Vivi: Just How Strong Are the Twelve Zodiacs?

Alabasta's royal palace was in chaos.

"Princess! You cannot go over there—it's possible. No, the South Hall is definitely in danger now!"

Igaram blocked Vivi's path, speaking gravely.

"Bell and Huka have both left Arubana with His Majesty. The palace's current strength is insufficient to protect you."

"No."

But at this moment, Vivi said in a low voice: "That explosion just now must be the killer the Dragon of the Chen spoke of."

"They used some method to impersonate me. I... I have to go confirm his safety!"

Her heart was burning with anxiety; she hadn't expected at all—that right after she left the South Hall, the Dragon of the Chen would be attacked.

And based on the information she had now, the attacker seemed to have used some method to impersonate her, sending the guards away before successfully entering the South Hall.

If the Dragon of the Chen died because of this, and it worsened Alabasta's situation, she absolutely could not accept it!

"I have to go, Igaram—please don't stop me, okay?"

So she looked at Igaram with a pleading gaze.

To her, this captain of the Royal Guard was more than just a guard.

He was more like a relative and elder who had watched her grow up.

"...Very well."

And Igaram truly knew Vivi well.

So after seeing her eyes, he understood he couldn't stop her.

This princess was usually very approachable and easy to get along with.

But once she set her mind on something, no one could stop her.

"But you must promise me—if there's danger or a fight breaks out, you will flee immediately!"

"Mm! I promise!"

And Vivi clearly knew her own combat strength wouldn't be of much help, so she nodded decisively.

Thus, Igaram hesitated no longer.

Leading the many vigilant guards, he went straight to the South Hall.

There, the entire South Hall of the palace was already a wreck under the impact of the earlier explosion—walls and pillars were covered in cracks, and the ground was littered with rubble and craters of various sizes.

Fortunately, Alabasta's ancestors had clearly done a solid job with the infrastructure.

So even after such a massive explosion, the South Hall's overall structure remained intact—at least it wouldn't collapse anytime soon.

"Go! Enter now!"

At Igaram's command, Everyone surrounded Vivi in the center and charged into the South Hall.

And then—

"Ah!?"

"What... is that?"

Uncontrollable exclamations rang out.

Of course—as the captain of the Royal Guard, Igaram should normally have reprimanded such startled behavior.

But at this moment, he had no right to scold his subordinates.

Because right now, his eyes were nearly popping out of his head, and his golden curls were practically standing on end from shock.

"..."

Even Vivi covered her mouth in disbelief, her wide eyes filled with horror.

For there, Inside the entire South Hall, an unbelievable scene unfolded.

The pillars and walls on the left side were covered in thick frost.

Chilling cold air condensed into white mist, spreading through the surroundings.

But correspondingly, the ground on the right side had almost completely melted.

The bricks carefully selected during the palace's construction in Alabasta's past were scorched red by the high heat, and the searing waves of heat distorted the very air.

Extreme cold and blazing heat.

Though it was a single palace, it was as if an invisible hand had molded it into two completely opposite worlds.

And at the boundary between ice and fire, The Baroque Works killers had already fallen.

Mr. 2 Feng Kley lay face-up embedded in the ice, Mr. 3 Gardino's candle-wax hair had completely melted, Miss Valentine and Mr. 5 lay to the side, their parasol and sunglasses utterly destroyed.

Miss. Christmas's Mole Gloves had already been scorched to ash, and Mr. 4 and his pet lay not far from her, their massive baseball bat completely snapped in two.

In the center of the palace, sprawled on the ground, was Miss. Doublefinger, covered in burns, and—

"Monster."

At the heart of the battlefield.

Mr. 1, Daz Bones, was being held aloft by the Dragon of Chen, one hand gripping his neck, suspended in the air.

His proud Blade Body was now clearly riddled with frostbitten cracks.

His right leg had even been partially melted away by some searing heat.

Now, he spoke weakly: "I lost. Kill me."

In those words, the hardened man showed no trace of resistance left.

This was not only because his injuries no longer allowed him to fight back, but because of the battle just now.

No, it couldn't even be called a battle.

It was simply them witnessing pure, overwhelming power.

Just as he had judged his opponent—a monster.

'They,' who had come to challenge the monster, were foolish from the start.

And as a veteran killer known before joining Baroque Works, Daz Bones had long been prepared for death.

"Kill you?"

But now, the voice beneath the Dragon of Chen's mask was calm: "No, I think you've passed."

"What?"

Naturally, Mr. 1 didn't understand.

But the Dragon of Chen didn't answer him.

He simply tossed Mr. 1 aside, slamming him to the ground.

After confirming the man had fallen unconscious, he clapped his hands: "Hah, a little exercise, and I actually worked up a sweat."

With a laugh, he turned to look at Igaram and Vivi, who stood frozen in shock.

"Oh? Captain Igaram, and Princess Vivi, you've come at the right time—please take these people away."

"He-he... they are, no, this-this place is—"

Igaram couldn't even form a complete sentence.

At that moment, Vivi kept her composure.

She too took several deep breaths amid her shock—the air, both cold and hot, cleared her mind slightly.

Then, barely managing to steady her trembling voice, she said: "These people are—"

"Yes."

Looking at her, now calmed, the eyes beneath the Dragon of Chen's mask seemed to flash with a hint of approval.

"That's right—they are the officers of Baroque Works, the 'evidence' King Cobra wanted."

"You can notify King Cobra to return."

He said calmly.

"Wait, you mean my Father King..."

Hearing the Dragon of Chen's words, Vivi first froze, then quickly caught on: "He knew all along? That's why he left the palace to inspect the disaster zones?"

"And—Baroque Works?"

"The ones secretly causing the drought in our Alabasta—it's Baroque Works?"

"To be precise, it's the 'President' of Baroque Works."

The Dragon of Chen nodded: "For the details, please ask King Cobra yourself when he returns—if he's willing to tell you."

"..."

At that, Vivi felt like she could die of anger.

Clearly, the Dragon of Chen and her Father King had discussed a plan, and now they had even captured the enemy through it, yet she had been kept in the dark the entire time.

And she knew well—even after Cobra returned and she asked him directly, he would likely avoid giving her a straight answer.

But now, watching the Dragon of Chen turn away, clearly with no intention of further conversation.

Vivi took a few deep breaths before gritting her teeth: "Igaram, arrest them all."

She had made up her mind.

Since her Father King and this annoying man wouldn't tell her the truth, she would pry it out of their mouths herself.

So the Guards hurried forward, binding and hauling away all the killers of Baroque Works one by one.

"Remember to restrain them with Seastone if possible—they're all Ability Users. Alabasta should have Seastone, right?"

At that moment, Dragon of Chen said to Vivi and Igaram.

"All Ability Users?"

Upon hearing this, Vivi and Igaram were even more astonished.

They naturally understood the power of Ability Users.

Anyone who had eaten a Devil Fruit, without exception, possessed strength beyond ordinary humans.

Even in a superpower like their Alabasta, which had the inherited Guardian Deity Fruit, there were only two Ability Users in the entire country.

Yet the assassins sent by Baroque Works numbered a full eight Ability Users.

This showed just how formidable that criminal organization was.

But then, Vivi realized another terrifying fact.

Judging from the surrounding situation, even the combined efforts of eight Ability Users seemed unable to inflict any effective damage on Dragon of Chen.

Vivi naturally understood the implication.

Even as fellow executives of mysterious organizations hidden across the great sea.

The 'Dragon of Chen' of the Twelve Zodiacs was clearly far stronger than the infamous Baroque Works.

That wasn't because the latter was weak.

It was simply because—the existence known as 'Dragon of Chen' was too strong.

More importantly.

"Someone this powerful is just one of the Twelve Zodiacs."

"Then the Twelve Zodiacs—how strong is that organization?"

Vivi's inner murmurings naturally received no answer.

After capturing all the visitors from Baroque Works, Vivi naturally invited Dragon of Chen to participate in their interrogation.

She harbored a small cleverness—if Dragon of Chen conducted the interrogation, she might glean something from the conversation.

But unfortunately—

"I won't go, but I'll trouble you to arrange a new residence for me. No need to prepare guards this time. Oh, and don't forget to put a bottle of cola in the room."

Dragon of Chen waved his hand.

"Also—don't kill the people we caught today. I still have use for them."

Seeing Dragon of Chen's unyielding attitude, Vivi felt disappointed.

But she said nothing more and soon left with Igaram and the Guards.

Dragon of Chen was then led by the servants to his new residence—a similarly exquisitely furnished room on the south side of the palace.

After entering the room, the servants explained the locations of various daily items before silently departing.

Dragon of Chen walked familiarly to the sofa in the center of the room, sat down, and opened the iced cola placed on the table.

"Fizz."

The refreshing sound of soda came.

Dragon of Chen casually took two cups from the room and silently filled them with cola.

Then—

"I've gone to the trouble of offering precious cola as hospitality."

"Guest hiding in the shadows, it would be rude not to show yourself now."