Karol leaned back slightly but didn't use his ability to dodge.
Just as the dark hand was about to grab his neck, it stopped.
"Karol-san?"
Bullet shook the snow off his body and stood up.
So this huge snow mound was actually Bullet sitting silently.
Even though he was now a candidate for Admiral, Bullet still addressed Karol and Sakazuki respectfully:
"Devil Fruit power, huh."
Karol let out a long breath.
"Hu—"
"That was close."
"Your speed is way too fast."
Bullet chuckled.
Karol took out a package and handed it to Bullet.
"That's right, Admiral Sakazuki had me find this fruit."
"Paramecia-type, Warp-Warp Fruit."
Bullet looked at the virus and the fruit recovery device inside the package, nodded, and turned to Karol.
"Teleportation, huh..."
"Not bad at all."
Karol replied,
"That really doesn't sound convincing coming from you."
After all, if Bullet hadn't stopped, he would have been caught already...
Bullet spread his hands helplessly.
Karol shook his head with a small smile, glanced at his watch.
"Two more hours, then we move."
...
Late at night.
Drum Kingdom, Royal Palace.
Two figures wrapped tightly in black suddenly appeared.
Their eyes locked on the fat king Wapol, who was snoring loudly in bed with a woman in his arms.
Bullet stepped forward and opened the glass bottle containing the virus.
He poured it straight into Wapol's wide-open, snoring mouth.
The whole bottle went down, and Wapol smacked his lips a few times before turning over and continuing to sleep.
But within seconds, the sleeping Wapol felt something terribly wrong.
His chest felt tight, he couldn't breathe, his whole body felt drained.
He groggily opened his eyes, trying to call for his servants.
But a big hand clamped over his mouth, shocking him awake instantly!
By the faint moonlight, he could see two figures dressed in black about to do something to him.
He wanted to struggle, to scream, but his strength was gone.
He could only watch helplessly as one of them pried open his eyelids.
They stabbed a needle-like device in...
Blood flowed through the thin tube into a container. Wapol was overwhelmed with terror and weakness... his struggling grew weaker and weaker.
Finally, darkness swallowed him...
The moment Wapol breathed his last, the blood inside the container merged with the fruit.
Before their eyes, it transformed into a Devil Fruit.
Karol slowly pulled the needle out.
The instant he removed it, he pressed a button, releasing a small amount of healing fluid over the wound. The tiny puncture closed instantly, leaving no trace.
Karol nodded. Bullet repositioned Wapol's body back on the bed.
The next morning.
A piercing scream shattered the peaceful dawn of Drum Kingdom...
...
Grand Line.
Land of Fire, Royal Palace.
After receiving the news, the aging King Zilavia sighed softly.
"My old friend... sigh..."
The exiled crown prince of Drum Kingdom hadn't changed at all, even after so many years.
If they sent him back, the kingdom of Drum would soon...
One of the king's close aides had also received the message, frowning.
"Your Majesty, perhaps we should..."
King Zilavia shook his head.
"No. After all, he's the only heir of a World Government member nation."
"There's no way we can keep holding him here."
"The World Government wouldn't allow it."
"There's nothing else we can do, old friend."
He sighed again.
"Bring Musshuru here."
He placed the letter on the desk.
He could already foresee that within a few years, the Drum Kingdom would vanish from the seas.
Because his old friend's two sons... there was no worst, only worse.
So even someone like Wapol became king—because at least he seemed a little better than Musshuru...
...
Grand Line, unknown waters.
A rather decent-sized ship was sailing toward Drum Kingdom.
From it came waves of harsh, grating laughter.
Inside the cabin.
The exiled crown prince of Drum Kingdom, Musshuru, after twelve long years.
He looked at the letter, rolling on the bed, laughing madly.
"Hahahahaha!"
"That idiot deserved to die!"
"Perfect! Perfect!!"
"Who would've thought I'd get so lucky?!"
"Just you wait, you damned bastards!!!"
Those stupid people who got me exiled! And that old fool Zilavia!!!
All of you can just die!!! Hahahaha!!!
High above in the sky...
A pair of cold eyes watched silently...
...
A few days later.
Land of Fire, Royal Palace.
King Zilavia, working on state affairs, stretched his shoulders.
Suddenly, the close aide from before rushed in, panic-stricken.
"Terrible news, Your Majesty!!!"
"The ship carrying the crown prince of Drum Kingdom! It sank!!!"
King Zilavia leapt to his feet.
"What!!!!"
The shock, combined with days of overwork, hit him hard.
He collapsed on the spot...
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"
"Call the doctor, quick!!!"
...
Impel Down, undersea prison.
Inside an interrogation room, a high-ranking Revolutionary Army officer, Ivankov.
His body, covered in blood, hung weakly from the torture rack.
The once burly figure was now thin and frail.
Two CP agents dropped their tools and walked out.
"Damn it, this guy is stubborn as hell."
"Yeah, it's been this long, and he still hasn't said a word."
"What now? If we can't get anything out of him, the higher-ups will be furious."
"Switching interrogators won't help either. We've used every method."
"Sigh, let's go eat first."
Not long after they left, a prison guard patrolling nearby tripped accidentally.
A small piece of paper slipped into the interrogation room.
Through the haze of pain, Ivankov looked at the paper curiously, then weakly caught it with his foot and hid it away...
...
Late at night.
Lying weakly in his cell, Ivankov pulled out the dust- and blood-stained note. His eyes widened in shock.
"So there really is such a place..."
His heart surged with newfound hope.
If this note reached him, it meant someone had bribed a guard.
There would definitely be a chance...
-----------
The fanfic is Finished on p@treon/tambeerg. 414 chapters in total