The Bond Between Twin Stars

Besides the much-discussed affair of Boss Ma Qiao joining the government payroll, a minor event also took place that day on the small island of Whiskey Peak.

Gangplank, the great pirate who would one day become famous, set sail from there in a small sampan, venturing out for the first time onto the sea of infinite possibilities.

To Ma Qiao's disappointment, just as Garen had not been holding his greatsword when summoned and Ryze had not had a magic scroll on his back, Gangplank had not brought his terrifying pirate ship, the Dreadway, with him.

Gangplank did, however, draw up plans for the Dreadway from memory.

The Ancient Weapon Pluton, a legend in the world of One Piece, was rumored to be a terrifying warship capable of destroying an island with a single shot.

The Dreadway likewise possessed formidable long-range firepower.

A level-one Dreadway might not have been all that powerful.

But as Gangplank leveled up his ultimate and upgraded it with Silver Serpent Coins, the Dreadway had limitless potential.

Unfortunately, while Gangplank's excellent memory allowed him to draw up plans for the Dreadway, he lacked the ability to build it.

Gangplank was a pirate captain, after all, not a proper shipwright.

Perhaps the shipwrights of Water 7 could build it, but the World Government's CP9 agents had already infiltrated the Galley-La shipyard.

Although the Dreadway's plans were not as sensitive as Pluton's, it was best not to bring them out carelessly.

In the end, Ma Qiao had no choice but to pay out of his own pocket and provide his sixth retainer with a small boat.

After all, setting out to sea inside a barrel like Luffy had was just too bizarre.

If not for his damn protagonist's halo, One Piece would have ended in one episode!

On Earth, an oceangoing sailing ship would have been an expensive luxury in any era.

In the world of One Piece, however, a seagoing ship was not particularly expensive. Anyone of note could get one to look the part, much like a private car in later times.

Ma Qiao only had a little over a million Beli left, and he had to keep some in reserve.

For now, Gangplank would have to make do.

There was no private car for him, so he would have to start his venture in a senior mobility scooter...

Of course, Ma Qiao had not sent Gangplank out to start a venture so he could plunder homes, murder and burn, and earn ill-gotten gains.

He wanted Gangplank to put his old trade to use: being a backstabber.

Also known as a boss killer.

In the early League of Legends lore, the famous deed that made Gangplank's name upon the seas was publicly stabbing his father, the previous generation's Pirate King of Bilgewater, Vincent the Shadow, in the back. He then took over his father's territory and forces, becoming the most feared great pirate on the seas in one stroke.

Come to think of it, there was a great pirate in the world of One Piece who loved taking in sons...

Having Gangplank become his son and then deliver a righteous stab in the back sounded perfectly reasonable... Not!

Gangplank's level was still very low. There was no way he could pull something like that off; even reaching the New World would be extremely difficult.

Besides, there were so many scumbags on the sea that there was no need to target that old man, who was fairly easy on the eyes.

Ma Qiao's initial plan was still to have Gangplank follow Nezumi's example and lie low in the weakest sea, the East Blue, for now.

For one thing, Ma Qiao was more familiar with the situation in the East Blue and knew where to find easy marks.

For another, if both his pirate and Marine retainers put down roots in the East Blue, they could look out for each other in the future.

Besides, the East Blue was a strange place with unusually good feng shui. It would hardly be surprising if another great pirate emerged there.

Twitch, the righteous Marine hero, and Gangplank, the brutal great pirate, would grow up together, get stronger together, and love and kill each other while trying to outact one another...

It sounded like a delightful script.

Garp and Roger, Smoker and Luffy, Twitch and Gangplank, Weslie and Wolffy.

Who could say for sure how bonds worked...?

Ma Qiao did not go to see Gangplank off. A man needed no reason to go to sea, and likewise, he needed no farewell.

He might as well use the time to go back to sleep.

Knock, knock, knock...

Just then, someone knocked on the office door.

Ever since learning that Ma Qiao was close to the number two in Baroque Works and even frequently exchanged letters with her, Vivi had been taking every opportunity to sneak into his office.

"Stinky old man, are you hiding in your room reading dirty letters by yourself again?"

Vivi knocked hard on Ma Qiao's office door and called out slyly, "Or are you doing something weird?"

A long while passed, but no one answered.

Vivi used the meager lock-picking skills she had learned to open the door, then crept inside.

That awful old man was fast asleep again!

How careless!

Vivi reached out to check Ma Qiao's eyes and breathing. After making sure he would not wake easily, she gleefully began searching the desk for valuable documents.

Little did she know that although Ma Qiao's eyes were closed, he could see everything in the office even more clearly than when they were open.

For instance, Ma Qiao could clearly "see" what Vivi was wearing.

She wore a little blue spaghetti-strap dress, her small pink feet were bare, and she held a bowl of chicken soup with something added to it as a cover.

As for the villainess makeup on her face, even Vivi herself could not remember when she had started forgetting to put it on.

At the moment, the girl's delicate, adorable features were free of any embellishment, making her look playful and cute, yet beautiful and innocent.

Of course, she would have looked even more innocent if she had not been holding that copy of South Blue Glamour Girls in her hands.

"So girls can get this big here?"

Vivi could not help holding her little hands in front of her chest to measure.

"Oh, why am I doing something weird?"

"That stinky old man must have rubbed off on me!"

Blushing, Vivi hurriedly put down the dirty magazine and began earnestly looking for information on the mastermind behind Baroque Works.

Before long, she found something.

An envelope bearing the name "Miss All Sunday" lay quietly in a corner of the desk.

Vivi hurriedly opened it, but inside was only an ordinary letter of greeting.

Judging by the tone, the mysterious vice president was unusually close to the stinky old man.

Her words revealed familiarity and... admiration?

It was a woman's intuition.

Vivi frowned, feeling that there was more to this than met the eye.

But no matter how many times she looked the letter over, Vivi found nothing about Mr. 0.

In fact, apart from the greetings at the beginning, Vivi could read the words but had no idea what the rest meant.

Things like "productive forces and relations of production," "surplus value," and "the economic base determines the superstructure" left Vivi completely baffled.

But she could tell that Miss All Sunday really did seem to be asking the stinky old man about profound subjects.

They were completely beyond the knowledge she possessed as the princess of Alabasta.

Was this woman really so eager to learn?

Vivi pictured a female academic with bottle-bottom glasses, a head of messy hair, a face covered in freckles, and a figure that had gone out of shape.

All at once, she no longer felt threatened!

Vivi hurriedly shook her head, driving those strange thoughts out of her mind.

But she could not hide the smile on her face.

"Huh?"

Just as Vivi was preparing to leave after searching without finding anything, she suddenly noticed that the bookmark tucked inside the glamour magazine she had just put back seemed unusual.

It bore the Baroque Works emblem and had some words written on it.

Earlier, Vivi's attention had been fixed on the sinful chests of those indecent, shameless women, so she had not noticed it.

She picked up the magazine again and pulled out the bookmark.

On the front, a few small words were printed: "Commemorating the first anniversary of Baroque Works."

Something had been scrawled on the back in marker.

She did not know whose handwriting it was.

"Dr. Mundo says Mr. 0 is a woman?"

Vivi rubbed her eyes and froze.