Chapter 265: Deal-Sealed Wedding, Tides Shifting

Just then, Daifuku strode in from outside, drawing curious glances from everyone in the room.

Without looking at anyone else, he marched straight over to Karl and Linlin, leaned in and muttered a few low words.

Truth be told, even if he hadn’t reported, Karl and Charlotte Linlin had long since sensed everything happening inside.

The moment the explosion went off, both unleashed their Observation Haki, sweeping the area.

Given the people the World Government sent this time, there was no real threat to the lab. Karl and Linlin simply left the incident for their crews to handle, wanting to see how they’d react under pressure.

They didn’t do a perfect job, but at least the lab was unharmed. The whole ordeal was over quickly and the explosions didn’t echo for long—which, all things considered, was enough for things to balance out. No rewards, no punishments.

Notty still needs some training. We’re pirates—if a problem calls for teamwork, why go at it alone?

A fight that could’ve been solved by ganging up ended in a solo rush. And look what happened—now you’ve ended up badly hurt for nothing. Maybe next time you’ll think twice.

Once the trouble at the lab settled down, Karl glanced around the tea party, noting how distracted everyone seemed. He knew there was no salvaging today’s gathering.

Having their festivities ruined by World Government lackeys, he decided it’d be better to end the party early—even if that wasn’t his first choice.

He turned to Charlotte Linlin and whispered a few words, then stood and took the stage, releasing a faint pulse of Conqueror’s Haki.

Not only did every eye in the room turn to him, but the whole hall also fell into silence once more.

“First off, thank you all for coming to this tea party!”

“There’s been a little trouble today. I know it’s put a damper on the mood.”

“So the party’s going to have to end early. The island will remain open to everyone for seven more days. Please, take the time to explore and mingle as you wish.”

“Let’s hope next year’s tea party goes off without a hitch. Thank you, everyone!”

“Krell, see our guests out.”

Standing off to the side, Krell nodded and called over a large group of Fishmen to escort the guests back to their rooms.

With his farewell finished, Karl flashed a smile and walked into Cake Castle arm-in-arm with Charlotte Linlin. The two vanished from sight.

The Fishman guards opened up all the exits from the hall one by one.

Seeing the incident was over, the guests began making their exits. The marriage alliance between the Carven Hendy Family and the Rocks Family went on as planned, just with a much smaller audience this time.

It was always a political marriage anyway—no need to make a big show, as long as the world knew it happened.

Karl had no intention of letting the Rocks Family be too high-profile. There’s only trouble in attracting too much attention; what they need now is as much discretion as possible.

The wedding proceeded as scheduled—and during it, the terms for supporting Carven Hendy were hammered out.

The deal: help him become the next king of the Red Blossom Empire. In return, the empire becomes a vassal of the Rocks Family, handing over forty percent of profits yearly and allowing Karl’s pirate crew to fly their flag over the empire.

With business and marriage sealed, both sides left the event well satisfied.

Carven Hendy no longer had to worry about his second and third brothers. The Red Blossom Empire would remain stable, avoiding civil strife. He just hoped those brothers knew when they were well off—otherwise, he’d have no choice but to cut family ties for the greater good.

On Karl’s side, his aims were met too—expanding his influence outward, winning fresh territory, and pushing the war’s buffer zone an island further from his core lands.

Still, news of this wedding banquet reached both Whitebeard and Golden Lion, all thanks to Morgans’ handiwork. He didn’t report the firefight at the lab’s doors—

but the newspaper spelled out all the details of the tea party, even the family alliance.

Marco bought a copy for 50 Berries from a carrier pigeon, glanced through it and was so shocked by what he saw that he raced for the deck to find Pops—Whitebeard.

Whitebeard took the paper, calmly read every word, and showed no sign of concern. He set the paper aside and reached for his sake jug.

Marco, seeing Pops so unfazed, spoke up in agitation. “Pops, aren’t you worried about the Rocks Family?”

“If the Rocks Pirates are making moves like this, does that mean they’re preparing to attack us?”

“Their reach is already starting to spread toward us.”

The Red Blossom Empire sits right between Whitebeard’s territory and that of the Rocks Family. Until now, it had been neutral, which meant the two sides never shared a border. But now, with neutrality gone, their territories are directly touching.

That means war could break out at any moment. A clash between two top pirate crews would shake the world—and at this point, Whitebeard Pirates might actually be weaker than the Rocks Pirates.

If fighting erupts, the Whitebeard Pirates will pay a heavy price.

“Gurararara!”

“Marco.”

“Relax. The Rocks Family aren’t our real enemy. The one you should be worried about is Golden Lion.”

“Golden Lion’s ambition—that’s our real threat.”

For some reason, neither Karl, Whitebeard nor Golden Lion ever bothered explaining the full story of the Rocks Pirates to the new recruits.

Apart from a handful of older pirates, it might only be a decade or two before the name ‘Rocks Pirates’ fades from the seas forever.

Whitebeard raised his sake jug and gazed in the direction of Cake Island. “Karl, just what will you do next?”

Karl’s methods left Whitebeard baffled. Still, he was certain of one thing: Karl would never make a move against the Whitebeard Pirates. With his eyes set on bigger prizes, Karl wouldn’t let go of any power he could bring under his banner—and Whitebeard’s crew was the easiest to win over.

At that very moment, the Flying Pirates, stationed at the entrance to the New World, also received a copy of the paper.

Pfft, pfft!

Indigo stomped around making funny fart noises as he handed the news to Golden Lion.

He tried to use one of his trademark silent performances to get the message across, but no matter how much he tried, it just looked ridiculous.

Golden Lion grabbed the paper and dismissed him with a wave. “I don’t get it, I really don’t. Now move along, will you?”

Reading at lightning speed, Golden Lion’s eyes quickly took in every detail—and seeing the Rocks Family’s overt ambitions made him grin with delight.

What’s the point of moving forward without a worthy rival on the horizon?

“Jihahahaha!”

“Karl of Rocks, are you looking to dance as well?”

“This era will belong to the Golden Lion!”

“Pass down the order—recruit pirates on a grand scale. Time to get to work!”