Chapter 140: The Vivre Card Civil Engineering Project, The Missing Sentinel
A few days ago, on the Sabaody Archipelago, Babel sat at the Sabaody Archipelago foreign affairs office as usual.
Although they had occupied a portion of the territory relying on military force, the Sabaody Archipelago could still be far from being called peaceful.
The environment was inherently a mixed bag of dragons and snakes, and with newly arriving pirates from time to time, the environment here became even harsher. A martial safeguard was completely necessary.
Although experiencing some battles was inevitable, among those who had just made it through the first half of the Grand Line, barely anyone was a match for Babel, so his post could be considered relatively stable.
But today, some accidents occurred.
"Lord Babel! There is a situation with the patrol team. They found that the person standing guard at Grove 17 is missing!"
An urgent voice came from the Transponder Snail next to Babel. The Snail's mimicked expression also became extremely anxious, as if something major had happened.
"Don't panic yet. Did she sneak off duty to go to the Sabaody Park?"
Out of longing for Sabaody Park, personnel of the Ryugu Kingdom stationed on the Sabaody Archipelago would occasionally go there to play. Such instances were not unheard of.
"That's impossible, Lord Babel. The missing person is Una. She hasn't made a single mistake in three years; how could she sneak off her post?"
"Calm down, kid. I still have her Vivre Card here. She is definitely fine."
Babel could understand why the other party was so anxious. He remembered that this guy was one of Una's suitors. However, Babel had no interest in the romantic affairs of his subordinates; he rather wanted to know whether this was an accident, or if someone had simply lived long enough.
Over the past three years, Fish-man Island had ushered in long-lasting stability. The World Government's ban still held meaning; many trafficking channels were blocked dead because of the World Government's orders.
Added to the martial deterrence brought by Nereus, even if occasionally human traffickers acted audaciously, no one could abduct other citizens out of Fish-man Island.
The Neptune Army stationed outside inherently possessed a certain level of combat power. Anyone with both the guts and the ability to do this was probably not a simple character.
Babel quickly dug out a Vivre Card with a name written on it.
Actually, before Kawamatsu and his mother lost contact, Fish-man Island had already been promoting a Vivre Card system. Spearheaded by the Ryugu Kingdom, DNA information of all Fish-man Island citizens was collected to create Vivre Cards.
Before leaving the island, one needed to leave a piece of their Vivre Card with their relatives on the island. Even orphans had to find someone trustworthy to hand it over to.
This way, if any accident truly occurred, they could at least locate where the person was.
The creation of Vivre Cards was considered a craft from the New World side. The main materials were hair and nails, along with a special type of wood.
Once made, it could indicate the direction and life status of its owner. It would not be damaged by soaking in water or burning in fire. Once it began to self-destruct, it meant something was wrong with the host's life status.
However, the original demand for Vivre Cards wasn't very large. It had the nature of an exclusive, private boutique. Although the craft wasn't overly complex, the production cycle was relatively long.
The number of artisans who made Vivre Cards for profit wasn't very high, so the progress was rather slow.
Fish-man Island's immense demand allowed many Vivre Card artisans to land official government positions. Soldiers needing to execute missions abroad and young female mermaids were prioritized for Vivre Card creation.
The former inherently faced a certain level of danger, while the latter was more easily targeted due to lucrative profits.
Currently, this civil engineering project hadn't been fully completed, but those executing missions abroad practically all had one.
"This direction? These bastards... how dare they..."
Based on the direction and intensity of the fluttering Vivre Card in his hand, Babel quickly determined roughly where Una was. The person should still be on the Sabaody Archipelago, but this direction pointed precisely toward the World Government's office.
For someone like Kawamatsu and his mother, who had been missing for a long time without a trace, it naturally had to be reported immediately.
But in cases like this, where there was a Vivre Card for guidance and it was discovered in time, the executives under Nereus would try to retrieve the person first. In such a massive country, they couldn't possibly let Nereus handle every single individual's problem.
"Rachel, it's me. There's a problem with the sentinel post on my side. Take the Sea Beasts and block the shipping routes below first. Don't let any suspicious ship pass!"
"Yes."
There were no superfluous questions, just a simple acknowledgment. For Babel to issue such an order, Rachel roughly knew what had happened.
Babel himself rushed directly toward the direction of the World Government's office.
Over at the World Government's office, World Government staff were registering some information. These people were also heading toward the New World, but they were taking the legal route.
After paying a commercial tax, they would cross the Red Line via bubble elevators, and then change ships on the other side to continue their voyage.
There were also some Marines around helping to maintain order. Although the Sabaody Archipelago had never been considered stable, no pirate dared to actively attack this place.
But today, the stability here was broken.
"Fish-man race? What a huge guy..."
"Why would a Fish-man come here?"
Although the Marine soldiers on duty nearby were curious about the situation here, they had no reason to stop him. After all, nowadays, citizens of the Ryugu Kingdom had valid reasons to legally enter and exit this place. There was even a street sign for the Ryugu Kingdom's office nearby.
Following the guidance of the Vivre Card, Babel quickly arrived at the dock area, but he didn't see what he wanted to see.
"I need to see today's departure records."
Babel snatched the notebook from the recording clerk nearby without a word and carefully compared the records on it.
"Grand Line, Aegis Kingdom... West Blue, Ballywood Kingdom... North Blue, Doel Kingdom..."
"When did these ships depart?"
Although Vivre Cards produced different fluctuations based on the distance from their owner, there was a range interval.
For example, 500 meters to 1000 meters was one amplitude. By just looking at the Vivre Card, Babel could only determine the general area; he couldn't lock onto the exact distance.
"The... the most recent one was ten... fifteen minutes ago..."
Babel's expression at this moment was extremely terrifying, giving off the feeling that he would swallow someone whole at the slightest disagreement. The recording clerk nearby seemed to be frightened by Babel, stuttering as he answered his question.
Then, without another word, Babel jumped straight into the sea nearby, swimming rapidly in the direction of the Vivre Card. Although the average swimming speed of Fish-men was inferior to Merfolk, and Babel wasn't a speed-type fighter, 15 minutes was not enough for a ship to pull away to a sufficient distance.
Soon, Babel arrived directly beneath a ship. Based on the guidance of the Vivre Card and his Observation Haki perception, he confirmed that the missing Una was indeed on this ship.
He had no intention of negotiating, nor any thought of asking questions.
The muscles in Babel's arms bulged like twisting roots, and his ten fingers dug deeply into the flowing seawater like claws.
With a swing of his arms, he forcefully tore an entire ocean current away from the sea, compressing it into a rapidly spinning whirlpool water bullet in the palm of his hand.
"Mizugokoro... Kairyu Ipponzeoi!" (Water Heart: Ocean Current Shoulder Throw!)
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