Chapter 86: Sabaody Archipelago – Purge Operation (Part 1)
[Monthly Mission 8: The Scum's Judgment Day]
[Objective: You've obtained information from Shakky on all the scum on Sabaody Archipelago. Within this month, send them all to hell!]
[Completion Tier 1: Eliminate at least 3 slave trafficking teams. Title awarded: "Slaver Terminator." Number of slave teams defeated: Y. Reward: Y Achievement Points / (Y × 2) Bond Points]
[Completion Tier 2: Eliminate at least 3 pirate crews. Title awarded: "Gatekeeper of the New World." Number of pirate crews defeated: Y. Reward: (Y × 2) Achievement Points / Y Bond Points]
[Completion Tier 3: Eliminate at least 3 of both slave teams and pirate crews. Title awarded: "Scum Fryer." Total number of groups defeated: Y. Reward: (Y × 2) Achievement Points / (Y × 2) Bond Points]
[Completion Tier 4: In addition to Tier 3, take out one of the ultimate scum—the Celestial Dragons. Send one of them to the afterlife! Title awarded: "Oil Extractor." Number of pirate and slaver teams defeated: Y. Reward: (Y × 2) + 10 Achievement Points / (Y × 2) + 10 Bond Points]
On the morning of April 1st, Eric received another infinite jackpot mission—one that would drive hardcore grinders mad and leave lazy players crying. This task was clearly designed to farm achievement and bond points, which were the most crucial resources for leveling up. Whether he became a dragon or a worm depended on how well he handled this mission!
'But I didn't expect the mission to include taking down a Celestial Dragon too… Is the system deliberately luring me into provoking one just to summon an admiral to wipe me out?'
At the breakfast table, the group gathered again after another day of fun. Eric asked, "Did you all enjoy yourselves these last two days?"
Perona and Polki nodded enthusiastically—young girls really loved amusement parks.
"Well then, it's time to work." As soon as they heard this, the two girls' faces fell and they slumped over the table.
Everyone turned their attention to Eric , waiting to hear what tasks the captain would assign.
Bang—Eric slapped a thick stack of documents onto the table. "These are all the slave trafficking teams and seriously malicious pirate crews currently on Sabaody. Our mission is to send this trash straight to hell."
Perona suddenly understood. "So that's what the documents were for… But isn't this kind of thing more suited to the Marines than pirates?"
Mont Blanc Cricket chuckled. "Little girl, you didn't think this was some proper pirate crew, did you? Our captain frequently wipes out pirates and protects merchant ships. Robbing merchants and raiding towns? Not his thing."
Perona widened her eyes. "Then why not just be Marines? At least you wouldn't have a bounty."
Akame picked up one of the files. "This is the captain's order. Just follow it."
"Yes, Akame-onee-." Even Perona had become Akame's little sister. Kurumi, you'd better act fast—your little sister is about to be stolen by Akame!
"Hm? What is it?" Kurumi turned her head with her usual mental sync to Eric .
"You're even more beautiful today, Kurumi." Then Eric got to business. "We'll divide into teams. We'll need recordkeepers to organize the info, contacts to gather intel, and combat members. Anyone want to pick first?"
"Combat member." Esdeath raised her hand immediately. 'Even if she hadn't, I was going to put her there anyway.'
"Same for me."
"Ew~ I'll be the recordkeeper," Polki said without hesitation.
"I'll be a liaison. My ghosts are good at finding enemies." Perona was ready to show off her abilities to the new team—she wasn't about to let Polki keep hogging her spotlight.
So the raiding team became Eric , Akame, Tokisaki Kurumi, Esdeath, Scáthach, and Perona in spirit form. Chiron would serve as a rear guard bodyguard and support with long-range cover fire from his bow.
...
As they walked, Eric laid out his plan. "Our primary targets are newly arrived pirate crews, especially those who've already coated their ships. We'll hit them first."
Esdeath glanced at a file. "There's a slave trafficking group nearby. Why not start with them?"
"Definitely not. The slavers are local scum with well-established intel networks. Pirates are newcomers—besides Marines, they also clash with other pirates, bounty hunters, and slavers."
Kurumi asked, "Hm? Slavers catch pirates too? Why?"
"Some kings and nobles like collecting all kinds of slaves. Pirate captains, in particular, are considered trophies. There's even a Celestial Dragon who only collects pirate captains as slaves."
"So being a captain is a high-risk job, huh."
"Exactly. So I'd appreciate it if you're all a little gentler with me from now on."
The quiet Akame unexpectedly stabbed Eric with a verbal knife. "Any gentler and Eric might float off into space."
Kurumi giggled. "Haha, so Akame thinks so too? Looks like we really shouldn't pamper him."
"Then why don't they just turn in captured pirate captains to the Marines and collect the bounty? Bounty hunters are better regarded than slavers."
"Eh, I think the bounty hunters around here are just as scummy. Most of them also dabble in slave trading. Besides, the human auction at 1GR offers more money than the official bounties."
"Even if the slaves get worn out, they can resell them to the Marines for the bounty and recover the cost. Why not?"
Akame gripped her sword, Murasame. "Don't the slaves resist?"
"They're fitted with slave collars. If they resist or try to escape, the collars explode. Only advanced Armament Haki can disable them—or a special key."
Kurumi, ever the tactician, asked, "Ara, couldn't they just hug their owners and self-destruct? Trade one life for another. Or threaten them to remove the collar?"
"..." That stumped Eric . Who knew why the slaves didn't try that? As the saying goes, better to live in misery than die. Given the slightest chance to survive, not everyone will choose to die.
Esdeath scoffed, "There aren't that many fearless people in this world. Most weaklings can't control their own fate. They're just meat on a butcher's table."
"Esdeath, let's just focus on what we need to do," Eric said.
Esdeath pouted slightly but didn't argue.
"Well, our first target is the only Supernova on Sabaody right now—'Redbeard' Thomas Two."
"Bounty: 148 million Berries? Honestly, I'm not interested. Ever since I found out Moria was worth 320 million before becoming a Warlord, anyone under 300 million just doesn't excite me. They're too weak."
Eric had wanted to boost Esdeath's morale, but her complete lack of interest shut that down instantly.
"Hahaha!" Kurumi, seeing Eric 's failed plan, laughed until she bent over.
Esdeath shot her a look. "What's so funny?"
"Oh, nothing. You're just too cute, Esdeath-."
(END CHAPTER)
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