Pirates: Your emperor has returned!

Just when Hiruluk and Kureha thought they were doomed, a sand spear suddenly pierced through their bodies from the side, pinning them to the ground.

"Well!"

CP9 let out a muffled groan, but a sandy hand covered his mouth, preventing him from uttering a painful howl or warning his companions until he died.

Hiluluk and Kureha were stunned by what they saw.

They looked up and saw a soldier formed from yellow sand, holding a long spear with bloodstains still clinging to its tip.

Within a few breaths, the bloodstains were absorbed by the sand and completely disappeared.

Then, the gravel soldier turned to look at the two doctors and nodded slightly as a greeting.

Mustering his courage, Hiluluk stepped forward and asked, "Excuse me, may I ask who you are...?"

The gravel soldier scratched his head, seemingly struggling with how to speak.

Then, he clapped his hands, suddenly remembered something, and the spear in his hand began to deform, gradually becoming a "sign" made of gravel.

The gravel soldiers held up the sign and used sand to outline the words in a conspicuous way.

It "said":

Would you like to sit for a while?

[Chapter 42. The Advantage Lies With Me]

Hiluluk, who lived in the Drum Kingdom and was known as a quack doctor, couldn't help but sigh inwardly:

Life is truly amazing!

He was originally a notorious pirate who roamed the seas, but due to a terminal illness, he ended up in the Kingdom of Drums.

Hiluluk, who had originally planned to wait for death, unexpectedly witnessed the miraculous cherry blossoms, which cured his illness.

Since then, Hiruluk, who originally knew nothing about medicine, became a doctor and embarked on the path of developing a panacea.

Despite the incomprehension of the villagers of the Drum Kingdom and the pursuit of King Wapol, he never gave up.

He wanted to recreate that day's "miracle"!

Early this morning, Hiluluk left his residence, intending to go up the mountain to find a rare herb.

Unexpectedly, instead of finding the herbs, he found his old nemesis—

Dr. Kureha.

This is a doctor known as the "witch" by the people. Her medical skills are superb, but her fees are quite expensive.

Both of them wanted to go up the mountain, and although they were unhappy, they could only go together, bickering all the way.

But when the two reached the foot of the mountain, they suddenly noticed a strange noise in the distance.

The once peaceful foothills are now restless, and the snowfield, which should be sparsely visited, is now covered with the footprints of many people.

Both Hiruluk and Kureha had experience sailing at sea and immediately noticed the unusual situation.

They wanted to leave immediately, but it was too late.

A sudden blizzard swept across the foothills, and the two dared not wander off. They could only hide in a thicket and wait and see what would happen.

Then they saw the scene from the beginning.

Dozens of men in black suddenly appeared and surrounded the foothills.

Two more masked figures in white suits stood in the middle of the mountain foot and stopped a man wearing light gold armor.

Their conversation was brief, and then they started fighting.

One of the men in the white suit chose to observe the situation, while the other stepped forward and engaged the lightly armored man in combat.

The two clashed with extreme speed, and even though they were hiding in the bushes, their surging killing intent still chilled them to the bone!

Hiluluk couldn't help but swallow hard, and whispered to Kureha:

"Who...who are they?"

"Don't get so close! Besides, I don't know..."

Kureha paused, then shook her head in reply.

But she wasn't unaware of it.

Although Kureha and Hiruluk appear to be of similar age, she is actually over 120 years old, about 70 years older than Hiruluk!

Kureha's extensive experience has allowed her to learn many secrets about the sea, including the true identities of those in black and white suits.

They are probably from the world government.

Kureha had no idea who the man in the golden light armor was, that the World Government would send so many experts to hunt him down!

"Those guys won't let anyone who saw this live."

Kureha shoved down Hiruluk's conspicuous hairstyle and warned in a low voice, "So if you don't want to die, shut up!"

Hiluluk immediately shut his mouth.

Kureha frowned; she knew all too well the World Government's clandestine ways of operating.

"Hopefully, those dangerous guys won't notice this place..."

Unfortunately, CP9 were professionals after all, and the tightness of the defenses around them far exceeded Kureha's expectations.

Not long after, a CP9 member spotted the two hiding in the bushes.

Just as his finger gun was about to strike the two doctors' vital points, a gravel spear suddenly thrust out from the side, pinning him to the ground.

Silently.

The CP9 member died without ever making a sound to warn others.

The two men stared wide-eyed at the gravel soldier wielding a long spear in front of them.

The sense of danger emanating from the other person was no less than that of the man in the black suit!

Hiruluk shielded Kureha behind him and, mustering his courage, asked, "Please, may I ask who you are...?"

The gravel soldier scratched his head, transformed his spear into a sign, and then the gravel traced a passage of text on the sign:

Would you like to sit for a while?

Hiluluk: "..."

"what?"

He nodded subconsciously, and then felt a slight vibration under his feet.

A small stream of dry gravel emerged from the soft snow and then coalesced into a table and three chairs.

The gravel soldier gestured for them to sit down, and after a moment's hesitation, Hiruluk and Kureha finally did so.

After all, even if they wanted to run, they couldn't escape the gravel soldiers.

But to be honest, although the table and chairs were made of gravel, they felt very comfortable to the touch, even warm to the touch, which is rare outdoors on Winter Island.

Sitting here, enjoying the surrounding snow scenery, if one could ignore the fierce battle taking place in the distance, it would truly be a wonderful thing.

Hiluluk was a tough guy. After sensing that the gravel soldiers meant no harm, he took out a water bottle and two portable paper cups from his backpack and poured himself and Kureha some of his homemade herbal tea.

"Have some? It's good for your skin and complexion."

Kureha's nose twitched, and she immediately detected the medicinal ingredients. She frowned and said:

"I don't know if it can improve your skin, but drinking it will definitely make your stomach and intestines feel much better."

Upon hearing this, Hiluluk exclaimed incredulously, "No way! I had complete confidence in this formula!"

Kureha glanced at Hiruluk and muttered under her breath, "You quack."

Hiluluk lowered his head, looking very disappointed.

The gravel soldier sat quietly to the side, watching the two old rivals with great interest.

Kureha glanced at the lightly armored men fighting in the distance, then turned to the gravel soldier and asked, "Was it that guy who did this?"

The gravel soldier stroked his chin and raised the sign again; the words on it had changed.

“'I' am 'him'.”

Kureha understood.

The gravel soldier in front of them was a "clone" created by the lightly armored man.

It's probably the power of a Devil Fruit, is it a Logia type?

Kureha gently stroked the intricately carved armrest of the chair, her pupils trembling slightly.

In her experience, she had never heard of anyone who could train the elemental transformation ability of a Logia-type Devil Fruit to such a refined level.

not to mention……

That man was actually maintaining his own battle while simultaneously controlling the sand soldiers to talk to them!

In such a high-intensity confrontation, is there still room to think about other things?!

Kureha paused, then asked curiously, "Who exactly are you?"

The gravel soldier held up a sign and answered, "Ryan Rowan."

In an instant, Kureha and Hiruluk both widened their eyes; they had both seen that name in the newspaper not long ago.

The emperor from eight hundred years ago, Ryan Rowan of the Golden Dawn.

"The Emperor of Alabasta?"

Kureha took a deep breath and asked in a low voice, "You came to the Drum Kingdom to meet the king of the neighboring country?"

Hiluluk promptly reminded him, "Hahaha, let me make this clear beforehand, the current king of this country is a fool!"

The words "Laughter" appeared on the sign for the gravel soldier:

"Hahahahaha!"

Then the text began to change, and the content became much more complex.

The gravel soldier—that is, Rowan—explained the purpose of his visit to the two respectable doctors.

He briefly explained the identity of that group within the World Government, but mainly focused on the "Four Seas Alliance."