Under the pressure and inducement of Hailan, Buggy eventually joined the Navy.
His subordinates, the acrobat Cabaji and the animal tamer Mohji, also joined the Navy, forming a special task force led by Buggy.
Cabaji quietly whispered in Buggy’s ear, “Captain…”
“Shut up!”
“Call me Corporal Buggy!”
Although Buggy had joined the Navy, this was far from his original expectation.
His mood would likely take a long time to recover.
“Right, right, Corporal Buggy…”
Cabaji quickly corrected himself.
Buggy asked irritably, “What’s the matter?”
“Well, do you have any plans to escape?”
“No!”
“Really?”
The animal tamer Mohji couldn’t help but widen his eyes.
“Are you really willing to be a Navy?”
“Then what do you suggest? Can I escape?”
Buggy recalled his experiences over the past few days.
He, who was always lucky, never had good luck when encountering two people.
One was the jerk Shanks, who was an intern on Captain Roger’s ship at the same time as him, and the other was this Navy Major, Hailan.
“Then what about your plan to get rich?”
“Who says you can’t get rich by being in the Navy?”
When it came to money, Buggy finally showed some interest.
“Didn’t you see that Admiral Nelson? My god, that guy is filthy rich! Twenty warships, three thousand subordinates, countless gold and silver treasures!”
“Want to get rich? It’s easier being in the Navy than being a pirate!”
Buggy seemed to have accepted his role in the Navy.
“But… if we do that, we’ll get executed…”
Cabaji made a throat-slitting gesture with his hand.
“Are you stupid? Why do you have to follow that idiot Navy’s example?”
“As long as we fight pirates well, won’t there be spoils? We can turn in a little less…”
“And didn’t you see? As long as we defeat pirates for those merchants and nobles, they’ll naturally give us enough treasures.”
“Want to get rich? There are plenty of ways, it’s just up to you to seize them!”
“Captain Buggy, you’re truly wise!”
“Of course!!”
Thinking about his plan to get rich, Buggy was already overjoyed.
He suddenly felt that being in the Navy wasn’t so bad after all.
…
East Blue, Tequila Wolf in the Bridge Kingdom.
Today was the sixth day since the “God” left.
The island had already returned to its bone-chilling wind and snow and its year-round sunless, cold climate.
Along with the weather, the overseer’s ruthless whip had also returned.
Crack!
The whip lashed harshly on the laborers, splitting their skin as before.
But because the “God” had brought hope to the people, this time, more people persevered and would continue to strive to hold on.
“Gerard, you must hold on!”
“I will wait for that man to return once more!”
Gerard’s gaze was firm.
He worked hard, trying to avoid the overseer’s whip.
But suddenly, a figure blocked his way.
“Overseer…?”
“Slave, stop your work.”
“Everyone, stop what you’re doing and gather around, gather!”
Countless laborers gathered with puzzled looks. They didn’t know what the overseer wanted to do, nor did they care what he wanted them to do. They just numbly followed his orders.
“Lord Kuro, this way please.”
Wearing a warm coat and a black suit underneath, Kuro’s face showed a trace of disdain as he followed the overseer to the slaves.
“Listen up, all of you!”
“This is Lord Kuro from the Loguetown Navy base!”
“He’s here today to take 50 slaves to join the Navy.”
“Yes, just as you imagined, if you are chosen by Lord Kuro, you can leave here and shed your slave identity!”
“Hurry up and thank Lord Kuro!”
Most of the slaves who had lived here for a long time had almost lost the ability to think.
But they understood one thing: if chosen by Lord Kuro, they could shed their slave identity.
“Thank you, Lord Kuro!”
“Pick me, pick me!”
“I’m strong, I can work hard!”
“I eat very little!”
Kuro’s face showed a look of disgust, “Quiet.”
No one paid him any attention.
Kuro turned to the overseer, “Make them quiet.”
Crack!
The sound of the whip hitting the ground was more intimidating than words.
The commotion quickly subsided.
Kuro took a step forward and raised his voice, “You shouldn’t thank me, but Major Hailan, or rather Lord Hailan!”
A question popped into everyone’s mind: “Who is Hailan?”
“It was Lord Hailan who saw your suffering and decided to expand the Navy to help you all live a better life.”
“Do you know? To take you away from here, Major Hailan is paying 200,000 Berries for each of you!”
The overseer’s face showed a trace of nervousness, “Lord Kuro, why did you say that?”
“What about it? Do you have a problem? Will it lessen your benefits?”
The overseer shrank back, “No… no problem…”
In the slave market of the Sabaody Archipelago, the average price for an ordinary adult male human was 500,000 Berries.
But those were strong pirates or people of other identities.
Here in Tequila Wolf, the slaves were malnourished and couldn’t meet the Sabaody standards, so their value was less than 500,000.
Kuro walked among the crowd, picking out suitable slaves one by one.
When he was about to reach Gerard, he had already selected fifty people.
Kuro was a “Borsalino-style” Navy officer. Although his personality was completely different from Borsalino’s, in terms of work, they were both “resolute in completing superior’s tasks” civil servants who would do no less but no more.
The laborers became agitated again.
“Lord Kuro!”
“Please take another look at me, I’m definitely qualified!”
“I really eat very little!”
Crack!
The overseer’s whip stopped the slaves in their tracks.
Kuro turned, his previously stern face suddenly showing a warm smile, “Don’t worry, Lord Hailan said there would be another chance.”
Another chance?
There would be more?
Under the slaves’ watchful eyes, the fifty selected slaves boarded the Navy’s warship.
It was as if they had suddenly left the Bridge Kingdom, becoming people of another world.
The faces of the slaves who were not chosen were filled with envy and anticipation.
When would the next time be?
Another twenty years?
This Hailan, a figure only heard of but never seen, seemed much more reliable than any so-called god!
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