"Doflamingo wants to see me?"
Caesar was somewhat surprised, but considering that Lord Kaido had previously tasked Doflamingo with investigating him, it wasn't strange for the latter to connect the dots and realize his existence.
"Eh, I'm just passing on the message," Black Maria said with a faint smile. "That guy mentioned he admires your intellect and wants to invite you over for a proper chat… There might be a scheme involved, though~ What do you think? Should I help you decline?"
"No need, I'll play along with him."
Caesar's interest was immediately piqued. "I've been feeling restless these past few days, itching for some action!"
"Looks like someone's in for a bad time," Black Maria chuckled, her laughter tinged with a hint of schadenfreude.
Over this period, she had gained a rough understanding of Caesar's temperament.
He was easygoing and approachable, treating even ordinary people with courtesy.
On the other hand, shortly after joining the Beasts Pirates, he had cunningly eliminated Who's-Who and drained a Headliner into a dried-up husk, hanging him like cured meat at the entrance. Orochi and the Oniwabanshu had met their ends swiftly and decisively!
Killing wasn't anything special—they were all pirates, and such things were commonplace.
But the way Caesar killed felt entirely different from others.
When people killed, there was always some emotional fluctuation, whether positive or negative—even Lord Kaido was no exception.
But when Caesar killed, it felt like… he was just taking out the trash?
As if it were a trivial matter, as if those people deserved to die…
This mode of killing, even for a pirate like her who was accustomed to bloodshed, was unsettling.
Because people like him didn't decide their targets' fates based on emotional whims—they simply decided someone should die and acted on it.
In a way, that made them more dangerous than those who were unpredictable!
Fortunately, Caesar's killings followed a certain pattern. So far, the only commonality among those he had killed was that they were all scoundrels.
Because of this, she had been much more restrained lately, avoiding the casual abuse of prisoners, fearing that one day he might glance her way and suddenly decide to end her.
Black Maria's feelings toward Caesar were complex. From the start, she had intended to build a good relationship with him, though back then, it was more about mentoring a junior.
But within days, Caesar had defeated both King and Queen…
His growth was so rapid that before she could even process it, he had reached a level where he could challenge Lord Kaido.
Since then, her attitude toward him had become even more eager.
It's important to know one's place. As one of the Flying Six, Black Maria's greatest life ambition was to serve Lord Kaido and become Yamato's stepmother. Becoming an All-Star was something she had never even considered.
Someone of Caesar's caliber was definitely not someone she could afford to offend.
Nor was it someone Doflamingo could afford to offend!
"By the way, Caesar, you don't have a dedicated ship yet, do you? Would you like to take mine?"
"No need, just give me an Eternal Pose to Dressrosa."
Caesar hung up the call, took a shower, grabbed the Eternal Pose, and flew straight to Dressrosa.
Traveling from Wano Country to Dressrosa by ship would take over half a month, but Caesar certainly wasn't going to fly the entire way.
[Item Collected: High-Speed Submarine]
The small submarine, several meters long, moved with astonishing speed, darting through the water like a nimble fish.
In this world, there were fuel-powered ships, such as the many cruise ships in the East Blue, though they were relatively rare in the Grand Line.
Jin Caesar had collected various models of ships and submarines, so the idea of a shipwreck was out of the question. The exterior of the submarine was embedded with Sea Prism Stone, so there was no need to worry about Sea Kings.
As for fuel, he had no shortage of that, considering it was his line of work.
Along the way, whenever Caesar encountered stormy currents, he would ascend to an altitude of ten thousand meters. When the weather was good, he would pilot the submarine, and when the winds were strong, he would switch to a speedboat. In less than two days, he arrived at Dressrosa.
At the port, lively toy figures could be seen everywhere. On the streets, one could occasionally witness romantic proposals or scenes of women angrily wielding knives against their cheating boyfriends.
Shops along the roadside enthusiastically called out to customers, while some people danced passionately in the streets, accompanied by musicians.
Caesar casually found an inn, took a quick shower, leaned back on the bed, and casually dialed Doflamingo's number.
Brr Brr Brr…
"Moshi moshi? An unfamiliar number… Who is this?"
Soon, the call connected, and the Den Den Mushi's face transformed into a grinning expression with slanted sunglasses, its voice slow but with a hint of politeness.
"Jin Caesar."
Caesar spoke calmly, "Come to think of it, this is our first conversation, Doflamingo."
"So it is you, after all?"
The Den Den Mushi grinned, and a low chuckle came through the receiver: "Fufufufu… I knew that woman Black Maria didn't have the vision to completely outmaneuver those old fools. If it's you, then it's no surprise."
"So? What do you want?"
Caesar scoffed lightly, not paying much attention to Doflamingo's flattery: "No, you'd better have something important."
"Oh?"
The Den Den Mushi's grin widened: "With that tone, it's hard to imagine that just a few months ago, you were just a nobody in the East Blue. Honestly, I really admire people like you. Would you be interested in coming over for a visit? Perhaps we could deepen our cooperation?"
"We—?"
"Fufufu, that's right… we!"
Doflamingo's tone carried a hint of temptation: "You're different from Kaidou. You come from a business background, and so do I. The Beasts Pirates have always had strength but lacked the brains for this kind of thing. But with you, we could maximize the potential of our resources. After all, this is your expertise."
Listen to you spouting nonsense…
Caesar couldn't help but laugh in anger. Since when did Doflamingo care about Kaidou's interests?
And inviting me over for a visit?
What kind of visit?
To become a toy laborer?
"Cut the useless talk."
Caesar shook his head slightly: "Do you have any good money-making ideas?"
"Not necessarily money-making, but I do have a way to significantly boost the strength of your Beasts Pirates. I've even discussed it with Kaidou before."
Doflamingo spoke casually: "Artificial Devil Fruits. Ever heard of them?"
"Never heard of them."
Caesar sneered inwardly. Punk Hazard hadn't even exploded yet, so where did you get these artificial fruits from?
Are you really pulling a scam, trying to get funding with just a PowerPoint presentation?
"Can such things even be artificially created?"
"Fufufufu… Of course!"
Doflamingo let out a hearty laugh: "My people have gathered some information. The experiment is quite advanced, and with sufficient conditions, it can basically be mass-produced. However, there is a certain risk of failure."
"What kind of risk?"
"We can discuss it in detail when we meet."
"Are you at the palace now?"
"Is there a probl
em? I am, after all, the king of Dressrosa..."
"Fine..."
Caesar descended gracefully from the air: "Then have your subordinates open the door for me. I'm at your doorstep."
Doflamingo: "???"
(End of chapter)