At the end of the year 1486 of the Sea Circle Calendar, two and a half years had already passed since the God Valley Incident.
(Ps: Oda-sensei has currently set the manga timeline at year 1541, but since many readers—and I myself—are used to the current timeline, this book will stick to the originally planned one.)
...
In the first half of the Grand Line, the Kingdom of Alabasta—
This was a vast desert nation.
Alabasta was located on Sandy Island, and by the world's geographical standards, Sandy Island was undoubtedly a supermassive island—so large that even thousands, or tens of thousands, of Dressrosas combined wouldn't compare.
Alabasta had long been known as one of the oldest human nations. It was said that over four thousand years ago, the kingdom had already been established, and it had endured ever since, boasting an extremely long and rich history.
Not only was its culture ancient, but its national strength was also formidable.
Even after being ravaged by Crocodile for so long, with rebellions breaking out across the country, the Alabasta royal family had still managed to maintain a standing army of 600,000 royal soldiers—showing just how deep its reserves were.
These weren't hastily conscripted militias, but full-time, professional soldiers.
In terms of combat ability, they could likely rival regular Marine soldiers stationed at branch bases.
And currently, Alabasta's power was even greater than during the time Crocodile had devastated it. The capital, Alubarna alone, maintained a standing force of 200,000 troops. This desert capital was immense, housing millions of people.
At this moment, to the west of Alubarna, near the royal tombs of the Nefertari family—
Valthior was sitting under a parasol, avoiding the scorching desert sun.
The lounge chair beneath him, formed entirely from ice, emitted a steady chill, pushing away the surrounding heat.
Beside him stood an ice-crafted table, upon which were various chilled juices and drinks.
Holding a book in one hand and sipping iced juice with the other, Valthior spoke leisurely:
"More than eight hundred years ago, the Nefertari family, together with nineteen other kings, formed an alliance army and established the World Government. However, afterward, the Nefertari family chose not to relocate to the Holy Land, Mary Geoise. Instead, they returned here to Alabasta and continued ruling as its royal family. Even so, their status within the World Government remains extremely special—far beyond that of ordinary member kingdoms."
While Valthior relaxed, drank, and lectured—
Not far away, inside the blazing-hot desert royal tombs, Roger and the others were dressed in thick, local sun-protective clothing, wielding shovels, hoes, and other digging tools, sweating profusely under the scorching sun.
"You bastard! We're all out here digging, and you're over there enjoying yourself? Does your conscience not hurt!? Get over here and help!" Roger shouted, feeling like he was about to dry up. The moment he turned and saw Valthior lounging comfortably, he couldn't help getting pissed.
Valthior remained completely unfazed and said calmly, "I'm a scholar. Don't forget who dug through countless documents to find clues that a Poneglyph might be hidden here. Intellectual labor is my job. You just need to worry about digging holes, while I have to think about much more… Don't stop—keep digging. It's right beneath this tomb."
In truth, Valthior remembered from prior knowledge that there was a Poneglyph here.
But he had indeed put in plenty of intellectual effort over the past two years. After all, he didn't know the locations of every Poneglyph and had spent considerable time researching documents to uncover several of them.
It could be said that his presence had greatly accelerated the Roger Pirates' progress in finding the Poneglyphs—and even the Final Island.
"So what if you've got knowledge?!" Roger grumbled.
Beside him, Gaban swung his hoe and laughed. "Alright, alright, get back to work. Valthior's burned through quite a few brain cells, after all."
"You just spoil him!" Roger muttered unhappily, but still continued digging.
"According to records, over the past fifty years, whenever the Nefertari family had the opportunity to attend the Reverie, they always proposed abolishing the Heavenly Tribute system… Tsk tsk, they're really stubborn as hell…" Valthior remarked as he read.
"So this is what you meant by the Nefertari family having a special status beyond other member kingdoms?" Rayleigh asked while swinging his hoe.
"Exactly. If any other kingdom dared bring up abolishing the Heavenly Tribute, we Celestial Dragons would be throwing a party at their home the very next day. But the Nefertari family is different—they're basically honorary Celestial Dragons," Valthior said with a grin.
If any other royal family proposed abolishing the Heavenly Tribute, the Holy Knights would have long since minced them and their entire bloodline.
Yet the Nefertari family brought it up every time—and were still alive and well.
However, as far as Valthior knew, the Celestial Dragons in Mary Geoise harbored plenty of resentment toward this "uncooperative partner."
But as descendants of one of the original twenty kings, they couldn't openly do much about it.
To deny the Nefertari family would be equivalent to undermining their own legitimacy.
It was a difficult situation.
Perhaps that was why Crocodile had been able to wreak havoc here in the future—likely with the tacit approval, or even encouragement, of the World Government.
Otherwise, it would be hard to explain how a pirate could run rampant over the descendants of one of the twenty kings.
But Valthior was certain of one thing—
If Crocodile had truly wiped out the Nefertari family, he would never have become the new king of Alabasta.
The moment Crocodile eliminated them, the World Government would have eliminated him just as quickly—making an example of him, then publicly expressing "deep sympathy" for the Nefertari family while installing a more obedient royal line.
"So by that logic, the Alabasta royal family is actually pretty decent, huh? Doesn't it feel a bit wrong for us to be secretly digging up their ancestors' graves?" Intelligence officer Spencer couldn't help but comment.
"This is protective excavation. Don't talk nonsense," Valthior shot him a glance.
"You really are a genius…" Spencer was genuinely stunned by Valthior's shamelessness.
While the Roger Pirates were busy robbing graves—
Not far away, a group of Alabasta guards escorted a young boy riding a camel, leisurely approaching the area.
At first, the group was calm.
But as they drew closer, they realized that a group of unknown individuals was actively digging within the royal tombs, while the original guards lay unconscious at the entrance.
Their expressions instantly changed.
The young boy at the front froze for a moment, then his face filled with fury as he shouted:
"What are you bastards doing?! Guards! Arrest them all!!!"
This boy—
Was none other than the future King of Alabasta, Nefertari Cobra.
Of course, he wasn't king yet.
He was just the prince of Alabasta—only fourteen years old.
Originally, he had come today on behalf of the royal family to perform a routine ancestral rite.
But the moment he arrived, he found someone digging up his ancestors' graves.
How could he not lose it?