Chapter 95: The Prey Has Arrived!
Soon, the two new recruits excitedly signed their agreements and left.
The woman in the cowboy hat watched their departing figures, her thoughts hidden.
Suddenly, the Transponder Snail on the table began to ring, "Purupurupuru…"
She ignored it, sitting silently until the snail was practically hoarse, before finally picking up the receiver.
"What is it, boss?"
"Have you finished recruiting the two new members?" a low, magnetic male voice came from the other end. "Once you're done, head to Nanohana Port immediately. Put everything else on hold."
"Has something happened?"
"That girl has escaped. Mr. 1 has already left the capital to pursue her. You will cut her off from Nanohana Port. The trade with Hanafuda is approaching, and she is an important bargaining chip. We cannot let her escape from Alabasta."
"Understood. But boss, aren't you near Nanohana Port right now? Why send me back when you're so close?"
"Because I have more important things to do," the low voice sneered. "Marine Headquarters has just entrusted me with a rather troublesome target. I must prioritize this to cooperate with them. Otherwise, all my acting for so long would have been in vain."
Click!
The call ended. The woman in the cowboy hat rested her chin on her hand, tilting her head slightly.
A troublesome target?
For the past few years, the boss had been working hard to play the role of a national hero.
He hunted pirates in his spare time, rounding them up in droves and sending them to the Marines. He had been hailed by Marine Headquarters as their most trustworthy Warlord ally.
So, this target must also be a pirate.
But in the several months she had been with Baroque Works, this was the first time she had heard her arrogant boss use the word "troublesome" to describe a rookie in Paradise.
She raised an eyebrow.
Oh my, could it be…
Could the target that Marine Headquarters has entrusted to the boss be that new rookie who's been making waves lately?
…
Under the lighthouse at Twin Cape.
Four or five hours passed quickly, and it was now afternoon. This was the minimum time required for the Log Pose to set its magnetic field at Twin Cape.
Now that it was set, it was time to depart.
The mess from the feast had been cleaned up. The crew, having rested, came out of their cabins to a sparkling clean deck, all of them looking surprised.
"Whoa! It's already clean? And it's so spotless!"
"It looks even newer than when it first came out of the shipyard!"
"Of course," Smoker said, tossing the broom and mop aside. He tilted his chin up proudly and blew a puff of smoke. "With the help of the Smoke-Smoke Fruit, a little chore like this is nothing."
Using Shave for high-speed movement, combined with his elementalized smoke body, he could scrub away dirt and sweep away dust from every nook and cranny.
Many of the hard-to-reach corners were no match for him.
Nami facepalmed.
I mean, we're both esteemed Logia-type Devil Fruit users. But the thing you're so proud of… isn't it a little strange?
"We're off! Thanks for the hospitality~!" Crocus was already on his own small boat, waving goodbye with a laugh. Laboon was beside him, letting out a long, mournful cry.
Zeff went over and gave him a big bear hug. The two old men, who had held a small grudge since their last meeting, had made up after the feast.
Before turning away, Crocus looked deeply at the twin lighthouses, bathed in the golden sunlight.
Just as everyone thought the old man, who had guarded the lighthouses for decades, was about to say some heartfelt goodbye to his old friends, Crocus said, his voice filled with anguish, "It's the 29th today! Dammit! Just two more days of work and I would have gotten this month's salary!"
So that's what you were worried about!! Everyone collectively facepalmed.
…
After leaving Twin Cape, The Curtain Call continued on its journey.
There were seven routes in the Grand Line, and as the captain, Shane naturally chose the one that went through Whiskey Peak and Little Garden.
He was looking forward to meeting the two legendary giants from a hundred years ago and doing some prime "wool-shearing."
[You have sacrificed Crocus's single bed and received 1100 points.]
[You have sacrificed Smoker's cigar box and received 900 points.]
[You have sacrificed Scopper Gaban's cloak and received 3200 points.]
This was the fresh wool he had just sheared. Including the 400 points from Laboon, Shane's remaining points had surged by another 5600, reaching 41,100.
Shane was very satisfied with this.
This was just the first stop in the Grand Line, and the haul was already far beyond his expectations.
Once the ship was sailing smoothly, he glanced at Nami, who was bent over the table drawing a sea chart. He quietly brought her a glass of orange soda, then headed to the training room to train.
As he passed the other two training rooms, he could hear the dull thudding of constant practice.
Kuina was in the open-air dojo on the second floor, so the other two must be Nojiko and, most likely, Smoker.
It seemed that with their official entry into the Grand Line and the growing number of crew members, the self-proclaimed main fighters of the crew were starting to feel the pressure and had begun a silent competition among themselves.
Shane chuckled.
Compete away. The enemies we face will only get stronger. A little competition now is a good thing.
It might not be noticeable in a day or two, but over time, he was sure the crew would soon feel the powerful effects of the eagle statue's buff.
And when they saw their rapid progress, they would be pleasantly surprised and would put even more effort into their training.
With this positive feedback loop, Shane was confident that it wouldn't be long before the overall strength of the Curtain Call Adventurers would reach a whole new level.
...
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
Whiskey Peak.
This island, with its desert-style architecture, had hundreds of houses scattered along both sides of its port.
It looked like a small town, but as one of the starting points of the seven routes, it was not as simple as it seemed.
This was a den of bounty hunters.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of hunters were gathered here, preying on the rookie pirates who had just entered the Grand Line. Sometimes they worked alone, sometimes in teams.
In this seemingly peaceful port, they had woven an invisible web of death.
Tap.
Two unfamiliar figures stepped onto the island.
One was a man with an afro, wearing a high-collared shirt. The other was a golden-haired young woman, holding an umbrella even at night.
From the windows of the surrounding houses, several pairs of sinister eyes immediately focused on them. But when they saw a large group of bounty hunters quickly surround the newcomers, they all looked away, intimidated.
"Is this Whiskey Peak?" the man with the afro, known as Mr. 5, asked, his hands behind his back. "How many hunters are there here, and how many of them are ours?"
"Mr. Officer Agent," the Billion in front of them said, bowing deeply with a humble expression, before grinning. "Although Baroque Works only started operating here a few months ago, we've made significant progress. Of the twelve hundred bounty hunters here, over five hundred are already our members, nearly half! And we're constantly recruiting and expanding!"
"Oh? Not bad," the man with the afro said, raising an eyebrow in praise. "I will report your progress truthfully. Perhaps this achievement will earn you a promotion to an Unluckies agent."
"If I could really get a promotion, I would be so grateful to you!" the Billion said excitedly, giving Mr. 5, who had only just become an Officer Agent a few days ago, a great sense of satisfaction.
Being a Devil Fruit user is the best, he thought to himself. His Bomb-Bomb Fruit was incredibly powerful, a force that ordinary people couldn't even imagine.
Otherwise, with his lack of experience, how could he have immediately become an Officer Agent upon joining?
Baroque Works had a strict, pyramid-like hierarchy.
At the very top were the mysterious President and Vice President.
In the middle were nine Officer Agents and over a dozen Unluckies agents.
The dividing line was the number 5.
The male and female partners ranked in the top five were promoted from Unluckies to Officer Agents.
There should have been ten of them, but he had heard that Mr. 2 was an okama who didn't need a partner and held two positions, so there were only nine.
And at the very bottom were the numerous Billions and Millions.
The Billion in front of him was a veteran, but he was several ranks below him. With a single word, Mr. 5 could decide his fate.
Ahem.
Mr. 5 coughed into his fist to hide his flushed face and asked in a low voice, "By the way, your main task here is still to collect pirate heads and raise funds for the organization. But it seems this month's quota has not yet been met. That's why I was ordered to come here with Miss Valentine to see what's going on."
"T-This… are the higher-ups already pressing us?" the Billion asked, his face full of panic. He quickly explained, "You can't blame us, Mr. Officer Agent! You have to explain this to the higher-ups for us!"
"The reason we haven't met the quota is because, for some reason, the number of pirates coming to the Grand Line from Reverse Mountain has suddenly dropped drastically!"
"No matter how well we prepare or how high our success rate is, if there's no prey, all we can do is sit and watch! We're powerless!"
"The number of rookie pirates has suddenly dropped?"
Mr. 5 frowned. He exchanged a look with Miss Valentine, then sneered. "What kind of nonsense is that? Are pirates fish? Do they have a low season and a high season?"
"It is a bit strange, but it's the absolute truth…" the Billion said, sweating profusely. Just as he was about to order his subordinates to bring out this month's records, a joyful shout came from the distance.
"Hey! We've got a bite! A ship is about to enter the port! Everyone, to your positions! Get ready to hunt!!!"
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