The Great Voyage: The Props Master on the Straw Hat Ship

"Is she here? Nico Robin..."

Crocodile gazed at the passageway, where a white shawl-like garment was revealed, revealing a cool and refreshing inner layer that perfectly showcased her physique.

Robin, exuding the charm of Sister Niu, walked gracefully towards us, and we couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.

"Let's take a look. What information is recorded on this stone tablet? Does it contain what we're looking for?"

Crocodile was there, keeping a watchful eye on Luffy while calling out to him.

When Luffy saw that someone else was coming, he did not make any rash moves at first, but looked at Robin with a little vigilance.

However, the latter did not pay attention to Luffy's gaze and completely ignored Crocodile's shouts.

She kept walking towards the historical inscription, her eyes filled only with the reflection of the stone tablet.

"Is this the only stone tablet here?"

Robin looked him up and down for a while, then asked Crocodile.

Crocodile replied, "That's right, it looks like this is all we have."

"Is that so?"

Robin nodded slightly, a hint of disappointment and sadness flashing in her eyes, and a trace of deathly stillness gradually creeping into her pupils.

Ultimately, she couldn't find what she was looking for...

"What exactly is recorded on this?!"

Crocodile urged from the side, already quite impatient.

"..." F.

121 [Translation of Konjac]! [Hades] Design Blueprints!! Are you kidding me?!

Robin paused for a moment, then stroked the dark blue stone tablet with her slender fingers.

"In the 239th year of the Sea Calendar, Cassila conquered Alabasta and established a desert kingdom there."

"In the 260th year of the Haiyuan Calendar, Tieyima ruled the Bitin Dynasty. In the 306th year of the Haiyuan Calendar, Ailuma established..."

She slowly recounted the history recorded on it.

Crocodile interrupted her, "Is this what's recorded here?!"

His eyelids drooped slightly. "What are the things and information we want to know?!"

"No?"

Robin lowered his eyes and said calmly, "This only records the history of this country; it doesn't contain what we're looking for..."

"how come?!"

Crocodile's face darkened instantly. "Are you sure you're not lying to me? Nico Robin?!"

"If you don't believe me, I can read everything on this page to you..."

Robin said in an unchanged tone.

"Is this so..."

Crocodile's expression shifted between light and shadow, while Robin looked up and glanced at the stone tablet once more.

Since what is recorded here is not what I expected, it's best not to let Crocodile's ambitions be realized, lest it bring endless trouble and war to the outside world...

Robin, who had suffered greatly from this since childhood, did not intend to reveal what had happened.

However--

"In the 306th year of the Sea Calendar, Airuma built the Tafur Cathedral; in the 325th year of the Sea Calendar, the hero Mam of Orteya saved three cities," a leisurely narration came from behind the crowd.

La! "June 23rd!"

Immediately, everyone's eyes turned to that direction.

"who is it?!"

Robin's beautiful eyes widened in surprise as she looked back in disbelief.

What the other party said was exactly the same as the text recorded on the stone tablet.

This means that the other party can also understand this kind of writing.

Besides myself, are there other people in this world who can also understand this script?!

This gave Robin, who had always felt lonely and out of place in this world, a sudden, indescribable feeling of finding someone with whom she shared common ground.

Especially after she saw Link's figure appear in everyone's sight?

This person she had always been curious about and concerned about turned out to be just like her, knowledgeable in interpreting historical texts...

A faint light returned to her lifeless eyes.

"This stone tablet does indeed record the history of Alabasta and some other regions..."

Under Luffy's bright white smile and Crocodile's gloomy gaze, Link slowly walked to the center of the arena.

"However, in addition to recording history, it also records some other things."

He looked at the contents of the historical text and said this.

At this moment, with the power of some kind of prop he had borrowed, the interpretation of these words was completely useless to him.

Other content?!

Just as Crocodile was about to say something, his eyes suddenly lit up. "What's written on this?!"

He said in a somewhat hurried tone.

And Link didn't disappoint him. Under his slightly expectant gaze, he slowly said:

"News regarding the ancient weapon, the super battleship [Pluto]."

really! ! !

Upon hearing this, Crocodile's lips practically curled into a wide smile!

"As expected, there is news about Hades here!!"

Although his tone was calm, anyone could sense the excitement and joy in his voice!

"Nicole Robin, you lied to me..."

Crocodile's eyes flashed with a dangerous light as he turned to Robin, who stood there silently, staring blankly at Link.

"Fortunately, I know there are other idiots who can read this, so my plans and efforts over the past three years haven't gone to waste..."

Crocodile's gaze then fell upon Link, who was standing in front of the stone monument.

"While I don't know how someone like you knows about these ancient scripts, but..."

"The fact that you have news about [Pluto], and that you happen to be able to decipher the meaning of these words, is even better!!"

With his right hand, he removed the gilded hook from the hook on his left arm, revealing a needle hook underneath that was made entirely of stiff material and covered with dark black spots, looking extremely poisonous.

Scorpion venom stinger, Crocodile's hidden grappling hook weapon!!

It contains potent toxins; once caught by the hook, one will immediately be poisoned.

"Let's just honestly decipher all the inscriptions!"

A sinister grin spread across his face. "The information about Hades recorded above must mean that Hades is hiding somewhere in this country!"

Tell me now!

"You bastard!!"

Crocodile's posture made Luffy quite unhappy.

Although he didn't know anything about "Pluto" or ancient weapons, he knew that Crocodile was still alive and kicking, and hadn't been knocked away by him.

Just as he was about to raise his fist and attack Crocodile again...

Are you sure you want to hear this?

Then a smile suddenly appeared on Link's face.

A subtle, playful smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"What do you mean?"

00

Crocodile's eyes narrowed, a bad feeling creeping into his heart.

"This does indeed contain information about Hades, but Hades isn't in this country."

Link stretched out his hand, rubbed his fist against the historical text in front of him, and said leisurely.

"Not in this country?!!"

Upon hearing this, Crocodile and Robin, who was standing next to him, were both taken aback.

The latter looked up, staring blankly at Link, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.

This document clearly states, after some historical records, that Hades is in this country. Why would he say that?! Could it be that he can't understand the writing on this document?

No, if you can't read the text, how can you know and talk about that history and about Hades?!

Robin's doubts grew stronger, and then he saw Link's hand, which was turned away from Crocodile, wave slightly at him.

The gesture he made seemed a bit mischievous and... a prank?

Robin blinked, then said nothing more, letting Link do as he pleased, waiting to see what he wanted to say.

"You're saying that this country doesn't have [Pluto]? What do you mean by that?!"

Crocodile suppressed his impatience and asked in a deep voice.

"That's exactly what it means~"

Link explained in a very serious manner,

"According to the records here, in a massive battle eight hundred years ago that shook the entire world, the ancient weapon super battleship [Pluto] played an indispensable role."

"However, due to the ferocity of that battle, [Hades] was severely damaged and could no longer be activated... Even if it could be activated, eight hundred years have passed, and the machine is so old that it can't even be turned on."

Link added a sarcastic remark, then continued, "So, [Pluto] was simply buried somewhere, forever sealed away." "Severely damaged, a battle from eight hundred years ago, outdated machinery, sealed away, buried..."

By extracting the key words from Link's words and combining them with his own understanding of past history, Crocodile was able to believe most of what Link was saying, even though it sounded like a serious truth.

"So all my efforts over the past three years have been nothing but a joke?!"

Even with Crocodile's ruthless nature, upon learning of this outcome, he couldn't help but take a deep breath, his chest heaving.

"Oh right, there's one last one!"

As Crocodile inhaled, Link seemed to "discover" something again, and "suddenly" slapped his head.

"It's written in such an obscure place that you almost miss it if you're not paying attention..."

Under Robin's somewhat understanding gaze, Link looked at her intently, seemingly quite serious.

"The Hades was sealed away by people eight hundred years ago, but the blueprints for its construction were preserved intact."

Link said those words out clearly and deliberately.

"Cough cough!!"

Crocodile nearly couldn't catch his breath.

"What did you say?! The blueprints for Hades?!?"

He looked at Link in disbelief, then it was as if a bolt of lightning had struck him on the top of his head.

"That's right, although [Pluto] is an ancient weapon, its true form is a super battleship, created using human science and technology!!"

"In other words, it's quite possible that the blueprints for [Pluto] really exist!!!"

Crocodile believed the story in an instant, and then became excited...

"The blueprints for [Hades]..."

He was deeply moved, realizing that a single [Pluto] was enough to be a super battleship.

What if I had the blueprints and could build an entire "Pluto" fleet?!

Just imagining that scene, of assembling an even more magnificent aerial fleet than the Golden Lion of yesteryear to sail the seas…