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Vilia Port — Night
Inside a lavishly decorated chamber within the lord's castle, a portly middle-aged man sat atop a chair inlaid with gold and gemstones, speaking with several Den Den Mushi on the table before him, all connected and active.
The man's round, well-fed face and his richly ornate clothes made him look, at first glance, like any wealthy nobleman.
But the crown resting on his head — the symbol of a prince — transformed his entire presence. With it, he exuded the noble dignity of royal blood and the commanding authority of a man who had long wielded power.
This man was Gilbert — lord of Vilia Port, younger brother to the current king of the Drum Kingdom, and a man whose position could only be described as second to none but the king himself.
Here in Vilia Port, his word was law.
"Willard is dead. What do you all make of it?"
Gilbert took a sip of hot tea, then spoke coldly to the Den Den Mushi before him.
A second later, the white-shelled snail on the far left spoke first. The voice of "Blood Wolf" Dars came through, brimming with rage:
"An eye for an eye! I'm going to kill that old bastard Reggie for this. Coming to cause trouble while I was away… Gilbert, you'd better back me up!"
Before the words faded, the yellow-shelled snail in the middle spoke calmly:
"Dars, I understand how you feel. But the Akio Gang's base is no easy place to break into. Reggie isn't going to step outside easily now, and his strength needs to be reassessed — as does Akio's. It's been years since we last clashed. Reggie's only gotten stronger with age, and there's no guarantee Akio hasn't as well."
Dars snarled in response:
"Regis, you're as cowardly as ever! Akio and his people are old news — we're at our peak now. Willard died because he was ambushed. Otherwise, there's no way he would've been taken down by that old fossil Reggie!"
The Regis Gang's boss, Regis, ignored Dars' mockery and held firm to his opinion. He even shot back that Dars' gang had broken the unspoken rules first, and that Willard deserved what he got.
That remark lit the fuse on Dars' temper, and the two gang leaders quickly devolved into a shouting match, hurling insults like squabbling fishwives and dragging each other's dirty laundry into the open.
Gilbert watched the two most powerful underworld bosses in his city bicker with expressionless detachment — though the cold mockery in his eyes said plenty.
"Go on, keep fighting, you idiots. Willard's death is a good thing — vermin who can't follow the rules are the most detestable of all."
The gangs were divided, and they kept each other in check.
That was exactly how Gilbert liked it. Only through such a fragile balance could Vilia Port remain relatively stable — stable enough for him to keep raking in mountains of Berries.
Unfortunately, as the core members of the Akio Gang aged, the Dars Gang and Regis Gang, which Gilbert had once nurtured to counter Akio's influence, grew rapidly — along with their ambitions. The cracks in the balance had begun to show… and lately, they were widening faster.
Gilbert knew there was no way to stop this. Dars and Regis weren't his dogs — they would never obey him forever. All he could do was guide the situation so that when the balance inevitably collapsed, it wouldn't tear Vilia Port apart.
After all, out with the old and in with the new. If the Akio Gang could no longer serve as the "keystone" that anchored the city's stability, then another force would have to take its place.
When the time came, Gilbert would simply nurture a new faction to counterbalance that new keystone — and continue ruling comfortably, enjoying his life as lord.
But the new keystone would have to follow the rules.
As a ruler, Gilbert understood the importance of order better than anyone. Without rules, there could be no structure — and only when everyone followed the rules could order function and society operate smoothly.
If no one respected the rules, order would crumble — and with it, Vilia Port's prosperity and stability.
And once order collapses, restoring it becomes far harder.
That was why Gilbert despised scum like Willard — rulebreakers who disrupted his carefully maintained balance. Under his rules, the Dars Gang could destroy the Akio Gang… but they were forbidden from using underhanded tactics.
For example, assassinating a rival gang's young member — as Willard had done — was absolutely unacceptable.
Gilbert had been watching Aaron, that young man, for some time. A remarkably gifted fighter with immense potential, Aaron could one day grow strong enough to replace Akio and Reggie as the new pillar of stability in Vilia Port.
And what had Willard done? Threatened the future stability of the city — an unforgivable crime. His death was well deserved.
"Fuffuffuffu~"
Suddenly, the Den Den Mushi wearing glasses — the one on the far left — erupted in a disturbingly eerie laugh.
The laugh instantly silenced Dars and Regis. The room fell quiet, save for that unsettling sound. The mockery in Gilbert's eyes quickly turned into something else — wariness — as he glared coldly at the laughing snail.
"Doflamingo… have you laughed enough?"
Gilbert's patience was wearing thin. He had endured the laugh for over ten seconds, but when it showed no sign of stopping, he spoke sharply.
But even the authority of a royal prince from Drum Kingdom meant nothing to the man behind that Den Den Mushi. The laughter continued.
Veins bulged on Gilbert's forehead. His fists clenched tight — he was furious. But he said nothing more, simply glowering at the snail.
Donquixote Doflamingo — captain of the Donquixote Pirates, a pirate worth 280 million Berries, shadowy master of the Donquixote Auction House, and the leader of a pirate alliance that posed a serious threat to Vilia Port.
This was the information Gilbert had gathered on him — and it terrified him. Ever since Doflamingo's rise, a subtle, oppressive shadow had loomed over the city.
Yet, paradoxically, Doflamingo was also one of Gilbert's most important partners — a man who commanded pirate power and controlled a vast black market trade. Gilbert needed him to keep the gangs in check, suppress unruly merchants, and strengthen Vilia's city guard.
Enemy and ally, threat and partner — that was the twisted relationship between Gilbert and Doflamingo.
"That's enough, Doflamingo. Your laugh is disgusting. Once is more than enough."
At last, even the short-tempered Dars lost his patience and snapped.
"Fuffuffuffu~ My apologies, my apologies. I just heard something amusing and got a little too excited. Couldn't stop myself. Please, go on — I'm listening."
Doflamingo showed no respect to Gilbert, but he did seem to extend some courtesy to Blood Wolf Dars. At Dars' outburst, he laughed a few more times, then stopped, offering an insincere apology.
"Now that everyone's here, let's get back on track. What's our next move regarding the Akio Gang?"
Gilbert was seething inside — Doflamingo had openly slighted him — but he swallowed his anger and spoke through gritted teeth.
And so, inside the lord's castle, one of Vilia Port's highest-level meetings began.
The voices of the city's most powerful factions — the official authorities, the two major crime syndicates, and the pirate forces — all gathered together. It was an alliance as bizarre as it was inevitable.
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