◉◉◉◉◉
The shipwright's demeanor shifted the moment Aero stopped in front of that ship the one tucked in the back of the dockyard, clearly customized.
Gone was the indifference. The man practically sprinted over, beaming like he'd just won the lottery.
"Ah, excellent choice, sir!" he gushed. "This ship's my personal build reinforced with steel plating across the hull. She's tougher than your average vessel and built for durability. Perfect for surviving open-sea chaos!"
Aero didn't respond. He quietly circled the ship, eyes sharp and thoughtful.
Mistaking Aero's silence for deep consideration, the shipwright leaned in and whispered conspiratorially:
"She's also fitted with several blocks of Seastone sourced through… let's say, creative means."
That part made Aero relax slightly. At least this guy wasn't a Marine.
"And what's the point of putting Seastone on a ship?" Aero asked casually.
"You don't know? It's a game-changer!" the man said, his voice dropping again. "Seastone lets a ship pass through the Calm Belt. No wind, no current but with Seastone, the Sea Kings ignore you. You sail right through."
When Aero didn't react much, the shipwright assumed he needed a lesson.
He began flailing his arms like a stage actor.
"The Calm Belt's a dead zone, but it's crawling with giant sea monsters! No wind. No escape. That's why no one dares cross it unless they've got this!" he slapped the hull proudly.
Aero gave a slight nod.
"Impressive, sure. But if it's so armored… isn't it slow?" he asked pointedly.
That wiped the grin clean off the shipwright's face.
Got him.
Aero had seen enough. The ship was too heavy to be fast. That's why no one else had bought it and why the shipwright's attitude had flipped the second Aero approached.
Still, time was tight.
If Dylan, Eddie, and Gin were following the plan, the Dove would be on its way to the rendezvous point already. Aero had to move quickly.
The ship's speed wouldn't matter in normal sailing. For battles or chases? Aero could always use his wind powers to give them an edge.
"How much?" he asked.
The shipwright blinked.
"Sorry, did you just—?"
"The price," Aero repeated.
"Uh… One hundred million berries!" the man blurted. "That's just the manufacturing cost! All that Seastone wasn't cheap I got it from scrapped Marine gear!"
He didn't mention a sale price. Aero knew why.
The ship was a sunk investment. The shipwright had poured money into it, and no one wanted it. If it didn't sell soon, he might have to shut the yard down altogether.
But Aero understood all that. He wasn't here to haggle he was here to move.
He flipped open the black case and pulled out one of the smaller boxes inside, tossing it to the man.
"One hundred million berries. Count it if you want. I need this ship in the water now."
The man opened the box, flipped through a stack of bills, and smiled.
"All good."
He turned and shouted for his assistants. Within moments, several young shipwrights rushed aboard, prepping the vessel for launch.
---
"Brrr brrr…"
A Den Den Mushi buzzed on Aero's belt.
He picked it up.
"Yeah?"
"Captain," Dylan's voice came through. "We're back aboard the Dove. We spotted a lot of Marines headed in your direction."
"How many? Is Smoker coming too?" Aero asked immediately.
He didn't need to hear much more.
Loguetown's garrison was fixed. There were only so many officers and troops to go around. If the Marines were converging on Aero's position, that meant fewer were guarding the coast.
And that was the entire point of this plan.
The crew had crafted their ship-swap strategy with this moment in mind: create noise, draw attention, and sneak out through the cracks.
This wasn't just about getting a new ship.
This was about getting out of Loguetown alive.
◉◉◉◉◉
~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
◉◉◉◉◉
For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:
P-atreon/iamxeno
(Just remove the - hyphen to access Patreon normally)
Thank you so much for your support and for reading!