"Hehehe, Mr. Luo Chen, you really have a good plan. I was originally thinking that if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have kept those things hidden. But since you've already guessed it, there's no point in me hiding it anymore, Lieutenant!!"
When Romas heard Luo Chen ask if the rewards sent by headquarters had also been delivered, he knew he could no longer hide the truth and had no choice but to shout loudly to his adjutant standing outside the door.
"Yes, Commander! What instructions do you have for me?!"
Upon hearing his superior's summons, the adjutant Officer, hurriedly approached from outside the door, knelt down, and asked for instructions.
"Go and have someone bring over that large, sealed-off box from the next room..."
Romas pointed to the door and said.
"Yes, sir, I'll take care of it right away!"
Officer hurriedly ran out and summoned two soldiers to come with him to carry the treasure chest. A moment later, Officer led two soldiers in carrying a large chest.
Bang...
The heavy box was gently placed on the ground with a dull thud, and then Officer led them away again, leaving Romas and Luo Chen alone.
"Hmm... this must be the treasure chest that Vice Admiral Tsuru from headquarters brought along. I wonder what's inside that would make me willingly take action for your navy!"
Luo Chen carefully examined the treasure chest, but because it was locked, he couldn't know what was inside. He knew without a doubt that what He could offer was a treasure he couldn't refuse.
Click...
"Hehe, look, this is the reward prepared for you by headquarters. As long as you can defeat the nine Supernovas currently gathered on the island with bounties exceeding 100 million, then all of this will be yours..."
Romas took out a key from his pocket, unlocked the box, and presented it to Luo Chen.
"Oh... this is..."
Luo Chen went inside and saw three things: a Devil Fruit, a knife, and a notebook. He said with slight surprise.
"That's right, as you can see, this is a special type of Devil Fruit Zoan... the Bug-Bug Fruit... in its Light Butterfly Model, the Frost Blossom, one of the Fifty Skillful Grade Sword, and the Navy Physical Training Manual. These three items are what Vice Admiral Tsuru specifically instructed me to give you."
She also said that if you can successfully assist the Navy in capturing those pirates, then all their bounties will be paid to you without exception. How about it? I believe such a offer should be enough to persuade you, Mr. Luo Chen?"
As Romas spoke, a hint of envy flashed in his eyes as he continued.
"Hahaha, that's enough. I agree to these conditions. I never expected the navy to be so generous. Even I have to admit I've been persuaded. Commander Romas, please send soldiers with me later. Otherwise, I might defeat them before the staff escapes."
Alright, that's enough for now. I should get going. The food was delicious, and your navy's hospitality was excellent. I'm very satisfied. Now that I'm full, it's time to stretch my legs. Remember to tell the soldiers to come with me, or I won't be so lenient! On my way!
Luo Chen was very satisfied with the hospitality of the navy stationed in the Sabaody Archipelago, as well as the gifts they brought. After finishing the remaining food, he prepared to set off to arrest those so-called Supernovas. Before he could finish speaking, he used his ability to unfurl a pair of huge red wings from his back, shot through the window, and soared into the sky with a powerful flap.
Huff... Huff... Huff!!
As Luo Chen flew through the air, he controlled his emotions to calm himself down. Then, his eyes suddenly glared forward, and an immense amount of Observation Haki burst forth from his body, rapidly spreading outwards from him and engulfing the entire island.
Buzz... Buzz... Buzz...
An invisible circle of perception continued to spread, soon enveloping a large Sabaody Archipelago and surging outwards.
Ding ding...
"Huh?! This is Observation Haki? How come you dare to use such powerful Haki here? Are you just an arrogant newbie who doesn't know his own limitations?"
Just as Luo Chen's Observation Haki spread outwards to the Lawless Area area, a silver-haired, muscular man wearing shackles opened his eyes, looked up at Luo Chen, took out a wine bottle from his body, took a sip, and then muttered something.
"Um... what's going on? Why did you stop? Get out of here, you drunkard, or don't blame me for disrespecting my elders!!"
The two armored soldiers in front of him suddenly noticed that the old man behind him had stopped, and they gripped the butts of their guns tightly and slammed them on the ground in a threatening manner.
"Hahaha, alright, alright, I understand. I'll go with you now. There's no need to threaten this old man with weapons..."
The silver-haired old man, also known as Dark King Rayleigh Old Ray Painter on the island, was a drunkard. As usual, he lost all the money he had 'borrowed' and used himself as collateral to continue gambling. In the end, he naturally lost again. At this moment, he was escorted to the auction house along with the soldiers to be auctioned off.
"Forget it, it's none of my business anyway. Let him hit a wall and learn how high the sky is and how thick the earth is!"
Seeing that the soldiers were urging him on, Rayleigh didn't linger any longer. He simply narrowed his eyes and concealed his presence from Luo Chen's perception with his Observation Haki. His aura dissipated, and he walked towards the auction venue with the soldiers, drinking his wine as he did so, just like an ordinary old man.
At the same moment, before Rayleigh could conceal his presence, Luo Chen accurately sensed the extremely powerful aura that One Flash across his body. He looked at Rayleigh's location with a solemn expression and frowned.
"That was... such a powerful aura, stronger than all the Supernovas combined... wait... it's gone again. Could it be that vile old man, Dark King Rayleigh...?"
As Rayleigh concealed his aura, Luo Chen had already surveyed the entire island. Sensing an aura even stronger than his own—aura surpassing that of all the Supernovas gathered on the island combined—he made a guess. The ability to instantly react to someone using Observation Haki and immediately conceal one's presence is rare even in the New World, where powerful beings abound. Even Katakuri, who can see the future, doesn't possess such an ability.
Note: (After he used his Awakening ability to bury Luffy, thinking he had defeated him, he used his ability to build a small mochi-filled house to enjoy his afternoon tea. However, Luffy swallowed him whole and broke free. Luffy then Observation Haki to sense that Luffy was in that house, but Luffy was completely unaware of it.)
"Hmm, whatever. Since he didn't pursue the matter of him actively concealing his presence, as long as I don't provoke him, it's fine. Let's go after those Supernovas... The Lawless Area 24-26GR are all gathered there..."
Wow...
After a moment's thought, Luo Chen stopped hesitating and flew directly towards the Lawless Area.
At GR Peninsula No. 24, two Supernovas gathered in a luxurious restaurant.
Waaaaah...
Carrier, carrier...
The sounds of extremely unseemly eating continued to echo in the restaurant. Almost everyone's eyes were on the person in question. She was tall and alluring, with a large stack of empty bowls and plates in front of her. Several subordinates stood behind her, stuffing enormous amounts of food into her mouth, yet she still complained that it wasn't enough and kept urging the restaurant chef to bring more dishes.
She was none other than Joanie Bonney, the Supernovas from the South Blue, with a bounty of 140 million Beli. Not far from her, another man dressed as a mob godfather was disturbed by her rude eating habits. He frowned and gave an order to his subordinates.
"That's awful! That rude woman, go and shut her up..."