"???"
In the grand hall of the Orenfence Kingdom's royal palace, King Ocreus III was left utterly bewildered when the other party bluntly replied with "Don't know you" and abruptly ended the Den Den Mushi call.
"Did I dial the wrong number just now?"
After a brief moment of stunned silence, an undeterred Ocreus III redialed the Den Den Mushi.
This time, however, the call failed to connect entirely.
"What's going on?"
King Ocreus III grew somewhat flustered, lifting his head to look at Ministers Luke and Colon.
"Is the Chamber of Power... avoiding me?"
"Damn it, could they have known Doflamingo would come to the Orenfence Kingdom?"
Colon's pupils contracted slightly as he tensely added, "If that's truly the case, then it's not just Doflamingo targeting us—it means we've somehow offended the Holy Land and they're using Doflamingo to discipline us!"
"Offend the Holy Land?" Ocreus III pondered before shaking his head. "How would we dare? Last year, when the Celestial Dragons came to collect the Celestial Tribute, our hospitality was impeccable! We provided slaves and even offered double the usual tribute..."
"Y-Your Majesty!"
Just then, a panicked voice echoed from outside the hall.
A royal soldier stumbled into the throne room, collapsing to his knees as he gasped for breath. "Disaster has struck! Theroyal army captain sent to collect taxes in Keen Village... and His Highness the Prince... have been executed by Captain Dunn from Marine Base 135!"
"WHAT?!"
The sudden news made Ocreus III widen his eyes in shock.
He rushed forward in hurried steps and demand more answer.
"What in the world happened? How could the Marines—no, how dare they execute the prince?"
"It... it was because of some lowly—no, a little girl from Keen Village!"
The soldier swallowed the word "commoner," trembling as he continued, "Her name is Aqua. She and her mother aren't native to Keen Village—they're refugees from another country who fled here about six years ago and settled down."
"Aqua?"
Luke, standing nearby, furrowed his brow as a memory from months ago flashed before his eyes.
Back then, he had passed through Keen Village by chance and spotted a strikingly beautiful young woman.
He had wanted to claim her for himself.
But to his surprise, the woman was fiercely unyielding, refusing him outright.
Enraged, he ordered his guards to pin her down and force himself upon her.
Yet he underestimated her resolve—before he could succeed, she took her own life right before them.
Just as he was about to leave in disappointment, a young woman rushed into the house with a little girl in tow.
Faintly, he heard the child's wailing and the woman's consoling words.
Through her comfort, he caught the name "Aqua."
At the time, however, his interest had vanished, so he dismissed it and returned to the capital with his guards.
Not long after, he was ordered to accompany the prince on a tax-collecting expedition to Keen Village, where he saw the girl named Aqua again.
This time, the child not only stood up to obstruct the royal tax collectors but also loudly proclaimed she had an uncle who was a Marine Fleet Admiral.
No one present—not even the prince—took her words seriously.
Luke himself ordered two subordinates to toss the girl into a cattle.
Recalling this now, Luke shuddered uncontrollably.
Immediately after, he quickly walked up to the soldier and asked in a deep voice.
"What happened with this Aqua? Why would the Marines execute His Highness the Prince, the army captain, and others because of him?"
"I—"
A flicker of fear flashed in the soldier's eyes as memories of everything that happened in Keen Village surfaced in his mind.
At the time, he had been suffering from diarrhea during the journey and had secretly slipped away from the group to relieve himself in a secluded spot.
Little did he know that this bout of diarrhea would save his life.
When he saw the Mariens charging into Keen Village with overwhelming force, he immediately sensed something was terribly wrong.
So, he stayed hidden in the shadows, watching from afar.
After witnessing the Marines brutally torturing His Highness the Prince to the brink of death and summarily executing all the royal soldiers, he dared not stay any longer.
He fled without hesitation, sprinting all the way back.
After hearing the soldier's account, Luke felt the world spin around him.
He collapsed to the ground with a thud, muttering in despair, "It's over... it's over. Aqua is... she's actually the Marines Princess!"
"How... how is this possible? A lowly refugee who came to the Orenfence Kingdom—how did she suddenly become the Marines Princess?"
In a panic, Luke suddenly turned and scrambled toward King Ocreus III on his hands and knees.
Clutching the king's leg tightly, he trembled and pleaded, "Your Majesty, save me!"
King Ocreus III, who had also listened to the soldier's story, felt as though the sky had fallen.
If the soldier's words were true—if that girl Aqua really was the daughter of the Fleet Admiral—then Doflamingo's appearance wasn't on orders from the Holy Land but rather under the command of the Fleet Admiral.
At that moment, he finally understood why the Holy Land hadn't answered his Den Den Mushi calls.
Because they had offended none other than the decisive and fiercely protective Fleet Admiral.
If Doflamingo had come under orders from the Holy Land, they might still have had a sliver of hope.
But if he was truly acting on the Marines Fleet Admiral's command—there would be no chance of survival for any of them!
"Get away from me!"
King Ocreus III, barely holding himself together, had no patience left for formalities.
He kicked Luke away and turned to his ministers, shouting hoarsely, "Someone tell me—what the hell happened? The Marines couldn't possibly have foreseen that the Prince would go to Keen Village. They must have been there because someone had already offended Aqua before this!"
"Who was it? Step forward!"
Before the royal ministers could react, Colon immediately stepped forward and pointed at the despondent Luke.
"Your Majesty, it was Luke!"
"Hm?" A murderous glint flashed in King Ocreus III's eyes.
"Speak. What exactly happened?"
"If I recall correctly, Luke boasted to us months ago after returning from Keen Village. He said he had found a beautiful young woman there and forced himself on her. He even bragged that such a stunning rose could bloom in such a barren place!"
"Colon, you liar!"
Caught off guard by Colon's betrayal, Luke suddenly sprang to his feet as if revitalized, shouting furiously.
"That's not true! I lied back then! I didn't succeed with that woman—because she killed herself..."
Before he could finish speaking, Luke's pupils suddenly contracted in fear as he looked at King Ocreus III.
"Your Majesty, I—"
"You... you—"
King Ocreus III was so enraged he nearly got a heart attack, pointing at Luke and stammering for a long moment before finally forcing out a despairing sentence.
"You've doomed us, Luke!"
After a brief pause, a flicker of hope suddenly ignited in King Ocreus III, and he urgently commanded.
"Guards! Cut off Luke's head! I will personally go and apologize to the Fleet Admiral!"
At the king's order, the captain of the royal guard, who had been standing nearby, didn't hesitate for a second.
He decisively drew his sword and swung it cleanly toward Luke.
However, just as the blade was about to strike, it abruptly froze mid-air as if bound by some unseen force.
Immediately after, an eerie laugh echoed from outside the hall.
"Fufufufu, going to apologize now? Too late!"
Before the words even faded, Doflamingo, draped in a pink coat and wearing sunglasses, swaggered into the palace hall with his hands in his pockets.
His chillingly sinister voice rang clearly in the ears of everyone present.
"From this moment onward, the Kingdom of Orenfence is under my control!"
"You don't even have the right to die!"