A soft murmur.
Yet to Iceburg's ears, it was as deafening as an earthquake.
He turned his head and looked at the man standing behind him.
"Rebel against the World Government?"
His face was already streaked with tears, but at those words, a bitter, hate-filled smile flashed across it.
How could he possibly have never considered rebelling against the World Government?
After all, Tom, who had been killed by the World Government, had been almost like a father to Iceburg.
But what could thinking about it change?
The World Government was the overlord of the world, ruling over more than 170 countries.
What could Iceburg do against a giant as towering as the Red Line Continent? He could only bury his hatred deep in his heart.
Roy's words, along with Tom's corpse before him, ignited every ounce of hatred in his heart.
"Are you with the Revolutionary Army?"
The instinctive question made Roy chuckle.
"No, I'm not with the Revolutionary Army, nor do I belong to any side.
"I've returned Mr. Tom's body to you. Iceburg, this is my contact information. I hope our next meeting will be a pleasant one."
Under the moonlight, Roy abruptly vanished before Iceburg's stunned eyes.
He looked at the white Den Den Mushi that had been tossed to him.
"Another force opposing the World Government!"
The icy chill of the iron box in his palm filled Iceburg's eyes with anticipation.
"Teacher Tom, do you think I can avenge you?"
The moonlight was exceptionally bright that night. In that familiar place, with his familiar teacher, it was destined to be an unforgettable night for Iceburg and Franky.
Roy paid no attention to the two crying men behind him, nor did he explain his identity in detail.
He knew that Tom's corpse alone would not make those two men work for him.
They were both men with convictions of their own upon the seas.
Although Tom's corpse could threaten them to some extent, Roy estimated that they would never completely submit because of it.
Rather than threatening them, he might as well earn their goodwill and deepen their future cooperation.
The world's largest shipbuilding company was, in Roy's eyes, practically the lifeline of global transportation.
And Franky, a man who might someday become a crewmate of the Child of Destiny—
He also held great value in Roy's eyes.
As for Pluton's blueprints, Roy would trust no one.
In the future, he would personally obtain Pluton's blueprints through his own methods.
But as before, now was not the time.
The curtain on the new era had yet to rise. At this point, Roy still needed to wait quietly, just like that fat bastard under Whitebeard's command. It was not yet his time to shine.
The crew Roy had stationed in Water Seven successfully received the five brand-new ships docked at the harbor.
As Roy carried out his sun lounger and lay on the deck basking in the sunlight—
Brrr, brrr!
The sound of a Den Den Mushi came from inside Roy's clothes.
He took the specially bred Den Den Mushi from his chest.
"Hello, sir. Sorry to disturb you. The future Galley-La Company is very willing to cooperate with you."
Click!
After delivering that brief message, the Den Den Mushi immediately hung up.
The opening sounded like that of a salesman, but it brought a smile to Roy's face.
"Looks like the matter I asked Father to handle back then has finally paid off!
"To intercept Tom's body and keep him from being displayed as a warning, I put in quite a bit of effort!"
He looked at the Den Den Mushi in his hand, which had hung up and entered its dormant state.
"Sure enough, every effort will receive a generous reward in due course."
Establishing ties with Water Seven was an important part of Roy's future plans.
Now that Iceburg had made his stance clear, it meant Roy would be able to obtain a large number of ships from Water Seven in the future.
In this world surrounded by the sea, ships were the most efficient means of transportation.
Whether it was the World Government or the Yonko, neither could maintain its rule without the aid of ships.
Roy would certainly have his own businesses and territory to govern in the future.
Water Seven, capable of supplying ships, would play an important role in all this.
Moreover, Roy greatly valued Iceburg and Franky's craftsmanship.
They might not submit now, but who could say what the future held?
The five merchant ships sailed across the sea in formation like a flock of geese.
Their destination was none other than the resource islands whose locations Roy and Spandam had obtained.
Because the three resource islands were scattered throughout Paradise, Roy's first destination was Red Copper Island, in the waters near Jaya Island.
It was an island forcibly brought under the World Government's control because of its abundant red copper mines.
Although the island's copper output was no longer as prosperous as it had been decades ago, its mineral reserves remained plentiful compared with those of ordinary islands.
The reason Roy chose to visit this island—
On the surface, it was to inspect the territory under his control, but in truth, it had little to do with the minerals there.
As everyone knew, high above Jaya Island stretched a vast sea of clouds that had not dispersed for centuries.
The area covered by that sea of clouds spanned several sea routes.
And Red Copper Island, the place Roy intended to visit, was actually within the range of those clouds.
Angel Island and Upper Yard above Jaya Island were not the only two islands in that sea of clouds.
This could easily be seen from Enel's homeland, Birka.
Although the Gold City overflowing with gold lay above Jaya Island, Roy was wary of Enel's strength, so he planned to conquer a sky island elsewhere.
The sky above Red Copper Island was the place Roy had specifically chosen for this purpose.
Although there were cloud islands in the sky, Roy believed their resources were severely lacking.
Therefore, early settlement and development were necessary.
Thus, in Roy's plans, Red Copper Island would serve as a transit base for equipment used in the initial development.
As for the necessary development technology, Roy had visited Salvia several days earlier.
Through his substantial financial support and the Echo Map's soundwave reflection replication, Roy had long since acquired Salvia's independent sky-island flight technology.
On this journey, Roy intended not only to seize a cloud island from the skies.
He also had no intention of sparing the natives in the heavens.
In Roy's plan, they were the most important source of labor, and the transformation of the sky islands could not be completed without them.
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