Chapter 280: The Storm Gathers on Cake Island

Just as Karl finished giving orders and was about to hang up the transponder snail, Krell’s worried voice came through.

“Lord Karl, please wait!”

“The surveillance shows those mysterious individuals moving in a fan formation, heading straight for the lab.”

“Looks like they can’t wait any longer. What should we do?”

Karl hadn’t expected the World Government to make their move on the penultimate day.

“Alright, I understand. Inform the others—the show’s about to begin.”

With that, Karl hung up and looked at Judge, who waited quietly nearby. He reached out, tapping the air with his finger.

“The snail ship will arrive at Cake Island within three to five days. For now, focus on your preparations.”

“The moment the snail ship lands, start the experiments. I want results as soon as possible.”

“In a bit, something big will probably happen on this island. If you hear noise outside, don’t step out.”

“I figure you wouldn’t want to die here before seeing yourself rule North Blue, right?”

Karl spoke with a teasing tone, but Judge wasn’t rattled. He’d weathered more than his fair share of dangerous incidents.

Still, he understood the risk at hand. Judge nodded solemnly. “Don’t worry. No matter what chaos comes, I won’t leave the lab first.”

“I won’t risk my life before achieving my grand ambitions.”

He’d come all the way to Cake Island—he wasn’t about to die in the heart of the New World without doing anything meaningful.

Karl’s real aim was to keep him alive—after all, if Judge died, who would advance his research on clones?

With his instructions given, Karl left the lab and pulled out his transponder snail to dial a mysterious contact. “The hunt is on.”

Thousands of fishmen began seizing control of Cake Island, confining actual tourists to the amusement park and the shopping street in front of Cake Castle.

A tourist tried to cross the line but was blocked by a fishman. “You can’t go any further.”

“Why not? Are you discriminating against us too?”

He’d just seen someone else pass through. Was the so-called ‘open policy’ a lie?

“Sorry, sir. Something private’s going on within the island. We can’t let you through right now. Hope you understand.”

“Well… alright then.”

The man wanted to keep arguing but fell silent as he saw a large group of fishmen approaching from the distance.

“What’s going on over there?”

“Yeah, why are there so many fishmen?”

“Look, they’re headed inside!”

It wasn’t just him who noticed. Still, with the fishmen guarding the area, getting through was out of the question.

In the middle of the venue, Morgans simply raised his wine glass and muttered, “Is it starting?”

“……”

“Albert, be careful out there,” Tim said, stepping up to fix Albert’s clothes before he set off.

Ever since Albert and Tim recovered from their injuries, they’d built a family together.

They were both Lunarians. After a long period of recovery and training, their combat abilities were now on par with vice admirals.

They’d long wanted to serve Karl as thanks for saving their lives.

But previous battles hadn’t taken place on Cake Island, and lately there hadn’t been any major fights in the New World—they simply hadn’t had the chance.

With this showdown happening right here, Karl decided to let the Lunarian Tribe show what they could do.

Albert, the chieftain, and Bruno were the Lunarians taking part this time. Both had yearned for battle and wanted nothing more than to shine in this fight.

The two of them quickly intercepted a vice admiral-level opponent.

“Looks like our movements have been exposed ahead of schedule.” Penelope glanced at Albert and Bruno, scratching his head helplessly.

He’d expected they might get spotted, but didn’t think these two would be waiting right outside his door.

No wonder the World Government’s last operation failed. With this kind of tight security, it’d be impossible for anyone to sneak around Cake Island.

Every move was being watched. Hide or not, they’d get found out sooner or later—might as well not bother.

“Every last World Government agent deserves to die.”

Bruno’s eyes burned with murderous intent, clearly remembering the torment of being experimented on, a fate worse than death.

He unfurled two giant black wings, a crown of flame flowers twining between them—his battle form.

Suddenly, he shot forward like a black streak, drawing a violent gust that twisted the air around him.

Watching Bruno barrel in with such force, Penelope still spoke calmly.

“So that’s how it is. Looks like Karl was the one who freed the slaves at Mariejois.”

The instant Bruno spread his wings, Penelope recognized him as a member of the Lunarian Tribe.

That tribe had long ago been exterminated by the World Government. The few who survived were taken to Mariejois for experimentation.

If not for a sudden twist that let strangers rescue them, they’d have been wiped from history. Which meant—it had to be Karl who’d saved them.

“Finger Gun!”

A strange glint flashed on his jet-black fingertip as he blocked the incoming wings.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Bruno kept swinging both massive wings at Penelope. Sparks lit up the air, the fight as dazzling as a fireworks show.

At the same time, Albert seized his moment—spreading his great wings and striking from the side with his longsword.

“Paper Art!”

Penelope’s body seemed to turn thin as paper, swaying left and right to dodge Albert’s attack.

But Bruno in front refused to back down, launching kicks and punches that forced Penelope to drop his Paper Art technique.

He hadn’t expected, just as his body returned to normal, for Albert to slash at his left arm with a flaming sword, the flames threatening to devour everything.

Penelope’s face twisted with shock. He’d never expected Albert to have a backup move. He tried to dodge, but was a split second too slow—the sword’s energy severed one of his fingers.

Plop!

The finger hit the ground, and pain contorted his features.

He stared at the severed digit, pupils wide, instinctively reaching down to snatch it up.

“You underestimated us.”

“At this point, you really think luck’s still on your side?”

Bruno was furious—how dare Penelope act like they were nothing? In his rage, he swung his wings with all his might, stabbing straight at Penelope’s chest.

Armament Haki surged across the wings. In a flash, Penelope was sent flying, his body crashing through the attic behind him with a deafening boom.

The noise carried out, instantly alerting other World Government members heading toward the lab.

“That sound…?”

“Were we discovered?”

Unfortunately, they’d already been surrounded by enemies outnumbering them several times over.

The clash was about to erupt—Cake Island was about to catch fire.