Value

"Alright! We still have a long way to go!" After watching the three get beaten for a while, the captain called Coby to stop.

"Did you hear him? Get up and lead the way. Don't play dead with me!" Coby said, giving the three men on the ground another kick.

After the beating they had just taken, the three were obviously much more obedient. They meekly got to their feet and led the way forward.

"Captain, how much do you think these three can sell for?" After teaching them a lesson, Coby returned to the captain's side and asked.

"These three are all Devil Fruit users! And they all have bear-type Devil Fruit abilities. The most remarkable thing is that they're biological brothers. I haven't come across goods this fine in years!"

"Captain, I don't understand any of that! So how much are they worth?"

"Being uneducated is terrifying!" the captain mocked, then held up five fingers. "At least this much!"

"Fifty million Beli? That is quite a lot."

Slap! Hearing Coby's answer, the captain smacked him across the face. "What fifty million? I meant five hundred million."

"That much? Then aren't they worth more than the Devil Fruit on the ship?"

Captain: "You don't understand. That Devil Fruit is something the higher-ups want, so we have to deliver it whether there's money in it or not. But these three are different. They're an unexpected windfall!"

"And these three said they got their fruits on this island. We should take a look. Maybe there'll be another surprise waiting for us!"

"Ha! Ha! Ha! The captain really is brilliant."

"Of course! If I weren't brilliant, how could I be the captain of you bastards? Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!" The captain laughed arrogantly.

"Move faster." Hearing the captain's words, Coby went over and kicked the three men again, shouting at them.

Not far from them, Locke and the others had also heard the captain's words and began quietly discussing things.

Locke: "Looks like these people are human traffickers!"

"I hate human traffickers the most," Carmen said angrily.

"What do you think we should do?"

Carmen and Yun Zhinnan exchanged a look, then turned to Locke. "You're the captain. You tell us what to do, and we'll follow you."

"Alright, then let's go save those people," Locke decided after giving it some thought.

The reason Locke had decided so quickly to save them was not because he was especially kind. It was because he had heard that they possessed Devil Fruits. He did not know what their abilities were, but if the people the traffickers called higher-ups had specifically sent them to collect these people, they could not be ordinary.

Before setting sail, Locke had already wanted to get another Devil Fruit. Carmen was like this—completely devoted to cooking, only training her body occasionally. If they encountered someone especially powerful in the future and he could barely protect himself, Carmen would be in great danger. With a Devil Fruit, she could gain considerable combat ability with just a little development.

Thinking of that, since they were going to offend this pirate crew anyway, they might as well do a good deed and save these people too. It would not take much extra effort.

Locke led Yun Zhinnan and Carmen farther away from the group, then began discussing their plan.

"Based on what those people said earlier, we can tell that group's combat strength isn't weak. They captured three Devil Fruit users, so they're probably from the Grand Line," Locke analyzed for the two.

Seeing them nod, Locke continued, "They might even have Haki users among them."

"What's Haki?" Yun Zhinnan asked curiously.

"It's a kind of power that increases the user's offense and defense, and is especially effective against Devil Fruit abilities," Locke explained.

"Don't worry about what it is for now. When this is over and we're back on the ship, I'll show you the training methods. Then you'll understand." Locke looked at Yun Zhinnan, who had fallen into thought after hearing his explanation.

"Now, let me explain my plan."

Seeing that the two had once again been drawn in by his words, Locke continued, "I observed them earlier. Other than their weapons, they didn't bring anything with them. Their belongings should all be left on the ship."

"Zhinnan is the fastest. In a moment, follow the route they came from back to the shore and see if you can find their ship. If you find it and think you can handle it, it'd be best if you could take control of it."

"Carmen, go with him. You're fast, Zhinnan. If you can't beat the people on the ship and need to run, aside from a very small number of people, no one should be able to stop you."

"And I'll see if I can save these people. While I'm at it, I..."

"No! It's too dangerous for you to go alone!" Before Locke could finish, Carmen interrupted him directly.

"Be good. It'll be fine. You know my ability, don't you? My speed may not be as fast as Zhinnan's, but my ability to escape isn't any worse than his." Locke smiled and patted Carmen on the head.

"No! I want to go with you," Carmen said coquettishly.

"No!" Locke's face darkened as he refused firmly.

"Hmph!" Carmen snorted and turned her head away, putting on an expression that said she never wanted to speak to him again.

"Alright, alright. Trust me. Nothing will happen to me."

"I don't want to talk to you."

"Be good..."

"How much longer are you two going to keep this up? They've already gone far away!" Yun Zhinnan, who could no longer stand watching from the side, finally interrupted.

Cough, cough, cough! Locke coughed a few times to hide his embarrassment. "Alright, stop fooling around. We'll do as I just said."

After saying that, Locke quietly crept toward the group.

Once he was not far from them, Locke directly used his ability to create a small-scale illusion, concealing the human trafficker walking at the very back from the rest of the group.

Then Locke walked over, covered the man's mouth with one hand, drew the dagger on his body with the other, and ended the man's life with a single stab.

Next, Locke transformed into the man's appearance and returned to the group. The entire sequence took less than half a minute, and the traffickers in front did not notice anything at all.

So Locke obediently imitated the man he had just killed and walked at the very back of the group.

The two who had just separated from Locke were now following the route those people had taken and heading back.

"Hmph! That big bastard Locke actually dared to leave me behind," Carmen complained as she walked.

"The captain was only worried about your safety," Yun Zhinnan explained on Locke's behalf.

"Who needs him to worry about me? Hmph! I'm very strong too, alright!" Carmen said, raising her little fist and brandishing it.

Seeing Carmen like this, Yun Zhinnan, who was not much of a talker to begin with, had absolutely no idea what to say. He could only shake his head helplessly.