After thinking it over, Red ultimately chose not to interrupt Buggy's performance and let him give it his all.
And under Buggy's speech, the emotions of every pirate were stirred up as well. As though greatly inspired, they raised their arms one after another, shouting slogans at the top of their lungs in a frenzy of excitement.
By the end, they had even started singing the crew anthem Uta had specially arranged for the Straw Hat Pirates, waiting aggressively for the coming battle.
"What a ridiculous scene~"
In a corner of the deck, strong figures like Law, Capone, and Boa Hancock—people who hadn't been affected by Buggy's speech at all—had gathered separately.
Watching a group of pirates who were all well-known even in the New World get completely fooled by Buggy like this, with quite a few of them even being their own subordinates...
For a moment, their feelings were indescribably complicated.
Although now that they had joined the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, everyone was on the same side and there was no need to split things into yours and mine anymore...
Did they really have to assimilate to this extent!?
"So... are we seriously supposed to listen to that guy's commands later?"
Law raised a brow and looked toward Hancock beside him.
Although they were both members of the Straw Hat Grand Fleet, Hancock and Moria—both former Seven Warlords of the Sea—naturally overwhelmed the others in sheer presence, regardless of how strong everyone actually was.
"As if I would listen to the commands of someone like that!?"
Hancock cast Law and the others a disdainful glance.
As the only person present whose subordinates hadn't been brainwashed by Buggy at all, she truly had the qualifications to look down on the crowd.
"Lord Red has already issued the latest orders..."
"When the time comes, a new hierarchical mental network will be established, and each of you will have your own tasks."
"If I remember correctly, you people followed Lord Red and the others when they invaded Mary Geoise once before, didn't you?"
"Mm~"
Law turned back to glance at the familiar faces behind him, then nodded to Hancock.
"That's right."
"Then that's perfect!" Hancock's gaze swept across the several Supernovas before she said:
"When the time comes, you lot follow me~"
"The powerful guards inside Mary Geoise will be handled by the great figures of the Straw Hat Pirates."
"As for the clown's side, they'll mainly lead people in attacking the Celestial Dragons and their guards."
"Our main task is to free the slaves in Mary Geoise."
Despite possessing even greater strength, the task Red assigned Hancock and the others had nothing to do with combat.
Instead, he had them focus on rescuing the slaves in Mary Geoise.
Even though, under the influence of the Straw Hat Pirates, the world's slave trade had already improved greatly compared to before—
Even the slave auction houses in the Sabaody Archipelago had shut down one after another—
There would never be a shortage of disgusting scum in this world who loved humiliating themselves.
After the Straw Hat Pirates had caused that slave liberation incident last time, Mary Geoise had suffered from a severe slave shortage for quite a long time.
And that gave certain people who loved fawning over the Celestial Dragons their chance, as if they had seized some golden opportunity...
Some imprisoned their own citizens and sent them to the Celestial Dragons.
Some secretly abducted civilians and forcibly branded them with slave marks.
Worse still, some, in order to curry favor with the Celestial Dragons, directly handed over their own blood relatives or wives and concubines for the Celestial Dragons to toy with at will.
Tragedy would not disappear because of what the Straw Hat Pirates had done.
Instead, it would simply be shifted onto someone else, creating even more tragedies.
As long as the source of those tragedies remained, scenes like this would continue to play out in this world without end.
Hancock narrowed her eyes, and a dense hatred flashed through those charming, captivating pupils.
This time, she wasn't just responding to the Straw Hat Pirates' call.
It was also a journey of revenge for herself.
Hatred hidden away for twenty years had finally come upon a chance to be unleashed.
"Mary Geoise... Celestial Dragons..."
"I have returned!!!"
...
...
Golden, warm sunlight poured over the deck of the Going Merry like flowing liquid gold.
And it also made the pirates, already brimming with fighting spirit, realize that a new day had arrived.
And according to the operation time Red had told them before departure, in roughly another two hours, it would be the best moment for them to pour out in full force and flood into Mary Geoise!
At this very moment, the members of the Straw Hat Pirates had long since stepped out of the cabin and were all standing at the bow of the Going Merry like standards on a battlefield, drawing the eyes of everyone present.
Everyone held their breath and focused, letting the fierce wind sweeping through the clouds from the high skies blow past their faces.
The thin oxygen did not weaken their momentum.
If anything, the cool air made the pirates' minds even sharper and more concentrated.
And then, at last...
The Den Den Mushi in Red's pocket suddenly rang out with an urgent Buru Buru~, completely shattering the quiet atmosphere.
The next moment, Red picked up the receiver directly, and an expressive look appeared on the Den Den Mushi's face.
"Red, we've just received news! The Five Elders have appeared on Ellers Island, and they're wreaking havoc over there!!!"
"Excellent!"
Hearing this, Red did not feel the slightest bit of sorrow for the civilians on Ellers Island. Instead, a smile of satisfaction bloomed on his face, as though his plan had succeeded.
He immediately spoke into the receiver:
"Then I'll leave the consolation work over on Ellers Island to you Whitebeard Pirates!"
"But I can guarantee this—"
"From this day onward, the Five Elders will never dare to come and go from Mary Geoise as they please again."
"Oh, no!"
"From this day onward, whether Mary Geoise will even continue to exist... is a question in itself!"
As he spoke, Red abruptly hung up the call. Then his gaze swept across his companions all around him, the corners of his lips lifting slightly as he smiled.
"Begin the operation!!!"
Rumble rumble rumble rumble...
A violent roar like thunder suddenly erupted from the previously calm Going Merry.
In the next second, a massive crack tore open through the cloud layer, causing the clouds to roll apart to both sides.
And the Going Merry, like a sharp sword, pierced straight through the heavy clouds and dived toward the red continent far above the sea below.
...
...
At the same time—
Inside the Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
Within an ordinary Celestial Dragon residence.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
As a tablecloth was violently yanked away, a pile of priceless plates and bowls was flung off the table and smashed onto the floor, shattering into worthless fragments.
"Bastard! Bastard! Bastard!!!"
"Why is the quality of this beef so poor!?"
"Didn't I already send people to the West Blue to buy the finest beef possible!?"
"Why is this kind of garbage still appearing on my table!?"
Thud!
A steak worth several million Beli fell to the ground, mixing with the shards of porcelain and losing all value as food.
At that moment, a middle-aged man wearing a chef's hat dropped to his knees right on top of those fragments. Ignoring the pain of shards that could pierce into his flesh, he hurriedly knelt and begged for mercy.
"S-Sorry! Lord Varos Saint!!!"
"T-This is already the best beef we could find in the West Blue at present!"
"There's actually nothing wrong with the quality of the meat itself. It's just that a certain ingredient that was originally stored in the warehouse was completely destroyed during the Straw Hat Pirates' last attack, so the taste of the meat ended up—"
"The Straw Hat Pirates! The Straw Hat Pirates!"
"A bunch of lowly creatures like them can affect even my meals!?"
"I think you're deliberately trying to deceive me!"
Swish!
A gorgeous golden pistol suddenly appeared, its black muzzle aimed straight at the kneeling chef's forehead.
Bang!!!
Without giving him any chance to react, Varos Saint pulled the trigger and sent the man who had ruined his lunchtime mood straight to hell.
At this sight, whether they were maids or guards, everyone around lowered their heads in terror, not daring to look directly at the miserable scene before them.
"Hmph~ useless trash! Lowly creatures are lowly creatures indeed. Even in death, they still have to dirty one of my carpets!"
Varos Saint took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the pistol barrel, which wasn't stained by anything at all, while casting a contemptuous glance at the corpse on the ground.
A moment later, after putting the pistol away again, Varos Saint turned his eyes, preparing to order the servants to bring him another lunch.
But just then, a loud crash suddenly came from outside the house.
Immediately afterward came a burst of chaotic shouting.
"Hm!? What's going on?!"
Curious, Varos Saint walked to the window and stuck his head out.
In the next second, he heard a wild, unrestrained laugh ring beside his ear.
"Hahahaha, men!"
"A great start! There's a Celestial Dragon right here!!!"
"Watch me blow him away! Buggy Missile!"
Bang!!!
A gunshot—one Varos Saint was more familiar with than anything—suddenly rang out.
Then his consciousness froze at once and sank into boundless darkness.
"Lord Buggy, what marksmanship!!!"
"One shot, one Celestial Dragon! As expected of Lord Buggy!"
"Facing a Celestial Dragon without changing expression at all! We definitely didn't choose the wrong man to follow!!!"
"..."
Outside the window came a burst of frivolous flattery.
They were words Varos Saint had often heard in daily life.
But from this moment onward, he would never hear them again.
"Heh heh, enough sucking up to me!"
Although the corners of his mouth were already curling almost to the heavens, Buggy still put on a composed and indifferent act as he pointed at a few pirates beside him and said:
"Alright! Business first!"
"You lot, get in there and strip this Celestial Dragon's estate clean!"
"And remember what I told you before... though we're pirates, this time we stand on the side of justice!"
"Don't do anything unnecessary!"
"Yes, Lord Buggy!"
The several pirates he had pointed out immediately sprang into action.
In truth, after feeling that mental network in their minds—one capable of recording every word and action they took—they didn't dare entertain any improper thoughts anyway.
Very quickly, the estate of Varos Saint, which had just been worrying over a single lunch, welcomed an entirely new revolution.
All of the slaves and those forced to serve the Celestial Dragons were rescued and began moving toward the open Celestial Dragon plaza.
Along with them came pirates carrying all kinds of gold, silver, treasures, weapons, and Devil Fruits.
As for the guards that originally belonged to the Celestial Dragon estates...
Give me a break.
A Level 50 pirate might not count for much under the Straw Hat Pirates' banner and might not even rank high enough to earn a name—
But out on the seas, that was unquestionably the strength of an elite Marine Vice Admiral!
Against a mere bunch of guards, it was as easy as taking candy from a baby. There was no resistance at all.
And the actions on Buggy's side were only the beginning.
From the Going Merry, which had landed in the very center of the Celestial Dragon estates, hundreds of pirates leapt down onto the land of Mary Geoise like a surging tide, their eyes gleaming with defiance toward the authority of the Celestial Dragons and the World Government as they scattered in every direction.
Mary Geoise, which had remained peaceful for over a year, once again descended into a shocking upheaval.
And this time, these pirates were no longer here merely for Celestial Dragon jewels, firearms, and slave liberation.
From the very start, their goal was the extermination of the Celestial Dragons as a race!
Red had already given these pirates a strict death order:
Unless they killed more than seventy percent of the Celestial Dragons in the ordinary residential district, they were not allowed to return to the Going Merry!
So this time, these pirates had essentially issued themselves military orders under imperial sanction—to massacre Celestial Dragons.
For a time, the entirety of Mary Geoise was thrown into complete chaos!
If not for the fact that overly violent methods would end up harming too many innocent people, their actions would have been even crazier and more terrifying!
"Looks like there shouldn't be any problems now."
High in the sky, Red—whose eyes shone with mysterious divine light—slowly withdrew his aura before descending back onto the deck of the Going Merry.
He had just carefully scanned the entire area with Psychic Power and Aura, confirming that there were no overly extraordinary powerhouses here.
With Buggy and the others' strength, this place was manageable for them.
Since that was the case, there was no reason for him to remain here any longer.
"Law, Capone!"
Red suddenly called out the names of two people, then ordered:
"You two lead people and hold this plaza. You'll be responsible for removing the slaves' collars and handling the transfers, just like last time."
"No problem!"
The two answered at once.
The moment they set foot on this land, war had already begun, and neither of them dared show the slightest carelessness.
"Mm~"
Knowing how reliable the two of them were, Red nodded. Then his gaze turned toward his companions.
"Usopp, in a moment, you and Franky will go with Hancock and the others to the main urban district where the heads of the Celestial Dragon families live."
"The last time we broke in, we didn't do much damage to the main district. There should still be many slaves there waiting to be freed, and there should be no shortage of valuable treasures either."
"Your task is simple..."
"Take everything you think has value."
"Leave absolutely nothing behind for the Celestial Dragons!!!"
"Heh heh~ now that's the kind of work I like!"
Hearing the plan, Usopp thrust a thumbs-up toward himself with determination.
"Leave everything to me!"
"And me too!"
Franky, who had just undergone his modifications, knocked his fists together with two crisp metallic clangs, a confident smile spreading across his face.
"Good!"
"Then I'm leaving the main district entirely to you!"
Red nodded seriously, then looked toward the rest of his companions and asked with a smile:
"Everyone, are you ready!?"
"Heh! Do you even need to ask!?"
Zoro's aura surged as he answered with a grin.
Red no longer hesitated. With a wave of his hand, he summoned a layer of Psychic Power that wrapped around the bodies of the Straw Hat crew.
Then he laughed loudly and said:
"Then let's use this chance to properly see just what kind of tricks this hidden ruler of the World Government really has!"
Swish!!!
A flash of mysterious spiritual light burst forth, and the figures of Red and the others instantly vanished from the deck of the Going Merry.
And when they opened their eyes again, they had already entered the true core of Mary Geoise—
Pangaea Castle!!!
(End of Chapter)