On the massive warship, Kong looked helplessly at the current Fleet Admiral grumbling from his chair, but he had to admit the old man was right.
White Wolf Magnus was no weakling, but Fleet Admiral Rona had told him that White Wolf Magnus and Rona were at most evenly matched. If Rona had not been wary of Giant King Harald's presence at the time, it was hard to say who would have won if the fight had continued.
And he, as a Fleet Admiral candidate, was already set to succeed the current Fleet Admiral Jiang Ma once Jiang Ma stepped down.
In other words, his strength had undoubtedly reached Fleet Admiral level.
Even if Fleet Admiral Jiang Ma was no longer as strong as he had been in his youth due to his age, he could still unleash Fleet Admiral-level strength for a short time without any problem.
Two against one. Kong could not see how they could lose.
The only problem was—
They could not find the White Wolf Pirates at all!
Ever since seizing the Celestial Gold, the White Wolf Pirates had vanished as if into thin air. They had drifted at sea for over a month without finding a single clue.
Until the Den Den Mushi aboard the warship suddenly rang.
"What? Sphinx!?"
Receiving the message from Marine Headquarters, Kong immediately turned serious.
"Fleet Admiral Jiang Ma, the White Wolf Pirates have been spotted. A day ago, White Wolf Magnus appeared in the non-Affiliated Nation of Sphinx and defeated three Great Pirates with bounties exceeding one hundred million each!"
"Headquarters now suspects that the White Wolf Pirates intend to take Sphinx for themselves and develop the country into their own territory!"
Sphinx was a place where pirates fenced their loot. The Marines had known that for a long time, but even knowing it, taking down Sphinx was no easy matter.
Because the pirates would run.
The pirates had no sense of belonging toward Sphinx whatsoever. As soon as the Marines arrived, they would flee, leaving behind only an island of ordinary residents from a non-Affiliated Nation. It held no value for the Marines at all.
Therefore, back when Kong was still a Navy Major General, he had proposed that since pirates could not be completely eradicated, Sphinx should be allowed to become their fixed marketplace. The Marines could send large numbers of intelligence agents to infiltrate it and gather information on the pirates.
The results proved that this approach was extraordinarily effective. Taking advantage of the pirates' carelessness, they set ambushes along the pirates' routes and wiped out several Great Pirates who had once visited Sphinx to fence their goods.
It was precisely through this achievement that Kong had risen from Navy Major General all the way to Fleet Admiral candidate.
Moreover, to avoid draining the pond dry, the Marines only targeted pirate crews that posed great threats and committed heinous crimes.
The small fry were temporarily spared.
Thus, even today, countless pirates still came and went through Sphinx. By now, many of the risks had long been outweighed by convenience.
Even though the pirates had grown more cautious, there were always more solutions than difficulties.
How about Devil Fruit abilities?
However, upon hearing that Magnus had defeated the three major pirate crews that originally controlled Sphinx and taken Sphinx for himself—
Kong felt that something was off.
Who was it that had initially advised him to leave Sphinx alone?
"Hmph, nothing more than a rabble made up of pirates. That fellow Magnus has fallen as well, actually thinking of using those pirates against us."
Jiang Ma snorted. After all these days, he was finally no longer lying in his chair or leaning against the tender embrace of a female slave.
For the first time, he gave an order of his own initiative.
"All forces, heed my command! Proceed to the non-Affiliated Nation of Sphinx, and order the nearby Marine branches to dispatch warships for support!"
Jiang Ma might have been old and lecherous, but his mind had not gone bad. Strategically, he could disdain his enemy, but tactically, he would not underestimate Magnus.
If Magnus had truly been so weak, Jiang Ma would have thrown him into Impel Down long ago.
How could he possibly still be roaming free to this day?
Besides, if Magnus truly possessed Fleet Admiral-level strength, then combined with his old crewmates, these few men might actually let Magnus slip away.
So, he needed several more layers of insurance.
From beginning to end, Jiang Ma never believed Magnus would do anything other than run.
A head-on confrontation?
What a joke.
They had the equivalent of two Fleet Admirals here!
March arrived.
News of White Wolf Magnus appearing in Sphinx gradually spread.
If the pirates of Sphinx had initially cheered for Magnus's bold seizure of the Celestial Gold, then after the hot blood in their heads cooled, they finally began to realize something was wrong.
Why had the White Wolf Pirates not left yet?!
The pirates had never imagined that the White Wolf Pirates would remain in Sphinx. After all, the White Wolf Pirates had always operated this way—though they might plant their flag somewhere, they would never stay for long.
Not to mention that the White Wolf Pirates had robbed the Celestial Dragons' Celestial Gold. They were now thorns in the World Government's eye, hated to the bone, and the World Government could not wait to get rid of them.
Under such circumstances, if the White Wolf Pirates stayed in one place for too long, they would definitely draw a massive Marine siege.
What was the point?
Magnus had been asking himself the same question these past few days. What exactly was he after?
If he wanted to build up his forces, then once Rocks and Newgate had grown stronger, their ship would have three Pirate Emperors. Even the World Government would be helpless against them.
But how long would he have to wait for that?
Ten years? Twenty years?
As captain, if he had to rely on his crew's strength before daring to face the Marines and the World Government, then how was he any different from the future Clown Buggy?
The strength of Conqueror's Haki was the strength of its wielder's spirit.
Could someone who needed to rely on his crew to become king truly be qualified to become a king?
"You don't want to retreat anymore either, do you?"
Magnus listened to the heartbeat that had become increasingly vibrant over the past year, a smile appearing on his face.
Whether he could win or not, he would only know after fighting!
"Who will come this time? Elephant Mountain definitely won't come. Rona? Has she recovered from her injuries? Tch, it won't be Jiang Ma, will it? If that old bastard really comes, I swear I'll hack him to death in a few strikes. Kong? That brat should have Fleet Admiral-level strength by now, right?"
Magnus murmured softly. With every name he spoke, his presence swelled higher, until even the entire villa that Black Heart Merchant Dukemon had given them as temporary lodging began to tremble.
"Hahaha! Although the future rulers of this era have not yet grown up, every era truly has no shortage of powerful people!"
Magnus had originally regretted that it would still take a long time for Rocks, Newgate, and the others to grow stronger, not to mention the future Marine Fleet Admirals.
But while the future Pirate Emperors and Fleet Admirals had yet to mature, the current Marine Fleet Admirals were still at the peak of their power.
Soon, he learned who the Marines had sent this time.
Sea Circle Calendar, March 1481. On the lawless island of Sphinx, you encountered a massive Marine force led by the current Fleet Admiral "Steel Bone" Kong. As an ordinary pirate, the only thing you needed to do was escape alive from this major Marine operation. After this operation, you would receive a pirate bounty. The higher your pirate bounty, the richer your reward would be once this operation ended. May your journey as a pirate not end here!
Before you continue