Chapter 105: Eve of the Storm

Chapter 105: Chapter 105: Eve of the Storm Chapter 105: Eve of the Storm Vast amounts of flying sand continuously condensed, in the blink of an eye forming several brown giant pythons behind Reiner. The giant pythons writhed, opening their bloody maws, ferocious fangs aimed at Franky’s subordinates. Faced with these several-meter-thick, wildly dancing great snakes, Zambai and his group completely lost their initial arrogant demeanor. Gulp~ Gulp~ Everyone subconsciously clenched their palms, involuntarily taking half a step back, all eyes locked tightly on the figure behind Reiner. That little girl they had initially overlooked, with white hair tied in twin tails, had summoned such terrifying giant snakes with a casual wave of her hand. "No wonder they dared to come to our door!" "So this is their backing!" The eyes of the crowd were filled with apprehension. They had thought a mere logistics member dared to barge into their main base, but it turned out he had brought experts! "Don’t be afraid!" Zambai shouted, taking a step forward, one finger pointing at Reiner and Frieren. "There are only two of them! Don’t be intimidated! We have a huge numerical advantage!" "That’s right!" "Leave it to us!" Thump! Thump! Thump! The ground shook as three figures, considerably taller than the others, leaped out. Their massive bodies landing caused quite a stir, kicking up a good deal of dust. "It’s the Monster Destroyers!" "The trio is making their move!" The appearance of the three Monster Destroyers, whose physiques were clearly different from ordinary people, immediately invigorated the other members. "Do you have giant bloodline in you?" Reiner couldn’t help but eye them curiously. The three were about five or six meters tall. Compared to true giants whose bodies were around twenty meters, they seemed somewhat unremarkable. There were many people in this world with ridiculously large statures, but they were ultimately a minority. If their bodies weren’t mixed with some other bloodline, it was almost impossible for ordinary humans to grow this tall. "That’s right! Looks like you have some discernment after all." Among the Monster Destroyers, a man with an orange afro grinned, looking smugly at Reiner. "We are born with monstrous strength incomparable to ordinary people! Although we can’t compare to the legendary giant tribe, we are definitely not opponents ordinary people can contend with!" As he spoke, the orange-afro man charged forward first, the other two following close behind. "Looking for trouble with us? You should have at least brought your entire pirate crew! Pay the price for your arrogance!" Their exaggerated bodies running were like large trucks, carrying an unstoppable momentum, which also inexplicably boosted the confidence of the other members, who cheered them on from behind. After all, besides Big Bro Franky, these three were the strongest in the Family. "Go! Monster Destroyers!" "Show him the strength of Franky House!" "Watch us! Destruction Ram!" The trio grinned ferociously, charging forward, shoulders leading, and rammed hard into the giant pythons before them! Reiner remained completely unconcerned. At the same instant, the three giant sand pythons launched themselves forward, lunging to bite their opponents. Bang! Bang! Bang! The powerful impacts issued dull collision sounds as the three slammed hard onto the heads of the giant pythons. However, the scene the Franky Family hoodlums expected – the sand pythons disintegrating – did not occur. Instead, the Destruction Trio seemed to sink into a mire, half their bodies smashing straight into the sand snakes’ maws. "Their strength is still far too lacking compared to giants." Reiner was somewhat disappointed by their performance. If it were the Blue or Red Ogres, they could have smashed apart a technique like this, which didn’t even use Armament Haki, with a single punch. The Monster Destroyers could barely hold off the solidified, sharp fangs, completely powerless to resist. The three were continuously pushed back, their feet dragging black marks on the ground. "Their charge was actually stopped!!" "No! It’s more like they can’t withstand the opponent at all!" Zambai looked shocked. Seeing the completely overwhelmed trio, he couldn’t help but mutter in a low voice, "Just how terrifying is the power of these things!?" Constricting Snakes! With a thought from Reiner, the sand pythons began to writhe their thick, long bodies wildly, exerting force once more! Their ferocious maws gaped wide, instantly lunging down to swallow the trio into their bellies, completely submerging them in sand grains! "—Mmph!" The Monster Destroyer trio plunged into darkness. Large amounts of sand grains poured into their ears, noses, and mouths, their sight and hearing rapidly failing. Breathing became increasingly difficult; opening their mouths only brought in more fine sand. They wanted to cough it out but couldn’t exert force due to lack of air in their lungs. Their faces quickly turned purple. In the darkness, terrified, their limbs thrashed about frantically. Due to lack of oxygen to the brain, their bodies quickly grew numb and cold. In an instant, they completely lost all five senses, sinking into icy, desperate darkness. "Damn it!" "The trio was actually defeated!" Rustle rustle~~ As the fine sand writhed, the three massive bodies were expelled from the snake bellies, lying on the ground, eyes rolled back white, faces purple. Zambai, seeing the motionless trio, looked at Reiner with a mixture of fear and fury. "You bastard! What did you do to them!?" "Still alive. Don’t worry." Reiner waved his hand dismissively, then asked back, "Where’s my money? Behave if you don’t want to be buried alive." "Wait!" Zambai quickly spoke up. "The money isn’t here! Our Boss took the money to purchase materials for building the Dream Ship! He already left, taking the Sea Train to the black market on another island!" "Are you kidding me?" Reiner’s brow furrowed. "Buying shipbuilding materials... from Water 7... all the way to a black market on another island?" "No, no, no! Wait!" Zambai looked terrified, waving his hands repeatedly. "It’s like this: Galley-La is a first-class shipyard, and also the World Government’s designated shipyard." "Plus, with the Sea Train going directly to Enies Lobby, this island is crawling with World Government spies. So basically, there isn’t much of a black market here." "Something as rare as Adam Wood doesn’t easily circulate on the open market. If it weren’t for our Big Bro being here for many years, even with money, he might not necessarily be able to buy it." Crap! There’s that too? Reiner hadn’t thought of this point. He had told the crew he was coming here to see if there was a better way to repair the Merry. Although he told them to prepare for the worst, returning dejectedly without having done anything would be too shameful. "Then when will he be back?" Reiner pressed on, while a sand python opened its ferocious maw before Zambai. "Probably tomorrow at the earliest." Zambai backed away repeatedly, looking at the Monster Destroyers lying on the ground with lingering fear. "It’s no use attacking us! The money isn’t here anymore! My Big Bro never keeps cash overnight!" "If he took the Sea Train, there are only a few places he could go." Reiner stood up, one hand on his hip, and said coldly, "One day... is enough for a round trip even to Enies Lobby. Why would he take so long?" "Ahem... Big Bro... he..." Zambai looked at him terrified, stammering, "He might have gone to the Queen of Spring Town." (St. Poplar) "—Hiss!" Furious cold rage! Reiner gritted his teeth and turned away. A mass of sand condensed on the ceiling, and a swirling sandstorm filled the air. "Hey! Hey! Let’s talk nicely!!" "Wait! Don’t attack!!" "Everyone run!!" Franky’s subordinates scrambled over each other to flee outside, looking at the sandstorm above their heads, utterly panic-stricken. However, Frieren blocked the doorway. A sand wall erupted from behind her, surging towards everyone like a tsunami! Simultaneously, the sandstorm swirling on the ceiling collapsed downwards like a torrential downpour! Desert Funeral! Vast amounts of sand grains attacked from front and back. The entire interior of the house became like a brown ocean. A vortex swept up Zambai and the others, engulfing them in the blink of an eye. One by one, they were buried up to their upper bodies in the solidified sand pile, like a group of gophers, only their heads exposed. Leaving the unconscious hoodlums behind, Reiner furiously kicked down the main door of Franky House and strode away. "Actually using my money to go have a good time!" Reiner looked dissatisfied, storming off towards Galley-La Headquarters. "Don’t let me catch you, you big oaf." Since Franky wasn’t here, he didn’t plan on just waiting around. He’d go find Iceburg directly. If they have Adam Wood, with Iceburg’s skills, having him design a plan... the repair results probably wouldn’t be bad. After all, many of Water 7’s foremen were trained by him. Meanwhile, aboard the Going Merry... Sanji was cooking. Zoro had taken his training equipment and gone ashore to practice. The others were also busy with their own things. The Going Merry’s condition left everyone in low spirits. But many still hoped to repair it here for now, considering replacing the ship only if it became absolutely necessary in the future. Except for Luffy... At this moment, he lay on the Merry’s sheep figurehead, staring blankly at the sky. Ever since they got the Merry, this had always been his special seat. For this little ship that had carried them through wind and waves, braving dangers all the way here, everyone, from the bottom of their hearts, considered it their nakama. Even Luffy, usually so thick-nerved and craving novelty, had never thought of replacing the ship. Until today... "Do you really have to sail this ship until it’s completely wrecked and sinks into the sea before you’re satisfied?" Kaku’s words kept echoing in his mind. He couldn’t bring himself to abandon the Merry. But just as Kaku said, he couldn’t gamble everyone’s lives on sentimentality. As the captain of this ship, Luffy realized for the first time that he needed to stand at the very front, more resolute than anyone else. "What should I do, Merry?" Luffy pressed his straw hat over his face, his expression hidden from view. "If Reiner can’t find a better way... do we really have to say goodbye here...?" Meanwhile, inside the second-floor cabin, a sofa rested against the wall to the right of the entrance. On the wooden wall hung numerous framed photographs. Robin stood before the wall, staring blankly at a photo in her hand. These were all mementos from their adventures. The topmost one was taken during their time in Skypiea – the Straw Hat crew standing beneath the giant Golden Bell. Luffy, at the forefront, sat cross-legged on the ground, grinning, with Chopper hugging his head. Beside him were Zoro and Sanji, seemingly in the middle of an argument, looking ready to brawl. Reiner and Nami stood smiling behind Luffy, with Usopp and Robin flanking them. This was her first photograph after joining the Straw Hat crew. Robin often sat on the sofa beneath the photo wall, reading. Sanji would promptly deliver a cup of coffee. Here, she could hear the sounds of training from the stern deck behind, and the cheerful shouts and laughter from the front deck. But she didn’t find it noisy; it was a very subtle feeling. Like when she was a child in the Tree of Knowledge, studying with Dr. Clover and the other scholars. It always allowed her to cast aside all distracting thoughts and immerse herself peacefully in reading. Robin’s expression turned sorrowful. She hung the photo in her hand back to its topmost position. Then, unnoticed by anyone, she quietly left the Going Merry. (End of this Chapter) ♧♧♧ -> SUPPORT ME WITH POWER STONE -> FOR EVERY 200 PS = BOUNS Chapter ♧♧♧ -> 20 Advanced Chapters Now Available on Patreon!! -> https://www.patreon.com/c/Segais (Just remove the hyphen to access patreon normally) If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that’s help the story a lot Thank you