Destination: Shurima

Alabasta Palace.

Cobra looked worried.

There was a mountain of thick government reports piled up in front of me, but I had no mood to deal with them.

My daughter hasn't written to me for several months.

Even during the Chinese New Year, she didn't come back to be with her elderly father.

Although Cobra was well aware of how heavy the burden was on Vivi's shoulders.

It can be said that the Destiny of the entire nation rests on the shoulders of this young girl.

The mere thought of her living with that Baroque Works executive as his fiancée made Cobra unable to control his emotions.

Cobra didn't even dare to imagine what that villain might do to his daughter.

Um...

"No, we can't let this continue!"

Cobra suddenly stood up.

The guard officer Chaka, quickly advised, "Didn't Her Highness write to you three months ago, telling you not to worry and absolutely not to go to the Northeastern Desert?"

That's what makes me even more worried.

Cobra clutched his forehead in pain. "Vivi has always been like this, keeping all her pain inside and appearing cheerful and happy in front of others."

"So, she considers Your Majesty, an outsider?"

"Shut up! Chaka, how could you slander my little darling like that? Of course I'm the most important person in Vivi's heart, and it's precisely because I'm so important that she doesn't want me to worry."

Seeing His Majesty the King's vulnerability, Chaka wisely shut his mouth.

"I've made my decision. As the King of Alabasta, I've been far too lenient with the kingdom's feudal lords."

"For example, Lord Crocodile of the Rainbase hasn't paid a single penny of tax to the treasury for three whole years, and I've never even visited the Rainbase. This time, I must uphold the dignity of the royal family!"

Chaka scratched his head. "Your Majesty, do you mean you want Crocodile to pay the outstanding taxes?"

"Well, Crocodile is Shichibukai. In the past few years, he has eliminated many troublesome pirates for the kingdom. He has made contributions."

Cobra didn't particularly like this Shichibukai acted domineeringly by relying on his strength and status.

However, as the Seven Warlords of the Sea system has not yet completely collapsed, the image of the Shichibukai is still very positive.

Crocodile's popularity among the common people was no less than that of the king.

Furthermore, Crocodile did indeed do many things that were beneficial to the Alabasta Kingdom.

From both a moral and logical standpoint, Cobra had no right to come to his door to collect the debt.

At least, this king, who claimed to be wholeheartedly devoted to the people but actually pursued a policy of appeasement and was extremely inactive, truly believed this in his heart.

If it were Ma Qiao, it wouldn't matter if you were Shichibukai or a Shichibukai, as long as you pay taxes, we'd all be good friends.

However, if you dare to resist taxes, you will be shown the iron fist of the tax authorities.

In short, Cobra was subservient to Crocodile, but decided to strike hard against Ma Qiao, the Cobra who had kidnapped his daughter.

"Chaka, when we officially appointed that guy Ma Qiao, the agreed-upon date for the spring grain delivery was only half a month away."

"I heard that guy has been building a luxurious mansion for himself on the shores of Crescent Bay, and even using groundwater to plant trees, but he hasn't planted any crops. Such outrageous behavior must be thoroughly investigated!"

After listing a long list of Ma Qiao's crimes, Cobra made the final decision:

"You'll come with me on this trip. We'll go undercover and find something on that pretty boy to dig up, and then we'll expose all of Baroque Works's conspiracies."

Seeing that His Cobra had made up his mind, Chaka immediately said, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will go and prepare immediately!"

Cobra nodded in satisfaction, then whispered, "Remember, make sure you're well disguised. Don't let Vivi find out. I want to give her a big surprise."

Rainbase.

Crocodile sat on the new sofa, feeling somewhat awkward no matter which position he adopted.

He was starting to miss his expensive sofa made entirely of Renekton skin.

That sofa was so soft and comfortable, and it was quite expensive.

However, when he left the Rainbase for the New World to fight Red-Haired Shanks, this comfortable sofa was unexpectedly chewed up by Nezumi.

Desert rats are indeed very powerful.

Because of the abundant water in Rainbase, rats from all around have recently come here for refuge, making Rainbase a haven for rats.

Flies, mosquitoes, cockroaches, and rats—even the Shichibukai can't do anything about them.

Therefore, Crocodile tentatively accepted this explanation.

Only...

Why would these rats specifically gnaw on my expensive cigars, gold watches, gemstone rings, and my collection of antique paintings?!

"Robin, don't forget, you are the Devil Child, despised by the world. Only by my side do you have a chance to survive!"

Crocodile had to warn this woman who showed no emotion whatsoever.

He has no evidence, nor does he need any evidence; he is Crocodile!

Even if Whitebeard were right in front of him, he would dare to swing his sword!

This is the spirit of the older generation from the Worst Generation who witnessed the execution of Pirate King Roger!

However, Crocodile still showed great patience when facing Robin, the Devil Child.

At least until we decipher the historical documents and find the Ancient Weapons, this is a woman who absolutely cannot be beaten or scolded.

Robin flashed a charming, professional smile as she listened to Crocodile's threatening warning.

"Understood, Mr. 0. I will have a thorough rodent control operation carried out at headquarters."

"However, I think the Nezumi you're feeding your Banana Crocodiles are the key factor attracting those wild Nezumi. Perhaps you could consider feeding your Renekton strawberry pudding instead, which could reduce the rat infestation."

"What a joke! There's no such thing as Renekton eating strawberry pudding. That's as ridiculous as someone telling me a goat is eating a donut!"

"Goats? Goats really do eat donuts, right?" Robin tilted his head, neither confirming nor denying.

"I really don't know what kind of weird books you've been reading at home."

Crocodile shook his head, finding the female academic genius's thought process incomprehensible:

"Has von Clay returned from the East Blue?"

"Not yet," Robin reported.

Crocodile frowned. "What's going on with Bon Clay? A mere Pirate Hunter, and he still hasn't dealt with him?"

"Yes, apparently there was a slight accident."

"An accident? What kind of accident?"

"Mr. 2 seems to have inadvertently gotten caught up in the battle between the Navy and the Krieg Pirates. Now, the Shigure Star of the East Blue, Gangplank, has declared that he will personally arrest Mr. 2 to avenge his brother."

"Shigure Gangplank? Who is that?"

Crocodile lit a young cigar, took a puff, and couldn't help but frown. "Damn Nezumi!"

"This 'Shigure' is said to be someone who can fight against Four Emperors -level expert, just like when you fought Whitebeard back then. Now everyone is saying that he has at least the strength of Shichibukai."

"Hmph, what a boring era! Can any Tom, Dick, or Harry even be compared to me?"

Crocodile thought of a certain Salted Fish old bat.

Gecko Moria's strength has visibly declined in recent years, and it is said that the World Government is considering removing him from the Shichibukai.

However, none of these things concern Crocodile. He is currently focused on developing his business discreetly, secretly acquiring Pluton, and then stunning everyone.

Speaking of Pluton...

Crocodile immediately thought of someone.

"By the way, how's Ma Qiao's mission going?"

Several months have passed since I last called to urge Ma Qiao to complete the Dance Powder project.

However, Crocodile has not heard any news about the Nefertari Royal Family or the Dance Powder so far.

"Is Ma Qiao slacking off again?"

Ten years ago, Crocodile was brutally beaten by Whitebeard and fled the New World.

Having witnessed the terrifying power of the world's top combatants, he believed that relying solely on his own diligent training was futile in order to defeat such beings; he needed to find the legendary Ancient Weapons.

For some reason, Crocodile learns that Pluton, one of the Ancient Weapons, is closely related to Alabasta.

So he started from scratch around Alabasta, building his own power base.

Crocodile remembers clearly that his first employee was Ma Qiao.

Crocodile remembers more clearly the first thing Ma Qiao said during his job interview.

"Does your organization provide social insurance and housing fund, travel allowance, housing subsidy, high-temperature allowance, and holiday bonus? How many days of maternity leave does your company offer? Can this be accumulated as annual leave? Is retirement at age 45 possible? What are your views on part-time work during working hours...?"

In short, Crocodile's only thought at that moment was to kill this man in front of him with a single blow from his Desert Spada, a man who had "parasite" written all over his face.

Why did I soften my heart back then?

Crocodile shook his head.

It's too late for regrets; what's done is done.

Moreover, in his ninth year with the Navy, Ma Qiao somehow managed to develop a tiny connection with them. It was a testament to the value of all the training he had received.

After all, she had originally planned to give him the precious Wax-Wax Fruit.

Although it was later switched by Galdino.

But even if the Penguin-Penguin Fruit is a bit of a letdown, it's still a Devil Fruit.

Tens of millions of Beli or...

Uh... it seems there really isn't...

Crocodile rested his chin on his hook, lost in memories:

"Doflamingo, you want 1 billion Beli for five Devil Fruits? Do you think I'm some kind of traitor?"

"Fufu, Crocodile, if you're willing to join our Donquixote Family, I can give you all of these Devil Fruits for free."

"Stop dreaming! You're more suited to be my lackey!"

"Well, since that's the case, I guess I'll just have to handle this officially."

The average price of Devil Fruit on the market is 100 million Beli, but the ones I'm selling you are all top-quality.

The Kilo-Kilo Fruit, the Bomb-Bomb Fruit, the Dachshund Fruit, the Wax-Wax Fruit... Some of these, if it weren't for Crocodile's sake, I wouldn't even want to sell them, so 200 million per fruit is quite normal."

"But what's with the Penguin-Penguin Fruit? Is this trash fruit really worth 200 million?"

"Oh, this..."

"A flat price of 800 million Beli. Penguin-Penguin Fruit; it's practically a freebie..."

Crocodile snapped out of his thoughts and suddenly his dissatisfaction with Ma Qiao lessened slightly.

"Forget it, that guy was one of the first people to stay by my side. Even if he's a good-for-nothing, a Salted Fish, a parasite, I'll accept it."

Crocodile shook his head and stood up.

"Nico Robin, prepare some civilian clothes for me. I need to give that idiot some pointers. Otherwise, I don't think Cobra will ever be blamed for abusing Dance Powder, even by next year..."

Honestly, with such troublesome employees, I, as the company president, am destined to be a workaholic...