At the World Government's behest.
In the dim Solitary Confinement Room, Buggy gazed at the fluorescent light hanging overhead, swaying now and then. It was the only thing in the room that still moved.
He stared blankly.
"They're getting nervous. Heh," he murmured with a snicker.
Although he didn't know who was behind it, there was no doubt that the shock to the Noble Buyers had crossed a line the World Government wouldn't tolerate.
They knew exactly what they were doing, which was why they were so sensitive to situations like this.
Much like the Navy insisting on publicly executing Ace.
Being the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division Commander, with a bounty of 550 million Beli, couldn't be considered the main reason.
Otherwise, why hadn't the Navy held a public execution when they captured the Golden Lion?
Was the Golden Lion not important enough?
The main reason was Ace's background.
His father was Gol D. Roger, the executed Pirate King—the man who had personally ushered in the Great Pirate Era!
The Navy wanted to use the execution of Roger's bloodline to deter the pirate forces constantly springing up all over the world!
Ultimately, it was all about influence.
Roger's influence had been far too great, and not even death had diminished it. So they wanted to publicly execute his son to put an end to it.
Only after that came the Navy's strategy for dealing with the Yonko.
And in Buggy's case,
what the World Government feared was that same kind of influence—especially when it was tied to the Navy, its own foremost enforcer.
They knew all too well how much dry grass, ready to catch fire, was hidden above and below the island's surface!
That was why they stamped out every potential spark so ruthlessly.
Buggy suspected the Navy had tried to mediate more than once. But the incident with the nobles had become the final straw that hardened the World Government's resolve.
That much was clear from the way Sicily had gone out of his way to stress that this was at the World Government's behest.
"Looks like I've got a game I can play for a long time."
Order on the Sabaody Archipelago seemed to be on the verge of collapse, while the larger order upheld by the Navy and the World Government continued to hold, carried along by its powerful momentum.
Quiet moments always passed quickly.
At last, an echo sounded from the long, shadowy corridor outside the Solitary Confinement Room.
"Today's the day of the execution."
The Marine unlocking the door spoke as if it were nothing.
Behind him stood Sicily, his eyes bloodshot.
"Don't blame me. I'd already been planning to retire," he said quietly.
"That Heavenly Yaksha bastard made your death a condition for joining the battle."
Flamingo?
Buggy had almost forgotten that guy existed.
Still, he looked as unconcerned as ever.
Past the corridor lay flight after flight of steps.
53, 54, 55.
He counted silently. When he reached 57, he promptly raised a hand to shield his eyes.
As expected, searing white light poured in.
"Lovely weather today."
Buggy looked as carefree as if he were heading out for a picnic.
Leaving the main building connected to the base's underground level, he stepped into a relatively spacious plaza.
Sunlight spilled freely across it.
It looked to be around seven or eight in the morning.
His eyes, accustomed to the dark, were probably the only ones bothered by the brightness.
Around a hundred Marine Soldiers stood in neat rows across the plaza.
Between the ranks, he could also see some of the Marine Soldiers he'd taken out with him earlier.
Beyond the white uniforms stood a group dressed in black suits. They held an Image Den Den Mushi and were probably there on behalf of the World Government.
"This whole setup feels a little underwhelming."
Buggy was a bit disappointed.
He'd thought he'd be beheaded in front of a massive crowd, just like Ace.
Or, at the very least, beheaded in front of the residents of the Sabaody Archipelago.
Wouldn't that better serve the World Government's goal of intimidation?
But they'd chosen to play it safe.
"Anything you want to say?"
"In just one month, you went from being a Marine Major to a prisoner about to be beheaded. Don't you have anything to say?"
By now, Sicily finally felt a weight lift from his shoulders.
Good. He wouldn't have to see this guy's face anymore.
"It took a month? That really was a bit long."
Buggy's tone carried a hint of regret as his gaze searched the crowd behind him.
He was looking for a screen broadcasting the execution live from Marineford. It should be about time. They ought to be starting over there, too. Had they set up the screen yet? How big was it?
He felt a little anticipation, wondering what effect the fuel he'd added to the flames of war would have.
Sicily's eye twitched several times. He couldn't understand how Buggy could still be so calm.
Let it all be over already.
He didn't want to hear any more news of another noble's head being chopped off.
Thankfully, they still didn't dare lay a hand on a Celestial Dragon.
The title of World Noble was practically ingrained in everyone's minds. Even the Fish-Man who had first called for the liberation of slaves hadn't had the nerve to attack a Celestial Dragon.
Right?
On the Sabaody Archipelago—or, for that matter, in every Member Nation of the World Government—
any place with the facilities to broadcast live
was receiving the same signal.
Marineford, Navy Headquarters.
Marine forces packed together like ants in an anthill, with the enormous Giant Vice Admirals resembling slightly larger insects.
As for the three Admirals seated beneath the execution platform—
Pfft!
Allison burst out laughing at the thought that had crossed his mind.
He remembered once wandering along a beach and seeing an octopus, a starfish, and a sponge all sunbathing together on the sand.
How funny. Back then, although Perini couldn't pronounce her words clearly, she'd often called him "Daddy."
Allison lightly wiped the tears from the corner of his eye, his rough hand gripping a sharp Chopping Knife.
What did the war between pirates and the Navy
have to do with him?
Allison had a war of his own to fight now.
A war over the nobles, a war against the World Government!
Who could say what it had done to them inside, charging into the nobles' estates under cover of darkness and seeing how they treated their slaves?
Those slaves, whose worth could once be counted in Beli, were nothing more than disposable goods to them!
Once bought, the slaves lost everything from their past. Even their names disappeared, leaving them as blank pages to be toyed with however their owners pleased!
It turned out—his daughter had been gone for a long time.
What meaning did this battered body of his have now?
What was evil?
He listened as a man with round glasses on the big screen passed judgment on the supposed crimes of the man about to be executed.
Questions kept rising in his mind.
What was evil?
Was it the bloodline they spoke of, or the mountain standing before him?
The brightly lit screen suddenly went black.
Thump—thump—
It sounded like someone tapping a microphone.
"1, 2, 3—"
"1, 2, 3—"
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