Chapter 477: The Early Reverie
Marineford
Sunlight pierced through the heavy glass windows, spilling onto the desk and casting a tranquil, golden light and shadow.
The sea breeze rolled up the corners of the curtains, bringing a faint salty scent and the cries of seagulls from afar.
On the desk, the Den Den Mushi's eyes wavered slightly, mimicking Vegapunk's somewhat exhausted expression.
Roy leaned back in his chair, twirling a fountain pen between his fingertips. His expression was lazy, yet his gaze was profound.
"Sigh... Roy, as expected, you guessed right."
Vegapunk's voice emanated from the Den Den Mushi, slightly hoarse and tinged with a hint of disappointment.
"York—she still made her move."
Roy chuckled, his tone carrying a hint of teasing: "What's wrong, Doctor? This doesn't sound like you~"
"Human greed is infinite. Aren't you more aware of this than I am?"
A few faint sounds of turning gears came from the Den Den Mushi; Vegapunk seemed to be adjusting equipment while sighing.
"Ah~ Exactly because of that," he said softly, his tone mixed with lament.
"Human greed is the purest form of energy."
"It can drive people to achieve unprecedented miracles—flight, exploration, creating life;"
"But it can also cause people to destroy themselves with their own hands, even if it's just to prove 'I can'."
Roy's gaze lingered on the boundless sea outside the window, his fingertips tapping the desk: "It sounds like you don't plan on stopping her."
"Stop her?" The Den Den Mushi let out a soft chuckle.
"Haha~ I've known all along that child York would do this sooner or later."
"After all, she is the very embodiment of my 'Greed'."
"If I didn't even study human 'greed', then I wouldn't be worthy of the name Vegapunk."
He paused, his voice gradually turning solemn.
"However, speaking of this... I did set up some 'insurance' in advance."
Roy raised an eyebrow, his tone lazy: "Oh? You figured this out ages ago?"
"You could say that."
Vegapunk's tone carried a bit of smugness, "I tinkered a little with the core of the 'Mother Flame'."
"The one York stole isn't the real 'Mother Flame,' but rather an 'Unstable Energy Mass' left over from early failed experiments."
"An 'Unstable Energy Mass' sounds quite terrifying. That doesn't really seem like your style."
"Ah~ Interesting inspiration often stems from failure." Vegapunk hmphed softly.
"It's just that the properties of this energy mass are very tricky—it cannot be completely controlled. If someone tries to use it to power something that requires 'massive energy'..."
"Then it might just—"
"Trigger a violent explosion."
The fountain pen in Roy's hand paused, his brows rising slightly.
"A violent explosion?"
Vegapunk's laughter came through the Den Den Mushi, laced with a bit of bitterness: "That's right, the kind that's enough to blow them and their dreams into ashes."
Roy leaned back, looking up at the ceiling. In his mind, that indifferent face surfaced—
High up in Mary Geoise, Imu sitting upon the throne, as well as those legendary Ancient Weapons.
If that thing was hooked up to the "Fake Mother Flame"...
"Haha... Doctor," Roy chuckled aloud, his eyes profound. "You really are a genius."
The Den Den Mushi's eyestalks wobbled, showing a confused expression: "Hmm? What are you laughing at?"
Roy suppressed his smile, lazily stretching his back: "Nothing, just thought of something... related to 'art'."
"Art?" Vegapunk raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah," Roy's gaze drifted to the horizon outside the window, his tone somewhat ethereal.
"Destruction and creation have always been the same form of art, haven't they?"
The Den Den Mushi fell silent for a few seconds before letting out a soft sigh.
"Don't worry, Roy."
"That child York will realize sooner or later that playing with fire always comes with a price."
"Yeah." Roy nodded lightly, his tone returning to a brisk cadence.
"Then let's not expose her for now. Let's see how the World Government... plans to play out this drama."
"Hehe~ Understood."
Roy paused for a moment, his tone suddenly becoming firm: "Rest assured, Doctor. I promise—this move will not bring any harm to civilians."
A low chuckle came from the Den Den Mushi: "That tone of yours... it makes people feel at ease every time they hear it."
"Then let's see just how far 'greed' will take them."
Beep—
The connection cut off, and the Den Den Mushi slowly closed its eyes.
Roy leaned back in his chair, resting his chin on one hand. His gaze crossed the sea's horizon outside the window, looking toward the azure stretch of the sky.
He murmured softly: "Greed, huh..."
The highest order from the World Government suddenly spread across the entire world in just a few short days.
—The Reverie will be convened early.
This news was like a thunderclap, shocking the Five Seas.
This grand event, originally held only once every four years, was the World Government's most solemn symbol—
The kings, queens, and nobles of fifty affiliated nations would gather in the Holy Land of Mary Geoise, discussing the future of "world security and order" alongside the Celestial Dragons and representatives of various countries.
And now, this meeting symbolizing authority and peace was being convened early without any warning.
No explanation, no reasons given.
Only that written order stamped with the golden seal of the World Government, carrying an irresistible oppressive pressure, was delivered to the throne of every nation.
The royalty of various nations speculated amidst shock and unease—
But ultimately, no matter how many doubts they harbored in their hearts, they could only choose to bow their heads.
Because that order came from the seat of the "Gods"—they had no right to refuse.
Meanwhile, Marine Headquarters · Marineford.
The heavy conference room doors slowly closed. Sunlight spilled onto the long table through the window panes.
The air was filled with a faint scent of tobacco, the atmosphere heavy.
"The Reverie being convened early..."
Sengoku, sitting in as an observer, furrowed his brows deeply. He tapped the documents in his hand lightly against the table. "No matter how you look at it, this is highly unusual."
Sakazuki leaned back in the head seat, his face as gloomy as a suppressed volcano.
"Those old geezers... never do things like this for no reason."
"Hmph, they're definitely setting up some kind of trap."
Kuzan half-leaned in his chair, his tone lazy but unable to conceal its chill: "Arara~ Maybe they want to pull some tricks under the guise of 'order' again."
Kizaru sat diagonally to the side, legs crossed: "Kowai ne~ (How scary~) I get the feeling that this 'meeting' won't be as simple as just chatting over tea~"
At this moment, Chief Staff Officer Tsuru set down the documents in her hands and slowly spoke.
"The Marines have also received orders to 'escort' the delegations of various nations to the Holy Land."
Sakazuki's gaze suddenly hardened: "Escort? In the current situation?"
He snorted coldly, his palm falling onto the desk with a light slap. "What they want isn't an escort, but something else entirely."
The conference room fell into a brief silence.
Roy leaned back in his chair, his expression indifferent, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the table.
"Heh... it sounds more like they're inviting us into a trap."
"However, no matter what they want to do, the Marines cannot follow blindly."
"We will execute the orders on the surface, but our actual actions—"
"Will be decided by ourselves."
Sakazuki put away his cigar, his tone cold and hard: "We can escort them, but the routes will be dictated by the Marines."
"I propose that the Vice Admirals and the new generation be responsible for the escort fleets, while the three Admirals personally oversee different routes to guard against unexpected situations."
Tsuru nodded: "We need to leave ourselves a way out, especially when dealing with the World Government..."
Kuzan lazily raised his hand: "Arara~ It sounds more like we're going to attend a funeral."
Kizaru gave a cynical smile: "Oh my~ Let's not say things like that~ If it really is a funeral, don't forget to invite us for drinks~"
Despite the joking remarks, the air in the conference room remained heavy.
—Ultimately, the resolution was passed.
The Marines would ostensibly execute the orders to escort the national delegations, but secretly deploy defensive lines to handle any unexpected developments.
The meeting concluded as night fell.
Sengoku and Roy walked out of the conference room side by side, the corridor lights casting long shadows behind them.
"Roy."
Sengoku stopped in his tracks, his tone exceptionally deep.
"This time, you should go as well."
Roy tilted his head slightly, his expression remaining calm.
"The reason?"
Sengoku looked out at the sea horizon through the window, his gaze profound:
"My intuition tells me—this meeting is not just about politics."
"I smell... the scent of war."
Roy was silent for a moment, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
"Mhm."
"I understand."
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