Chapter 124: Target Carnival City
Not long after Eric and the others left Dega's hideout, a stumbling drunkard arrived at the hideout and saw the bounty hunters frozen into ice sculptures.
"Big-bellied man, Long Snake... you really overestimated yourselves. Fine, I'll help you clean up the mess. The money on you will be the burial fee, and it's all mine now."
The drunkard, a bounty hunter, was unable to move the completely frozen ice sculptures, so he smashed them into pieces and dragged them outside to throw them into the recently dug pit, casually pocketing some valuables.
"Damn it! Even the Belly is frozen... well, I guess it's fate..."
...
Back on the ship, Perona entered the infirmary. After some struggle, she discovered that the bump on the back of her head had turned into a big mushroom.
It was unbelievable that there was no diagnosis for a concussion in this world.
If it had been in the original world, a blow to the head like that might have meant an immediate trip to meet Buddha.
"But, while we were walking on the street, didn't anyone recognize us as the infamous Dawn Pirates?" Eric muttered to himself. "By all rights, we should be pretty famous by now, shouldn't we?"
They also had the strength to easily destroy an entire town.
Kurumi, who was walking beside him, smiled and said, "The TV penetration here doesn't seem that high. And, this is a tourist spot; the economy here relies on tourists. Pirates are also considered 'tourists.'"
"Look, isn't that another wanted pirate over there? His ferocious face practically says he's a bad guy. Even if the people here recognize us, as long as we don't stir up trouble, they probably won't contact the Navy. Besides, with our strength, ordinary Navy troops wouldn't stand a chance."
Eric nodded in agreement. "That's why we can stroll around leisurely. It's good this way. Otherwise, if someone calls the Navy, we'll have to leave. I haven't had the chance to enjoy the food in Food City yet."
Then Eric added with a hint of regret, "Ah, too bad, there goes our chance for the classic 'slap in the face' scene."
Akame curiously asked, "What's this 'slap in the face' scene?"
"It's when some small-time thief doesn't recognize us, thinks he has some strength, and tries to cause trouble. Then, I reveal my identity, and the little thief begs for mercy, slapping himself in the face."
"Ah, Eric , you should watch less of those indulgent stories and read books on political economy instead. You want to build a nation, right? You can't do that without some knowledge."
Mont Blanc Cricket, usually quiet, also chimed in, "And wasn't the recent kidnapping kind of a 'slap in the face' scene?"
"Mm..." Eric thought carefully about whether the kidnapping counted as one of those moments.
Just then, Chiron and the fish-man Lante returned, carrying several large bags.
Chiron, as gentle as ever, said, "You're all back so early. Looks like we're the last ones to return."
Eric shrugged. "Well, a few bad things happened, but it's all perfectly resolved."
Chiron paused for a moment, then replied seriously, "It's good it was resolved. Apologies, Captain. I wasn't here to help."
"Haha, when problems arise, of course the captain has to solve them. Chiron-sensei has no responsibility in this. Hmm~ looks like you bought a lot of things."
"Yes, since they were only wearing one set of clothes when they were rescued, they didn't have proper clothes to change into. So, we bought a few more things here."
"Chiron-sensei is so thoughtful. I didn't think of that," Eric said with a smile , looking at the two sisters who had changed into new clothes.
The two sisters shyly lowered their heads.
"And we also bought some daily necessities for the ten or so regular people who want to go to the East Blue with us."
"They should all be in their rooms. I'll go with my sister to call them over," Carla volunteered, pulling her sister along.
"You're welcome," Eric said, lying down on the luxurious sofa they had bought, sinking into the soft fabric, and letting out a relaxed stretch.
Kurumi, who was nearby, casually ordered, "Sit up properly."
Eric shuddered and immediately placed his hands on his knees, sitting up straight.
Da Vinci, having digested all the sweets, teased, "Captain, you have the potential to be controlled by your wife."
Eric quietly retorted, "Being controlled by my wife isn't a bad thing. It's better than being a single dog with no one to control me."
"Ah, does that mean it's already accepted that you're controlled by your wife?"
"Not at all!" Eric firmly denied it, thinking to himself, 'I am the one to control the world!' "I'm just humbly accepting advice. As a king, I must always be mindful of my manners, and I'll only listen to correct suggestions."
"Mm, indeed," the Queen of the Shadow Country couldn't help but nod in agreement. "From now on, I'll make sure to teach you the proper noble etiquette, after we finish your spear training, we'll add etiquette lessons."
Hearing this, Eric slumped down with a bitter face.
The others couldn't help but chuckle at their captain's expression.
...
Eric and the others had kept the ship docked at the back of Food City to enjoy the local cuisine, taking turns to try the food in the city for the next few days until the fourth day of their stay.
Eric accidentally spotted a CP0 member in the crowd, wearing a mask and a white sheet.
CP0, the direct organization of the world aristocrats, meant only one thing: he was here because of Eric and his crew.
In the live broadcast to the world, Eric had cruelly tortured the Celestial Dragons, severely damaging the world government's credibility and exposing their hidden dark history.
Especially with Morgans' final masterstroke, cutting off the transmission, making the public more convinced of the truth behind his words.
The Five Elders were probably furious at Eric and his crew, sending out their strongest special agents to track them down, which was no surprise.
'But, didn't expect them to come so fast...' Eric wondered. He had been sailing for five days aboard the Eternally Fearless, and given the ship's speed—twice that of a sailing ship—they should have caught up after at least ten days.
Including the four days spent in Food City, it had only been nine days, not counting their investigation and information-gathering time. The travel time wasn't even enough!
"I was thinking of leaving for Carnival City in a few days, but we should leave now..." Eric thought carefully and decided to head out immediately for Carnival City.
It was a pity he hadn't found a good chef in Food City.
As the captain, Eric ordered, "Let's go, to the next destination!"
...
However, in fact, this CP0 member was one of the ones sent out by the Celestial Dragons to search for the "Operation Fruit."
Two years ago, news of the Operation Fruit surfaced, sparking a large-scale battle involving many parties.
The Celestial Dragons, coveting the temptation of immortality, sent out CP0 to get their hands on it.
However, neither the Navy nor the government's intelligence agencies succeeded, and even the former warlord Doflamingo failed, killing his own brother in the process.
They weren't sure whether the Operation Fruit had been eaten, but if it had, they needed to capture the person who had consumed it.
This CP0 member gathered information and learned that a Devil Fruit would be auctioned at Carnival City at the end of the month. He came to Food City, preparing to go to Carnival City to check if it was the Operation Fruit, only to unexpectedly run into Eric 's crew.
At this point, the CP0 member immediately reported the sighting of Eric 's crew and informed his superiors of his suspicion that Eric 's next target was the Devil Fruit being auctioned at Carnival City.
The three main CP0 members, still searching for Eric 's crew near a nearby island, received the report. They looked at each other.
"Didn't expect them to be so far away. Is it because of that Navy reported windless warship?"
"The journey is too long. Even if we leave immediately, we won't make it before the auction."
"We have to go anyway!" The CP0 member in the middle said firmly, "Call the intelligence agency over there and see if we can stop or delay the auction."
(END CHAPTER)
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