"Nothing can be done if he's dead. Send someone to retrieve his body. Make a call on the Den Den Mushi to see if there are any survivors. If not, we'll make a trip there ourselves," Queen stated flatly.
He had thought Page One would prove to be a decent ability user, given his rather good performance in recent years. He never imagined the brat would die on just a trip to Fishman Island. How utterly disappointing.
"Yes, sir."
"What do we do now without an antidote? Can we control the spread?" Rosen returned to Ryugu Palace and saw Law, the king, and others wearing bubble helmets, moving the poisoned individuals together. However, even just within Ryugu Palace, the number was considerable.
Some residents of Fishman Island who received the warning and were located on the outskirts managed to evacuate in time. But those near Ryugu Palace had no chance to flee. A single gust of wind had toppled a whole group of them.
"No antidote?" Upon hearing Rosen's words, Jinbe, the king, Robin, and the others' expressions subtly changed. Without an antidote, what would become of the vast number of poisoned victims? Would they die?
Furthermore, since Rosen had killed everyone the Beasts Pirates had brought, once Kaido received word, he could not possibly remain indifferent. This would likely introduce unforeseen complications to the plan targeting Doflamingo.
"It's extremely difficult to treat. Ordinary people cannot survive even a day. The poison gas carries bacteria and unknown components, and it is highly contagious. If my domain could not filter the gas, I'm afraid I would not dare to make direct contact with the patients either," Law stated gravely.
"Is there truly no way?" Rosen frowned. Thousands of lives were at stake, and with only a day's window, even if some could endure a bit longer due to their constitution, the danger remained immense if the poison went untreated.
"If given sufficient time—five days, no, three days—I might be able to devise an antidote. Though that would require dissecting hundreds of people, at least there would be a measure of confidence. But the critical issue is that the poisoned cannot hold out for three to five days. We ourselves might manage, but the majority cannot..." With Law present, the Dawn Pirates were unlikely to suffer casualties themselves.
The problem lay with the residents of Fishman Island, who had been dragged into this mess.
"Fukaboshi, Ryuboshi, Manboshi, can you still hold on?" Neptune held the three princes in his arms. They had been poisoned early on without any chance to take protective measures. The toxin had already invaded their lungs, making even movement difficult.
"Within three days... I'll give it a try..." Rosen walked over to King Neptune. Jinbe glanced at Rosen but said nothing. This matter could not be blamed on Rosen; no one could have predicted that Page One would dare commit such an atrocity against humanity.
"Hathaway, Enel, keep a close watch on the surroundings." After giving his orders, Rosen relaxed his entire body. Particles of light began emanating from him. His vitality had always proven useful, and currently, this was the only method Rosen could attempt.
"Uncle is glowing again."
"Law, monitor their condition. See if there's any worsening, or if perhaps there's been some alleviation," Rosen said to Law.
Law nodded, raised his palm, and expanded the range of his ROOM, enveloping more than half of Ryugu Palace. He intensified his ability, then slashed through the air at the three princes from a distance. In an instant, their bodies were dissected into numerous pieces.
"What are you trying to do?!" Jinbe and the king were alarmed.
"Are we dead?" The three princes, Fukaboshi and his brothers, were stunned. They had been sliced into several pieces, yet they were not dead, and it seemed they could still control their bodies.
"Quiet. They're fine. This is merely my ability. I'm examining their bodies... scanning..." The blade reflected light, and a beam of analytical light fell upon the dissected body parts, conducting a thorough examination.
Hearing Law's explanation, Neptune and Jinbe finally calmed down. They had panicked too hastily. A moment's thought would have told them the Dawn Pirates bore them no ill will; otherwise, they could simply leave now.
With Law's abilities, saving his own crewmates was entirely feasible. Even if he had to operate on each one individually, there were fewer than a hundred of them. A single day would nearly suffice.
But saving a greater number would be much more difficult.
"The rate of deterioration has slowed. It's effective. But at best, it will only buy us about three more days. In three days, I still cannot save all the poisoned individuals on the island. Developing an antidote must remain our primary focus." Hearing Law's words, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
However, the next problem immediately presented itself. Even if the treatment was effective, Fishman Island had so many people, and few among them could rely on Haki to resist the poison. To save the island's inhabitants, they would need to gather them within the vicinity of Rosen.
Even if the particles of light emanating from Rosen covered a wide area, they could not encompass the entirety of Fishman Island.
After Rosen raised this issue, everyone fell silent.
"Sir Law, we in Ryugu Palace possess a vessel called the Ryugu. If we can first cure the giant turtles that pull the ship, we will regain mobility. Then we can organize people equipped with bubble helmets to ferry the residents of Fishman Island back here," Neptune proposed. This was the only plan he could conceive.
"Captain?" Law looked toward Rosen.
"Go ahead." With Rosen present, he could slow the deterioration of each person's condition. However, this also meant Rosen could not move freely; he needed to remain in place to prevent ordinary fishmen from worsening. And soon, a large influx of fishmen would be transported here.
"Jinbe, I must ask you to bring Shirahoshi down. I do not know how she is faring now, but Fishman Island needs us more than ever at this moment," Neptune said to Jinbe with solemn gravity.
"Leave such a minor task to me. This level of poison will not take effect on me so quickly."
"Ahem, Sir Crocodile, we..." Baron Tamago spoke with some embarrassment. They were members of the Big Mom Pirates, but it now appeared the Dawn Pirates had a potential method of detoxification. Even if they returned to Totto Land, a cure might not be guaranteed.
They did not have a doctor as brilliant as Law. It was entirely possible they might exhaust themselves resisting the poison gas en route and then be killed by others.
The Four Emperors might represent the pinnacle of piracy, but they were also the target of countless challengers on the sea.
"Stay here," Rosen said after a moment's thought. He did not send them away. He had no conflict of interest with the Big Mom Pirates, and these two had previously shown a reasonable attitude. Rosen was not devoid of social awareness.
If he could foster decent relations with members of an Emperor's crew, it might prove beneficial to him in the future.
"Thank you." Both Baron Tamago and Pekoms sighed in relief. Their greatest fear was that Crocodile would act as mercilessly as he had earlier, killing without blinking or showing any leniency.
...
"A poison gas leak has occurred across all of Fishman Island? What is going on? No, never mind what's going on. First, I need to grab a few bubble helmets. And at this moment, my dear Princess Shirahoshi, you must still be inside the Hard-Shell Tower, aren't you? It seems many of the royal army have lost their combat effectiveness. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I am going to marry you..." In the waters outside Fishman Island, Decken watched the refugees fleeing the island and suddenly conceived a bold idea.
Under normal circumstances, he and the late Hody would not have dared to attack Ryugu Palace. After all, there were many guards, and without opening the passage, they would have struggled to break in.
But now, the gates of Ryugu Palace were wide open. The Ryugu seemed to be continuously transporting patients to the palace, so naturally, Ryugu Palace could no longer remain sealed.
From Neptune's latest announcement, the residents of Fishman Island had learned that seeking treatment at Ryugu Palace offered hope. Yet the biggest problem was that the unpoisoned fishmen currently dared not set foot on the island itself.
This, of course, did not apply to pirates harboring malicious intentions.
"Hey, hey, did you see that? A poison gas leak happened on Fishman Island. Look, there don't seem to be any royal guards near the fishmen. There's no defensive force at all. We're going to strike it rich! So many beautiful mermaids... Prepare to move."
(End of Chapter)