New World, the Kingdom of Dressrosa.
"Bellamy is dead?"
On the royal plateau, in a villa where he was sunbathing and watching beauties swim, Donquixote Doflamingo's face suddenly turned grim.
Eyes that could kill stared past his sunglasses at the Den Den Mushi on the table; the aura of a ruler and Conqueror's Haki long since ingrained made both the snail and the man on the other end break out in a cold sweat.
"Y-Yes, Young Master. I just checked—Bellamy's vivre card has burned away."
"But I've already sent people to investigate."
"That doesn't matter. His death doesn't matter."
"What matters is—did he finish last time's delivery? Those guys in Paradise swaggering around under my flag, the tributes they handed to Bellamy—did they bring them back?"
"N-No…"
"My people never made it through Mary Geoise. They were going to reconnect after reaching the Sabaody Archipelago, but… but…"
Sensing his subordinate's nerves about to snap, Doflamingo cut in.
"Enough. Tell them to return."
He hung up at once.
Then he pulled out the Den Den Mushi reserved for contacting his officers and dialed a certain executive.
"Moshi moshi—Doffy, what's up?"
"Seka, Bellamy's dead. That batch of tribute was probably intercepted."
With family-level ease toward the executive, Doflamingo let a smile bloom that defined 'demonic charm.'
"Send the special assault unit to Mock Town to investigate who did it—and reclaim my flag."
"Someone dared lay hands on the Donquixote Family?! Doffy, I'll head to Paradise myself and take care of it."
"Fufufufu… don't be so hot-blooded, Seka."
"It's only a few tens of billions. If it's gone, it's gone. Let the men look into it. Once we know who it is, I'll have plenty of chances to settle the score."
"Got it, Doffy. I'll dispatch people now."
Seka hung up. Doflamingo didn't mind.
As one of the first four to follow him, Seka was treated as family—given great authority and great indulgence.
Real or not, that bond existed.
You had to admit Doflamingo's personal magnetism was overwhelming; like the one-in-a-million spark of Conqueror's Haki, he radiated a king's bearing.
Under his hand the Donquixote Family had, in barely two decades, risen from a small North Blue outfit to one of the underworld's giants.
Though in pure strength he wasn't the top among the Seven Warlords, in organizational power he was absolutely the strongest of them.
Crocodile's Baroque Works couldn't even carry Doflamingo's shoes.
While Crocodile cultivated a 'hero' image in a desert kingdom, plotting to usurp Alabasta and chase the ancient weapon Pluton, Doflamingo became the king of a World Government member nation in Mary Geoise's orbit and could even attend the Reverie as a pirate.
On top of that, as a former Celestial Dragon holding Mary Geoise's dirtiest secrets, he maintained close ties with Kaido of the Four Emperors.
By identity and by network, Doflamingo was a king of the underworld.
So whether in the Four Seas or on both halves of the Grand Line, aside from those few at the very peak, no one dared provoke the Donquixote Family.
Like the Whitebeard Pirates' affiliates, those sailing under the Donquixote banner were seldom touched.
Now, someone in Paradise had suddenly slapped that banner in the face.
And it just so happened the one tasked by the Family to collect a round of tribute—Bellamy—was involved. It begged speculation.
Before he knew who had acted—an enemy faction or a reckless upstart—the cautious Doflamingo wouldn't move.
Karl's crew, meanwhile, had realized they might have drawn the eye of one of the underworld's kings.
Because in Bellamy's villa they found the Donquixote Family flag.
"No wonder he had so much cash. His boss is 'Joker,' a name on par with the world's richest and luckiest."
"No way—someone that minor was a subordinate of the arms-dealing giant and one of the Seven Warlords, the 'Heavenly Yaksha'?"
"The Heavenly Yaksha… Lord Moria mentioned him once—said he was a very evil guy."
Staring at the Donquixote crest, the three women reacted differently.
Karl, however, wore an interested smile.
"Looks like once we enter the New World, I won't be as bored as I am now."
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