“Has everyone come down?”
“They’re all down!”
“Good. Blow up the lift!”
Not long ago, at Red Port, the slaves who had escaped from Mariejois were transferred through Bondola and had already returned to Red Port.
The prepared coated ships were long ready to receive them, and with the newly freed slaves aboard, they submerged into the deep sea.
Even with communications cut off, this was not a place to linger.
Bondola was destroyed by explosives, cutting off the route for pursuers from above. Aside from a few officers staying behind to cover the rear, everyone else had evacuated.
“Why are you still here? Didn’t I tell you to withdraw as quickly as possible?”
When Nereus returned below, he quickly spotted Sebastian and the others who were still waiting.
“Everyone else has already left. Just the few of us stayed behind to wait for you, Boss. If the Marines react in time, we can help you block their reinforcements.”
“They can’t stop me.”
“Doesn’t matter. As long as you can get out safely, Boss, that’s enough.”
“What’s that supposed to mean? This is only the first step. Let’s go, we’re heading home!”
For those strong enough, their movement speed far surpassed any other means of transportation. It didn’t take long for them to catch up with the ships that were already descending.
Inside the ships, all kinds of complicated emotions were intertwined.
“Freedom… so this is what freedom tastes like!”
“I’m alive… I’m still alive… hahaha!”
Smack! Smack!
Nearby, a woman kept slapping herself across the face. The sharp pain couldn’t hide the smile spreading across her face.
“This is wonderful… it’s not a dream, this really isn’t a dream…”
The joy of regaining freedom left the slaves overwhelmed. Leaving that hell alive was something they had never dared imagine before today.
The busiest people aboard were the psychologists.
Life as slaves had inflicted more than just physical damage. Those who could cry and laugh were actually in relatively good shape, at least somewhat normal.
Some sat silently in the corner of the cabin, seemingly indifferent to everything around them. Those were the most troublesome cases; they would need a long time to untangle their minds.
Whether they could reintegrate into normal society was another question entirely.
“Boss is back!”
“Look carefully, this is the man who saved you! It was Boss Nereus who gave you your freedom back!”
Seeing Nereus return, the Fish-Men aboard began introducing his identity to the newly freed slaves.
“Let them rest. Whatever needs to be said can wait.”
Nereus didn’t care about a few words of thanks or cheers. Compared to empty reputation, he cared more about tangible results.
But that didn’t stop the people on board from expressing their gratitude. No matter what the future might bring, at this moment their thanks were sincere.
“Lord Nereus, I’m not a good man. I used to be a pirate… but please give me a chance! From this moment on, my life belongs to you!”
“Me too! Whatever order you give, I’ll follow! If it’s against the World Government… dying doesn’t matter!”
Life in Mariejois had made them feel worse than death. That existence, where they couldn’t live freely nor die, filled their hearts with fury toward the World Government.
What had sustained them wasn’t just the desire to live, but also the obsession with revenge.
“Recuperate your health first. We’ll talk later.”
Those pirates rescued from auction houses, who had only recently been captured as slaves, were usually handed over to the Marines in exchange for bounties.
But those filled with hatred toward the World Government could still be put to use. One could say there were two different methods of handling them.
The total number of slaves in Mariejois was not small, and the aftermath would require a great deal of work.
Meanwhile, in Mariejois, the scene was entirely different.
The supreme rulers of the World Government spoken of in rumors, the highest authorities of the World Government, the Five Elders, the five legendary “pose kings”—were seated together in the conference room.
“He actually dared to come to Mariejois and free those slaves. His actions are becoming more and more outrageous.”
The Warrior God of Justice, Topman Warcury, with his enormous handlebar mustache, was the first to speak.
“Utterly foolish behavior. They’re just a few slaves, what use are they? Does he think something like this can shake the rule of the World Government?”
The white-bearded Warrior God of Environment, Marcus Mars, felt that Nereus was merely doing something insignificant.
“Salazar was killed by him. Just as incompetent as his father and grandfather. Perhaps it was a mistake to let him become Fleet Admiral.”
Saturn considered the Marines utterly useless, while Nusjuro had already begun arranging the Marines’ subsequent affairs.
“Perfect timing. Let Kong take his position. Sengoku, Zephyr, and Garp can all be promoted to Admirals at the same time. The Admiral seats in the Marines have been vacant for too long, this is a good opportunity to fill them all at once.
The Marines ultimately answer to us. We can’t let them lose too much face.”
In the mouths of the Five Elders, the Marine Fleet Admiral was nothing more than a chess piece. If one proved unsuitable, they would simply replace him with a more useful one. With just a few casual remarks, everything seemed decided.
“More importantly, how should we respond to this matter concerning Nereus?”
Among them, the youngest-looking man, the golden short-haired Warrior God of Agriculture, Shepherd Ju Peter, raised his question.
“Isn’t he a pirate? Naturally, we let the Marines deal with him. Isn’t that their duty? Or is there anyone here who wants to personally go to the deep sea to handle it?”
Saturn still believed the matter was trivial, not even worth much attention. They only needed to follow the usual procedures for dealing with pirates.
In short, aside from raising his bounty, they would do nothing.
He wasn’t Joy Boy, his ability wasn’t Nika, nor was he a Davy. Setting those aside, in the eyes of the Five Elders, everything else was trivial matter.
Yes, he burned the Holy Land, took away slaves, and killed the Marine Fleet Admiral.
But he hadn’t slaughtered Celestial Dragons, eaten the Nika Fruit, or abducted a Celestial Dragon’s heir. It still wasn’t worth their personal intervention. Otherwise, why maintain so many Marines?
“Even so, we must do something. Otherwise, where will our dignity go? Didn’t he take control of Fish-Man Island? Then we can…”
Peter still felt they should act, but his words suddenly caught in his throat.
Fish-Man Island was indeed an affiliated nation. However, for over a hundred years, it had seemed almost cut off from the world. Even if they wanted to impose sanctions, there was no clear way to begin.
If they simply raised the bounty, that would be no different from what Saturn had just suggested.
“We can discuss this matter later. For now, let’s deal with what’s in front of us.”
Warcury sensed Peter’s awkwardness and smoothly changed the subject.
“Indeed. The Levely is to be convened this year. Mariejois must be repaired before the conference begins. The World Government cannot afford to lose face before those kings.”
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