The Great Maelstrom

For the past two days, Kazt had been extremely displeased, incredibly displeased.

First, his important navigator was suddenly killed, and then his capable executive, Lagron, who stayed behind to handle the aftermath, met the same fate.

After that, the long-awaited auction experienced an accident.

The Fish-Man slave he had successfully bid on was shot dead in an alley, and even the brothers left guarding the auction house suffered heavy casualties due to the commotion.

These events, one after another, left Kazt feeling very suppressed.

He didn't even understand what he had done wrong to be targeted like this.

Even the successful plunder of the Bolgin merchant ship a few days prior couldn't wash away his current feelings.

Afterward, with a heavy heart, he began his reckoning.

According to the intelligence obtained from Wolf Rat, the primary target, naturally, was the culprit—the young man at the weapon shop.

Kazt desperately wanted to capture the young man quickly, then torture him while demanding to know why he had a grudge against him.

However, Lagron's bizarre death prevented him from acting rashly.

"Steady wins the race" had always been Kazt's guiding principle.

Even for a major event like plundering the Bolgin merchant ship, which could have been accomplished by teaming up with just one pirate crew of similar strength, he had brought along another pirate crew to ensure success, not minding sharing the profits.

Therefore, being so cautious in his actions, he didn't directly confront the weapon shop after the auction. Instead, he and his subordinates spent considerable effort investigating the weapon shop's background.

It was then that he learned the weapon shop owner, Saul, who usually kept a low profile, was actually a formidable old man.

But that was all.

If he hadn't lost over half his fighting strength last night, Kazt might not have overthought things and would have directly followed his impulses, leading his men to destroy the weapon shop.

But now, anticipating that the risk might be too great for his current situation, Kazt decisively abandoned the idea of destroying the weapon shop.

Yet, he was still a pirate, after all, one whose initial motivation for sailing the seas was to do as he pleased.

In this assassination incident, if he didn't take something back, he truly couldn't quell the hatred in his heart.

Thus, Kazt dispatched a subordinate specializing in surveillance to lurk around the weapon shop.

He might not risk destroying the weapon shop, but he at least had to eliminate Maud.

What Kazt hadn't expected was that this opportunity would come so quickly.

After his subordinate returned with the report, Kazt showed Maud considerable respect by personally leading all his brothers to the Battle Axe Tavern.

The violent entrance and the arrival of a large group immediately drew the attention of everyone present.

Seeing Kazt storming into the tavern with a horde of people, Wolf Rat's expression changed, and he inwardly cursed his luck.

He wasn't worried about his own safety, but about Maud's.

Last night, he had first provided Kazt with free intelligence and then accidentally witnessed Maud eliminating those three pirates. It was then that he realized Maud could be his entry point to further contact Ghost Gun Saul.

Thinking of this, Wolf Rat felt a headache coming on.

He had severely underestimated Kazt's ability to gauge the situation.

"Usopp, oh Usopp, if I had known this would happen, I would never have sold you out last night. Now look, with Ebe in front and Kazt behind, you're just unlucky."

Faced with this vortex that could instantly end his life if he got caught up in it, Wolf Rat didn't hesitate to abandon his planned entry point.

If it had just been Ebe, he might have been able to utilize the situation by stepping forward to gain Maud's favor.

But now, with Kazt seeking revenge...

What was the point of stepping forward? And his hard-won entry point?

To hell with the entry point!

Self-preservation was the most important thing!

In a mere few seconds, Wolf Rat's thoughts raced through a myriad of possibilities.

Having decided to stay out of it, he couldn't help but lament how his previous action, mistakenly thinking he was being singled out by Ebe and thus stepping forward, had actually become the key to distancing himself.

It truly felt like fate.

Before Kazt's attention could turn towards him, Wolf Rat unhesitatingly and quietly moved away from Maud's table.

Because of the distance, this action didn't seem out of place at the moment.

In Wolf Rat's opinion, Maud was as good as dead.

If Ghost Gun were present, it would be a different story.

After all, he was someone even the Marine heroes would want to dismember.

Pirates like Ebe and Kazt, as long as Ghost Gun didn't mind revealing his identity, would be dealt with in just two shots.

But Ghost Gun was not present.

As for Maud, based on the strength he witnessed last night...

"Don't you die too miserably, Usopp," Wolf Rat thought silently, his back to Maud.

Maud, who was contemplating how to escape from Ebe, didn't notice the Wolf Rat's actions, nor did he know the Wolf Rat's internal monologue, which went from wanting to be friends with him one second to decisively selling him out the next.

Kazt's arrival at the tavern with his men caused quite a stir.

Upon hearing the commotion, Maud could no longer pretend to be an ostrich in front of Ebe. He and Ebe looked towards the tavern entrance at almost the same time.

The first thing he noticed was Kazt's signature pointed helmet and his thick beard, which immediately identified the other man.

Kazt, with a bounty of 32 million Belly.

"Finally, I get to see the real person."

Maud took in Kazt's appearance, completely unaware that the man was coming for him.

He, the instigator of the assassination incident, had by a twist of fate become the only one kept in the dark.

This was something he could never have imagined.

Ebe coldly watched Kazt, who clearly meant trouble. As pirates with bounties exceeding 30 million, they had always been at odds.

Although there were no overt conflicts, both would gladly destroy the other given the chance.

"This black bull is coming on strong. Could he have been kicked in the head by a donkey and come all the way here just to cause trouble for me?"

Ebe pondered this possibility.

After all, they had only just arrived, and Kazt had followed shortly after with a large group of men.

In this place, Ebe couldn't think of anyone else Kazt would gather a crowd to confront besides himself.

For a moment, Ebe forgot all about lusting after Maud's good looks. He gave his subordinates a look and prepared for battle.

At the entrance, Kazt scanned the pirates inside, naturally sensing Ebe's undisguised hostility.

But he paid it no mind. Guided by his subordinates, his gaze passed over Ebe and slowly settled on Maud.

With the enmity between them, his eyes immediately turned red.

The pent-up rage, unable to be vented, instantly transformed into icy killing intent, surging towards Maud like a tide.

The first to react to the killing intent wasn't Maud, but the white skunk that Ebe had brought.

The chance to escape has arrived!

Without a word, the skunk scurried under a table.

The second to react to the killing intent was Maud, who was directly in its path.

"He's coming for me???"

Maud's heart jolted.

In a flash, he instantly guessed the reason.

The matter of killing Red had been exposed.

He couldn't understand why they had waited so long to come after him.

Nor did he have time to ponder such things.

Maud abruptly stood up, took two steps forward, and stepped just to the edge of Ebe's reasonable line of defense.

He neither overstepped nor stayed too far away.

Then—

"Boss Ebe!"

Maud, deepening his voice, addressed Ebe with respect.

He then looked towards the retreating figure of the Wolf Rat.

"Brother Wolf Rat!"

Upon hearing Maud's two addresses, Ebe froze.

His subordinates froze.

Kazt froze.

His subordinates also froze.

The Wolf Rat, who had already prepared to stay out of it, was shocked.

"Usopp, you damn @#%@#&...!"

This chapter is a bonus chapter... I'll do my best to finish it before I sleep!