"What's the situation on the World Government's side?"
Dragon asked as he looked at Terry Gilteo beside him.
"According to information from our comrades in Mariejois, the World Government is continuously consolidating its forces. The army and air force that originally guarded the Red Line have now all gathered at Mariejois. Additionally, the World Government and the Celestial Dragons are carrying out large-scale purges of slaves, likely out of concern that these slaves might become a destabilizing factor once the war breaks out."
When mentioned the slave purges, he spoke through gritted teeth. Although the intelligence report only mentioned the purges in one line, his years of experience as a revolutionary intelligence officer made him well aware of the bloody reality behind those words.
"And what about the World Government's allied nations?"
Dragon paused for a moment before continuing.
He knew there was nothing they could do to stop the atrocities happening in Mariejois right now. Their only option was to win this war and ensure such tragedies never happen again.
"Due to interference from the large Sea Kings, while many of the allied nations have responded to the World Government's call to arms, only a few fleets have managed to break through the Sea Kings' blockade. Nevertheless, a fleet of over 200,000 troops has successfully reached Mariejois."
Terry Gilteo reported every piece of intelligence he had gathered to Dragon.
"It seems that after we defeat the World Government, we'll need to start a revolution against the royal families of those allied nations as well."
Dragon hadn't anticipated that the royal families of the allied nations would be so tightly bound to the World Government. Setting sail under the threat of the Sea Kings was extremely dangerous, with the risk of total annihilation. Despite that, they still chose to deploy troops.
"By the way, Dragon, there are two more things. Nicholas has sent word that the Pluton has been activated and will be deployed in this war. Additionally, Vegapunk's latest mass-produced Pacifistas are being manufactured with the technological support of the Germa 66 Kingdom."
As he spoke, Terry Gilteo handed over a dossier. "This is information about the Pluton and the new Pacifistas."
Dragon nodded and began to carefully review the documents.
It was well-known among the Revolutionary Army leadership that the Pacifistas were Vegapunk's creation, especially since their comrade, Bartholomew Kuma, was a key participant in the project. As for the Pluton, Dragon only had a vague understanding, but from the research of the Ohara scholars, it was confirmed that the Pluton was a massive warship capable of annihilating entire islands with a single shot.
"Notify the other Revolutionary Army leaders to prepare for a meeting."
Dragon instructed Terry Gilteo as he put down the documents.
Though the Revolutionary Army had mobilized a large force, many of its cadres were still scattered around the world, working to liberate oppressed people in various regions.
"Connect the visual Den Den Mushi."
Soon, in the large conference room aboard the Revolutionary Army's ship, several projection screens flickered on, showing the faces of Revolutionary Army leaders from around the world.
"How are your preparations?"
Dragon asked.
The leaders began to report on the status of their missions.
"Troops are fully assembled."
"When the battle at Mariejois begins, we'll launch revolutions simultaneously in various regions."
The meeting lasted several hours. After confirming all aspects of the operation, Dragon continued, "Everyone, let's take action. The final battle is upon us. This is not just about the future of the Revolutionary Army, but about the future of the world itself. We must win; failure is not an option!"
"Understood!" the leaders responded.
"One more thing," a voice interrupted just as the meeting was about to end.
"We've received word from our base in Alabasta. The Alabasta Kingdom requests to join our cause."
Hearing this, Dragon fell into deep thought.
He was aware that as one of the twenty founding kingdoms, Alabasta had not joined the other royals in Mariejois after the great war 800 years ago. Still, he hadn't expected the Alabasta Kingdom to choose this moment to join the fight against the World Government and the Celestial Dragons.
Alabasta Kingdom.
"King Cobra, why are you getting involved in this turmoil? We only recently freed Alabasta from Crocodile's grasp. Our priority should be recovery, not getting dragged into another war!"
In the royal palace of Alabasta's capital, Alubarna, Captain Igaram of the Alabasta Royal Guard questioned King Cobra loudly, clearly more like a friend than a subordinate.
"Igaram, our Alabasta royal family was once one of the twenty kings. After that great war that destroyed the ancient kingdom, our ancestors realized their mistake and chose not to join the others in Mariejois, instead returning to Alabasta. Now the time has come to correct that 800-year-old mistake. We can no longer remain silent."
Cobra's eyes were resolute as he spoke.
As time passed, tension filled the air around the world, but surprisingly, the situation didn't spiral into chaos. It seemed that this war, which would determine the world's future, had little impact on the lives of ordinary people.
At the heart of the conflict, the Nicholas Pirates caused a global uproar after the World Government issued yet another bounty notice. Nicholas was declared the most dangerous criminal in the World Government's history, with a record-breaking bounty of 10 billion Berries.
The bounties for the rest of the Nicholas Pirates also skyrocketed.
Nicholas's right hand, Vista, was now worth 6.5 billion Berries. His left hand, the King of the Underworld Brook, was worth 6.4 billion Berries. The great swordsman Katie Remy Ness had a bounty of 3.5 billion Berries, while the sharpshooter Simon's bounty was 3 billion Berries. The Son of the sea Jinbe's bounty was 2.8 billion Berries.
Notably, the World Government also placed a bounty on June. Although they were unsure of her exact strength, as Nicholas's partner, her bounty was set at 4 billion Berries.
Even the Falcon's bounty reached 500 million Berries.
The World Government didn't expect anyone to actually hunt down the Nicholas Pirates for the bounty, but the bounties underscored how seriously they viewed the threat posed by the crew.
With a total bounty of 36.7 billion Berries, the Nicholas Pirates had officially replaced the Rocks Pirates as the most dangerous pirate crew in the world.