Without anyone quite noticing, a month had passed since the great incident in the Sabaody sea area that shook the entire world.

As mentioned before — over that month, newspapers and major powers alike had been waiting for the World Government to make a move against The Zodiac.

But after all that time, the Government's response remained exactly what it had been: nothing. As if the starlight giant ship didn't exist. Absolute silence.

Letters from the World Government's affiliated countries sank into the void without reply, one after another.

And so the factions of the sea gradually began to arrive at an uncomfortable conclusion — had the World Government... blinked?

The first reaction most people had to that thought was disbelief.

This was the World Government.

The colossus that had ruled the world for eight hundred years. How could it possibly be afraid?

But that thought refused to go away. And the more people sat with it, the more the implications became clear.

If the World Government had truly blinked — or was at least wary enough of The Zodiac to hold back — then The Zodiac stood to gain an influence over the sea that few could even begin to measure.

That influence quickly made itself felt.

The most direct sign was the flow of information surrounding the "Twelve Trials".

In the early days, within the sea areas the Aster passed through, most people had not dared to board the ship — outside of the pirates with ambitions to spare, the desperate slaves, and the commoners chasing dreams of fame and fortune. The promise of "wish fulfillment" excited them, but the fear of being seen as enemies of the Government held them back.

After the Government's continued silence, however, that calculation shifted.

More and more people began making their way to the Aster.

And so, almost inevitably, details about the ship and the Star Garden started seeping out across the sea.

Beyond the Fish-Man and Giant warriors Sharna had seen aboard the Aster, many people had been fortunate enough to glimpse the "New Ryugu Palace" within the Star Garden — and the far greater number of Fish-Men living inside it.

"They looked like they were covered in wounds, as if they might collapse at any moment — but the starlight of the Star Garden was healing them right before our eyes. It was unbelievable."

"I flew over New Elbaf, and I actually saw Giant children waving at me from below. Good heavens, they really are enormous."

As the word spread, more and more people came to believe it.

Whether it was the Aster or the Star Garden, they genuinely seemed to be what The Zodiac had claimed — places of true equality. Fish-Men, Giants, Humans, and the Zodiac's own executives all living there side by side.

It was said that after this news got out, people of rare and marginalized races began appearing on the Aster's starlight plaza in numbers no one had expected.

But to those who were truly paying attention, all of that was secondary.

What they cared about was the "Twelve Trials".

"Those who pass the trials can have their wishes fulfilled."

"Illness, wealth, life, youth, power — the stars will grant everything."

That single sentence, spreading from mouth to mouth across the sea, was enough to send countless dreamers and desperate people into a frenzy.

And the facts bore it out — almost anyone who successfully boarded the Aster could obtain the chance to participate in the Twelve Trials.

News about the Places of Trial began to cause an uproar unlike anything seen in recent memory. Even the World Economy News Paper published a dedicated report based on the intelligence they had gathered.

[According to currently available intelligence, the Places of the Twelve Trials are twelve unique and distinct 'worlds' — the author asks forgiveness if the phrasing falls short, but based on all information gathered to date, within the place known as the 'Star Garden', there exist twelve extraordinarily vast special areas that can only be described as worlds unto themselves.]

[Nine such areas have currently been confirmed to exist. One of them is the 'Neverland' familiar to many — though its true name within the Star Garden is 'Dream Wonderland', and rather than a single island, it is a collection of many similar islands combined into one. Within the Dream Wonderland resides a Lord of Wonderland, said to be the very 'Island Spirit of Neverland' spoken of in past accounts — its creator and manager. Local mythological traditions hold that it fashioned various mythical beasts from starlight itself.]

[Among the other Places of Trial, there is a secret realm called 'Mount Huaguo', in which entities known as the Heavenly Court serve as adversaries. Those who enter take on the role of the monkeys of Mount Huaguo and, under the leadership of the Monkey King known as 'Great Sage Equaling Heaven', must battle the Heavenly Court.]

[There is also the 'Duel World — Pyramid of Illusion Gods', which operates under unique rules requiring challengers to fight through a special card game. Clearing two stages of the trial grants an audience with the legendary Egyptian Gods.]

[Other currently confirmed areas include: 'Outer Space Demon Realm', 'Shadow World', 'Four Sacred Beasts Domain', 'Sword Mound', 'Book Domain', and 'Ever-Changing Wonderland'. Two Places of Trial remain that no one has yet entered.]

[According to all available information, each of these worlds contains a complete cultural framework and a large population of indigenous people. Whether they are truly alive or merely phantoms cannot yet be determined — but it has been confirmed that they communicate like ordinary people, and each Place of Trial has its own distinct character.]

[The reason for the existence of these Places of Trial cannot be determined at present. What can be said is that they appear to be deeply connected to the abilities of The Zodiac — most likely, they are the very sources from which those abilities draw their power. As one example, informed sources have noted that the head of the Egyptian Gods, 'The Winged Dragon of Ra', within the Pyramid of Illusion Gods, bears an extremely strong resemblance to the ability demonstrated by the Zodiac Rooster on the Sabaody Archipelago.]

[Devil Fruit researchers and scientific personnel currently speculate that The Zodiac may have obtained their respective Devil Fruits from within the Places of Trial, or alternatively that their abilities gave rise to these places. Whatever the case — the opportunities within are immense.]

[Regardless of which Place of Trial one enters, there are corresponding tests and objectives. Those who grow strong enough and prove themselves outstanding within can obtain the resources and rewards inside.]

[For instance: becoming a leader among the monkeys of 'Mount Huaguo' grants a Peach of Immortality. By holding the Peach of Immortality and waiting at the mountain's peak for the starlight to descend at night, one may exchange it for a limited wish. One tester asked whether it could cure 'physical disabilities' — and received an affirmative answer.]

The moment that issue hit the stands, people across the sea praised the World Economy News Paper as worthy of its reputation as the leading voice of the press.

And for good reason — by now, information about the "Twelve Trials" had become one of the most sought-after commodities on the sea.

Over the course of the month, people had gradually adapted to the various Places of Trial and achieved results in each of them. Without exception, they had all obtained the chance to make a wish — though since most hadn't fully cleared their respective trials, the wishes were limited in scope.

Even so, it was enough to send people into a frenzy. Because it proved that the words of the Zodiac "Uma" were not empty.

And precisely because of that, every scrap of information related to the Twelve Trials was being sold at wildly inflated prices in the underworld — driven up by those with ulterior motives — with demand still outstripping supply.

Against that backdrop, the World Economy News Paper's willingness to openly publish so much of what they had gathered was a rather bold move.

And it was against that same backdrop that the people of the sea had no way of knowing —

On the Aster, the man most directly responsible for all of this was watching events unfold with quiet satisfaction.

"In just a month, quite a harvest. The years of preparation weren't wasted."

On the central mast of the Aster, hidden beneath the cover of countless points of starlight, Roy — wearing the horse-head mask — murmured words that no one nearby could catch.

As he spoke, he could see the text continuously flickering at the bottom of his vision in the Fruit Encyclopedia.

[Collected Wish · Cognition · "Great Sage Equaling Heaven"]

[Collected Wish · Cognition · "Egyptian Gods"]

[Collected Wish · Cognition · "Lord of Dreams"]

The steadily accumulating entries were exactly what he had been watching for.

This was the true reason he had built the Aster and compiled the Star Garden — and the plan he had already mapped out before the Fish-Man Island arc had even begun.

By now, Roy had a very clear picture of what came next.

Whether he wanted it or not, he had already become the World Government's and Imu's mortal enemy. And as it happened, he was currently quite displeased with Imu himself.

The final confrontation was inevitable.

So — he was strong, yes. But not strong enough yet.

He had the Giant race and the Fish-Man race at his back, but that wasn't enough either.

He needed greater power. He needed to convert The Zodiac's fruit abilities into Star Fruits, and beyond that, to account for the power of all the Zodiac Constellations and the soldiers who would eventually stand under The Zodiac's banner.

In the past, that would have been a near-impossible task.

But to Roy — who had by now fully mastered the application of the Source Energy of Lineage Factor — it was not.

By utilizing that Source Energy, so long as he had sufficient corresponding willpower, he could create almost anything. And now, he also had help.

"Weapons, armor, various technologies — Vegapunk will handle all of that. I only need to produce the materials with the attributes he requires."

"The real difficulty is still the Star Fruits corresponding to each Zodiac member."

As his primary combat force, he wasn't about to shape their fruit abilities around just any random wish.

And that was what had led to the current situation.

The Twelve Trials — nominally "Places of Trial", but in practice something more like instances crafted by blending The Zodiac's abilities with knowledge from Roy's past life. Admittedly imperfect in places, with gaps throughout.

But that didn't matter.

Roy had already embedded the fruit abilities he envisioned for The Zodiac into the background fabric of each instance.

"As long as people keep undertaking trials in them, spreading the stories and legends within — the collective consciousness of the entire sea will gradually form the corresponding 'cognitions' and 'wishes'."

The continuously flickering prompts in his Fruit Encyclopedia were proof enough that the approach was working.

"In effect, the entire sea is helping me forge the completed versions of The Zodiac's abilities."

"All I have to do is wait for those seeds to bear fruit. At the current rate, that won't take long."

Roy was satisfied with that.

But there was one thing that still nagged at him.

"Imu still hasn't moved."

He hadn't expected that.

After announcing that the Aster would sail the seas openly, he had genuinely braced for Imu to dispatch the Marines and the Star Hunter Unit against them.

Instead — nothing.

Imu appeared, for all the world, to not care at all.

"He can't not care..."

Which was exactly why Roy had been so cautious lately.

But then, at that moment —

"Lord Uma."

"Lord Uma."

Behind Roy, starlight rippled.

When it settled, two figures stood before Uma, each wearing a Constellation Mask — one bearing a swallow, the other a crow.

"Danger Moon Swallow." "Net Moon Crow."

Alan and Kelly. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"Lord Uma, the treatment for the 'Demon Fish-Men' has concluded," Kelly reported. "Lord Sheep asked us to come and inform you."

Yes — with the relocation of the scattered Zodiac members and the people of Star Village to the Aster now complete, Kelly and Alan had come aboard along with them. For the past while, they had been working alongside the Sheep to treat the Fish-Men on Fish-Man Island who had been subjected to Black Transmutation Control.

The treatment itself was something Roy already knew well. The simplest method for breaking Black Transmutation Control was straightforward: beat the afflicted creature to the very edge of death. At that point, the control lifted on its own.

The obvious risk was that for most people, the line between "verge of death" and actual death was not a wide one.

On the Aster, however, the conditions were unusually favorable.

For one thing, nearly all the Fish-Men subjected to Black Transmutation Control on Fish-Man Island had physical constitutions far above that of ordinary humans — which meant that even pushed to near-death, they didn't cross that line quickly.

For another, with the Sheep's "Fountain of Youth" on hand, healing someone who still had breath in them was a simple matter.

"Understood."

Uma nodded, unsurprised.

What he hadn't anticipated was what came next.

"There's something else," Alan said, taking a measured breath before continuing. "On the way here, we received intelligence newly forwarded from Baroque Works. It was originally addressed to the Heart Moon Fox, but since she and Lord Dragon have been occupied with archaeological excavations and terraforming work near the Aster, she passed it on to me."

He paused.

"The intelligence states that an 'honored guest' wishes to visit the Aster."

"An honored guest?"

Uma blinked — he genuinely hadn't heard anything about this.

"Yes." Alan nodded. "One of the Four Emperors."

"'Red-Haired' Shanks."

(End of Chapter)