章 46: A Tipsy Bounty Hunter
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|Igaram's POV:|
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At that moment, I thought that I was done for... However, even then I was not afraid. If it meant dying for Arabasta, there was nothing to be afraid of in the first place.
At that instant, I jumped angrily at the remaining people of Baroque Works that planned to take advantage of Arabasta's actual weak state in order to overthrow it, and decided that at the very least, even if it cost me my life, I would make sure the news about my death and the commotion caused by these people would reach the ears of the king.
So that at the very least, he would be able to prepare himself on time.
And well, if I was lucky, at the very least take some of them with me before dying.
Though, in the end, I was unable to achieve that last objective.
I was beaten down with just a few movements, and none of my attacks were able to damage Mr 1. Whose body seemed to be made of steel...
However, knowing that at the very least the people around the dock would see me die and make the news about my death reach the king was enough for me to die in peace.
If my life had been of use to this beautiful country, then that was enough for me.
...
But seemed that it was not to be.
When I had already accepted my death, and Mr 1 was about to deliver the finishing blow upon me, out of nowhere a particular individual appeared at the scene and did something I still can't believe.
He called Mr 1 "baldy", and then proceeded to fight against the hundred or so members of Baroque Works alone, and completely barehanded.
At that moment, I thought that he was a crazy man and that it wouldn't be long until he was taken down and executed just like me...
However, I was wrong.
The hundred or so people that Baroque Works had brought in order to take over Arabasta... All were gone in just a few minutes... And all by the hand of just one man.
Even the strongest members of Baroque Works, who were deemed to have powers beyond humans, were all played around and taken down without much problem by him.
A man that somehow, with his dark ragged cloak and mask of a cow, gave me a familiar and nostalgic feeling that I would not recall where I had felt it.
The moment the fight ended, everything became surreal to me. Even questions like "Am I dreaming?" Or "Was I placed into some kind of illusion?" popped out in my mind from time to time.
After all, what I witnessed was not something that I was able to understand. It was simply too ridiculous and unbelievable for me to digest it and accept it so easily.
How could one man take down almost the entirety of Baroque Work by himself?
I was even starting to ponder if I was going crazy or something similar...
Moreover... The man was allied with Miss All Sunday... Which just made me feel even more confused than before. Was he an enemy? Or was he an ally?
He had just protected Arabasta from great danger. However, he was allied with the woman that was in a way, the second boss of Baroque Works.
Whose side was he in? Or was he a third party even more dangerous than Baroque Works?
I didn't understand... However, I knew what I needed to do.
"I have to tell the King... And Vivi-sama as well..."
-Rustle...-
Standing up from the ground, where I had watched as the battle had unfolded, I breathed tiredly, before then I looked ahead, and saw an enormous troop of Marines approaching the place at a steady pace. All of them seemed to be here to capture all the remaining people of Baroque Works.
'Did he call them? Or was it the people around the dock...?'
Looking dubiously in the direction where the man and Miss All Sunday had left, I sighed, before then I shook my head and started walking away.
I had a very long journey in front of me before I would be able to meet Cobra-sama again. Thus, I had no time to waste thinking about useless things.
Vivi-sama should be on her way here as well. So it shouldn't be too long until I met her again.
Maybe just a few days if Vivi-sama and those pirates were lucky on their trip and didn't meet any problems along the way.
Surely, she would be very interested in this mysterious individual that was able to take down Baroque Works almost completely alone. Maybe she might even know something about him that neither the king nor I do.
However, that would need to wait.
For now, I had to make my way back to Alubarna and inform of everything the king.
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|Inside a nameless Tavern of Nanohana...|
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"Now, this sure hits the spot"
"...?"
"Why are you looking at me like that? I just got dragged out of my house to deal with an army of dumbasses that wanted to take over a kingdom. I think I can drink a little bit in celebration"
"No, I am just curious about your reasons for bringing me here with you..."
"All in its due time, Miss Nico Robin. Now, drink something with me. For some reason, I feel rather happy today"
"..."
Sitting at the counter while smiling goofily as he drank a cup of Raging cow, Farid could be seen playing with the glass in his hands, as Nico Robin sat beside him with a strange expression on her face.
By now, Farid had already taken off his costume and was now in his plain clothes of every day. Making her feel very confused about what she had witnessed just a few minutes ago.
At the moment, Farid looked defenseless as any other young man of his age would look... A lot more different from the man that she had seen that had been decimating an entire army of men equipped with dangerous weapons using only his fists and feet.
Even now, it baffled her to see how such a powerful man was just now leisurely enjoying a cup of a strange beverage as if the previous event had been just another day for him.
She had expected him to be strong since he had defeated Crocodile and her without much apparent difficulty. However, what she had witnessed before was something completely out of her expectations.
Honestly, it made her think that, either she had been employed by the best person she would have ever come across, or she had just been employed by a very dangerous man that might become a problem later on if he decides that he doesn't want her to see the Poneglyph.
Fortunately, seeing him drink so leisurely at least made her worry a little bit less about the latter option.
However, due to her previous experience with people of a similar attitude, she knew that it was not good to fully trust them either. They were way too unpredictable, and from one day to another they might just decide that it would be better for them to just report her to the World government.
Farid seemed to differ a little bit from them, as he seemed truly carefree at moments like this. However, it never hurt to be a little bit cautious.
"You... You disappear for weeks, and then suddenly you reappear with a woman next to you? What in the world happened?"
"Nothing happened. Now, since you are here, bring me another bottle"
"Hmm... Still the horrible-mannered brat of always... Whatever, wait a little bit, I will bring it in a second"
John, who had been looking at Farid with a surprised expression on his face until then, shook his head in disappointment and walked towards other customers to take their orders as he looked for the bottle that Farid had asked for.
As he left, Farid took the last sip from his cup, before he then groaned slightly while stretching his limbs, and then let out a relaxed sigh.
Then, turning to look at Robin next to him, who was still looking at him with a strange expression on her face, Farid smiled slightly before he then asked her a question.
"You said you wanted to work for me, right?"
"...?"
Surprised at the suddenness of the question, Robin raised an eyebrow, before she then nodded with a calm smile on her face, as she spoke with a formal tone.
"Yes, as I said before, you are the only one who can fulfill my wish now that Crocodile is behind bars. I will gladly work for you if you grant me that wish..."
"And that wish was to see a giant stone block inside the Royal Castle, right?"
"A Poneglyph"
"Yeah, that thing"
Humming in his seat as he played with the glass in his hands, Farid closed her eyes for a brief moment as he seemed to be pondering about something before he then reopened them and glared back at Robin, who was looking at him with a curious gaze on her eyes, before then smiling slightly at her.
"I think I got enough of being on vacation. So I guess we can go back to the pirate-hunting business... As for your wish, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. Though, I will need to prepare myself properly before, and that will take a little bit of time"
Hearing him, Robin nodded her head, as a soft sigh escaped her mouth.
She had expected that the whole operation of infiltrating inside the castle and discovering where the Poneglyph was was going to take time. However, it still disappointed her to know that she would still need to wait more time to fulfill the wish that had been haunting her ever since she was a child.
It was also known to her that most of her previous bosses lengthened the most they could the time she would need to wait so that they would have her under their wing for the most time possible. Giving lame excuses for why she would need to wait for more time, or simply telling her that it was a hard operation that was going to need a lot of time.
And even then, most of them would ditch her to the World Government once they ran out of excuses.
Crocodile had been her last hope, as although he was a horrible person, he had been the most trustworthy of them all... To an extent at least.
She knew that the wait had been well justified since it involved a lot of other things that Crocodile had to take care of. And she had accepted it all knowing that in the end, he would fulfill his word.
However, it was all for naught when Farid appeared.
She had waited years for Crocodile to prepare... And now, she would still need to wait for her new boss to prepare. It made her feel a little bit frustrated and tired. However, what other option had she? This man was the only possibility of her getting to see the Poneglyph inside the castle.
Thus, fully expecting her wait to extend for another few years, Robin nodded, before she asked Farid with a monotone tone of voice as she did her best to hide her frustration.
"How long will it take you?"
However, the moment she heard Farid's answer, her eyes widened, before she looked back at Farid abruptly with a shocked expression.
"A few days at most"
...
-To be continued-
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(A/N: A slightly short chapter, but still important nevertheless. Enjoy it!)
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