Although the battle between Ryan and Imu had utterly transformed the world's power structure, it had no impact on Spring Queen City.
Their business was destined to remain largely unaffected no matter the era, so long as their connection to Ryan was not exposed.
At this moment, inside the royal palace of Spring Queen City.
Queen Evelyn was studying the Devil Fruit on the table with great interest. It had originally been meant for auction, but Evelyn remembered that Ryan had once sent someone to tell her to pay close attention if she encountered a striped dark-purple Devil Fruit.
That was why she had kept this Devil Fruit aside.
Just as she was preparing to contact Ryan, some noise outside caught her attention.
"Zehahaha!"
Blackbeard Teach, who had disappeared from the New World for a long time, slowly strode in through the doorway with an arrogant gait, his companions following behind him.
"You're Blackbeard Teach!!!" Evelyn stared gravely at the man before her.
Naturally, she had heard Teach's name. He had become famous throughout the world after the Fish-Man Island War. After leaving the Whitebeard Pirates, he had renamed himself Blackbeard.
Unlike the original story, in this world, Blackbeard had not betrayed the Whitebeard Pirates because of Ryan's existence. He and the Marco Pirates had also parted on peaceful terms; after all, their ideals merely differed, and there was no deep hatred between them.
"That's me!"
The moment Teach entered, his eyes locked tightly onto the Devil Fruit ahead.
"It's this one. Just as I thought! With this, I'll be able to dominate the world. Ryan, just wait for me!" Teach threw back his head and roared with a somewhat deranged expression.
Who knew how many times Ryan had bullied him, openly and covertly, over the past few years? Whenever