The sky was already clearing. The thick fog that had choked Thriller Bark for centuries finally burned away, and the massive three-masted galleon stood exposed under bright daylight once more.
The entire Phantom Troupe had gathered outside Moria's Moonlight Castle.
"So those Zodiac Knights bastards joined the World Government from the Dark Continent and started kneeling in front of that so-called Empty Throne?" Uvogin growled, arms crossed.
"Sounds exactly like their style. Same move they pulled back on Lake Heart Island when they ended up serving the Five Nations."
Nobunaga kept his arms tucked inside his samurai robes and rubbed his chin. "I swear I felt you kill them, Boss. Their aura completely vanished. How the hell did they pop back up? Post-mortem Nen?"
"But I didn't pick up any grudge or resentment…"
Chrollo shook his head.
"Not post-mortem Nen. It's the ability of whoever's sitting on that Empty Throne. They can grant their most trusted subordinates a form of immortality."
"Immortality? You mean the Undying Disease—Zobae?!" Uvogin's eyes lit up. "We just ran into one of the Five Disasters?"
"…"
Chrollo stared at him, speechless for a second. Uvogin really does have the wildest imagination.
Still… given Imu's level, if the Five Disasters actually existed, she was probably their source.
"We crossed paths with them earlier than expected… the God's Knights," Chrollo murmured.
"What exactly are the God's Knights?" Shalnark asked, already pulling out his notebook to jot down intel.
"And who's the self-proclaimed 'god' on the Empty Throne?"
Chrollo's expression turned serious. "Time I gave you the full picture of how power really works at the top of this world."
"On the surface, the Five Elders are the highest authority."
"They're all Celestial Dragons—the official supreme leaders of the World Government."
"Think of them like the presidents of the Five Nations back on Lake Heart Island. They run the current World Government and the Marines. They sit at the visible peak of power."
Nami, Robin, and Bonney nodded. That much was common knowledge to anyone who'd grown up in these seas.
"But what I'm about to tell you… is the part nobody talks about."
Chrollo paused, voice low. "Above the Five Elders, there's one more person."
"She is the real ruler of the World Government."
"She lives in the Flower Room, deep inside Pangaea Castle in Mariejois."
"Seated on the Empty Throne is the 'God' who has lived for over eight hundred years—one of the twenty original founders who created the World Government."
"The King of the World… Imu."
Nami, Robin, and Bonney exchanged stunned glances. The revelation hit like a cannonball.
Eight hundred years old? Was that even possible?
It shattered everything they thought they knew about the world.
Robin's mind raced even further. If this Imu was an eight-hundred-year-old monster, then she knew everything—including the Void Century. That meant she was almost certainly the one who ordered Ohara wiped off the map.
Robin's eyes hardened with quiet resolve.
Chrollo caught the shift in her expression and knew exactly what she was thinking.
Bonney crossed her arms, skeptical. "This intel rock-solid? I lived in Mariejois for years and never heard a whisper about any of this."
"Couldn't be more real," Chrollo said with a small smile. "Don't forget—I can tell fortunes~"
He couldn't exactly admit he was a transmigrator who'd already read the script, so he pinned it on his Nen ability [Angel's Automatic Notes].
Bonney rolled her eyes but let it slide. "Fine. It does explain why the World Government's so rotten."
"Real power's been in the hands of some eight-hundred-year-old fossil the whole time—still running the same tired system of class privilege, nobility, and Heavenly Tribute."
She paused, eyes widening in sudden horror. "But if one person really has lived that long and knows every secret in the world… just how strong is she?"
Bonney tried to shrug it off. "Eh, not our problem. Our only goal is to steal stronger abilities, get stronger, and find One Piece, right?"
Her voice trailed off as the full weight of it sank in. Her smile turned awkward. "Uh… heh."
Chrollo chuckled. "Looks like it finally clicked."
"How could it not concern us? Keep doing what we're doing and the Phantom Pirates will become Imu's number-one target for elimination."
"One Piece—the end of the Grand Line, Raftel. That's where the biggest secrets are buried: the Void Century, the D Clan, the Ancient Weapons, Joy Boy's 'enormous treasure'—every ultimate truth this world is hiding."
"All of it is something Imu cannot allow to come to light."
"On top of that, we've already liberated several of the World Government's affiliate nations and quietly linked up with the Revolutionary Army. You really think she'll just let us keep sailing?"
The Troupe's habit of stirring chaos was no joke. In under six months they'd become infamous. Six members now carried bounties over a hundred million berries. They were already a major thorn in the World Government's side.
They weren't far from Imu's radar anymore.
Chrollo kept going. "Under Imu, besides the Five Elders, there's one force that answers directly to her—the God's Knights."
"That's the organization Ox and Tiger joined."
"It's an elite unit made up of Celestial Dragons. Insanely strong, under Imu's direct command. Members are chosen from the original nineteen Celestial Dragon families. When they need extra firepower, they recruit the strongest people from the lower world, grant them Celestial Dragon status, and bring them into the fold."
Bonney frowned. "How the hell did you even figure out those two joined the God's Knights?"
Chrollo tapped the side of his head. "Simple. Every single member of the God's Knights is bound by Imu's Black Transmutation Dominion ability. They get bizarre powers—like pseudo-immortality and long-range teleportation…"
He let the words hang in the air, the weight of them settling over the group like a shadow.