Seeing the Aralong Crew disembark, the ever‑excited news hawk Morgans and the Joy Street Queen, Stussy, hurried down from the news agency's upper floors.
The other four emperors of the underworld had already taken the initiative to gather at the main hall of the Tea Party, ready to welcome the so‑called God of the New World. Strengthening ties with the newly risen ruler of the New World was a necessity if they wanted their own organizations to keep developing.
The "Storage King," Kiburson the Concealment Master, had long stopped caring about his cousin Kiburkun, who had been captured and modified by the Aralong Crew. When it came to survival and profit, a cousin was nothing. His true ambition was to elevate his family into an ancient underground clan on the level of Du Feld's loan‑shark dynasty or Dragoo Peclo's poison‑master lineage.
Morgans and Stussy were newcomers, after all. Their rise had only taken a few decades, and they still hadn't monopolized their respective industries. Kiburson and the "Shipping King" Umit, however, were from century‑old families with genuine heritage. They had the qualifications to join the ranks of the ancient underground clans who possessed exclusive names and inherited surnames.
A poor ancestor meant no surname at all. Most commoners only had a given name. Many powerful founders of new lineages didn't even have a surname; sometimes their first name ended up becoming the family surname for generations that followed. The old clans were different. Even if their current head died, they could immediately choose a new leader and continue functioning smoothly.
Most pirate captains, even the Four Emperors or New World rulers, fell like brilliant meteors: shining gloriously for a moment and then vanishing into dust.
···
Kakakaka!
Morgans clicked away with his Den‑Den Mushi camera, snapping shot after shot of Souta Kiryuu walking alongside Big Mom.
"Gahahahaha! Tomorrow the world will know the Dragon God of the New World and a Yonko have joined forces through marriage!"
His huge feathered rear wiggled with triumph. He knew tomorrow's newspaper sales were going to explode. Souta Kiryuu wanted to turn the New World into an unbreakable fortress, leaving no cracks for the World Government or Marines to interfere.
Just days ago, Kiryuu had visited Kaido's territory, and now he had already arrived at Big Mom's Totto Land. After this voyage, an unshakable alliance between one god and two emperors now stood in the New World.
Who knew whether the "Wandering Emperor," Red‑Haired Shanks, could withstand the pressure of three major forces and continue roaming freely.
···
"Kiryuu, if you want Smoothie, you'll need to trade a Mythical Zoan fruit or a Seraphim.
I don't want your Seraphim technology. Just sell me one or two Seraphim, alright?"
Big Mom still burned with obsession over the Seraphim engineered with Lunarian and Buccaneer lineage. It was the compulsion of a collector. Only a few races were missing from her lifelong collection.
As for Pudding, her three‑eyed daughter, she wasn't too concerned anymore. After all, Kiryuu had promised that Vegapunk and Nico Robin would translate all her collected historical texts for free.
Kiryuu had repeatedly told her he wasn't interested in Roger's little treasure hunt nor the empty title of Pirate King. Meaning the translated texts would count toward the Aralong Crew's gains as well.
Mutual benefit.
Hearing her persistent request, Souta Kiryuu considered it. After all, he held the highest authority over the Seraphim and Pacifistas, with even the second‑level authority limited to Vegapunk. That meant any Seraphim Big Mom obtained would only have third‑level authority. If she ever turned against him, those Seraphim would immediately become blades pointed at her own forces.
"If you're that sincere, then I'll make one for you. A Seraphim with Lunarian and Buccaneer blood. You can even choose its appearance."
Kiryuu walked confidently at the center, as though he were the true master of Whole Cake Island, while Big Mom trailed beside him, nearly pleading.
"Really? Wonderful! Smoothie's dowry will be larger, but the rest of my daughters are all yours to pick."
Big Mom's face lit up with manic delight. Her long‑awaited collection was about to become whole.
"If you want, I can help you complete your dream entirely.
Remember the giant battleship Sanjuan Wolf? He's a mutated giant. I can clone one for you. It'll be far better than Kaido's failed Ancient Giant experiments. Perfectly obedient."
Kiryuu tossed out another tempting offer. If Big Mom didn't care about mending ties with Elbaf, catching real giants for her would've been trivial. Her crew had the power to capture giants, but doing so would plunge Totto Land into direct war with Elbaf. The giants would rather die gloriously or take their own lives than become her prisoners.
Big Mom didn't want endless conflict. Her massive childhood size and her time on Sheep's House Island had left her with a longing for the giants' acknowledgment and their military strength.
"Forget giants. I never wanted just a giant for the sake of collecting."
Big Mom waved the idea away. She wanted recognition and friendship, not a trophy.
Thinking of the giants again made her think of her runaway daughter, Lola. That unfilial child had dragged her relationship with the giants back into an ice age. If Prince Loki hadn't been so inexplicably enamored with Lola, Big Mom would've captured her, drained her soul, and left her worse than dead.
Prince Loki didn't even like Chiffon, Lola's twin sister. Only Lola suited his taste. The thought gave Big Mom a pounding headache.
"Then forget it," Kiryuu replied with a careless shrug.
As Souta Kiryuu and company reached the main hall of the Whole Cake Island Super Tea Party, a sea of noble guests appeared to be welcoming the two new rulers of the New World.
"Yo, Stussy. Finally meeting the Queen of Joy Street."
Kiryuu greeted the delicate blond beauty first. They had exchanged countless calls through Den‑Den Mushi, but this was their first face‑to‑face meeting.
Stussy, the clone of Miss Buckingham, mastered Rokushiki and its advanced forms, and even possessed the powers of what seemed to be a Mythical Zoan. Even awakened Zoan fighters like Kaku and Lucci couldn't withstand one bite from her.
"I'm honored to meet you too, Lord Kiryuu."
"And of course, our world's most beautiful woman, Empress Hancock."
Stussy smiled politely, but upon feeling the Pirate Empress's hostile gaze, she quickly offered a courteous greeting. A subtle warning: keep your woman in check. She still hadn't revealed her identity and was still receiving a salary from the World Government. She even had an assassination assignment today, along with gathering all intel on Kiryuu and Big Mom.