Clay and the Strange Devil Fruit

"Next up is our third-to-last auction item."

"A Fish-Man from Fish-Man Island, Clay!"

Just then, the third-to-last product was wheeled out onto the auction stage.

He looked somewhat similar to Jinbe, though he stood over three meters tall. Explosive collars were locked around his neck, wrists, and ankles—an effective method for controlling slaves.

Should the slave move beyond a certain range from the holder, the collars would detonate instantly. Even those with strong Armament Haki would suffer injuries or death, not to mention that the collars were laced with a significant amount of Seastone, specifically designed to suppress Devil Fruit users.

Thus, even Devil Fruit users would sustain heavy damage, or even perish.

Clay was a member of the Tiger Shark Fish-Man species.

Tiger Shark Fish-Men were the most physically powerful of all Fish-Men. Clay glared at the auctioneer on stage, his eyes sweeping over the crowd with fury; in his mind, whoever dared to buy him would be met with his blade.

"Starting bid, 50 million Berries."

"Clang!"

Clay clenched his fists, straining to break free from his chains.

"I bid 70 million Berries."

"I bid 75 million Berries."

"I bid 80 million Berries."

Seeing how spirited Clay was, and noting that he was a rare Fish-Man, the crowd began to drive up the price.

In a short amount of time, the amount had already climbed to 80 million Berries.

Carl sensed Clay's rage and took note of his sturdy physique.

He knew that even if he joined the Rocks Pirates, he wouldn't serve under Newgate; he intended to form his own crew, and for that, he needed powerful subordinates.

This Clay looked like he had decent strength, so he might as well buy him. He would serve as his first helper, and being a Fish-Man, he would surely be even more useful underwater.

"I'll have to make Brother Newgate bleed a little today—two hundred million Berries."

Newgate didn't take the two hundred million Berries to heart, continuing to sip his foreign liquor.

Little did he know, he would soon feel the sting of regret, as Carl wasn't planning on buying just one thing.

Carl pressed the button and announced his bid.

"The gentleman in the VIP box bids two hundred million Berries! Any higher offers?"

Because it was a private box, those outside couldn't see exactly who was inside, but they knew that anyone capable of sitting in a VIP box must be a notorious pirate of the seas. The room fell into a sudden silence; no one dared to compete, fearing trouble from the box's occupant.

As the silence stretched across the hall, the auctioneer quickly called out three times.

"Very well, let us congratulate this VIP for winning the bid for this Fish-Man at two hundred million Berries!"

Seeing the silence, the auctioneer immediately moved to liven up the atmosphere, raising his hammer.

"Now that the third-to-last item has been sold, let us move on to the second-to-last."

The auctioneer spoke with a hint of excitement, as there were truly many fine goods today, especially the final two.

"The second item is a Supreme Grade Sword, the Dragon Spring Sword."

"The Dragon Spring Sword is ranked among the twelve Supreme Grade Swords."

"Everyone here knows its value. Starting bid: 100 million Berries."

"Whoa!"

"A Supreme Grade Sword today?"

"Coming here was worth it!"

The price instantly soared to 500 million Berries!

After all, the value of a Supreme Grade Sword was different from other items; it was something worthy of being a family heirloom.

It was more practical than a Devil Fruit, because if you didn't know a fruit's ability beforehand, you might end up eating a useless one, resulting in a net loss.

Therefore, the prices of Devil Fruits varied wildly—some could be worth billions of Berries, while others might only fetch a few tens of millions.

But every Supreme Grade Sword was one of a kind, so the price could never be low.

Although Carl didn't use weapons at the moment, that didn't stop him from competing for it. He might need one in the future, and besides, he wasn't the one paying.

Who would ever complain about having too many treasures?

"Eight hundred million Berries!"

He immediately called out a high price.

Newgate felt a sudden pang of heartache.

Combined, that was already one billion Berries—not a small sum—but since he had already given his word, he didn't stop Carl.

At this moment, some people had already retreated, while others had set their sights on the occupants of this room.

They knew that although the people in this room were great pirates, once the potential profit reached a certain level, they wouldn't mind taking a risk.

"Very well, the second item has also been claimed by this distinguished guest. Let us look forward to the final item."

The auction house did not concern itself with these matters; as long as the items could be sold, it was always a win for them. Thus, the auctioneer hurriedly signaled for the final item to be brought out.

A maid carried over a tray covered with a red cloth. Judging by the shape, it appeared to be a Devil Fruit.

"Coming here today was truly the right choice!"

"Indeed, I didn't expect there to be so many good things today."

"It's just a pity that two of them ended up in the hands of the same person."

The pirates present exchanged glances, all of them locking their gazes onto Carl.

However, they were unaware that the person they were targeting was someone they could never afford to provoke in this lifetime.

"This is a Devil Fruit entrusted to us by a mysterious individual!"

"This Devil Fruit is extremely rare, and even our auction house does not know what its abilities are."

"That is why we are holding an auction for it today."

"Since we do not know the specific capabilities of this Devil Fruit, the starting bid is only one hundred million berries."

This is a good item.

Just as Carl was considering whether or not to buy it, a faint voice suddenly echoed in his mind from the system.

Since the specific ability of this Devil Fruit was unknown, wouldn't it be a waste of money to spend one hundred million berries on a useless fruit? He didn't have a vast amount of berries at the moment, and he already possessed a Devil Fruit of his own, though he didn't know its powers either.

However, a single sentence from the system instantly made Carl decide to purchase it.

"Two hundred million berries."

When the crowd in the hall heard Carl speak up again, many lost the desire to bid. In their eyes, rather than spending money to buy it, it would be more convenient to kill him and seize the goods once he left.

"Congratulations to this distinguished guest for winning the final item."

"Please proceed to the back to pay the required amount. The items will then be delivered to each of you. Today's auction concludes here. Thank you all for attending!"

The auctioneer bowed politely and walked toward the back.

"Knock, knock, knock!" As the knocking sounded, Carl hurriedly stood up to open the door, only to see three maids holding the Devil Fruit, the Dragon Spring Sword, and the remote control key for Clay, respectively.

After Carl took the full amount from his bag, the maids collected the money and exited the room.

When Carl had bid on the first item, he had thought it wasn't much, but as the second item was auctioned, he had felt a bit hesitant.

However, since he had already given his word, he couldn't back out. He hadn't expected Carl to spend twelve hundred million berries.

Consequently, Newgate felt a pang of heartache and ordered the pirates to bring the money.