Lying in his hospital bed, Rayleigh stared at the ceiling, feeling a profound sense of doubt about the nature of reality.
Even after experiencing it firsthand, Rayleigh still couldn't fathom the source of Sean's terrifying power. It felt exactly as Shanks had described: both Sean himself and the power he wielded were entirely alien to this world.
'Could it be that he isn't from this world at all...?'
The strange thought surfaced in his mind unbidden. But a moment later, he shook his head with a bitter smile.
'I must be losing it. Someone from another world?'
He preferred to believe that the man had simply eaten a Devil Fruit that had never been seen or recorded in history.
'''
While Rayleigh was questioning the laws of existence, Lucci—who had led a team to the Grand Line to hunt ability users—had returned.
Lucci had gone all out to find a suitable Devil Fruit for Sophia. Excluding travel time, he had spent nearly two months utilizing an intelligence network to wipe out twenty-seven pirate crews.
Among them, eleven crews had either a captain or crew members who were Devil Fruit users. In some cases, both were. In total, those eleven crews yielded fifteen ability users.
Currently, the pirates were being marched off the warship in chains. Aside from the fifteen ability users, there was one individual wrapped in a cloak, their entire head shrouded. Their face was hidden, and their gender was impossible to discern.
Such extreme caution indicated that the person Lucci had captured was someone of significant importance.
"Vice Admiral, her identity is somewhat sensitive, so I took special precautions during transport," Lucci reported.
"Hmm? Who is it?"
"A member of the Donquixote Family. The intelligence network on the Grand Line reported that she was operating alone on a mission. I slipped away from the warship under the cover of night, traveled over a hundred miles, and captured her. No one else is aware of this."
"From the Donquixote Family? For you to put in this much effort, her fruit must be quite impressive," Sean noted.
"Yes. She is a Logia user," Lucci nodded.
This was the greatest prize of the expedition and the specific fruit Lucci had hand-picked for Sophia.
"A Logia? Don't tell me it's Monet?"
"You know of her, Vice Admiral?"
"Of course. The Snow-Snow Fruit, correct?"
"Yes. While the offensive power of this fruit isn't particularly high, it is still a Logia, allowing for elementalization as well as various defensive and combat support capabilities."
"Not high offensive power? That's just because the woman didn't know how to develop it. I'll write up a set of development suggestions for the Snow-Snow Fruit and give them to you shortly."
"Thank you, Vice Admiral!" Lucci's eyes lit up.
He knew that when it came to the development of fruit abilities, Sean possessed an imagination that defied convention. Looking at the moves Ace had developed for the Flame-Flame Fruit, Lucci often wondered if it was actually a different fruit disguised as the Flame-Flame Fruit.
"It's fine. Take them to the underground research facility and dispose of them. After the last branch competition, seventeen people chose the priority right for a Devil Fruit. Once we account for this Snow-Snow Fruit, there are still sixteen people waiting hungrily. Once everything is settled, let them choose in order of their rankings."
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
Lucci nodded, signaled the Marines behind him, and led the captives toward the entrance of the underground research facility.
While Monet was considered a beauty in One Piece, Sean had zero interest in her. The woman was fanatically loyal to Doflamingo. For a character like that, you could intercept her assets, but you couldn't flip her loyalty.
It was like Hancock; after she met Luffy, who in the world could have swayed her?
The logic was the same. Since her loyalty couldn't be broken, and she was a pirate willing to do anything evil for Doflamingo, Sean had no hesitation in ordering her death.
'''
Three hours later, sixteen fresh Devil Fruits were ready. One came from Monet, and the other fifteen came from the eleven pirate crews.
After handing the Logia Snow-Snow Fruit to Sophia, Lucci summoned the Marines who had placed in the rankings and chosen the priority right. He had them begin selecting their fruits one by one according to their rank.
Soon, fifteen of the sixteen had made their choice. According to Sean's rules, the priority right for a Devil Fruit was a one-time offer in exchange for giving up the standard competition rewards. If they passed on it now, they would have to wait until next year's competition and place in the rankings again.
Setting aside the long wait, there was no guarantee they would even place next year. Everyone knew that the warriors of Kuja were now receiving meat jerky. Once those women—who were already proficient in Armament Haki—increased their physical strength, it would be even harder to beat them.
As a result, those who picked first were ecstatic, but the experience became a tragedy for those at the bottom of the list, as the best fruits were snatched up quickly.
Conversely, the very last person was overjoyed!
Although he didn't get a fruit this time, he saw that Commodore Lucci could bring back over a dozen fruits in just two months. If Lucci did that again, he would be the first person to choose next time! In a way, he now held the same strategic position Sophia had in this round.
He wasn't frustrated; he was thrilled. However, his unrestrained expression of excitement provoked the glares of the Marines who had ranked low and been forced to take whatever scraps were left.
Seeking a way to vent their frustration, those Marines promptly ganged up on the joyful man and dragged him out. Shortly after, blood-curdling screams echoed through the area.
'''
Under Kaku's command, a massive fleet of thirty-one ironclad ships dropped anchor at Nanohana, Alabasta.
The fleet consisted of three cruisers, eight destroyers, and twenty frigates.
In reality, the first batch of warships Sean provided to Alabasta consisted of only twenty-eight ships—the eight destroyers and twenty frigates. The three larger cruisers were used as escorts. After all, the twenty-odd warships were staffed only with the minimum number of Marines required to sail them; they possessed almost no actual combat effectiveness on their own.
Besides, once the handover was complete, Kaku would need enough ships to transport all the Marines back to the branch.
To ensure this, Sean allowed him to take three of the four cruisers stationed at the branch. Along with the ships, Sean gave him a specific mission.
Kaku was to take Lucci's place and conduct another sweep of the Grand Line before returning. With three cruisers, Kaku's leadership, and nearly five hundred formal Marines from the branch, they would essentially be able to walk all over the first half of the Grand Line. Even if Kaku decided to take on Moria, he could likely steamroll him.
In fact, Sean had explicitly ordered Kaku to eliminate Moria under the pretext of punishing him for his crimes against the Marine. As a bonus, Kaku was instructed to capture and bring back any of Moria's executives who possessed Devil Fruits.
As for whether Sengoku or the World Government would punish him for such an action, Sean wasn't worried in the slightest.
He planned to use the same tactic he had used with Crocodile: he would use Morgans to leak Moria's unforgivable crimes to the public first.
A vast number of Marines had their shadows stolen by Moria and had been imprisoned aboard Thriller Park for years; Sean had now rescued all of them. Under these circumstances, if the World Government dared to convict Sean, it would likely trigger a massive upheaval within the Marine.
Sean was completely unfazed. As long as he controlled the narrative, everything would be fine.
'''
At the harbor, King Cobra personally led thousands of the Kingdom's naval forces, standing in formation and waiting.
For Alabasta, this was a historic day. Once they received this fleet of warships, Alabasta's royal Marine would leap forward to become the most powerful naval force among all the Affiliated Nations.
Among the hundred-plus Affiliated Nations, the vast majority did not maintain their own navies. After all, the primary reason they paid such an exorbitant Heavenly Tribute every year was to receive the protection of the Marine. Why would they spend massive amounts of Belly to build their own fleet?
To most kings and nobles, that sounded like a waste of money. They found it far more appealing to simply pocket the extra funds.
Of course, some Affiliated Nations did maintain small armed forces to protect their coastlines and prevent pirate raids, as Marine reinforcements could not arrive instantly in an emergency. However, due to the burden of the Heavenly Tribute, these nations had very limited budgets for such expensive military branches. Most possessed only a handful of warships, and even those had weak firepower.
Therefore, with twenty-eight ironclad warships, Alabasta was now clearly the most powerful naval force among the Affiliated Nations.
Now, Cobra could say it with absolute confidence: from this day forward, the Marine of Alabasta had risen!
'''
Over the next few days, the newly formed royal Marine was assigned to the warships according to a predetermined plan. Kaku's Marines took charge of the training, teaching the local sailors how to operate and maneuver the ironclad warships.
By the fifth day, the handover was complete. Kaku departed with his three cruisers.
Their destination: the Florian Triangle!