Chapter 268: The Shipwright's Dream and Roubo Luqi's Resolve

"Really?!"

"Something like this…"

The big-bearded Delruson widened his eyes; his skin was dark, but his whole face flushed red with excitement:

"Can we really do it?!"

"How would we know if we don't try?"

"Besides, if we really can build this ship, our names should be left in history, right?!"

……

Everyone chimed in one after another, and the room instantly grew heated.

Within just a few seconds, they had already begun arguing over what materials the hull should use, how the propulsion system should be designed…

At this very moment.

Franky, on the other hand, appeared unusually calm.

In his heart he had long had a ship that could serve as the masterwork of his life; he had even worked out a concrete design, only lacking the chance to bring it to earth.

But looking at the blueprints in his hands, Franky knew his original design would probably have to start over.

As the shipwright second only to Bingshan in Water 7—no, after Bingshan gradually set aside his shipwright work and turned his energy toward the administrative affairs of Water 7—Franky was already the foremost shipwright of Water 7.

But even when he saw the Pluton blueprints, all he felt in his heart was an inexpressible awe.

It was a monster condensed from the technology of an era, the blood and sweat of countless top shipwrights coalesced into one—no single person's strength could match it.

Moreover, what now lay in Franky's hands was, on the framework of the Pluton blueprints, an even more fantastical monster after adjustments and revisions.

Reason told him this ship had already surpassed everything he knew, even every warship he could imagine—a pure monster that existed only in fantasy.

With existing technology, it simply could not be realized.

But which shipwright's original dream was not to build an unprecedented warship?

And now that very possibility was laid out before him!

To make these blueprints reality…

Once such a thought appeared in Franky's mind, it clung to him like a demon he could not shake off.

"If we don't give it a try, we'll never be at peace with ourselves for the rest of our lives!"

Franky raised a hand to adjust the sunglasses on his head; his pale-blue pompadour rose high at this moment:

"Challenging a legend—that's a man's romance too!

"Mmm~~~~super!"

"Hahahahaha~"

Bally burst out laughing, unable to help pointing at Franky:

"I knew you wouldn't be able to sit still!"

"Hmph~"

The two exchanged a glance, with a certain sense that everything was understood without words.

However.

Roubo Luqi, who had been sitting quietly to one side, at this point threw a bucket of cold water on the wildly excited crowd:

"This thing is meant to serve as the Pluton blueprints, to be handed over to pirates and underground forces—only that way can the crisis of Water 7 be resolved."

"The primary task before us right now is still to help Water 7 escape its current predicament."

Franky waved a hand, utterly unbothered:

"You're not wrong."

"But these blueprints likewise have no possibility of being realized as they are—many of the internal parameters have been modified by us."

"What we must do is absolutely not to build it straight off the blueprints, but to use them as a basis to create a true legendary warship!"

"This is every shipwright's dream!"

"Besides…"

"I've already chosen the owner for this ship—a person none of you will refuse."

"Don't you go making decisions for us on your own!"

Bang!

Bally's face full of displeasure, he kicked the office desk; the people around him also glared angrily at Franky.

A legendary warship like this, gathering the sweat of history's and the present era's top shipwrights—if it could truly be realized, its value simply could not be measured in money.

It was a magnificent feat worthy of being recorded in the annals of history, becoming legend!

To give such a ship away for nothing—how could they possibly accept it lightly?!

"Exactly, the owner of this ship must also be another legend!"

Delruson squinted sidelong at Franky:

"The person you've picked, it isn't some…"

A playful smile curled at the corner of Franky's mouth:

"That person is Vice Admiral Gao… no, Lancelot!"

Delruson's expression stiffened:

"……"

"I admit I was speaking a bit loudly just now."

Bally, off to the side, silently put his legs down, sat up straight, and pretended nothing had happened.

But looking at the smug smile on Franky's face, he could only feel a surge of irritation he couldn't vent.

"You bastard had this figured out from the very start, didn't you!"

"But indeed."

"Only that man is worthy of this ship!"

Originally, the crowd still felt a bit displeased with Franky's unilateral decision.

But when they heard who the owner of this ship was, that trace of displeasure vanished completely.

In their hearts, only the man corresponding to that name was worthy of such a legend.

At this point.

Those who had begun to doubt Gao Wen's identity were long since more than just Franky, yet no one took it upon themselves to expose it.

Only because whether Gao Wen was a Marine or not had already lost all meaning to them—a man who, at this moment, could step forward for himself and for Water 7, regardless of identity, regardless of blood, was worthy of everyone's respect.

Since they call themselves Marines, then they are Marines!

"Hmph~"

Roubo Luqi smiled faintly, turned his head to exchange a glance with Kaku beside him, and saw only the look of shock on the latter's face.

He leaned over and spoke into Kaku's ear:

"Kaku, this is that man's charm~"

"You are the partner I trust most in CP9—will you leave with me?!"

Kaku was slightly taken aback, but did not reply immediately; a hint of helplessness crept into his eyes:

"Roubo, we know too much."

"The CP organization will absolutely not let us leave. Once they sense this possibility, the only thing waiting for us is an endless pursuit."

"……"

Roubo fell silent for a moment, unable to resist raising a hand to adjust his cap.

What surfaced in his mind was nothing but the experience from Whisky Shanfeng.

He knew Kaku was right.

But once the matter in Water 7 was over, could he really return to Gao Wen's group?

Roubo's heart was in disarray at this moment; he recalled the original reason for leaving Gao Wen's group.

Apart from doing it for Kaku and the others, it was also because he was unwilling to let his own influence cause Gao Wen to lose the skin of a Warlord and fall into the predicament of being hunted by the Marines.

Although Gao Wen now possessed combat power on par with an Admiral.

But one thing Roubo was clear about: the identity of a Warlord was very important to Gao Wen. At least for the next few years, it was very important.

Once lost, the Fighting Tournament and those like Gasha staying behind in East Blue would inevitably be affected.

Besides, the captain himself needs a pair of eyes, doesn't he?

As he thought, Roubo's gaze gradually sharpened.

But with the experience from before, Roubo truly understood what, as a crew member, he ought to do.

A few breaths later.

A few words laden with meaning drifted from Roubo's mouth:

"True enough~"

Very soon.

This meeting came to a complete end.

The moment Barrie and the others finished the meeting, they had no time to rest before receiving Xiang Keluo's order to search the city of Water 7 for ships that could still operate normally.

To prepare for the subsequent evacuation plan.

Though the crowd was somewhat puzzled—why, with the situation so favorable, Gao Wen would come up with an evacuation plan—out of trust in Gao Wen, they said nothing more, treating it merely as a backup strategy.

Franky, meanwhile, took the freshly drawn blueprints and found a printing press still in working order inside the mayor's building, and began photocopying the designs.

Half an hour later.

Over a hundred copies of the design were freshly produced and laid before Gao Wen.

"Is this the forged Pluton blueprint?!"

Gao Wen flipped through them roughly.

These blueprints bore roughly a seventy-percent resemblance to the original Pluton designs; what was more abundant were the various parameters and details.

But as a substitute, it was already sufficient.

After all, the Pluton blueprint forged by Franky and the others was based on the real thing as its template; let alone ordinary pirates who couldn't tell good from bad, even top shipwrights would be unable to spot any issue.

What lay before them next was how to let this thing spread in a reasonable manner.

But on this point, the previous operation in Whole Cake Island had given Gao Wen quite a lesson.

By now, the vast majority of pirates had already lost their reason, like gamblers throwing everything onto the table; any little stir would drive them completely mad.

Let alone this blueprint drawn using the real thing as its template!

Now, with Gao Wen patrolling outside, not a single pirate ship could be seen within several dozen nautical miles around Water 7, but the pirates gathering around Water 7 had not decreased; on the contrary, as time went on, they grew more and more numerous.

They had already killed until their eyes were red, staking nearly everything to come to Water 7 for one gamble; naturally, they dared not give up lightly.

A direct assault was naturally unworkable, yet countless pirates, under the cover of night, attempted to land in the areas around Water 7.

In a flash, deep night had fallen.

The surroundings of Water 7 were terrifyingly still, with only the terrifying waves rising and falling without cease..

In a corner of the harbor, a small boat slowly pulled to shore, and several pirates tiptoed down from the boat.

The pirate leading them had only one eye, and was thus called One-Eye; he looked around nervously, fearing discovery by patrolling pirates.

One pirate, his expression panicked, had the weapons on his body clatter, producing a clinking sound.

"Idiot!"

"Are you trying to get us killed?!"

The one-eyed man kicked the pirate over; the latter face-planted into a dog-eat-dog fall but gritted his teeth, daring not to make a sound.

Another pirate, by moonlight, glanced at the pocket watch in his hand, then spoke urgently:

"Boss, time's almost up. The guard change leaves only a few seconds."

"Quick, quick, quick!"

The one-eyed man lowered his voice, took the lead, and, following the map of Water Seven, moved inward.

"According to the intel the captain received, the refugee camp in Water Seven has been relocated beneath the mayor's office building. The Pluton blueprint must be there."

"Marine reinforcements will arrive in Water Seven in at most two or three days; by then, it'll be too late!"

"Tonight is our last chance!"

"Once we get our hands on that thing, we can easily auction it for a sky-high price of tens or even hundreds of billions of Belly!"

Greed, hard to suppress, rose in everyone's eyes; even their original fear was diluted considerably at that moment.

They moved lightly, avoiding the sentries patrolling around Water Seven, and sped toward the mayor's office building in the interior.

"Wait, why do I feel a bit cold? It's like being watched by some fierce beast!"

"Me too, me too. Boss, do you think maybe..."

"You pig-brained fool? It's just a temperature drop today!"

"Oh, oh, oh..."

"Oh my foot! Move faster; the sooner we get it, the better!"

On top of a tall building in the distance.

Van Augur and Zoro stood side by side on the rooftop.

He held his long rifle, gazing coldly at the pirates infiltrating Water Seven in the distance; his finger instinctively rested on the trigger but did not pull it.

He merely watched those pirates vanish into the night.

Zoro pressed one hand against the three long swords at his waist, a hint of puzzlement in his eyes:

"This is already the seventh wave of infiltrating pirates tonight. What exactly does the captain intend to do?!"

"Mmm~"

Van Augur lowered his Thousand Land, eyelids drooping, looking utterly listless, and said faintly:

"Whatever the captain and Xiang Keluo are plotting is none of our concern; we only need to perfectly carry out that man's will!"

"That's true."

Zoro acknowledged with a sound, then said:

"However, besides letting these pirates in, our other mission is to prevent them from hurting anyone."

"Ah~"

"Another time to decide—no, to create fate!"

The one-eyed man's progress was far smoother than he had imagined.

In just half an hour, he had slipped into the mayor's office building in Water Seven; surprisingly, there wasn't even a shred of proper defense inside.

Had it not been for the obvious signs of activity around, he would have suspected he had gone to the wrong place.

"These guards aren't much; not even a proper defense~"

"Perhaps because the war is too pressing, most forces have already been deployed to the front lines, leaving little spare capacity to worry about this."

The one-eyed man surmised; greed in his heart reached its peak at that moment, and even that slight incongruity was ignored:

"But this is our chance, the chance to get the Pluton blueprint!"

At this very moment.

The one-eyed man's hands trembled constantly, from both tension and excitement.

They searched floor by floor; soon, in the mayor's office, they found a safe. After prying it open, the Pluton blueprint lay quietly inside!

"Found it!"

"The Pluton blueprint, worth tens of billions of Belly!"

The one-eyed man grabbed it tightly in his hand.

All that rose in his mind was his own luxurious life afterward.

And at this very moment.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps echoed from all around, accompanied by repeated calls.

"Quick!"

"We've spotted traces of pirate infiltration! We can't let them discover what's in the mayor's office, or we're all done for!"

"Otherwise, everything is ruined!"

The one-eyed man jolted, smashed through the office window, leaped down, and fled for his life, abandoning his companions.

The remaining pirates on the spot watched helplessly as the main door was pushed open.

Creak~!

A burly man with an extremely thick forearm and a blue pompadour pushed open the office door, his expression slightly awkward:

"Uh... did I come too early?!"

"No!"

The man holding a rope in one hand and a cigar in his mouth shook his head, looking at the figure gradually disappearing outside the window:

"You came at just the right time."

"The leader has already fled with the counterfeit; these fellows have been abandoned, and we have one more design blueprint to send out."

"In that case, just tonight alone, we have already sent out more than seven copies."

"According to Lieutenant General Xia Luote's arrangements, it is about time to spread the news externally that the Hades design blueprint has been stolen."

"Hehehe~"

The two shared a knowing smile and bumped their fists together.

Several pirates watching the smiles on their faces felt nothing but a chill run down their spines.

(End of Chapter)