Chapter 233: Nobles are Scum (6k)

Chapter 233: Nobles are Scum (6k)



The raid continued.

Following orders, Arjin slowed down and began to plunder house by house.

As for the residents who stayed indoors, knowing that pirates were coming to rob them, they were mostly poor and helpless. The Heavenly Disaster Pirates ignored them and focused their attention on jewelry stores and large mansions.

Tree 8.

"Hurry, hurry, take the slaves away!"

As one of the unlawful islands, this place had a large number of slave traders. News of the pirates' raid had reached them as well, and they were now preparing to evacuate their goods and slaves to trees 60 to 69, where the Navy and World Government were stationed, to wait out the storm.

However, it was obvious that they wouldn't make it in time!

"Stop!"

Bang, bang, bang! With a loud shout, a string of lead bullets rained down around them, sparking as they hit the ground.

"Boss, the pirates are here!" cried one of the slave traders.

"Shut up, I can see it!"

Pittman, with his sharp-nosed and gibbon-like features, yet a massive build that resembled a giant rat, turned around, beads of sweat forming on his brow.

The slave traders also moonlighted as bounty hunters. At least in the Shambody Archipelago, these two professions went hand in hand. If there was a bounty, they would find a way to capture the target and claim the reward from the Navy. If there wasn't a bounty, they would simply send their captives to various slave trading posts, always managing to make a profit.

He certainly knew who the figure before him was—'Ghost Man' Arjin of the Heavenly Disaster Pirates, a pirate with a bounty of 60 million beri. In the past, if they had encountered him, they might have tried to capture him.

But things were different now; there were too many people, even more than their own gang.

And they also had new slaves, ones they were planning to sell. They couldn't afford any mishaps at this time.

"Hey, why are the pirates bothering us? If you want money, take it!"

Pittman threw down a bag of jingling gold coins and shouted, "We have no conflict here!"

"Pirates do as they please, regardless of any so-called conflict."

Holding his mace, Arjin walked forward. As he strolled, he spun the mace in his hand, his eyes falling on the ragged and terrified people shackled in iron chains within the crowd. "We also have our code of conduct!" he said in a deep voice.

...

Trees 1-29, the unlawful zone; trees 30-39, the amusement park and gardens; trees 40-49, the specialty shops in the tourist area; trees 50-59, the shipbuilding yards; and trees 70-79, the lodging street dedicated to accommodations.

Except for trees 60-69, where the Navy and World Government were stationed, all the other areas had been visited by the Heavenly Disaster Pirates. They might have been slow in their plundering, but they also didn't give the rich a chance to escape by sea. First, they controlled the mansions and boutique shops, and then they gradually moved on to the next tier of wealthy targets.

With only six hundred people able to move about, and another two hundred still guarding the ship, it was normal for some to slip through the net. However, they didn't mind; without the Navy's obstruction, they took their time and still reaped a tremendous harvest over several days.

Four days later.

Tree 43, the entrance to the civilian area, was also where the Death Harbinger was docked.

The area surrounding the ship's landing site was originally spacious, and with the arrival of the Heavenly Disaster Pirates, the entire tree island of number 43 was deserted, its residents having fled to seek refuge.

Over the four days, the pirates had been captured, hidden, or scattered, except for the Heavenly Disaster Pirates, who strolled about arrogantly. Astonishingly, the Navy had also disappeared without a trace after capturing the other pirates, leaving only the Heavenly Disaster Pirates to rob and maintain order.

The Navy's absence stirred the local gangs in the Shambody Archipelago, and they began to stir, wanting to come out and grab a share as well. They noticed that the pirates avoided certain areas, and they planned to go and raid those places.

However, they were swiftly dealt with by Bellamy and his crew, who were still scouring the area.

If the pirates didn't touch those poor places, what right did a group of thugs have?

This was a perfect opportunity, as he had been looking for these hooligans. They hid like rats, and it was difficult to find them under normal circumstances. Now that they had finally appeared, he wouldn't let them slip away.

The gangs also had a considerable amount of funds.

While six hundred people might not be enough to cover the entire Shambody Archipelago, raiding a gang or two sent a clear message to those who were getting restless, and they quickly settled down.

At the very least, they now knew that this group of pirates was not to be trifled with; they dared to touch anyone.

As for retaliation—

They wouldn't dare. These were subordinates of a pirate with a bounty of 600 million beri, a group of pirates who were always ready to set sail, fearless and untouchable.

Aside from the rich who had been robbed, for the common folk living in the Shambody Archipelago, these past few days had been the safest they had experienced in a long while.

The pirates didn't bother them, nor did the gangs cause any trouble. Most importantly, no Celestial Dragons had descended upon them, and they felt more at ease than they had in a long time.

At this moment, around the Death Harbinger, a huge pile of treasure had already been accumulated, with a large bonfire blazing in the middle. The pirates gathered in small groups, chatting and laughing, or showing off their newly acquired loot.

"They're here."

Until a pirate spoke up, the rest of the group turned their attention forward, where a group of people were slowly walking toward them on the tree root surface.

Leading them was a man with white hair and a wild smile. As he moved, the black-based red-tipped velvet cape on his shoulders fluttered, and he dragged two iron chains in his hand. The noble Celestial Dragons knelt on the ground like dogs, their four limbs scrambling forward with his every step.

Just like how these Celestial Dragons had once treated their slaves, the roles were now reversed.

To his left were three female executives, led by Lily, and to his right was Hawkins, followed by Lucci and Urqi.

"Walk faster!"

Sarg kicked Charros in the butt, clicking his tongue. "I'm not even riding on you, and you're still crawling so slowly. You're so lacking in exercise that you don't even qualify to be slaves."

Charros gritted his teeth and continued to crawl forward silently, enduring the pain.

He had already screamed enough.

Over the past few days, they hadn't gone hungry. That vile black-haired woman had said that people must be well-fed, no matter who they were.

On the contrary, they had eaten quite well, the food even tasting better than what the chefs in Mariejois made. However, everything else was miserable.

Because they were slaves, they had to do what slaves did.

Pouring wine, serving dishes, polishing chairs—and even more humiliating was being led around by this white-haired devil.

No matter how they threatened or tried to intimidate him, it was useless. As soon as they opened their mouths, they would be beaten.

The intelligent father had already learned to keep his mouth shut, but the foolish Charros had only learned to do so after losing several teeth.

"As expected of Sir Sarg, easily accomplishing what we dare not!"

The pirates were excited to see Sarg leading the Celestial Dragons by their chains.

"They're just Celestial Dragons. Only a bold man like Sarg would dare to do this!"

"It seems that Celestial Dragons aren't so formidable after all. Sarg has had them captive for several days, and the World Government hasn't dared to do anything. Sarg is clearly the more powerful one!"

"Of course, this is the Heavenly Disaster Pirates. There's nothing we dare not do!"

Amid the cheers of the pirates, Sarg strode forward to stand before them.

"Lord Sarg," Arjin said, bowing his head respectfully. "The raid is complete."

"You are the most obedient to my commands, Arjin. Well done." Sarg patted him on the shoulder, handed over the iron chains in his hand, and took a few large steps forward, laughing loudly. "My friends, it's time to divide the spoils!"

"Ohh!"

Below, a luxurious sofa had been set up, presumably looted from some noble aristocrat. It was made of wood, with a delicate patterned cushion, arms, and backrest intricately carved with various patterns and inlaid with gold trim. The legs and base were exceptionally sturdy, and the decorations were exquisite.

It looked expensive.

And it was a long sofa, too.

"Move this to my new captain's room later. Enlarge the living room a bit, Old Hawk; you take care of the design." Sarg instructed.

"Aye, I'll make a note of it." Hawkins nodded.

Changing ships was inevitable.

But it wouldn't happen here; it would be done after they reached the New World. Sarg had been considering it, and with the giants joining their crew, a bigger ship was definitely necessary to avoid feeling cramped.

As for the design, that would be left to Hawkins, with Retty in charge of shipbuilding, and Hawkins responsible for the interior design. In this regard, he was quite professional.

"I'll go check on the kitchen first." Mericar spoke up and boarded the ship.

Of course, a feast would follow the raid, and preparations had already begun. While the crew's feast was being prepared, Mericar would be in charge of cooking something special for Sarg.

After sitting on the sofa, Sarg gently waved his hand, and the noisy crowd immediately quieted down. Every pirate's gaze was fixed on the pile of treasures, their eyes gleaming with greed.

"I'll do the calculations."

Kalifa opened a notebook, pushed her glasses up, and started writing and drawing in it.

"For the Shabondy raid, we obtained a total of 3,008,035,000 beri in cash. Following Captain Sarg's instructions, you can keep the change, and we have a total of 3,000,000,000 beri. In addition, there are forty boxes of jewelry."

Next to the piled-up bags of beri, there were also boxes of beri. Sarg scanned them with his eyes, and red dots began to appear in his irises as his Observation Haki swept over them. He casually pointed to several boxes of jewelry, instructing his crew to distribute them.

There were a few collectible items worth keeping among them.

"As usual, I'll take half. The rest is yours! Ulqi, you get a share as well, 3%. Stansen, now that you've joined, I think you can be an officer, so you get 1%." Sarg laughed.

Although the giants were strong, if it came to a fight, Ulqi's ability would make quick work of them.

"I haven't done much, but if it's the captain's order, I'll accept it." Ulqi raised one hand and cackled.

Stansen also bared his teeth in a grin.

Everyone loved money.

Most people who went to sea did so to get rich.

The 1,000,000,000 beri from the Celestial Dragons was his alone, as it wasn't considered plunder.

Of the 3,000,000,000 beri, Sarg took half, and he also took twenty boxes of the treasures, leaving the rest for his crew to divide.

The seven main officers received 21%, Bellamy, Palu, Myoat, Black Cat Faust, and the newly joined Stansen and Jiang Balrog received 6%, and the remaining beri was divided among the nearly 900 crew members.

Ulqi's subordinates, all sixty-plus members of his crew, had also joined the Heavenly Disaster Pirates, so they were included in the distribution.

Each person received over 1,200,000 beri, and with the twenty boxes of treasures, everyone became incredibly wealthy.

"Can we really divide it like this?"

One of the former members of the Ruptured Monk Pirates, who had just joined, found it hard to believe. This amount was no small sum; normally, a slave from Shabondy would only sell for around 80,000 to 90,000 beri.

He had received over 1,000,000 beri in beri alone, not to mention the gold, silver, and other treasures. How many merchant ships would they have had to raid to get this much?

"Hey, partner, do you know who we are?"

An older crew member excitedly hugged his shoulder and laughed. "We're the Heavenly Disaster Pirates! Don't compare us to ordinary pirate crews!"

"Yeah, yeah, it's amazing!" The pirate exclaimed, his eyes shining with excitement.

Ordinary pirates raided merchant ships, but they had just raided an entire town!

As the final stop of the first half of the Grand Line, this bustling town was incredibly prosperous. After four days of looting, if they hadn't gotten 3,000,000,000 beri, they might as well have stayed home.

"Divide it all up! My friends, let the feast begin!" Sarg waved his hand, laughing heartily.

At that moment, the cooks pushed several food carts down the gangplank, revealing the delicious food they had prepared. They also brought out barrels of alcohol, officially kicking off the bonfire banquet.

After raiding for so many days, it was time to celebrate.

Several crew members brought a table over and placed it in front of Sarg. The maid, Bellana, held a bottle of wine and poured some into Sarg's gem-encrusted wine glass, placing it on the table respectfully.

"You're quite skilled, Bellana. Keep it up, and I'll put you in charge of my daily services from now on!" Sarg picked up the wine glass and drained it in one gulp.

"Yes, Lord Sarg." Bellana replied, a bit awkwardly.

Over the past few days, she had come to understand her situation. Rather than being bought by some despicable person, it was better to be with these pirates who had freed her.

After all, she couldn't go back, and if she tried to go to sea alone, she would just be captured again. It was better to stay with the Heavenly Disaster Pirates.

The captain treated all the slaves he bought equally, with no special treatment. There were no other maids on the ship, so she didn't have to fight; she only needed to take care of the captain's daily needs.

It didn't matter where she was a maid, as long as she was one.

"Then, allow me to perform a song for everyone."

The pirates had somehow obtained a piano, and Byron, the musician they had bought, began to play it. He had been a pirate himself, so he had adapted to their ways quickly, and he had even participated in the raid, brandishing a knife alongside the others. He was truly a man of many talents.

Soon, light and cheerful music emanated from his fingers as he played, and the purple-haired dancer, Pasha, changed into a desert dancer's outfit with a veil. She swayed her supple waist, dancing gracefully around the bonfire to the melody of the piano.

Pasha had the same thoughts as Bellana, and the two had comforted each other over the past few days, eventually concluding that the Heavenly Disaster Pirates weren't so bad after all.

Especially now. Without doing anything, she had received over a hundred million beri and some spoils, which helped settle her heart.

It wasn't about the money, but about being treated equally, which was reassuring.

"Yo, why should she have all the fun?"

Akiba jumped with a single leg to the vicinity of the bonfire, extended her five fingers forward, twisted her neck, and said, "Let me join in and show you the way of Kabuki!"

"Akiba! Let the new dancer show us what she's got!" Gabra loved to stir up trouble.

"Pasha is the best dancer. Get down, Akiba, you're not a beauty!" The other crew members laughed and teased.

"Hahaha, just dance!"

Sarg held out his wine cup, letting Bellana pour him another cup, and laughed loudly, "Everyone, liven up the party!"

With a dancer, there would be eye-pleasing sights. Now that they had one, they could have a whole troupe in the future!

Once they had their own territory, he could indulge in decadent pleasures every night and live a lavish life as a grand landlord.

That grandiose life of a landlord was beckoning to him!

"This pirate crew, after four days of plundering, holds a grand feast, and the nobles are scum."

Sarg suddenly muttered, lifting his head to look at Lily beside him. "What do you think of this haiku of mine, Lily?"

Lily's lips twitched as she reminded him, "Sarg, that word is pronounced 'hai.'"

The ancient haiku form of poetry was popular at sea, just like calligraphy and paper-cutting, and was a pastime of the upper class.

"Who cares? It's fine as long as it's pronounced correctly!" Sarg laughed loudly. "Sit down, don't just stand there. During a banquet, you should be drinking."

Lily sighed softly, had her subordinates move a wooden crate, and sat down to Sarg's left, thinking for a moment before calling over Agin. "Don't drink too much, leave some people on rotation. We have the Celestial Dragons in our hands, so if anything happens, don't let everyone sleep soundly while leaving Sarg to face it alone, understand?"

"Yes, Lily. I'll take care of it," Agin replied promptly.

Although it was difficult to get drunk, Sarg could obviously get drunk, but with the Celestial Dragons in their hands, he might restrain himself a little to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the situation to take them away.

But this wasn't something the captain should be worrying about.

Since they were preparing for a banquet, Lily had to make these arrangements in advance.

"Hmm, I'm so hungry. Isn't Marycar done with the food yet?"

Renetia, one of Lily's subordinates, took a piece of grilled meat on a skewer and walked over to the long table as she ate.

"How could it be so fast? Wait a moment, I've ordered quite a few dishes." Sarg said.

Although the chefs cooked delicious meals, she still preferred Marycar's cooking. Her taste buds had been cultivated over a long period, so unlike the other executives, she didn't join her subordinates in drinking and eating meat at this time.

However, as soon as she took a bite of the meat, her eyes flashed with red dots, alerting those behind her.

"Sarg, someone's coming." Lily's eyes also flashed with the same hue as she spoke in a low voice.

"I sensed it too."

Sarg put down his wine cup and grinned ferociously. "It's been a long time since we last met."

"Hahaha!"

In the firelight of the bonfire, several burly men walked out. The one leading them wore a black captain's coat, lined with a bright red shirt, a necklace of green beads around his neck, and rings on his fingers, laughing boisterously as he strode forward.

"Long time no see, Sarg! I never thought you'd come out. What a pity!"

"It's you, the guy with missing teeth." Renetia glanced at him and continued eating.

Lily also relaxed and stopped paying attention to him.

Only Ulqi stood up, his whole body on guard.

"Blackbeard?"

Ulqi laughed sinisterly. "The new Shichibukai? I've seen your name in the newspaper. Even though you don't have a bounty, you became a Shichibukai. You're an unknown force."

"There's no need to be on guard."

Hawkins, sitting by the bonfire, drew out a tarot card and said indifferently, "He's not here to cause trouble. There's no threat."

"All right, continue with your banquet!"

Sarg grinned. "This guy is my partner in the New World!"

"Hahaha! That's right!"

Teach laughed loudly, took a piece of meat off the bone from one of the food carts, and tore off half of it with a single bite before standing opposite the long table.

"You've got quite a few new partners, two Supernovas, hmm, and some guys who look very unusual, like government personnel. Have you collaborated with the World Government?"

As soon as he finished speaking, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and he stared fixedly at the two Celestial Dragons tied to the gangplank beside the Death Harbinger. "Hey, you..."

His lips also curled up. "You really know how to tickle my fancy, Sarg! Those are Celestial Dragons! You really did it!"

"Why would I need to tickle your fancy? But you've been doing well lately, even growing back a few teeth."

Sarg waved his hand. "Hey, bring over a few chairs and a barrel of wine!"

He looked at Teach and laughed loudly. "Now that you're here, why not join the banquet? Hahaha!"

"Hahaha! That's what I was thinking. Everyone, the Heavenly Disaster Pirates are hosting a banquet, so liven up the party!" Teach also laughed heartily.

"Wahaha, with a banquet right after arriving, this is fantastic, Captain!" Bashas raised his fist and laughed.

"It's all a gift from destiny." Van Augur said indifferently.

"Hehehe, we can't give them apples anymore." Poison Q, lying on the sick horse, said weakly.

"Greetings."

A person wearing a black top hat and theatrical makeup, with bright red lipstick, took off his top hat and bowed slightly to Sarg. "I often hear the captain mention you. I am Lafitte. Pleased to meet you, and here's to a pleasant collaboration."

"Hmm? Who are you? Teach's new partner?" Sarg asked.

"I'm the sheriff of the West Sea."

Lucci, who was standing nearby, glanced at Lafitte and said, "Because he enforced the law excessively, he was expelled and is known as 'Devil Sheriff' Lafitte."

"Hahaha, he's my old buddy! When I wasn't in Mock Town, he went to propose the Shichibukai thing to the World Government for me!"

His subordinates then brought over a wooden barrel for Teach to sit on. "Hey, Sarg, why are you still in Shabondy? Are you planning to get involved in the war? Why don't you help me out? I'm really envious that you have so many partners!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end