"Ah… I almost forgot, you sent Vergo to join the Marines…"
Trafalgar Law, having achieved his goal, wore a delighted smile on his face, yet his eyes were exceptionally vicious. "If it weren't for him back then, Corazon-san wouldn't have died."
In fact, long ago, Law had considered exposing Vergo identity to the Marines to avenge Corazon.
But first, he did not trust any Marine other than Corazon. Second, he didn't believe the Marines would take the word of a pirate like him.
Third—and most importantly—doing so wouldn't pose much of a threat to Donquixote Doflamingo. Instead, it would expose himself again after he had finally slipped out of the Heavenly Yaksha sight.
If it provoked Doflamingo into a rage, making him willing to expend enormous effort just to drag him out, it would be more trouble than it was worth…
After all, at that time, Law knew very clearly that he did not yet have the strength to contend with Doflamingo.
But now things were different. Though he hated to admit it, Sherwin existence had indeed become Law backing, giving him the confidence to retaliate against the Heavenly Yaksha without restraint.
Watching Doflamingo face suddenly change color and the corners of his mouth droop in an instant, the pleasure in Law heart was indescribable.
However, his smile did not last long. After Doflamingo face darkened for a moment, he once again let out his signature laugh.
"Fufufufufu… You don't actually think that just because I arranged for a subordinate to infiltrate the Marines, the World Government will strip me of my title as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea and give you a chance to kill me, do you?"
Law eyes narrowed. Remembering what Sherwin had once told him about Doflamingo former Celestial Dragon status, he knew the man was not bluffing. Even so, he still subconsciously glanced at the CP0 members nearby.
Joseph and Gismonda wore masks, making their expressions unreadable. Although Guernica did not wear a mask, his lifeless expression made little difference. In any case, none of them showed any reaction to Doflamingo words.
They neither confirmed nor denied it. To Law, that meant they had no intention of changing their stance.
"Hmph… The World Government and those nobles really haven't changed at all…"
Law recalled the soldiers who had once sealed off the "White Town" Flevance, and let out a cold sneer.
At that moment, Sherwin spoke again.
He suddenly put on a look of sudden realization and smacked his palm hard. "Oh… Don't tell me the Navy failed operation before was because that Vergo guy tipped them off?!"
Trying to pin that crap on me, huh?!
Now that Sherwin had already decided to take down Doflamingo, whether that blame had been forced onto him no longer really mattered.
But the Hunter had always believed in paying back grudges. Since the Heavenly Yaksha dared to dump his dirty work onto Sherwin head, then he couldn't blame him for throwing in a final jab before he died.
However, the Heavenly Yaksha ability to adapt was just as sharp. Without revealing the slightest flaw, he laughed and said, "Fufufufu… I may have become one of the Seven Warlords, but I'm still a pirate… Sherwin."
Hm? What that supposed to mean?
Sherwin, who hated people speaking in riddles the most, couldn't figure out what he was trying to imply.
"You idiot, Sherwin! What this guy means is that he still has ambitions for the Pirate King throne and the great treasure, so he'd be happy to see those Emperors fall. There no way he'd tip them off, meow!"
(=`ω=)ジ
Haibara Meow once again smacked the Hunter head—only sharp when it suited him—with her little paw, "translating" Doflamingo meaning.
And the Heavenly Yaksha, who had calmly "defended" himself, quietly let out a breath of relief.
He had cleverly avoided directly arguing with Sherwin over whether he had ordered Vergo to do such a thing.
Instead, he had simply and subtly revealed a bit of his ambition, leaving it to the CP0 agents to fill in the rest of his "explanation" themselves.
Compared to stating the reason outright, letting CP0 follow his line of logic on their own would make it easier for them to believe it.
Of course, Doflamingo also knew that even so, CP0 would not completely dispel their suspicions of him.
After all, Vergo identity as an undercover agent had already been exposed, and they would certainly conduct further investigations afterward.
Although he trusted Vergo loyalty to him, he did not dare to underestimate CP0 capabilities either.
For a fleeting moment, Doflamingo considered having Vergo offer up his life in absolute loyalty, but he quickly dismissed the idea…
If something happened to Vergo at this time, it would only deepen the suspicion surrounding him.
So be it. With his status as a former Celestial Dragon, even if this matter were truly exposed, there should still be room for negotiation. The most urgent matter right now was—
He could not let that brat Law continue spouting nonsense!
If this conversation went on, who knew what other secrets of the Donquixote Family would be exposed.
And to make matters worse, Sherwin was standing right there beside them, fanning the flames—someone who already disliked him, and whom he could not defeat.
For the first time, Doflamingo felt a trace of regret over his decision to invite CP0.
If he had known earlier that Sherwin was only repaying a favor, why would he have gone to such lengths…
No—if CP0 truly were not here, perhaps Sherwin really would have helped Law kill him. After all, that troublesome fellow had never refrained from killing a Warlord of the Sea before.
Thinking about it that way…
Doflamingo mood still couldn't improve.
"Fufufufufu… Although you have Sherwin help, if you want my life, I'm afraid you won't have the chance this time. And with him here, I probably can't do much to you either. So… how about we make a bet?"
To stop Law from continuing his nonsense, Doflamingo decisively threw out a topic he would be interested in.
"The winner can make one request of the loser. Of course, it won't be something unreasonable like demanding the other life. But if you want me to give up the throne of Dressrosa, or my position as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, that would be acceptable."
"Heh…"
Trafalgar Law sneered inwardly. If he hadn't learned about Doflamingo background from Sherwin, he would have agreed to this wager without hesitation.
But now…
"What do you want to bet with me?"
In Sherwin original plan, he had intended to draw Heavenly Yaksha attention himself, allowing the Felynes and the dwarves to seize the chance to rescue Viola and the others. Only after ensuring the safety of the innocent would they completely flip the table and move against Doflamingo.
Wasn't this the perfect opportunity?
"Besides those miraculous toys, Dressrosa is also famous for one other thing—the colosseum. So let me see just how much you've improved over all these years."
As soon as Doflamingo finished speaking, Sherwin cut him off with a look of disdain. "You're a Shichibukai who been famous for years, and you're picking on a small-time pirate whose bounty hasn't even reached 100 million. Aren't you ashamed?"
"Fufufufu… There no such thing as fairness in the world of pirates, Hunter."
Doflamingo paid no mind to Sherwin mockery. Instead, he turned to Law with a grin. "Didn't you want to avenge Corazon? Maybe while you're dueling me, you can take advantage of CP0 before they have time to react and take my life. Of course, the same goes for me… Or what? Are you planning to let Sherwin avenge you in your place?"
It had to be said—Doflamingo was a master at manipulating hearts. He had grasped Law thoughts with pinpoint accuracy.
"Fine! I'll take that bet!"
While Sherwin covered his face speechlessly, the hot-blooded Law agreed to the wager without the slightest hesitation.
"Hold on!"
Although letting the bet proceed wouldn't stop Sherwin from carrying out his plan, first, he didn't think Law could stall Doflamingo for very long, and second, he wanted to draw as many of the Heavenly Yaksha subordinates away from the royal palace as possible. So he decided to remedy the situation.
"Just watching the two of you fight would be too boring. Kuma and I were invited here to help. At least give us a little sense of participation."
The corner of Doflamingo mouth twitched twice as he replied with obvious reluctance, "You want in on the bet too? I don't have any extra Devil Fruits on hand!"
"Huh? No more Devil Fruits?"
Sherwin smacked his lips, feeling a slight sense of regret.
Of course, he wasn't planning to gamble with Doflamingo over any Devil Fruit… After killing him, they would all belong to Sherwin anyway.
But if Doflamingo wasn't lying, then even killing him wouldn't yield a Devil Fruit. In that case, he could only gamble on the drop rate of the Hunter carving knife.
Doflamingo, having misunderstood Sherwin meaning, twitched at the corner of his mouth once more…
You really are thinking about fleecing another Devil Fruit from me again, damn it!
"Ahem, ahem. It doesn't matter if there no Devil Fruit," Sherwin didn't bother explaining and continued,
"Although I'm not a pirate, I don't mind using a pirate way to gamble for a round. I remember there a game quite popular among you pirates—where the winner can freely choose someone from the loser ship… What was that game called again?"
"Davy Back Fight."
The one who answered Sherwin was Doflamingo. At this moment, an intrigued smile spread across his face. "You really want to play that game with me? You, Law, and this big bear?"
Suppressing the excitement in his heart, he sought confirmation from Sherwin.
Sherwin paused slightly, then tilted his head and glanced at the big bear…
Alright, he probably understood what was going on.