“Sandersonia, Marigold, this is your first voyage, so pay attention. Only powerful warriors can become official members of the crew.”
On the deck of Perfume Yuda, Boa Hancock was educating her two younger sisters in her role as their older sister. Although they were only 12 years old, they had earned the qualification to set out on a voyage, but they were not combatants.
This was the Kuja’s first trial for them, and they served more as deckhands and lookouts, getting accustomed to a completely different life at sea.
However, beneath the water, a submarine was quietly approaching.
There were significant differences among slave traders. Ordinary slave traders would only abduct people on land, but they dared to act directly on the sea. To be precise, they are targeting Kuja.
At the Sabaody Archipelago’s human auction, the rarer the slaves, the higher the price they could fetch. Rarity did not just refer to their race; it also included their identity. For instance, being a member of the Maiden Island adds value to their price.
Yuda’s deadly poison could scare away Sea Kings, but it couldn’t deter human greed.
Especially this year, Sabaody Archipelago was willing to pay even higher prices for these slaves. So, to capture slaves, these people even used submarines.
Beneath Perfume Yuda, the slave trader’s submarine shut off its engines. Although Yuda, which were pulling the boat, looked down to observe below, the pitch-black iron shell in the sea did not raise its alarm.
To Yuda, submarines weren’t much different from reefs.
Unlike conventional submarines, this one was clearly high-tech.
After the people on board confirmed that Yuda hadn’t noticed them through an observation port, a special hatch opened on the submarine, and several individuals in wetsuits emerged from inside.
The surface of their wetsuits was coated with a liquid containing special ingredients that could linger in the seawater for a while, which can help them evade Yuda’s detection. They had only three minutes, as exceeding that time would expose them.
Although they had the audacity to kidnap slaves on a Kuja’s ship, they weren’t courageous enough to engage in direct combat with the Kuja Pirates.
It was a nation where Haki was common among warriors, and facing them head-on could result in a gruesome death.
The people involved in this operation were also nervous. According to rumors, no man who voluntarily entered Kuja’s territory had ever come out alive.
So, when they saw several young figures on the deck, they didn’t pay attention to their faces and immediately took action. The three Boa sisters, who were going out on a voyage for the first time, were thus abducted by the slave traders, and by the time the people on the ship realized what had happened, it was already too late.
Several days later, on the Shadow Fox, Olga had arrived in a certain sea area, and under the influence of her ability, the Shadow Fox had disappeared from the sea. She was waiting.
As for the source of this information, Beasts Fruits were considered king-level people in the underground market of the New World. The personal relationships of these slave traders are complex and intertwined, and they can always inquire about some information.
This was also why Olga conceals her identity when working. Sometimes she might encounter acquaintances when hunting, and if she revealed her identity, it could affect other aspects of her business transactions.
For now, even if someone had suspicions, without concrete evidence, offending the Beasts Pirates would not be a wise move.
“Olga, here’s the information from the auction: Dragon-Dragon Fruit Ancient Zoan•Pachycephalosaurus Model and Dragon-Dragon Fruit Ancient Zoan•Spinosaurus Model. These are two devil fruits that have already been exposed.”
Elizabeth handed the neatly organized information to Olga. Unlike Shayna and Mandrell’s assistants, who were Gifters, Olga’s assistant was Elizabeth.
Though she was a lizard, with her enhanced intelligence and as an Inteleon with secret agent talents, Elizabeth was more reliable than an ordinary person when it came to getting things done.
“Is the type really confirmed? It looks like our budget needs to be increased.”
Devil Fruits with confirmed types are much more expensive than those with unknown types. As for the fruits that could affect the selling price, the auction house was not foolish.
They would only mention that the type was unclear for such fruits, and sometimes even mislead buyers into thinking they were Logia-type devil fruits to fetch higher prices. Devil Fruits with disclosed names are inevitably the types that can fetch higher prices.
Although they were Zoan-type, slightly rarer Ancient Zoan ones could also sell for a high price.
However, according to the information Beasts Pirates had received, this auction would not feature just two Devil Fruits, but five. It could be considered a rare event, as for an auction house, gathering five Devil Fruits is also quite a challenge.
“Our total budget is 1.2 billion. Acquiring these two fruits won’t be difficult, but I’m not sure about the others. However, Olga, there are reports that Celestial Dragons will be participating in this auction.”
“Those pests? It’s fine, as long as that woman isn’t escorting them.”
As the person with the strongest survival abilities among the 3 Calamities, she was confident in getting away from anyone except Tsuru. However, according to Beasts Pirates’ intel, Tsuru was currently on a mission in the North Sea and was unlikely to appear in Sabaody Archipelago.
Beasts Pirates held zero respect for the Celestial Dragons. Most of them were utterly useless in combat and were considered the lowest rung on the hierarchy in Kaido’s eyes.
What he despised the most were those who held positions of power without having any combat abilities.
For Olga, as long as these Celestial Dragons didn’t cause trouble for her, anything would be fine.
“Boss, the slave catcher’s ship is here, but there seems to be a World Government’ vessel alongside them.”
In the lookout tower atop the tall spire, the lookout reported about the flags on the two ships. The slave catchers didn’t have a specific flag, but they had their own company.
In the Red Line, such companies were known as Human Employment Intermediary, and this symbol is to prevent interference from competitors.
“What should we do, boss? Should we wait for them to leave?”
“Leave? Of course not, attack them. Since they’re here, we might as well keep them here. Where’s the gunner? You’ve already calculated the position, right?”
Shadow Fox has been here for a few days already, and the trajectory around the nearby waters should have been calculated long ago.
“Don’t worry, Boss Olga. I’ll clean the entire Onigashima for a day if I miss my shot!”
The gunner adjusted the cannon. This time, it wasn’t a howitzer but a specially designed cannon. Against large vessels, a cannon was more effective than a howitzer in terms of destructive power.
Then, the gunnery officer who had just made a bold statement personally operated the cannon and accurately blasted a large hole in the enemy ship’s rudder.
“Well done! Attack!”
After the enemy lost the ability to move, the Shadow Fox also revealed itself. However, the gunnery officer wiped the sweat from his forehead because he had actually aimed for the ship’s bow.
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