Chapter 61: Secrets of History! Roger Sets Sail
With the shocking destruction caused by the Sabaody Upheaval,
Even though the World Government tried to cover it up, the miserable state of Sabaody Archipelago made it impossible for anyone to give a perfect explanation.
Very soon, the hidden truth behind it was unearthed by the media.
When people learned that the devastation on the island was the work of one of the Rocks Pirates' cadres—Lotte—and that he had even killed a Celestial Dragon on Sabaody and escaped unscathed,
The entire sea erupted in shock.
No one had expected Lotte's strength to reach such a terrifying level.
Although he had previously invaded the Lulusia Kingdom, most of the credit for that was attributed to top cadre Whitebeard.
As for Lotte, he was seen as merely a genius.
The seas were once again thrown into turmoil.
Affiliated nations across the world panicked at the Rocks Pirates' dominance—after all, even Celestial Dragons had been killed more than once. What chance did they have?
Soon after,
Rumors began spreading that some affiliated nations were considering withdrawing from the World Government.
On an island in the New World,
The Roger Pirates' ship was docked at the shore. The crew was gathered inside a cave in an ancient ruin, roasting meat over a blazing campfire and laughing heartily.
At that moment,
A young crew member stationed outside rushed in, clutching a newspaper in panic.
"Captain Roger! Mr. Rayleigh!"
"You guys have to see this news—something huge just happened!"
As his voice fell,
Rayleigh raised an eyebrow and glanced at the young pirate.
"You're so worked up—did Rocks declare war on the World Government or something?"
"Let me see what's going on."
Normally this kid had seen plenty of crazy things alongside them.
What exactly could make him this flustered?
Rayleigh grew curious.
He took the newspaper and scanned it briefly.
Then a smile spread across his face. He tossed it to Roger beside him and laughed heartily.
"Hahahaha! Those two guys really never give anyone peace!"
"They turned Sabaody Archipelago upside down—this is all thanks to you, Captain!"
"That kid's ability is seriously something else!"
According to the newspaper,
The entire Yggdrasil Mangrove had been completely taken over.
The number of Marine soldiers killed or injured by this alone had already reached a staggering thousand!
Not to mention the death of the Celestial Dragon—this had brought severe condemnation upon Marine Headquarters.
In a fit of rage,
They had dramatically increased Lotte's bounty!
His bounty now stood at a shocking 2.5 billion berries!
Second only to Captain Rocks' 3 billion berry bounty, making him the second-highest in the Rocks Pirates.
Moreover,
A new title for Lotte had already begun quietly spreading across the seas.
"Azure Emperor"
To outsiders, this bounty increase might seem like Marine Headquarters lashing out in anger.
After all, no matter how you looked at Lotte's strength,
He still couldn't compare to top-tier powerhouses like Whitebeard.
But only Rayleigh—who had personally fought Lotte—knew that this bounty was far from overestimating him.
As long as the kid kept growing,
Surpassing Rocks one day might not be impossible!
Roger, looking puzzled, took the newspaper.
What kind of news could make his vice-captain this happy? He skimmed it quickly and then burst into loud laughter.
"Puhahahaha! Garp must be furious right now. He and that old man White Fox teamed up and still couldn't keep them!"
"They even killed a Celestial Dragon!"
Roger's face was filled with uncontainable amusement.
Not long ago Garp had been relentlessly chasing their crew. It was precisely because Garp suddenly disappeared that they had time to come to this ancient ruin.
So he had gone to deal with Lotte's situation!
That kid really was something!
The surrounding Roger Pirates members also began discussing excitedly.
"That Lotte really is a monster who beat Mr. Rayleigh—his bounty's already up to 2.5 billion berries! Unbelievable!"
"Hiss—! I think our Captain's bounty is only around 1 billion right now, isn't it?"
"The younger generation is terrifying!"
As the laughter gradually died down,
Roger's expression became serious.
He looked at Rayleigh and spoke gravely.
"Since Lotte has caused such a huge incident, now is the perfect time for us to keep moving."
"Right now, neither Marine Headquarters nor Rocks can afford to pay attention to us. We have to use this window to learn more about God Valley."
"If I'm not mistaken, that place is extraordinary."
Though it was purely by chance,
Guided by shifting weather and storms of fate, Roger had arrived at this ancient ruin related to the D clan.
Just from the information he obtained inside,
Roger had realized
That the so-called God Valley was exactly what Rocks had been searching for. As a fellow member of the D clan, he had to obtain more information as quickly as possible.
Because Rocks' goal
Was in direct conflict with his own dream of becoming the freest pirate.
If Rocks became King of the World, the rest of the pirate crews would likely be purged immediately.
To prevent that from happening,
Roger planned to spend the next year or two focused entirely on investigating God Valley.
Rayleigh nodded slightly.
"When we leave later, let's destroy this island."
"The records here must never be known to others."
"Our strength is still too weak right now!"
As the words fell,
Roger hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded.
If Rocks learned of their intentions, it would cause big trouble.
Though Roger hated destroying recorded history,
This was a necessary sacrifice.
After a brief rest,
As the weather cleared and rays of sunlight began to shine through,
Roger once again led his pirate crew to set sail.
The island they had just left seemed to have been sliced in half, slowly sinking into the depths of the sea, carrying with it fragments of vanishing history.
Roger stood silently gazing at the distant horizon.
In his hand,
He held Lotte's latest wanted poster.
Could that kid also be a member of the D clan?
Though Roger harbored suspicions,
He believed that one day he would meet Lotte again.
Perhaps by then, all his questions would finally be answered.
But right now, what mattered most
Was that in the less than two years remaining,
Roger had to grow strong enough to face Rocks head-on!
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