The logistical relocation work proceeded very smoothly.
The nearby Marine branch, upon frantically learning from their Vice Admiral that the Flame Emperor York had personally led the Vanguard to attack Punk Hazard, had absolutely no intention of providing any ground support.
"The World Government only pays us a few hundred thousand Berries a month! Why the hell should we risk our lives for that?!"
"That's a Pirate Emperor whom even Vice Admiral Garp and Fleet Admiral Sengoku couldn't capture! With our scrawny arms and legs, what else would going over there be but pure suicide?!"
The younger Marine recruits, who were initially filled with hot-blooded, righteous indignation about defending a government facility, found their Vice Admiral's panicked explanation extremely reasonable and gradually abandoned the suicidal idea of acting on their own.
"However, we still need to officially deploy the fleet," the Vice Admiral grumbled, wiping sweat from his brow. "Otherwise, it won't look good to the higher-ups in Mary Geoise when they read the report."
"Understood, Vice Admiral!!!"
Thus, although the Marine's regional support fleet arrived quickly at the island's perimeter, its main duty was strictly relegated to escorting the previous evacuation ships safely away. The rest of the warships simply dropped anchor and watched helplessly from a safe distance in the nearby sea, showing zero intention of initiating a landing sequence.
The Crimson Empire Pirates hid behind cover on the shore, observing the paralyzed Marine fleet through binoculars.
"Seriously, why are these Marines so cowardly? They aren't even trying to land and fight us!" a fat pirate cursed indignantly, spitting on the ground. "A bunch of cowards! They're preventing us from earning active combat military merits!"
"Sigh. I can understand how you feel," his skinny partner agreed, polishing his rifle. "The Ancient Zoan abilities Lord Barram and the Vanguard gained are truly enviable! Even if it meant being a foot soldier for the rest of my life, I'd still want that kind of raw power!"
Listening to the skinny man's words, the fat man's eyes shone astonishingly bright. He stared intently at the distant Marine fleet, his eyes filled with unconcealed longing.
"Captain York is truly great! As long as we accumulate enough military merit to reach the rank of Baron, we'll be absolutely eligible to exchange our rank for an artificial Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit! Or even a natural Devil Fruit of a common Paramecia species!"
"Although it will consume the entire military merit quota required for promotion to Baron, this is a damn Devil Fruit! They average over 100 Million Berries each at underworld auctions! If we low-level pirates don't rely on dumb luck, who would ever dare imagine becoming a superhuman ability user?! And an Ancient Species at that!!"
The fat man's passionate words earned the skinny man's strong approval.
"No matter what happens! For my entire life, this single life of mine! I will only ever fight under the flag of Emperor York!!"
"Hmph!!" The fat man immediately snorted coldly upon hearing this. "Don't think you're the only one not afraid of death! Those are my absolute words too!!"
Similar squabbles and vows of loyalty occurred among the lookout teams stationed across the island perimeter.
Alber roamed the island silently, wearing a dark cloak to conceal his wings, quietly observing the fanatical expressions of these men and listening to their arguments. He had never seen a crew so absolutely devoted, not out of fear, but out of genuine, meritocratic hope.
"Alright! Relocation is complete!!!"
A massive shout echoed from a distance, immediately followed by the blaring sound of a war horn signaling a general assembly.
The massive, billion-Berry Punk Hazard research facility was successfully emptied entirely into Stussy's Mirror World, while the Marine support fleet simply watched from the horizon, doing absolutely nothing and interfering with nothing.
Now, only a massive expanse of empty, stripped buildings remained, along with the exposed electrical wires, ripped water pipes, and broken light fixtures buried within the concrete structures.
"Lads! Prepare to set sail!!!"
At York's booming command, the pirates cheered loudly, began singing Binks' Sake, and orderly headed towards the shore to board the Crimson Harvest flagship.
Alber stood at the edge of the ship's port rail, looking back at the stripped, but seemingly undamaged research facility. He turned and asked York, "Aren't you going to destroy this place completely?"
York looked down at him, countering Alber with a question. "Do you want me to destroy this place?"
Alber remained silent, his fists clenching as he remembered the torture he endured within those walls.
York smiled calmly. "Then let's completely erase it! And while we're at it... I'll let you witness my true power."
York leaped up, using the Six Powers' Moonwalk (Geppo) to rapidly step through the air, quickly reaching a high altitude directly over the geographic center of Punk Hazard Island.
Without even needing to activate his Mythical Zoan Awakening, York simply raised one hand high into the sky. Pure, blinding white, blazing flames erupted from his entire body.
Superheated plasma reaching 6,000 degrees Celsius continuously gathered and compressed in York's raised palm. From a small, blinding fireball, it gradually expanded into a massive sphere, and then that sphere rapidly expanded into a miniature sun with a diameter of over a thousand meters, dwarfing the facility below.
"Island Destruction Bomb."
York murmured softly, swinging his arm downward and hurling the condensed, pure white fiery sun directly towards the island's surface.
BOOM!!!
A scorching, apocalyptic wave of fire exploded upon impact. The sturdy, reinforced steel and concrete outer walls of the research facility were utterly unable to withstand the terrifying 6,000-degree high temperature, instantly melting into rolling, bubbling magma under the sheer, localized radiation.
In just a dozen seconds, the dense and massive complex of high-tech buildings was completely vaporized into a molten inferno. Aside from the natural geographic bedrock not being completely destroyed, absolutely no one would have ever guessed that this smoking, radioactive crater was once a top-secret research facility of the World Government.
Alber stared blankly at this apocalyptic scene from the deck of the ship.
He, of course, naturally possessed Lunarian flame abilities. But he admitted in his heart that he couldn't ever hope to achieve York's terrifying intensity. Not only the massive explosion range of the flames, but that absolute, incinerating temperature was simply beyond him.
A gentle, warm breeze brushed his face as York landed flawlessly back on the deck and returned to Alber's side.
"What? Are you already scared?" York chuckled softly, adjusting his coat as if speaking of a perfectly ordinary, everyday trifle. "I told you down in that cell, Alber. I am the strongest man in the world. There's nothing left for you to disbelieve."
Alber turned his head slowly to look at the towering man beside him.
He seemed... to really not be bragging at all.
The surrounding thousands of pirates were cheering loudly, their fanaticism reaching a boiling point because of the god-like strength York had just casually displayed.
"Captain York is the strongest!!!"
"The World's Strongest! Emperor York!!!"
"Captain York is our Sun God!!!"
"AWOOO!!! ALL HAIL THE SUN GOD!!!"
Clap! Clap!
Amidst the deafening noise, York clapped his hands twice. The nearby pirate commanders immediately quieted down, and the distant crew members also gradually became silent upon seeing the Emperor's signal.
York announced loudly, his voice carrying over the wind, "Today, we have two pieces of excellent news!"
"One is that we successfully plundered Punk Hazard and secured our future!!"
"The second is that I've found a new intern here!!"
With just two simple sentences, the thousands of pirates' gazes immediately focused entirely on the young boy standing next to York.
"This new intern is a descendant of the legendary, 'God-like' Lunarian race! His name is Alber!!!"
York raised his hand and waved at Alber. "Alber, come here to the center. It's time to physically demonstrate your qualifications as an intern on my ship."
Alber walked blankly to York's front. Being stared at by so many thousands of heavily armed, bloodthirsty pirates for the very first time, he instinctively felt a little uncomfortable.
The Lunarian race had grown accustomed to a miserable life of constant hiding and paranoia; the gaze of outsiders only made them feel mortal danger, not excitement or glory.
York immediately noticed Alber's discomfort. But York was not Kaido from the original story; he wouldn't let Alber hide his face behind a leather mask.
The absolute, most fundamental aspect of Supreme King (Haoshoku) Haki is self-confidence. If one doesn't even have the fundamental confidence to face the world openly and proudly, then even with the genetic aptitude, Conqueror's Haki can never be awakened.
So, what York needed to do right now was to forcefully forge Alber into a confident conqueror.
The days of the Lunarian race hiding are over! York decided. From now on, the last Lunarian will openly tell the whole world: I am right here! Those who have ideas about taking my head, come and take it if you dare!
Alber stood still in the center of the deck. York then turned and waved at the hulking veteran, Barram.
The two stood opposite each other on the massive warship's deck. The surrounding pirates consciously formed a large, wide circle, leaving the open space in the center for their duel.
"Alber, you need to physically demonstrate your strength right now! To convince everyone on board that you are truly qualified to be an intern on my ship!" York announced.
York then turned to the veteran. "Barram! Defeat Alber in single combat, and I will immediately promote you to the rank of Baron!"
Upon hearing this, Barram's eyes instantly ignited with a fervent, desperate fighting spirit. The title of Baron guaranteed his family's future for generations.
He activated his artificial Devil Fruit ability and transformed into a massive, yellow Tyrannosaurus Rex, but soon his size rapidly shrank, finally compressing into a highly muscular, bipedal dinosaur-man completely covered in thick, yellow Tyrannosaurus scales.
"Sorry, Alber!" Barram growled, cracking his knuckles. "Although you seem to be highly regarded by the Captain, for the sake of becoming a Baron and securing my son's future, I will absolutely not hold back!!!"
Alber watched Barram's terrifying transformation calmly. The distinctive, natural flames blazing behind his head flared to life.
He slightly bent his body, drew a standard Marine longsword he had casually picked up on the island, and assumed a highly disciplined fighting stance.
"Although I don't fully know what being an 'intern' entails here," Alber said coldly, "it'll be fine as long as I completely defeat you, right?!"
Barram grinned, and his smile—as a transformed, scaled dinosaur-man—appeared exceptionally ferocious.
York, standing on the sidelines, pulled out a gold coin and flicked it high into the air.
Clink~
With a soft, chiming sound, the gold coin spun into the air, finally landing on the wooden deck with a second soft thud.
BANG!!
Almost exactly simultaneously with the second soft sound, Barram crossed the distance instantly, his massive fist striking directly toward Alber's face.
Alber bent his arm rapidly, flawlessly blocking Barram's sudden, heavy punch with his forearm. The resulting kinetic wind stirred violently, making the clothes of the onlookers flutter.
"Not bad! To be favored by Captain York, you're indeed not ordinary!" Barram grunted, not at all surprised that his opening punch was blocked. "But this was just my initial test. Now, I'll get serious!"
Alber remained silent. Barram suddenly raised a massive, scaled leg and violently thrust a knee strike towards his chest.
Alber pressed down with his right hand to block, but the immense, enhanced physical force of the Ancient Zoan directly sent him sliding backward across the deck.
What great physical strength! Alber thought.
Barram quickly advanced, and while Alber was momentarily off-balance, his massive fists rained down like a brutal, relentless storm.
Alber swung his sword, flawlessly blocking left and right. Although he was not very old, only about fifteen, his miserable life of being constantly hunted by Cipher Pol had long since honed his survival skills to a razor's edge. Barram's rapid flurry of heavy punches couldn't penetrate his guard; they were all expertly fended off or deflected.
Barram's scaly brows furrowed slightly, realizing Alber's sheer defensive difficulty, and he had a rough guess about Alber's potential in his heart.
'This kid... he might be another little physical monster like Douglas Bullet!'
However, despite realizing this, Barram had no intention of holding back. The noble title of Baron was sufficiently tempting for him, and this was a fair, Emperor-sanctioned duel! Even if he used his absolute full strength, York wouldn't blame him. On the contrary, if he dared to obviously hold back against the Captain's new recruit, York would most likely not let him off easily.
Thinking of this, Barram directly activated his Advanced Haki.
Dense, black Armament Haki violently coiled around his scaled fists, and Alber's pupils instantly constricted.
BANG!!
The moment Alber landed on his feet, another devastating, Haki-infused heavy punch struck his crossed arms. It emitted a massive, muffled sound of impact, and the strong wind blowing on the spectators became even fiercer.
However, Alber still blocked it steadily, just like the very first punch. He didn't even use his own Armament Haki for defense, relying absolutely solely on his Lunarian body's natural, god-like durability.
"How is this physically possible?!" Barram gasped, slightly astonished. "My punches, even if they can't compare to the great executives like Kaido, can easily bend solid naval steel! You actually blocked a Haki strike bare-handed?!"
Alber's gaze was dead and cold, and he responded indifferently. "My defense... is something you cannot possibly imagine."
With that, he launched his first active counterattack.
Blazing, natural flames violently ignited from his hand, rapidly coiling around the Marine longsword he had been holding until the steel glowed red-hot.
Barram retreated in surprise and asked, "Are you also a Devil Fruit ability user?!"
"I already told you. I am of the Lunarian race!!!"
Alber's response was icy cold as he swung his longsword, slashing fiercely at the retreating dinosaur-man.
"Flame Slash!!!"
Barram quickly wrapped thick Armament Haki around his arms, crossing them to defend against the blazing slash. The flame-burning longsword struck his Haki-coated scales, producing a loud sound like heavy metal violently clashing.
Unable to cut through the Haki with one strike, Alber immediately released a vastly larger amount of his innate flames to physically scorch Barram.
Barram's entire body was engulfed in blazing fire. Not daring to resist the sheer, localized heat head-on again, he once more pulled back and retreated across the deck.
Alber pressed his absolute advantage. The flaming longsword slashed left and right relentlessly. Although his formal swordsmanship wasn't particularly refined or elegant, by relying on his extremely strong, invincible physical defense and innate flame ability, he was inherently placed in an unbeatable tactical position.
Although Barram could skillfully use basic Armament Haki and also possessed Observation Haki, along with the massive physical boost of the artificial Tyrannosaurus Rex Devil Fruit, he ultimately hadn't mastered the advanced internal destruction (Ryuo) of Armament Haki. Therefore, for a prolonged time, he truly couldn't do any lasting damage to Alber.
Time passed minute by agonizing minute, and the brutal battle between the two of them made many veteran pirates increasingly alarmed.
"Alber's defense is just too absurdly strong!"
"How many Haki punches has Barram landed directly on him? He hasn't even reacted or bled!"
"And his flame ability... I didn't expect him to be this lethal at such a young age. No wonder Captain York values him."
"To be able to fight Commander Barram to a standstill... I admit it, he truly has the absolute qualifications to be an intern in our Empire!"
Another dozen minutes of high-intensity fighting passed. Both Barram and Alber began to show visible signs of exhaustion due to the prolonged, heavy battle. They both panted heavily, but neither had any intention of giving up or yielding.
York sat on a crate, casually watching. He didn't call a halt to their fight, letting them continue to push their absolute limits.
Time quickly flowed by. Barram eventually succumbed to sheer, physical exhaustion, being the first to drop to one knee and be defeated.
After all, he had only very recently acquired the artificial Tyrannosaurus Rex Devil Fruit, and his body's ability to enhance and sustain its physical strength had not yet reached its absolute peak.
Although Alber was a tortured experimental subject at Punk Hazard, the World Government researchers would not intentionally starve him to death to ensure the smooth progress of their Lineage Factor extraction. Therefore, Alber, rescued by York, was in near-full condition from the start, not to mention having recuperated on the ship for a few days.
Consequently, in the face of the Lunarian race's terrifying, god-like racial talent and Alber's own excellent combat instincts, Barram, as a biologically ordinary person, ultimately fell short.
"Battle over! Winner: Alber!!!" York announced loudly, standing up.
The pirates erupted, cheering Alber's name.
"ALBER!!! ALBER!!! ALBER!!!"
Alber listened to the roaring cheers of the crowd of hardened killers around him, a strange, warm feeling welling up inside his chest. He wasn't being looked at like a freak, a lab rat, or a bounty. He was being respected as a warrior.
He looked at Barram, who was defeated and panting on the deck, and as if driven by a new instinct, extended his hand.
Barram grabbed his hand and was pulled up, with absolutely no trace of resentment on his scaled face.
"You're truly amazing, kid! You're indeed worthy of being the intern Captain York personally chose!" Barram laughed, clapping the boy on the shoulder.
Alber smiled shyly, unsure how to properly respond to genuine camaraderie.
At the same time, York walked into the center of the ring and announced loudly to the crew.
"From today onwards! Alber is officially an intern in our Pirate Crew!!!"
York placed a heavy hand on the boy's shoulder. "In addition, I will bestow upon Alber the official codename King!!!"
"I expect him to be exactly like the King in a deck of cards! Becoming the absolute biggest, most devastating card in our Empire's future!!!"
Upon hearing this absolute declaration from their Emperor, the pirates cheered loudly again.
"AWOOOOO!"
"KING!! KING!!! KING!!!"
Alber—no, King—listened to the deafening cheers of the surrounding pirates and murmured to himself, "King... huh?"
His fists suddenly clenched tightly, his eyes filling with absolute, unwavering resolve.
From today onwards... I am King!!!
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