Ever since the uproar on the day Fire Dragon Ye Mu declared war on the Celestial Dragons and the World Government, things had changed.
As the days passed, the seas gradually grew calm on the surface, but beneath that calm, dangerous currents were stirring.
To deal with Fire Dragon Ye Mu, the Marines and the World Government had pulled elite troops and intelligence agents from across the seas, leaving their grip weaker than ever. Yet the ambitious, the schemers, the pirates, the merchants, and the nobles made few moves. They simply watched, eager to see how the war would unfold.
In truth, few believed the Sky Pirate Crew would win.
The World Government had ruled for eight hundred years. Its military might and the fear it inspired in everyone were not so easily shaken.
All those onlookers hoped the Sky Pirate Crew would drain as much of the Marines' and World Government's strength as possible. Only then would the ambitious among them have a chance to realize their goals.
At Shakky's Rip-off Bar in the Sabaody Archipelago.
Since Ye Mu's declaration of war, even Rayleigh had rarely gone out. He had stayed at the bar, keeping an eye on developments.
That night, after Rayleigh saw off a large group of pirates who had spent the whole day loudly discussing the chaos of the age, the bar fell quiet again.
For once, Rayleigh had played waiter. Shakky had left the bar that morning and disappeared.
But he trusted in Shakky's strength and wasn't worried about her safety.
Sure enough, around midnight, as Rayleigh drank alone in the stillness, the bar door opened and Shakky walked in carrying a package.
"You're back..."
Though they lived together, they had always respected each other's privacy.
Neither pried into the other's affairs.
"Yeah. Thanks for