The thick fog acted like a heavy grey curtain, shrouding the boundless sea and reducing visibility to less than a hundred meters.
The seawater was eerily calm, with even the sound of the waves swallowed by this pervasive white void. In this chaotic silence, the warship of Elbaf loomed like a moving mountain of iron.
Giant King Harald stood upon his vessel like a massive sea monster, while before him stood a man suspended in the sky.
Harald was familiar with Rocks, but his knowledge of the Rocks Pirates was limited to the original members—people like Shiki and Newgate. Later, as Rocks aggressively expanded the crew and eventually fell out with him, they hadn't met again until the eve of God Valley. Thus, Harald truly didn't know if Beltz was actually a member of the Rocks Pirates.
"What do you wish to say?" Harald asked in a deep voice.
Beltz used no tools to stay aloft. His hem remained motionless in the humid breeze, creating a sharp contrast with the murky, almost writhing sea mist. He looked up calmly at the legendary Giant King, his gaze seemingly piercing directly into the depths of the other's eyes.
"Do not trust the World Government," Beltz's voice was clear and steady, cutting through the heavy fog. "The World Government is not as benevolent as you think. Above the Five Elders, there are hidden rulers in the dark. From the very beginning, their only goal has been to transform Elbaf into a military powerhouse, viewing you all as mere weapons of war."
"Is this what Rocks entrusted you to say?" Harald's bronze face was as hard as rock. Upon hearing these words, he remained unmoved; only his eyes, sunken beneath heavy brows, sharply scrutinized the human floating in the air.
His voice rolled through the mist like muffled thunder from the deep sea: "If that is all, you may leave. For the sake of Rocks, I will not capture you."
"..." Beltz frowned slightly.
Could this guy Harald already know about the existence of Imu? If he knew about Imu and still insisted on joining the World Government, his obsession must be fanatical.
Before transmigrating, Beltz hadn't actually seen the details of how Harald joined the World Government or how he was eventually killed by Loki. However, he could roughly infer the process. He just hadn't expected the man's fixation to be this deep.
Beltz didn't realize that after Rocks died, Harald felt he had no other path left. He had reached a point of One Goes Without Return! Because his sunk cost was already too great, he was forced to join the World Government. If he regretted it now, then Rocks would have died for nothing. He would be forced to ask himself: Why didn't I go to God Valley with him? If I had helped Rocks, would he have lived?
But the past was gone. With Rocks dead, he had no other choice. He had to emphasize that his path of joining the World Government was the correct one. This madness, born of excessive sunk costs, created a profound obsession. Furthermore, no matter what anyone said, nothing changed the fact that the World Government was the orthodox ruler of this world. Nominally, they truly did govern the globe. If Elbaf wanted to integrate into the world, it had to use the power of the World Government!
To ensure other nations no longer resisted Elbaf, Harald was even prepared to sacrifice himself. As a psychologist, Beltz could faintly sense this madness within Harald's heart.
As a powerhouse on the same level as Rocks, it was difficult even for the current Beltz to perform forced hypnosis on him. To control Harald, one would need long-term hypnosis and psychological guidance. For other thoughts, perhaps he could use his abilities to influence the mind subtly, but for a conviction as strong as this, he would have to perform slow psychological counseling.
"Is the future of the Giant Race truly to be tied to the hands of others?" Beltz made one last attempt, his tone carrying an indefinable complexity—part warning, part sigh.
However, Harald did not respond again. He simply turned around slowly, his massive frame displacing air and churning the surrounding fog. The giant ship let out a low rumble and began to adjust its course, sailing steadily deeper into the mist, as if toward a shore he was destined to reach.
Although Beltz claimed to be a pirate, Harald hadn't seen a bounty poster for him, and since there were two children on the boat and he had received no orders from the World Government, he did not strike at Beltz.
Beltz remained suspended in place, watching the mountain-like shadow gradually be swallowed by the greyish-white mist until it vanished completely. The sea mist surged, quickly erasing all traces, as if the confrontation had been a mere illusion.
He didn't stop him. He knew words were useless now. This man wouldn't turn back until he hit a dead end; he was beyond saving.
Beltz stayed in the sky, watching Harald disappear. Eventually, even the silhouette was gone.
Forget it, I'll deal with it when the time comes.
He didn't know exactly how Imu would manipulate Harald or control Elbaf through him, but he certainly needed to prepare. On second thought, he realized he was becoming too restricted by the logic of One Piece. Perhaps after staying here too long, he had been subconsciously infected by it.
Before, he thought that since Harald was already at Rocks' level, if he gained power bestowed by Imu, he would be invincible unless Roger and Garp teamed up again. But given time... Beltz could surpass the limits that ordinary people in One Piece could never dream of crossing.
As long as his plan was implemented smoothly, he would be unstoppable in One Piece, aside from the unknown Imu and Joy Boy. And Harald... might even be an opportunity. The Giant King's combat power was immense; if there was a chance, Beltz even thought about pulling him into his own camp.
He slowly descended from the sky and returned to his small boat. On board, Shanks and Shamrock were huddled together, their small hands gripping the gunwale. The mountain-high shadow in the fog and the dialogue that sounded like the whispers of ancient sea monsters had made their hearts race. They couldn't see the details, but they felt the suffocating pressure.
When they saw their captain fly toward that terrifying shadow alone and return safely, the fear in their eyes was instantly replaced by burning admiration.
"Captain! You must have chased that monster away!" Shanks was the first to jump up, his red hair practically standing up with excitement. Shamrock was more reserved but stared at Beltz intensely, nodding hard with eyes sparkling.
Beltz came back from his thoughts, looked at the two young but trusting and excited faces, and smiled. He reached out to ruffle Shanks' hair. "In a way. But there are many types of 'monsters' on the sea."
He looked up at the seemingly endless churning mist, his tone turning into one of leisurely anticipation. "Alright boys, let's adjust our course. Our next destination... is up there."
"Up there?" The two children followed his gaze, seeing only the grey sky.
"Yes," Beltz's smile was mysterious. "We're taking a trip to the 'heavens'."
Though they didn't understand, the word "heavens" was enough to ignite a young boy's imagination. Shanks and Shamrock looked at each other, immediately filled with energy as they grabbed the oars and rowed with all their might. The thin but resilient hull cut through the fog and seawater, continuing deeper into the Grand Line.
Although the goal was Sky Island, they had to pass the Drum Kingdom—Wapol's original country—along the way. At this time, Wapol hadn't even been born, so Beltz wanted to see if he could find the Munch-Munch Fruit. He didn't know exactly when Wapol ate it, but since he was here, he might as well try his luck.
The Munch-Munch Fruit was vital to his future plans, so he was determined to get it. This Devil Fruit possesses the ability to swallow anything and process or fuse the swallowed items within the body—it can even "eat" people! It was a true treasure.
Just one day later, they arrived at Drum Island. Unlike other pirates, Beltz didn't rely heavily on Eternal Poses. First, he could fly—at worst, he could just fly up to find his way—and second, his spiritual sense could detect auras from a great distance. He had long possessed a navigation chart of the Grand Line; as long as he knew his approximate position, he didn't need a Pose to sail.
Drum Island was a land ruled by eternal winter. As their single-masted boat pulled into the shore, a biting wind carrying fine snow lashed against them. Looking out, the entire world was wrapped in boundless pure white. Most striking was the towering main peak in the center—the five-kilometer-high Drum Rockies, piercing through lead-grey clouds like a divine pillar. The royal palace at the summit was barely visible through the snow.
"It's so cold here." Shanks and Shamrock's teeth began to chatter the moment they stepped off the boat, their small faces turning red. Wearing thin sea clothes, they looked utterly helpless in this frozen wasteland.
Seeing this, Beltz pulled thick padded coats out of his shadow. The space within his shadow was growing larger; besides gold and treasure, it now held everything necessary for a voyage.
Wrapped in the coats, the two felt better but still shivered. They stepped into ankle-deep snow, following Beltz with a crunching sound and leaving three winding sets of tracks on the vast snowy plain. Under the heavy snowfall, one large and two small figures walked toward the heart of the island.
"Is this the 'heavens' the Captain talked about?" Shanks asked. Even with the thick coat, he was freezing. He crossed his arms and buried half his face in the fur collar, his breath instantly turning into white mist. Following closely behind Beltz, he asked, "Where are we going?"
"Captain, aren't you cold?" Shamrock looked at Beltz, who was still dressed thinly, having only added a white coat over his usual attire.
"When you are strong enough, your inner furnace is enough to resist external cold," Beltz said. His voice was steady through the wind and snow. Suddenly, he stopped, a satisfied smirk appearing on his lips. "Our trip wasn't in vain. I've found what I'm looking for."
"Eh?" The two were surprised and asked simultaneously, "What are you looking for, Captain?"
"A Devil Fruit," Beltz replied.
He was very satisfied because he had already located the Munch-Munch Fruit. He could say this because while walking, he had allowed his consciousness to dive into the collective subconscious sea of the entire Drum Kingdom. Since there were no high-level powerhouses in the kingdom, he could do this freely. Physical movement is slow, but the speed of the mind is infinite. He had already "toured" the inhabited parts of the kingdom and even searched the entire territory by reading the memories of its citizens.
With this ability, he successfully discovered the Munch-Munch Fruit! It was currently inside the Drum Kingdom's palace. It was likely a fruit found by the current king, later intended for his son, Wapol.
"Let's go. We're going straight to the palace!"
He had no impression of the current king of Drum Kingdom, but he knew exactly who Wapol was. Wapol's utter rottenness was partly due to his nature—born bad—and partly due to his father's excessive pampering. However, based on the brief information gleaned from memories, this generation's king didn't seem particularly evil. Therefore, Beltz planned to use "Psychological Invisibility" to simply walk in and take the fruit.
With a target in sight, their speed increased as they headed straight for the massive Drum Rockies.
"So... so high." Shanks and Shamrock looked up in awe at the endless white peak, swallowing hard. "No wonder the Captain said it's the 'heavens'." To climb this peak would certainly feel like reaching the sky.
"The real 'heavens' are twice as high as this," Beltz said, but then he paused. "It seems this operation will have some ripples after all."
Just now, he sensed one—no, two—intense auras coming from the other side of the island. One of them was very familiar.
It was Kaido's aura!
Why would Kaido be here? And the other aura was also quite powerful. If they were with Kaido... could it be Charlotte Linlin?
It made sense. In this timeline, because Beltz had stolen the Azure Dragon Fruit, Kaido hadn't tried to ambush Linlin. Were the two of them still in their "honeymoon phase"?