they would continue to "watch the movie."
Alucard's covert operation didn't draw the attention of the Marines, as he had only sent a handful of people without flying any flags.
Meanwhile, in Dressrosa, at the nearby G-5 Branch, a Marine base in the New World, Marine Captain Vergo, who was currently the acting base commander, received an urgent Den Den Mushi call from Dressrosa.
The base chief of a Marine Branch is typically a Vice Admiral. Vergo, despite being a Captain, had earned the trust of the current G-5 Base Commander, Gilbert, through his outstanding performance just two years after joining G-5.
The four-yearly Reverie was about to be held, requiring base commanders from all over the world to be recalled to Marineford for consultation. It was for this reason that Vergo was temporarily serving as acting base commander in Gilbert's absence.
The call from Dressrosa was exactly what Vergo expected, or rather, it was precisely what he and Doflamingo had planned.
However, the content of the call was completely different from what Vergo had anticipated.
He expected the message to be something along the lines of "The King has gone mad" or "We
can't control the situation, we need the Marines to intervene." Instead, Vergo received news that "The King was being controlled, the pirates have retreated, and the Marines are needed for cleanup."
This greatly alarmed Vergo.
Could it be... the plan was exposed?
With this thought, Vergo disregarded everything else and immediately summoned nearly five hundred Marine soldiers from the G-5 Branch to head to Dressrosa.
"Captain Vergo, is there a new mission? This is great! We've been cooped up here, I was about to get sick!"
"Let's go, let's go!"
"Let's catch those pirates and make a bonfire."
Not a single person was wearing a proper Marine uniform. The G-5 troops were dressed like thugs, but as Marines stationed in the New World, strength was more essential than adherence to rules, even resorting to fighting violence with violence. As such, Marine Headquarters largely turned a blind eye.
Normally, Vergo would put on a benevolent front for these subordinates, but the failure of the long-planned Dressrosa usurpation had made it impossible for even the highly calculating Vergo to maintain his composure. He slammed the door shut and locked himself in his cabin.
The G-5 Marines on deck exchanged bewildered glances, wondering why Captain Vergo, who was usually so kind to his men, was acting so strangely today.
"Did something major happen in Dressrosa?"
"I don't know, but for Captain Vergo to be angry, it can't be anything simple."
....
Alucard remained in the castle, observing the footage from Dressrosa. The entire city was now in chaos. Because the battle had shifted to the outskirts, Alucard could no longer see the fight between Doflamingo and Zephyr.
While it was hard to say who would win, Doflamingo couldn't kill Zephyr. As long as he couldn't kill Zephyr, the plan to usurp the country was doomed to fail.
After closing his eyes and sleeping, Alucard woke up to high noon on the following day. Extremely bright sunlight filtered through a crack in the wall, bringing a sliver of light to the dark inner hall, but it displeased Alucard, as he disliked sunlight, even though he could move freely under it.
Meanwhile, on the visual Den Den Mushi, the unconscious King Riku, supported by the now- uncontrolled Kyros and others, regained consciousness. He was overcome with pain and regret for his own actions. Along with Kyros and a hundred or so Royal Army soldiers, he knelt in the middle of the street, begging the citizens for forgiveness.
The citizens, however, remained inside their homes, watching the scene through their windows.
But not a single person dared to step outside. The memory of the previous night's madness and bloodshed was still vivid.
Clomp! Clomp! Clomp!
Just then, a steady, forceful sound of footsteps approached. Alucard looked at the screen again, and saw Zephyr, wearing a ripped black tank top and bearing a few scars, leading several hundred men toward King Riku and the others who were kneeling in the street.
"Ma... Marines?"
The citizens hiding in their houses thought to themselves, looking at Zephyr and his group. Although they weren't wearing Marine uniforms, the Seagull emblem representing the Marines on their clothes was conspicuous.
Following Zephyr were naturally Vergo and the G-5 Branch crew, who had received the Den Den Mushi call and rushed over overnight.
Upon meeting Zephyr at the shore, Vergo had generally pieced together the sequence of events. Although he secretly wished to kill Zephyr, on the surface, he was forced to play the flunky.
"You are..." King Riku, still kneeling, looked up at Zephyr, his eyes filled with confusion.
"Please get up, King Riku. It is not you who should be kneeling," Zephyr said hoarsely, helping King Riku to his feet.
"Your Majesty King Riku, he helped us drive away Doflamingo last night, after you lost consciousness..." Kyros explained from behind King Riku.
"Is that so? Thank you very much..." Tears welled up in King Riku's eyes. "No, please allow me, on behalf of the entire Navy..."
At this, Zephyr suddenly knelt down, slamming his head to the ground. "To apologize to you!"