With one of Bellamy's crew securely tied up in front of him, thanks to Jewel's expert use of her web, Alex steps closer and uses his massive blade to slice open the net around the man's mouth.
"Your boss is dead, and you're already looting the place, ready to abandon ship," Alex states coldly. "I'm making you an offer you don't deserve, and you've got exactly two choices: die, or hand me all of Bellamy's possessions."
"I—I—" the pirate stammers, but Alex drives his boot into the man's stomach so hard that he coughs up blood, the red liquid soaking into the webbing on his face.
"Last chance..." Alex warns. "I'm not going out of my way to show mercy to Bellamy's murdering thugs."
"I—I'll tell you!" the pirate cries out. "This is just the sixth box I was carrying out! We have everything stored just outside the town... The boxes were taken out through the back exit—I can show it to you!"
Alex sighs. "Sounds like a lot of work... let's get to it then. You better not waste my time...!"
Thirty minutes later, Alex stands before ten boxes filled with various loot. Antique golden and silver coins, jewelry, glittering trinkets, ornamental daggers, expensive alcohol, small paintings, clothing pieces, a few books, and some loose Belly in the form of official coins and bills.
To his disappointment, he only finds around 10 million Belly worth of bills, stacked in a box, hidden under Bellamy's bed.
"Why is there so little money around?!" Alex demands to know, immediately getting irritated. "I get the miscellaneous loot part, sure—but you must've cashed in a few bounties at least! You were stationed here for a while, basically running this town. You must've taken down countless pirates! Ten million?! Are you holding out on me?!"
"I—I'm not in charge of the finances," the pirate stammers. "We spent a lot..."
"Fine... whatever. You'd better leave before I really lose my temper, just fuck off," Alex says flatly.
I'm willing to show mercy... just this once. Enough people have been killed, and he's worthless. He can't even spread any news that would hurt us—the whole town already knows.
"Thank you for sparing me," the pirate says, starting to walk away, only for Jewel to suddenly leap into the air and drive her sharp legs into his neck. Stabbing through it, not just once, but twice, immediately killing him.
Jewel has dealt 25 x 3 = 75 damage to Pirate
Jewel has dealt 24 x 3 = 72 damage to Pirate
Jewel has killed Pirate
"What the?!" Alex exclaims in shock. "Jewel, what are you doing?! That was unnecessary."
As Alex steps forward to inspect the body, Jewel expertly uses her legs to slash through the man's clothes, revealing a small hidden bag tucked inside.
She gently opens it, revealing a handful of expensive-looking gemstones.
This Peasant dared to rob Princess Jewel of her rightful spoils. He deserved worse. Such a crime warrants capital punishment!
Alex sighs and shrugs, not willing to argue anymore. "I guess so... nicely spotted."
He takes the bag and looks through the shimmering stones—red, blue, violet, yellow, green. They aren't recognized by the system, but they definitely look valuable.
"Great job... I think those are worth a couple of million at least!" Alex speculates.
Princess Jewel wants them for her collection!
"Don't be silly... they are not recognized by the system, but they are valuable. In the real world, we can find much better ones... let's sell them, instead, I'll buy you a few better ones. Anyway, what now? I guess... we wait? Or do you want to see what the others are doing?"
Let's take a look. Princess Jewel wants to look for fish! She hasn't fished in a while!
"No fishing," Alex says loudly as Jewel jumps back onto his head. "We're not here to fuck around. We can do that when we're in Water 7. Right now, we need to get this under control. A lot of loot's at stake. When the situation is under control, we can relax a little. I'll even join you later."
❤️
Alex quickly leaves the room and approaches Spector who is slowly cleaning up the place with a broom, cheerfully humming. He informs him that he'll need to wait a while before renting out the place. "Give us a few days, and afterwards, you can do whatever you want."
Ignoring the ecstatic hotel owner, Alex turns around and makes his way back toward the port without wasting any more time.
He sees Benezia and Tereza standing near a group of men—merchants, by the looks of it—and without a word, Alex joins them, positioning himself next to Tereza.
It takes a few minutes before he fully grasps what they're discussing.
"You can have their vessel—it's in great condition and heavily armed. In return, we merely ask for a small donation of 20 million. It's a real bargain, one you're only getting the privilege to enjoy because we're in a hurry. A ship of that size is worth at least five times as much. Add to that the cannons, and all the equipment, and you'll be earning yourself a large profit," Benezia says smoothly, her voice confident and persuasive, yet also carrying a threatening hint that doesn't leave any room for discussion.
"We'll pay, Lady Benezia. However, you'll have to collect the money in one of our branches. We operate all over the Grand Line and the South Blue. The nearest one would be in Water 7. We're willing to offer you a signed document, officially entitling you to the full amount," the head merchant replies.
"We'll accept," Benezia answers instantly.
"Wait a minute," Alex cuts in. "Even I know deals with wanted pirates aren't legally enforceable. This world has at least that much common sense. We can't sue them—they'll never pay us. This is not a good idea."
Benezia flashes a cold, almost predatory smile before calmly responding, "There is no need to worry, Alex, I am very sure they won't renege on our agreement because if they do... we'll be back, and next time our meeting won't be as pleasant. Their offices might also suffer an unfortunate accident—I fear they might get burned to the ground, with everyone still inside. I take it the gentleman understood that without me needing to say another word."
"We understand," the lead merchant replies quickly, his voice revealing his nervousness, though he still meets Benezia's eyes with earnestness. "You don't have to worry about receiving your pay... I'll assure you."
"That is acceptable. You are, after all, staking your life on this deal," Benezia says casually, already turning away.
Gotta admire her merchant's spirit. She just casually seized the ship and sold it to some random traders. Looks like we all profited.
Now, left alone, Tereza looks energized and refreshed, her eyes and hair still colored red.
"Shall we leave and move on to Water 7 right away?" Tereza asks.
"No," Alex replies. "We originally landed here to rest, didn't we? I've secured the hotel and found quite a bit of loot, but most of it looks... mediocre. Still, I am sure we'll be able to sell it, and I did find around 10 million Belly as well. Also, Jewel somehow managed to sniff out a bag of expensive-looking gemstones."
Princess Jewel is not a dog—she does not sniff out things. She doesn't even have a nose.
"Normal spiders do have noses... or don't they?" Alex mutters, suddenly confused.
"No, they don't," Benezia explains. "I've looked into it, seeing as one of them is now my comrade. They have sensilla on their legs—they let them detect chemical signals and pheromones."
"That doesn't sound like a plausible explanation in this particular case. How did you actually find the gemstones, then, Jewel?" Alex asks.
Princess Jewel's divine senses are unmatched!
"Whatever... you probably used En and covered it with In to avoid getting noticed," Alex mutters, visibly annoyed.
"Probably," Tereza says with a small shrug. "She doesn't need to walk, since she's always lazily sitting on your head. Might as well mess around with her Nen abilities while she's up there. You know how easily she gets bored."
"Are there any more pirates nearby?" Alex wonders aloud, glancing around. The town now looks mostly abandoned—only a few merchants remain, and they seem to be openly celebrating.
"It looks like our Reputation isn't that bad," he adds. "The normal folks aren't scared of us. That's a good sign. Still, that damn Butcher name is following me around like a creepy stalker. You think there are any more high bounties to collect here, Benezia?"
"No," Benezia answers simply. "We saw numerous ships fleeing earlier, and we couldn't stop them all. I fear anyone with a bounty has either gone into hiding or already left the island. Our reputation has clearly reached this place, and since we took down Bellamy so easily, the rest are scared."
"Okay then," Alex says, finally relaxing. "Let's spend a night in the hotel, and then move on. Before that, let's check out a few stores."
"That is acceptable," Benezia replies, not showing too much of a reaction to Alex's request, while Tereza nods enthusiastically.
Alex and the group visit the stores, the shopkeepers all offering them free things which they decline. However, as they enter Pub and Pies, the bartender, Terry, presents him with his famous Cherry Pie, the one he also tasted in the Wild Cherry. This one, however, is actually recognized by the System under the name of [Slice of Freshly Baked Cherry Pie].
[Slice of Freshly Baked Cherry Pie]
World: One Piece
Quality: White
Effect: Heals 15 HP and 15 MP over 5 minutes. Increases natural HP and MP regeneration by 10% for 2 hours.
Note: Some love them, others hate them. A unique dish from Mock Town.
Price: 1000 Belly (Purchase limit of 10 per person)
Alex gladly buys ten of them, and even Tereza and Benezia buy them, taking full advantage of the limit.
"These are great," Alex notes. "It was worth taking a walk around. They actually rival Menchi's dishes. I haven't seen her produce dishes that increase HP and MP regeneration. Maybe she can analyze and copy them."
Even Jewel grabs a 10,000 Belly note from Alex and jumps onto the counter, pointing towards the slices of Cherry Pie and handing the bill over to Terry, who, completely confused, takes it and hands her 10 portions as well, causing her to dance overjoyed.
"We're using all tricks to get more out of this... 40 White Quality food items... this is almost too good to be true," Alex notes as they step back. They're worth a ton of FC and more importantly, they are useful!"
Alex, Jewel, Benezia, and Tereza spend the rest of the day fishing, relaxing in the Tropical Hotel, and lying down on the luxurious beds. However, as soon as Alex's [Destiny Watch (Orbment) R2] displays 12 AM—midnight, a sudden System message surprises him.
[A large number of Story characters have been killed. This world is losing integrity...]
------------------------------------------------
A/N: Always thankful for Power Stones, Comments, and Reviews. Thank you for reading!
If you are interested, then please support me at patreon.com/FRWriter
80+ Early chapters available - I will still release on WN daily!! Thank you!
New Chapters every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday!
Bored? Complains? Demands? Check out the Discord: https://discord.gg/puVqWsf3y9
Thank you for supporting the story with Power Stones!