“Take… take the Den Den Mushi out of that cabinet,” Crocodile said, struggling to speak. It was understandable, given that an object resembling a steel pen was lodged in his lung, causing him immense pain.
Upon hearing Crocodile’s words, Vir’s eyes lit up as he observed the man’s surrender.
Thankfully, if Crocodile had persisted any longer, he wouldn’t have been far from death, as the “Blood Intent” technique had absorbed too much blood.
Vir retrieved the Den Den Mushi from the cabinet and examined it carefully.
“Is this the Den Den Mushi used exclusively by the Shichibukai? It doesn’t seem particularly special.”
“Give me the Den Den Mushi. That’s not the one for the Shichibukai. And take this damn thing out of me. It’s too difficult to speak. I need to call my partner to retrieve it,” Crocodile could no longer endure the strange object in his lung and wanted to use the call as an excuse for Vir to remove it.
“Are you sure? You might need to prepare yourself. Removing this thing is usually done in the later stages of the third phase,” Vir said with some hesitation, regretting not considering that Crocodile might still need to make a call.
Vir reluctantly took some anesthetics from his backpack and injected them into Crocodile.
Then, Vir slowly began to extract the “steel pen” from Crocodile’s lung.
“Ah, ah, ah, ah,” Crocodile howled, blood bubbles forming at the corners of his mouth.
Once the “steel pen” was fully removed, Crocodile was utterly exhausted.
The extracted “steel pen” no longer looked the same; it resembled a frizzy mass, having expanded from its original teardrop shape to a round form, covered in tiny spikes.
This was one of Second Senior Sister’s creations. The pen’s tip was made of special materials that absorbed moisture, becoming straight, hard, and expanding, which explained Crocodile’s difficulty speaking.
Crocodile took a long time to regain consciousness.
“Which maniac invented this damn thing? Your sect members are all lunatics and madmen,” Crocodile glared at Vir with hatred.
“Crocodile, it seems you want to proceed to the next stage?” Vir said, putting down the Den Den Mushi and staring directly at Crocodile.
Crocodile remained silent, not wanting to provoke this madman any further.
Seeing Crocodile’s silence, Vir didn’t press on but instead placed the Den Den Mushi’s receiver next to Crocodile.
After a while, the Den Den Mushi was answered, and the person on the other end was Robin.
“Miss All-Sunday, it’s me, Mr. 0. Go to the secret base now. Underneath my office chair is a hidden compartment. The code is ‘084355.’ Inside, there’s a Den Den Mushi. Bring it to Rain Dinners and then come to my office. I’ll be waiting for you here,” Crocodile finished speaking. Before Robin could respond, Vir hung up the Den Den Mushi.
“I’ve asked Miss All-Sunday to bring the Den Den Mushi. Kill me now,” Crocodile was now completely resigned to death, not believing Vir would release him. After all, who would let someone go after torturing them so severely?
But what Crocodile didn’t know was that Vir actually had such a hobby.
Vir ignored Crocodile and started wandering around the luxurious office. It wasn’t long before something caught his eye—a liquor cabinet.
“Wow, these are some fine wines,” Vir exclaimed, admiring the collection.
When Vir spotted a particular bottle, he was no longer just admiring.
“Damn, you’ve got a 200-year-old TAC wine on display here? How long has it been here, and where did you get it?” Vir was furious at Crocodile for mistreating such a rare wine.
Crocodile, scared by Vir’s reaction, quickly answered, “These wines were found in the palace cellar when I kidnapped Nefertari Cobra. I thought they were good, so I brought them back. They’ve been here for a few days.”
Pleased with Crocodile’s answer, Vir carefully packed the precious bottle, planning to share it with his senior brother in Loguetown later. This was an exquisite wine, not easily bought even with money.
The other wines were also top quality, so Vir packed them together, not forgetting to open a bottle of unknown variety to satisfy his immediate craving.
Opening the bottle, Vir took a sip.
So pure, so strong, such excellent taste—truly fine wine.
Closing his eyes to savor it, Vir couldn’t resist taking another large gulp. He used to drink occasionally when his senior brother was alive, but after his senior brother’s death, he grew fonder of drinking, recently feeling an intense craving if he went three days without alcohol.
Vir knew that, with his physical condition, alcohol couldn’t harm his body or cause dependency. It was likely a mental reliance, possibly his way of remembering his senior brother.
Thinking of his senior brother brought a smile to Vir’s lips, recalling their drunken escapades.
The funniest time was when both Vir and his senior brother were drunk, hosting their master, who also got a bit tipsy. It was at his senior brother’s house, so Senior Sister was there too.
Somehow, his senior brother insisted on Vir marrying his five-year-old daughter, Anna, and a drunken Vir agreed. Vir still remembered their master pounding the table, standing up, and shouting, “I’ll be the officiant!”
In the end, it was Senior Sister who sent the drunken men to their respective rooms.
Lost in these memories, Vir couldn’t help but smile, eyes filled with longing. But then, he heard the sound of sand being stepped on.
Vir knew Robin had arrived to deliver the Den Den Mushi.
Robin, upon arriving at Rain Dinners, immediately sensed a battle had taken place. She had told Vir that Crocodile was there, so it must have been a fight between them.
Hesitant, Robin wanted to turn back but thought of the clues Vir had about the Poneglyphs, strengthening her resolve.
As she opened the door, the horrifying scene before her stunned her. Even someone who had seen so much darkness was now weak in the knees.
Seeing Crocodile covered in strange tools, Robin could no longer hold back and began to dry heave.
She had seen dead bodies and dismemberment, but what she saw now was far more gruesome, making this strong woman almost vomit in tears.
Robin turned to flee, but a cold male voice stopped her.
“If you dare run, I’ll make you sit there and enjoy Crocodile’s treatment.”
Hearing this icy voice, Robin felt as if she had been immobilized, unable to move, her slender legs trembling slightly.
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