The Oppressive Aura—Could It Be...
Clang, clang, clang!!!
Jingle, jingle, jingle!!!
That day, a golden sea of flowers stretched across the skies a hundred meters above the North Blue, leaving behind ripples of light like a rainbow as it swiftly vanished over the horizon.
Along with it came a pressure-filled, suffocatingly terrifying BGM that made it hard to breathe.
Warships, merchant ships, and pirate ships sailing the seas below, along with towns on various islands, all looked up. The lucky ones caught sight of the golden sea-of-flowers road; the unlucky ones could only hear the music.
Those who knew little of the world thought they had encountered a ghost or something of the sort. Rumors spread in certain places, growing more terrifying with every telling!
Most people were ignorant, but some guessed what was happening.
The Marines and various other forces learned that the man had appeared in the North Blue.
They began investigating.
Ever since this man had made his debut, trouble had followed wherever he went.
On an island.
In the Donquixote Family villa, Doflamingo and the others had discussed the matter the day before. They planned to wait for Dancing Queen to arrive, negotiate with her, and strike a deal. They would use the Richest Group to grow rapidly, then turn around and swallow it whole.
It was an undeniably audacious plan.
They weren't afraid of choking on more than they could swallow.
After all, they were all brimming with a strange sort of confidence.
Doflamingo was still too young.
That was how young people were: confident and arrogant. Otherwise, they wouldn't be young.
"What's that sound?"
In the villa's back garden, Doflamingo had been sipping wine when he suddenly looked up at the cloudless sky. A heavy, oppressive piece of music was coming from somewhere up