"Why are you looking at me like that?" Cobra asked, frowning. Darren's stare was so blatantly curious that the old king couldn't ignore it.
Darren hesitated, then answered with a question of his own. "Your Majesty… do you know what the 'D' truly means?"
Cobra shook his head. "I don't. I've heard the 'D' appear in certain names, but I have no idea what it signifies."
He drew a slow breath, his voice lowering.
"To be honest, apart from attending the inauguration ceremony for the Commander of the Knights of God, my main reason for coming to the Holy Land was to seek answers from the Gorosei."
Darren's brow knit. "What do you want from those five old, undying geezers?"
Cobra spoke carefully. "After the World Government was founded, Queen Lily left Alabasta and vanished without a trace. I want to know where she went."
Darren studied him for a beat. "Do you think she's still alive?"
Cobra shook his head.
"No. The Gorosei may have some means of extending their lives, but it's unlikely Queen Lily had the same."
A bitter smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"If she were alive… why would she never return? Alabasta was her homeland."
Darren's tone was flat. "Not everyone clings to their homeland."
Cobra paused, taken aback, and looked at him again.
"Don't you miss yours?"
Something unreadable flickered in Darren's eyes—gone almost as soon as it appeared, buried beneath a casual smile.
"I'm satisfied with my life."
Sensing the subject had hit something Darren didn't want to touch, Cobra pushed on.
"Besides that, I also intend to ask the Gorosei about the true meaning of the 'D'…"
He abruptly scowled. "And why are you giving me that strange look again?"
The irritation in his voice sharpened.
This insolent brat truly had no respect for him at all.
"So," Darren said, as if Cobra's anger didn't exist, "you plan to tell the Gorosei Queen Lily's true name?"
Cobra hissed, teeth clenched. "What else can I do?"
"If anyone on this sea knows where Queen Lily went after leaving Alabasta, it would only be the Gorosei. Am I wrong?"
Darren fell silent for a moment, then said mildly, "Then maybe you should give me the coin back."
Cobra instantly shoved the "NF" coin deeper into his robes, glaring at Darren like he'd caught a thief.
"You little whelp! Are you trying to back out of our deal?" he roared. "I've already told you everything I know! Where's your honor?!"
Darren clicked his tongue. "That's not what I mean."
"My point is: since you're going to use it soon anyway, I might as well take it back now and save us both the trouble."
Cobra froze, suspicion and confusion tangling on his face. "What are you talking about?"
Darren let out a tired sigh. "I mean if you really go and ask the Gorosei those questions, you won't walk out of Pangaea Castle alive."
"Then I'll have to rescue you personally—which would essentially be using the coin's value on the spot."
"That's… impossible!"
The words burst out of Cobra before he could stop them.
"You're saying… the Gorosei would dare lay a hand on me?"
"That's impossible! I'm the king of a World Government member state—and I'm Nefertari!"
"How dare they—"
His voice cut off. His throat went dry.
"Unless…"
Cobra went rigid, staring at Darren's calm, knowing smile. Realization crept in like ice water. His eyes widened, pupils shrinking.
"Unless…"
"Yes."
Darren shook his head, his voice steady against Cobra's paling face.
"There's a legend about the 'D.' The Celestial Dragons believe the Clan of D are their natural enemies—'gods' who oppose them."
"B-but… Queen Lily's name…" Cobra's hands began to tremble.
"Exactly." Darren spread his hands. "Now you see why I find it strange too."
"If your ancestor Queen Lily was a bearer of D—one of the Celestial Dragons' natural enemies—how could she have allied with the other nineteen kings, destroyed that legendary kingdom, and founded the World Government?"
"That would make her a traitor to the Clan of D."
"Maybe she had her reasons. Maybe she was forced. Whatever the truth is, it's buried in the past. But one thing is undeniable—when all was said and done, she chose to bury the fact of her bloodline."
He leaned back slightly, watching Cobra without pity.
"And that leaves one crucial fact, Your Majesty."
"You are also a bearer of D."
"Now imagine the Gorosei learning that. Do you really think they would let their 'natural enemy' leave Pangaea Castle alive?"
Cobra looked like he'd been struck by lightning.
Darren sighed, almost gently. "That's why I'm telling you not to ask."
"Even if you did, it wouldn't change anything."
"The Gorosei will never answer you. And they're not even qualified to."
"The only one who can answer you is the one sitting on the Empty Throne."
Cobra jolted as if stabbed.
"What did you say…?" he whispered, eyes wide with horror. "Someone is sitting on the Empty Throne?"
"How is that possible?"
"After the World Government was founded, the twenty kings swore an oath—no one would ever sit upon that throne!"
"The Empty Throne represents equality between nations! It's proof of the founding kings' vow to resist the allure of tyranny!"
"It's the heart of the world—an inviolable symbol of peace!"
"It was precisely because of that oath that the Gorosei were created—chosen to serve as the World Government's nominal supreme authority! They embody the Celestial Dragons' rule over the world!"
Darren let out a quiet, derisive laugh.
"Naive."
"No one resists supreme power forever."
"And reality is… someone is sitting on the Empty Throne."
"He's occupied it for ages, looking down on the world from above."
To be continued...