Chapter 252: The Gathering on Cake Island

Bringing in other factions will help muddle the waters, making the Navy think this is just a typical social gathering.

“By the way, Mom, should we invite Carven Hendy?”

Honestly, Perospero still couldn’t get that photo Carven Hendy handed him out of his mind. The more he looked at it, the more he missed the woman in the picture.

Charlotte Linlin let out a soft laugh. “Ma ma ma ma.”

“Katakuri already mentioned this to me. I figured you’d come to me directly, but I’m surprised it took this long.”

“If things work out, I don’t mind playing matchmaker for you two.”

Charlotte Linlin wasn’t just sitting around on Cake Island doing nothing.

She kept a close eye on every affair on the island. She had known about Perospero’s little schemes for a while, and the intelligence team had almost every detail about Carven Hendy’s family.

The girl really was pretty, and the problems her family faced were nothing but small bumps for them. They might even get connected with a future king. Why not go for it?

She knew what Karl ultimately wished for, and it wasn’t going to be easy to achieve.

If she could strengthen their influence from the sidelines, she would go all in. And now that Perospero had paved the way, she started thinking about finding strong allies for her other sons and daughters, too.

But unlike before, she wouldn’t just marry them off to any faction. She wanted suitors from groups her children actually liked.

Things were very different now compared to before. The Rocks Family already had overwhelming power. If they wanted to rule the seas, they could wait a couple of decades until her and Karl’s kids grew up. Then claiming the throne would be natural. But when it came to taking on the World Government, they were still far from ready. Eight hundred years of accumulated strength couldn’t be underestimated.

Celestial Dragons looked like pampered fools, but the true masters hiding in the shadows were too many to count. Eight centuries of accumulation speaks volumes.

Even Karl didn’t believe that the World Government’s eight centuries would only produce a few faces at admiral-level strength.

As soon as Perospero got the news, he rushed out to find Krell. The two quickly drafted invitations and sent them to the power players across the New World.

The first to receive the news was Morgans, the so-called King of Intelligence.

Morgans might still be young, but he always stayed in his Albatross Form, keeping others from figuring out his true age.

Because of Karl’s secret arrangements, only Davis, Charlotte Linlin and Karl himself knew Morgans’ real identity. This was all for secrecy.

If the World Government ever found out he worked for Karl, there was no way the Visual Transponder Snail and the newspapers would be allowed to become so popular worldwide.

Even if he rose to power a bit late, he was now a kingpin of the pirates’ underworld. His main business was digging up explosive news, publishing papers and controlling every shred of information over the sea. He especially loved making headlines.

He was involved in events like the Celestial Dragon executions and the God Valley battle. As for his father, he announced his retirement after the God Valley incident.

After finishing up for the day, Morgans strolled back to his office.

The moment he sat down, he spotted an invitation on his desk, signed by the Rocks Family.

“Oh? An invitation from the Rocks Family?”

His eyes flicked around the room, checking for anything out of the ordinary. Only when he found nothing odd did he open the invitation. Inside was a solid gold card with a single line engraved on it.

“To President Morgans: The Rocks Family will hold a tea party at the beginning of next month. You are cordially invited. Sincerely, Krell, butler of the Rocks Family!”

Such a short message, but Morgans mulled it over for a long time.

It wasn’t Lord Karl himself sending the message, but Krell. That meant Karl hadn’t revealed their relationship.

“I wonder what the Navy will do with such a big gathering? Heh, hahaha!”

“What an interesting invitation. Looks like some big news is about to break.”

…

Shipping king Umit and warehouse magnate Giberson had gotten invitations as well. Their businesses might revolve around the Four Seas, but when the Rocks Family hosts a party, attendance isn’t optional.

Rufid, the loan shark, was already history. A new leader was being chosen, but with nobody really taking charge, the organization was in chaos.

After receiving the invitation, they decided—after much debate—to send a group to avoid further drama during the succession.

Over in the assassin world, Piecklo’s troubles ran deeper. In South Blue, the assassin group Heaven’s Net kept poaching his business, leaving him scrambling to stay afloat. He had no time or energy to bother with the tea party.

That was exactly why Piecklo’s downfall was only speeding up.

Last of the underworld bigwigs was Stussy, current head of the entertainment scene and one of the top bosses in the underworld. Most red light districts were under her thumb. Her true identity, of course, was that of a CP0 intelligence operative. In the original story, her position was taken by Stussy, but who knows if that’s still the case now.

She glanced at the invitation in her hand, pulling out the golden card inside. “Looks like things are about to get a lot more interesting.”

This news was also relayed to Selma, who’d been stressed with the Five Elders breathing down his neck to bring Vegapunk in quickly.

The Five Elders had made it clear: if he didn’t move Vegapunk from Cake Island soon, he’d be useless to them. With his own life on the line, he racked his brain for ways to get into Cake Island.

Upon hearing this news, he realized he finally had a perfect chance to walk in the front door. As long as the plan was solid, he could grab Vegapunk all at once.

This was a once-in-a-lifetime shot. Everything had to be flawless.

Selma immediately called in the CP0 operatives. “I’ve got great news for you all.”

“Cake Island is hosting a tea party. I order you to infiltrate the island through any available means.”

“Each of you must bring a Transponder Snail. Your mission: get Vegapunk out of there.”

“Time’s tight. Move out now!”

“Yes, Lord Selma!”

Selma watched the CP0 operatives march off, squeezing his fist. “Vegapunk!”

Vegapunk had become his obsession. Whether he rose or fell all depended on this one move.

Once back in his room, Selma kept pacing. His nerves only got worse. After all, he was sending people to invade the mighty Rocks Family’s main base on Cake Island, the so-called uncrowned king of the New World!

If they pulled it off, he’d move up. But if they failed, he might lose his head—and any future. “Better find myself a backup plan.”