In the private banquet hall of Whole Cake Island in the New World, the air was thick with the cloying scent of cream and sugar. Charlotte Linlin lounged lazily on her custom-made throne, toying with a strawberry-topped cream cake between her fingers. Her long pink hair spilled loosely around her, and a smudge of cream clung to the corner of her mouth.
"Mamamama, Perospero, you're saying you won?" she asked with a hint of surprise, speaking into a Den Den Mushi, her slender fingers tapping lightly on the armrest of her throne.
The Den Den Mushi perfectly replicated Perospero's signature long-tongued expression. "Yes, Mama. We indeed defeated the Golden Lion Pirates' Second Fleet."
Charlotte Linlin's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. In her original plan, even with the combined strength of the Beasts Pirates, the force led by Perospero should have had absolutely no chance of defeating one of Shiki's elite fleets.
Sending that force, even going so far as to contact Kaido, was meant only as a warning to Shiki—that the Big Mom Pirates were not weaklings to be trifled with.
"Give me the details," she said, stuffing the entire three-tiered cream cake into her mouth. The sickly-sweet taste calmed her mood slightly. Cream oozed from the corners of her mouth, but she paid it no mind.
"The Beasts Pirates sent two of their All-Stars," Perospero's voice came through the Den Den Mushi. "Katakuri and the others and I were holding off Albert, but it was the Beasts' people who truly turned the tide."
Charlotte Linlin's chewing slowed, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes. "Two All-Stars?"
"Yes. One was an ability user named Kuzan. He instantly froze the entire sea. I suspect it's the Logia-type Chill-Chill Fruit. The other, named Queen, directly took out the Fifth Division Commander, Sack. Seeing the situation turn sour, Albert could only retreat to the Caister Kingdom."
Cream dribbled from Charlotte Linlin's mouth, yet she remained oblivious. Her mind flashed to the image of Kaido from a few years ago, that brash young man who loved to pick fights, the one she used to call "kid." Back then, Kaido was just a reckless youth. Now, he already had such powerful subordinates.
"Mamamama..." Her laughter held a complex emotion. "It seems that kid from back then has grown some real wings now."
"Mama, with all due respect," Perospero said cautiously, a hint of hesitation in his voice, "the overall strength of the Beasts Pirates now is probably already..."
"Silence!" Charlotte Linlin suddenly roared, her voice shaking the Homies in the palace, making them tremble. She grabbed a whole cake and shoved it into her mouth. Cream smeared over her bright lipstick, making her expression appear even more ferocious.
"Perospero, you remember this," her voice dropped low, carrying an undeniable authority. "Even among pirates, honor matters. That brat Kaido... hmph, I have my own plans."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the Den Den Mushi, followed only by a respectful: "Yes, Mama."
Charlotte Linlin roughly hung up the call. Her gaze passed through the candy-colored window, looking out at the turbulent sea of the New World. Her thick fingers unconsciously tapped on the armrest of her throne, emitting dull thuds. In this world where strength reigned supreme, the balance of power was quietly shifting, and she had to reformulate her plans.
The banquet hall fell into silence, broken only by the careful clinking of dishes as the Homies cleaned up.
After a long while, Charlotte Linlin spoke to the man beside her, "Streusen."
"Linlin, what do you need?" Streusen asked.
"Contact the Beasts Pirates. With this defeat of the Golden Lion Pirates, that bastard Shiki will probably take to the field himself. Have them head to the Caister Kingdom as well. We'll meet the current Golden Lion Shiki together when the time comes. And the alliance matter we discussed before needs to be renegotiated," Charlotte Linlin said.
"Understood, Linlin. I'll contact the Beasts Pirates immediately," Streusen replied.
Above a certain sea in the New World, the wondrous sight of floating archipelagos was a breathtaking sight.
Seven or eight small islands hovered in the sky a thousand meters above the sea's surface, surrounded by azure seawater. Even ships of the Golden Lion Pirates floated upon these "aerial oceans." These islands were shrouded in a thin veil of mist and clouds, refracting a dreamlike halo under the sunlight.
In the center of the largest island, the buildings of the Golden Lion Pirates stood tall and imposing.
At this moment, Golden Lion Shiki was holding a grand banquet with his many officers. In the spacious hall, servers constantly brought delicacies and fine wines from all over the world, which were promptly devoured by the pirates like a whirlwind.
"Shihahaha!" Shiki let out his signature mad laugh as he watched his men wolf down the food. He raised his glass, the amber liquor shimmering under the light. "Enjoy yourselves to the fullest, my warriors! You are all the foundation stones for conquering the world!"
However, as his gaze swept over these officers, he couldn't help but recall the figures of the Roger Pirates. That so-called Dark King Rayleigh, the dual-axe-wielding Scopper Gaban, and those other crew members with extraordinary strength...
In comparison, while his own officers were certainly capable, there was still a significant gap between them and truly top-tier combatants.
Shiki narrowed his eyes, his fingers lightly tapping on the gold-plated armrest. He knew full well that mere numerical superiority was far from enough. These officers might be able to delay top-tier fighters with sheer numbers, but defeating them would be exceedingly difficult.
"It seems I must recruit more powerful individuals..." Shiki contemplated privately, a shrewd gleam flashing in his eyes. He threw back his head and drained his glass. A bold idea surfaced in his mind: "If only I could make Roger submit... that would be perfect." This thought made the corner of his mouth curl up unconsciously, as if he were already seeing himself standing atop the world.
The clamor in the banquet hall continued, but Shiki's thoughts had already flown far away.
"Lord Admiral! Something terrible has happened!" A panicked pirate staggered into the banquet hall, shattering the lively atmosphere of clinking glasses and merrymaking.
Golden Lion Shiki, seated at the head of the table, frowned upon hearing this, displeasure coloring his face. "What is it?" His voice carried a third of its usual anger, seeming to drop the temperature in the entire hall by a few degrees.
Feeling Shiki's wrath, the messenger pirate trembled from head to toe, kneeling on the ground fearfully. "Reporting, Lord Admiral! Lord Albert has just sent word. They were defeated in a battle against the combined fleet of Big Mom and the Beasts Pirates. Fifth Division Commander Lord Sack... fell in battle. Lord Albert is now leading the remaining forces in a retreat to the Caister Kingdom and requests reinforcements."
This news exploded in the banquet hall like a thunderclap. The officers who had been clinking glasses and toasting moments ago fell silent instantly, their breathing becoming careful. An atmosphere of suffocating tension filled the air.
***
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