Chapter 329: Chapter 330: Return to Alvis Island
Marineford, Marine Headquarters Fortress.
Sengoku, clad in his justice coat, stood on the top floor of the fortress, his face somewhat pale, gazing down at the quarter-damaged headquarters and the distant, ruined Marineford Port.
This battle had cost the Marines hundreds of lives, two sunken warships, and extensive repairs to the fortress and port—a truly massive loss.
"Now, now~ Fleet Admiral Sengoku, is Kaido still locked up in a sea prison ship like last time?" Kizaru, with one arm dangling, jauntily walked up to Sengoku.
"If you could kill him, he wouldn’t need to be locked in a prison ship," Sengoku retorted, glancing at Kizaru. "Where’s Aokiji?"
It wasn’t the first time the Marines had captured Kaido, but they simply couldn’t kill him. Every time they caught him, it wasn’t long before he escaped. They didn’t even dare put him in Impel Down. This was why so many prison ships had been sunk. If the world knew this, the Marines would lose face entirely.
As for killing Kaido, no one or no weapon currently seemed capable of it. Perhaps the ancient weapon Pluton, capable of sinking an island with a single shot, could do it. Or maybe the legendary Uranus, or even the most mysterious national treasure of Mariejois. No one had tried those, but even the world’s strongest man, Whitebeard, couldn’t kill Kaido.
"Now, now~ spare me the trouble," Kizaru raised a hand as if surrendering, then replied, "As for Aokiji, well~ he’s probably sleeping in the hospital."
"That lazy bum," Sengoku’s eye twitched. He turned to Kizaru and said, "The matter of imprisoning Kaido is yours. Lock him up far away." As he spoke, Sengoku waved his hand, directly leaving the top floor.
Kizaru opened his mouth, about to say something, but found Sengoku had already left. Feeling a bit helpless, he scratched his head and grumbled, "What if he suddenly wakes up? This is troublesome, ne~."
...
Alvis Island.
A colossal three-masted black wolf-head warship sailed into the port.
The port of Alvis was now vastly different from before. Flying the Chris Pirates’ flag, seven or eight ships of varying sizes were moored within. The coastline was mostly fortified with sturdy, large bluestone blocks, forming a tall city wall. The highest sections reached eighteen meters, with the lowest being fifteen meters. Aside from the main port entrance, the rest of the coastline walls were less than ten meters from the sea, leaving barely enough space to stand.
Watchtowers, sentry posts, cannon towers, and castles were all present, strategically placed along every defensible point of the coast. The port alone had a castle on each side, and another in the center, forming a massive defensive fortress. It was armed with an intimidating array of cannons, from heavy 48-pound fortress guns to smaller 8-pound field guns.
The Chris sailed into the port.
Aeridar, Oliver, and Vade disembarked, stepping onto the shore. Following them, the crew members also streamed off the ship.
"Captain, what a rare sight!" a burly man approached, his ugly face instantly recognizable.
"Otto, you’ve been doing well these past two years, you’ve gotten even stronger," Aeridar grinned, looking at the newcomer with a smile.
Otto was far more mature than before. His black shirt with red stripes bulged with muscles, and he wore a grey-brown fleece coat. A hideous scar ran from his right cheek down to his neck, making him look even more terrifying alongside his ugly face. His gait was quick and decisive.
"What’s there to say? The Captain has hoarded a lot of good liquor but won’t let us drink it! If you don’t have good liquor, don’t even think about getting rid of me!" Oliver pouted and began to clamor.
"Hahahaha~" Otto laughed heartily, waving his hand. "Plenty of good liquor to go around!"
"Allow me to introduce you, this is our newest brother, Vade-san, the renowned great scientist of mechanics and physics," Aeridar said, gesturing to Vade beside him as Otto approached. Then, Aeridar pointed to Otto and said, "This is Otto, the captain of the Fifth Division, the Scientific Defense Unit."
"Hello, Otto-san, I am Vade. Please guide me in the future," Vade said, a smile immediately appearing on his face as he looked at Otto, who was two heads taller than him.
"Dorot Otto. Vade-san, I’ve heard of your reputation. Welcome aboard." Otto extended his hand and shook Vade’s hand cordially. Having been stationed here for years, Otto had been influenced and had heard Switch Dalt mention some famous scientists in the world, among them Mechanic Vade.
The four walked into the port, conversing as they went.
"Where’s Dalt? And Enrod and Galan?" Aeridar asked, not seeing his chief scientist.
"That guy Dalt is still in the lab, working on Project 01," Otto shrugged. "Because Project 03 is undergoing live combat testing today, to prevent any special circumstances, those two went to supervise."
Although Aeridar only had Dalt as a world-class great scientist, he had recruited many other scientists. While not as skilled as Dalt, they were more than capable of assisting and acting as deputies. Thus, many experiments only required Dalt’s leadership, with the rest left to the others.
"Live combat testing for Project 03, huh... Otto, take us along to see it. And let Vade-san witness our capabilities," Aeridar said, a smile playing on his lips.
Hearing this, Vade’s eyes flashed, but he said nothing.
"Then, follow me," Otto glanced at Vade, nodded, and led the way.
Under Otto’s guidance, the group boarded a steam-powered vehicle and drove deeper into the island.
Passing through the port, they entered a bustling town filled with people.
This town was originally founded by the descendants of the Gamas Kingdom.
Although the Chris Pirates had occupied it, they had not enslaved the inhabitants. Instead, they treated them well and vigorously developed the town.
Now, it could be said that they had completely won the hearts of the town’s residents.
Most of the hunters had joined the Chris Pirates, some becoming members of the Fifth Division, others transferred to different divisions.
Many hunters who hadn’t joined were still racking their brains to become part of the Chris Pirates, and even the children’s dream in the town was to join them.
Furthermore, the former second-in-command hunter, Archie, and the third-in-command hunter, Andrei, had also become Fifth Division cadres, with Archie even serving as the Fifth Division’s Deputy Commander.
However, the vehicle did not drive into the town but instead headed for the wilderness. Half a kilometer away, a massive fortress-like castle stood. This fortress-castle was the original headquarters of the Chris Pirates, but now it served as the headquarters of the Fifth Division.
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