Arrival and Infiltration

"Wow... so beautiful!"

"What is that?"

"Something seems to be flying?!"

On the warship's deck, Jabra reacted with exaggerated surprise, his expression unusually animated.

Sitting on the railing, Reg's mouth hung slightly open, his eyes wide. "It's unbelievable... no, it's too dreamlike."

The distant Marines, however, were already used to it... after all, this place was very close to Headquarters, and they often came here for vacations.

The cluster of islands ahead of the warship filled Reg's entire field of vision... vibrant green life, bubbles radiating rainbow halos beneath the sunlight, and wisps of pale white mist made the entire Sabaody Archipelago seem like a dream, impossible to look away from.

This scenery, which overturned everything fixed in his memories, left Reg's mind unable to process it for a while... whether it was his memories or the colorful pictures he had seen in books, neither compared to even 1% of seeing it with his own eyes.

"What a... heart-stirring world."

Silently, Reg pressed a hand against his chest... merely seeing one corner of this world had made his heart surge beyond measure.

Reg knew that he would never forget this wondrous sight.

"Yeah... of all the islands I've seen, this one is the most beautiful," Jabra muttered after receiving a response.

"Whew... Jabra, don't forget what you're supposed to do." Reg, now dressed in a white shirt and black shorts, reminded him.

"I know... you be careful too."

"Don't worry, I'm this cute... how could they bear to be too rough with me?"

Reg pinched his chubby cheeks and forced a stiff smile... if he were an ordinary child, then without a doubt, he would be sold to noble ladies or gentlemen with certain peculiar tastes. Just thinking about that life of being kept and toyed with made his skin crawl.

"That's true."

Jabra wore a resentful expression as Eileen's words—men always had to rely on their faces—echoed in his mind once again.

"Cough, cough... don't mind it. It's not as bad as you think... I'm going to find Major Naden. See you tonight."

Reg jumped back onto the deck and waved... the mission had already begun.

Next, this warship would briefly dock at the Marine outpost in Area 60 to replenish food and fresh water... he would hide inside an empty crate, be carried off the ship, handed over to bounty hunters disguised as members of the P organization, and then sold to Marcus's group.

Bounty hunters did not have a particularly good reputation in this world... their ranks were a mixed bag, with both good and evil among them, but their goal was the same:

As long as they could earn enough money, they did not mind temporarily playing the roles of pirates, slave traders, or the like.

They were simply very careful about it... if the Marines discovered them, they would be wanted as pirates.

There were slave-trading organizations of all sizes across the Sabaody Archipelago, countless in number, but Marcus's group currently offered the highest prices for child slaves.

Meanwhile, Jabra would use this time to collect the latest information on Marcus's group from the P intelligence office in Area 66... then, that night, eliminate those who were still active outside. For Jabra, a "wolf," it was far too easy.

Area 16.

At night, the Sabaody Archipelago became even more dreamlike... countless bubbles rose from the ground, giving off faint light that drove away a little of the darkness.

Within that dim glow, several furtive figures avoided the light cast by the bubbles as they ran swiftly across the grass... each of them carried a lumpy sack.

From those sacks came faint sounds like the buzzing of mosquitoes... like crying, like sorrow, like fear.

As one of the people inside the sacks, Reg did not make a sound... even though his eyes and mouth were covered with cloth and his hands and feet tightly bound with rope.

These bounty hunters acted in groups to avoid being robbed by others in the trade.

Although the slave-trading organizations on the island also needed to maintain their reputations, under normal circumstances, they would still choose to pay for their goods.

After all, the price was not much, and they could earn several times as much by reselling them. There was no need to complicate things or make unnecessary trouble.

"We're almost there... everyone, be careful."

Tony, who carried Reg on his back, gave a warning. The footsteps around them slowed from a brisk pace... inside the sack, the corners of Reg's lips rose. These people might have been greedy and cowardly, but they were quite experienced.

Although he could not see outside at the moment, Reg could still use Observation Haki to sense the others' breathing and their slowing movements.

Rustle, rustle, rustle... several sets of footsteps sounded nearby as expected, and the bounty hunters gradually gathered closer.

"Hehe... don't be nervous, everyone. Although our boss Marcus only became the leader recently, he understands the rules... come on, let's inspect the goods first." A somewhat chilling voice, accompanied by a miserable laugh, rang out.

Just then, a bubble formed nearby... illuminating a bewitching man wearing lipstick, a tight top, and fishnet pants, along with several underlings behind him.

"Carlo... a queer officer... especially fond of fair-skinned, tender children... and many nobles..."

Reg twisted his body slightly, pretending to struggle in fear... then he made tears quickly flow down his cheeks.

"Haha..." Awkward laughter filled the surroundings.

"Yeah, we know Boss Marcus too..."

Though they said that, the bounty hunters did not lower their guard... two of them freed their hands to gather the sacks beside the others one by one, while the rest remained alert.

Click... a lighter flicked on. The mouths of the sacks were loosened, and the sobbing around them grew a little louder.

"Hehe... little ones, don't cry. I won't hurt you."

Footsteps approached along with the voice... Reg's pale face was streaked with tears, and his body could not help trembling.

Then a heavy perfume scent drifted over on the night breeze. Realizing someone had arrived, Reg twisted his body, but his chin was promptly lifted.

"What a charming little brother..."

Carlo's voice rang out. The white cloth over Reg's eyes was removed... before him was a bewitching face caked in heavy makeup, looking even more like a grim female ghost in the firelight.

Reg's eyes flew wide open, and frightened whimpers came from his gagged mouth... This guy's taste and bearing were worlds apart from Bon Clay, who followed the "Way of the Okama."

Smack... The heavy blow that followed made Reg's eyes roll back as he passed out.

His Doriki was probably somewhere around... neither too heavy nor too light, just enough to knock a child unconscious: the technique was very professional.

"Mm-hmm... this batch of goods is good. How old is this child?" Carlo looked at Tony, who had brought Reg over.

"Lord Carlo..."

"Hmm?!"

"Carlo... sis, this child is seven. Look at his fair, tender skin—he's from a wealthy family and can fetch a good price..."

Tony rubbed his hands as he introduced Reg in a low voice... His heart had nearly leaped out of his chest just now: what if this guy couldn't restrain himself from humiliating him and killed him?

Fortunately, P9 training had not been for nothing... Not only had he failed to reveal any flaws, his acting was practically flawless.

If he had not known Reg's identity beforehand, he probably would not have suspected such a "helpless" child either.

"Mm... add another 50,000 Beli."

"Carlo..."

"100,000 at most." Carlo swayed toward the second child, his words leaving no room for argument.

Even with another 100,000, I'm only worth 500,000 Beli... How cheap.

Reg lay motionless on the grass, killing intent quietly flowing through his heart... This was the reality of this world: the weak would never receive any fairness, only endless humiliation and oppression.