Chapter 118 - CHAPTER 118 - Pirates at the End of the Line

"It didn't sink to the bottom of the sea. In fact, the Golden Land was swept up to the heavens by an upwelling current..." Rosen took a sip of water and began to speak at length. He wasn't good at storytelling, but with such a devoted listener, he found no reason to make it dull or perfunctory. "If it really were up there, that would be wonderful." As Rosen's story ended, Natalie's large, glistening eyes remained fixed on him. They brimmed with hope—a quality that set her apart from the start. Back then he didn't know what her life was like, but now that he did, he felt even more that in this world, holding on to such strong hope and longing was truly rare. "Of course it exists. In fact, our next destination was supposed to be Skypiea, but we planned to set off only after treating my subordinates," Rosen said calmly. "Then can I come along?" Natalie immediately asked after his words. "No, now go to sleep." "Hmph, you stingy old man..." Natalie pouted in discontent as she licked the remaining strands of dried fish from her hand, gently biting them to savor the taste—mmm, so delicious. Though she said that, she had no intention of being uncooperative; as her elder sister Alice had said, "When a woman speaks, every word is like a nail," so she decided to leave. But just as she turned, her body suddenly stiffened, and she hurriedly called back to Rosen, "Uncle, you all stay inside and secure the doors and windows. An outsider is about to break through the city gate—I must go tell my sisters." No sooner had she spoken than she dashed out like the wind, moving like a cat as she leaped lightly from rooftop to rooftop without a sound. "Is there any trouble?" Rosen asked in confusion, then concentrated his mind. His Observation Haki, still immature and only in its awakening stage, spread out—but he sensed nothing. His Haki's range was not wide enough yet, and because it was still developing, if someone wasn't hostile, stayed at a distance, and deliberately hid their presence, Rosen would have a hard time detecting them. "Not clear, but since that girl was able to sense that we were searching for her earlier, she must possess some rather special abilities," Pitas guessed. "Indeed, but since this city has managed to exist for so long, it must be capable of handling any problems. We won't get involved; we're not obliged to. You rest; we might need you tomorrow," Rosen said, not feeling sleepy yet. In fact, with his current energy he could sustain intense combat for ten days and nights, so he didn't require much sleep. Still, Rosen was accustomed to sleeping every day, as it was good for his body and training. For now, though, he intended to study more about that peculiar metal, Gold Copper. He had a premonition that although it was scarce, when properly employed it could work wonders. Although they had found a local, Pitas wasn't entirely useless; at least, Rosen felt that Pitas wouldn't dare lie to him. And if the information from the people of Underground City didn't align with Pitas', the differences would be clear and any anomalies easily detected. "I can't sleep," Pitus said bitterly, shaking his head. Being very weak and in such a treacherous environment, he simply didn't have the heart for sleep. "Don't worry, we'll get back alive," Rosen offered with little sincerity. "If I were a bit stronger, maybe I could help somehow?" Pitas mused, reflecting on the life of the Lantisians, feeling more powerless than ever before. "Strength always offers more choices than weakness." "Lisa, Sister Alice, something's wrong—someone has entered Underground City's territory from the vicinity of the volcano's mouth and is now heading toward the city. They must have seen our city; they appear to be outsiders, not monsters," Natalie burst into the room, urgently addressing the two who were discussing tomorrow's battle strategy in the demon lands. "What?!" Both Alice and Lisa's faces instantly changed. "Could it be that those two outsiders from within the city brought them?" Alice thought, considering the danger. "Impossible. Such an act would be futile, and causing a disturbance at night is bound to lead to mutual destruction. Anyone with even a modicum of sense wouldn't do that. They must be pirates who accidentally intruded," Lisa analyzed coldly. Even if they harbored a mortal grudge against the Marines, they wouldn't attack at night—it would be no different from suicide. Thus, her guess was likely correct. "Gather the vanguard, follow me," Alice commanded, but no sooner had she finished speaking than an unexpected change occurred. Suddenly, boom! A cannon's roar awakened the entire city's fear. In the silent night, once cannon fire sounded, it meant a drastic change was underway. And after the first blast, another resounding explosion echoed all around, which made Hodman's face turn grim. When such tremendous sounds echo at night, even if Ming City were underground, they would be impossible to hide, because the subterranean world is interconnected. Something major is about to happen! Not long ago, toward the east city gate, warriors on the wall were at the ready, and soldiers poured out below to block the pirate crew trying to break into Ming City. "Let us in, we'll give you anything—metal, we've found plenty of precious metals, we've been gathering for days, so much that, just let us in, let us enter the city! The monsters have gone mad tonight..." a pirate captain pleaded with a warrior leader. It wasn't that they didn't want to attack; rather, they had been hiding in a safe zone near the volcanic crater, where the cave leading underground had been blocked and guards stationed nearby. They had safely endured many nights, but tonight, for some reason, the monsters' commotion was far greater than usual—like a massive army passing through, trampling over the entire Lantis Island. Their camp had been discovered, and after incurring heavy casualties, the captain led the remaining crew underground. In theory, these monsters, with almost no intelligence, should not have continued the pursuit. But that was not the case; the monsters closely followed them. One might have thought that in such a scenario, death would be inevitable sooner or later, yet in this underground world, a city existed. Once they could enter the city, their chances of survival would greatly improve. Even if the walls couldn't hold them back, as long as they were numerous, all they needed was to outrun most people. But the negotiations did not go smoothly. The people of Ming City would never allow a fully armed pirate crew to enter their city, and the fact that they didn't attack immediately was already something of a concession. If it weren't for the night, for fear of stirring up a commotion, these pirates would have long been taken care of. But now, the combat forces were in hiding, striving to deal with the pirates without attracting attention. When the pirates were turned away, their initial fear transformed into despair and rage: "If you won't let us in, then we'll drag you all down with us. Hahaha, let's all die together..." One crew member, his face smeared with the blood of his comrades, suddenly went berserk, brandishing his signature weapon—a rocket cannon—and unleashed a barrage at the people on the city wall. After one blast, apparently not satisfied, he fired another, which is why the city suddenly resounded with cannon fire. "Damn pirates, kill them all! Immediately, notify the entire city and put everyone on high alert," the middle-aged leader commanded, his face changing drastically. (End of Chapter) ========================================================= DROP THEM POWER STONES PLEASE SUPPORT ME ON P@TREON IF YOU'D LIKE ACCESS ON ADVANCED CHAPTERS PAT REON . COM / TurdTranslations (Just remove the space).