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Chapter 267: The Despicable Outsider
Chapter 267: The Despicable Outsider
In the midst of the town, Bellamy was initially overseeing the battle when he suddenly saw his men ahead scattering. He paused, then revealed a sinister smile, sticking out his tongue to lick his lips as he said, "We've encountered a formidable opponent. Everyone, fall back. I'll take care of him!"
Bellamy crouched, his calves coiling like springs, and then propelled himself upward with a mighty bounce. His body rapidly ricocheted off the surrounding buildings, the immense force flipping over their roofs and smashing through walls. After gathering momentum, he rushed towards the center and threw a punch at someone.
"Roar!!"
Just as Bellamy was about to land his attack, the man turned his head and opened his mouth wide, projecting a lightning-like beam from his mouth that struck Bellamy's body.
Boom!!
With a resounding blast, Bellamy was sent flying, his body covered in blood. Just as he was about to fall, his body trembled, and he swiftly spun to land on his feet.
"Cough!"
Kneeling on the ground, he spat out a mouthful of blood, his face now streaming with blood.
"You bastard!"
Bellamy growled through gritted teeth, intending to stand up and continue the fight. But just then, a figure swiftly flashed in front of him.
"Lady Lily!"
He grit out, "Please let me continue the fight. I can definitely defeat him!"
"Sagittarius doesn't want to waste too much time in this small town. Stand down," Lily replied without turning her head, her eyes fixed on the burly yet elegantly dressed man at the heart of the skirmish. "A capable individual?"
"I am a Sound Man, having eaten the Sound Sound Fruit, and can attack by gathering sound waves with my roar!"
The man roared, "Likewise, I am also the mayor of this town. Pirates, you—"
"Alright, that's enough."
Whoosh!
Before the capable mayor could finish his sentence, Lily's figure flashed again, emitting a 'zing' sound as a ray of blinding white light slashed across the mayor's body.
Lily appeared behind the mayor, her slender sword sheathing back into its scabbard.
"Hey, you—"
The mayor twitched his eyes, turning his head to speak, but he saw the golden-haired woman retracting the last segment of the gleaming sword.
Clang.
Swish!
The blood spraying into his vision left him in a daze, but before he could think any further, his body swayed and he fell to the ground.
Lily turned and began walking back towards the Grim Reaper, passing by Bellamy and saying indifferently, "Alright, the rest is up to you now. Remember to bring that person back. Also, if you waste any more time, I'll start to doubt your abilities, Bellamy."
"I won't let you down!"
Bellamy's face reddened as he watched Lily leave. Only then did he turn to face the group, whose hearts were gradually losing their resolve now that their mayor had fallen. His legs transformed into springs once more as he crouched, his face contorting with ferocity, and he began to bounce around the area again.
The New World was indeed formidable, but ordinary people remained just that—ordinary. They might have a bit more combat experience, but they weren't truly strong.
However, for capable individuals, it was merely a matter of expending some extra effort.
With Bellamy personally joining the fight, the remaining resistance was utterly incapable of holding their ground. Soon enough, some lay dead, others wounded, and the rest fled, allowing the pirates to enter the manor and ransack it for valuables.
As boxes upon boxes were carried out, including the capable individual who was brought aboard, the black ship set sail, leaving behind only a group of terrified civilians.
"Weren't they pirates?"
"Why didn't they rob us?"
This question lingered briefly before some of the smarter individuals realized, "The mayor's gone! Does that mean we won't have to pay taxes anymore?"
The capable individual brought aboard the Grim Reaper was also "processed" by Sagittarius, and then sent to join the company of the Steel Melting Fruit user. However, when using the Big Dipper Fist on the mayor, he had also struck his pressure points, causing him to divulge quite a few truths.
"Sagittarius, about this robbery..."
Lily entered the captain's room shortly after Sagittarius and was about to report when he waved his hand, interrupting, "I don't want to hear about a few million berries. Just give me half, and they can divide the rest themselves. But there is one matter I'd like to discuss with you."
He sat down at the desk and poured himself a cup from the not-yet-empty wine bottle. "That mayor didn't have that many troops. The three hundred plus people gathered in the town were from the surrounding islands."
It was extremely difficult for islands in the Grand Line, let alone the wider sea, to maintain connections with one another. However, that didn't mean there was absolutely no interaction between them. At the very least, in the surrounding seas, there were still some daring individuals who dared to travel between islands.
The mayor had recruited this batch of people, and just like Barnaby, they were headed to the Kingdom of Garies, invited by that grand noble to fight for him.
In addition to wealth, the grand noble had also promised that if they displayed exceptional merit, they could even be granted a piece of land in the Kingdom of Garies to become nobles themselves.
This was far more appealing than remaining in some backwater small town.
"This shows that the Kingdom of Garies is planning something big. They're recruiting troops everywhere, and it's not just a matter of a few tens of thousands of soldiers.
"Sagittarius laughed and drained his cup in one gulp. With a smile, he said, "It would be a shame for me to miss out on such a grand occasion. Lily, I've devised a plan. Listen up. First, we'll attack Augustindorf, break through its gates, and occupy the city. Then, we'll recruit more troops and divide our forces to wipe out the resistance in Garies and Timerton. After that, we'll completely take over this territory. What do you think?"
Lily remained silent for a long moment before replying, "...I don't see any problems with that."
Was this even a plan?
How could he just casually decide to attack without any detailed strategies or tactics?
But then again, wasn't this exactly Sagittarius' style? He had outlined the broad strokes, and it was now up to his subordinates to fill in the details.
It was their job to devise the specific strategies, tactics, and schemes to make it work.
For now, they would proceed as planned.
Half a month later...
Kingdom of Garies, Main Island of Garies.
Unlike the plains of the vice island, Timerton, the main island of Garies was mountainous, with limited landing spots. To reach the shore, one would typically sail past the main island to reach Augustindorf.
However, since the kingdom had fallen into civil strife, fewer ships docked at Augustindorf. The central sea route was now filled with warships engaged in daily battles.
Although Augustindorf belonged to Garies, it had not yet been occupied. The main island and the vice island had been constantly vying for control. One day, someone would enter through the city gates, and the next, a force would land near Augustindorf, retaking the city. As a result, the city had not only failed to be captured, but many of its buildings had been damaged in the crossfire.
Thus, an unspoken agreement had formed between the two sides: neither would occupy Augustindorf, and the winner of their conflict would be the one to eventually claim the city.
This led to the current stalemate, with the two forces clashing daily along the sea route.
The ruler of the main island of Garies was the undisputed head of the noble families, and their current leader, the noble Nikiforas Tihana, was even poised to become the next king. They had money and influence, but their military might was limited, mostly consisting of their vassals' troops.
The ruler of Timerton, on the other hand, had a military background and was highly respected in the kingdom's army before claiming to be the former king's illegitimate son. He was also the strongest individual in the kingdom, commanding a force of 100,000 soldiers who were loyal to him personally. The only thing he lacked was financial resources.
Given this situation, 'Young Lion' William should have been the favorite to win. However, the nobles truly had deep pockets! A group of them had joined forces, unwilling to risk their own troops but with no qualms about spending money to hire outsiders. They promised these mercenaries generous rewards and even allowed them to plunder Timerton.
With its plain terrain, Timerton had numerous landing points, and it was impossible to defend against the constant small-scale landings. Just dealing with these pirates was a massive drain on Young Lion's energy, leaving him unable to commit a large force to the battlefield.
On top of that, the two fleets were locked in a stalemate along the sea route.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Outside the southeastern gates of Augustindorf, along the sea route, a wide expanse of ocean stretched out, even broader than Alabasta's Sandora River.
This vast waterway, once a busy thoroughfare, had now become a battleground, littered with the wreckage of ships. Across the sea, two fleets maneuvered and exchanged fire, their cannons sending splashes of water alongside enemy vessels or scoring direct hits, punching holes in their hulls or igniting their gunpowder stores.
Some unlucky ships were hit by a barrage of cannonballs and blown to pieces, their survivors leaping into the sea and desperately swimming toward their own ships or even toward Augustindorf.
"Looks like they sank another one," remarked one of a group of nobles standing atop the city's massive walls, watching the battle unfold.
A noble clad in a red cloak chuckled. "After they're done fighting, we can send someone to scoop up the leftovers. Those pirates always keep the good stuff on their persons."
"You're such a scoundrel, wanting to take money from the dead! Hahaha! Share the wealth, and I'll take half!" said another noble with a wicked smile.
"Those commoners have no right to possess treasures. All those shiny trinkets belong with us, not with those foul-smelling, dirty wretches," the cloaked noble scoffed. "They should be grateful we're giving them a chance to earn a living. At least if they survive, I'll throw them a bone for their hard work."
"Heheh, then let's hope they keep fighting a while longer," the other noble cackled. "No matter who wins, we'll make a profit."
The nobles didn't want them entering Augustindorf, but not out of any concern for the city. They simply didn't want the valuable prize of Augustindorf to fall into the hands of either side, thus shifting the focus of the conflict away from the 'City Desired by the World'.
They wanted both sides to believe that whoever won the war would be the one to occupy Augustindorf and become the ruler of the Garies Kingdom, controlling both the main island and the vice island.
In the meantime, they would profit from the war.
They didn't dare to seize the kingdom for themselves, but they certainly had the audacity to make a fortune off the war.
"That woman, Nikiforas Tihana, is a fool. She actually believed the rumor that the commoner William wanted to kill all the nobles, and now look at the opportunity it's given us. Look at all these outsiders they've brought in, lured by the promise of wealth and land. Let them wear down William's forces and plunder Garies and Timerton. In the end, all the spoils will come to Augustindorf."
"What a brilliant opportunity," said another noble. "We get our hands on the riches they've plundered without lifting a finger. Let's hope this war doesn't end too soon."
The mercenary law that these nobles had urged Nikiforas to sign had brought them enormous wealth. In addition to the plunder from Timerton, the main island of Garies was also being ransacked by these outsiders, who were not exactly honorable people. Some of them dared to rob and pillage.
But these outsiders couldn't take their spoils with them. They had been enticed by the rewards promised in the mercenary law—not just wealth, but also the offer of land after the war.
Of course, that was assuming they survived.
The noble wrapped in the blanket laughed. "Exactly. And it was Nikiforas who signed that law, not us. We're just a group of benevolent nobles living in Augustindorf, minding our own business and staying out of the conflict. If she ends up winning, it's her fault. We're just innocent bystanders."
The nobles were a complex web of connections. The court nobles living in Augustindorf and the landed nobles in Garies were all related by blood. It was they who had joined forces to create this situation.
"I still hope Nikiforas wins," said the noble who had been smirking earlier. "After all, she's one of us. But even if William wins, it's not a problem. He doesn't have our connections, so he'll need our support to rule, just like the previous king."
"Someone's coming."
The noble with the blanket looked down and saw a group of injured mercenaries swimming up to the gates from the sea, helping each other along.
"Sir, please let us in!" their leader called out. "Some of our companions need medical attention!"
But there was no response from the walls above the gate.
The noble in the blanket looked down at them with disdain. "Don't be ridiculous. This is Augustindorf, the pearl of the sea. How do we know you won't try to occupy the city once you're inside? In times of war, safety comes first."
"But we were invited here to fight for you!"
"Isn't Augustindorf a free city? We just want to come in to rest and heal our wounds. Once we're better, we'll continue fighting! Sir, we're here for the wealth, but we also keep our promises!"
"Shut up, you despicable commoners!"
The noble in the blanket shouted, "How dare you talk to us about promises? That's not something you're worthy of. This is a free city, but everything has a price! Did you think you could just waltz in and get treatment for free during a war? Medical care is even more expensive now! Pay up, and we'll graciously send a doctor down with some hot water."
"But we've already brought you so much plunder!" the man said bitterly.
"Kill him!"
Whoosh!
From the towering walls, a soldier pulled the trigger on his flintlock rifle, and a lead bullet struck the man's head, causing a burst of blood to bloom. He collapsed to the ground.
"How dare you accuse us!" shouted the noble in the blanket. "What do you mean, 'what we brought you'? We know nothing about that. You outsiders are the despicable ones, always taking advantage! We're just kind-hearted nobles who took pity on you, and this is how you repay us?"
"He's right. Kill them all!"
"Yes, kill anyone who dares to insult the nobles!"
The nobles on the wall shouted in agreement.
Boom!
Just as the noble in the blanket was about to order the execution of the entire group, a thunderclap sounded, and dark clouds rolled in, covering the sky.
Large raindrops began to fall, soaking their heads.
The downpour had begun.
(End of Chapter)
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