“We’ve been looking for you for a long time, Nico Robin.”
Watching Robin’s uncertain expression, Dragon spoke slowly, “Here, you can live safely without worrying about government spies coming to your door. Your safety is our responsibility.”
“Oh? Are you suggesting you’ll provide me with shelter?” Robin calmed down, chuckling softly. “With the Revolutionary Army’s information-gathering capabilities, don’t you already know what I’ve done?”
Every organization or individual who had any association with her had met dire ends, even prominent figures like the Shichibukai had fallen one after another.
To this, Dragon shook his head, correcting her. “It’s not shelter, it’s camaraderie.”
Turning away from Robin, Dragon walked to the edge of the cliff as he spoke.
“We have a common enemy, don’t we?”
“I regret what happened to Ohara. To prevent the same tragedy from recurring, we need your help.”
In the end, it all boiled down to her ancient knowledge.
Robin self-mockingly thought.
Perhaps the Revolutionary Army was a group of revered ideological warriors, but they were certainly not the people Saul had described, who would regard her as a comrade.
They approached her with a purpose.
But…
What choice do I have?
Seemingly understanding Robin’s thoughts, Dragon fell silent for a moment before continuing, “Perhaps you think I’m trying to curry favor, but the truth is, I left the Marines because of Ohara’s destruction twenty years ago.”
“What?!” Robin’s eyes widened in astonishment. “You used to be a Marine?!”
The Revolutionary Army leader, the Dragon, was a former Marine?
This was information even the Black Market didn’t have!
“I was before…”
“Why is this your focus?” Dragon chuckled, giving her a wry look.
“Like the prisoners in the Impel Down, the government erased all traces of my past existence… I’m a free prisoner, not confined to a cell.”
Free?
Robin suddenly lost interest.
“Then you…”
Before Robin could finish, Dragon waved his hand to stop her from asking further, unwilling to dwell on past events.
“Do you think Ohara deserved punishment, Robin?”
He changed the subject.
“Curiosity is a biological instinct. Is it wrong for us to be curious about the truth of history?”
Being a rebel against the world, Robin paused for a moment before speaking excitedly, “All research points to that blank hundred years history, to that unknown ancient kingdom. Since it’s already happened, why should the government destroy us?!”
“Exactly, that’s what I think too.”
Dragon’s response left Robin stunned. He gazed out to sea and continued slowly, “At first, like most people, I believed that Ohara was incorrigible, more dangerous than pirates.”
The government didn’t immediately seek to destroy Ohara; instead, after several warnings went unheeded by the scholars of Ohara, it was Admiral Sengoku who initiated the Buster Call.
“A regime that prevents resistance to maintain its rule, what’s wrong with that? Ohara brought it upon themselves.”
Robin didn’t answer.
She was too young at the time, and her childhood traumas fueled an unprecedented passion once she found what she was looking for. However, because of her young age and limited perspective, she only blindly absorbed knowledge without considering the broader implications.
“But later, I realized that it wasn’t you who was wrong, it was the World Government!”
“It’s those World Nobles, the Celestial Dragons!”
Flames ignited in Dragon’s eyes as he continued to speak. “The world isn’t just black and white, but you can’t reverse right and wrong!”
“If the government had competence, I wouldn’t mind being their lackey… because that’s how the world works. Some sing praises while others do the dirty work. As long as it protects more people, necessary sacrifices can be understood.”
“But they don’t!”
Dragon clenched his fists, gazing into the distance, his eyes penetrating the ocean, seeing the distant, war-torn nations.
“Look at the world now!”
“In the Pirate Era, pirates abound, the Heavenly Tribute grows year by year, and Yonko reigns over the New World like kings, controlling the lives and deaths of ordinary people. It’s a level of chaos the world has never seen before.”
“Roger has become a legend, but it’s the farmers toiling in the fields and the fishermen risking their lives at sea who suffer.”
“To sacrifice the happiness of the majority for the benefit of a few… the world is wrong, terribly wrong!”
“So I intend to end it all!”
Swish!
Dragon turned around, staring straight at her. “Overthrow the government, eradicate the Celestial Dragons!”
“Then why come to me?” Robin asked.
She didn’t agree with Dragon’s “sacrifice the individual for the greater good” theory, but she understood that they were indeed in the same trench now, heading in the same direction.
But challenging the government wasn’t easy. Robin introspected. Unless she could understand what the “Pirate King” Roger had found with the great treasure, challenging the government’s authority with the existing information alone was inadequate.
So what was the Revolutionary Army’s reason for recruiting her?
Just because she could read ancient texts?
Could it be…?
Thinking of a possibility, Robin couldn’t help but breathe heavily.
How many years had it been?
Since Ohara, she hadn’t come across documented ancient knowledge!
Alabasta did indeed have a Poneglyph, but unfortunately, Aokiji had personally intervened, depriving her of any opportunity.
Dragon didn’t hide this fact either, saying, “We stole an important research document from within the government, but it’s filled with too many ancient texts, and our efforts to decipher them have stalled.”
“If we could decipher it, I believe it would be the perfect opportunity for the winds of freedom to sweep across the world!”
…
Marine Headquarters, Marineford.
“Congratulations, Rowen! When are you treating us?”
Chaton strolled over with his hands in his pockets, calling out from afar.
Due to a certain Vice Admiral Comil who refused to reveal their name, all the headquarters’ leaders knew that Rowen had struck it rich… Not with just 100 million, not 200 million, not even a billion, but over a trillion!
The wealthiest Marine, rightfully so.
Last time at the headquarters’ black market, Chaton had successfully made a profit thanks to Rowen’s sponsorship of 10 million, but Rowen didn’t even mention it afterward.
This solidified Chaton’s determination to cling to Rowen’s leg.
With such a wealthy colleague around, Chaton felt like he had reached the pinnacle of life and certainly wanted to build good relations.
“Sure thing! Come to my place for a banquet tonight. I’ve got Tesoro to send over a batch of precious ingredients. No need to hold back, everyone!”
“By the way, I was browsing through the database and found something interesting.”
Momousagi found a seat, her black ponytail trailing behind her head, contrasting with the white Justice cloak, exuding an air of elegance.
“Oh? What is it?” Everyone looked over curiously.
“That Noble pirate from 300 years ago, just like Tesoro now, was also a Gold-Gold Fruit user!”
A Gold-Gold Fruit user didn’t have the ability to create gold but had the power to control it… which was much more valuable than Iron-Iron or Copper-Copper Fruit abilities.
“No wonder he could amass so much gold!”
Rowen had speculated about this before, and now he got confirmation.
“Huh? But wait, Momousagi… why did you suddenly go through old records in the database?”
Chaton snapped back to attention and asked.
Records from hundreds of years ago were generally divided into two copies, one archived in Mary Geoise and the other stored in the deepest part of the headquarters’ database vault.
It wasn’t easy to access them; it required the approval of a Vice Admiral or higher.
Momousagi had the necessary clearance, but why was she so bored as to sift through piles of obscure pirate data in the mountains of books?
“Don’t you know the answer to that question, Vice Admiral Chaton?”
Momousagi replied with a slight smile.
Her smile was enchanting, bewitching, with a hint of danger.
Chaton remembered the mess he left behind from the last quest he went on and shrank his neck. “Oh, Fleet Admiral is here!”
Bang!
As if on cue, Sengoku walked in.
After a neat salute, he gestured for everyone to sit down and said, “I’ve called you all here today for two reasons.”
“First, we’ve gradually gained the upper hand in the New World and need manpower to stabilize the situation.”
Sengoku’s gaze swept past Rowen, scanning the other Vice Admirals.
Rowen’s lips twitched.
Well, he wasn’t suitable to appear in the New World anyway.
Otherwise, Big Mom would definitely launch a frenzied attack, which didn’t align with Sengoku’s strategy of boiling the frog in warm water.
“The second matter is that we’ve received a report from a confidential informant, indicating the possible location of the Revolutionary Army headquarters.”
Swish!
The office fell silent for a moment, then erupted into chaos. Each seasoned Vice Admiral struggled to contain their astonishment, becoming increasingly noisy.
Seeing this, Rowen smirked.
Yes, it was his informant again!
But this time, the informant was none other than himself!
(End of Chapter)
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