As the World Conference came to an end, the Holy Land gradually quieted down.
It wasn't until the fifth day after the conference that Sora's inspection finally ended, and he returned to the Holy Land with Gancho and the others.
The first phase of land development was limited to within two thousand kilometers of the Holy Land. The plan was to establish two satellite cities on each side, centered around the Holy Land itself.
Nearly another month passed, and the year turned to 1503. The group led by Moa, who had been tracking Dragon, finally brought back some news.
"Do you need me to bring Otohime along? Are we going to conduct an interrogation?", Rosse asked with interest.
After the World Conference, not only did Titi and her daughter stay behind in the Holy Land, but Otohime also hadn't left yet, though she had sent Nia and the others back first.
The Holy Land wasn't far from the Fishman Kingdom, and now that the kingdom was slowly stabilizing, remote management wasn't much of a problem.
"Right now, we've already captured Ivankov and Ginny, and we're about to catch up with Kuma, but Dragon's whereabouts have been lost," Vanessa said with a nod.
Having used her Devil Fruit ability to return to the Holy Land, Vanessa was slightly out of breath.
Even for her, crossing half the Grand Line was no small drain on her stamina.
"No need to bring Otohime along. I can handle it myself."
Rosse had no intention of taking Otohime. She was already well into her pregnancy, there was no need to make her run around, especially by teleportation.
To Rosse, the entire Revolutionary Army together wasn't as important as Otohime alone.
"Alright."
Vanessa didn't argue in the slightest. She grabbed Rosse's arm immediately, preparing to teleport.
Rosse didn't stop her or show any sign of worry, he simply took out a Den Den Mushi to notify Sora and the others.
Vanessa's fruit was the "Piercing Fruit," a conceptual ability that connected two locations she had personally been to.
And as for places Vanessa had been, there wasn't a single one that could trap her.
In an instant, the two vanished from where they stood.
Vanessa's stamina wasn't enough to sustain a single full-distance teleport for both of them, so after jumping four times, Rosse and Vanessa finally appeared on the ship where Moa was stationed.
"Master…", Moa rushed over in excitement, throwing herself into Rosse's arms.
This time, she truly wasn't acting.
Following this group of God's Knights had been unbearably stressful.
There were eight God's Knights in total on this mission, and each one gave off an aura that terrified her.
Especially since she'd smashed Figarland, because of that, she'd drawn even more attention from this group.
If Vanessa hadn't been there, and if not for Rosse's fearsome reputation, the others might have bullied her to death long ago.
Faced with these monsters, she really was scared.
Saint Arlin had already left her with a deep, haunting impression back in the day, let alone these people, many of whom were even more terrifying than him.
The pirates they encountered along the way… their deaths had been miserable beyond words.
If Vanessa hadn't restrained them, every allied nation they passed might've been wiped out.
"You've worked hard," Rosse smiled faintly, his hand gently brushing through Moa's golden hair.
"Not hard at all."
Moa understood that Rosse wasn't referring to her hardships, but to the mission itself.
In truth, even though she was nominally the leader of this operation, it hadn't had much to do with her.
Figarland and Rosse had arranged the entire process beforehand.
They simply went to Drum Kingdom, retrieved the vivre cards of the kidnapped doctors, and then used those to track down their locations.
Their travel speed was far faster than that of any normal ship.
In less than half a month, they had caught up with Ginny and Ivankov.
Now, Kuma was the only one left, not far away.
"When we get back, I'll give you a proper reward."
Rosse smiled slightly and let go of Moa.
"You're going to see the other two, right?", Moa hesitated before asking.
"No rush. The last one's in that direction, about ten kilometers away. I'll meet them all together."
Rosse lifted his head, glancing toward the east.
To the naked eye, there was nothing visible there.
But through his Observation Haki, he could clearly see a plain merchant ship sailing away in the distance.
"I'll go," Shamrock said in his deep, rumbling voice, preparing to leap into the air using Moonwalk.
He didn't want to stay around Rosse, it always reminded him of his humiliation.
Although their families had reconciled not long ago, it had ended with them bowing their heads in apology.
His father, whom he'd always thought invincible since childhood, had knelt before Rosse, someone the same age as himself. No matter how much time passed, he couldn't accept that.
"No need. Since I came all this way, might as well have some fun," Rosse smiled as he spoke, his figure already appearing above the sea.
A blink later, he was hundreds of meters away.
Ten kilometers was a walkable distance for him, within seconds, his figure appeared before the merchant ship.
"Saint Rosse?"
Rosse's sudden appearance caused an uproar among Kuma and the others.
Kuma quickly stepped to the bow, his expression tense as he stared at Rosse.
He'd been in contact with Ivankov and the rest, so he knew that since half a month ago, Ginny and the others had gone missing.
Now, the only one left still in contact had been Dragon.
And now, it was finally their turn.
"Come on, Rosse! I'm not afraid of you!", Kuma glared hatefully at Rosse. He despised the Celestial Dragons, they reminded him of his childhood as a slave.
Though that period of his life had led him to his true love, he still hated recalling those tragic days.
"Admirable courage. Are you sure you're not afraid?"
Rosse merely glanced at him, and a surge of overwhelming Conqueror's Haki burst forth.
"AAAHHHHH!"
Under Rosse's Haki, even S-rank powerhouses would lose their focus, let alone Kuma, whose strength now was only at C-rank.
Kuma roared in defiance, trying to break free from the crushing pressure.
But all his effort was meaningless before such an absolute difference in power.
In his despairing eyes, his waist bent, his knees followed, slowly forcing him to kneel.
THUD!
In the end, completely helpless, Kuma collapsed to the ground, forced down by Rosse's Conqueror's Haki.
Looking at the fallen Kuma, Rosse let out a low laugh.
"Your will… your body… it seems neither obeys your command."
As he spoke, he stepped down from the air, walking across the deck of the Revolutionary Army's ship, and sat directly on Kuma's back.
Kuma tried to struggle, to resist, but just as Rosse had said, he couldn't control his body at all. All he could do was remain prostrated on the floor.
Glancing at the surrounding Revolutionaries, who were all tensed and wary, Rosse said coolly, "I'll give you five minutes. Bring out everyone you've imprisoned. Oh, and there should be forty-two of them. If even one is missing, every last one of you will go to hell."
"Damn Celestial Dragon! In your dreams!"
One of the Revolutionaries roared furiously, raising his musket—
"Hm?"
Rosse merely looked at him.
Pfft!
The man coughed up a mouthful of blood and collapsed, eyes lifeless.
At Rosse's level, someone like that could be killed outright by a mere glance of his Haki, it was only a matter of whether Rosse chose to or not.
"Four minutes and three seconds left," As Rosse's words fell, part of the Revolutionary soldiers finally panicked, frantically rushing into the cabins.
The power gap was too vast, so vast that they saw no hope at all.
They wanted revolution, yes, but not everyone was fearless in the face of death.
As the saying goes, if the green hills remain, there will be no lack of firewood to burn.