In the New World, inside a palace that looked newly built yet exceedingly luxurious.
"Fufufufu, so it failed after all?"
The ruler of this island and king of this country, Doflamingo, sat crookedly on his throne with one leg crossed over the other, his foot bobbing up and down.
"That damned fish-man brought a fleet with him!"
Diamante, the top executive of the Donquixote Family, said irritably, "Those ships really were as powerful as the rumors claimed. Just one volley from five ships was enough to leave those fools without the courage to resist."
Then he saw Doflamingo's expression.
The man he was willing to follow for the rest of his life showed no disappointment whatsoever. His smile had not diminished in the slightest. He was like a chess player seated before a board, unsurprised by any movement of the pieces.
"Doffy," Diamante said in astonishment, "this plan has completely failed."
"Does it matter?"
Doflamingo raised both arms, stretched his legs outward as far as they would go, and gave a deep stretch. Even his voice turned lazy with the movement. "It was only a casual provocation to begin with. What does success or failure matter?"
"If that guy stepped in, those countries were never going to make any waves. We expected that already."
"Isn't it good enough that Fish-Man Island has been pushed into opposition against those countries?"
Diamante was still unwilling to accept it. "What kind of result is this? That guy won't care at all, will he?"
Since the Donquixote Family had been established, they had never suffered such a huge loss.
That night in Dressrosa had been the Family's greatest humiliation.
"Well, in that case, those countries will probably only be able to rely on us. At next year's Reverie, our resolve to apply for membership