Over a certain sea in the New World, a massive dragon weaved through the clouds—Kaido.
Flying beside him was a figure with outstretched wings, his body exuding a faint fiery aura. This was King, one of the Three Calamities of the Beasts Pirates, also known as the Conflagration.
King could fly on his own, that was nothing special. What was noteworthy was the fact that he carried a certain unfortunate soul in his claws—Jack. Meanwhile, atop Kaido's enormous dragon body sat Queen, looking like some kind of bizarre dragon rider.
"Boss Kaido, shouldn't we pick up the pace? We're running out of time! Today's the opening day of the Pirate Expo!" Queen suggested, clutching Kaido's massive dragon head.
Kaido, clearly a little drunk, frowned. "Queen, you got a problem with me?"
"How could I?" Queen quickly denied.
But under his breath, he muttered, "If Boss Kaido hadn't drunk so much while we were resting on the last island, we wouldn't be in such a rush now…"
Before he could finish, Kaido abruptly shook his massive head, sending Queen flying.
"AAAAHHHHH!!" Queen screamed as he plummeted toward the ocean below.
Unlike Kaido, he wasn't indestructible. If he fell from this height, he'd be reduced to mincemeat!
Luckily, King was fast. Without hesitation, he tossed Jack into the air and, in the next moment, flapped his wings and swooped down, catching Queen before he hit the water.
"Damn, I thought I was gonna die," Queen gasped, patting his chest.
"If you don't shut that big mouth of yours, you will die," King muttered, clearly annoyed.
Now, their positions had shifted—Jack nervously clung to Kaido's dragon head while Queen dangled in King's grip.
That's right—despite how important this event was, Kaido had still gotten wasted.
During their last stop, he had drunk himself into a stupor and slept for an entire day. Based on the information they had received, the Pirate Expo on Bringut Island had likely already begun.
Perhaps feeling a little embarrassed, Kaido muttered, "What do you know? The big shots always make their entrance last."
Having seen what happened to Queen, Jack, ever the loyal subordinate—wisely kept his mouth shut and simply nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile—
The Pirate Expo had indeed begun on Delta Island.
The atmosphere was electric. On stage, Festa spoke passionately, hyping up the crowd. The pirates below cheered and roared in excitement.
Claudius, casually smoking a cigar, paid no mind to the festivities. As for whether Doflamingo was known to smoke? Well, just assume that he had picked up the habit, who cared about such details?
At this moment, all Seven Warlords of the Sea stood together, a large space around them. No one dared approach too closely—it would be suicide.
Claudius exhaled a slow puff of smoke before asking, "No news on Shiki and his crew?"
Enel closed his eyes, seemingly activating one of his abilities.
Moments later, he opened them and replied, "No. But according to our surveillance on the island, the Red Hair Pirates have already arrived. They're the only Emperor's crew confirmed to be here so far."
"Shanks?" Claudius murmured in surprise.
He had expected Shanks to join in eventually, but he hadn't thought he'd be the first Yonko to show up.
With that in mind, Claudius turned his gaze toward Mihawk, who stood nearby, casually observing the festivities with his massive sword on his back.
"That guy's your problem," Claudius said.
"Mm," Mihawk responded nonchalantly. "I was planning to have a little swordplay with him anyway."
He wasn't particularly concerned. Since he and Shanks were close, he assumed Shanks had simply come to enjoy the event. Saying hello was only natural.
Claudius then turned his eyes skyward.
He had every reason to believe that Shiki was already here.
The problem was, he couldn't just sweep the area with Observation Haki—doing so would immediately give away his intentions. No need to stir the pot just yet.
Besides, Shiki was probably thinking the same thing.
Lost in thought, Claudius ignored Festa's speech.
But soon, Hancock whispered, "It's starting."
Claudius snapped back to attention.
A bell rang throughout the island, signaling that it was now noon.
With a flourish, Festa pressed a button on a device.
Immediately, the massive lake at the center of Bringut Island began to churn violently.
That's right—Delta Island was an island built around a lake. And that lake, in turn, was connected to the deep sea.
As the water surged, a powerful upward current burst forth.
Claudius's eyes widened slightly in genuine surprise.
Even though he had already "foreseen" this event, witnessing it in person was still astonishing.
Rising with the current was an entire island, wrapped in a protective bubble, ascending into the sky.
"The grand event has begun! The great treasure of the Roger Pirates is on that island! Go forth and claim it, all you fearless sailors of the sea!!!" Festa declared passionately.
The moment those words left his lips, the entire island erupted in excitement.
Countless pirate ships set sail at once, racing toward the central lake to ride the powerful rising current.
Pirates who had come to witness the event now scrambled to their own ships, eager to join the chase.
For a moment, the sea was filled with chaos, hundreds of sails unfurling, ships competing to be the first to reach the treasure.
Claudius took another deep drag of his cigar before exhaling slowly.
"What a grand spectacle."
"At the head of the pack is Eustass Kid, this year's most notorious supernova," Ace said with a grin.
Enel—ever the treasure hunter—was already growing impatient. Truthfully, even if there hadn't been an official reason for him to attend this event, he would have joined just for the thrill of treasure hunting.
"Your Highness, I'm heading out," Enel said excitedly.
Claudius chuckled and nodded. "Go ahead. But don't forget why you're here."
"Understood!" Enel grinned.
With a crackling explosion of lightning, his figure vanished.
While countless pirates struggled to reach the floating island, Enel's ability let him bypass them all in an instant.
Mihawk, meanwhile, observed the sea of ships with interest. A smirk played at his lips.
"The Red Force… Looks like Shanks is aboard. I'll be taking my leave as well."
Without waiting for a response, Mihawk slung his black sword onto his back and strode toward a random pirate ship.
A few flashes of his blade later, the ship, which had originally been heading toward the rising current—abruptly changed course, now sailing straight toward the Red Force.
Claudius merely waved his hand. "Do as you please."
"What about you?" Crocodile asked, also biting down on a cigar.
"I'm staying put. I want to see how long Kaido, Charlotte Linlin, and Shiki can hold out before making their move," Claudius said with a grin.
"In that case, I won't be staying either," Dragon said softly.
His body flickered, then dissolved into the wind, vanishing without a trace.
Hancock, meanwhile, scowled at Crocodile and Ace until they left. Then, she turned and clung to Claudius's arm.
"Your Highness, now it's just the two of us."
Claudius calmly withdrew his arm. "I'm Doflamingo right now. Keep that in mind, Hancock."
Hancock pouted. "Does this count as an affair, then? Hmph."
"You really need to tone down the theatrics," Claudius muttered, flicking her forehead.
(To be continued.)
***
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