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He had no particular reason other than wanting to chat with them for a while to distract himself. He let their delicate fingers play beautiful melodies to ease his mental stress, which would also help in recovering from the aftereffects of his Devil Fruit transformation.
Pleasant moments of conversation always pass quickly, and before they knew it, night had fallen.
Seeing that it was getting late, Conis, feeling it wouldn't be convenient for them to return home, pleaded with Jessica, Kalifa, and the other girls:
"My dear husband, our home is quite far from here, and we aren't feeling our best. Could you allow us to rest here for a few days?"
Feeling unwell? What was happening?
Seeing Hikaru close his eyes and remain silent, they all said in a sweet, coaxing tone:
"Please, please~"
People tend to shed their shyness in private, and the same held true for his concubines. Having grown accustomed to each other's company, they naturally relaxed and were no longer so reserved.
Hikaru held his forehead helplessly. How could he bear to see his beautiful concubines being so "humble"? He immediately arranged rooms for them and allowed them to stay for a few days.
...
Meanwhile, in Dressrosa Palace.
At the very top, Doflamingo sat with most of his weight on the throne. He leaned forward, his hands clasped at his chin, his elbows resting on his thighs, and his face looked extremely gloomy, as if he were waiting for something unpleasant.
Trebol, Pica, and Diamante stood at their respective positions, exchanging silent glances. They were the three highest-ranking executives in the Donquixote Family.
The "Heart" seat cadre, Vergo, was currently serving as an undercover Vice Admiral in the Navy and also held the position of base commander of the Navy's G-5 branch.
[Vergo was transferred from headquarters to the G-5 branch fourteen years ago. After more than ten years, he should have become the base commander.]
Doflamingo had long been aware of Caesar's lazy nature and his habit of using money to frequent brothels, so he had ordered Monet to report Caesar's situation to the family daily, but she hadn't reported in today.
Along with this came the news that Punk Hazard had lost contact!
Pica had ordered Buffalo and Baby-5 to go to Punk Hazard to assess the situation there. At this moment, they were awaiting Buffalo's reply.
The room was as silent as if Rosinante had activated his Silence-Silence Devil Fruit ability. After a long while, the sound of a Den Den Mushi finally broke the stillness.
"Buru Bulu~ Boga~"
"Moshi moshi~ Young Master! This is Buffalo. Punk Hazard… it's destroyed, with holes and sword marks everywhere!"
Diamante glanced at Doflamingo and saw veins throbbing on his forehead, so he took over the conversation and asked:
"What about the research facility?"
"The research facility was also destroyed. It looks like there was a massive explosion here, or perhaps it was crushed by a giant creature."
"What!?"
"And… I haven't seen a single survivor so far. Even the things in the research facility are gone. I even saw that the alloy wall of the collection room was torn away. If I didn't remember the location, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to recognize this place…"
"That's enough!" Doflamingo interrupted Buffalo coldly, "Come back, Buffalo. Your mission is accomplished!"
"Doffy…" Trebol's large, snotty nose wobbled as he looked at Doflamingo with a worried expression.
Diamante frowned, took out a Life Card, and muttered:
"Caesar isn't dead yet! As long as we find Caesar according to the Life Card before Kaido finds us, we won't have to fear Kaido's wrath!"
"Then tell me, why does the direction pointed by this Life Card keep jumping upwards into the sky? Pica's voice, as always, had an extremely sharp quality that often made people chuckle.
"In the sky… a giant creature crushing… hehehe, could it be that Kaido is drunk and wants to bring Caesar to Wano Country?"
"Unlikely…" Doflamingo frowned, thinking carefully, and finally a possibility dawned on him.
"Fuffuffuffu~ Could it be him… the one who asked me for someone not long ago and claimed to be a god, the user of the Rumble-Rumble Devil Fruit."
"Divine Emperor Hikaru?"
"How dare he? Doesn't he know that the Four Emperors Kaido is backing us?"
The top executives were both outraged and skeptical of Doflamingo's speculation.
"Enough! Trebol, we can determine whether it's true or not with a simple phone call. Get the Den Den Mushi from that springy guy who wanted to join us!"
Poor Bellamy, his name was forgotten by his idol Doflamingo just a few months after his demise.
Trebol nodded, wiggled his seemingly obese body, and retrieved a Den Den Mushi from his waist and abdomen, which were covered in mucus.
The Den Den Mushi looked dizzy upon being taken out, and after being awakened by Trebol, it immediately displayed a disgusted expression.
"Buru Bulu… Boga~"
The Den Den Mushi only rang for a moment before the call was answered.
"Oh~ Isn't this the famous Shichibukai Doflamingo? What brings you here? Do you finally want to agree to my conditions and offer compensation? But isn't it a bit too late now?"
Hikaru's mocking expression was vividly displayed in front of everyone.
Punk Hazard was so close to Dressrosa; he had already anticipated that Doflamingo would learn about everything. He had been waiting for a long time! Just to infuriate Doflamingo and ensure he wouldn't get a wink of sleep all night.
"Fuffuffuffu~ It's you! Hikaru, release Caesar. I can pretend this incident never happened!" Doflamingo's expression remained unchanged, but the veins on his forehead pulsed visibly.
"Huh? What do you mean 'it's me'? If you have nothing important to say, stop making harassing phone calls!"
"Boga~"
The Den Den Mushi clicked off. Trebol was stunned and exclaimed, "Hey~ hey~ he was laughing, right? He must be laughing at us!"
"He didn't admit it…" Doflamingo sneered, "It doesn't matter. Whoever captured Caesar definitely has a backup plan!"
"Trebol, instruct Viola to remain on high alert 24 hours a day! Monitor the situation in the surrounding sea, especially the sky!"
"Got it~"
It was late at night. Doflamingo was worried and couldn't fall asleep for a long time. His mind raced with thoughts.
These past two days had been filled with so much trouble…
As a former Celestial Dragon, his information network was extensive. In a few days, the Navy would summon the Seven Warlords of the Sea to discuss "important matters," and these important matters might be related to shifts in the future global situation.
He had a bad feeling about the attack on Punk Hazard occurring at such a critical juncture.
On the other side, Viola also couldn't sleep. She had received an order to work 24 hours a day for the next two days, monitoring the waters around Dressrosa, especially for any sign of Hikaru.