One Piece: Investing In Whitebeard At The Start.

Six hours later, Vane left the palace of Dressrosa. Doflamingo had tried to persuade him to stay, even hinting at sending beautiful women to entertain him. But Vane, who already had Gion and others waiting for him at home — and with Hiyori Kozuki able to visit whenever she pleased — had no interest in the women Doflamingo offered.

Pirates seek fame, status, power, wealth, and beautiful women.

Vane wanted all of that, and more — to dominate the world itself.

After leaving the palace, his stomach reminded him that he hadn't eaten in a while. He headed to a familiar restaurant — his third visit since arriving.

But the moment he stepped through the door, the lively chatter inside fell silent. Dozens of eyes turned his way. The air grew heavy.

"It's him…" someone whispered.

In a quiet corner, Fujitora — known here simply as Issho — sensed Vane's presence immediately. Though blind, Issho's mastery of Observation Haki was remarkable, and his awareness of human auras unmatched.

Yet what struck him as strange was not Vane's arrival itself, but the reaction it caused. He could feel the fear radiating from the other customers. They wanted to leave, but none dared move.

Why?

Vane's presence didn't feel malicious to him. He wasn't the kind of man whose aura screamed of cruelty. Issho had long been able to sense the good and evil within people — and Vane didn't fit the mold of a villain.

For example, the man seated next to Issho — a burly pirate with the scent of fresh blood clinging to him — had clearly killed more than once, and not long ago. That man was dangerous. But Vane? His aura was… different.

Still, the fear in the room was undeniable.

"Yo, I'll have this one… and this… oh, and this too," Vane said casually.

His voice wasn't loud, but in the quiet, every person heard him clearly. Only the restaurant owner and Issho seemed calm enough to respond — the others were too tense to even breathe normally.

The owner had recognized him from his previous visits and forced himself to stay composed.

But the truth was simple: the man sitting at that table was no ordinary pirate. He was known across the seas as the Emperor of Dawn — one of the great Pirate Emperors who ruled over the second half of the Grand Line.

And whenever an Emperor appeared, panic followed.

Vane didn't care about the stares or the murmurs. He ate in silence, paid, and left the restaurant as casually as he had entered.

"Who is he?" Issho muttered under his breath. He had felt the trembling of the customers, the sharp intakes of breath, even the sound of dry throats swallowing. The pirate beside him was practically shaking in his seat.

"Do you know who that was?" Issho asked the man.

The pirate hesitated before answering, his voice trembling. "H-he's the fifth Pirate Emperor. A monster stronger than even the world's strongest man — Whitebeard himself."

Another customer, seated nearby, leaned in and spoke in a hushed tone. "Even the Celestial Dragons are nothing to him. Just one blow and they'd be done. People thought he'd disappeared this past month… some even thought the Marines caught him."

Issho's normally calm face shifted slightly. "The Emperor of Dawn… Rhett Vane," he murmured.

No wonder everyone was afraid. For ordinary people, being this close to a Pirate Emperor was like standing next to a loaded cannon with the fuse already lit.

But there was still something strange. "Why can't I sense any evil in him?" Issho thought.

In the four short months since Vane had gone to sea, his actions had already become legend. Issho had overheard his name countless times — and eventually, he too had begun to pay attention.

A pirate emperor under the age of sixteen, with strength said to rival or surpass the greatest living legends. Whitebeard and Red-Haired Shanks were the only ones who might challenge him. Big Mom had already been defeated by Vane, and rumor claimed she had gone completely mad.

He was said to have a good relationship with both the Golden Lion and Kaido of the Beasts. If those three truly allied, they would form the most dangerous pirate force in history.

One newspaper article had claimed Vane could stand on Kaido's head — a statement many took to mean Kaido had submitted to him.

If that were true… the world was in more trouble than anyone realized.

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