The Golden Thief!

On the eighth day, Vidal, along with Nacil and Rogers, returned to the port of 'Nanohana' to prepare for their return to Marineford.

His teacher from the Sengoku was urging him on, and he felt that if he didn't go back soon, they would start yelling at him.

Finally, warship No. 404 slowly sailed away from the port, watched by Cobra and countless citizens.

Surprisingly, Alabasta deployed warships to guard both sides, and this time there were four more.

[Waaaah!]

On the decks of twelve warships, hundreds of robust Royal Army soldiers sounded their horns, and in an instant, the resounding horns echoed through the sky and the entire city of Nanohana.

Even though Vidal and his companions could no longer see the port, the winds of Alabasta would still carry their grateful voices to their ears.

This made Vidal, who was sitting alone in the cabin office, smile slightly, and then he looked down at the dozen or so nautical charts on the table.

In the end, the Forest City family's territory was handed over to Yixiao and Brook for management, which was essentially just a temporary loan for them to live in.

However, it would be best to find a suitable person to take over as soon as possible, since Yixiao still has some things he asked him to do after he finishes dealing with things in Forest City.

For example, tracking down Moonlight Moria and Patrick Redfield!

These nautical charts are also quite special; they are rare to find on the market and are treasured by the Alabasta royal family.

Yes, Vidal is looking for something again, but this time the search is more difficult. He needs to find several little-known islands in the vast ocean.

One of them, which may still be a deserted island, contains a carnation whose value is no less than any Devil Fruit.

The other island, or rather, the other few islands, is easier to find; it's the Boin Archipelago, which Usopp was sent to by Bartholomew Kuma in the future.

The reason for seeking it is simple: the so-called Boin Archipelago are not islands at all, but a giant carnivorous plant that blooms like a flower and floats on the sea, Stomach Baron!

In Vidal's view, the Boin Archipelago might be more valuable to him than Alabasta, where he had just found Pluton.

These nautical charts are all the islands related to plant legends that can be found in the Alabasta royal library.

So, after Marineford duty, barring any unforeseen circumstances, he plans to visit each of these islands one by one, a process that is expected to be quite lengthy.

[Knock knock!]

Just then, the door was knocked on by a familiar rhythm, and the next moment, Lieutenant Rogers walked in.

"Colonel, the lookout has spotted a pirate ship plundering civilian vessels ahead. Should we intervene?"

Vidal frowned. How could they encounter such a thing so soon after leaving Alabasta? They were currently on their way to the G-8 Branch.

He received a call that Navarone Fortress, saying that a ship from the Germa Kingdom had arrived, along with ten large wooden crates containing unknown contents.

The base's navy wanted to search the place, but were stopped by the soldiers of Germa 66, who claimed that the items belonged to Colonel Vidal and that Vidal's permission was required to open the boxes.

Vice Admiral Dewitt, who had already been informed by Vidal, did not make things difficult for them. He simply instructed them to move all the wooden crates into the 'Botanical Garden' under the supervision of the marines.

He was going to take a look and, while he was at it, store the treasures of the Leopard Cat Pirates and the World Pirates there as well.

"We're the navy, of course we have to get involved in this kind of thing," Vidal replied, while thinking to himself that this was a good excuse to pass by the G-8 Branch.

When a warship encounters pirates robbing a civilian ship at sea, after a bloody battle, it naturally needs to find a place to repair the hull and replenish supplies.

"By the way, have you found out which pirate crew it is?" Vidal asked casually as he stood up.

"The pirate flag is a skull and crossbones wearing an Ark Maxim's hat; they must be the Golden Pirates who entered the Grand Line from the East Blue two years ago."

Lieutenant Rogers was always like that; he would prepare the information Vidal needed before reporting it, making him a perfect adjutant.

"Its captain is Woonan, the 'Golden Thief' with a bounty of 20 million Beli. It is said that he has an extraordinary sense of smell for gold and jewels, and can even smell the treasure itself."

"Woonan." Vidal walked past Rogers out of the office, recalling things about this man.

This is the nature of time travelers; whenever they encounter something familiar, they subconsciously search their memories.

But a considerable amount of time had passed, and he couldn't think of anything for the time being until he appeared on the deck and was blown by the sea breeze.

Scenes and memories began to surface in my mind.

Looking into the distance, Vidal indeed saw a large pirate ship, only slightly smaller than a warship, hovering close to a luxurious cruise ship.

Judging from the size of the ship, the Golden Pirates must have had several hundred crew members, and considering the dense gunfire in the wind, they must have had many Fire Pistol.

Overall, this is an extremely wealthy pirate crew!

"Woonan, which will one-third of the world's gold reserves in the future, is interesting." Vidal stood at the bow of the ship, enjoying the palpable tension, and chuckled to himself.

This Woonan should be the Gild Tesoro from Roger's era, but he hasn't fully matured yet.

However, seven years later, when Roger surrenders, he should have reached his peak, with a bounty of 60 million Beli plus one-third of the world's gold.

Sixty million Beli in this era is no joke. I just wonder, which is more: one-third of the world's gold or twenty percent of the world's Beli?

"Captain! Captain Woonan!"

"Naval warships are coming!"

Standing on the cruise ship's deck, arms crossed and intently watching his men move valuables, Woonan's sharp gaze swept across the surrounding sea upon hearing this, finally settling on ship number 404.

"Only one ship? Retreat!"

Although he only has one warship, Woonan does not like to fight against the navy. Regardless of whether he can win or not, he will avoid it if he can, and run away if he can.

But when he returned to his own boat, he found that the boat beneath his feet was completely still, which greatly displeased him.

"What are you doing? Didn't you hear my orders?"

A pirate ran over, shouting frantically, "Captain! The ship isn't moving!"

"What?" Woonan's expression changed. During this process, the warship was getting closer and closer to them, and the pirates on the deck began to tense up.

"Prepare for battle!"

Although Woonan didn't know what was going on, since the navy was unwilling to let them go, they had no choice but to fight.

Pirates armed with matchlock guns carefully aimed their weapons at the warships, using the railings of their pirate ships and cruise ships as cover.

Some people even pushed cannons on wheels up!

It must be said that this is indeed an incredibly wealthy pirate crew. Even on the Grand Line, it is rare to find a pirate crew equipped with such a large number of firearms.

"The Ship Prison." A gentle voice drifted over on the sea breeze.

The next second, thick wooden planks rose from the railings in front of the pirates, instantly joining together above the cruise ship and the pirate ship, transforming into Birdcage -like prison!

"Who is Woonan? Step forward and show yourself."