Human Relations

The plainclothes agents, led by the old shipwright, gradually approached the shipyard where Annus and the others were hiding.

But just then, a man who looked like a thug, with a particularly irritable expression, blocked their way.

"Get lost! An agency directly under the World Government is carrying out official business—"

The lead agent captain was about to shove aside the blond thug.

Thugs like this could only throw their weight around locally. He was probably blocking the road to rob or extort them for something...

But unexpectedly, the agent captain failed to push the blond man aside. Instead, he was shoved away with a backhand.

Then something happened that no one expected. The blond man pulled out a machine gun, and the bullets caught the agent captain off guard.

The agent captain clutched his wound and stared at the blond man in shock.

No matter how he thought about it, he could not understand how a mere street thug dared to attack him without the slightest hesitation even after he had identified himself.

And... those skills were clearly not ordinary!

What was the other man trying to accomplish?

"Who the hell are you?!"

The other agents hurriedly surrounded the blond man and drew their weapons, but he remained perfectly calm and actually began introducing himself.

"My name is Sain! I'm not some street thug. I'm a wise 'scientist'! You're here to capture that Lunarian, aren't you?"

The blond thug was none other than Sain, one of the scientists at the Peace Research Institute and Vegapunk's colleague.

Perhaps the name was unfamiliar, but in the original timeline, Sain would join Kaido's faction in the future and change his name to Queen.

"A scientist?"

The agents froze. They truly could not see a single thing about this blond man that resembled a scientist...

But that was not the important part. Why had he attacked them? And how had he learned their objective?

Sain had no intention of explaining himself to the agents. He merely looked down at the agent captain.

"Take a good look at your wound! You were hit by bullets coated in my 'Mummy.' You're beyond saving!"

Unlike Vegapunk, the other scientists at the Peace Research Institute were all enthusiastic about researching military weapons. Sain's research focused on biological weapons and human modification.

The so-called "Mummy" was an artificial virus developed by Sain.

Hearing Sain's words, the agents hurriedly examined their captain's wound.

"So hot!"

The agent captain's face was filled with agony. The spot where the bullet had struck felt as though it were being scorched by flames, and that burning sensation was spreading, gradually engulfing his entire body!

"Are you okay, Captain...?"

The agents immediately found a medical kit and began administering emergency treatment.

"Wahahaha! You should worry about yourselves first! You touched that guy just now, right?"

Sain laughed smugly, raised his machine gun, and unleashed another burst of fire.

The agents frantically dodged, but the bullets struck the old shipwright who had delivered the report.

The old man did not possess the agents' physical prowess. He soon died amid agonized screams, blood gushing from his body as his somewhat plump frame rapidly withered into something like a mummy.

Then the agent captain, after a brief struggle, met the same fate as the old shipwright.

"Wahahaha! I was still wondering what kind of gift I should give Calamity. Thank you so much!"

After witnessing all this, Sain ignored the remaining agents still struggling for their lives and left with loud laughter.

In his eyes, those people had no chance of surviving.

"Mummy" could spread through physical contact, and anyone who touched an infected person would be infected immediately. It was an instant-death-level virus.

Those agents had all touched the wounded captain, and they had subsequently been struck by bullets as well. Not even a god could save them now.

"Thanks to your sacrifice..."

Sain muttered cheerfully.

The battle between Annus and Diumil some time ago had not been witnessed only by the old shipwright who had informed on them. Sain had seen it as well.

Or rather, Sain had long suspected that Black Wing beside Calamity was an exceedingly rare Lunarian.

Only after that battle did he completely confirm Black Wing's identity.

The old shipwright thought himself clever, but Sain was the oriole waiting behind the mantis.

He had discovered long ago that someone intended to report them to the World Government. He deliberately waited until the report had drawn in the World Government's agents before making his move.

That way, he could earn a greater favor.

However, Sain had underestimated the agents' professionalism.

Once they realized there was no possibility of survival, the agents used their last bit of strength to take out a communications Den Den Mushi, intending to report the situation on the island to their superiors before they died.

But just as the agents took out the Den Den Mushi and prepared to dial, an invisible electromagnetic pulse swept across the entire island.

In that instant, every electronic device in Water 7, along with every biological nervous system dependent on electrical signals, was collectively paralyzed!

Despair filled the agents' faces. In the end, they could only die with regret, turning into withered corpses.

At that moment, Sain returned to the scene pushing a wooden cart. After putting on protective gear, he loaded the agents' corpses onto the cart one by one, not even sparing the old shipwright's body.

"Hmm hmm hmm~~"

In high spirits, Sain hummed a tune as he returned to the shipyard and found Annus.

"Mr. Annus! These are dogs of the World Government. They planned to expose Mr. Diumil's secret! But please do not worry, I've already taken care of them!"

With an eager expression, Sain pushed the cart full of corpses before Annus, who seemed to be smiling but was not.

"Dispose of these eyesores. You think you can pledge allegiance to me with this tiny bit of merit? If I hadn't acted just now, they would have already sent the information out. You're still not seasoned enough, Sain."

Annus was no stranger to Sain. At first, he had merely known that Vegapunk had such a colleague, but after staying in Water 7 for so long, Sain had successfully made himself familiar to him.

"Ah! All right! I'll take them away immediately! Haha... these virus carriers really should be destroyed!"

At Annus's words, Sain swiftly pushed the cart of corpses away.

Annus gently shook his head. He knew exactly what Sain was planning. He merely wanted to curry favor with him and obtain financial support. The scientists at the Peace Research Institute all thought that way.

Sure enough, Sain soon returned and fawningly asked whether Annus could invest in his project in light of his help this time.

"I have no interest in making biological weapons. Human modification, however, is something I could consider—but first, you need to show me results... Perhaps you could ask Rocks. That man has recently been planning to establish a new force. Maybe there'll be somewhere your skills can be put to use."