The Dangerous Woman, Nico Robin

Chapter 44: The Dangerous Woman, Nico Robin.

Alabasta is located on Sandora, an island in the first half of the Grand Line.

Sandora is an exceptionally rare, massive island, almost comparable to a continental plate.

Because of this, Alabasta possesses a vast landmass, though its geography and climate are rather poor; the majority of the island is desert and extremely arid, making it ill-suited for human survival.

Even so, thanks to its expansive territory, Alabasta is a "starving camel that is still bigger than a horse," boasting a massive population. The standing armed forces under the Nefertari family alone number at least six hundred thousand.

One must realize these are full-time professional soldiers. A nation capable of supporting six hundred thousand professional troops already exceeds the total population of many countries in this world, not to mention that with the constant rebellions plaguing Alabasta over the years, there are hundreds of thousands of rebels within the country as well—it is simply terrifying.

It is no wonder that Alabasta is considered a top-tier military power in the world today.

In recent years, due to national instability and perennial drought, many oasis cities have perished, leaving the overall situation in Alabasta dire and its economy in severe decline.

Yet, in this very environment, a new, glorious city has risen within Alabasta's borders: Rainbase.

With the nationwide drought in Alabasta, essentially only the capital, Alubarna, and Rainbase see rain from time to time. This has caused the country's population to migrate toward these two locations, rapidly fueling the prosperity of Rainbase.

Crocodile, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, is a permanent resident of Rainbase. He opened a highly luxurious casino there, attracting the wealthy from all over the world. Because the capital, Alubarna, frequently suffers from rebel attacks, the high nobility of Alabasta have flocked to Rainbase to settle down.

The reason is simple: Crocodile is strong enough to hold down the situation in Rainbase. The rebels attacked a few times and failed, so they eventually stopped coming altogether.

Thus, in the eyes of many nobles, this place is even safer than the capital!

On an endless desert ridge, a camel caravan had just stopped to rest.

Among the caravan was a camel with a coat as white as snow, its physique far more robust and sturdy than the others. Yet, even now, it appeared somewhat fatigued because the one it was carrying on its back was none other than Bane.

Come to think of it, Bane's height stopped increasing once he reached about 2.3 meters, but his weight continues to grow alongside his physical prowess.

A height of 2.3 meters sounds impressive, but in this world of monsters, it is actually quite unremarkable.

"Walking all this way, the cities have been desolate and overrun by sand thieves. Only upon reaching the vicinity of Rainbase have I finally seen the prosperity of this ancient kingdom," Bane said, riding on the camel while looking at the emerging city about three or four kilometers below the sand slope.

That was Rainbase. Endless camel caravans moved in and out of the city like ants. Looking out over the vast, boundless desert, it felt as if this were the only patch of green.

"Alabasta's tradition is migration. Aside from the capital, this country has almost no cities with a particularly long history, because the yellow sand will eventually bury everything. The people here always leave their homelands to develop new oases, and Rainbase is merely one of many in this long history," Nico Robin said, riding her camel up beside Bane.

Having lived in Alabasta for years, she seemed accustomed to the scorching sun; her wheat-colored skin was the best proof of this. While Nami was wrapped up tightly, Robin still wore her signature white trench coat and a stylish cowboy hat.

As for Bane and Zoro, it mattered little. Bane's constitution made it impossible for him to get sunburned; he wore brown cargo pants and a black tank top that clung to his frame, highlighting his immense, violent strength.

After their group arrived in Alabasta, they met Nico Robin, who had been waiting for a long time at the port of Nanohana. Bane then dismissed his subordinates, telling them to disperse and act freely in Nanohana until he summoned them for departure.

He then set off with Nami, Zoro, and Robin, heading straight for Rainbase.

"I've arrived, and that guy Crocodile hasn't even come to greet me," Bane said, curling his lip in annoyance.

"He said he would wait for you at the Rain Dinners casino," Robin said with a smile.

"But if I fight there, I'll be heartbroken if I break anything," Bane said helplessly.

He already viewed everything belonging to Crocodile as his own property. Who chooses to fight in their own home?

What? You say Marine Headquarters? Then pretend I didn't say anything.

After a brief pause, Bane turned to look at the mature, charming Nico Robin and asked, "Beautiful lady, is there any way to lure Crocodile out? Can we take him out here in the desert?"

Seeming pleased by Bane's compliment, Robin shook her head with a smile. "Unlikely. He is already full of vigilance toward you."

"Then shouldn't it be even better in the desert? This desert is his home turf, after all!" Bane grumbled.

"The entirety of Alabasta is his home turf," Robin said, her tone turning serious.

Then, without waiting for Bane to speak, Robin suddenly shifted the topic. "Do you know who designed the Rain Dinners casino?"

"Who?" Bane blinked, not understanding why Robin would suddenly ask this.

"I did," Nico Robin said, a dangerous glint flashing in her eyes. "When I first started collaborating with Crocodile, Rain Dinners didn't exist. His influence in Alabasta and the Grand Line wasn't this vast yet. Later, he chose Rainbase and wanted to build a luxurious casino here to serve as his base of operations."

"And you helped him design Rain Dinners?" Bane asked, stroking his chin.

"No, it was a designer recommended by Tesoro. Crocodile gladly accepted Tesoro's goodwill, but I swapped the final blueprints. Rain Dinners was built according to my design," Robin said, revealing a charming yet dangerous smile. "Do you know why I did that?"

"You were planning how to kill him from back then?" Bane gave the answer after a moment of thought.

"Exactly. The top three floors of Rain Dinners are indeed a top-tier casino and entertainment complex, but the bottom two floors are Crocodile's lair. To cater to his peculiar tastes, I tampered with it. I built him a massive ornamental crocodile pool with enough water capacity to completely flood the bottom two levels," Nico Robin said softly.

At that moment, Bane suddenly realized details he hadn't noticed before. The weakness of Crocodile's ability is water; once he touches it, he cannot turn into sand. In the original story, Nico Robin had intended to use this weakness to ambush him.

It just hadn't succeeded.

But that raised a question: Crocodile's weakness—no, the weakness of all Devil Fruit users—is seawater. Yet this guy kept crocodiles in his own lair, specifically on the second basement level. If any accident occurred and seawater flooded in, he would be done for!

Such a brilliant move—Bane hadn't paid it much mind before, his instinct from knowing the story making it seem like a matter of course. Now, hearing Robin's explanation, he realized, Good grief, this was a trap Robin laid for Crocodile, a killing blow she left for him.

It just hadn't been used in the original story for various reasons!

Just as Bane felt surprised and shocked, Robin continued with that dangerous smile on her face. "So, there is a very simple way to kill Crocodile now. He will definitely receive you on the second basement level of Rain Dinners. As long as you are willing to take the risk, when you meet, I can come out and activate that little device that has never been used. The seawater will flood in, ending everything, and you won't have to worry about causing too much damage to Rain Dinners."

Bane laughed heartily upon hearing this, then raised an eyebrow, looking at Nico Robin with a meaningful gaze. "You know I'm a Devil Fruit user too, yet you're giving me this suggestion?"

"So, are you afraid that I might drown you along with him?" Robin asked softly, still smiling.

After a brief silence, Bane waved his hand. "No, I trust you. Let's go with your plan!"

His decisive agreement caught Robin, who had been prepared for a rejection, off guard.

For some reason, she felt a warmth in her heart. Is this what trust feels like?