In Impel Down on the Grand Line, no one knew that a crisis was quietly approaching.
Columbus was still the warden of Impel Down. The World Government was rather short on talent, so although he had been somewhat negligent when facing Rocks before, he had kept his position.
After giving it some thought, the Five Elders, who had no one else available at the time, had decided to let him remain warden.
Quite a few people in the Navy had come into their own since then, but Columbus had made no further mistakes, so his position had remained secure.
Barring any surprises, he would most likely stay comfortably in office until retirement. Even in the original course of events, he had only been forced to step down after Shiki escaped from Impel Down, with Deputy Warden Magellan succeeding him.
Compared with the era when Impel Down had capable people and powerful fighters like Magellan, Shiryu of the Rain, Hannyabal, and Domino, the prison now had only a handful of personnel worth mentioning.
Especially after Rocks had invaded Impel Down once before, everyone aside from Columbus was little more than filler.
This also had to do with how empty Impel Down was now. Ever since Rocks's invasion, the prison had been practically half-abandoned. Before the great battle with the Roger Pirates, its fifth and sixth levels had been almost empty.
Only after several senior officers under Roger were captured in the battle in the North Blue had Level Six finally gained some inmates.
Yet even with these new guests, neither the World Government nor the Navy paid Impel Down much attention.
As things stood, both the Navy and Cipher Pol were short-handed everywhere. There simply weren't enough personnel to reinforce Impel Down, so Columbus was essentially enjoying retirement already.
Every day,