"Extremely strong."
These three words made Red Hair pause slightly, prompting him to turn and glance at Beckman. Such unreserved praise rarely came from his first mate's lips.
"I'm not one for exaggeration," Beckman tapped his cigarette ash, his tone grave. "But the facts speak for themselves."
"Among them, the most noteworthy is undoubtedly that female Master Swordsman Kuina. She's probably already at Vista's level... possibly even beyond. We'd need to see her in action to be certain."
"Then there's Mammoth Jack, the Ancient Mammoth Fruit user. He's a formidable fighter too. Even I would need considerable effort to take him down."
"The remaining combatants—shipwright, chef, archaeologist, and those two pets—all have commendable combat abilities."
"Even that youngest orange-haired girl is a Logia user with a 160 million Berry bounty. Since the Marines gave her the title 'Pet-Eating Demon,' I doubt she's as simple as she appears."
Beckman offered another cigarette to Shanks.
"So even their most unremarkable crew member has a bounty over 100 million?" Shanks waved it away, deep in thought. "A balanced, iron-wall approach. Sounds somewhat similar to us."
In terms of crew strength, there was still a significant gap—after all, they were a genuine Emperor's crew. But... when you considered it...
Most of their crew members were remarkably young, and they'd only been at sea for seven months. Yet from top to bottom, they'd grown so much stronger at such an astonishing pace.
At this rate, who could predict what the future held...
"Since that kid said he's not on your path, we should maintain proper precautions." Beckman pulled a Vivrecard from his pocket, waving it lightly in the moonlight. "Took it off that big guy Jack while drinking with him."
Shanks watched the paper flutter northwest against the wind—the direction Xiano's crew had departed. After their meeting concluded, they'd refused to stay on the island, setting sail deeper into the New World that very night.
He immediately understood. While unclear whose Vivrecard this was, it undoubtedly belonged to an important officer of the Xiano Pirate Crew. Kept so carefully on someone's person, it might even be Xiano's own.
"Was this really necessary?" Shanks frowned slightly. "This doesn't seem like you, Beckman."
"With the other Sea Emperors, I wouldn't go this far. But this crew is different. To maintain balance on these seas, I had no choice."
Beckman shrugged. "At worst, it's insurance; at best... deep down, you don't actually want anything bad to happen to those guys, do you? This way, if they act recklessly and get into trouble later, we can still rush over to help in time."
"..."
Shanks remained silent, ultimately offering no rebuttal.
His first mate knew him far too well.
...
Meanwhile.
Aboard the Sunset, which had already left Blackstone City and was sailing toward its next destination.
Xiano, drenched from the rain, had soaked in a hot bath and spent a comfortable while in the sauna before emerging. With a towel draped over his shoulder, he was about to head back to his room when he spotted Jack in the locker room, sweating profusely as he rummaged through the cabinets.
"What are you looking for, Jack?" Xiano asked with a smile, opening his own wardrobe and changing into pajamas.
"Boss!" Jack whirled around, visibly relieved to see Xiano, but then scratched his head anxiously. "I—I lost one of my Vivrecards! It was definitely on me when I left the ship earlier today!"
"Lost one? Whose Vivrecard was it?" Xiano frowned.
Back in Water 7, only he had missed the Vivrecard-making session because he'd been busy fighting Kaido at Enies Lobby. The rest of the crew had all made theirs and distributed them to each other.
"It wasn't one of ours! I kept everyone's Vivrecards in my bedside drawer so I wouldn't lose them—I didn't even bring them off the ship!" Jack groaned. "The one I lost was sold to me by a Fish-man running a snack stall on Fish-Man Island. He said he thought I was strong and happened to have a fragment of the Vivrecard belonging to the current strongest Fish-man. If I had the ambition to challenge him, this Vivrecard would help me find..."
"The current strongest Fish-man?" Xiano raised an eyebrow. Wasn't that Jinbei?
"A random street vendor selling Jinbei's Vivrecard?" Xiano gave him a deadpan look. "That's such an obvious scam it's almost laughable... and you fell for it? How much did you pay?"
"Eh? It was fake?!" Jack gaped.
"Obviously."
"Damn that Fish-man bastard! He had white hair and three daughters to feed—he looked like he was struggling, so I felt bad for him and bought out his entire stall! And he had the nerve to scam me!" Jack gnashed his teeth, stomping his foot in frustration. "Between the Vivrecard and all the food, I spent a whole 100,000 Berries on his stall!"
Ugh, that was his entire month's allowance!
"Live and learn. Since it's fake, losing it isn't a big deal." Xiano patted his arm. "Consider it a lesson—be more careful next time you run into something like this."
"Yes, boss..." Jack nodded dejectedly and trudged off to his room with his pajamas.
After watching Jack leave, Xiano turned his gaze to the porthole.
He smirked coldly.
Jack thought he'd lost it, but what were the odds it just happened to disappear after drinking with Red Hair's crew at the tavern?
It had to have been stolen by Shanks' men.
Tch. Stealing was bad enough...
"You dare steal from me now?!"
"Just because you were once a crew member of the Pirate King, you think you can look down on the real Pirate King?"
Xiano had initially been moved by Shanks' words of concern and felt a bit guilty about his plan. He had intended to sneak onto their ship under cover of darkness tonight, just to take a few personal items and skim a little off the top—nothing too serious.
But then...
They had to go and pull this stunt.
Staring at the distant silhouette of Blackstone City still faintly visible on the horizon, his expression blank, Xiano quickly changed clothes, jumped off the ship, and swam toward it—
Fine then.
Don't blame me for not holding back!
...
Late at night, the moonlight shimmered like water.
On the Red Force, the night watchman lounged lazily in the crow's nest, yawning.
Most of the crew had followed their captain, Shanks, to spend the night in the tavern district. Those left to guard the ship were all fresh recruits, still stuck as apprentices.
Though they seemed lacking in vigilance and combat skills, no one expected anything to go wrong.
After all, this was Whitebeard's territory!
And with the Red Hair Pirates' flag flying high—under the dual intimidation of two Emperors, who would dare cause trouble on this ship?
Suddenly, he felt something swim beneath the hull.
"Huh?" He leaned over the railing, peering at the sea, but under the moonlight, the water remained calm.
Must've been his imagination...
The recruit shook his head and was about to rest against the railing when—BOOM!—the ship lurched violently, sending him reeling with a sudden sense of weightlessness!
Wha—?!
The entire ship, along with everyone on it, was being lifted by something!
"Is it a Sea King?!"
"No idea!"
"Just stop it, or the ship'll capsize!"
The apprentices drew their weapons and rushed to the railing, ready to climb over and investigate—but at that exact moment—
The ship vanished.
...
Half an hour later, at Blackstone City's harbor.
Shanks and Beckman stood on the empty dock, staring blankly at the spot where the Red Force should have been.
Now, there was nothing—just a faint, flickering outline where the ship once sat.
Shanks rubbed his eyes, then frantically patted around the dock to confirm it wasn't an illusion. His jaw dropped, snot dribbling down, eyes bulging out of his skull.
Wait, where's my ship?!
My massive, glorious Red Force?!?!
Beckman stood frozen, cold sweat pouring down his face, his cigarette falling unnoticed to the ground. "...How... how is this even possible?"
"Hey! You lot!"
Yasopp was the first to snap out of it, storming over to the shivering, soaked night watchmen. He grabbed one by the collar and hauled him forward, teeth gritted:
"What the hell happened?! Where's the ship?!"
"We—we really don't know!"
One apprentice wailed, "We were on guard the whole time, didn't even blink, boss! The ship suddenly shook, like something lifted it from below, and then—poof!—it was just gone!"
"Yeah, boss, in the blink of an eye, it was just gone. We all splashed into the sea, and by the time we swam back up, the ship had completely vanished. We couldn't even spot the culprit!"
Something from the sea lifted it up?
And then, right before everyone's eyes, the ship disappeared in an instant?
The senior officers exchanged bewildered glances. The ship's doctor, Togo, frowned deeply. "These guys don't seem to be lying—and they wouldn't dare. But even a massive Sea King couldn't pull off something like this..."
"No, if you ask me, it doesn't seem like a Sea King. More like some bizarre Devil Fruit Ability User."
"True. Taking the ship away and vanishing without a trace—that kind of ability..."
As the officers debated, Shanks slowly snapped out of his stunned state. Suddenly, he lifted his head, looked in a certain direction, and burst into loud, unrestrained laughter.
"HAHAHA, HAHAHAHA!!"
"Shanks?"
Lucky Roux tensed, quickly reaching out to feel his forehead. "Y-you okay? Don't scare me like that!"
"Yeah, Shanks, if you need to cry, go ahead. You can use my shoulder."
Yasopp also looked worried. "This reaction is way too abnormal..."
"HAHAHAHA~!!!"
But Shanks kept laughing, his voice echoing wildly into the night. After a long while, he finally swatted Lucky Roux's hand away, signaling he was fine.
"Cry? Why would I cry?"
His grin faded as his gaze sharpened like a blade, sweeping into the distance. "Those so-called 'gods' up on high think they can scare me with such underhanded tricks?"
Beckman's brow furrowed. "You mean... the God Knights?"
He deliberately lowered his voice. Some things were well-known among the older crew members, but the newer apprentices weren't ready to hear them yet.
"Who else could pull off something like this?"
Shanks sneered. "Coming and going without a sound, erasing a ship without leaving a trace—isn't that exactly the kind of 'Divine Punishment' they specialize in?!"
"They're scared! They saw me meeting with that guy Xiano and thought we were teaming up. Finally, they're feeling fear!"
"Is this supposed to be a warning? Thinking that taking my ship will make me back down? Shut me up? Stop me from 'meddling'?"
"How laughable!"
He suddenly kicked a wooden crate by the dock, sending splinters flying. "The more they act like this, the more it proves I'm on the right path! That's why I'm happy!"
Compared to seeing those bastards tremble in fear, losing a flagship that had been with him for years was nothing!
Shanks lifted his head, his gaze heavy. The direction he had been staring at earlier—and now—was none other than Mary Geoise.
Just wait...
Those fools who've scarred this world—this is only the beginning of their fear.
It's far from over!
Even if that brat Xiano fails, there's still Nika waiting in the wings!
Soon, just a few more years... When the Sun God Nika fully awakens, and the drums of freedom resound across the seas, all of the Holy Land will learn what true fear is!
...
Aboard the Sunset.
Xiano had taken another bath and stepped out of the shower in his pajamas. This time, however, his face was lit up with a cheerful grin.
Clearly, he was in a much better mood.
Who could blame him when this haul was exceptionally bountiful?
Humming a tune about the "Eternal Pose," he opened the system panel and reviewed the information stream from the top.
[You sacrificed Beckman's spare pistol and obtained 2,800 Points]
[You sacrificed Yasopp's late wife's portrait and obtained 1,900 Points]
[You sacrificed Lucky Roux's sunglasses and obtained 1,900 Points]
[You sacrificed Togo's single bed and obtained 1,400 Points]
...
Following these were several other named officers, contributing a total of 3,000 Points.
But these were merely appetizers—the true grand finale was yet to come...
Xiano's gaze fell on the final line, and he clicked for details.
[You sacrificed Shanks' Red Force and obtained 15,000 Points]
[Red Force]
[Quality: Legendary]
[Value: 15,000 Points]
[Appraisal: The flagship of Red-Haired Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, bearing the will and glory of the New World's supreme conqueror. Its hull, crafted from the branches of the Adam Treasure Tree, is extraordinarily sturdy. Since the dawn of the Great Pirate Era, it has weathered countless storms and battles, remaining unbreakable. A steadfast companion to Red Hair and his crew for nearly two decades, it also stands as a symbol of the Sea Emperor's might.]
(End of chapter)