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"They're here."
Surrounded by a ring of heavily armed guards outside the Donquixote Auction House, Aaron suddenly opened his eyes and whispered softly to the two beside him — Shuma and Absalom.
Hearing this, Shuma and Absalom immediately turned their heads toward the direction Aaron was facing.
Before long, Wapol and Gilbert appeared before them, each riding a woolly hippo. The two seemed to be racing, urging their mounts forward as fast as they could.
In the end, Wapol's mount proved to be slightly faster — or perhaps Gilbert's extra weight slowed his own down. Despite being stronger, Gilbert's woolly hippo couldn't quite overtake Wapol's.
Winning again, Wapol was elated and even more arrogant than usual, taunting Gilbert mercilessly with all sorts of jabs and insults about his weight.
Gilbert nearly lost his temper on the spot, but for the sake of maintaining his image in front of the townspeople, he forced himself to endure it.
Once the rest of their entourage caught up, the two men, each flanked by their guards, entered the Donquixote Auction House.
At the same time, two people whom ordinary eyes could never see silently slipped into the procession — Aaron and Absalom, both made invisible thanks to the power of Absalom's Clear-Clear Fruit.
With Wapol and Gilbert leading the way, entering the auction house was effortless; the route ahead was perfectly secure.
"So that's the power of status, huh…"
Aaron muttered to himself quietly as he trailed behind Wapol at a safe distance.
He had spent a great deal of time memorizing the layout of the Donquixote Auction House and the patrol routes of its guards to avoid triggering any traps or alarms.
Yet in the end, he hadn't expected to enter so easily — all thanks to Wapol's presence — and now he was smoothly making his way toward the location of the Devil Fruit.
Through his Observation Haki, Aaron already knew that Pica and Lao G were waiting inside with the Devil Fruit prepared, clearly following Doflamingo's orders. There was no way they'd be foolish enough to let Wapol and Gilbert inspect the Devil Fruit alone in a private room.
After all, both men were royal figures of the Drum Kingdom. No matter how arrogant they were, they wouldn't be reckless enough to meet two pirates — Pica and Lao G — in private without their guards. Their lives were far too precious to gamble with.
Before long, Aaron and Absalom followed the group into an opulently decorated chamber.
Inside, several elite guards of the Drum Kingdom stood watch. The original hosts of this place, Pica and Lao G, now seemed more like guests — unwelcome ones at that.
"Hahahaha! So these are the Devil Fruits? They look magnificent!"
The moment he entered, Wapol's eyes locked onto the two fruits resting inside an ornate treasure chest.
Without hesitation, he broke from the group and rushed toward them, clearly intent on claiming them for himself — completely ignoring Pica and Lao G, who stood guard beside the fruits.
Both men's expressions darkened. The short-tempered Pica immediately activated his Stone-Stone Fruit powers, raising a solid wall of rock in Wapol's path.
Caught off guard, Wapol couldn't stop in time and crashed straight into it, his nose bleeding from the impact.
"You bastard! You dare attack me?! Do you have a death wish?!"
Clutching his nose, Wapol glared furiously at Pica and shouted with all the arrogance of royalty.
Instantly, the guards drew their weapons and aimed them at Pica and Lao G. The tension in the room skyrocketed.
"Hey, Gilbert, keep your nephew in check. The Devil Fruits are only for viewing — not touching."
Pica, utterly unfazed by the weapons pointed his way, turned his head and spoke in his uniquely high-pitched voice to Gilbert.
The sound was comically mismatched with his towering, muscular frame. The moment Pica spoke, the furious Wapol couldn't help bursting into laughter, clutching his stomach and laughing hysterically.
Several guards with equally poor self-control joined in, snickering aloud.
Even Absalom struggled to hold back a laugh, but one deadly glare from Aaron silenced him instantly. Under Aaron's quiet direction, the two began to edge closer to the Devil Fruits.
Lao G noticed and silently cursed.
He knew full well that Pica hated being laughed at for his voice. Pica had already been seething at Wapol — and now, after being openly mocked, his anger was surely about to explode.
As expected, Pica's eyes grew bloodshot, veins bulging across his forehead as a suffocating aura poured from his body.
The oppressive force immediately silenced the laughter in the room. The once-amused guards and even Wapol himself felt their hearts tremble with dread.
At that moment, Dalton, the captain of the royal guard, transformed into his bison-human hybrid form, shielding Wapol behind him. Kuromarimo and Chess quickly joined him, forming a protective wall around their prince.
"Wh-what are you planning to do?! Don't think I don't know who you are! You're just a filthy pirate — lower than common scum! I am Prince Wapol of the Drum Kingdom, the future king! If you dare harm me, you'll be declaring war on my entire country!"
At just fifteen years old, Wapol was already unbearably arrogant. With Dalton and the others protecting him, his confidence returned instantly, and he screamed in fury.
Meanwhile, Gilbert slowly began to step back, a sly smile creeping across his face.
He had realized something — if he could use the Donquixote Pirates to get rid of Wapol, it would be to his advantage.
If Wapol died at the hands of these "insane pirates," and due to his own foolishness, no one could blame Gilbert. Even his elder brother — the current, ailing king — would have no grounds to punish him. Perhaps the shock might even finish his brother off entirely.
And when that happened… the throne of Drum Kingdom would be his.
Pica swore he was trying to hold himself back, but that damned idiot prince kept pushing and pushing.
There was a limit to patience.
"You think you're so great? You're nothing but—"
That final insult — being called "lower than a peasant" — snapped Pica's last thread of restraint. Rage completely consumed him.
"G!"
Just as he was about to unleash his Stone-Stone powers, Lao G intervened. Instead of helping Pica, he struck him square in the chest with a powerful blow, sending him flying backward into the wall.
He had no choice — Doflamingo's orders were absolute. No personal grudge could be allowed to jeopardize their plans.
Caught off guard, Pica crashed into the wall with a resounding thud, rubble scattering across the floor.
"Now's my chance!"
Aaron, who had been observing every move in the room through his Observation Haki, seized the opening.
With both Pica and Lao G distracted, he swiftly took out a small invisible knife and sliced off a tiny piece of the Munch Munch Fruit .
He had chosen the perfect angle — the underside of the fruit, hidden from Lao G's line of sight. Even if they checked later, it would take time to notice the missing bit.
The method of obtaining a Devil Fruit's power was simple — eating just one bite was enough. There was no need to consume the entire fruit.
The moment the foul-tasting piece of fruit slid down his throat, Aaron felt a wave of nausea — followed by an eruption of strange energy surging through his body.
At the same time, within the invisible status interface that only he could see, four new words appeared suddenly:
"Power of the Devil."
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