Blake was a little surprised.
He was a transparent person whether in Mary Geoise or on the high seas, so how could someone contact him via transponder snail?
Though he thought this, Blake still picked up the transponder snail:
"Moshi moshi?"
"Saint Black, I apologize for disturbing you."
The transponder snail simulated a face resembling Golden Lion, and said gravely:
"Orders have come from Marineford, requiring all high-ranking officers to immediately return to Marineford. At the same time, news has also come from Mary Geoise; the Gorosei hope you can temporarily return to Mary Geoise."
Hearing this, Blake was stunned.
It sounded like something big had happened?
So he asked:
"Vice Admiral Gumiel, do you know what happened?"
Gumiel, on the other end of the transponder snail, fell silent for a moment, seemingly finding it difficult to speak, but finally said:
"Your Highness, according to the information I've received, Fleet Admiral Kong encountered the great pirate, Red Earl—Patrick Redfield—in the New World."
"The two sides battled for ten days. Although Vice Admiral Garp arrived in time to arrest Red Earl, Fleet Admiral Kong remains unconscious to this day."
"Oh, so it was that."
Blake breathed a sigh of relief; he almost thought the plot had undergone some massive change.
The game hadn't specified the exact time Red Earl was arrested by the Marines, and Blake hadn't paid much attention to it.
After all, someone like Red Earl could absolutely never submit to anyone, even if he were rescued from Impel Down, it would be useless.
But he hadn't expected the matter to become so big.
"But that's right. Although the game clearly stated Red Earl as the victor, it didn't specify the battle damage for both sides."
"Now it seems Kong was badly beaten and hasn't woken up yet."
"Red Earl shouldn't have been in good shape either; otherwise, it would be very difficult for a top-tier powerhouse to leave if he wanted to, and he wouldn't have been so easily taken advantage of by Garp."
Thinking of this, Blake spoke into the transponder snail:
"In that case, let's head back."
This was not as simple as a mere defeat in a one-on-one battle.
Kong, as the Fleet Admiral, represented the Marine's highest combat power. Being defeated by a great pirate in a one-on-one fight was a major blow to the prestige of the Marines and the World Government.
From now on, pirates' fear of the Marines would be greatly weakened and would take a long time to recover.
And precisely now, only a year had passed since Roger ushered in the Great Pirate Era, and pirates wanting to set sail to find the Great Treasure were as numerous as migrating fish.
Perhaps in a few days, some pirates would think the Marines were nothing special, thereby losing reverence for the Celestial Dragons, and then attack Blake's fleet.
At that time, even if Blake was not injured, it would further damage the World Government's prestige, which was why the Gorosei were eager to recall the Celestial Dragons who were out and about.
Having understood all this, Blake had no intention of being a defiant one.
If you tell me to go back, I'll go back; the main thing is to be obedient.
"Stella, give the order: return to Mary Geoise."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Stella went to instruct the Slaves to turn back, but Perona blinked her big eyes at Blake, filled with curiosity and longing:
"Are we going back to the Holy Land? I've been curious for a long time; I heard it's the dwelling place of gods."
"It's not wrong to say it's the dwelling place of gods, but Mary Geoise isn't as good as you think. Behave yourself when we get there, or I won't be responsible if you get caught by other Celestial Dragons' guards."
Blake casually scared her.
However, what he said wasn't entirely false. Once they returned to Mary Geoise, they couldn't play around with Perona like this anymore; at least outside the manor, they had to maintain decorum.
Robin added:
"Holy Land Mary Geoise, as the seat of the World Government, has countless government officials residing there, and the inner city is the residence of the Celestial Dragons." ·
"Celestial Dragons, as descendants of gods, legally enjoy all privileges. We must be cautious in our words and actions."
"Once we offend them, at best we'll be demoted to Slaves, and at worst, directly killed."
Robin's words seemed to genuinely scare Perona; her big eyes misted over, and she looked at Robin in terror, not understanding why this older sister, not much older than herself, would say such terrifying things.
Perona hugged Blake's leg tightly, tearfully saying:
"Ah!? The Holy Land is that dangerous? Then can we not go back?"
"Haha, now you're scared? Weren't you very brave usually?"
Blake was amused by her expression.
The little girl who had been fond of sassing him for the past month was actually scared like this.
"But... but those are Celestial Dragons!"
Blake squatted down and reached out to pull her face on both sides.
"Wuwuwu... It hurts! Damn it! You guy, let go of me quickly!"
The pain of her cheeks being kneaded diluted her fear, and the super brave Perona made a comeback.
Blake asked with amusement:
"Little girl, have you forgotten? I'm also a Celestial Dragon! Be careful, I'll make you a Slave!"
Perona was visibly stunned for a moment.
In the past month, she had been playing and bickering with Blake, almost making her forget Blake's identity, and also forget that she was actually tied to the ship by him, even though she had been thinking of escaping before.
How did it turn out like this?
Perona's small head was full of big question marks.
However, this didn't prevent her from continuing to be stubborn:
"Hmph! I'm not afraid of you, big bad guy!"
"By the way, are you really a Celestial Dragon? You're not impersonating one, are you?"
Saying this, Perona looked at Blake with a suspicious expression.
Seeing Blake reach out his hand again, Perona immediately covered her slightly red face and ran away.
In fact, it wasn't just Perona who had doubts; Robin also had similar thoughts.
However, she wasn't questioning the authenticity of Blake's identity; with CP guards around and a Marine warship escorting them nearby, his Celestial Dragon identity couldn't be fake.
She was curious that Blake, this Celestial Dragon, seemed a bit different.
As if her gaze was too direct, Blake, who had already been lying on the lounge chair, opened his eyes and asked in surprise:
"What's wrong?"
Robin shook her head:
"I was just thinking about something, Your Highness."
Blake felt that she might be a little unaccustomed to the current environment and didn't pay too much attention, continuing to doze on the lounge chair, but thinking about the card matters in his heart.
Because the ability card obtained by defeating the young Borsalino was the Glint-Glint Fruit, Blake didn't get a strengthening effect, which caused his strength progress to slow down in recent months.
However, he wasn't too concerned.
There were at least twenty more years until the final battle, so there was no need to rush; steady progress was good.
Barring any accidents, there shouldn't be any situations requiring him to personally act in the short term.
"This trip, I gained Aramaki as a combat force, and many plans can now begin to be implemented."
Originally, restricted by being in Mary Geoise, many of Blake's plans could not be carried out. Now that he had subordinates, he could finally begin to act.
On the other side, Robin followed behind Perona and found Stella, who was directing the Slaves to sail the ship.