Pirates: Your emperor has returned!

"...No, it shouldn't be him, it should be Nefertari."

"An ancestor of the Alabasta royal family? Yes, that Nefertari should also be on 'our side'."

Crackling sound...

One of the Five Elders clenched his fist, his face grim.

"The souls of the dead should be buried along with that history!"

The other person frowned and said slowly:

"But he was not content with the status quo and rose again from that desert land."

Is it a coincidence?

"Or is it a game of chess that has been set up for eight hundred years?"

"..."

"Anything is possible."

"If this were a game of chess, who would be playing it?"

……

Everyone was speechless.

A moment later, one of the Five Elders stroked his chin.

"Let's talk about what's going on now."

"In short, now that the [Golden Dawn] wants to cross the Red Earth and head to the North Sea, what should we do?"

"Intercept him."

“No, we have no ‘reason,’ while they have ‘sufficient reasons.’”

One of the Five Elders tapped today's newspaper with his finger.

"We publicly stated that platinum lead poisoning is an infectious disease, and countries around the world find it very difficult to deal with."

"Although many high-ranking officials in various countries know that it is a lie, the people below them do not think so."

"Platinum lead disease is something they want to avoid at all costs."

"Now, a 'well-meaning' country has suddenly announced that it will provide medical assistance to the North Sea, where a platinum lead poisoning outbreak has occurred."

What will they think?

Upon hearing this, one of the Five Elders pondered:

“A small minority will be grateful to that country, but most people will want to see a ‘self-destruction’ joke.”

“Not bad.” The other person nodded.

"If platinum lead poisoning is indeed a highly contagious disease, then the Four Seas Alliance's move is tantamount to asking for trouble."

"But...no."

"Platinum lead poisoning is a type of poisoning symptom!"

"Ryan Rowan is pretending to be ignorant when he knows the truth!"

“Because of that platinum lead patient, Ryan Rowan found a legitimate reason to cross the Red Earth—and we were powerless to stop him.”

“Once he gains a foothold in Beihai, we will be put on the defensive.”

"Either the lie about platinum lead poisoning is exposed—the scandal of the world government will be made public."

"Either the lie of platinum lead disease continues—and the Four Seas Alliance has a constant reason to maintain its dealings with the North Sea."

"..."

After hearing this analysis, the meeting room fell into a brief silence.

After a moment, one of the Five Elders spoke slowly:

"Therefore, we not only cannot intercept the Four Seas Alliance, but we also need to give them the green light on the Red Earth Continent and help them go to the North Sea."

"Doing that would be indulging them!"

"But this is the best option!"

One of the Five Elders, his face grim, reminded him, "Don't forget, our goal is to maintain stability under the rule of the World Government!"

"agree."

"agree."

"..."

The other five elders nodded.

However, some people have expressed their concerns: "If we allow them to touch Beihai, will it sow the seeds of future trouble?"

“Ryan Rowan’s move was a 'clear move'.”

"It's like in a game of chess, we can clearly see where the opponent will place their piece, but we can't directly stop them."

"But on the other hand, we also have opportunities to make moves next,"

One of the Five Elders produced a telegram.

"This was just sent from the Naval Science Research Institute."

"Ok?"

The other four members of the Five Elders took the telegram, each glanced at it, and their eyes showed slight differences.

"Weapons of mass destruction? Are they going to conduct live-fire tests in the North Sea?"

"Targeting the Four Seas Alliance?"

"It's very dangerous. If it affects civilians, we won't be able to explain it, and it will cause instability just like before..."

At this point, the Five Elders suddenly realized something.

The five elders who delivered the telegram nodded calmly.

"Yes, since the Four Seas Alliance can use platinum lead disease as an excuse, we can also use platinum lead disease as an excuse, can't we?"

"Just notify the royal family at the test site to evacuate. As for the deaths and injuries of the civilians, that's none of our business; it's caused by the 'terrible platinum lead disease'."

"..."

"The Don Quixote family...is that the family of traitors?"

"It doesn't matter who they are."

"Since the bugs of the underworld want to take advantage of this opportunity, let's give them that chance."

"If we spend more time fighting, we will naturally have no time to gain a foothold and do things that disrupt stability."

"..."

After some discussion, the meeting that took place in Mary Geoise came to an end.

……

On the day the news report was released.

The Grand Line, Alabasta.

The expeditionary force, prepared to head to the North Sea, has assembled!

Rosinandi looked at the people boarding the ship, his brow furrowed, a sense of doubt lingering in his mind.

The lineup that appeared before him was far too "luxurious".

First, there's Ryan Rowan, the one who orchestrates everything, the Golden Dawn.

Secondly, there is Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

There's also Dalton, the current interim king of the Drum Kingdom and a Zoan-type Devil Fruit user; Bel the Falcon, one of the vice-captains of the Alabasta Kingdom's guard; and Hoka, the fish-man we met before.

……

As for the rest, Rowan hadn't had a chance to introduce them to Rosinante, but Rosinante could tell that those people were no ordinary individuals either.

A group of Alabasta's elite royal army;

A medical corps from the Drum Kingdom;

A group of merfolk warriors.

And there's a group of... Sky Island people?!

These people, when added together, number nearly a thousand!

The quantity is small.

But the fighting power concentrated within it is astonishing!

They boarded the four large ships docked at the port in groups of about two hundred.

That was a national-level warship of the superpower Alabasta, with firepower second only to naval vessels, armed to the teeth.

Such a powerful lineup is enough to start a real war!

Even a medium-sized country would have a hard time resisting, let alone a small country!

Rosinandi was utterly puzzled and asked Rowan:

"You've publicly stated that this is a...medical support unit?"

“Yes.” Rowan nodded.

Rosinandi, "Then..."

He wanted to say, "Wouldn't that be a bit too much?"

But Rowan pointed to the four ships and introduced them:

"A medical unit naturally needs doctors."

Rosinandi nodded.

"It is reasonable that the doctor from the Drum Kingdom travels far away and is personally protected by the king and guards of the Drum Kingdom."