Sea Circle Calendar Year 1525. June 5th.
The Sandora River, which had existed since the founding of the Kingdom of Alabasta, was finally opened from end to end before the eyes of countless citizens.
For thousands of years, various limitations had prevented any meaningful change to the river. Under the planning of the new government, however, it was transformed into a river of gold.
The opening of the Sandora River drastically reduced the time required for ships to cross Alabasta for travel and resupply. No longer would vessels need to sail around the world's largest land kingdom before reaching the next island. At the same time, it ushered Alabasta into a new era.
From then on, June 5th was designated as Sandora Day. Every year, the people of Alabasta celebrated it with festivities rivaling the New Year itself.
* * *
Back to the present.
After the Sandora River was opened, the desert reclamation project officially began. Thousands of years of erosion had left more than ninety percent of Alabasta covered in sand. Under such conditions, reversing desertification was almost impossible.
According to the planners, the only way to completely solve the problem was to remove all the sand from the island, dump it into the sea, and replace it with fresh soil. The scale of the project was enough to make anyone despair just from reading the proposal.
Yet under Soter's power, the plan was proceeding steadily.
A massive basin of red earth, nearly the size of Alabasta itself, floated around the kingdom. The sand removed from the island was temporarily deposited there before eventually being sunk into the Calm Belt.
Meanwhile, the lowered ground level left behind by the removed sand was being filled with soil made from shattered islands transported from the New World.
At present, the eastern side of the continent separated by the Sandora Canal had already completed the sand replacement process. The western side was next.
* * *
Sandora Port, Marine Base.
Having spent the day overseeing the sand replacement work on the western continent, Soter returned home at dusk.
A familiar aroma drifted through the air, and a table full of steaming dishes had already been prepared.
Looking toward the kitchen where Ain was busy cooking, Soter smiled. "Smells amazing. What brings you here? Did a new mission come up?"
While stir-frying a dish, Ain replied without turning around, "What? Am I not allowed to visit unless there's a mission? Or is there something you're trying to hide? I heard Alabasta's queen has blue hair too."
Soter could only smile helplessly. Walking into the kitchen, he wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"How could that be? I'm happy you're here."
Ain rolled her eyes at him.
"Hmph."
She poured the finished dish onto a plate, and the two of them headed to the dining table together.
"There actually is a mission. The inauguration ceremony of the new government is less than twenty days away. Vice Chairman Carlo wants us to handle some final loose ends."
Soter raised an eyebrow. "Someone from the Revolutionary Army?"
"Yeah."
"Who?"
"The daughter of Bartholomew Kuma, one of the founders of the Revolutionary Army. The only surviving member among the Revolutionary Army's original leadership, Jewelry Bonney."
* * *
At the dinner table.
While eating, Soter flipped through Bonney's file and sighed. "I didn't expect that only one young girl would be left from the Revolutionary Army's founding members. Back at Headquarters, the arguments over the Revolutionary Army nearly split us apart. And now, in the blink of an eye, all that's left is the fading glow of a setting sun."
Resting her chin on one hand, Ain looked at him and said, "During the final war, Dragon led the Revolutionary Army's forces in the assault on Mariejois. That group contained nearly half of the Revolutionary Army's founding members and elite personnel.
"Then came the Great Cataclysm. Through intelligence gathering and surveillance, we learned that the remaining veteran revolutionaries were gradually killed off amid gang uprisings, pirate raids, and the nobles' counterattacks. Only Jewelry Bonney survived.
"Partly because of her unique circumstances. Whether eliminating her quietly or arranging an accident, neither was an ideal solution. And partly because, as the last remaining founder, she still carried significant influence among the Revolutionary Army. We needed her to temporarily stabilize what was left of their forces.
"Now, with the new government about to be formally established, that is no longer necessary. Afterward, the remaining Revolutionary Army will be fully absorbed into the new government."
Soter nodded and set the file down. "I see. So what's the mission exactly?"
Ain's expression became serious. She took out a newspaper. The date printed on it was the day after tomorrow.
"This newspaper will be distributed across the world the day after tomorrow. According to our monitoring and analysis of Jewelry Bonney, there's a high chance she'll be enraged after reading it. At that point, whatever action we take will seem completely justified."
Soter accepted the paper and, as he read the headline, suddenly laughed.
"That's pretty ruthless. Was this Carlo-san's idea? If this article gets published, those Revolutionary Army diehards will probably think we've stolen the fruits of their revolution and call us shameless."
Ain shrugged. "You guessed right. But there's no prize."
Across the top of the newspaper, the largest headline read:
"New Government Plans Revealed: Former Revolutionary Army Supreme Commander Dragon to Be Posthumously Awarded the Title of Honorary Admiral"
Below it were photographs and records from Dragon's youth when he had served in the Marines.
Soter knew about that part. Those details were all genuine.
But further down, the article contained an elaborate story. It described how Fleet Admiral Sakazuki had secretly ordered Dragon to establish the Revolutionary Army. It claimed the two had spent years deceiving the former World Government while bearing every burden in silence and even appearing to fight each other publicly.
The story sounded absurd at first glance. Yet because it was mixed with so many genuine records and facts, separating truth from fiction became almost impossible.
In fact, parts of it sounded surprisingly believable…
* * *
South Blue, Bali Island.
What had once been a regional Revolutionary Army base had now become the Revolutionary Army's headquarters.
After global communications were restored, Revolutionary Army leaders from around the world gradually re-established contact and gathered together. Only then did they realize what the organization had become over the past three years.
The Revolutionary Army, which once had a presence across all Four Blues, had been devastated by the waves of rebellion unleashed during the Great Cataclysm. Now, only about one-fifth of its former strength remained. Most of its influence throughout the Four Blues had effectively been erased, and only the long-established bases located near remote frontier regions had survived intact.
Many wanted to retaliate against the rebels who had slaughtered Revolutionary Army soldiers during the chaos, but the current Revolutionary Army could no longer afford such a war.
Under Dragon's leadership, their cause had always been the overthrow of the World Government, and their policies and ideals had centered on the people.
Now the World Government was gone. The Marines were steadily taking control of ports and islands throughout the world. Combined with a series of policies and reforms that people generally welcomed, civilians had gradually accepted the new order.
At this point, launching campaigns against those rebels lacked any real justification. The World Government no longer existed. Revenge and liberation were two completely different things.
More importantly, the ports were now under the Marines' control. To wage war, they would not only have to seize the ports on their own islands but also capture ports on other islands. That would be no different from declaring war on the Marines.
But as that newspaper spread across the world, even Bonney, who had intended to carry everyone's hopes and continue leading the Revolutionary Army forward, could no longer suppress the rage burning inside her.
Rip!
The newspaper was torn into countless pieces that scattered through the air as Bonney, dressed in a tight leather outfit, roared in fury.
"Bastards! What kind of joke is this?!
"Posthumously awarding former Revolutionary Army Supreme Commander Dragon the title of Honorary Admiral?!
"They're crediting everything the Revolutionary Army accomplished to Sakazuki. It's completely shameless! Do they think the entire world is stupid?!
"'Bearing everything in silence'? What a joke! That bastard Sakazuki killed so many Revolutionary Army soldiers, and now he's somehow one of the founders of the Revolutionary Army?
"Which newspaper published this?! How much Berries did they get paid?!
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!!!"
Boom!
The table in front of her exploded into splinters beneath a single punch.
The people around her trembled. They wanted to calm her down, but deep down, they agreed with her. To Revolutionary Army soldiers, the article was nothing more than complete nonsense.
Bonney remained frozen in place with one hand still pressed down from the strike. Her chest rose and fell heavily, and her eyes were bloodshot.
Then she turned and stormed out, shoving aside anyone who stood in her way. The others exchanged helpless looks, none of them knowing what to do.
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