After passing through the plague trap, Loa did not take "Vegapunk" any deeper. They were both fakes, so why waste the time?
They made a few turns along the quiet passage and stopped before an elevator. Crocodile had been waiting there for some time. When he saw Loa, he nodded and bowed. "Lord Loa!"
"Let's go. We'll return to the Castle first."
"Yes!"
The elevator went up to a hidden room beside Loa's bedroom and down to an escape pod. It was an emergency route Loa had requested when the Castle was rebuilt. He doubted he would ever need it, but what man wouldn't put some thought into his secret base?
The three returned to the Castle. "Vegapunk" deactivated his Devil Fruit Powers, revealing an ordinary-looking middle-aged man.
His name was Carol. He was an old subordinate who had followed Dragon since his defection from the Marines, and he had played a tremendous role in building and developing the [Censored] Army. Now, for Dragon's plan, he was willing to risk his life impersonating Vegapunk.
The Clone-Clone Fruit could imitate a person's appearance, but it did little to change their aura. Ordinary Observation Haki would not detect the difference, but someone with powerful Observation Haki could see through the disguise with ease. Someone like Enel could even notice it from a kilometer away.
No one knew whether anyone that capable was aboard the ship escorting Vegapunk. If Carol was exposed, certain death awaited him!
Fortunately, Xin Luo had also worried about trouble along the way. He had chosen subordinates better suited to combat, none with exceptionally keen Observation Haki.
Click!
The hidden room's secret door opened, and Robin came in carrying a tray.
"The ship is ready. When do we leave?"
As Xin Luo saw it, Vegapunk would memorize the Pluton