Red Hair's Arrival
Amidst her joy, Robin asked about her mother.
"Mother, did you and the Emperor... do *that*?"
Olvia's hair was damp, clearly having just been washed, but Robin could still catch a familiar scent.
Olvia's face flushed slightly.
"Yes, but I have no intention of becoming an Imperial Consort."
Although she liked the man, she definitely wouldn't become an Imperial Consort. After all, her identity as a scholar didn't allow her to do such a thing.
Serving the same man alongside her own daughter.
However, being a lover was acceptable. To her, this was quite a novel experience.
And it wasn't a bad experience by any means.
Robin felt a bit helpless.
Well, in that case, both mother and daughter would be serving the same man.
Ryōsuke really was a bit greedy.
She could understand why her mother didn't want to be a consort.
As long as her mother was resurrected, that was all that mattered.
Olvia spoke slowly.
"The Emperor also instructed me to thoroughly study the Poneglyphs and uncover the truth behind the Blank Century."
Robin was thrilled.
"I have the exact same plan. I currently have three Poneglyphs on hand. With His Excellency's protection this time, the tragedy of the Ohara incident will never happen again."
She had previously obtained one on Zou, Luffy and the others had acquired one from Whole Cake Island, and there was another one right here.
She had been deciphering them day and night, but fully translating them would still take a long time.
Now, with her mother's help, the process would be much faster. Her mother's academic expertise was far superior to her own.
Olvia asked in surprise.
"Is this Emperor's faction really that powerful?"
After all, Ohara had been completely annihilated by the World Government.
All because they had touched upon the truth of history.
And they were destroyed before they could even fully uncover it.
Robin smiled.
"In terms of military might, they are incredibly strong. But of course, His Excellency is overwhelmingly powerful all on his own."
She then recounted all the recent events to Olvia.
Olvia's expression changed drastically.
*He's that strong?*
In her era, the Four Emperors didn't exist yet.
The only true emperor of the seas back then was Whitebeard.
Anyone who could be named alongside Whitebeard as one of the Four Emperors was definitely no weakling. It seemed this Emperor was truly formidable.
After all, he had already subjugated two of the Four Emperors, absorbing their entire forces. This was indeed a terrifyingly powerful empire.
Now, there really was no need to worry about a repeat of the Ohara tragedy.
Meanwhile, a pirate ship appeared in the waters of the Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets.
It flew a pirate flag featuring a skull with two crossed swords in the background.
It was the Jolly Roger of the Red Hair Pirates.
On the bow deck, a red-haired man gazed out at the distant Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets.
A look of deep concern was etched across his face.
Beside him stood a silver-gray-haired man.
"Shanks, we're about to make landfall in Wano Country. Though, it's now known as the Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets."
Red Hair Shanks felt a mix of joy and anxiety.
Luffy hadn't let him down; he had grown into an outstanding pirate. However, this time, the opponent was simply too strong. It wasn't just an enemy like Kaido of the Beasts.
Such an enemy was likely still too much for Luffy to handle at this stage.
What worried him most was that it wasn't just Kaido—there was also the even more powerful Emperor of the Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets.
This was a truly terrifying individual, even though Shanks had never met him.
Anyone capable of making his old rival Kaido submit was far from simple.
Furthermore, Kaido was not someone with a fragile will.
On the contrary, he was an incredibly ambitious and ruthless man.
A man like that would never easily bow to another.
Back in Captain Roger's era, Shanks had already crossed paths with him.
Perhaps only a terrifying monster like Rocks could have made him submit back then. But with Kaido's current level of strength...
Even Rocks would find it difficult to bring him to heel now.
*Could this Emperor be someone even more terrifying than Rocks?*
This voyage was truly fraught with danger and challenges.
Not long after, the pirate ship rode the giant koi fish up the waterfall and entered the inland sea of the Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets.
Their arrival was quickly detected, and someone immediately reported it to Kaido via Den Den Mushi.
Kaido answered the call, and upon hearing his subordinate's report, a grin spread across his face.
This old rival, whom he hadn't been able to take down for years, had actually shown up. How incredibly amusing.
Big Mom, who was drinking with him, looked puzzled.
"That Red Hair brat is here? I wonder what he wants."
"We'll know once we go take a look, won't we?"
Kaido immediately transformed into a massive azure dragon.
He let Big Mom ride on his back, and they hurried toward the coast.
They soon arrived at the shore.
Staring at the ship appearing on the sea, they confirmed it was indeed Red Hair Shanks's pirate ship.
Kaido opened his massive jaws, a bright light gathering within as he drew in power.
"Dragon's Breath."
An incomparably massive, scorching pillar of fire blasted toward the pirate ship.
Standing on the bow deck, Red Hair watched the azure dragon suddenly appear and launch an unprovoked attack. His expression darkened.
He drew his saber, Gryphon.
A red glint flashed in his eyes.
His blade was coated in crimson Haki.
"Divine Departure."
He immediately swung, sending a red-and-black flying slash surging toward the fiery breath.
The two attacks collided, instantly triggering a terrifying explosion. The fiery breath was cleaved apart, scattering and collapsing in all directions.
A violent shockwave erupted, instantly whipping the ocean's surface into a turbulent frenzy.
It took several minutes for the sea to finally calm down.
Kaido looked down at his old rival.
"Shanks, what the hell are you doing here?"
Shanks looked at Kaido, his eyes suddenly narrowing.
Because only now did he clearly see that Big Mom was also on Kaido's back.
*Does that mean Luffy failed? Or worse... is he dead?*
Facing one of the Four Emperors was already extremely difficult. Facing two was an impossible task, even for the Luffy he had placed such high hopes on.
He shouted.
"Kaido, what happened to Luffy?!"
Kaido was taken aback upon hearing this.
"Luffy?"
"Are you here to try and rescue him?"
"That brat has your old straw hat. Do you have some kind of connection to him?"
"Did you even lose your arm because of him?"
"When a man like you returned from the East Blue missing an arm, it made everyone's jaws drop in shock."
After all, Red Hair was a man who had fought him many times, and even Kaido hadn't achieved such a glorious feat as severing his arm.
How could a mere place like the East Blue cost a king his arm? It was simply unimaginable.
When he first heard the news back then, he had been utterly shocked.
Red Hair replied with a solemn face.
"I bet it on the new era."
Hearing Red Hair's words, Big Mom looked thoughtful.
"Don't tell me you placed your hopes on Straw Hat Luffy? How laughable."
"He's already been locked up in prison by His Excellency the Emperor. He's never getting out."
The crew on Red Hair's ship all wore expressions of shock. Luffy and his crew had failed.
The boy who constantly shouted about becoming the Pirate King had failed.
Their boss had given him his most precious straw hat, so his expectations were self-evident.
As expected, Luffy was still too impulsive. He shouldn't have launched an attack on the Four Emperors' Kaido. Such an enemy was still too early for them to face.
Even for their Red Hair Pirates, such an enemy was a formidable threat.