The Location of Pluton? Who Doesn't Know?

Dragon's voice echoed through the empty room.

"."

As expected, there was no reply.

Seeing this, Dragon sighed. "If you leave cola out for too long, it loses its soul once it isn't cold anymore. You have to put it back in the freezer."

"It's like a person finally getting the chance to fulfill their true value, only to miss it for some reason and eventually have no choice but to hide away in a pitch-black corner. Is that what you seek?"

What he said was undeniably ridiculous—it was only cola, yet he made it sound like something a philosopher would say.

But at that moment, Dragon spoke with complete seriousness.

Because at that moment, he could clearly see the words on the Light Screen.

[Devil Fruits analyzed this time: Slicing-Slicing Fruit Lv1, Mogu Mogu no Mi Lv1, Kilo-Kilo Fruit Lv1, Candle-Candle Fruit Lv1, Imitation-Imitation Fruit Lv1, Explode-Explode Fruit Lv1, Toge Toge no Mi Lv1, Dog-Dog Fruit: Dachshund Form Lv1]

Those eight fully analyzed Devil Fruits were already an enormous harvest for him.

But Dragon had not come to Alabasta for only that reason.

So what he was looking at now was the text at the very bottom of the Light Screen.

[Devil Fruit currently being analyzed: Flower-Flower Fruit, analysis progress: 76%]

That was also the source of his words.

"I know what you seek, and I know why you stayed in Baroque Works."

"You want to learn the hidden history and the truth of the world, so I think we can talk."

At this point, he grinned.

"Even after I've said that much, you still don't want to come out?"

"Miss All Sunday—or should I call you by another name, Nico Robin?"

When he said this, he saw something on the sofa before him.

A pair of eyes and a mouth silently appeared on it.

They were deep-blue, watery eyes and a pair of thin lips—even judging only from the eyes and mouth, it was obvious that their owner was a beauty.

However, at this moment, those eyes staring at Dragon clearly glittered with shock and disbelief.

"Who are you, exactly?"

Her words carried indescribable wariness and astonishment.

Seeing that she had finally revealed herself, Dragon let out a soft laugh beneath his mask.

"How strange. You should know who I am. After all, Crocodile must have issued the order for this assassination through you."

"But since you've asked so sincerely, then..."

He raised his cup of cola and made a toast.

"I am one of the Twelve Zodiacs' highest-ranking officers. My codename is 'Dragon.'"

"If you haven't heard of me, then I think you've heard of 'Rooster.' He's my colleague."

Hearing Dragon's words, Nico Robin grew even more apprehensive.

"Dragon, Rooster. Just as the intelligence suggested."

As a member and vice president of Baroque Works, she was responsible for handling most of the organization's affairs on behalf of MR. 0, Crocodile, who hid behind the scenes.

That included this assassination. Acting on MR. 0's instructions, she had been the one to issue the order.

So she possessed a great deal of intelligence, including information about Dragon's appearance—especially his distinctive Sea Beast Mask.

This was enough for her to reach a conclusion similar to the one King Cobra had reached earlier and suspect that Dragon might be connected to the criminal called Rooster, who had stolen the Celestial Gold.

However, the Alabasta royal family had kept information about Dragon extremely well hidden. They had not even left behind any written records.

Thus, before this, her understanding of Dragon's identity had been no more than speculation.

Only now could she formally confirm it—Rooster and Dragon truly belonged to the same organization.

But clearly, this explosive revelation was insignificant to Nico Robin now.

At this moment, the questions in her mind were almost too numerous to count.

For example—how had he learned her identity and purpose? How had he learned of Crocodile's existence? How had he discovered her ability?

And most importantly—

"This person's ability is very similar to Aokiji's."

The moment she thought of this, Nico Robin's mind descended into chaos.

That was right.

With the Flower-Flower Fruit's ability, she could make any part of her body grow in any place with physical substance.

So when the assassins had attacked Dragon earlier, she had actually been watching from the sidelines the entire time.

She had personally witnessed the power displayed by this monster called Dragon.

It was overwhelming power.

His ability to control ice was extremely similar to the nightmare of her childhood.

Yet she had also seen with her own eyes that, besides controlling frost, he possessed another ability that was completely opposite in nature. Otherwise, she would almost have suspected that the person beneath the Dragon Head Mask was Marine Admiral Aokiji himself.

"What kind of Devil Fruit is he an Ability User of?"

Countless questions left Nico Robin's mind in turmoil.

Fortunately, she had survived and grown stronger while being hunted by the World Government, so her mind was sharp enough.

Thus, even in this confusion, Nico Robin was still able to ask the one question that struck at the heart of the matter.

"What is your purpose?"

"And..."

She gritted her teeth and asked the next question.

His strength, and why he knew her identity and Crocodile's identity—for her, none of that mattered anymore.

What mattered was what he truly wanted to do, and—

"What do you need me to do?"

She asked the question.

That was right. Having calmed down slightly, she had realized something.

He knew her identity and codename, and his organization's intelligence network was frighteningly powerful. It seemed to know everything about Baroque Works.

Under such circumstances, given the strength he had displayed, she should never have been granted the chance to have this conversation.

"Talking to clever people is convenient."

Hearing her question, Dragon seemed to smile.

"Yes, I could have simply gone to Spider Cafe and captured you."

"Or I could have revealed your whereabouts and identity to King Cobra, the World Government, or the underworld. There are plenty of people interested in the Child of the Devil. With Alabasta having sealed off its surrounding waters, escaping would be extremely difficult for you."

"Once your identity was exposed, I doubt Crocodile would continue sheltering you. Protecting an Ohara survivor could very well cost him his position as one of the Shichibukai."

Every sentence he spoke made Nico Robin's heart sink further.

Spider Cafe was a café west of Elma, as well as Baroque Works' headquarters in Alabasta.

She had indeed intended to return there and report to Crocodile after this assassination.

"But I didn't do that because, as a businessman, I want to discuss a partnership with you."

At this point, Dragon raised a hand. "A mutually beneficial partnership."

"A partnership?"

Nico Robin gave a soft laugh. "Let's hear it."

Her laughter was cold.

Since she was eight years old, she had heard that word countless times.

But to her, it had always meant nothing more than profit and betrayal.

Dragon, however, seemed not to notice the coldness in her voice.

"I know what you need. You want to investigate the truth of history, so you need the Poneglyphs."

"At the same time, you need an organization willing to shelter you."

He spread his hands. "As it happens, our organization knows the locations of several Poneglyphs, including the one in Alabasta."

Hearing this, the coldness in Nico Robin's eyes deepened.

"Are you saying that you can help me obtain the Poneglyphs, but in exchange, I have to tell you their contents?"

"For example, the one in Alabasta, right?"

She had heard this too many times.

In fact, the reason she was in Baroque Works and cooperating with Crocodile was that he needed her to decipher the Poneglyphs and search for clues about the ancient weapon Pluton hidden in Alabasta.

Now, Nico Robin naturally assumed that the Twelve Zodiacs had the same goal.

The two organizations were fundamentally birds of a feather!

But—

The very next words Dragon spoke left her standing there in a daze.

"Of course not."

"We know the contents of the Alabasta Poneglyph very well. As for the location of Pluton—we know where it is."

Dragon spoke calmly.

"If you're willing to pay a sufficient price, we can also tell you its location and contents. That's the partnership I was talking about."

He raised one finger and looked at Nico Robin, who was stunned speechless.

"We will shelter you and share, for a price, the locations and contents of some Poneglyphs we already know about. But we won't search for the Poneglyphs on your behalf. Whether you can obtain those hidden Poneglyphs will depend entirely on your own ability."

"As for whether you'll tell us their contents after obtaining them, that's for you to decide. We won't ask."

Beneath the mask, Luo Yi was speaking sincerely.

To be honest, he was curious about the truth from eight hundred years ago, the contents of the Poneglyphs, and the final island, Laugh Tale.

But if one asked whether he was desperately determined to uncover the truth, that would not be the case.

To him, the value of a Poneglyph was far inferior to that of a precious and powerful Devil Fruit.

Besides, Luo Yi knew very well that if he forced Nico Robin to share the contents of the Poneglyphs, she would not tell him the truth—just as she had lied to Crocodile in the original story.

So, as far as Luo Yi was concerned, he genuinely did not care whether Nico Robin told him the truth about the Poneglyphs.

"If I really want to know later, finding a way won't be difficult. The Kozuki Clan of Wano Country, or an awakened member of the Trio Eye Clan. There are plenty of options."

He muttered inwardly.

But at that moment, Nico Robin was practically dumbfounded.

"Wait. Wait—what did you say?"

Even though they were only eyes created by her ability, they still revealed her doubt, confusion, and astonishment.

"You know the contents of the Poneglyphs? In other words... someone in your organization can decipher them?"

That was what she found most unbelievable.

"That falls outside the scope of the deal, Miss Robin."

Faced with this question, Dragon only smiled.

"."

Nico Robin fell silent for a moment.

Then she said, "I don't believe you."

"If your organization truly has no interest in the Poneglyphs, then I can't imagine why you would seek to cooperate with me."

That was right—even she knew that the most valuable thing she possessed was her ability to decipher the Poneglyphs.

If what he said was true and they were not interested in that ability, then what did they want from her?

At least, Robin could not think of an answer.

Yet, at the same time, she knew that Dragon had no reason to lie to her.

Because, as Dragon had said earlier, once the Twelve Zodiacs knew her identity, her life was already in their hands.

"You're mistaken, Miss Robin."

At that moment, Dragon laughed.

"Your identity isn't limited to the Child of the Devil."

"In fact, what interests us about you is another identity."

As he said this, he stood up and extended his hand.

"Hello, Miss All Sunday."