After leaving Tashigi and Ain's residence, Roxing brought Jack with him and made a detour to Dressrosa.
The distance between Punk Hazard and Dressrosa was not great.
The two locations functioned as mutual support points.
If the Marines attacked one, the other could strike from behind.
If both were attacked simultaneously—
the Beasts Pirates in Wano, including Roxing's father-in-law Kaido, would inevitably intervene.
At that point, the conflict would escalate into a massive war beyond anyone's control.
It was precisely because Sengoku and the Five Elders understood this that they had refrained from deploying large-scale forces against Punk Hazard or Dressrosa.
After all, the Marines had more enemies than just the Beasts Pirates.
If the Navy fully committed against Kaido's faction, there was no guarantee the other Yonko would not exploit the opportunity to strike Marineford.
Thus, the current situation remained in a strange balance.
As long as the Beasts Pirates did not aggressively expand further, the Marines would avoid igniting open war.
As for Im's order—to kill Roxing at any cost—
the Five Elders could only resign themselves to frustration.
They had yet to even confirm Roxing's true appearance.
Sending CP0 or CP9 to assassinate him in Wano would be suicide.
Therefore, their primary focus shifted fully to one objective:
the Ancient Weapon Pluton.
This plan had been in motion for years.
CP9—Rob Lucci and others—had long been embedded in Water 7, waiting for an opportunity to steal Pluton's blueprints.
The Five Elders had already contacted Lucci, issuing a hard deadline:
Obtain the blueprints within half a month.
Roxing, for now, was unaware of these developments.
He was inspecting the SMILE factory.
Current daily output was ten artificial Devil Fruits, with a success rate of roughly eighty percent.
That meant seven to eight new ability users per day.
If these soldiers also consumed monster cells and trained in gravity chambers, their combat strength could rapidly reach Tobiroppo-level.
The implications were terrifying.
At present, the Beasts Pirates already possessed two thousand Gifters of this caliber.
With that force alone, they could sweep aside any hostile power in the New World—including other Yonko crews.
But attacking Marineford or the World Government directly was still premature.
The reason was simple:
top-tier combatants.
One true powerhouse could match a thousand Gifters.
The Marines alone had Sengoku, Garp, and three Admirals.
On the World Government's side, there was Kong, the Five Elders—whose strength was unknown—and the mysterious Im.
That was why Roxing had given Marco the senzu bean at the auction.
He wanted Whitebeard to recover some of his peak strength—to probe the World Government first.
If one or two top-tier figures fell in that clash, even better.
After inspecting the SMILE factory, Roxing proceeded to Dressrosa's royal palace.
The palace stood atop the King's Plateau, a towering, multi-tiered mountain.
One of its middle layers was covered by a vast sunflower field.
If Viola was a passionate yet melancholic violet,
then her niece Rebecca was a pure sunflower bathed in sunlight.
At that moment, Viola, Rebecca, King Riku, Kyros, and Princess Mansherry of the Tontatta Tribe were gathered in the flower field.
Upon seeing Roxing, everyone except Viola bowed respectfully.
"Lord Roxing."
He had killed Doflamingo, dismantled the Donquixote Family, and implemented policies that drastically improved the lives of Dressrosa's citizens.
Gratitude outweighed all else.
Even King Riku and Kyros—despite their displeasure at Roxing's relationship with their daughters—could not deny that fact.
Roxing gestured for them to rise.
His gaze paused briefly on Kyros's missing leg.
He produced a senzu bean and handed it over.
"Eat this. Your leg will recover."
Kyros was stunned, then overjoyed.
The miracle of senzu beans was well known in Dressrosa.
He consumed it immediately.
Within seconds, the severed leg regenerated completely.
Rebecca rushed over, clutching Roxing's sleeve, eyes filled with admiration and relief.
"Thank you…!"
Roxing lightly patted her head.
"You're family. There's no need for thanks."
He then turned to Kyros.
"Would you take a monster cell? With your physique, a Tiger-level cell should be survivable. But your appearance will change."
Kyros had won thousands of matches in the colosseum—an undefeated warrior.
He nodded without hesitation.
"I will. As a soldier—and as a father—if it means protecting my country and my daughter, appearance doesn't matter."
Roxing handed him a Tiger-level monster cell.
"Additionally, if you want an artificial Devil Fruit, you may request one from Who's-Who."
Kyros bowed deeply.
Rebecca's respect for Roxing deepened further.
Even Viola, who usually regarded Roxing with irritation, could not fully conceal her emotional reaction.
That emotion quickly shifted into embarrassment—
because Roxing openly took Viola and Rebecca by the hand and led them toward the palace, saying calmly:
"Let's play cards."
Neither believed that explanation for a second.
Their ears burned red as they left the sunflower field.
Roxing entered the palace at noon.
He departed the following morning.
The game, by his standards, had been… satisfactory.
As Roxing prepared to return to Wano with Jack, a call from Vergo interrupted him.
Vergo delivered a piece of intelligence that even caught Roxing's attention.
"Lord Roxing, the World Government has ordered CP agencies to search aggressively for Pluton. They intend to use it against the Beasts Pirates."
Roxing considered briefly, then replied calmly:
"Understood. Do not involve yourself. Your task is to grow stronger and accumulate merit. Aim for the Admiral position."
"Yes, my lord."
After ending the call, Roxing turned to Jack.
"We're not returning to Wano yet. Set course for Alabasta. Bring Who's-Who."
"Understood."
Jack asked no questions.
The three changed course toward the first half of the Grand Line.
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested:
patreon.com/ZoroTL442