The Swordsmanship Tournament was about to begin.
Paros Island grew livelier by the day.
For six months, nearly ten thousand people had poured onto Paros Island every day.
The island's population had now reached nearly three million.
Pirates, members of the Underground Forces, lone wanderers, nobles—people from every walk of life had arrived during that time.
The Island Turtle had also brought hundreds of thousands of people from the Four Seas to the Pluton Sea.
Officials from various Affiliated Nations had come as well, hoping to negotiate further trade cooperation with the Kronos Kingdom and restore their economic strength as soon as possible.
The influx of people had made Paros Island more prosperous than ever.
The vast waters surrounding the Pluton Sea had grown unusually peaceful.
Many residents of the New World seized this period of peace and sailed aboard merchant ships to settle in the Pluton Sea.
Most important of all, powerful swordsmen from around the world had come, including Great Swordsmen who aspired to the title of World's Greatest Swordsman.
Most swordsmen hoping to broaden their horizons and find a chance to break through had already reached Paros Island.
According to the Pluton Pirates' figures and public announcements, an astonishing thirty thousand swordsmen had registered for the Swordsmanship Tournament.
Most were there merely to make up the numbers. The true elites were a small minority, perhaps less than a tenth.
Even so, the number was staggering.
Over the past month, the sea's major powers had left their territories one after another.
There were the Five Peaks Pirates, led by the Great Pirate Ochoku.
Captain John, whose name was known across the seas, was on his way.
Silver Axe had set out too.
So had the Big Mom Pirates of Charlotte Linlin, the "Weather Queen."
"Whitebeard" Edward Newgate brought