chapter 38 part 1
Chapter 38: The Dead Must Make Way for the Living
Two days later.
As the World Economic News Agency was busily preparing its latest report.
In Alabasta, Alubarna, at the royal port.
King Cobra of the Alabasta Kingdom stood on a royal merchant ship.
At this moment, Chaka and several guards stood on the deck, solemnly protecting their King.
In addition, a voice came from above King Cobra's head.
"Your Majesty, they have arrived."
The one who relayed the information was a giant bird soaring in the sky.
It was Pell, transformed into a falcon.
Following his words.
Cobra indeed saw a warship slowly appearing on the Sandora River in the distance.
That warship, however, was not a Marines vessel—the cross-star flag hoisted on its mainmast was enough to identify the ship's origin.
It was a warship directly subordinate to the World Government.
And at this moment.
On that warship.
"Clop." "Clop." "Clop."
Footsteps sounded, and their owner was a man.
He wore a white suit, a white top hat, and his eyes were one black and one white yet without pupils. His entire face was also white, giving him a very distinctive appearance.
If not for the mustache on his chin, one might almost suspect he was wearing a mask.
Beside him were two other tall men, also dressed in white and wearing masks.
"You two wait here."
At this moment, after the man casually instructed his companions, his figure flashed.
"Soru!"
With Soru and Geppo activated at extreme speed, his figure continuously leaped through the air above the Sandora River.
In just a few seconds, he had directly crossed several hundred meters and appeared before Cobra.
"Clang!"
Chaka and the guards cautiously raised their weapons, signaling the other party not to move lightly.
But Cobra lightly waved his hand, stopping his guards.
He strode out from the crowd, looking at the man and announcing his name loudly: "I am Nefeltari Cobra, King of Alabasta."
Upon hearing this, the man also took off his top hat, held it to his chest, and bowed: "CP0, Guernica."
That's right.
The man named Guernica was a CP0 agent.
"We are here by the World Government's order to handle the matter concerning the Seven Warlords of the Sea, 'Crocodile'."
After speaking, he put his top hat back on: "So now, Your Majesty Cobra, please explain the current situation—in whose hands did Crocodile die?"
Following the plan that had been devised beforehand, he got straight to the point.
But what he didn't expect was...
"To my knowledge, the person who killed him called himself 'Dragon'—I will, of course, explain the specific circumstances to you shortly."
Cobra nodded upon hearing this.
"But before that… Igaram!"
The King called out loudly: "Bring the item up!"
As his words fell, a voice also came from within the ship's cabin behind him: "Yes, Your Majesty!"
Then, in the next moment, the ship's cabin was opened.
Under Igaram's lead, several guards carried a large box out from the cabin.
"Thud!"
As they carried it out, one of the guards seemed to have accidentally stumbled and lost his footing, letting out a muffled groan.
"..."
The sound made Guernica look over.
But the CP0 agent didn't say anything, merely shifting his gaze to the box.
"This is..."
He asked softly.
Cobra had no intention of keeping him in suspense.
The King continued: "Mr. Guernica, these are some documents given to me not long ago by a lady who called herself an 'informant'."
He said this, his voice calm.
"Inside are records of an organization called Baroque Works, and its plot to usurp Alabasta—they call it the 'Utopia Plan'."
"That lady also told me some things, such as the identity of the organization's leader."
King Cobra said calmly.
"..."
Thus, even on Guernica's expressionless face, a hint of solemnity seemed to appear.
As a special agent of the World Government, he clearly knew many things.
Therefore...
"You mean..."
"I cannot vouch for the authenticity of the information provided by that lady, so I was hoping the Five Elders could confirm it for me?"
Cobra said softly.
"...I understand. Please wait a moment."
So, Guernica nodded.
Then, he decisively took out a small Den Den Mushi from his pocket and walked to one side.
"Buru buru buru! Buru buru buru! Clack!"
As the Den Den Mushi connected, Guernica's lips moved, seemingly informing the other end of the Den Den Mushi about the situation here.
Afterward, he seemed to hear instructions from the other end of the Den Den Mushi, and he nodded slightly: "Yes."
Then he hung up the Den Den Mushi and walked back to Cobra.
"Your Majesty Cobra."
He said in a deep voice: "The Five Elders express deep regret for Alabasta's natural disaster this year, and they certainly did not expect Baroque Works' MR.0 to be hidden in Alabasta. This is all due to the oversight of the World Government and the Marines. The government is willing to provide Alabasta with a huge sum in disaster relief assistance."
"As for the truth you mentioned, the government is also willing to help you thoroughly investigate these documents."
"Are you satisfied with this?"
He explained the situation in a few concise and decisive words.
And after hearing his words, Cobra finally nodded: "Of course."
But then, Cobra added: "However, as you can see, there are many of these documents—only a portion of them is here. So I'm thinking... the next time the government sends disaster relief assistance, I will hand over the rest of these documents then. Are you satisfied?"
Upon hearing this, Guernica also nodded: "Of course."
It's worth mentioning that—during their conversation, the guard who had stumbled earlier seemed to have lost his footing again and almost fell.
This made Igaram look at him with some annoyance, feeling that he definitely needed to significantly increase the training intensity of the royal guard team from now on.
Meanwhile, on the other side, after reaching a consensus.
"Then, I shall take my leave—Your Majesty."
Guernica showed no hesitation, immediately bidding farewell.
Then, his figure leaped again, once more flying towards the warship in the distance.
After watching Guernica's figure disappear into the distance.
Cobra remained silent for a moment, then said: "Igaram, all of you may step down."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Igaram, who had long expected this, nodded, but his gaze turned to the guard who had been making mistakes all along.