In a certain sea area of the Grand Line, surging waves crashed violently against the hull of a Marine warship.
The warship was speeding toward Twin Capes, entering the waters of Paradise. Its bow split the waves as white spray surged upward on both sides.
On the bridge, Vice Admiral Vlad stood tall, his gaze fixed forward, his eyes burning with the flames of vengeance.
Vice Admiral Vlad was the elder brother of Lieutenant General Viktor, the man Alvin had killed in the West Blue.
The moment he learned that Alvin had entered the Grand Line, Vlad set sail immediately. His only goal was to avenge his beloved younger brother.
"Vice Admiral Vlad, a notice has arrived from Marine Headquarters!" Major Thorne, his adjutant, hurried over with a document clutched tightly in his hand. His expression was serious as he snapped into a crisp salute.
"A notice from Marine Headquarters?" Vlad frowned slightly, surprise flickering in his eyes.
He heard clearly that it was a notice, not an order.
A notice from Marine Headquarters meant that something significant had occurred that all Marines needed to know.
Receiving such a notice at this moment made Vlad instinctively suspect that something had happened in the New World.
With a heavy heart and lingering confusion, Vlad reached out, took the document, and slowly unfolded it.
As his eyes scanned the contents, his face instantly darkened, as if a layer of frost had settled over it.
The notice was actually about Red Hawk.
It detailed Red Hawk's recent actions in full. On his first day at Erguotou Mountain, Red Hawk massacred the bounty hunter organization entrenched there. On the second day, Rear Admiral Lucas, the Deputy Commander of Marine G10 Base, led a warship to surround him. The result was complete annihilation, and Rear Admiral Lucas himself was killed.
After evaluation, Marine Headquarters concluded that Red Hawk's current strength was beyond what an ordinary Vice Admiral could deal with.
To avoid unnecessary casualties, Marine Headquarters instructed all Marines ranked Vice Admiral and below to avoid provoking Red Hawk. Headquarters would take direct responsibility for any trouble caused by him.
After reading the notice, Vlad felt a surge of anger rise in his chest.
It felt as though the notice had been issued specifically for him.
Marine Headquarters was forbidding Vice Admirals from taking action. If that was the case, how could he avenge his brother?
"Purupuru purupuru..."
Just as Vlad struggled to suppress his frustration, the sharp ringing of a Den Den Mushi suddenly sounded, making his mood even worse.
He impatiently picked up the Den Den Mushi.
"Moshi moshi."
"Vice Admiral Vlad, you must be troubled by the notice issued by Marine Headquarters, aren't you? Oh ho ho ho." A teasing voice came from the Den Den Mushi, clearly trying to provoke him.
"Who are you?" Vlad asked in a low voice, suppressing his anger. His tone was cold enough to freeze the air.
"One of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Hanafuda."
The voice from the Den Den Mushi was calm yet arrogant, as if he regarded everything with indifference.
"Tch." Vlad sneered with open contempt. "So it is the pirate Hanafuda. What business does a pirate have with a Marine Vice Admiral?"
Hanafuda heard the disdain in Vlad's voice but showed no anger. Instead, he continued laughing in that strange tone.
"Oh ho ho ho. Vice Admiral Vlad, you must want to avenge your brother, Lieutenant General Viktor, don't you?"
At the mention of his brother, Vlad's face instantly darkened again.
"What exactly are you trying to say, Hanafuda?" he asked through clenched teeth.
Hanafuda did not answer immediately. Instead, he changed the subject.
"Based on the abilities Red Hawk displayed this time, don't you Marines find it strange?"
"Red Hawk is supposedly the user of a rare Spatial Devil Fruit. During the battle, Rear Admiral Lucas used many weapons made of Sea Stone and even managed to hit him."
"But according to the intelligence reports, Sea Stone had absolutely no effect on Red Hawk."
"Why can Red Hawk ignore the restraining power of Sea Stone? Vice Admiral Vlad, are you not curious?"
After hearing these words, Vlad's expression shifted slightly.
A knowing smile slowly appeared on his face.
"Hanafuda. So that is what you are planning."
"I believe we can cooperate," Hanafuda said calmly. "I want the technology that allows Red Hawk to resist Sea Stone. His life belongs to you."
Vlad fell silent.
His mind quickly weighed the advantages and risks.
After a moment, he finally clenched his teeth and agreed.
"Fine."
"Pleasure doing business with you," Hanafuda replied.
The Den Den Mushi slowly closed its eyes as the call ended.
Vlad put the Den Den Mushi away and looked out at the raging sea.
A ruthless light flashed across his eyes.
"Red Hawk. This time, you must die."
In the Floran Kingdom, after ending the call, Hanafuda's expression twisted with excitement.
He had never imagined that such a technology existed in the world. A method that could allow a Devil Fruit user to ignore the suppressing power of Sea Stone.
He had to obtain it.
No matter what the cost.
Meanwhile, far away at Erguotou Mountain, Alvin was completely unaware of the conspiracies forming against him.
At the moment, he was giving Lady Serena a massage.
In Alvin's view, as long as one's strength was sufficient, any conspiracy or scheme was meaningless.
In the face of absolute power, all tricks were nothing more than a mantis trying to stop a chariot.
"Lord Red Hawk!"
"Oh... Oh!!!"
"Your massage feels so comfortable!!!"
After Alvin finished massaging Lady Serena's final acupuncture point, the lady seemed to lose all strength and collapsed softly onto the bed.
Fine beads of sweat covered her forehead.
They slid slowly down her cheeks, soaking into her thin clothing and outlining her graceful figure.
Alvin looked at Lady Serena, whose cheeks were flushed with relaxation.
She clearly looked both physically and mentally satisfied.
But Alvin's hands were sore from the massage, and an obvious look of dissatisfaction appeared on his face.
"Lady Serena, we agreed that you would massage me. How did it end up with me massaging you instead?"
Serena rolled her eyes at him.
The charm in her gaze was like a blooming spring flower, captivating and enchanting.
Combined with her sweat-dampened clothes that revealed the curves of her body, the scene was undeniably alluring.
"It... it wasn't... wasn't it Lord Alvin who said he wanted to test whether his skills had improved..." Lady Serena said in a soft, breathless voice.
"Hmm."
Alvin frowned slightly as if thinking seriously.
"Judging from your reaction, Lady Serena, it seems my massage skills are indeed quite good."
Lady Serena rolled her eyes at him once more.
Looking at the tall man in front of her, she secretly complained in her heart that this man truly loved praising himself.
Still, she could not deny that Alvin's massage had been extremely comfortable.
Her two days spent teaching him various massage techniques had clearly not been wasted.
Lord Red Hawk's massage really was incredibly relaxing.
...
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GIVE ME YOU POWER STONES.