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The Great Age of Pirates had truly arrived. How many people were inspired to become pirates by Roger's final words?

It was impossible to calculate... one could only estimate that their number surpassed the total strength of the entire Marine forces.

"Before long, people will forget how terrifying Captain Arthur is and will scramble to challenge him!"

"Overconfident fools! People playing at being pirates who haven't been baptized by the New World have no idea what true power is!"

"Murufufufu, isn't it a good thing to let them learn how cruel the sea can be?"

"We'll just kill them all..."

Aboard the [Thor], they sat and discussed, their contempt for the pirates of the new era absolute.

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The storm continued to rage, the tide never-ending!

The people, their desires unshackled, did everything they could to build, steal, or buy ships, all for that ethereal world's greatest treasure—the One Piece!

No one knew just how many had been influenced by Roger's words... Before long, the Grand Line would be flooded with these make-believe pirates. However, how many of them could truly stand out?

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In the waters outside Loguetown, aboard the Moby Dick.

"Pops, Roger's body... what will happen to it?" Marco asked in a low voice.

Even as a former enemy, he didn't want to see such a great man left without even a body to bury.

The man who had started a magnificent era... would there be no one to even collect his remains? Was this truly his tragic end?

Jozu, Vista, and the others were also concerned about this, gathering around Whitebeard.

Blackbeard Teach stood silently in a corner, feigning his simple and honest appearance. In his small eyes, hidden as he devoured a cherry pie, a shrewd light flashed...

'Zehahahaha! Roger is dead! Just let me get my hands on the most evil Devil Fruit in history, and the pinnacle will be mine! Whitebeard? Thunder Emperor Arthur? They can all go to hell!'

No one knew Blackbeard's inner thoughts. They only thought he was a truly ambitionless member of the Fourth Division.

"Don't worry. Roger's body... someone will come to collect it," Whitebeard said, putting down his wine gourd, a hint of sorrow in his heart.

Without realizing it, wrinkles had appeared at the corners of his eyes, and the pale golden hair under his hat was beginning to turn white. The men of his era... how many were left now?

"That's good!" Marco and the others were relieved. Then, the conversation shifted.

"The era has gone wild. More and more people will be setting out to sea. Will people come to challenge you, Pops?"

"What are you talking about? Pops is the World's Strongest Man!"

"Hahahaha, that's true. I was just asking out of boredom."

"Gurarararara! My foolish sons, the one you should be worried about is that lightning brat... That kid doesn't even have a stable territory. It's only a matter of time before he's targeted."

The atmosphere on the Whitebeard Pirates' ship was joyous as they began a banquet to see Roger off.

At the same time, far away in the New World, the Big Mom Pirates and the Beasts Pirates had encountered each other while fighting over territory.

Whitebeard had no interest in the territories left behind by Golden Lion Shiki and Roger. Arthur had not yet entered the New World. Only these two pirate crews were fighting over such a massive prize.

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Just as Whitebeard had said, on the very first day of the new era, pirates had already appeared targeting Arthur.

Doflamingo led his family's army into the Grand Line. They knew how dangerous Arthur was, and Doflamingo was clear-headed enough to know that his current goal was to temporarily cooperate with an emperor.

The supreme throne was not yet something he could covet.

Mihawk, alone with his sword, had no interest in the so-called great treasure. His only pleasure was to challenge master swordsmen.

With Golden Lion Shiki captured, who were the remaining master swordsmen? Silvers Rayleigh? In any case, only by entering the New World could he find suitable opponents.

Sir Crocodile's goal had always been one and only one: his sole target for entering the sea was the World's Strongest Man—Whitebeard.

And the bizarrely-shaped Gecko Moria, leading his crew, was one of the countless pirates who had set his sights on Arthur.

Shanks was still far from being able to stand on his own. Roger's death had thrown his world into chaos. However, he had his own plans: first, to increase his strength, then to recruit a crew, and finally, to return to the Grand Line and the New World.

"Treasure Hunter" Mad Treasure was a pirate who only knew how to search for treasure. What he pursued was the sense of accomplishment at the moment he found it.

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Chaos was erupting. In the four seas, countless people dreamed of taking the head of a New World emperor and using it to make a name for themselves.

And the current emperor-level existences in the New World were a full five people!

Whitebeard, the Red Count, Kaido, Big Mom, and the Thunder Emperor!

"Kishishishi, five heads. Who should I choose?" one voice after another began to sound.

People who had no idea what death was seemed to see themselves stepping on the body of a New World emperor and becoming famous throughout the world.

"Roger is dead, the Golden Lion has been captured, the Whitebeard Pirates are too massive, and the forces of Kaido and Big Mom are not to be trifled with. Then... that leaves only Red Count, Patrick Redfield, and the Thunder Emperor, Seabury D. Arthur!"

"The Red Count's whereabouts are unknown, he's not even in the news. Then the only target is—'Thunder Emperor' Arthur?"

"HAHAHAHAHA, if I take his head, I'll shake the world and become a new emperor!!"

"Kishishishi!"

"..."

All sorts of strange laughter echoed across the four seas. The number of people who had set their sights on Arthur was simply countless...

They had even forgotten the scene of Arthur's recent duel with the World's Strongest Man, Whitebeard.

Events on the sea were like crashing waves. If there was no follow-up, they would immediately be erased by the next major event.

These people had, in such a short time, forgotten just how terrifying Arthur was, forgotten why he was called—the World's Most Dangerous Man.

How many utter fools were there in the world? As many as the stars in the sky.

But were they really foolish? Don't forget, a man's obsession with wealth, fame, and power—these were things no one could resist.

Once you got a taste, you could never quit.

Ambition drives people forward, constantly climbing, never submitting!

Those blinded by ambition were like climbers in a thick fog, unable to see if a bottomless abyss lay ahead.

These hot-headed ambitious fools, without even thinking, just assumed that anyone could climb to the top and see the view, that they could take the heads of the emperors at any time. They never considered that the bodies of those who died on the way were ground to dust.

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