The Pursued Her

The night was deep, and a large part of the entire royal city had darkened as Teach walked towards the inn.

In the royal palace, within a palace, this was a small side hall of the Snake King. It had not been converted into a snake's den. Inside the palace, there was a huge cage. In the cage was a soft bed, and on the ground was a basin of milk. In a bowl beside it were two fish.

Inside the cage was a small figure. Darkness surrounded it, lonely and desolate. Only moonlight shone in from the window outside. The small figure looked out the window, at the bright moon in the sky. The clear moonlight sprinkled upon its body, a faint silver glow.

Looking outside, it seemed to have made a decision. It jumped down from the bed, landing on all fours, moving with light steps like a cat. It looked at the cage in front of it. She disliked it intensely, preventing her from walking freely, unable to move as she did before, being restricted and losing her freedom.

Moreover, she also missed her friends.

Thinking this in her heart, she raised both hands and leaned on the edge of the cage, exerting force, as if trying to pull it apart with all her might. However, it was to no avail; the cage was built too sturdily.

But she did not give up. Her slender body contained astonishing strength. The cage began to shake, and her eyes flashed with a determined gaze. Her gem-red eyes were exceptionally bright. Her arms trembled, and streaks of blood inevitably dripped from the cage. Gritting her teeth, she let out a soft "Meow!" Her body underwent a transformation, her hands turning into cat claws. Ever since the person who captured her gave her a strange fruit, she seemed to have possessed this ability, becoming more like her former companions.

Her strength greatly increased. Slowly, the cage began to be pulled apart, the gap in the middle gradually widening. Finally, she stopped and looked at the gap, gently squeezing through it and escaping the cage.

She looked at the closed door. The door was shut tight and locked. She could feel many people standing outside, who would not let her escape.

She looked at the open window. For some reason, her heart filled with joy. With a light leap, the muscles in her legs were very developed, possessing astonishing jumping power. She leaped four meters high, her sharp claws digging into the wall. Constantly using the wall for leverage, she jumped, jumped, jumped. In just three seconds, she had already leaped onto a window more than ten meters high.

Looking outside, her eyes lit up. It was vast, with houses of various sizes, much more expansive than the small world she had seen before. It was like a new world. However, she missed home dearly now. She would visit again if she had the chance in the future.

"Bang!" A gunshot echoed, startling her on the windowsill. Fortunately, the shot missed her. Knowing she had been discovered, she leaped from the window towards a less crowded area, directly onto the surrounding wall of the palace, and ran outside.

A guard below felt a disturbance and looked around, finding nothing. The palace gates were tightly shut and had not opened. Instinctively, he looked up towards the window. His pupils contracted. He hadn't expected the "pet" their Highness had instructed them to guard to be escaping.

He directly raised the gun in his hand, aiming at the edge of the window. He didn't aim at her. This was their Highness's treasured pet; if he injured it, it would displease their Highness, and he would be the one to suffer.

He intended to scare the pet back into the palace with the gunshot, but the result was not as he expected. It leaped onto the top of the wall and then ran outside, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

His gunshot alerted a large group of people, who rushed over. "What's going on? Firing randomly, are you trying to die?" Their captain roared at him. "No, it's not good! I saw His Highness's pet escaping," he said urgently, realizing his mistake, sweat beading on his forehead.

"What? She escaped? How? Weren't the gates closed?" the squad leader asked, confused.

The guard remained silent, pointing upwards with his hand. Their gazes followed his arm upwards to an open window.

"Damn it!" Now he was certain. He shouted to the guards around him, "What are you still standing around for? Hurry up and chase her! Catch her and bring her back! If she gets away, not only will you be in trouble, but I will be too."

"Yes!" The guards rushed out, pursuing the escaped pet.

"Open the gate! How did she get out of the cage?" the captain said. The two guards who remained opened the locked gate. As soon as they entered, they saw the cage, now empty. Upon closer inspection, they indeed found traces of an escape. The back part of the cage had been pulled open, and there were bloodstains on it.

"You two go capture the pet, and I'll go notify His Highness the Snake King," the captain instructed the two guards.

As one of the people guarding the pet, and someone the Snake King trusted, he knew the significance of this pet to His Highness. Although the Snake King had cultivated a powerful assassin legion, his forces were still far inferior to the Tiger King's. The Kate Trading Company established by the Kate Kingdom was controlled by the Tiger King, making it easier to obtain Devil Fruits and find the Devil Fruits he desired, thus cultivating his own exclusive "pet."

This pet was specifically cultivated by the Snake King for the Tiger King. Coupled with a Devil Fruit he had previously obtained, although it wasn't what he wanted, it was what the Tiger King wanted. The combination of the two achieved perfection.

He needed the Tiger King's strength to find the Devil Fruit he desired, and this pet was the item of trade between him and the Tiger King.

He quickly ran towards the Snake King's palace. The Snake King had not yet rested. Arriving at the Snake King's palace, the captain couldn't help but tremble. The dark architectural atmosphere, the silence, the dead silence, the damp air, exuded a peculiar smell that made him feel fear – the smell of snakes. "Please inform His Highness the Snake King that I have an urgent matter to report," he said to the guard standing at the entrance.

"Please wait a moment." The guard nodded, slightly opened the door, and went inside.

After a short while, he came out. "His Highness will see you."

Entering the palace, the captain's heart pounded. On both sides were two pools inhabited by water snakes. Countless snakes were carved onto stone pillars, referred to by His Highness as the Myriad Snake Pillars.

A snake's head suddenly lowered from above, stopping in front of him, staring at him intently, its tongue flicking slightly. He instantly turned pale with fright. The dim lighting, the lack of a palace-like appearance – this was a snake's den, a hell for most people.

He dared not look up, for he didn't know how many snakes were above his head, how many snakes were watching him. He found the thought terrifying, feeling like he would go mad.

Among the three princes, the eldest, the Tiger King, was the most dominant. The third prince, the Dragon King, was the most overbearing. The second prince, the Snake King, was the most terrifying. After spending a long time with snakes, he had also become like a snake, and that pet was cultivated in a similar environment.

Reaching the deepest part, there was a black throne. The eldest prince's stern face, his icy eyes. A giant snake, over twenty meters long, coiled around him. The giant snake raised its head, flicked its tongue, and licked the second prince's cheek. The second prince gently stroked its belly.

"Speak, what is it?" the second prince said coldly. "Reporting to Your Highness the Second Prince, the pet has escaped," the captain said cautiously. "However, I have already sent people to capture her. We should have good news soon."

Obviously, although the second prince's expression did not change, the aura around him became even colder, chilling him to the bone, causing him to tremble uncontrollably. He seemed to have already foreseen the consequences. He had witnessed it multiple times; the way people died was too horrific. He regretted coming to report, wondering if it wouldn't have been better to capture the pet first and then notify him.

"Your Highness, spare my life! Please give me a chance. I will definitely bring that pet back," he pleaded, kneeling on the ground, tears welling up in his eyes.

Such a posture made the second prince even more disgusted. "My pets haven't eaten yet! Since you're here, feed them." The second prince's tone softened.

"Yes, yes, I will feed them well. I will definitely satisfy Your Highness." He became excited, thinking he would be spared. However, a rustling sound suddenly came from all around. As a subordinate of the second prince, he was very familiar with such a sound.

This was the sound of snakes slithering. Snakes rapidly crawled towards him from all directions. Before he could react, they had already climbed onto his body. Then, from the sky, snakes rained down, landing on his head and shoulders. His body was entangled by snakes, covered by them.

He showed a look of despair, unable to utter a single word. He had been poisoned. Snakes were biting him all over his body, injecting venom into his system.

His only response was the second prince's cold gaze. He finally understood the second prince's intention: to feed him to the second prince's pets.

"Send people to capture that pet for me. No mistakes allowed," the second prince's voice echoed throughout the hall. "Yes, Your Highness," a voice responded from a dark corner, then vanished from the spot.

The night was deep and quiet, yet the royal city suddenly became lively. Guards and teams of people were dispatched from the palace. As a prince qualified to compete for the throne, his influence was terrifying, possessing his own guard forces.

Such a large commotion naturally alerted others. In the eldest prince Sabre's palace, upon receiving the news, Sabre couldn't help but smile. "My little cat has escaped? It seems Belinda is incompetent."

"Should we send people?" someone below asked.

"No need. What belongs to me cannot run away," the eldest prince Sabre shook his head. However, he seemed to think of something. "Send people to keep an eye on her. Just make sure she doesn't die."

"Yes, Your Highness Tiger King."

"Hahaha, this Belinda, letting the trade item escape, what a waste." In the Dragon King's palace, the third prince Laimer burst into laughter. His strong, three-meter-tall physique exuded immense pressure.

As the Dragon King, with the strongest individual force among the three princes, Laimer directly controlled the kingdom's army. He had earned the army's recognition through his powerful strength. Of course, not all the army; a small portion of the troops were controlled by the Snake King and the Tiger King. There was also a hidden beast troop that he could not control.

"Your Highness, you should still be cautious. His Highness the Snake King is not to be underestimated," someone below reminded him. Laimer was well aware of the trade between the Snake King and the Tiger King, but he had no intention of interfering. Previously, the Devil Fruit sought by the Tiger King Sabre was lost, preventing the transaction from being completed smoothly. Now, with Belinda causing trouble, he found it quite amusing.

The Tiger King, Snake King, and Dragon King all understood clearly that this was the New World. Having a king now could maintain the kingdom's strong national power, as the kingdom's main strength resided with Brady and the beast legion he controlled. However, once this power was lost, the country's strength would significantly decrease, making it a target for many pirates.

This pressure was not something any one of them could bear alone; it required the other two princes to share the burden. Only then could the three of them establish a foothold in the New World and maintain their status as a powerful, great nation.

King Brady also distributed responsibilities accordingly: the eldest prince, Sabre, was put in charge of politics and economics; the second prince, Belinda, controlled covert forces; and the third prince, Laimer, commanded the army.

In the royal city under the cover of night, the commotion outside grew louder. Guards seemed to be pursuing something, searching for something. Residents in their homes were startled awake, but dared not venture outside to investigate, keeping their doors tightly shut.

From this, one could see the Kate Kingdom royal family's reputation and authority among the common people. The royal family held absolute power, and there were no degenerate nobles among them. The populace felt only respect and fear towards the royal family, not hatred.

A nimble figure continuously leaped through the alleyways, blood trickling from wounds that quickly scabbed over. After consuming that fruit, her recovery abilities had greatly improved, allowing simple injuries to heal rapidly.

She appeared extremely panicked. Several times, she was almost found, and her area of movement grew smaller and smaller. Everywhere she looked, there were guards pursuing her. She had taken several gunshots, but after realizing her capabilities, the guards no longer held back, knowing bullets couldn't kill her and her wounds would heal quickly.

Hunting hounds were released, searching for her scent. She could sense enemies in several directions, closing in on her.

She didn't know what to do. Suddenly, she saw a figure. An inexplicable feeling told her that he might be able to help her.