Chapter 330: The Lion Rises: Clash of Ambitions

“Jiehahaha!”

“Alright boys, set sail with me!”

“This time, if Roger turns me down again, I’ll sink him to the bottom of the sea.”

Right now, Golden Lion’s power far surpasses Whitebeard’s. If Roger joined forces with him, they’d instantly become the true kings of the seas.

They’d even leave Karl and Whitebeard in their wake.

That’s all because they’ve always held the frontline of the New World.

Whenever a wave of pirates entered the New World, Golden Lion’s crew would absorb them by force, swelling their ranks into a massive fleet of thousands.

Every last one of them survived the bloody struggle for supremacy.

By sheer numbers and mid to lower level strength, they’re already the most formidable among the three major powers.

Of course, when it comes to the very top dogs, Golden Lion is actually the weakest.

But if the Roger Pirates joined him, that would flip the tables and make him the new overlord of the New World.

One captain—Roger—had just received crucial news and was sailing deep into the New World, searching for the final piece of the puzzle to Laugh Tale.

Another—Shiki—was alerted by his men that Roger was heading for the depths of the New World.

Strangely enough, they had the exact same destination: Edd War!

After days of flight, the lookout finally spotted Roger’s flag across the waves.

Meanwhile, Roger’s crew had no clue that several thousand meters above, a fleet of ships was closing in on them, quietly drawing near.

“Captain Golden Lion, we’ve got eyes on the Roger Pirates.”

“Should we prepare to descend?”

A pirate in a sharp black suit entered the lounge, sliding open the partition to report to Golden Lion.

These new recruits under Golden Lion had long become brash and cocky.

Seeing Roger, their first reaction wasn’t fear, but itching to take him on.

But Roger was the guy who took down Rocks alongside Garp—true heavyweight.

Rookies without real-world scars would never understand the gravity of that achievement.

As for Golden Lion, after days of flight, the excitement of the chase was gone. He was soaking in a hot spring in the lounge, two beautiful women giving him a massage.

Catching the news about Roger out of nowhere, he barely registered it at first.

“So you spotted him—big deal.”

“That’s all, you can get lost now.” Golden Lion said lazily. The bath and massage had him in no mood for business.

“Wait, what did you say? Roger’s been spotted?”

Pushing the women aside, Golden Lion grabbed a towel, gave himself a quick rubdown, pulled on his clothes, and hurried out.

“Where are the Roger Pirates right now?”

In his rush, Golden Lion still found a moment to light a cigar, watching smoke drift before his eyes.

His subordinate snapped to attention and handed him the telescope. “Reporting, Captain Golden Lion! The Roger Pirates are right beneath us.”

“Awaiting orders!”

“Jiehahahahaha!”

“Roger, here I come!”

The young Golden Lion, fired up by the news, soared to the edge of the island, gazing down at the lone ship floating on the ocean below.

He had the perfect vantage point—didn’t even need a telescope.

That red sail could only belong to Roger’s ship, the Oro Jackson.

“Long time no see, Roger. Here’s a little gift from me.”

“Let’s see if you’ve gotten rusty over the years.”

Golden Lion snapped his fingers. A small ship lost the power of the Float-Float Fruit and plummeted straight toward the Roger Pirates.

At the same time, he started lowering dozens of ships in a circle, slowly surrounding Roger’s crew.

“Whoa, an island is falling from the sky!”

Lookout Buggy casually glanced up and instantly spotted something strange above.

What he thought was a huge bird kept getting bigger, so he grabbed his telescope in alarm.

“Roger, looks like that guy’s back again.”

“He really clings like a shadow, doesn’t he.”

With a crisp ring, Rayleigh drew his rapier, eyeing the pirate ships plummeting from the sky.

In the New World, only Golden Lion had such an audacious style of attack.

They hadn’t tangled with Golden Lion much before.

But his ambitions were no secret—he’d wanted to draw them into the Flying Pirates for ages.

Roger drew his longsword and grinned. “It really has been a long time, old friend.”

“Didn’t expect you to greet me with such a dramatic surprise.”

“Divine Departure!”

A crimson crescent of sword aura shot skyward, turning the falling ship to dust.

The rest of the crew, hearing the commotion, rushed from the deck, each one on high alert as more ships descended.

The Golden Lion Pirates were a force serious enough to keep them on their toes.

With those terrifying numbers, they could wear down a huge chunk of Roger’s crew even in a drawn-out battle.

“Roger, who is that?”

Since Golden Lion rarely showed himself in public, Kozuki Oden didn’t know that this floating fleet belonged to him.

But just looking at the man’s presence and the tight formation of the ships, he could tell this was no pushover.

“That’s another overlord—the Golden Lion and his Flying Pirates.”

“Looks like we’re in for one hell of a fight.”

Jabba walked over from the helm, his grim face and white-knuckled grip on his axe both warning of the Golden Lion crew’s strength.

There was no love lost between them and Golden Lion.

Thanks to the Float-Float Fruit, their enemy controlled the skies and sea, making escape nearly impossible.

So they were left with just one option: duke it out with Golden Lion.

Winner takes all, loser eats dust—that’s the law of the pirate world.

Hearing another overlord had shown up, Kozuki Oden’s face shifted. He quickly sent Toki, Momonosuke, and Hiyori below deck.

This was a pirate on par with the greatest.

If the battle spilled over and touched them, the consequences would be dire. Better to be safe than sorry.

Before the ships even touched down, Golden Lion’s arrogant laughter echoed from above.

“Jiehahaha!”

“Roger, how many times have I said this already!”

“We had plenty of grudges in our youth, but let’s leave the past in the past.”

“With the world-destroying weapon you know the location of, and my mighty army—”

“—plus the flawless plan I’ve spent years perfecting,”

“—we could take this world by storm, right now.”

“Become my right hand, Roger!”

Standing wild and unrestrained atop a golden ship, Golden Lion clenched his cigar between his teeth and thrust out his right hand, then crushed it into a fist.

That brash grin on his face looked like he was certain Roger had already agreed.

“World domination’s not my thing, Shiki.”

“If I can’t do what I really want, what’s the point of being a pirate?”

“No matter how much pressure you pile on me…”

“Golden Lion, my answer’s still no.”