The instant the Transponder Snail connected, every maid and guard in the room vanished.
Only the Seagull King remained, standing there quietly.
A cry of pain rang out from a distant room in the palace.
A voluptuous dancer clutched her eyes as hot tears streamed through her fingers. The pain was almost unbearable.
Viola had no idea how she had been discovered.
She had clearly been watching just fine. Ozz had merely answered a call, glanced toward the line of sight she was using, and then her eyes had begun to burn.
Ozz did not pay too much attention to it.
He did not dislike being watched by beautiful women, but the conversation that followed was rather secret.
So he could only be a little rough.
He slowly shifted his gaze back to the wooden-faced Transponder Snail and smiled.
"Long time no see, Saint Saturn."
Meanwhile.
The Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
Inside the most prestigious palace of the Jaygarcia family, an old man leaning on a cane sat in silence. When he suddenly received a familiar Transponder Snail call, his pupils shrank slightly.
After a moment of hesitation, he looked at the guards and CP agents around him.
"Leave us."
"Yes, sir!"
Only after the area was empty did Saint Saturn answer the call.
"To think you would call me. How unexpected, Ozz..."
"I have nothing to discuss with you!"
"You should understand that there is a fundamental contradiction between us that cannot be reconciled. Joy Boy is the World Government's bottom line!"
His tone was stern and righteous, filled with condemnation toward Ozz.
As for Ozz?
Hearing those words, he showed no sign of anger at all. Instead, he narrowed his eyes, his tone teasing.
"Is that so~"
"So that means our relationship has completely broken down, and there's no room to talk?"
"Of course."
Saint Saturn's gaze was cold. His answer was decisive.
"I don't really mind~"
On the Transponder Snail in front of Saturn, the face with scarlet light shining from both eyes looked relaxed, as if the World Government's hostility troubled him in no way.
"From the very beginning, I've never worried about being treated as an enemy by you Five Elders, the God's Knights, or... Imu~"
Hearing this, Saturn's cold expression grew slightly grave. His eyes narrowed.
He truly did not doubt that.
From Ozz's youth until now, the World Government had never formed an effective threat against him.
Or rather, even when they knew his weak points, such as Old Gick or the remnants of the Roger Pirates, they had never taken actual action.
That was because they could not effectively target him.
If this had been when Ozz was still very young, Lord Imu's mysterious rule-based ability could indeed have ignored the Teleport-Teleport Fruit's power and erased Ozz at a certain cost.
But after that incident two years ago, when his Conqueror's Haki shook the entire sea, they no longer had such an opportunity.
They could only avoid war with him as much as possible.
Even when the matter involved something as sensitive as Joy Boy, they had only expressed anger and hunted the Dark Sun God many times.
They had not directly declared war on Ozz. They had not even clearly revoked his Celestial Dragon status.
A copy of Joy Boy would, at most, shake the World Government's rule.
But fighting the Ozz who had grown to his current stage would truly cripple the World Government even if it survived.
After all, that was Conqueror's Haki even Lord Imu acknowledged.
So the current Ozz truly did not need to give the World Government any face.
And as long as he did not declare war, the World Government would not be the one to start one either.
"I don't really care~ I'm just wondering whether you'll be fine, Saint Saturn."
"What?"
Saturn's narrowed eyes widened instantly. He did not understand why Ozz would say that.
"This old man? What do you mean, Ozz?!"
"Are you questioning my intelligence network, Saint Saturn?"
Ozz stretched out a hand. The Seagull King, carrying a recording Transponder Snail, landed on his arm.
"Guess what~"
"If Imu finds out that you secretly kept Joy Boy's robot for your own research..."
"Do you think Imu will kill you, or praise your dedication?"
"That's hard to guess~"
Ozz raised his brows. His eyes carried a smile, but to Saint Saturn's ears, his words sounded like a devil's whisper.
A few drops of cold sweat appeared on Saturn's face. Even his pupils trembled slightly.
Because he understood his king far too well.
That was a king who had once trembled in fear and rage merely from sensing Joy Boy's Haki.
"But since you're so confident, Saint Saturn, then just pretend I never made this call..."
"Wait!"
"Oh?"
Ozz tilted his head.
"I believe we can talk, Ozz. State your purpose."
Saturn's suppressed voice slowly sounded, though there seemed to be some concern behind it.
Ozz was not surprised by his reaction. He smiled.
"Today's conversation is guaranteed to remain unknown to any second person."
"..."
"Gah." The Seagull King meant, "I don't count as a person."
After establishing the conditions for communication, Ozz stated his purpose.
"I know that although I still nominally retain my Celestial Dragon identity, I probably can't command anyone in the World Government anymore."
"So this time, I want to borrow a few people from you to liven things up in Dressrosa."
"Dressrosa? The territory of that Donquixote brat?"
Saturn knew everything happening inside Dressrosa, but he did not understand the specific reason.
"What exactly do you want to do?"
"A lot of pirate rookies are about to challenge Doflamingo's rule over Dressrosa. Send a few experts to help."
"...Fine."
Saturn did not understand why Ozz did not act himself, but that was not important.
What mattered was keeping Ozz's mouth shut.
And if this could make Ozz owe him a favor...
"Of course, there will be compensation. Once the matter is over, Dressrosa will truly return to the World Government's embrace. How does that sound?"
In any case, after Doffy went down, Dressrosa would originally be taken back by the Riku royal family.
Ozz sold his subordinate's territory without the slightest heartache.
"...Fine."
Saturn eventually agreed.
After all, sending a Marine admiral or CP agents to Dressrosa to carry out a mission, whether against Luffy the Pirate King candidate or against Doflamingo, would give no one anything to criticize.
He felt no burden about it.
After hanging up, he sighed.
His gaze turned complex as he looked out the dim window.
Then he dialed Marine Headquarters.
"Sakazuki? Inform Ryokugyu for me..."
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