"Is there even a need to think about it? That guy definitely included us in his plans as well," Meiser said.
Seeing everyone's eyes fixed on him, Meiser grinned and said, "Just think about it. If Ace really breaks out into a fight with the Marines here, do you think Luffy could stay away once he finds out?"
After speaking, Meiser turned his head to look at Luffy, signaling him to take a stand.
"I'd definitely go!" Luffy said without the slightest hesitation.
If he really knew his brother was going to fight the Marines here, he would come to help even if it meant facing extreme danger!
Meiser shrugged at the others, his expression saying: See, I told you so.
Zoro and the others felt somewhat helpless upon hearing this, but they didn't say anything.
After all... that man was Luffy's brother!
So if something like that really happened, they would help out together.
"Then this matter has become a bit tricky," Sanji said, frowning.
After hearing what Meiser said, Sanji instinctively felt that something was wrong, as if Doflamingo still had some sort of trump card up his sleeve.
But if he were asked to pinpoint it, he couldn't quite put it into words.
After pondering for a moment, Sanji voiced his thoughts.
Hearing this, Meiser smiled and said, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
"Besides... we are currently in the shadows. It won't be easy for them to target us."
Sanji was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "True enough."
They were indeed in the dark right now, so there was no need to assume the worst about everything.
However, they couldn't ignore the Marines either, or things might backfire.
As if sensing Sanji's thoughts, Meiser continued, "The Marines are indeed a problem, but we can wait until Ace and his group start fighting the BIG MOM Pirates. Once the Marines are drawn away, we'll immediately move to destroy the factory."
"That way, the danger on our end will be minimized."
Meiser's plan was simple. If Doflamingo's goal this time was truly to cooperate with the Marines to capture Ace, then the Marines would most likely head over to make the arrest once they heard news of Ace fighting Katakuri.
After all... the head of Ace, the son of the Pirate King, carried immense weight!
"What if Doflamingo's target this time doesn't include Ace?" Perona asked.
"Impossible."
Meiser shook his head and said, "If Doflamingo wasn't interested in Ace, he wouldn't have brought out the Diamond-Diamond Fruit."
Meiser knew all too well what that Devil Fruit meant to the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates.
Under these circumstances, Doflamingo's purpose in revealing the Diamond-Diamond Fruit was obvious.
He was absolutely gunning for Ace!
Seeing Meiser speak with such certainty, Perona didn't say anything more.
"Actually, we shouldn't be so absolute," Sanji glanced at Luffy and said, "After all... this idiot's head is worth quite a lot too."
Meiser froze for a second upon hearing Sanji's words, and then his expression darkened.
Yes, Luffy's head was also very valuable!
Not only was it valuable, but this guy's identity was also extremely sensitive!
After all... Luffy was the son of Dragon, the leader of the Revolutionaries!
Would the World Government not be interested in someone like that?
Furthermore, there was a possibility that "legacies" left by Meiser himself existed within the Straw Hat Pirates, so the World Government might be even more interested in them.
Thinking of this, Meiser said, "Sanji is right. The World Government is very interested in us as well, so we must act with caution during this operation."
Of course, this was assuming the World Government didn't know he was still alive. If they found out he was alive... then he would start a massacre!
When that time came, he wouldn't hold back at all!
"Acting with caution, huh?"
Perona looked at Luffy with a bit of a headache and said, "Can we really act with caution?"
With a restless guy like Luffy around, could they really secretly infiltrate and destroy the factory?
As soon as these words were spoken, Meiser fell silent.
True, with Luffy around, were they really not going to be discovered?
"Things have already come to this, there's no point in thinking about it," Zoro said. "We should just focus on how to handle what comes next."
Regardless of whether the Marines were here or not, they couldn't change their battle plan now.
So... there was no use in being afraid!
"Zoro is right," Meiser looked up and said. "Next, we continue with the plan and seize the Devil Fruit."
"As for Luffy..."
Meiser grabbed Luffy's face and gave it a tug. "I'll keep an eye on this guy."
As long as this guy didn't run wild, the probability of them being discovered wasn't high.
As for after destroying the factory and seizing the Devil Fruit...
Once they completed those two tasks, he would use his maximum speed to take his companions away from here!
At that point, even if they didn't lift a finger, the enemy's plan would collapse on its own.
"That Doflamingo..."
Understanding what Luffy meant, Meiser said, "If circumstances allow, I'll give you a chance to punch him."
This time Luffy just nodded and didn't say anything else.
Then, he turned his gaze toward the distant town, his nose twitching as he said, "Can we go now?"
"..."
"I can't wait to taste the meat here."
Meiser: ...
This bastard is still thinking about the meat after all.
Shaking his head helplessly, Meiser looked toward the town ahead.
He could naturally smell the enticing aroma wafting through the air, though it didn't hold that much attraction for him.
But since Luffy had said so, he didn't keep nagging.
After all... no matter what, one shouldn't delay a meal.
The battle plan still had to be executed, but they also needed to enjoy what they could.
Thinking of this, Meiser said, "Then let's go eat first."
"?"
Merry looked at Meiser, a bit dumbfounded. "Are we really just going to walk in there and eat so grandly?"
Wouldn't they be cornered by the Marines hiding in the shadows?
Although she wasn't particularly afraid, it might affect their operation.
"Did you forget that we've already disguised ourselves?" Perona said with a curl of her lips. "Right now, even someone familiar wouldn't recognize us!"
Perona was very confident in their current disguises.
As she spoke, she toyed with the sunglasses on her face.
"Oh, right~"
Merry realized it too and relaxed completely.
"But Merry, you can't keep flying," Meiser looked at Merry and said. "Otherwise, there's still a risk of exposure."
"?"
"I can't fly?"
Having grown accustomed to flying instead of walking, Merry's little face immediately slumped.
Although walking wasn't tiring for her, it wasn't nearly as comfortable as flying.
"Yes, you can't fly."
Meiser swept his gaze over the town ahead and said, "Although you haven't shown your ability many times, you did launch attacks back at the Sabaody Archipelago. Doflamingo likely knows you can fly."
"Under these circumstances, flying would make it easy to get exposed."
Although many abilities in this world allowed people to fly... there was only one flyer as small as Merry!
So to be safe, it was better not to fly.
"Fine."
Seeing Meiser say so, Merry stopped flying and landed obediently on the ground.
Then, she held out her arms to Meiser, her expression saying: Then you carry me.
Meiser smiled helplessly at the sight. This little one really loved to act spoiled.
Thinking this, Meiser walked toward Merry, intending to pick her up.
But before he could get there, Perona beat him to it and picked Merry up.
"Hmm?"
Merry looked at Perona in confusion. Why was Sister Perona holding her?
"I definitely can't fly either," Perona explained. "So I'll carry you."
This way, she could pretend Merry was her child or younger sister to confuse the enemy.
"Okay."
Merry didn't resist. She nodded and stayed obediently in Perona's arms.
This scene filled Sanji and Kin'emon with envy.
Noticing their gazes, Perona let out a cold snort and released two Negative Spirits.
Kin'emon: ...
Sanji: ...
The two of them stiffened simultaneously upon noticing the Negative Spirits. Then, without hesitation, they turned and walked toward the town, saying, "Quick, let's go taste the delicacies here!"
"Sir Sanji is right, I am also a bit hungry."
Watching the two figures flee, Perona rolled her eyes, not bothering to lower herself to their level.
"I wonder if there's any good booze here," Zoro muttered.
"Don't you go drinking too much," Perona warned as she passed by him. "We're in the enemy's headquarters, after all."
"I know, I know. So nagging."
As he spoke, Zoro followed the others toward the town, leaving Perona staring at his back.
"This guy..."
"Sister Perona, let's go too."
"Okay~"
After rubbing Merry's little head, Perona followed and entered Dressrosa with the rest of the group.
"So... so fragrant~"
Smelling the aroma in the air, which was even stronger than before, everyone's mouths began to water involuntarily.
"Could Dressrosa be some kind of gourmet city?" Meiser wondered curiously.
Otherwise, how could the smell of this food be so incredible?
"It's not impossible," Sanji said excitedly. "I just wonder how many beautiful female chefs are here~"
As he spoke, red hearts appeared in Sanji's eyes, and his expression became even more excited than before.
Beautiful female chefs... that's just wonderful!
"We'll know once we're inside," Franky laughed.
With that, he stepped forward, but after only a few steps, he saw a shocking sight.
"?"
"What is that?"
Looking at a one-armed doll chasing a dog, Franky was completely stunned.
Why was that doll running?
"Hey, stop right there, Mario!" the doll shouted angrily. "Give me back my arm!"
"You brat, are you even listening to me? My stuffing is coming out!"
"Give me back my arm, quick!"
"Hey!"
The doll shouted very loudly, but the dog showed no intention of stopping. Instead, it ran faster and faster, making the doll curse all the way as it gave chase.
This scene left Meiser and the others dumbstruck.
"A... a ragdoll?"
Luffy looked in shock at the receding ragdoll and said, "Why can a ragdoll talk?"
"Not just talk, it can run too..."
Meiser looked at the ragdoll with suspicion. What on earth was that?
A product made by a Devil Fruit Ability User?
Or did Dressrosa possess some unknown special technology?
It wasn't impossible.
"Hey, what is that exactly?"
"How should we know?"
It was their first time seeing such a thing too.
Just then, a toy soldier appeared before them, holding a drum wound with many strings.
"Hello there~" the toy soldier said. "I am a Toy Soldier, o-yo~"
As he spoke, the toy soldier began to spin wildly, then continued, "Welcome to—"
"Oh no, I've tangled myself up!"
Looking at the silk threads winding around him, the toy soldier said anxiously, "Quick, help me."
"What kind of thing are you exactly?"
Luffy looked at the bumbling toy soldier with suspicion. "A toy?"
"It's not just this one."
Zoro pointed toward the toys on the distant street and said, "Look over there."
Following Zoro's finger, Luffy froze.
What was he seeing?
Humans and toys coexisting perfectly?
"How... how is all this happening?!" X8
Why were there so many moving toys here?
And why did these toys seem to have perfectly integrated into this country?
What was going on?
"Does such advanced toy technology actually exist on these seas?" Meiser rubbed his chin and said, "Each one is just like a real person. Truly surprising."
Could it be... one of Doflamingo's businesses was this?
But that didn't seem right either...
Aside from Dressrosa, he hadn't seen this kind of thing anywhere else.
Thinking of this, Meiser frowned.
Although he didn't know what was going on, he instinctively felt something was wrong.
The toy soldier lying on the ground paused in his struggling upon hearing Meiser's words, clearly having thought of something.
But unfortunately, he had already been placed under the contract of the "Toy Code" by that little girl, so he was unable to speak the truth about this country.
Thinking of this, the toy soldier sighed silently in his heart.
When would these days ever end?
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