"Doctor Kureha, if you truly don't know anything about the Blackbeard Pirates…"
"Then sorry for disturbing you…"
"Hehehehehe…"
"That group, huh?"
"I actually do know a little."
"That's great."
"How much do you know?"
Kureha tilted back her bottle and gulped down several mouthfuls of alcohol.
After wiping the liquor from her lips, she lazily replied:
"And why should I tell you?"
Karl: "..."
"The king of this country is Wapol, right?"
"Tch."
"That idiot counts as a king?"
"He's just a fool."
Karl smiled faintly.
"Looks like you really hate him."
"Well then, you won't ever have to see him again."
A sharp glint flashed through Kureha's eyes.
"You killed him?"
"No… impossible."
"The Marines don't have the authority to touch the king of a World Government-affiliated nation."
"And you wouldn't dare."
Normally speaking—
that was indeed true.
As long as someone remained the king of a World Government-affiliated country—
whether he was a benevolent ruler loved by his people—
or a tyrant who treated lives like dirt—
the Marines had no right to interfere.
Of course—
that was only if the country paid the Heavenly Tribute.
If they failed to pay it—
then sorry.
Your country was no longer part of the World Government.
And if pirates invaded afterward—
that was no longer entirely the Marines' responsibility unless they happened to pass by.
Karl laughed.
"Hahaha."
"If he were still the king of an affiliated nation, then yes, I really couldn't do much to him."
"But when the Blackbeard Pirates invaded this country…"
"He abandoned the kingdom and chose to become a pirate instead."
"And since he's a pirate now…"
"Heh."
"What's the problem?"
Kureha fell silent for a moment.
She glanced toward Chopper behind her before speaking indifferently.
"Tch."
"I thought that fool had simply been scared senseless by pirates."
Behind her—
Chopper swallowed nervously and stared at the handsome human in front of him with shock.
Wapol…
was dead just like that?
The moment he thought of Doctor Hiriluk's fate—
pain surged through Chopper's heart once again.
Maybe…
this was truly evil receiving its punishment.
So this—
was the Marines?
In Chopper's understanding—
Marines naturally stood opposite pirates.
They were the enemies of all pirates.
But until now—
he had only heard about them from others.
He had never personally met one before.
Aside from being much better-looking—
they didn't seem that different from ordinary humans.
But there was one thing he couldn't understand.
Among pirates—
there were evil pirates.
But there were also pirates like Doctor Hiriluk who pursued dreams and freedom.
Would Marines—
the enemies of pirates—
treat them all the same?
If Karl knew what Chopper was thinking—
he would definitely answer him clearly.
Yes.
Unless you had connections.
"Kid."
"Since you dealt with Wapol, I'll tell you what I know about that Blackbeard Pirate crew."
"I'm listening."
Kureha raised her head toward the ceiling and slowly began recounting everything she knew.
"That day…"
"They arrived riding on a giant log."
"There weren't many of them."
"Only five."
"But every single one possessed the strength to fight hundreds alone."
"Especially that fat black guy…"
"His power…"
"was terrifying."
Based on Kureha's explanation—
Karl roughly pieced together what happened during the Blackbeard Pirates' invasion of Drum Island.
Blackbeard had still managed to gather those four men:
Champion Jesus Burgess.
Supersonic Van Augur.
Demon Sheriff Lafitte.
Death God Doc Q.
This was the true core lineup of the Blackbeard Pirates.
After arriving at Drum Kingdom—
they headed directly for Drum Peak, where Wapol's castle was located.
However—
they were briefly delayed by Dalton, captain of the Drum Kingdom guard.
That delay gave Wapol enough time to flee after hearing the news.
By the time Blackbeard's group reached Drum Peak—
Wapol had already disappeared without a trace.
Afterward—
they began wrecking the castle like they were looting it.
Yet strangely enough—
they barely stole anything at all.
It was bizarre.
In any case—
by the time Kureha moved into the castle with Chopper—
everyone inside was already gone.
"That's everything."
"I've told you all I know, kid."
"So what are you planning to do?"
Karl rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"First, search this place thoroughly."
"If the Blackbeard Pirates came here searching for something…"
"Then there must be something here attracting them."
"There's a treasury and an armory inside Wapol's castle."
"But there are no keys."
Karl smiled calmly.
"That's not really a problem for me."
"Oh right…"
"What's with the reindeer behind you?"
"Did he eat a Devil Fruit?"
The moment Karl mentioned him—
Chopper jumped in fright and instantly hid farther behind the wall, his chest rising and falling nervously.
"Him?"
"He's Tony Tony Chopper."
"Want to meet him?"
Ain immediately nodded excitedly.
"Yes yes!"
"He looks so cute!"
"Can I pet him?"
"Huh?"
"Isn't he a raccoon dog?"
Chopper: "YOU'RE the raccoon dog!"
"Your whole family are raccoon dogs!"
"Hehehehehe~"
"You want to pet him?"
"Sure."
"You'll have to talk to him yourselves."
Karl silently agreed inwardly.
What exactly did petting Chopper feel like?
This question had bothered him for a long time.
And now that he was finally here—
how could he not try?
After all—
once they met again in the future, it wouldn't be so easy to make a move.
"You're called Chopper, right?"
"I'm Karl."
"She's Ain."
"We don't mean any harm."
"We just want to be friends with you."
"You don't need to be afraid."
No response.
Karl turned and glanced at Ain.
Ain immediately walked quickly behind the wall—
only to discover Chopper had already disappeared.
CLANG!
A loud noise came from a dark corner on the right.
Karl's lips curled upward slightly.
Without making a sound, he walked over—
and discovered the following scene:
A fluffy brown creature was crouched in the corner with its rear sticking upward, trembling nonstop while muttering:
"You can't see me…"
"You can't see me…"
"Hahaha!"
"You're really timid."
CLANG!
Chopper whipped his head around in shock.
The moment he saw Karl's smiling face—
he froze.
Time itself seemed to stop.
"AAAAAHHHHHHH!"
BANG!
Chopper instantly transformed into a muscular beast-man and threw a powerful punch at Karl.
But right before the punch landed—
he forcefully stopped himself.
As if he felt attacking like that wasn't right.
"Don't come near me!"
After shouting—
Muscle Chopper turned and tried to flee—
only to suddenly freeze.
"Huh?"
"You transformed?"
"So you really are a Devil Fruit user."
"I thought you were part of the Mink Tribe."
Ain effortlessly intercepted Chopper.
With just a gentle pat—
Muscle Chopper rapidly shrank back down into normal Chopper form.
"Mmm."
"You're definitely cuter like this."
"Wow…"
"Your fur is so soft!"
"Karl, come touch him too!"
Chopper: "???"
What just happened?!
How did he suddenly transform back?!
And also—
he really hated humans with absolutely no sense of boundaries!
After struggling free from Ain's embrace—
Chopper stared at her in shock.
"What did you do to me?!"
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