Chapter 11: Human Auction House
"Well," Jacques recalled, thinking of the pirate Buggy who had blown up the warship and escaped, with his bounty suddenly increasing from 15 million to 200 million Belly. His ability was to tear people apart.
"Damn it, why did he know so much?" He tried to sort out his scattered thoughts, no longer dwelling on them.
"Can you believe me when I say I saw nothing?" Jacques asked.
"Of course," Buggy smiled sweetly. "Let's act as if nothing happened, as usual. I'm the Major, you're the Sergeant. Get your props ready and I'll take you flying."
"Okay?" he asked him.
Jacques's voice trembled as he saw Buggy's smile, which seemed creepy to him.
Buggy forced another smile, perhaps because the flesh didn't match the bones, but it looked fake.
"Of course not," he said. "If it had been possible, I would have let you go. But, my dear sergeant, if you're willing to give me something to back up your life..."
He nodded with his fingers, as if he were seriously considering something.
"That's not unreasonable. But remember, the evidence must guarantee your life. If it can only guarantee a part of your body, then you can only leave with a part. As for the evaluation of the guarantee, trust me. I have considerable banking experience," Buggy said with confidence.
This was verified by many banks in Gotham City. He hadn't been in as many vaults as those tellers.
The afternoon sun was a little hot. The weather in the Sabaody Archipelago was not extreme. Compared to Alabasta, with its eternal heat, or Drum Island, with its eternal winter, it was quite pleasant.
The warehouses where live creatures were kept were an exception.
The Marine guarding the door scoffed, wondering how the Major had managed to stay there for so long. Luckily, he didn't need to be escorted. He felt a momentary relief and stood up completely.
He shouted loudly: "Good afternoon, Captain Diouf!"
Captain Diouf, with the rank of major, was a trusted subordinate of Major General Sicily. His main responsibility was to suppress criminals in zones 1-30 of the Sabaody Archipelago. The nobles were quite satisfied with the results.
"Has Yaro-sama entered?"
Diouf, with his narrowed eyes and small face, looked like a lizard.
"A while ago."
"Oh, I guess I don't need to go in," he said.
Diouf also disliked the smell of the warehouse. As for why they didn't clean it, he didn't need to go in anyway, so as long as they remained useful, it didn't matter. Why did they need such a pleasant environment for those superfluous slaves?
He had barely finished speaking when he heard the sound of leisurely footsteps. Buggy was walking ahead, covering his nose, followed by Sergeant Jacques, a grim-faced sergeant who was dragging half of Arne's body.
Without even turning, he walked past Diouf, who smiled warmly and extended his hand in greeting.
How infuriating!
Diouf's forehead suddenly darkened.
"Yaro-sama!" he shouted, suppressing his anger.
"?" Buggy replied.
Buggy walked a little way and, at Jacques's urging, remembered his current name, Yaro. Then he turned his head, deep in thought. Who was that guy with the lizard face? He has a very peculiar look. Was he mentioned in his diary? Probably not. He clapped his hands and, after making sure that the man with the lizard face and Yaro had no social relationship, he prepared to continue walking. After all, you can't ask a mentally ill person to socialize. Maintaining the original relationship was a decision Buggy made, considering the possibility of squeezing the value out of his identity.
"Captain Diouf is a major under Major General Sicily, commander of Base District 66," Jacques whispered beside him.
He had already accepted his fate. The evidence Buggy had was enough to kill him dozens of times. He had barely saved his life. As for resisting a Marine sergeant like him, facing an opponent that not even a commodore could handle, just staying alive was a success.
"Oh!" Buggy exclaimed, enlightened.
He warmly shook Diouf's extended hand.
"Captain, hello, Captain!"
"When I was little, my father always told me how impressive it was to be a Marine captain, that justice rested on your shoulders!"
"Your Excellency, that's a truly flattering honor!" Diouf smiled radiantly.
"No, then he tattooed the word 'Justice' on the back of our rottweiler," Buggy said.
Diouf's smile vanished.
"Captain Diouf, don't misunderstand me. I'm not talking about you. We're colleagues," Buggy clarified.
"Haha," Diouf's expression softened. "It's just that I don't know why the Captain waited here for me specifically. What's wrong?"
No one had ever said that this major was so talkative or so tough. Diouf gritted his teeth, feeling a wave of resentment. He couldn't get angry to his face, so he swallowed the resentment and forced a smile.
"It's just business. I'd like to ask for Major Yaro's advice. At least in this aspect, we still have a great opportunity to cooperate," Diouf said.
Buggy was handed a dark gold business card. It had no name, just a few golden characters: Human Auction House.
"So, Captain, today you're a lobbyist," Buggy commented.
"To be more precise, I'm one of the representatives and I'm also here to evaluate." Diouf tilted his head, looking as if he wanted to control you. Not everyone is qualified to cooperate with the Human Auction House, the largest auction house in the archipelago. The nobles... no, even the minimal part that those noble lords let slip was enough to feed them. Even Jacques, a Marine, felt tempted. Wasn't this the moment he was looking for?
Yes, that was exactly the reaction! Diouf almost thought that Lieutenant Yaro was one of those few Marines so righteous and inflexible, completely indifferent to his invitation. Perhaps it was his noble birth. He comforted himself, but then he felt even more annoyed.
Jacques's emotions still lingered, even after Diouf left an invitation to the auction five days later. His resentment for giving up quickly faded.
Who wouldn't want money? Furthermore, on this island, slavery and the slave trade were commonplace. Ironically, this island was the closest to Marine Headquarters in the Grand Line.
"Captain, no, lieutenant, can we also participate in this business?" Jacques asked, trying to maintain his composure.
"What do they value in us?"
"Resources, of course," Buggy replied, patting Arne on the shoulder.
"Resources! We're really going to make a fortune!" Jacques exclaimed, his eyes lighting up.
If the major were still the same, if he hadn't been in that warehouse, he wouldn't have had so many worries. But now it was different.
"No," Buggy said with a familiar, inexplicable smile. "Don't just worry about the money. This beautiful island deserves a more sophisticated criminal."
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