At the port of Impel Down, Diarmuid laughed as he embraced Maxcas. The two were on great terms now. Diarmuid constantly had people arrested from Impel Down, and he paid Maxcas by the head, as they had previously agreed.
Maxcas was essentially "officially sanctioned to embezzle," earning a large sum of money for his retirement every month. He was already planning to buy a private island and build a big estate after he retired.
"It's been a while since you've come, Vice Admiral Diarmuid," Maxcas said with a grin.
"Things have been busy," Diarmuid replied with a smile. "Did Doberman cause you any trouble? If he did anything wrong, just let me know. I'll take care of him when I get back!"
Most of the affairs at Impel Down had been handed over to Doberman. Diarmuid really hadn't been here in a while, except for the occasional transit.
Maxcas shook his head. "Rear Admiral Doberman is doing fine. No trouble at all."
After a while of catching up, Diarmuid pointed at the silent Olvia behind him and said, "This person is dead. You know what I mean, Warden."
Maxcas glanced at Olvia, raising an eyebrow. "Of course. Besides, Impel Down is a place for the dead anyway."
"She doesn't need to be officially registered, or you can just give her a fake identity. In any case, you need to keep a close eye on this woman for me. Don't let her cause any trouble. We might need her later," Diarmuid said with a chuckle.
"Don't worry, Vice Admiral Diarmuid. We might not be good at much else here at Impel Down, but we're first-class when it comes to keeping people locked up. This great prison has stood here for 800 years, and we've never had any major incidents," Maxcas said, patting his chest.
"I'm relieved to hear that," Diarmuid said, smiling and nodding.
But just as he said this, the prison's alarm system suddenly went off. The people at the port were all a bit flustered.
Maxcas was dumbfounded. He had just patted his chest and said, "Leave it to me," and not even a second later, something happened? How was he supposed to save face as the warden?
Maxcas's expression changed. He turned to the Vice Warden, Magellan, behind him. "Go, quickly deal with whoever is causing this ruckus."
"Yes, Warden," Magellan replied quickly, then turned and went back into Impel Down.
Then, Maxcas smiled awkwardly at Diarmuid. "Don't worry, these things happen from time to time. There are always some prisoners who are unwilling to give up and think they can escape from these walls of steel. But no one has ever succeeded. I guarantee it!"
Diarmuid nodded, but didn't say anything. However, he had a bad feeling. Judging by the timing, could it be that he had just happened to run into Shiki the Golden Lion?
But then he smiled again. If he really did run into Shiki trying to escape, then Shiki was just out of luck. He just so happened to be here to drop someone off. If Shiki dared to show his face, Diarmuid would just beat him back down.
Seeing that Diarmuid wasn't saying anything, Maxcas thought he was a bit annoyed. This was, after all, his future superior. Maxcas quickly tried to make it up to him. "Usually, we get a little bit of noise like this every year. But our defense system here at Impel Down is very strict. We have a prison break drill every month, and all the departments work together seamlessly. Magellan is also very strong. In Impel Down, it's a complete home-field advantage. It usually takes about fifteen minutes for things to calm down. Since you're here today, you can witness the effectiveness of our system."
Diarmuid finally smiled and nodded. "Of course, of course. I have absolute faith in Impel Down, a fortress that has stood for 800 years!"
Then, Diarmuid acted as if he didn't care about the alarm at all and continued to talk about other topics with Maxcas.
"Do you know anything about Amazon Lily?" Diarmuid suddenly asked.
"I know a bit. They are half-owners of the Calm Belt in the South Blue. They're not too far from Impel Down, but things have always been peaceful," Maxcas said.
"What's the situation with that country?" Diarmuid asked.
Maxcas didn't think too much about why Diarmuid was asking about this. It had nothing to do with him anyway. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Because they're trapped in the Calm Belt, the country of Amazon Lily is actually quite poor. On top of that, communication with the outside world is very difficult, and the Calm Belt is so dangerous. As a result, Amazon Lily is a nation of warriors.
"Naturally, the most famous thing about their country is that all their citizens are female, and their customs are quite fierce. Because of their martial spirit, poverty, and lack of trade routes, this country has gradually devolved into a pirate nation that lives by plundering.
"Every generation's Empress of Amazon Lily becomes the captain of the Kuja Pirates, and the Kuja Pirates are a well-known pirate crew passed down from generation to generation. They are located in the first half of the Grand Line, yet almost every one of them knows Haki. They are virtually unbeatable when facing pirates, nations, or armies in this sea..."
Diarmuid understood a lot just from hearing this. Simply put, Amazon Lily's fighting power was very strong, but because they were trapped in the Calm Belt, their resources were scarce, and they couldn't effectively interact with the rest of the world. Therefore, relying on their strong customs, the country gradually transformed into a pirate nation that lived by plundering. And because of their strength, they had almost no rivals in the first half of the Grand Line.
As for the Kuja Pirates, they were a famous pirate crew passed down through generations of Amazon Lily's rulers. When it came to pirate legacy, their heritage was far beyond what other pirate crews could match.
For example, even the most powerful Whitebeard Pirates only had a history of around 20 years. But the Kuja Pirates, if you trace their origins, you could go back several hundred years. They could be called the pirate crew with the longest history in the pirate world! Therefore, the Kuja Pirates were very famous!
"Speaking of which, I'm at G-7, so I should be pretty close to Amazon Lily, right? But in the past two years, I haven't heard anything about the Kuja Pirates. What's going on?" Diarmuid asked, frowning.
"Oh, about that... It has to do with their Empress. This generation's Empress of Amazon Lily is named Boa Nero. Many years ago, she was a very powerful pirate, but about seven years ago, she stopped being active. The rumor is that she contracted some kind of serious illness... It's even possible that she's already dead.
"If she's dead, the Kuja Pirates will be temporarily inactive. They have to wait for a new Empress to be enthroned before they can set sail again. But the three daughters of Boa Nero are all very young. Maybe that's why Amazon Lily has been so quiet these past few years?" Maxcas said, sounding unsure.
Afterward, he looked back at Impel Down with some worry. It had been so long, and it wasn't over yet?
Diarmuid nodded. "I see. So, Warden, do you think there's a possibility that Amazon Lily could be recruited by the Marines?"
"Huh?" Maxcas was stunned, then said with some hesitation, "I don't think so. After all, this country has been a pirate nation for hundreds of years. If you suddenly tell them to become Marines..."
"Hahaha, you're right," Diarmuid said, laughing loudly. He didn't say anything more.
He stopped discussing this with Maxcas, but he was thinking that Amazon Lily could indeed be recruited. It just wasn't the right time.
They waited at the port for a while, and the alarm level kept rising. Sweat began to pour down Maxcas's forehead. 'Please, don't let anything bad happen!' he thought.
At the same time, he felt a bit lucky. It was a good thing that Vice Admiral Diarmuid was here today. With his strength, he should be able to handle the situation if it got out of control.
As he was thinking this, a prison guard ran over in a panic. He stood next to Maxcas and said, "Warden, it's been confirmed! The escapee is the Flying Pirate, Shiki, from Level 6, the Eternal Hell!!!"
"What!?" Maxcas exclaimed in shock. Then he asked, disbelievingly, "How did he get out of the Eternal Hell?"
"He cut off his own legs..." the guard said nervously.
"What about Magellan?! What's the situation now?" Maxcas asked.
"The Vice Warden intercepted Shiki at Level 3, but Shiki's ability is very agile. He bypassed the Vice Warden and has now pushed to Level 2. Hannyabal is currently leading the resistance..."
"Hannyabal? He can't do it! Go quickly and tell Magellan to guard Level 1! We absolutely cannot let Shiki break through! Otherwise, the reputation and honor of Impel Down will be completely ruined!" Maxcas panicked.
But at that very moment, the great gate of Impel Down was violently flung open, smashing the two teams of prison guards standing behind it. Then, Hannyabal's unlucky body was also sent flying out of the gate, where he fell to the ground, unconscious.
A voice arrived before the person did!
"Jihahahaha! What a wonderful taste of freedom! Impel Down is nothing!!!"
Diarmuid was very familiar with that arrogant laugh. A smile appeared on his face as he looked at the figure slowly floating out of Impel Down.
He was wearing the standard black-and-white prisoner uniform and was floating about 20 or 30 centimeters above the ground. His hands each held a famous sword, Kogarashi and Oto. His legs were bloody from the ankles down, with a large amount of blood dripping from them. It was clear that he had cut off his own legs.
"Shiki!!! I won't let you escape!!" Magellan's body, which was oozing with poison, rushed up from behind.
Shiki laughed loudly again. "My destiny is mine to decide!"
The moment he broke through the gate, Shiki felt his mind and body relax. He felt that as long as he got out of this cage, leaving would be simple. However, his arrogant expression suddenly froze before his laughter had even faded. Because at the port, he saw a very familiar figure.
Diarmuid's face was also smiling. He waved at Shiki with a cheerful expression. "My destiny is mine to decide? What a big mouth you have. It's been a long time, Shiki!"
"Diarmuid!!!" A furious look flashed in Shiki's eyes, and he roared.
"Speaking of which, I almost forgot that you have two famous swords. What a coincidence that I'm here today. They'll be just enough for me to use for a while," Diarmuid said, slowly pulling his broken sword, Nagasone Kotetsu, from its sheath.
As soon as he finished speaking, Diarmuid stomped on the ground, and his figure, like a fierce tiger, leaped toward Shiki!
Shiki's eyes narrowed. He swung his two famous swords, creating a floral pattern with them, and sent two flying slashes forward!
The Lion and the Tiger began their battle!
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