An Excellent Traitor, Nico Robin

Robin was a little stunned by Bane's words.

How had the conversation suddenly turned to this?

Although Nico Robin had originally planned to make contact with Bane first, then sow discord between Bane and Crocodile, and finally make the two fight so she could seize the chance to break free from Crocodile—ideally, get Crocodile killed—

That was right. Robin wanted to silence someone too. She was just as insecure.

But even so, Bane's proactive invitation to kill Crocodile together left her deeply uncertain.

As Nico Robin, who had drifted through countless criminal organizations for years and still managed to survive, her life had been filled with betrayal and being betrayed.

So the instant Bane said those words, several possibilities had already flashed through her mind.

Could Crocodile have known Bane all along, and was now using Bane to test her?

Could Bane actually be with the World Government, intending to use her to eliminate Crocodile, one of the Shichibukai, before getting rid of her as well?

Could it be...

In short, countless dark suspicions flashed through Robin's mind.

Yet outwardly, she remained calm. After a few seconds, she even put on a troubled expression and said, "I heard our president say that he has had no contact with you. I assume there is no conflict between you two, so how did things suddenly become like this?"

After a slight pause, Robin asked again, "Even if you say so, I should at least know the reason, shouldn't I? Why do you want to target our president? Could there be some misunderstanding? I can help mediate between you as an intermediary."

"What misunderstanding could there be?" Bane waved a hand carelessly. "It's true that I've never dealt with Crocodile, and I don't know him, but that doesn't stop me from wanting to kill him."

Then Bane exhaled a stream of smoke. "As for the reason, I'm a bounty hunter. Wanting to kill a pirate is perfectly reasonable, right? And he's one of the Shichibukai, which makes it even better. It would raise my reputation and prestige on the seas, wouldn't it?"

Nico Robin did not try to argue. She did not want to provoke Bane; getting herself killed here for Crocodile was not worth it, and she had no such loyalty.

But she could not simply agree either, so she tactfully said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Bane. The president has treated me fairly well. I have no intention of betraying him. I believe you wouldn't like a traitor either, would you?"

Hearing that, Bane looked into Robin's eyes. After a moment of silence, he said, "But haven't you lived among betrayal and conspiracies since childhood? Loyalty is the cheapest thing in the world to you. Does Crocodile truly trust you?"

Nico Robin could not refute that at all. She did not know how much the man before her knew about her, but it was certainly more than she had imagined. Saying anything more now would only create more mistakes, so silence was better.

But she also knew that if she remained silent again and again, she might exhaust the man's patience. Then she would be in danger.

So after a brief silence, Robin said, "Crocodile truly does not trust me, but I cannot trust you either. I certainly cannot betray him just because of a few words from you. The feeling you give me is more dangerous than he is. With him, I still have some initiative. With you, all I can feel is danger—deadly danger. So..."

As she spoke, she watched Bane's expression the entire time. If his expression changed in an unfavorable direction, she would decisively alter her approach.

But judging by her nearly flawless ability to read people, nothing she had said—not even the shift in her honorifics—had caused the man before her any discomfort. That left her puzzled and made him even harder to see through.

"So you need me to make myself trustworthy... Hmm, that's a little difficult, so that can't be what you need. Let me think." Bane stroked his chin and pondered for a moment. Then realization appeared in his eyes. "I see. You need me to clearly tell you what value you have to me. Only after confirming that value can you trust me to some extent. At least before that value has been exhausted, I won't casually discard you, or trade you to someone else for new value. Is that it?"

Robin said nothing, but her expression already showed that Bane had understood her meaning.

In fact, her cooperation with Crocodile had been the same. She knew Crocodile wanted to use her knowledge to decipher Poneglyphs and obtain the Ancient Weapons, so she could trust him to a certain extent. That trust was founded on that need.

Robin had judged that before Crocodile obtained information on the Ancient Weapons, he would not harm her. He would even protect her from all kinds of forces. The facts had proven that this was indeed the case over the years.

Likewise, she was certain that once Crocodile got what he wanted, she would lose her value here. Crocodile would definitely kill her!

That was why she wanted to deal with Crocodile first!

Now, she needed Bane to give her a suitable reason, to prove that he needed her. Only that need could establish even the slightest foundation of trust between them in a short time. As for the future, that would depend on their actions.

Their conversation had gone in so many circles that even Zoro, standing nearby, could barely follow it. He looked at Nami, seemingly hoping she would quietly explain it to him, but Nami only gave him a merciless Byakugan.

After considering it for a moment, Bane spoke again. "That isn't difficult, but I don't want to prove any of that. Let me put it this way: whether you trust me or not, you actually have no choice in my eyes. I know you better than you imagine, and I hold bargaining chips and reasons you absolutely cannot refuse or avoid."

Robin did not believe those words at all. Through their brief exchange, she had already concluded that Bane seemed unusually patient and tolerant with her. So now, she added more probing to her words, wanting to see whether that tolerance and patience ran even deeper than she had guessed.

Thus, Robin changed her tone again, deliberately sounding somewhat provocative. "Is that so? If you truly had bargaining chips I couldn't refuse and reasons I couldn't avoid, why would you need to speak with me this way? You could simply threaten me, simply order me around, couldn't you? After all, I wouldn't be able to refuse."

Bane froze for a moment, then burst into laughter. "So you think I'm trying to trick you? Hahaha! No, no, no. It's simply because I admire you. I admire your courage and sense of responsibility: even while bearing the infamy of being misunderstood by the entire world, even while carrying the so-called crime of being Ohara's Devil Child who would destroy the world, you still insist on fighting those scum in Mary Geoise to the end. You still insist on carrying Ohara's voice into the future, and preserving a spark of history."

Bane's words moved Robin. She stared blankly at the chunks of meat in her bowl, as if something had touched her, as if she had fallen into old memories.

But she was, after all, a woman who had grown up in darkness. How could she casually open her heart and trust someone just because of words like those?

"So what exactly are these bargaining chips I cannot refuse and reasons I cannot avoid? I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm past the age where a few compliments and sweet words would make me foolishly trust someone," Nico Robin said softly.

Her eyes also became clear and rational once more.

"What an unlovable woman. No one will like you that way." Bane curled his lip, then tapped the wooden stump table with a finger and looked into Nico Robin's eyes. "Former Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral Jaguar D. Saul is not dead. He is hiding somewhere, and I know where. That's the first thing. Now, would you like to hear the second?"

The moment Saul's name left Bane's mouth, Nico Robin, who had been restraining her emotions and trying to appear rational, suddenly pressed both hands against the table. She did not speak, but there was light in her eyes—hope, no longer endless darkness. Her hands trembled against the tabletop.

A moment later, she seemed to have steadied herself enough to speak properly. Her voice trembling, she asked, "What is the second?"

Bane admired her even more now. Even at a time like this, she could retain a measure of restraint and reason, trying to obtain more information first rather than immediately questioning him about Saul. Very good.

So Bane did not keep her in suspense. "Second, the precious books in Ohara's Tree of Knowledge were not destroyed in that Buster Call. A great many of them were preserved and are now hidden somewhere. So, would you like to hear the third?"

Nico Robin desperately wanted to nod and ask what the third was. But she knew that these two points alone had already made refusal impossible. Bane was right—he held bargaining chips she could not refuse and reasons she could never avoid!

So now, she needed to demonstrate her excellence, so that her new boss would be satisfied with her sooner and tell her the answers to the first two matters.

Therefore, Robin forced down her curiosity and anticipation, revealing an intelligent, gentle smile. "There is no need, Lord Bane. We can now discuss how to kill Crocodile."

"Hahahaha! I really am growing more and more impressed by you, Nico Robin!" Bane laughed and praised her.