As You Can See, I Am a Moderate

The atmosphere in the palace reception room was somewhat tense.

Guards stood on both sides, weapons in hand, protecting their king and princess.

Igaram, Huka, and Bell had already silently lined up, surrounding the visitor in the middle.

But—

"Mm, I don't like tea—got any cola?"

The 'Dragon of the Chen,' wearing a Dragon Head Mask, looked at the hot tea in his cup, then turned to the attendant beside him, only to make the latter, already on edge, let out an 'ah' in surprise.

At that, the Dragon of the Chen shrugged: "Forget it, pretend I didn't say anything."

"Get him a different drink."

It was King Cobra who spoke in a low voice at that moment.

Only then did the attendant snap to attention, quickly taking the cup and leaving.

"Dragon of the Chen. Your Excellency, I'll address you as such."

And this small matter seemed to break the silence in the reception room, as King Cobra took the initiative to speak: "What is the purpose of Your Excellency's visit here? And what did you mean by what you said earlier?"

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

"I can't just ignore talk of 'Alabasta's rebirth and destruction'!"

"It means exactly what it says."

The Dragon of the Chen leaned back in his chair: "Someone is planning to destroy this country and usurp your throne—in fact, they've already begun."

Though the expression beneath his mask was unreadable, everyone could hear the mockery in his voice: "I don't think a king like you, King Cobra, would truly believe that a nationwide drought lasting half a year is 'normal,' would you?"

At these words, everyone present changed color.

Especially Vivi, who wasn't all that clear on state affairs, covered her mouth and widened her eyes.

"Wait, what do you mean? Are you saying—the entire country's seven-month drought is man-made?"

She couldn't help but exclaim: "How is that possible?"

But at that moment, King Cobra remained very calm.

Clearly, just as Luo Yi had said.

This wise king had long sensed something off about the drought, especially the fact that 'only the royal capital was getting rain,' which had made him smell a conspiracy.

He had also had Igaram investigate in secret, but the other party was deeply hidden, leaving few traces.

And the nation's crisis and the people's suffering didn't allow him to keep digging deeper.

Even so—

"Is it Dancing Powder?"

He said softly: "That's the most likely possibility I can think of."

At that, the Dragon of the Chen clapped: "Completely correct."

But beneath the mask, Luo Yi's expression showed no surprise.

Yes, of course he knew the truth behind Alabasta's drought—in fact, this drought was part of the 'Utopia Plan' orchestrated by Crocodile, one of the Shichibukai.

He had single-handedly built a massive criminal organization called Baroque Works, and only after years of preparation did he begin this plan.

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

"Dancing Powder can make it rain in one area, but at the cost of drought in the surrounding regions."

"And if the information we've gathered is correct, around the time the drought has lasted into next year, a large batch of Dancing Powder of unknown origin will appear in the royal capital, and will 'coincidentally' be discovered by the people."

As the Dragon of the Chen spoke up to this point, everyone present changed expression.

"Bastards!"

"They want to frame His Majesty the King!?"

"His Majesty would never do such a thing!"

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

She wasn't stupid.

Just these few words from the Dragon of the Chen were enough for her to grasp the horror of that plan.

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

If it continued for a year, what kind of life the entire nation's people would lead was obvious without thinking.

At that point, the only royal capital in the entire kingdom where it was raining would have 'Dancing Powder' discovered—no matter how high King Cobra's prestige, rebellion would inevitably erupt!

"Using Dancing Powder to cause a drought, then inciting war..."

Even King Cobra's expression turned grim.

"Completely disregarding the casualties among the people, unforgivable."

He said in a low voice.

"Yes, that is indeed a very vile schemer."

Dragon of the Chen said casually.

Then, he shifted his tone: "However, now that things have been explained this far, I believe His Majesty the King understands."

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

"Regarding that mastermind behind the scenes, we have some interest in him, so."

His eyes beneath the mask fixed on Cobra: "We will help you deal with him and his organization. At the same time, we can also help Alabasta with rainfall to solve the immediate crisis. Even long-term cooperation in the future is no problem—as far as I know, although Alabasta has the Sandora River, its water resources are still not abundant."

He pointed upward, the meaning clear: "As you can see, I have such an ability. Oh, thank you."

The attendant brought the cola back up, prompting Dragon of the Chen to say thanks.

"It sounds quite tempting."

At that moment, Cobra stared sharply at Dragon of the Chen.

"However."

His voice suddenly turned authoritative: "Your Excellency surely doesn't think that, with just a few words and no evidence, I would trust someone who arrives unannounced and won't even show his true face, does he?"

"Not to mention, before this so-called cooperation, I want to know first—what is Your Excellency's relationship with this person!?"

As he spoke, he directly pulled a wanted poster from his chest and slapped it onto the table.

And without needing to say more, the poster naturally bore the image of 'Rooster.'

Yes.

As expected—as one of the member states of the World Government, Cobra was also very concerned about the recent 'Celestial Gold robbery.'

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

So almost the moment Dragon of the Chen appeared, Cobra had already connected the two.

And what followed confirmed his guess.

"You mean Rooster."

Seeing the wanted poster, Dragon of the Chen, who had been about to drink his cola, said casually.

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

And the moment those words were spoken, Igaram and the others, along with the guards, instinctively reached for their weapons.

Because the implication of those words was far too dangerous.

Rooster—that mad criminal who had suddenly appeared not long ago and robbed the Celestial Gold—was a 'colleague' of the man before them!

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

But the next moment.

"!!!"

Igaram and the others' movements instantly froze, and their expressions turned to shock.

Because at that moment, they realized.

They couldn't draw their weapons.

More precisely.

"I can't move!"

They couldn't even move at all.

Even Huka and Bell, who as Zoan-type Devil Fruit users were naturally far stronger than ordinary people, were the same.

"And it's so cold—no, that's."

Then came a bone-chilling cold.

So they quickly discovered.

"It's ice!"

Indeed.

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

That ice froze their bodies, rendering them immobile.

"Ah, the cola is room temperature. That won't do. Cola that isn't iced is completely heretical."

At that moment, Dragon of the Chen's voice drew their attention.

They saw him touching the cola cup before him.

Inside the cup, the black cola was slowly emitting cold air.

So Dragon of the Chen lifted his mask slightly, covered his face with his hand, and downed the cola in one gulp.

Then, he casually waved his hand.

"Whoosh!"

A burst of hot air suddenly erupted.

All the frozen guards in the reception room also saw clearly that the ice on their bodies began to melt, turning into water that streamed down from them.

Before long, they had regained their ability to move.

But at this moment, Igaram's breathing remained rapid—he couldn't tell how much of the wetness on his body was melted ice and how much was sweat pouring out.

"This guy..."

From those few seconds just now, he could already understand that the man sitting before him was a genuine monster.

And at this moment, the Dragon of the Chen seemed as if nothing had happened: "King Cobra truly need not concern himself with matters regarding the Rooster. Aside from having to obey the leader's orders, we cadres generally don't interfere with each other; our methods and goals are independent."

"For instance, the Rooster—that guy, like the Pirate, likes to solve problems with force."

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

He smiled and pointed at himself: "Though I may not be the best at making money within the organization, I at least consider myself something of a 'merchant.'"