Inside the casino, everything glittered with gold and splendor.
The spacious hall was packed with gambling tables and equipment of every kind, dazzling enough to make the eyes blur. Brilliant multicolored lights flashed across every corner, making the entire casino look exceptionally grand.
Pirates dressed in all kinds of clothing were fully immersed in their current games.
Some had lost until their eyes were red, their minds completely overwhelmed.
Others had won big and were laughing wildly.
In short, every face of human nature could be seen here.
Joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure…
Everything was present.
At a rough estimate, there were no fewer than two thousand pirates inside.
More than two thousand pirates had gathered in this enormous casino.
The hall was vast, and every facility was fully prepared. Once someone entered this casino, food, drink, rest, and entertainment were all provided.
This was the casino opened by the Donquixote Family.
Large in scale.
Luxurious in equipment.
Beside one gambling table, a burly man dressed in black was gambling roughly with several pirates. Behind him stood more than a dozen subordinates, giving him an imposing presence.
This man came from the Black King Pirates.
He was their captain, Black King Luke, a pirate with a bounty of forty-seven million berries.
"Push it all in for me!"
"I refuse to believe this damn luck!"
Black King Luke roared furiously and shoved every chip on the table forward.
The other five gamblers were completely unafraid.
Even though they knew he was a pirate with a bounty close to fifty million berries, they remained calm.
Because…
their own backgrounds were not small either.
The man in white was named Kuxi. He had a bounty of fifty million berries, was a Zoan Devil Fruit user, and served as the captain of the White Fox Pirates.
The burly one-armed man was named One-Armed Derry, with a bounty of forty-seven million berries.
As for the remaining three…
They were Magician Finks, with a bounty of fifty-two million berries.
Poison Sting Sena, with a bounty of forty-six million berries.
And Fierce Tiger Rodri, with a bounty of forty-four million berries.
Six great pirates had gathered around one gambling table.
Every one of them had a fierce reputation.
Across the Grand Line, all six were considered famous pirates.
Because of that, none of them worried about the others going back on their word during the game.
Besides, what kind of place was this casino?
This was a casino opened by the Donquixote Family.
Who would dare cause trouble in the Donquixote Family's casino?
At the very least, although these men were notorious, none of them had the courage to challenge the Donquixote Family.
"Luke, if you lose this round, you might have to use your ship to pay the debt."
Magician Finks grinned coldly and glanced at Luke.
"Shut it. I'm winning this one."
Kuxi laughed wildly.
"Looks like all of you are very confident."
"In that case…"
"I'll risk my life to accompany the gentlemen."
"I call."
Rodri smiled without losing his composure.
Finally, Poison Sting Sena, the slightly elderly man, raised his brow. It quickly smoothed out again, and his voice remained calm.
"This old man calls as well."
"Good!"
Luke sneered.
At the same time, not far away…
A huge, muscular man was quietly observing the surroundings.
He wore a golden helmet, and his body was covered in countless golden ornaments. His entire appearance resembled a ferocious gladiator, fierce and intimidating.
Looking closely, his skin was bronze, and paired with his massive build, he looked like a mountain, radiating a terrifying pressure.
On his enormous shoulders were two black spade symbols.
They revealed his identity.
He was Pica.
One of the Donquixote Family's top executives.
A Stone-Stone Fruit user.
A Paramecia ability that was close to a Logia in nature.
As one of Young Master Doflamingo's trusted officers, Pica was usually responsible for patrolling the casino and maintaining order inside.
To prevent anyone from causing trouble.
The Donquixote Family had four top executives.
They were…
Trebol, Pica, Vergo, and Diamante.
Among them, Vergo had already been secretly sent by Doflamingo to infiltrate the Marines and become the Donquixote Family's spy inside the organization.
He constantly reported various internal Marine plans back to the Donquixote Family.
Aside from Vergo, the other three top executives still followed Doflamingo, helping him manage the family's various businesses.
And this casino in Demon Town was currently one of the Donquixote Family's largest businesses.
It was also one of their biggest sources of income.
Therefore, to ensure that the casino's profits continued flowing steadily into the Donquixote Family, they naturally needed to send a powerful enough executive to maintain order inside the casino and prevent accidents.
Pica, one of the top executives, was the most suitable candidate.
His strength was more than enough.
Even across the first half of the Grand Line…
Pica's strength was among the top tier of pirates.
He was one of Doflamingo's strongest subordinates.
The only person among the executives who could rival him…
was Vergo, the top executive secretly planted inside the Marines as a spy.
At present, Pica's bounty was as high as ninety-nine million berries.
Only one million short…
of crossing the threshold of one hundred million berries.
A pirate with that kind of bounty was naturally considered a true great pirate on the Grand Line.
"Hopefully…"
"no blind idiot comes to make trouble today. Then I can enjoy some peace."
Pica thought to himself.
Currently, the casino's security was personally handled by him.
He commanded roughly three hundred elite subordinates, each responsible for different areas of the casino.
The moment anything unusual happened, those subordinates would notify him immediately.
That ensured the casino continued operating smoothly.
The enormous casino was chaotic.
The inside was smoky and filthy.
Smoke curled upward.
The smell of alcohol was overwhelming.
Occasionally, beautiful tall women could be seen walking through the casino with trays of wine, adding a unique flavor to the place.
Just then…
Creak.
With a soft sound, the casino's front doors were slowly pushed open.
Immediately after the doors opened…
A young figure wearing a Marine coat of justice stepped into the casino one step at a time.
He looked…
only about five years old.
Extremely young and childish.
Yet he wore the Marine coat of justice, revealing his distinguished status as a Marine officer.
But inside this enormous casino filled with pirates…
that figure looked completely out of place.
At the same time…
The moment the five-year-old boy stepped through the door…
the entire noisy casino became strangely silent.
Dead silent.
Not a single voice remained.
All the noise vanished without a trace.
In an instant—
Swish, swish, swish!
Countless stunned, vicious, and strange gazes gathered at once, locking onto the young figure standing at the casino entrance.
More than two thousand pirates fixed their eyes on him.
If it had been an ordinary person…
being stared at by so many vicious eyes would have scared them into collapsing on the spot.
Yet the young boy remained calm, standing by the door without the slightest change in expression.
Calm.
Steady.
From beginning to end, his expression did not ripple in the slightest.
Because of that…
the atmosphere became even stranger.
None of the pirates had expected…
that the Donquixote Family's casino would receive such a special guest.
A Marine.
A Marine officer wearing the coat of justice.
Of course.
What surprised them most was not just that.
It was that this Marine officer wearing the coat of justice…
was a five-year-old boy.
That was the main reason the entire place had fallen into silence.
A heavy, oppressive atmosphere spread through the enormous casino.
Under this strange pressure, no one dared speak first.
The pirates stared coldly at the Marine boy by the door.
As notorious pirates of the sea…
the ones they hated most in their lives were naturally their mortal enemies.
The Marines.
Many pirates present had been hunted and chased by Marines before. They had been forced to flee in miserable panic.
Because of that…
their hatred toward Marines was carved deep into their bones.
So when they saw a young Marine appear inside the casino, it naturally awakened the savagery, rage, and killing intent inside them.
They did not hide the murderous aura rising from their bodies. Their eyes were vicious as they glared at the Marine boy.
At this moment…
the boy became the focus of the entire hall.
Every pirate in the casino was staring at him.
And the young boy wearing the Marine coat of justice…
was naturally Kai.
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