Kuro: Keep Performing, I'm Watching.

Akin answered expressionlessly.

Though he felt some contempt for Krieg's methods, he would never resist him.

After all, Krieg had saved his life. That alone was enough for him to repay with his own.

Compared to that, his personal feelings were unimportant.

Krieg glanced at Akin, guessing most of what he was thinking, but he did not care:

"For this plan, I paid a tremendous price. I bribed Colonel Bat of the 18th Branch and secured a Marine identity for you."

"It is a perfect disguise. Even real Marines would find it difficult to see through."

"Do not disappoint me."

Akin nodded without a word.

Night fell.

Winds and waves gradually rose in the bay. Everyone else had long since left, but Akin still sat on the deck, staring blankly out at the distant sea.

Several days later.

A Warship slowly sailed into Raven Port.

Its hull had been damaged beyond recognition, its sail's Marine emblem was tattered, and even its outer armor bore several obvious cannon blast marks.

Clearly, this Warship had just gone through a brutal battle.

Guided by the dockworkers, the Warship slowly pulled alongside the pier.

The gangplank was lowered.

Gawain, dressed in a Navy Lieutenant Commander's uniform, stepped down from the Warship. He held his head high and his chest proud, handsome and dashing. Anyone who saw him would have to praise him:

What a heroic young officer.

The port guards had been wary at first, but seeing Gawain's bearing, their vigilance immediately eased by more than half.

After all, pirates these days were either ugly as sin or bizarrely shaped. Someone who looked like Gawain practically had the words "righteous hero" written across his face.

"Sir Marine, I am Gaza, the person in charge here. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Accompanied by a pleasant voice, a woman named Gaza emerged from the crowd surrounded by guards.

She appeared to be in her early twenties, dressed in refined and elegant clothing, with light makeup on her face.

Her features could not exactly be called beautiful, but among the poorly clothed commoners, she was as lovely as a lotus rising from the water.

Following what he remembered, Gawain placed a hand over his chest and gave Gaza a knight's salute, his tone gentle.

"My lady."

"We have just fought a bloody battle against Hundred Plans Kuro at sea. We need to replenish our food and medicine, or my Warship will not be able to reach the nearest Marine base."

"Please grant us this convenience."

Seeing Gawain's salute, a faint blush appeared on Gaza's face.

She was originally an East Blue noble, so she naturally knew that Gawain had performed the most orthodox knightly salute, one that only those qualified to swear fealty to royalty could learn.

With a knightly background and a Marine identity, Gawain's righteous image was established on the spot.

"No problem, you may move about freely—!"

Before Gaza could finish, another whistle sounded in the distance.

Everyone looked up.

Another Warship was slowly sailing into the harbor.

Its identification number was official, its flags were intact, and there were soldiers standing on its deck. For a moment, everyone present was completely bewildered.

"Two Warships visiting on the same day?"

"That has never happened before. Don't Marines communicate with each other in advance?"

"Could it be... one of them is fake?"

"It is not impossible. The newspapers reported pirates disguising themselves as Marines and sneaking into ports before launching surprise attacks. Several towns in East Blue were destroyed because of that!"

"Then which one is real, and which one is fake?"

As they spoke, the people nearby quietly moved away from Gawain.

"What do we do?"

Listening to the discussions around them, Kuro's heart tightened as he whispered into Gawain's ear.

Before Gawain could speak, he reached into his coat and put on the Claw Blades hidden beneath his cloak, already preparing to fight.

They were not Marines to begin with, merely impostors who had changed into Marine uniforms. If they confronted real Marines, they would be exposed after only a few words.

At that point, even if he did not want to fight, he would have no choice.

And once a battle broke out here, it would not only mean the failure of this operation; they would never be able to use this supply point again.

Every supply point was crucial to a pirate crew. It could even be said to determine life or death.

"Do not act rashly."

Gawain lowered his voice, but his eyes remained fixed on the figure on the other ship's deck.

A striped headscarf, heavy eye bags, an excessively gaunt frame...

He felt like he had seen this person somewhere before, but he could not recall where.

Just as Gawain was at a loss, another familiar figure emerged from the cabin.

The newcomer was broad and muscular, with thick shields mounted at each of his joints and a huge shield on his chest that looked like an upside-down turtle shell.

"Iron Wall Pal? Then he is..."

Gawain looked up at the gaunt figure, gradually connecting him with the image in his memory. A smile slowly curled across his lips.

"So everyone here is fake?"

On the Warship's deck.

Akin looked at the other Warship docked in the harbor with the same bewildered expression. He had never imagined encountering Marines under these circumstances.

Still.

Judging by the damage to the other Warship, it had clearly just gone through a major battle and posed no threat.

After ordering his men to lower the gangplank, Akin led Pal and the others aboard who were disguised as Marines down from the Warship.

"I am Agin, a lieutenant commander of the 18th Branch in East Blue. This is my subordinate, Ruba."

"We have just fought a battle against Hundred Plans Kuro at sea. We need to replenish our food and medicine, or my Warship will not be able to reach the nearest Marine base."

"Please grant us this convenience."

The port fell silent in an instant.

Gaza looked at Akin, gaunt as the Demon, then at Gawain, whose face radiated righteousness, and quietly edged a few steps closer to Gawain.

The guards raised their weapons with wary expressions, their dark gun barrels aimed at Akin and the others.

No matter how one looked at it, Gawain seemed more like someone who had just gone through a major battle. After all, the dense cannon marks on that Warship could not possibly be faked.

That made Akin, who had come here using the same excuse, look suspicious no matter how one looked at him...

Standing beside Gawain, Kuro looked at Gawain, then at Akin's face, which looked like he had kidney deficiency, and his eyelids twitched.

Wait, so I am the one getting beaten up either way?

Why?!

At that moment.

Kuro suddenly had the illusion that even if there were no battles, following Gawain would still shave years off his life.

"What do you mean by this?"

Akin's brows furrowed slightly. He remained calm on the surface, but inwardly, he was already on maximum alert.

Had they been exposed? Who leaked the information?

These Marines?

Akin's gaze swept toward the crowd in the distance. Gawain's upright face and unruffled demeanor nearly blinded him, and he instinctively praised him in his heart:

What a heroic young officer.