"The probability isn't high. If we wait, there's no telling how long it will take..."
Dr. Vegapunk's eyes shifted slightly. "According to current investigations, not many pirates dare to use this third path. It's possible—"
"It seems your guess was wrong."
Alucard tilted his head toward the direction of the Grand Line's first half. Dr. Vegapunk froze for a second and instinctively looked where Alucard was gazing. In the silent tunnel, a distinct sound could indeed be heard.
Someone was approaching.
"Hey, hey, who are the unlucky bastards?" Dr. Vegapunk couldn't help but offer a silent prayer for them.
It was rare to find someone with the guts to take this route, only for them to run straight into Alucard.
…
"Kid, I told you, the risks of taking this path are too high."
About two miles away from Alucard and Dr. Vegapunk, a group was making its way toward the exit. The speaker was a man wearing a mask full of small holes that resembled a motorcycle helmet.
It was Killer, the second-in-command of the Kid Pirates.
Captain Eustass Kid, looking thoroughly annoyed, replied, "We finally have such a convenient road, how can we not use it? How is the rest of our voyage supposed to be safe if we avoid the very first obstacle? That's not how I do things!"
The Kid Pirates' ship hovered in mid-air, floating along behind the crew. At first glance, it looked similar to Shiki the Golden Lion's Float-Float Fruit ability.
However, this was Kidd's own power.
He could control the attraction and repulsion of metal. Although the ship was primarily built of wood, iron and steel components made up a significant portion of its structure. Using his magnetism to float the ship through the tunnel was a simple task.
"Captain Kid, the New World is in total chaos right now," a man in a black robe holding a trident remarked. "The news this morning said one of Big Mom's Sweet Commanders seized another of Whitebeard's old islands. The Great War between the remaining Yonko is surely about to begin..."
Kidd spread his arms wide and laughed maniacally. "Hahaha! If the Yonko tear each other apart, we can just swoop in and reap the rewards! This is the perfect opportunity!"
"Unfortunately, little brats, you might not get that opportunity now."
The sudden voice from up ahead sent a shock through the Kid Pirates. Looking forward, they saw two figures, one in white, one in red, standing in the distance.
Dr. Vegapunk was famous now. Having "jumped ship" from the World Government to a pirate crew, he was labeled the greatest disgrace in scientific history. His bounty had instantly surpassed 700 million, a number 90% of pirates would never see in their entire lives.
And the man beside him... he had just dominated the stage at the Summit War.
Kid's grin vanished instantly, replaced by boundless wariness.
"The world's strongest? It's Alucard, obviously!"
Nowadays, whenever the topic of the "World's Strongest" came up in pirate bars, the debate that used to be split between "Whitebeard" and "Alucard" had narrowed down to just one name.
In less than thirty seconds, every member of the Kid Pirates was drenched in a cold sweat. Alucard stood his ground, not moving an inch, not even saying a word.
"The world's strongest man... Alucard the Immortal. And the world's greatest scientist now serving him... Dr. Vegapunk."
Because of his mask, Killer's expression couldn't be seen, but his neck was slick with sweat.
"But we aren't monsters. Just give us your weakest member for an experiment, and we'll let the rest of you go," Dr. Vegapunk said with an expression that screamed, 'I'm doing this for your own good.'
Kid's mouth twitched, his wariness replaced by explosive rage. Although he didn't understand the specifics of Vegapunk's experiment, he understood the gist: If you want to pass, sacrifice one of your crew.
"Come on, hurry up. Just hand over the weakest one," Dr. Vegapunk held out a hand. "Our Captain takes this matter very seriously."
"GO TO HELL!"
Kid roared. Suddenly, countless weapons flew out from the floating ship behind him, coalescing around his right arm to form a massive mechanical hand.
"Stay calm, Kid!!" Killer shouted, leaping nimbly into the air between the two groups.
The tunnel was nearly three hundred meters high and over a hundred meters wide, more than enough space for a battlefield.
Seeing this, Dr. Vegapunk took two steps back to hide behind Alucard, chuckling softly. "...I'll have to trouble the Captain to handle this. I don't have an ounce of combat strength."
Old fox, Alucard thought with a dry smile. Even if Vegapunk wasn't a killer, his ability to stay alive was world-class.
However, Killer didn't attack. Instead, he used his twin blades to unleash a flurry of slashes, striking the ceiling. The rock wall shattered, sending a deluge of boulders crashing down. A massive curtain of dust and a shockwave erupted, obscuring everyone's vision.
"Retreat, Kid!" Killer screamed.
Kid was wild, but he wasn't a fool. Hearing the command, he had no choice but to abandon the ship, turning to flee with his men.
BANG!
Just as the Kid Pirates turned to run, a bullet tore through the smoke and the falling debris, striking the back of the head of Wire, a combatant of the Kidd Pirates.
The large-caliber round instantly pulverized Wire's skull.
Dr. Vegapunk and the others couldn't see it, but Alucard did. From the corpse, a pale blue, almost grey soul slowly rose. Because Alucard had suppressed the power of the River of Death, the soul didn't flow into his body. Instead, like a piece of iron drawn to a magnet, it was absorbed into the surrounding Red Line rock walls.
"It really is absorbing human souls..." Alucard muttered, holstering his white pistol, Casull.
Beside him, Dr. Vegapunk nodded. "That settles one thing. Our research into the 'National Treasure' has taken a massive step forward."
"You bastards!"
Kid was beyond livid. The massive iron fist attached to his arm flew forward like a small mountain, hurtling toward Alucard and Dr. Vegapunk.