In the first half of the Grand Line, a luxurious cruise ship was cutting swiftly through the sea.
On the deck, Rosinante lounged lazily on a beach chair, listening as Laki reported on the development of the Gray Kingdom and various changes over the past three years.
Three years had passed, and in those three years, both the Gray Kingdom and Nightless City could be described as being at their peak.
Nightless City's annual revenue could only be described with astronomical figures.
Although it was no longer as insanely explosive as at the very beginning, its yearly profits were still measured in the tens of trillions.
Meanwhile, the four main divisions of the Gray Kingdom had completed their conquest of the Four Seas.
Across the Four Seas, the four divisions had accepted a total of sixty-three vassal nations. Most of them were small countries, but even these small nations had populations far exceeding those of most Sky Island states.
With continuous campaigns against various countries and the immense financial support flowing in from Nightless City, the manpower of the four divisions had steadily expanded.
Each division now had more than fifty thousand members. The First and Second Divisions were the largest, each already exceeding one hundred thousand.
As for the Third Division stationed in the Sky Islands, it had descended to the Blue Sea two years earlier.
After two years of development, order in the Sky Islands had stabilized, and there was no longer a need for so many troops to remain behind for protection.
Moreover, the Sixth and Seventh Divisions had grown sufficiently to guarantee the Sky Islands' security and stability.
However, after arriving in the Blue Sea, the Third Division did not expand its numbers as aggressively as the four main divisions.
Winter, who came from the BloodSworn Guard, followed an elite-focused path. After descending to the Blue Sea, he led his men directly into the Grand Line. Even if it was only the first half, surviving there without elite strength was extremely difficult.
Yet one matter cast a shadow over the Gray Kingdom's rapid growth.
That was the fact that the leader of the Gray Kingdom, the Dragon King Rosinante, had not appeared for a full three years.
Not only were outsiders speculating whether something had happened to Rosinante, even within the Gray Kingdom itself, discussions and doubts had begun to spread.
Although the division commanders had repeatedly assured everyone that Rosinante was perfectly fine, they were still unable to completely suppress the anxiety and rumors.
As one of the Four Emperors, Dragon King Rosinante was the spiritual pillar of the Gray Kingdom. His disappearance had left many unsettled.
Rumors spread endlessly.
Some said the Gray Kingdom was about to collapse.
Some claimed Dragon King Rosinante had been secretly captured by the Navy and imprisoned in Impel Down, and that the Navy's silence was only because they were preparing to strike the Gray Kingdom.
Others said the three major pirate crews would join forces to eliminate the Gray Kingdom, or that the World Government was already drafting a plan to wipe it out.
Many ambitious individuals began to stir, and quite a few people jumped around in front of the division commanders, trying to incite them to break away from the Gray Kingdom and form independent pirate crews.
As for Jack and the others, for reasons unknown, they adopted an extremely ambiguous attitude toward all of this. They neither supported these rumors nor openly refuted them.
This only emboldened schemers and spies, who spread more and more destabilizing talk within the Gray Kingdom, plunging it into a gloomy atmosphere.
After hearing Laki's report, Rosinante let out a cold chuckle.
Jack's attitude had been instructed by Rosinante himself. He had already heard about these matters more than once.
From the very beginning, Rosinante had told Jack and the others not to interfere with these rumors, using the opportunity to see exactly how many were truly loyal, and how many were spies from other factions.
Rosinante's disappearance, the ambiguity shown by Jack and the others, and the probing actions of various powers all combined to produce the current unrest within the Gray Kingdom.
"Overall, aside from the BloodSworn Guard, every major division has shown signs of wavering morale," Laki said.
"Heh, that's fine. Better to clean house thoroughly before entering the Grand Line in earnest. Otherwise, it'll only become more troublesome later. Inform them, they can begin," Rosinante said calmly.
"Yes," Laki replied coldly.
"Your Majesty, a pirate ship has appeared ahead. It looks like they've spotted us and are charging straight toward us. They seem to be planning to rob us. Should I deal with it?" Enel asked.
"No need. Just keep sailing straight. Don't worry about anything else, and you don't need to make a move either. I haven't shown myself in a long time. This is a good chance to let their mouths spread the word. I'm back," Rosinante said.
"Just a bunch of small fry. That's not exactly a domineering way for Your Majesty to reappear," Enel laughed.
"Domineering?" Rosinante smiled faintly.
As they spoke, the pirate ship ahead was already charging toward them. The pirates on deck stared at the luxurious cruise ship, greed and savagery filling their eyes.
"Men, full speed ahead. Once we take this cruise ship, we'll throw a feast. Kill all the men, keep the women for drinking companions," the pirate captain said with a ferocious grin.
"Oh!" The pirates roared, their expressions growing even more savage.
But at that moment, an overwhelmingly tyrannical aura swept across them.
One by one, the pirates' eyes lost focus as they collapsed onto the deck.
Watching his crew fall like dumplings into the sea of unconsciousness, the pirate captain, with a bounty of seventy million, stared around in panic, unable to understand what had happened.
Then an even more terrifying aura surged directly toward him.
At that instant, he finally understood why his crew had fallen without a sound.
And at the same time, his consciousness vanished as well.
"March straight ahead. The road before us is wide open. Pirates or the Navy, neither can stand in our way," Rosinante said with a smile as he reclined on the beach chair.
"Hehehehe!" Hearing Rosinante's words, everyone aboard the cruise ship burst into unrestrained laughter, Moria laughing the loudest of all.