Super Card System - Chapter 500

Chapter 500: Mental exhaustion

While Ian considered Luffy and his crew’s actions as a potential turning point, to be honest, he wasn’t entirely sure.

The actions of his “butterfly” had already led to many changes, so it was difficult to predict whether Luffy and the others would still provoke the Celestial Dragons as in the original storyline.

Ian estimated the chances of this opportunity arising to be about fifty percent—either it would happen or it wouldn’t. Accordingly, Ian had to prepare two contingency plans.

If Luffy and his crew acted according to Ian’s expectations and drew out Admiral Kizaru, then that would be ideal. Dealing with only one Admiral, Aokiji, would be manageable, as Ian had a way to prevent him from pursuing them. However, if something unexpected happened on Luffy’s side, and they couldn’t achieve Ian’s expected outcome, he was prepared to force his way through.

Forcing their way through carried significant risks. Currently, not only were two Admirals present at Marine Headquarters, but there were also several elite Vice Admirals. On top of that, with fierce people like Sengoku and Garp, Ian’s chances weren’t very high.

However, Ian had a trump card as well. Firstly, the Ark Maxim could fly, and the energy from the Jet Dial wasn’t entirely depleted after descending from Skypiea. It could still support the ship’s flight for over an hour. This flight capability hadn’t been exposed to the Marines, and they would likely be dumbfounded when it was utilized.

Of course, Ian couldn’t guarantee that this flight wouldn’t encounter any mishaps. After all, Marine Headquarters had previously been attacked by Shiki’s flying pirate fleet, so there might be countermeasures in place.

As for the second plan, it involved going underwater!

Within the Crescent Moon Port at Marine Headquarters, there lay a deep-sea zone where Ian’s long-practiced swimming skills would come in handy. He could hold his breath and swim a long distance underwater. Most importantly, Ian wasn’t a true Devil Fruit user, so seawater had no adverse effects on him. On the contrary, submerging himself in water could help evade pursuit by many of the Marine’s ability users.

Underwater, whether you were an Admiral or a Fleet Admiral, you were powerless!

However, the drawback of this plan was that Ian probably couldn’t take anyone else with him. The ship would also need to stay temporarily at Marine Headquarters until he returned for it later.

In Ian’s view, it was best not to resort to the second plan if possible. It should be considered a last resort. The preferable outcome would be to rely on Luffy and Zoro, hoping they could help him escape with everyone and the ship in one go.

Furthermore, Ian had thought about their destination once they left.

If they escaped from Marine Headquarters, it meant they were at odds with the Marines. In that case, it would be impossible to cross the Red Line from Mary Geoise into the New World. The Marines would absolutely prevent that.

Perhaps the Ark Maxim could ascend with the Jet Dial from the top of the Red Line, given an hour of flight time, which should be sufficient for the Ark to climb over the Red Line’s height.

However, Ian had some concerns because he had heard from others that above the Red Line, there seemed to be violent turbulence in the high-altitude cloud layers. This made flying through the Red Line a dangerous endeavor. It might be due to the climatic effects of the Grand Line, as otherwise, why would pirates throughout history, aspiring to cross the Red Line into the New World, prefer the more perilous route of the Fish-Man Island’s underwater path?

Hadn’t they ever considered crossing the Red Line through flight?

Currently, Ian was weighing his options for how to reach the New World. If he decided on an aerial crossing, he wouldn’t need to visit the Sabaody Archipelago. However, if they took the underwater route, he would have to make a trip to Sabaody Archipelago to have Rayleigh apply the coating to his ship.

After much contemplation, Ian ultimately decided that taking the Fish-Man Island route was the better choice.

The high-altitude route above Mary Geoise was still an unknown place for Ian. His crew lacked a navigator like Nami, and if the legends were true, encountering high-altitude turbulence could lead to the ship’s destruction and the crew’s demise.

On the other hand, the underwater path to Fish-Man Island was relatively safer. Rayleigh’s expertise in coating was unquestionable, and as long as the coating remained intact, the ship would be secure.

Moreover, Ian wanted to inform Jinbe about the situation regarding the Whitebeard Pirates on Fish-Man Island.

Opting for Fish-Man Island meant a detour to the Sabaody Archipelago. It had its advantages too—being sufficiently large, the island offered convenient hiding spots, thanks to the enormous Yarukiman Mangrove. This made it a challenging area for the Marines to police effectively.

When the time came, all Ian needed to do was find a secluded spot to land and promptly seek out Rayleigh to apply the coating to his ship. After that, they could head to Fish-Man Island.

Ian carefully considered all these aspects and found the plan to be quite feasible. Consequently, he prepared to act accordingly.

In the days that followed, Ian and his crew stayed in Marine Headquarters for another two days.

On this particular day, Sengoku sat in his office, trembling hands clutching a report as he read it.

Cold sweat dripped from his forehead, and by the time he finished reading, Sengoku felt his heart might give out!

Thump! Sengoku slammed his fist onto the desk, roaring at the officer from Marine Headquarters who had delivered the report, “Are you kidding me!? Is this report some kind of joke!?”

The portly logistics officer wiped his own forehead with a handkerchief, his face contorted into a wry smile as he replied, “Fleet Admiral Sengoku, this is real!”

“In less than a week, the expenditure on food at Marine Headquarters has skyrocketed to over 180 million Belly! Are you sincerely insisting this is true?” Admiral Sengoku bellowed. “Are you aiming to face a military tribunal!?”

“Please, let me explain, Admiral,” the logistics officer pleaded. “In recent times, there has been a continuous influx of personnel recalled to the Headquarters, all of them senior officers. Naturally, we couldn’t afford to be lax in food provisions for them. We have been doing our best to supply them. However… there’s one individual who simply eats too much!”

“Who?” fleet Admiral Sengoku asked, puzzled. “Is it one of the giant race officers?”

“No… it’s not. It’s the Mink subordinate of the Seven Warlords, Black Dragon Ian!” the logistics officer said. “He… he does nothing all day, essentially loitering in the Marine mess hall. He starts with breakfast, moves on to lunch, then dinner, and even goes on to late-night snacks! I’ve never seen anyone with such an appetite. He practically eats all day long. In the past few days, my chefs have been close to exhaustion. Nearly 140 million of that 180 million Belly in food expenses can be attributed to his voracious appetite alone!”

“Please, fleet Admiral, we’re begging you. Find a way to get him to leave!” The logistics officer’s face turned mournful. “He’s one of the Seven Warlords; we can’t confront him directly. We had no choice but to come to you for help…”

Hearing the logistics officer’s words, Admiral Sengoku sucked in a sharp breath. He knew exactly who they were talking about—it was the guy under Ian’s command named Doroni.

Previously, Ian had mentioned to him that this person had a hearty appetite and asked him to accommodate him as much as possible. At the time, Admiral Sengoku hadn’t realized the extent of what Ian meant by “hearty appetite.” Now, he was beginning to suspect he had been taken advantage of!

Damn it! Admiral Sengoku couldn’t help but curse inwardly. In just four or five days, this guy had devoured over 140 million Belly’s worth of food. Was he a bear mink or a pig mink!?

Admiral Sengoku calculated on his fingers and realized that at this rate, the monthly food expenses at Marine Headquarters would exceed billions of Bellies. He genuinely felt like he was about to have a heart attack.

However, he had no idea how to handle this problem. Ian had been left in a form of soft confinement, and Ian seemed to be cooperating with the Marines. How could he approach Ian and tell him to get his subordinate out of the mess hall? It was an impossible request!

At this moment, Sengoku had the feeling that he was lifting a stone to drop it on his own foot. Ian’s scheme had truly sickened him.

Just as Sengoku was struggling with how to deal with this problem, suddenly, a Marine soldier outside rushed into his office in a state of panic. He didn’t even bother knocking; he just burst into Sengoku’s office.

Sengoku was already furious, and seeing this Marine soldier’s disregard for etiquette, he nearly threw his teacup at him in anger.

However, before Sengoku could erupt, the Marine soldier blurted out in a panicked tone, “I-it’s urgent, fleet Admiral Sengoku! We’ve just received a report from the World Government. Three world nobles, Saint Rosward, Saint Charlos, and Saint Shalria, who were vacationing on Sabaody Archipelago, have been attacked by the Straw Hat Pirates who are gathered on the island. All three world nobles are currently in a state of unconsciousness, and the World Government is demanding that Marine Headquarters immediately dispatch an admiral to apprehend the Straw Hat Pirates and their associates!”

Suddenly hearing this news, Admiral Sengoku felt like he had been struck by a bolt of lightning.

He trembled, clutching his forehead, and muttered, “Again… it’s that little devil? Causing trouble one after another… they’re all cut from the same cloth…”

Sengoku felt that his recurring headache was getting worse. He was well aware of the situation with the Straw Hat Pirates, and lately, they had been unusually active, creating chaos on a grand scale each time.

This time was no exception, as there had been another incident involving the Celestial Dragons…

With the dragon hunters Pirates led by Ian in the past and now the Straw Hat Pirates under Luffy, it seemed that the Celestial Dragons were having a string of unfortunate encounters.

In fact, Ian’s previous concerns had been unnecessary. As long as the crime of human trafficking still existed in the Sabaody Archipelago, an incident involving the Celestial Dragons was bound to happen sooner or later…

“In addition to the Straw Hat Pirates, there are also several other pirates like Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law among them,” the Marine soldier continued his report. “Most of these individuals have bounties exceeding one billion Berries, and they are relatively new but formidable pirate crews…”

“Enough!” Sengoku interrupted the report, stating, “Regardless of the circumstances, if the world nobles have been targeted, the Marines cannot remain idle. Just like Ian did in the past and now the Straw Hat Pirates, we must take action. Send an immediate order to Admiral Kizaru, instructing him to visit Sabaody Archipelago and capture all those who have offended the Celestial Dragons. We must provide an explanation to the Celestial Dragons…”

As Sengoku made his decision, he couldn’t help but wonder if this headache of his would ever go away. The situation in the world of pirates was becoming increasingly complex and chaotic.