Rebecca could quickly survey the entire island from her flying sword, and with the aid of her Observation Haki, it wouldn't take long. Standing high up, she could see far and wide, and she could spot any situation on the beach immediately.
Rebecca's suggestion was reasonable, and no one else objected. So Rebecca released Ain's hand, made a hand seal, and the sword box on her back opened, releasing a flying sword that landed at her feet.
Rebecca stepped onto the flying sword, which then lifted her to a certain height before quickly flying away in one direction.
Barnett and his group were already quite familiar with Rebecca's mode of transportation, so they didn't feel much about it. However, it was a different story for the newly assigned marines on the warship. It was the first time they had ever seen such a mode of flight, and they were immediately awestruck, unable to look away for a long time. Fortunately, Barnett and the others were there, so they didn't shout out in a fit of rage.
After taking off, Rebecca surveyed the entire coastline of the island. Apart from the absence of warships approaching the island, she did not see any large ships, only a few small boats moored near the villages by the sea.
She stopped paying attention to flying towards another town from the seaside. After approaching the town, she did not stop, but instead used her Observation Haki to fly over it. She only needed to roughly check for any signs of humans.
Unfortunately, this town also lacks any human presence. Just like the previous town, the anchor and the dog are still there, but there's no sign of anyone.
Rebecca's brow furrowed even deeper as she continued flying towards the next location. She flew towards each cluster of buildings, but as time passed, her hope dwindled, replaced by utter despair.
It seems that only the people from the fishing village have remained on the entire island, as if they were brought to this desolate island by a shipwreck and have multiplied and thrived there.
However, the buildings in other parts of the island suggest that the island was quite populous and prosperous. This discrepancy is too great. The fact that the investigation yielded no results indicates that so many men, women, and children have already been taken away.
As for what would happen to those who were taken away, Rebecca couldn't bear to imagine it anymore. This sense of powerlessness almost brought her to tears. Instead of returning to join Barnett and the others, she flew directly towards the warship on her flying sword. She was going to find Vic, and she wasn't afraid of bothering Vic anymore.
" Vic! Wake up! Something terrible has happened!"
After Rebecca flew above the warship, her flying sword spun around and flew into the sword case. Rebecca landed on the warship's deck and quickly ran towards Vic. She reached Vic's side, shook his arm, and said in a trembling voice.
Vic was lost in his own thoughts and unaware of what was happening in the outside world, but the physical contact pulled him back to reality.
After regaining his senses, Vic looked at Rebecca beside him and noticed that Rebecca's eyes were red, as if she had been crying or was about to cry. Vic knew that something must have happened. Rebecca was no longer the little girl she used to be; she wouldn't cry so easily anymore.
"What happened?!"
Vic asked softly, then stood up and gently stroked Rebecca's head. Although Rebecca interrupted his reverie, he felt nothing but concern for Rebecca.
People who frequently meditate and gain insights are generally of a high level of spiritual attainment, and their emotions are not easily swayed, let alone someone like Vic who has lived two lives and knows much about the future.
"We originally came to this island to resupply, but after landing, we found that everyone on the island, except for the fishing village where we landed, had disappeared. It was as if they all vanished at the same time."
They were even cooking and eating before they disappeared. I checked, and there wasn't a single human presence on the island. Could this be like last time, with the Celestial Dragons at work?
Rebecca briefly explained to Vic, even sharing her own conjecture: aside from those with special abilities, only a handful of forces in this world could accomplish this in such a short time.
However, from a purely profit-driven perspective, the Celestial Dragons are the most suspicious. The Navy could easily do it, but they wouldn't. Even if they did, it would be under orders from the World Government. Therefore, Vic would definitely have received orders not to approach this area.
As for the major pirate factions, they wouldn't go to such lengths to kidnap people in the first half of the story. The cost of such an operation would outweigh the benefits for underground forces, and they wouldn't do a business that wasn't worthwhile. Therefore, Rebecca's suspicions were focused on the Celestial Dragons, since they had experienced something similar recently.
"The entire island is deserted, leaving only the people from the fishing village. Isn't that suspicious? Didn't you go and investigate again?"
After hearing Rebecca's words, Vic turned and squinted at the fishing village on the island, saying that the fact that only the fishing village had escaped unscathed from the entire island aroused his suspicion.
"The fishing village can't be the problem. The islanders disappeared around lunchtime, when we were in the village. The villagers were cooking; they didn't have time, so the fishing village is fine!"
Rebecca shook her head, saying that according to the clues they obtained in town, the people disappeared around noon, when they were still staying in the fishing village, and the people in the fishing village had alibis.
Moreover, how could the fishing village possibly allow so many people on the island to disappear? The manpower gap is too large; it's simply impossible.
"Don't you know that Devil Fruit, these special powers, exist? There's clearly a powerful being involved!"
After finishing his sentence, Vic ignored Rebecca and flew towards the fishing village using Geppo. Rebecca was stunned for a moment after hearing Vic's words, then quickly followed him using Geppo.
Let's go back to the fishing village.
Barnett, who was still waiting for Rebecca at the town entrance, suddenly spoke to the group and headed back. He didn't explain that Vic had already telepathically told him to go back.
There were many new faces around. The matter of the Haki communication couldn't be made public yet. Wendy and Frodeku saw that Barnett wasn't even waiting for Rebecca anymore, so they knew that Rebecca had probably made a discovery. Indeed, she had made a discovery, but it wasn't Rebecca who made the discovery.
Vic arrived at the fishing village with incredible speed, bringing with him a sea breeze. The villagers had already eaten lunch; the children were still playing, and the elderly had their own forms of entertainment, such as playing cards and chess.
Some middle-aged women were sitting at their doorsteps mending fishing nets when they saw Vic suddenly appear. Their eyes were all on him, and their faces were full of surprise.
Vic glanced around, ignoring everyone, picked up a small stone from beside him, walked to an open space, placed it down, and sat down. The word "Justice" on his back faced the entire fishing village. Next to him was a model sailboat. Vic didn't say anything, but reached out and stroked the model sailboat as if he was bored.