Chapter Fifty-Nine: Frevans

"Hey, Doffy, are you really going to let the 'newcomer' handle this?" In the captain's quarters, Trebol addressed Doflamingo, casting a glance at the newspaper lying on the desk.

"Of course. It's just a dispensable matter, after all." The issue itself was hardly worth deliberation, and Doflamingo had already made up his mind.

"Our rookie's first outing, and we ran into the Navy so soon—do you really think that's just coincidence?" Despite his foolish-looking face, Trebol's mind was capable of working now and then.

"You mean he's in contact with the Navy? A spy? Hehehe..." Doflamingo suppressed a chuckle at Trebol's seemingly reasonable suspicion. "If Navy spies were really that stupid, I couldn't ask for anything better."

To join a pirate crew and immediately rush to leak information to the Navy? That would require nerves of steel and a sacrificial spirit—or else a reckless hunger for quick gains, heedless of the danger of exposure.

Could there truly be such a person? Even if there were, to take the argument further, Qiubai had no means of long-distance communication with the Navy.

"Vice Admiral Tsuru's intervention was probably just happenstance. Pirates running into the Navy is commonplace on these seas, isn't it?"

Was it really just coincidence? Perhaps Doflamingo harbored suspicions—or perhaps not. Who could ever fathom his schemes?

"Besides, that sort of person could never be a Navy man." Doflamingo had his own reasons for judgment.

If Qiubai's displayed personality wasn't an act, it was unlikely he would ever join the Navy. Someone of that temperament simply wouldn't fit.

"What do you think our newcomer joined the family for?" Doflamingo asked, as if struck by another thought.

"To destroy the New World?" Trebol parroted Qiubai's absurd explanation.

Doflamingo shook his head. "I don't believe a word he says, but through those words, he laid out his reason for joining quite clearly..."

"For amusement. He finds joining the Donquixote family entertaining."

He stated it as if utterly convinced.

"Amusement? For that reason, he crossed the Calm Belt to reach the North Sea?" Trebol found Doflamingo's answer just as laughable as Qiubai's rationale.

Trebol was unable to grasp what "amusement" meant to certain people, nor how much it could dictate someone's actions.

"Maybe joining us was just a spur-of-the-moment decision after reaching the North Sea, or perhaps even his arrival here was one-quarter happenstance... Perhaps he only wanted to reach one of the Four Seas more quickly, since the New World is far too unforgiving for young pirates. As for which sea he intended? Probably whichever was convenient," Doflamingo speculated.

"A fifteen-year-old can think things through to that degree?" Trebol remained unconvinced.

This time, Doflamingo finally turned his gaze upon his subordinate's snot-covered, appetite-spoiling face, but he chose not to answer.

For example, his own self—how sophisticated was his thinking at age fifteen? Even he couldn't say.

"Then why accept them into the family?"

"Hehehehe..." Doflamingo burst into laughter, only to halt abruptly. "Don't you see? Because it's 'amusing.'"

Setting aside grand ideals and ambitions, "amusement" was surely one of the ultimate goals sought by all. If someone could prove to be a harmless asset—and even bring a measure of entertainment—what harm was there in letting him join?

But was that truly Doflamingo's reasoning?

Heh. Take for instance his highest-ranking subordinate beside him; Trebol meddled a bit too much in family affairs, so Doflamingo needed to inject some unruly, fresh blood—until one day... Now, there was already a second-generation "Red Heart" in the family, and doubtless there would soon be second-generation "Clubs" and "Diamonds."

As long as the "Joker" remained unchanged, the rest mattered little.

Just then, three brisk knocks sounded from outside the door, and immediately after, Qiubai entered.

Two men in a room—a rather intimate scene.

"Doffy, did you need something from me?" Qiubai, still slightly dizzy, had no energy for idle chatter; even a phrase like "cut to the chase" seemed apt to describe him.

"Ever heard of 'White Town,' Flevance?" Doflamingo mentioned the name of the country and tossed the newspaper to Qiubai.

"No, not at all." Whether or not he'd heard of it, as someone from the New World, Qiubai could only claim ignorance.

Qiubai caught the newspaper and unfolded it. At the top, he read: "Labrador and Southern Pasture United Times"... Huh, that looked vaguely familiar.

Scrolling down, the front-page photo was rather shocking.

"A reckless journalist named Wallace recently ventured into this place called Flevance and snapped some sights many would rather not see... Paradise turned irrevocably into hell."

Doflamingo hardly needed to elaborate—the article laid out the story with stark clarity.

"White Town," Flevance, had once been a prosperous nation, its pillar industry mining. Beneath its land lay a unique ore called "Amber Lead," famed for its luster surpassing gold and silver. Its beauty bestowed immense economic value, used for cutlery, paint, sweeteners, cosmetics—even certain special weapons.

But in reality, Amber Lead was a deadly metal. Though confirmed as toxic a century before, the World Government concealed the truth for the sake of profit. By the time the facts emerged, it was far too late—the nation had been ravaged by the incurable "Amber Lead Syndrome."

A mass outbreak and deaths led others to mistake the disease for infectious, prompting neighboring countries to seal Flevance's borders.

Citizens, doomed and denied aid, finally took up arms, and war broke out.

But a weakened nation could not stand against many foes—especially with the World Government and Navy involved. So, just months ago, Flevance was wiped out.

"No survivors," the article declared, paired with photos of corpses piled high as mountains.

From the photographic evidence, those words were no exaggeration.

"How do you feel?" Once Qiubai finished reading, Doflamingo asked.

"Feelings? After this report, the newspaper will probably be shut down by the 'World News Publishing and Trans-Den Den Transmission Bureau,' and as for the journalist... at the very least, he'll be banned from the trade."

In this way, Qiubai avoided answering directly; witnessing the annihilation of an entire nation, no one could remain unmoved. If asked for his true feelings... at least the dizziness had left his mind.

But he was right; the paper was ignorant of news censorship and had exposed the World Government's scandal.

That, however, was not Qiubai's concern. What he cared about was...

"So... what exactly do you want me to do?"

Doflamingo's purpose in handing him the paper wasn't humanitarian aid for Flevance.

"I want you to check if the Amber Lead mines of Flevance are still there—after all, that's a very valuable commodity," Doflamingo said, grinning broadly.