Meeting

East China Sea.

The sea is rippling with blue waves, white clouds drift with the wind, and a gentle sea breeze blows.

On a merchant ship, Marcel stood at the bow, arms crossed, gazing into the distance with a somewhat lonely expression.

"Marcel, wine."

Not far away, a middle-aged man threw a wine bottle at us.

Snap.

Marcel reached out and caught the bottle, opened the cap, and took a big gulp.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

The sound of a wooden stick striking the ground rang out, and a figure appeared beside Marcel, saying, "You look a little unhappy."

"Uncle Joezer".

Marcel looked at the other person, put the bottle back, sighed, and said, "I'm not unhappy."

"Why not?"

Joezer said with a smile, "You always train during your rest time when you go out to sea. How come you're standing here this time, almost ready to return to port, and I haven't seen you touch your sword even once?"

"I just want to rest for a bit," Marcel said somewhat listlessly.

"Okay." Joezer nodded, and then said, "After we go back this time, I won't be going on the ship anymore."

"Not going with the ship?"

Marcel was somewhat surprised and quickly asked, "Uncle Joezer, what are you planning to do?"

"I plan to find a warehouse-keeping position at the Chamber of Commerce," Joezer said with a smile.

"But the income is very low, it's not as good as making money on a ship," Marcel immediately said.

"I just didn't want to bother you anymore. I broke a leg and couldn't go on the ship for a long time. You helped me overcome everyone's objections, otherwise how could I still be on the ship?" Joezer patted his left leg, which was broken off and had become a prosthetic leg with a wooden stick at the end.

"Those despicable pirates."

Marcel clenched his fists, recalling how his Uncle Joezer had been slashed in the leg by a pirate before their last voyage. He hadn't wanted to fight the pirates and planned to give them some money to leave. But seeing this, he was filled with anger and rushed to fight them, driving them away. He was injured in the process, which led to him being scolded again by Nojiko and his mother when he returned.

"Never mind."

Joezer waved his hand and said, "I've spent my whole life on ships, it's time for me to go back."

"You can stay on the ship, and I can give you some of my money."

Marcel looked at Joezer and said that for the past nine years, Uncle Joezer had been with him, teaching him how to live and work on the ship. After he became the first mate, Uncle José taught him the position of first mate, and then after he became the captain two years ago, Uncle José came with him to the new ship to help him.

Over the past nine years, Uncle Joezer has helped me so much, and I don't want him to leave.

"I don't want to just take the money and do nothing, so forget it."

Joezer patted Marcel and said, "You don't need me anymore."

"Of course we need it!" Marcel quickly replied.

"You are now a qualified captain. You are very familiar with every job on the ship and the personnel management. Your swordsmanship is superb. You have encountered many pirate crews and were able to repel them. You are very strong." Joezer said, "Not only that, your meteorology and navigation skills are also becoming more and more proficient. You are good enough that I don't need you to set sail."

"But," Marcel hesitated.

Joezer said, "You can't possibly not know that you've been running long-distance routes for the past year, almost crossing half of the East China Sea. It's not because you were chosen by the Shining Gold Merchant Association to be in charge of the routes, but because you are so outstanding that the Shining Gold Merchant Association wants to open up long-distance routes. You are the first person to run this far in seven years. The last one was the vice president of the Shining Gold Merchant Association Lof."

"I don't know any of that."

Marcel scratched his head, and Joezer said with a smile, "Alright, my mind is made up, so don't say anything more."

"Good."

Marcel nodded. Seeing that Uncle Joezer was determined, he said nothing more.

"Then I'll head back now."

Joezer turned and walked away into the distance, but suddenly, a voice rang out.

"Pirates, they're pirates."

A voice came from the watchtower.

"Pirates?"

Marcel was taken aback, then immediately picked up his binoculars and looked into the distance, where he spotted a ship.

This is a pirate ship, huge in size, fifty meters long, with four masts and three lookout towers.

The bow of the ship features an elephant, and its trunk has been transformed into a cannon.

On the widest sail, a strange pirate pattern is painted: crossed white bones, a skull with a round head, black slits running through its eyes, and its signature large nose.

"The Buggy Pirates".

Upon seeing this pirate crew, Marcel's expression turned grim. In the entire East China Sea, apart from the Krieg Pirates who had just set sail for the Grand Line, the Buggy Pirates had the highest bounty.

Captain Buggy, bounty of fifteen million.

"They might not find us. Full port, full sail, let's get out of here quickly."

Marcel immediately gave the order, the helmsman took control of the ship, and the crew lowered the sails and sailed away with the wind.

But as they turned their rudder, the ships behind them also changed direction and chased after them in a straight line.

The Buggy Pirates ' Bikini Dope had more masts and twice as many sails, and it caught up at a rapid pace.

Most importantly, their own cargo ships also need cargo.

"You can't escape."

Marcel looked at Buggy's pirate ship in the distance with a grim expression; there was no way they could escape like this.

Unless the goods are discarded.

Just as Marcel was about to speak, suddenly with a loud bang, a cannonball shot out from the cannon made of an elephant trunk.

boom.

The shell struck the stern, and a violent explosion rang out. Two figures at the stern fell to the ground, and Marcel was also affected by the blast wave.

"Damn it."

Marcel stood up, looking at the blown-open stern of the ship, somewhat surprised by the power of the cannonballs.

Although the muzzle doesn't look big, the shells are quite powerful.

Are you all alright?

Marcel looked at the injured figures and found that one person had been killed instantly by the explosion, and the remaining person was barely breathing.

"Those bastards."

Marcel was furious. The murder of his two crew members filled him with rage, and he wished he could kill the perpetrators to avenge them.

boom.

Another shell came flying in, landing directly in the water with a deafening boom. A huge Shockwave appeared, splashing water everywhere and rocking the ship.

"Stop the ship and raise the white flag."

Marcel suddenly shouted, "We can't escape like this. The chances of getting away by dismantling the cargo are slim. More importantly, the enemy has cannons. If they hit us with one shot, the ship will slow down."

Rather than be bombarded by them, it's better to surrender.

Marcel's words caused the ship to raise a white flag and then lower its sails.

After the surrender, the distant warships stopped firing and slowly approached.

"Everyone, take up your weapons."

Marcel shouted loudly and drew his broadsword. The others also picked up their longswords and waited for their arrival.

Bang.

The enormous pirate ship slowly approached and collided with the others. Many people jumped off the ship, including a man riding a lion, a swordsman riding a unicycle, and a man with Red Nose.

Clown Buggy, with a bounty of fifteen million.

Upon seeing the other party, Marcel gripped his weapon tightly, but did not make a move.

"Who's the captain?" Buggy shouted.

"That's me."

Marcel stepped forward and stared at Buggy as he spoke.

Buggy snorted and said, "Hand over all the cargo and money from your ship, then come with us, and I might spare your lives."

"What? You want us to leave with you?" Marcel's face turned ugly upon hearing this.

Buggy said, "Of course, kidnapping you and then having your merchant guild send ransoms, such a cargo ship can definitely make a lot of money."

Upon hearing this, Marcel gritted his teeth and said, "Buggy, if you take all the goods and money with you, our losses will be too great, and we won't be able to explain it to our superiors. How about this, could you please do us a favor and let us go this time?"

"Let you go this time?"

Buggy said with a guilty look on his face, "Who gave you the right to bargain? Take him away."

Buggy's men immediately stepped forward, and the people on the merchant ship gripped their weapons and stood in front of them.

"What are you going to do?" Buggy stared at them coldly, three knives appearing in his right hand.

Marcel looked at the people behind Buggy and the figure not far away, gritted his teeth, and said, "I'm the captain. I'll give you the cargo and the money, and I'll go with you."

"Captain."

"Marcel".

The people around immediately shouted, but Marcel stopped them, saying, "As the captain, my value is the greatest, isn't it?"

"All right."

Buggy thought for a moment and said coldly, "I hope you're worth some money, or I'll kill you."

Two figures immediately stepped forward, grabbed Marcel, turned his hand behind his back, and led him onto the ship.

Then the pirates on the ship began to move cargo and plunder money.

Joezer gritted his teeth as he witnessed this, but he was powerless to do anything about it.

After looting the valuables, the Buggy Pirates returned laden with their spoils and slowly departed.

"We can only notify the Shining Gold Merchant Association after we reach our destination and have them pay the ransom." Marcel was tied up there, looking grim.

But at that moment, Buggy suddenly said, "Activate the Buggy Cannon and blast that ship to pieces."

"Yes."

Immediately, someone moved the cannons from the ship's hull to the side and aimed them at the distance.

"What?"

Marcel looked surprised for a moment, then asked, "What are you going to do?"

"Of course, we should deal with them."

Buggy laughed and said, "Now that you've been captured, they're no longer of any use to you as captain."

"You can't do this! You promised me!" Marcel shouted.

How could you believe a pirate?

Buggy said dismissively, then angrily added, "Not only that, they dared to call my nose fake and say it's disgusting. They all deserve to die."

"Fire."

Buggy shouted, and with his voice, the shells flew toward the distant ship.

boom.

The ship was hit, an explosion occurred, and the cargo ship was sunk.

Looking at the people above, Marcel's eyes turned bloodshot, and he cursed, "You bastard!"

"Gag him, contact the Shining Gold Merchant Association and have them send the ransom."

Buggy laughed and said, "We've already got the map of the Grand Line. Once we're ready, we'll unleash our power on the Grand Line."

"Dalton has been released by the militia. Zala encountered him and confronted him. Then Zala proposed... Dalton lost to Heckle. There are still two battles left, but Dalton's arm is broken and he cannot fight for the time being. Zala entered the village and waited for the next step of the plan."

Cecilia stood in front of Xia Qiu, holding Den Den Mushi, and reported the information she had just received.

"I see."

Xia Qiu thought for a moment and said, "It's good that she can avoid direct conflict. Her way of challenging Dalton is good. Even if he loses, he may not be willing to submit, but that way she will have the upper hand. Secondly, fulfilling the agreement will also prove her credibility. Taking the initiative to stop can reduce their psychological resistance. Tell Zala not to do anything more, to wait patiently for Dalton to recover, and to help the villagers protect the country. There is no need to rush for now."

"I'll call her right now."

Cecilia was leaving to inform Zala when Xia Qiu suddenly said, "Wait a minute, now that Heckle has finished the battle, let him come back to this island temporarily. Let him sneak over there for Mr. Christmas, and let her stay there."

"Good."

Cecilia relayed Xia Qiu's orders to Zala, then put the Den Den Mushi back inside the house, and then eagerly watched the Training Six Powers.

"This guy."

Xia Qiu looked somewhat helpless as she watched her disappear again.

Cecilia is very good. She follows orders, has no ulterior motives, is very strong, and is incredibly diligent.

The only problem is that she is too focused on improving herself. When I wanted her to be the Vice President, she refused outright, saying it would affect her martial arts training.

Zala is lazy and stupid, Cecilia is a martial arts fanatic, Vivi is unwilling to help her.

Since Robin left, he has been unable to find a suitable partner.

But I don't need to use a woman as my partner.

The Baroque Works has changed a lot and is no longer the simple assassin organization it once was.

Now that my strength has increased, it's time to reveal my identity to more people.

I have already chosen the person to whom I will reveal my identity, the Vice President, and have asked him to come to the island.

Two days later, Heckle arrived at the island by boat. He saw Cecilia standing on the shore, leaped over, and excitedly asked, "I heard the captain was looking for me?"

Heckle had great awe for the captain. If that Giant Beast was so strong, how strong must the captain be?

More importantly, his Devil Fruit ability was given to him by the president, which greatly increased his combat power.

Heckle held the president in high esteem and was very excited to learn that the president wanted to see him.

"Come with me."

Cecilia, showing little interest, led Heckle through the woods to the outside of the courtyard wall and said, "Go in by yourself."

Is the company president inside?

Heckle excitedly walked in and arrived at the backyard, only to find that apart from the Giant Beast, there was no one there.

"Where is the president?"

Heckle stared blankly around. The president had invited him, so why wasn't he here?

"Heckle".

A grand voice rang out, "From today onwards, you will become my partner and the Vice President of Baroque Works."

"Um?"

Heckle stared blankly at the figure in front of him. After it finished speaking, he froze on the spot and said after a long while, "You are the president of Baroque Works."

"Good."

Xia Qiu looked at Heckle and said, "I am Mr. 0."