The Pirate Princess Becomes Queen

The casino staff were a mixed bag, and there weren't many helpful people around, so Lola hadn't found her way here yet.

Crocodile lay sulking in the armchair. Whether it was psychological or not, he felt uncomfortable whenever he saw sunlight. The curtains were drawn tightly, and he sat in the shadows. When Nicole Robin entered the room, she could only see a blurry figure and a tiny bit of dark red from the end of a cigar.

"If you dare laugh, I'll kill you," Crocodile said with a grim face, his voice filled with malice.

Nicole Robin had been testing the limits of this man's tolerance for her, and she felt she had tested them enough.

She didn't laugh this time, because she came to discuss serious matters.

She handed Crocodile a photo, which he took with a puzzled look. He glanced at it and vaguely felt that the face looked familiar, but he didn't know who it was.

Chapter 112 Ms. Wednesday has done a great job, and Crocodile is very pleased.

The Pirate Princess Becomes King Chapter 112: Ms. Wednesday Has Done a Great Deed, Crocodile Is Very Satisfied. Nico Robin said, "Ms. Wednesday has found this guy. I checked the old wanted posters and confirmed that the guy in the photo should be Captain John."

Upon hearing that it was Captain John, and with Nicole Robin confirming it herself, Crocodile immediately perked up.

He looked at the photo carefully.

Golden Lion, Big Mom, Kaido, and other members of the Rocks Pirates would definitely know Captain John; they're old buddies, you'd recognize them even if they were ashes. Crocodile, on the other hand, is a bit less familiar with him. When Captain John was roaming the seas, he was just a child. He'd seen the wanted posters for these legendary pirates, but he'd never actually met them in person.

In the world of One Piece, wanted posters have a very long validity period. The wanted posters for Blue Oni Dorry and Red Oni Brogy have not been revoked for a hundred years. Naturally, Captain John, a great pirate from thirty years ago, also has a wanted poster. Comparing the photos, even though Captain John's eyes are sunken and he is emaciated at this time, you can still tell that this is the real person.

"That great pirate looks dead. Where was Captain John found?" He believed that Nico Robin must have gathered a lot of information, and that was pretty much the case. Ms. All Sunday not only carefully questioned Vivi about how she obtained the photos, but also looked up past information herself. It could be said that she had basically completed the preliminary intelligence gathering work.

“It’s in the Devil’s Triangle. Ms. Wednesday accidentally wandered into that area and, while fleeing, inadvertently saw this guy in a captain’s uniform. I had previously assigned Baroque Works the task of investigating clues to Captain John’s treasure, and she found it a bit suspicious, so she took a picture and came back to me for verification.” Nicole Robin spoke fluently, recounting the whole incident in a very organized manner.

In her memory, Ms. Wednesday was a little girl with a bit of an adventurous spirit and some knowledge of history. At this moment, her words carried a hint of protecting her friend.

“Ms. Wednesday?” Crocodile thought for a moment. In his memory, it seemed to be an ordinary person without Devil Fruit abilities. He didn’t remember much, only that there seemed to be a duck.

Ever since Mr. 5 caused a ruckus on Enies Lobby, his opinion of the Baroque Works crew has plummeted. Before, he just thought they were stupid, but after the Mr. 5 incident, he thinks they are both stupid and dumb.

Ms. Wednesday's boldness and meticulousness have given him a completely new perspective. Not bad! Not everyone in Baroque Workshop is useless! This Ms. Wednesday is quite capable, he's very pleased!

He needs money to bribe the World Government's undercover agents, he needs money to seize Alabasta, and he needs money to support the increasingly useless Baroque Works. He needs money now, he desperately needs money.

The key point is that he also wants to get away and clear his head for a few days...

The Devil's Triangle and Captain John's zombie appearance revealed a lot of information to him.

The Seven Warlords of the Sea are far from being closely united, but they all have channels of communication with each other and have a relatively broad understanding of each other's abilities, territories, and influence.

When Vivi encountered Doflamingo, she impersonated Smoker instead of blaming Crocodile because she was worried that if they questioned each other, they would be exposed. At that time, she could only blame Smoker.

At this moment, Crocodile looked at Captain John's photo and became more and more excited. Captain John's treasure contained not only gold and silver jewelry, but also a message circulating among the great pirates that someone said Captain John's treasure contained a big secret related to the Pirate King!

Now... he chuckled sinisterly, realizing he had grasped this great secret!

No wonder there was no information about Captain John anywhere; it turned out he was being hidden by Gecko Moria! Putting himself in Moria's shoes, he figured Moria was also after Captain John's treasure.

"Mr. 0, what should we do?" Nico Robin knew that this matter involved another Shichibukai, so she asked very carefully.

In the past, Crocodile would probably have tried to be polite first and then resort to force, or even used negotiation or threats to make Moonlight Moria hand over Captain John.

He doesn't think that way anymore. First, he was treated like a vicious dog by the World Government and sent out to bite people for three months. Not long after returning home, he encountered this mess with Lola. He was burning with anger.

Moonlight Moria? That cowardly guy doesn't even dare to compare himself to me! Let's just take him down!

Even if they couldn't find Captain John's treasure, they could still make a fortune by plundering Moonlight Moria's treasury. Crocodile knew very well that Moonlight Moria was rich, as he was always digging up graves!

The Navy wouldn't interfere with the Shichibukai's civil war at all; they'd even applaud it. The World Government had never taken the cowardly Gecko Moria seriously either. As long as they didn't kill Gecko Moria, there wouldn't be any problems. This battle was definitely worth fighting! Not only should they fight, but they should fight it quickly!

"It's the same employment model as before. You'll be in charge of Baroque Works, and I'll be the employer. Prepare more ships, and we'll go to the Devil's Triangle to have a good talk with Moonlight Moria!" he said aggressively.

Nico Robin reminded him, "Shouldn't we talk to the World Government and the Navy about this?"

Crocodile chuckled sinisterly, “The World Government? The Navy? The more chaotic the Seven Warlords of the Sea are, the happier they are. Go, we’ll depart in three days.”

Baroque Works has people and ships, but the pirate ships they acquire by defeating pirates are of inconsistent quality, varying in size and length. Crocodile is a very proud man, and he would be furious if his fleet were to become a ragtag army.

Nico Robin had no choice but to find a shipwright. At the very least, the ship needed to be painted to make it look presentable.

Rob Lucci, who had spent four years working as a carpenter and had become a renowned shipwright, stared at Nicole Robin as she walked into the dock. He immediately recognized her, then looked at her more closely, and was overjoyed!

As an elite CP9 agent, staring intently at someone like this was a gross understatement, but he didn't care. He recognized Nico Robin's true identity and was extremely excited. She was a wanted criminal by the World Government!

He had exceptional mental fortitude. Before Nicole Robin noticed anything amiss, he quickly lowered his head, pretending to be working, while actually contemplating the impact of the incident on himself and his subsequent coping strategies.

He came to find Captain John's treasure, but given his current mission, why would he abandon it to arrest Nicole Robin? That's not how a CP9 agent operates. He suppressed the urge to act immediately and quietly observed the negotiation between Nicole Robin and the dockyard owner.

Chapter 113 Rob Lucci's Helplessness

Ten minutes later, Rob Lucci saw several other shipwrights leading Nico Robin up to him.

The Carrera Company of Water Seven is the official shipbuilder of the World Government, and its shipbuilding technology is already at the top level in the world. But what about Alabasta? For various reasons, whether overt or covert, the shipbuilding industry in this country has never developed.

Rob Lucci, thanks to the carpentry skills he learned during his four years at Carrera, has already earned the status of a master craftsman here. Although he feels that the title of master craftsman is an insult to him... to be fair, his skill level is undeniable. Without his approval, the dockyard owner dares not take on any job, for fear that his subordinates will not be able to complete the task and ruin the reputation.

The dock owner carefully and quietly explained Nicole Robin's request to him.

Rob Lucci maintained his mute persona, with the pigeon on his shoulder answering in his place.

"Twelve ships, three days to repaint, readjust the rudders, and maintain the masts? Sure, we can do that."

Nicole Robin readily paid the deposit and then left. Rob Lucci then distributed the tasks, and the dockworkers began working diligently.

Rob Lucci was a master craftsman; there was no way he would be assigned to painting.

When no one was paying attention, he quietly left and then used a Den Den Mushi to contact his superior, Spandam, the commander of CP9. But as soon as the Den Den Mushi connected, he felt something was wrong.

Inside the CP9 building on Enies Lobby, Old Fan propped both legs up on the table and asked lazily, "What's up?"

"who are you?"

"Commander Spandam is very busy, and I am now in charge of some of the daily affairs. What is it? Speak up."

Old Fan wasn't just giving him the runaround; Spandam was indeed very busy, and he was leaving some "trivial" matters to Old Fan to handle.

The quadrennial World Conference has officially begun. Alabasta did not participate this year, but many of the other kings have come. Spandam, the CP9 chief in charge of intelligence, has been busy in Mary Geoise recently. Putting everything else aside, he should at least show his face and report his achievements to his superiors, right? The CP9 headquarters has been handed over to Van Gundy.

CP9 was never a large organization; before Lao Fan joined, there were only eight people at most.

Four people were sent out as undercover agents, leaving only four at headquarters, including the leader. A few days ago, "Otonashi" Owl was killed, and the other two CP9 members rushed to the New World to investigate the inside story of the incident and track down the murderer. Spandam went to "report" to his superiors during the World Conference. If it weren't for Van Gogh being recruited at this time, the CP9 headquarters would be an empty building.

Rob Lucci knew that "Otonashi" the owl was dead, and he also knew that CP9 had a new member. He was actually dissatisfied with the other party's perfunctory attitude, but as an undercover agent who had been sent out, he really had no choice.

He explained Nicole Rob's situation in detail, and Lao Fan hung up the phone after saying "I understand."

What the heck is "I know"? Rob Lucci was extremely unwilling, so he used his personal connections to call the Navy, hoping they would arrest Nico Robin.

The call was quickly transferred to Admiral Aokiji's desk. Aokiji, who was sleeping with his eyes closed, was silent for a few seconds, muttered the name "Nicole Robin" twice, then put on his eye mask and replied in a similarly nonchalant tone, "Okay."

Rob Lucci was completely dumbfounded! What nonsense! Did you even hear what I said? You just say "I know"? Do these guys even realize how important this is?!

Undercover agents also have human rights!

He was furious, but being part of the system, he had to work strictly according to its operating mechanisms. He couldn't possibly resist the massive system on his own. What could he do? He could only obediently direct the carpenters to repair the boat for the Baroque workshop, and after get off work, he would secretly meet with a few of his friends to discuss the matter.

At the start of the party, Khalifa, a young woman who had previously led Espagu’s campaign team, was the first to complain.

“That woman who’s been proposing all over town is such a nuisance. Crocodile runs away whenever he sees a woman. What am I supposed to do? I can’t get close to my target at all.”

Her words were full of complaints. No matter how alluring her stockings were, or how short her skirt was, no one would even glance at her! Originally, Crocodile was just indifferent to women, but now, after Lola's antics, he'd gone so far as to run away at the sight of any woman. What was she supposed to do? No matter how high her charm was, it was useless!

Bruno, who had been a bar owner in Water Seven for four years, also complained: "There's too little drinking water and too little food here. It's too poor to brew any alcohol, let alone sell it. I need to find a new undercover identity, but I don't have any other skills yet. I can't exactly learn carpentry like you guys..."

Kaku, also a carpenter, remained silent. After a long day of work, he was too exhausted to speak.

In the end, Rob Lucci made the final decision: leave Nico Robin alone for now, maintaining her undercover persona. He planned to repair the ship at Baroque Works first, and then leave the three of them alone while he personally went to see what these guys were up to.

......

After helping Lola fabricate the Titanic story, Vivi, with the guide duck, flew to the little garden under the cover of night.

Vivi, Karu, and the puppy Shushu played all day, and afterwards they treated the blue oni Dorry and the red oni Brogy to drinks. These were drinks they got from Kaido. The two giants praised them highly after drinking them, saying they were the best drinks they had ever had in their lives. Unfortunately, there were too few of them, and they were gone as soon as they were finished.

Weiwei didn't dare to make any promises, saying that there would be plenty of drinks. She only said that she would try to take more if she had the chance.

When the puppy Xiuxiu saw the duck Karu's straw hat, it barked twice, and Vivi happily picked up the puppy.

"You have one too! I prepared it for you a long time ago. Look what this is." She didn't show favoritism and also knitted a straw hat for the puppy Xiuxiu as a New Year's gift.

Leaving the small garden, Vivi took her duck Karu to see Lab.

Following the directions on the panel, they quickly found Labu, a 40,000-meter-long, 50-year-old giant island whale, in the sea on the side of Upside Down Mountain.

The time traveler knows about Laboon's connection with the Rumbar Pirates and Brook, but Vivi has to pretend she doesn't.

"Hero, please help us kill fifty chickens."

The hero accepts the quest one second and hands over the chicken the next? That's definitely not going to work.

Laboon is an intelligent being with feelings and thoughts. The process of helping it is the most important thing. If you just hand Brook over, there will be no sense of gratitude.

Chapter 114 Raab

Vivi needs Lab's willing help, rather than relying on that panel to bind them together. She can't see or touch the panel on the duck's side, and it always feels very unreliable. Most of the time, she prefers to trust her Observation Haki and her ability to hear everything.

The sea breeze at night was anything but gentle; the waves crashed against the shore, with waves over a thousand meters high constantly pounding against the cliffs of the Upside-Down Mountain, making a loud "slap slap" sound.

Laboon the whale has always remembered the promise he made with the Rumbar Pirates fifty years ago. He waited here patiently for them to return after traveling around the world and come back to find him. This wait has lasted for fifty years.

Whenever it gets caught up in painful memories of the past, it rams its head against the walls of Upside Down. Upside Down is incredibly tough, and the mountain doesn't collapse at all because of its impact. Instead, Lab is left with a head full of injuries.

The crisscrossing, varying depths of scars on Rab's head seemed to tell outsiders how painful the wait had been.

When Vivi arrived, the whale Laboon was crashing into the mountain. It knew it was pointless, but it really didn't know what else it could do besides crashing into the mountain.

"Calm down, I know you're in pain. I heard your voice when I went to Loguetown last time..." Vivi tried to convey her feelings by combining her Observation Haki with her ability to hear all things, but no matter how much she rambled on, the other party didn't react at all and continued to relentlessly ram the mountain. Soon, Laboon's forehead was broken, and bright red blood flowed down from its head like a waterfall, completely staining the nearby seawater and the side of the mountain wall red.

Vivi repeated herself twice, and then shouted at the top of her lungs, but still received no response. Just as she was about to have Karu, her "master," personally take over, an old voice came from behind her.

"It can't hear you like that... Huh?! Who, who are you?" The old man, wearing a floral shirt and beach shorts and sporting a strange hairstyle, was about to tell Weiwei to give up, but as soon as he got closer, he immediately realized something was wrong.

This woman possessed an extraordinary aura of dominance, clearly not an ordinary passerby, and... Several question marks arose in the old man's mind. He sensed an unusual quality in Weiwei, a quality he had only seen in one other person before.

Vivi also turned around to look. The old man's Observation Haki was stronger than hers, and since he didn't seem to have any killing intent, she hadn't noticed him at all.

She recognized the old man; he was the ship's doctor on Gol D. Roger's ship, so it wasn't surprising that he possessed this level of Observation Haki.

She recounted how she passed by here, then "heard" Rab's painful cries, so she returned to find Rab and hoped to offer help.