They split into two groups.
One group would deal with the Transponder Snails inside the Golden City, while the other would be responsible for stealing the black box.
"Luffy, Franky, you two are in charge of destroying the Transponder Snails in the city. Otherwise, we'll be exposed immediately."
"Before we remove the gold dust on our bodies, we can't clash with Tesoro head-on."
"As for us, we'll disguise ourselves and secretly infiltrate the Golden Tower. I'll help you reach the inside of the tower. Before we get close to the core area, we shouldn't face much obstruction."
"Tesoro is an awakened Gold-Gold Fruit user. If we choose a frontal assault, we definitely won't be his match inside the Golden City."
After listening to the plan, Luffy immediately clenched both fists.
"Good! Let's move!"
...
"The plan is going smoothly..."
Swirling the wineglass in his hand, Tesoro watched the Transponder Snail in front of him. Several sneaky figures were approaching the Golden Tower.
He drained the red wine in his glass in one gulp, then clenched his hand. Thin threads of static electricity sparked between his fingers.
Inside the Golden City, he was not worried that Luffy and the others could cause any real waves. Like a cat playing with mice, he wanted to give the Straw Hat boy a little hope first, then bring him despair.
Only that kind of ending would satisfy him.
"Slu-lu-lu-lu..."
At that moment, the big-headed man emerged from the wall and respectfully stepped forward.
"Lord Tesoro, Marine warships are approaching the Gran Tesoro. It seems CP0 is leading them. What do you think..."
"Ignore them. Ozz-sama and the Celestial Dragons are both here. I don't believe they would dare do anything. Right now, the priority is keeping an eye on the Straw Hat crew."
"Yes."
Tanaka answered, then brought up another matter.
"Also, Lady Stella has arrived at the Golden Tower."
"What?!"
Tesoro frowned, his expression turning ugly.
"Why was she allowed in?!"
Seeing Tesoro get angry, Tanaka quickly waved his hands, cold sweat breaking out on his head.
"No, it's just that Lady Stella said she was bored. We didn't dare act rashly."
"Then hurry up and send someone to escort her back!"
Tesoro gritted his teeth.
Although he believed everything was under control, this place was still Ozz-sama's game board. If one small accident happened, anything could go wrong.
He had to make sure Stella stayed somewhere safe.
"Yes!"
Tanaka leapt up at once and vanished into the ground.
...
Meanwhile, beneath the Golden Tower, a blond woman whose belly was only slightly showing arrived under the escort of several guards.
"Lady Stella, we should hurry back!"
"Yes, this place is very dangerous!"
The guards around her tried to persuade her, but none of them dared touch the pregnant Stella. They were afraid that if anything happened, Tesoro would kill them.
Stella looked gloomy. She immediately said she needed to use the restroom.
After being scolded by her, the guards did not dare follow her inside.
Only after waiting for a long time without seeing Stella come out did their faces turn pale. They called out several times, but there was no response.
"We're finished!"
As for Stella, she had already reached one of the floors of the Golden Tower.
Standing before a window, she had no idea how to get higher until she happened to encounter two sneaky figures climbing upward.
"Hey! Luffy, what's wrong?"
Franky asked curiously, while Luffy stopped climbing and looked at Stella inside the window.
"We've been found! But she doesn't seem like an enemy. Looks like she's calling us?"
"What..."
And just like that, Stella ended up sitting on Franky's shoulder as Luffy and Franky carried her along during their infiltration.
"By the way, auntie, who are you? Why are you inside this tower?"
Luffy asked curiously while climbing.
Stella looked conflicted. She covered her belly and said,
"My name is Stella. I'm Tesoro's wife."
"Oh... Hm?!"
"Eh?!"
"You're kidding, right?!"
After a long conversation, Stella finally helped Luffy and Franky understand her intentions. Luffy laughed loudly.
"I see. You want Tesoro to go back to how he used to be."
Franky also looked thoughtful.
"I never expected the richest man in the world to have a past like that."
"Good! We'll help you!"
The three of them headed toward the upper floors of the Golden Tower.
One of those floors was the Transponder Snail control room that Carina had mentioned.
"That's right. This tower created by Ozz-sama is actually similar to the golden high-rise at the center of the city. You could say it's a perfect replica."
"If that's the case, then I might know where the black box you're looking for is."
Stella said seriously.
"Really?!"
The two were overjoyed.
"Yes. It's where Tesoro likes to keep his precious items. The lock is made from the highest-grade Sea Prism Stone. Only Tesoro and I can unlock it through recognition."
"After I take it out, I can give it to you."
"You just need to secretly leave me on the third floor..."
Stella slipped into the third floor, while Luffy and the others went to deal with the Transponder Snails.
Unfortunately, they were caught on the spot.
Aside from the footage of them climbing the outer wall, everything else had been monitored in real time.
Luffy and Franky were thrown into the prison at the bottom of the ship.
As for Nami and the others, after painstakingly disguising themselves and entering the tower, they finally reached the so-called "second floor." What awaited them was a stage.
"What an interesting performance."
"Struggling so hard to obtain victory, only to discover that it was all a trap. What a wonderful show!"
At that moment, the "traitor" Carina also returned to Tesoro's side, pretending to come back to him.
Tesoro believed victory was already in his grasp, unaware that the Straw Hat crew had set an even bigger trap for him.
Just as he was about to execute them, seawater erupted from the fountains of the Gran Tesoro, making the gold impossible to control.
Nami smiled.
"You're the one who got tricked. We were never trying to steal the black box. What we wanted was..."
"To defeat you head-on!"
"Don't screw with me!"
Tesoro was furious. Looking at Luffy, who had escaped from underground and returned to the battlefield along with the gushing seawater, he was about to explode with anger.
But what truly drove him to despair was the urgent report from his subordinate.
"Lord Tesoro, Lady Stella is missing. The surveillance footage caught a blurry image of her being taken away by the Straw Hat crew. She may already be..."
The subordinate stopped halfway, not daring to continue.
Because he saw Tesoro's expression, which was like that of a demon.
Tesoro stared at him coldly, as if from the depths of hell, filled with endless killing intent.
He fixed his gaze on the subordinate, his face as cold as a blade.
"What... did... you... say?"
Crack, crack, crack, crack!
His killing intent grew so dense that black-red lightning tore cracks through the ground.
Threads of bloody tears flowed from the corners of Tesoro's eyes.
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The tides are shifting, and secrets linger in the dark... Step into the shadows early on P@treon, where the next chapter awaits before the world sees it.
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