A loud sound of footsteps echoed as a large group of guards rushed towards the office. With so many of them, they crowded at the office door.
“Listen up! This is our new boss, Lord Bai Ye.”
Hank stood beside Su Xiao, showing his support.
The guards around looked confused, but when Su Xiao raised the appointment letter in his hand, they quickly understood what was going on.
“Hello, boss.”
“Lord Bai Ye, I’m Kaba.”
“Boss, from now on, we’ll listen to you.”
Compliments poured in, and Su Xiao simply nodded in acknowledgment, his gaze shifting to the two trusted aides of Oka.
“These two have been in contact with pirates, intending to disrupt the order of the capital…”
Before Su Xiao could finish his sentence, the two aides suddenly drew their weapons and aimed them at him.
“Brothers, don’t listen to him! Lord Oka is our true boss!”
Su Xiao was stunned, looking at the two in disbelief. Did they really not think this through?
It wasn’t that they lacked brains; it was just that Su Xiao’s current identity and his earlier words made them a bit nervous.
After all, Su Xiao had just said he would make sure they stayed here forever.
“Go! These two have been in contact with pirates, and now they’re openly resisting.”
Hank was quick to catch on to the situation.
“Really... idiots.”
Su Xiao sat behind the desk, not moving. He didn’t need to lift a finger now.
The guards surged forward, and in that moment, the two aides of Oka were completely hopeless.
“Wait! We just wanted to…”
Before they could explain, the guards had already rushed in with their weapons.
The sounds of clashing metal, gunfire, and flesh being torn apart filled the room.
Thirty seconds later, two mangled bodies lay in the office, and every guard was covered in blood.
The smell of blood filled the air.
This seemed absurd, but it was the harsh reality of the pirate world. The rules were brutally clear: the strong held all the power, while the weak could only wait for their doom.
In this blood-soaked office, the palace messenger swallowed hard. Su Xiao's ruthlessness made him uneasy, and any thoughts of gaining benefits had vanished.
“Clean this up. You all can leave now.”
Before long, only three people remained in the office: Su Xiao, Hank, and the messenger.
Hank didn’t leave; he stood straight beside Su Xiao.
Su Xiao glanced at Hank but didn’t say anything more. He was too unfamiliar with the guard headquarters, so he needed someone like Hank, who was experienced.
He needed a smart and ambitious assistant.
“Lord Bai Ye, please have your subordinate step aside. I have important matters to discuss.”
“No need. He’s my ‘trusted aide.’”
Upon hearing Su Xiao’s words, a smile appeared on Hank’s face.
“Alright then. Here’s the thing: you should have heard about the ‘operation’ happening tomorrow night.”
The operation the messenger mentioned was the plan to burn down the waste disposal site.
“I’ve heard a bit.”
“Good. Here’s the deal: there are three groups suitable for this task. We’ve made initial contact with all three, and now we need you to engage with them and choose one to carry out tomorrow night’s ‘operation.’”
“Hmm?” Su Xiao looked at the messenger, a strange light in his eyes.
“I get to decide who does it?”
“Yes, you decide. After all, we’ve only heard about those pirates and need to meet them in person before making a decision.”
With a clear answer, Su Xiao felt overjoyed. He hadn’t made the wrong choice; his current identity was playing a crucial role.
“Got it. I’ll go meet those three groups shortly.”
The messenger smiled at Su Xiao, ready to turn and leave.
“By the way, there’s one more thing. Although there are three groups, you can only choose one to execute tomorrow’s plan. All the specific information is in the documents.”
The messenger left with Hank’s escort, and Su Xiao picked up the documents from the desk.
Inside was a detailed plan for burning down the waste disposal site, which basically said to choose a group of pirates, provide them with explosives, and use those explosives to ignite the site.
There were three pirate groups to choose from.
The first was the local force from the Goya Kingdom, the Bulsam Pirate Crew, which was the same crew that fought against young Luffy, Ace, and others in the original story.
The second group was the Clik Pirate Crew, who had recently sailed into nearby waters.
Seeing the information about this crew surprised Su Xiao; he was familiar with them.
The Clik Pirate Crew was quite famous in the East Sea. In the original story, they were wiped out by Hawkeye and later fled to the sea restaurant, where they fought against Luffy’s crew and ultimately lost.
Even though this was ten years before the story began, the Clik Pirate Crew was still strong, with around six hundred members.
As for the third crew, named the Skull Pirate Crew, they weren’t very powerful and were quickly dismissed by Su Xiao.
According to the original story, the Bulsam Pirate Crew was average, having been defeated by young Luffy, Ace, and a group of mountain bandits, which showed their strength.
Su Xiao had high hopes for the Clik Pirate Crew, so he wanted to meet them first.
“Hank, go contact the Clik Pirate Crew.”
Hank chuckled awkwardly.
“Well, my lord…”
Hank’s attitude made Su Xiao understand.
“It's up to you. We must meet them today.”
Clearly, Hank could reach the Clik Pirate Crew, and Su Xiao wasn’t interested in knowing the details of their relationship.
It was common in the pirate world for government officials and pirates to collude; there were many potential interests at play between the two.
Hank didn’t let Su Xiao down. Just two hours later, he had arranged a meeting place with the Clik Pirate Crew.
The location was, of course, within the capital; no one would trust a bunch of pirates.
In the commoner district, in a filthy alley, several men dressed in large black cloaks with hoods stood alert, scanning their surroundings.
“Boss Clik, this is the place. That old warehouse up ahead is where we agreed to meet.”
A thin pirate with a sailor’s knife at his waist stood cautiously behind a tall man.
The man was also dressed in a large black cloak and wore a hood, but through the gaps in his clothing, one could faintly see that he was wearing a suit of golden armor.
“Alright, you all wait here. Akin, come with me.”
Clik’s voice was low, and the sound of his armor clinking could be heard as he walked.
“Yes, boss.”
Akin was dressed similarly, with weapons hidden in his sleeves.
“Boss, I’ve heard that the new head of the guards is quite ruthless. We should be careful.”
Clik turned his head to look at Akin.
“Huh? Do you think I can’t handle a guard captain? If it weren’t for the convenience that noble status brings, I wouldn’t be doing anything for the Goya Kingdom.”
Arrogance and pride were common traits among most pirates.
Akin fell silent as the two walked toward the warehouse.
Brothers, remember to vote! The new book period is crucial, so don’t let it die!
(End of Chapter)