Chapter 212: Could He Really Be on a Family Vacation?
"That guy... why would he go to Loguetown? What exactly are these people scheming? First Roger, then the Golden Lion, and now this Nereus... What exactly do these guys want to do?!"
The torrential rain showed no signs of stopping. Beneath the downpour, Sengoku felt incredibly irritated by this sudden piece of intelligence.
With absolutely nowhere to vent his immense frustration, he could only smash his fist into the empty ground beside him.
In the eyes of the vast majority of Marines, capturing Pirate King Roger was the greatest achievement the Marines had secured in recent years. But as a high-ranking Marine executive, and the man Fleet Admiral Kong viewed as his successor, Sengoku naturally knew the absolute truth of the matter.
They hadn't captured Roger at all. For some inexplicable reason, he had suddenly turned himself in.
But regardless of how Roger was "captured," the reality left the Marines with no other choice.
They couldn't possibly admit to the public that the Marines had been entirely unable to track him down, and that he had ultimately surrendered of his own volition.
This had to be framed as the Marines' achievement. Even if the truth was that Roger had sleepwalked straight into a Marine base, the propaganda department would still cover it up.
However, when it came to covering up the truth, the World Government and the Marines were extremely proficient. They had been doing similar things for hundreds of years.
First, an inexplicable surrender. Then, the Golden Lion goes utterly mad and invades Marine Headquarters entirely for Roger's sake. And now, Nereus is spotted in Loguetown...
With all these events cramming together, it was hard not to draw connections between them.
Although this Resourceful General had never displayed any grand, far-reaching strategic wisdom, he was still quite adept at overthinking things.
"Admiral Sengoku! Vice Admiral Garp! Fleet Admiral Kong ordered you both to report to his office the moment you receive this message..."
A second messenger soldier ran over. Whether it was the aftermath cleanup or the escorting of the Golden Lion, those tasks could be handled by others.
The Golden Lion might be an apex powerhouse, but after being defeated in a one-on-two battle, he was severely injured. Bound in that state by Seastone cuffs, there was absolutely no possibility of him breaking free.
Even if he severed his own legs to escape, that would be something he'd only consider after recovering from his injuries.
Hearing this, Sengoku and Garp didn't linger and immediately headed into the headquarters building.
"Roger's execution must proceed flawlessly. Garp, Sengoku, do you understand what I mean?"
If the sole goal was to kill a specific person, there would be no need for such a massive spectacle. A public execution inherently carried ulterior motives.
Promoting the Marines and crushing the arrogance of pirates was their primary objective. Lower-ranking, uninformed Marines believed that the rest of the Roger Pirates might attempt a prison break.
But the higher-ups who knew the truth of Roger's condition believed that, since he surrendered voluntarily, such a scenario was virtually impossible. All they had to do was ensure Roger died smoothly in Loguetown, and that would be enough.
However, just because they didn't treat it as a primary threat didn't mean they were completely ignoring it.
"So why exactly did that 'Vampire' abandon Fish-man Island and run all the way to the East Blue at a time like this?" Sengoku asked Kong, inquiring about the specific details while changing out of his soaked uniform.
"The Marine branch in Loguetown just reported back. The time that guy arrived in Loguetown... was even earlier than when we publicly announced the execution schedule.
"Furthermore, they spotted two Lunarians by his side. Theoretically... this might actually just be a family vacation. For us, that is the most ideal scenario."
Kong's answer sounded somewhat hesitant, seemingly finding this conclusion utterly bizarre.
He originally hadn't cared much about this piece of intelligence. Over the years, there had never been any news suggesting an amicable relationship between Nereus and Roger; if anything, they were hostile toward one another.
But then the Golden Lion incident happened.
The Marine propaganda claimed Garp had cornered Roger numerous times. Exactly how much of that was true, only the Marines themselves knew.
But during the Battle of Edd War, the Golden Lion had genuinely pushed Roger into an incredibly perilous situation. If the sea hadn't sided with Roger, who knows what the world would look like today.
If an enemy like that would invade Marine Headquarters purely for Roger's sake, who knew if Nereus might suddenly exhibit some highly abnormal behavior?
"The location for Roger's execution was decided after a discussion among the few of us. It's impossible for there to be a mole among us. The possibility of Nereus possessing prior intelligence on this can basically be ruled out.
"Someone else will be in charge of the execution platform. The mission for the two of you in Loguetown is to keep a close eye on Nereus, but do not provoke him.
"If he does nothing and just watches the spectacle, that is the best-case scenario.
"He has an agreement with the World Government from back then; he shouldn't do anything abnormal for Roger's sake. The execution date is fast approaching. You two must set out for the East Blue immediately."
While Garp and Sengoku were still rushing toward the East Blue, Nereus, having set off much earlier, had already arrived in Loguetown.
Without a ship, and without relying on any form of transportation, the three of them had simply flown over using their own wings.
The Marines' intelligence could be considered flawless this time. Aside from Nereus possessing a specific personal objective, this truly was nothing more than a family vacation.
Although they encountered a few minor annoyances along the way, these troubles only served to slightly delay their schedule. Most were caused by the sheer greed spawned by the World Government's bounties on the Lunarian race.
Currently, Chloe was wearing a stylized theatrical mask over her face. It wasn't out of fear that exposing her identity would cause trouble; she simply wanted to play and have fun without being bothered, so she temporarily covered her face.
Amphelite hadn't reverted to her "Miss Mummy" persona either. She merely covered her wings and the flames on her back with azure fire. It was a localized application of her Zoan Devil Fruit ability—a small trick unique to Devil Fruit users.
The three of them were now standing in the central plaza of Loguetown, surrounded by various political and administrative institutions.
This was also the transportation hub of the town. Through the avenues branching out from the plaza, one could reach any district in Loguetown.
The once-empty plaza now housed a towering execution platform. Without a doubt, this had been prepared exclusively for Roger.
"Is this... the reason you came to the East Blue so early?"
Amphelite wasn't surprised by Nereus's predictions of certain major events. Over the years, Nereus had formed his own accurate judgments regarding many major occurrences.
Amphelite had always believed that perhaps Fish-men genuinely possessed some unique insights when it came to foreseeing the future.
"More or less. This is the arrival of a new era. And this place... is where it all begins."
Sengoku and Garp were still on their way, but Loguetown was currently swarming with Marine personnel. The Marines originally stationed in Loguetown had basically been relegated to auxiliary roles, while all primary security duties were handed over to the elites dispatched from Headquarters.
Right now, the demographics of Loguetown were a chaotic mix. Whether it was pirates or figures from the Underworld, everyone was paying close attention to the situation here. Yet surprisingly, it hadn't sparked any major unrest.
The pirates and Underworld figures didn't want to draw aggro onto themselves at such a critical juncture, and the Marines absolutely did not want any other incidents cropping up before Roger's execution.
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