As You Can See, I'm a Pacifist

The atmosphere in the palace's reception room was somewhat tense.

The guards stood on either side with weapons in hand, guarding their king and princess.

Igaram, Huka, and Bell had already silently formed a line, surrounding the visitor in the middle.

However,

"Hmm, I don't like tea—do you have any cola?"

The 'Dragon' wearing the Dragon Head Mask looked at the hot tea in his cup, then turned to the attendant beside him, causing the already tense attendant to cry out, "Ah!"

So Dragon shrugged. "Forget it. Pretend I didn't say anything."

"Get him a different drink."

At that moment, King Cobra spoke in a low voice instead.

Only then did the attendant react. He hurriedly picked up the cup and left.

"Dragon. I'll address you as Sir Dragon."

This small incident seemed to break the silence in the reception room, and Cobra took the initiative to speak. "What is your purpose in coming here, Sir? And what did you mean by what you said earlier?"

He naturally remembered what Dragon had said in front of the palace.

"I can't pretend I didn't hear something about Alabasta's rebirth and destruction!"

"I meant exactly what I said."

Dragon leaned back against the chair. "Someone is planning to destroy this country and seize your throne—or, to be precise, he has already begun."

Although his expression could not be seen beneath the mask, everyone could hear the mockery in his voice. "I'd like to think that a king like you, King Cobra, wouldn't really believe that a drought lasting half a year across the entire country is a 'normal situation,' would you?"

The moment he said this, everyone present changed color.

Vivi in particular was not very familiar with the affairs of state, and now she covered her mouth, her eyes wide.

"Wait, what do you mean? Are you saying the seven-month drought throughout the entire country was caused by someone?"

She could not help crying out, "How is that possible?"

But King Cobra remained calm.

Clearly, just as Luo Yi had said,

This wise king had long since realized that something was wrong with the drought. In particular, the fact that it rained only in the capital had made him sense traces of a conspiracy.

He had also had Igaram investigate in secret, but the other party had hidden themselves deeply and left behind very little evidence.

And the country's crisis and the people's suffering had not allowed him to continue investigating further.

Even so,

"Dancing Powder?"

he said softly. "That is the most likely possibility I can think of."

Dragon began to applaud. "Exactly right."

Beneath the mask, however, Luo Yi showed no surprise.

Of course he knew the truth behind Alabasta's drought. In reality, this drought was part of the Utopia Plan devised by Crocodile, one of the Shichibukai.

He had personally established the enormous criminal organization known as Baroque Works, and only after years of preparation had he begun this plan.

The goal of the plan was to seize Alabasta, one of the oldest kingdoms on this sea, and obtain clues about the ancient weapon Pluton hidden within Alabasta.

"Dancing Powder can make it rain in one area, but as the price, the surrounding areas will fall into drought."

"And if the information we've heard is correct, when the drought has continued into next year, a large quantity of Dancing Powder of unknown origin will appear in the capital—and will 'coincidentally' be discovered by the people."

When Dragon reached this point, everyone present changed expression.

"Damn them!"

"They want to frame His Majesty!?"

"His Majesty would never do such a thing!"

Igaram and the others were furious, but Vivi's face had gone pale.

She was not stupid.

So with only these few words from Dragon, she already understood how terrifying that plan was.

The drought in Alabasta had lasted only a little over half a year, yet the country's situation was already extremely dire.

If it continued for a year, there was no need to imagine what kind of life the people across the country would be forced to lead.

At such a time, if Dancing Powder were discovered in the only place in the entire kingdom where it rained—the capital—then no matter how high King Cobra's prestige was, a rebellion would inevitably erupt!

"Use Dancing Powder to cause the drought, then incite a war..."

Even Cobra's expression had turned grim.

"Completely disregarding the casualties among the people. Unforgivable."

He spoke in a low voice.

"Yes, that is indeed a very despicable ambitious schemer."

Dragon spoke casually.

Then he changed the subject. "But now that I've explained the situation this far, I believe Your Majesty understands."

"I came here to discuss this matter with King Cobra."

"We're somewhat interested in the mastermind behind it, so..."

His eyes beneath the mask turned toward Cobra. "We'll help you deal with him and his organization. At the same time, we can help Alabasta bring rain to solve the immediate crisis. Even long-term cooperation in the future is possible—as far as I know, although Alabasta has the Sandora River, its water resources are still rather limited."

He pointed upward, making his meaning obvious. "As you can see, I have that ability. Oh, thank you."

The attendant brought the cola back, prompting Dragon to thank him.

"That sounds very tempting."

At that moment, Cobra looked sharply at Dragon.

"But..."

His voice suddenly became imposing. "You don't really think that, based on a few words without any evidence, I would simply trust someone who arrived without warning and refuses to show his true face, do you?"

"Not to mention, before this so-called cooperation, I would first like to know—what is your relationship with this person!?"

As he spoke, he directly took a wanted poster from inside his robe and slapped it onto the table.

There was no need to say more. The person on that wanted poster was naturally Rooster.

Of course.

It was only to be expected. As one of the World Government's affiliated countries, Cobra was also very concerned about the earlier robbery of the Celestial Gold.

Although the photo on Rooster's wanted poster had been drawn, the Sea Beast Mask on his head was conspicuous.

Thus, almost the instant Dragon appeared, Cobra had already connected the two.

And what happened next confirmed his guess.

"You mean Rooster?"

After seeing the wanted poster, Dragon, who had been about to drink his cola, spoke casually.

"He and I belong to the same organization. You could say we're colleagues."

At the same time as he said this, the three of Igaram and the guards nearly drew their weapons instinctively.

The meaning contained in those words was simply too dangerous.

Rooster—the mad criminal who had suddenly appeared not long ago and robbed the Celestial Gold—was this man's 'colleague'!

And such a dangerous person was now less than ten meters away from their king and princess.

But in the next moment,

"!!!"

Igaram and the others froze, their eyes filled with horror.

Because they discovered that

They could not draw their weapons.

Or rather,

"I-I can't move!"

They could not even move their bodies.

Even Huka and Bell, who were Zoan Devil Fruit Ability users and naturally possessed strength far greater than that of ordinary people, were no exception.

"And it's so cold. No, that's..."

Along with it came a bone-chilling cold.

Soon, they discovered the cause.

"It's ice!"

Indeed.

At that moment, apart from King Cobra and Princess Vivi, a layer of ice had somehow appeared on everyone else's bodies.

The ice froze their bodies, leaving them unable to move.

"Ah, the cola is at room temperature. This won't do. Cola that isn't chilled is practically heresy."

Dragon's voice drew their attention.

They saw Dragon touching the glass of cola before him.

Cold air was slowly rising from the pitch-black cola inside the glass.

Dragon slightly lifted his mask, covered his face with one hand, and drank the cola in one go.

Only then did he casually wave his hand.

"Whoosh!"

A burst of heat suddenly erupted.

The frozen guards throughout the reception room watched in astonishment as the ice on their bodies began to melt, turning into water that flowed down them.

Before long, they had regained their ability to move.

But Igaram was still breathing heavily. He did not know how much of the wetness around his body came from melting ice and how much came from sweat.

"This guy..."

From those few seconds alone, he could already tell that the person sitting before them was a genuine monster.

At that moment, Dragon acted as though nothing had happened. "Actually, King Cobra, you don't need to worry about Rooster. Aside from having to obey the leader's orders, we officers generally don't interfere with one another. Our styles and objectives are independent as well."

"For example, Rooster likes to use force to solve problems, just like a pirate."

"But I'm different. As you can see—I'm a pacifist."

He pointed at himself with a smile. "I may not necessarily be the best moneymaker in the organization, but I consider myself something of a 'merchant.'"