Unexpectedly Obtained Intelligence

Adams gave a slight nod. He needed intelligence, yet this godforsaken place was as isolated as an island.

He had no intelligence network of his own and could only rely on this most primitive, luck-dependent method.

He lowered his voice slightly, making sure that amid the thunderous cheers, only the bearded man before him could hear clearly:

"I do have a few things I want to know. Recently... have you heard anything about a little girl who uses sorcery?"

He chose his words carefully. "Sorcery" was the most common—and most ignorant—term for Devil Fruit abilities.

In this backwater, where even bounty posters might not arrive in time, asking about Robin's whereabouts by using a title like "Devil Child" would be like talking to a wall.

He could only hope this vague description would somehow strike that one-in-ten-thousand chance.

The bearded man's excitement and fawning expression froze instantly. His thick black brows furrowed, his gaze sinking into deep thought as his fingers unconsciously stroked his messy beard. The deafening cheers around them seemed to fade into distant background noise.

Adams watched him without much hope. It was just a desperate attempt. Just as he was about to look away—

"Ah!"

The bearded man suddenly slapped his greasy forehead, his eyes lighting up as though he had finally dug something out from the corner of his memory.

"Yes! Yes, sir! Now that you mention it, I really do remember something!"

Adams's gaze sharpened at once, like two cold searchlights fixed on the man's face.

"It was... about half a month ago!" The bearded man spoke faster, trying hard to recall the details.

"That day... it was the day after those big gangs from out of town fought each other to the death on our island! A few Dagger Gang lackeys who'd gone out to avoid the trouble came slinking back and drank at my little tavern..."

"Those guys were so drunk their tongues were thick. While they were boasting, they let something slip! They said that... on their way back, at that damned place called Stette Island... they ran into something eerie!"

The bearded man swallowed, a lingering fear showing on his face.

"They said... on the barren beach on Stette Island, they saw a... a little girl, with ghosts floating around her!"

"They swore it was real, that they weren't seeing things from drinking too much! Sir, is... is that the kind of little girl who uses sorcery that you're looking for?"

He watched Adams nervously, afraid the information would prove useless.

"Thank you. Your information is very useful. You've helped me a great deal."

Adams's voice remained steady, without a hint of emotion, every word landing clearly against the bearded man's eardrums.

At his words, the bearded man's tension was instantly replaced by immense surprise and relief. He bared teeth yellowed by cheap tobacco, about to say something more in gratitude.

But Adams gave him no further chance. He gave an extremely brief nod toward the still-roaring crowd, counting it as a farewell.

Then his tall body turned sharply, and he stepped through the gate.

Stette Island.

In the afternoon forest, filtered sunlight flowed like scattered gold. Pink twin tails bounced cheerfully with light footsteps, and a tiny crown rested atop soft hair, gleaming with a childlike nobility.

A little girl gripped a coldly gleaming iron ring in one hand. At the other end of the ring, a rough iron chain was fastened around the neck of a brown bear walking quietly beside her.

Her other small hand held open a delicate lace-trimmed parasol as she strolled through the dappled shade, like a forest princess enjoying a leisurely procession.

A hundred meters away, three clumps of dense malice lay in ambush amid the low shrubs, utterly at odds with the forest's vitality. Through gaps in the branches and leaves, three pairs of wolfish eyes clung greedily to the pink-haired girl.

"Boss, we came all this way just to grab a little runt like that? How much could she fetch? Not even enough to buy the brothers a round of drinks."

A burly man missing a front tooth lowered his voice, his tone rough and hoarse.

"Yeah, was it really worth coming all this way?"

Another burly man with a scarred face chimed in.

"Idiots. Some big shots like this sort of thing. Besides, according to Dagger Gang intelligence, she's an ability user. Most importantly, this is a job the Godfather personally assigned."

"Stay sharp. When she and that beast get a little closer, kill the bear first! Move fast!"

The burly man in the middle, whose body hair was so thick it looked like he was wearing a fur vest, shot his men a vicious glare. He licked his thick lips, cruelty glinting in his eyes.

The two underlings exchanged a look, immediately putting on fawning yet savage smiles.

"Understood!"

The footsteps and the bear's low breathing drew closer and closer. The boss suddenly swung his hand!

"Rustle—!"

The three figures, like hyenas scenting blood, suddenly tore through the shrubbery's cover and pounced out with a stench of violence.

The black muzzles of two flintlock guns rose instantly, aimed at the brown bear without the slightest hesitation or mercy.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The piercing blasts tore through the forest's silence. Lead bullets drilled viciously into the brown bear's thick fur, bursting into glaring sprays of blood.

The tremendous impact made the brown bear let out a heart-wrenching cry. Its massive body swayed violently, but it did not fall.

The searing pain instantly ignited the primal savagery in its bones. Scarlet veins flooded its eyes as it completely ignored the little girl's terrified scream, its huge body charging with a vengeful hurricane as it roared toward the nearest gun-wielding lackey.

"Ah—! Boss Barton! Help!"

Caught off guard, the lackey was knocked to the ground. A heavy bear paw came crashing down, and he could only let out a shrill squeal like a slaughtered pig as his gun flew from his hand.

"Trash!"

Barton spat, his face filled with irritation and impatience. His hulking body stepped forward sharply, his right leg sweeping out like a battering ram with a dull howl through the air.

"Thud!"

With a bone-chilling heavy impact, the enormously heavy brown bear was kicked into the air like a ragged sack and slammed into a tree trunk as thick as a bowl.

With a crisp crack, the trunk snapped. The brown bear crashed heavily among broken wood and fallen leaves, blood spraying from its mouth and nose. Its limbs twitched, and it could no longer rise.

"Kumashi—!"

The little girl screamed with a tearing sob in her voice. Her little parasol had long since fallen somewhere. Her tiny body burst forth with astonishing speed as she rushed desperately toward the fallen brown bear, tears covering her little face.

Barton and the other uninjured trafficker grinned viciously. Like two moving walls of flesh, they precisely blocked her path, their rough hands reeking of grime and sweat as they reached for her slender arms.

"Get out of my way!"

The little girl screamed through tears, her pink hair moving without wind. She abruptly swung her small hand forward, and in an instant, countless ping-pong-ball-sized spirits appeared from nowhere, densely surging toward the two burly men blocking her way.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A rapid series of explosions erupted. The instant the spirits touched the traffickers' bodies, they unleashed impacts no weaker than miniature cannon shells.

The two burly men had only managed half a scream before the sudden chain of explosions blasted them away, hurling them hard against distant tree trunks and the ground.

The little girl did not even look at them as she stumbled toward the brown bear.

Its huge body lay limp, its chest barely rising and falling. Warm blood soaked the fallen leaves beneath it, while the light of life rapidly faded from its large eyes.

"Whimper... whimper..."

The brown bear let out one final faint breath from its throat. Its clouded eyes seemed to want one last look at its little master.

The little girl's small hand trembled as she stroked its bloodstained fur, large tears rolling down her face.

Just then, a final flicker of ferocity burst from the brown bear's clouded eyes. Using every last bit of strength in its body, it slammed its head violently to the side.

The little girl was knocked backward, falling onto the ground.

"Boom—!"

A massive fist covered in dense black fur crashed down with a foul gust of wind onto the spot where she had just been kneeling.

The ground was instantly smashed into a crater half a meter deep. Dirt and shattered stones shot in all directions like buckshot, while a violent shockwave swept outward, flinging the already grievously wounded, dying brown bear into the air again like a dead leaf. It was thrown dozens of meters away, hit the ground, and fell completely silent.

TO BE CONTINUED