Chapter 34: What Fills the Heart

Seeing the Marines arrive, Gao Wen felt a sudden urge to retreat.

So far in the battle, he had delayed Smoker’s advance by several hours.

If Clove still hadn’t found a way to escape or hide after all this time, he ought to consider replacing his first mate.

Thinking this,

Gao Wen turned to leave—but his gaze paused as he spotted a familiar figure amid the white smoke.

Akin, long since gravely wounded, now lay utterly powerless on the ground, blood oozing from his wounds.

Only the faint rise and fall of his chest proved he still lived.

“Lucky bastard.”

Gao Wen sneered, then vanished in an instant—along with Akin’s body.

…

Crow Harbor.

As the battle ended, the drifting dust gradually cleared, and Daski led a group of Marines swiftly down from the warship.

“Colonel Smoker, how did the fight go?”

“Knight Gao Wen is a dangerous man—far more dangerous than we, or even the Marines, anticipated.”

Smoker stared at the spot where Gao Wen had vanished, his expression grim:

“I have a feeling that if we don’t stop him here in the East Blue, in a few years the New World might see another Red-Haired.”

As he spoke, Smoker raised his arm.

Only then did he notice his fingers, still gripping the ten-thorn, were trembling uncontrollably.

He clenched his fist tightly and said coldly:

“Crow Harbor has no other exit—seal the port immediately. Only allow entry, no exits.”

“Also, bring me my spare ten-thorn.”

Daski blinked in surprise and reminded him:

“That spare one has no sea-prism stone. Its hardness and suppression against Devil Fruit users are both greatly reduced.”

“That’s exactly the one I want.”

“So the enemy took your weapon too?”

Daski sucked in a breath, her wariness toward the unseen Knight Gao Wen deepening.

She knew Smoker’s strength better than anyone—he was among the very best of his generation, and in the East Blue, he was pure waste.

The man who could beat Smoker into submission and steal his weapon would be a fearsome figure even in the Grand Line.

“Colonel Smoker, what exactly—!”

Daski was about to press further when her superior’s face darkened, nearly biting his two cigars in half:

“Don’t ask what you shouldn’t!”

“Yes, sir!”

Daski snapped to attention. As she pondered, Smoker’s voice, barely above a whisper, reached her ear:

“By the way, send two men to try and retrieve my sea-prism ten-thorn. It’s probably around there—it was custom-made, expensive, worth several years’ salary.”

“Huh?”

Daski stared, dumbfounded.

“So it got knocked into the sea by the opponent?”

Smoker sighed:

“I already told you not to ask—I threw it in myself!”

Daski looked utterly confused.

What kind of move was that?

Smoker simply dropped the subject and turned his gaze to the burning harbor:

“Also, assign some Marines to assist the harbor guards with rescue operations.”

“Yes.”

Smoker nodded, then stared grimly at the spot where Gao Wen had vanished:

“I’ll lead the search personally. This time, we must leave him here—if he escapes to the Grand Line, it’ll be our shame.”

Soon,

Rows of Marines, under Daski’s command, fanned out across the harbor—rescuing civilians and sweeping every possible hiding spot.

From residential zones to commercial districts to the outer black market, they found nothing but a few escaped convicts.

The next morning,

The sun rose, its light spilling into the harbor, and the situation gradually came under Marine control.

Smoker listened to Daski’s reports, studied Crow Harbor’s map, and frowned slightly:

“You said another group of Marines was rescuing civilians before we arrived?”

“That’s right.”

Daski nodded:

“But strangely, after we took over the harbor, they began leaving in an organized manner—by the end, we didn’t even know which base they came from.”

“Colonel Smoker, could they be Captain Rat’s men?”

Smoker snorted:

“I’d rather believe they’re pirates in disguise than trust anything Rat’s crew left behind.”

“Still, whoever they are, they’re not enemies. Our priority now is capturing Knight Gao Wen!”

As he spoke, Smoker pointed to the map’s central location:

“The only place we haven’t searched is the Lord’s Manor.”

“This…”

Daski hesitated:

“We don’t have a warrant to search the Lord’s Manor. Acting without one would violate protocol.”

“Protocol?”

Smoker sneered:

“How many times have we let pirates slip away because of these meaningless rules, only for chaos to erupt elsewhere?”

“These rigid traditions should be burned to ash—capturing pirates and crushing evil is the only true protocol!”

“Come with me!”

“Yes!”

…

At the same time,

Inside the Lord’s Manor.

As Daski’s Marines entered the harbor, Clove had ordered his men to retreat systematically to the manor—now nearly all of Gao Wen’s crew had gathered there.

The manor’s physician was tending to their wounds.

But their physical injuries were minor—the complex expressions on their faces spoke louder.

“I never thought our mission today would be rescue—not looting or escape.”

One of Clove’s former pirates pulled out a deformed candy from his pocket, his expression wistful.

“The look on that girl’s face when we pulled her from the rubble—I’ll never forget it.”

“Yeah, even when we followed Captain Gao, we never attacked nearby towns—but people still looked at us with fear.”

“You wouldn’t believe it—the old lady grabbed my hand and said she wanted to marry her daughter to me. That was….”

“How could she marry a pirate?”

“Hahaha~”

…

As they talked about today’s events, they felt something unfamiliar slowly filling their hearts—and soon, tears glistened in their eyes.

Clove watched silently, murmuring:

“This isn’t the way pirates behave~”

“But they’re content, aren’t they?”

Gasha looked at the pirates dressed in Marine uniforms, a faint smile rising on his face:

“They’re Gao Wen’s men—different from other pirates. That man, once a royal knight, still clings to the spirit of knighthood, even without the title.”

“Hmph.”

Clove said nothing, but at the mention of Gao Wen, worry crept into his expression:

“The battle in the harbor has been quiet for a long time… don’t you die here…”

Boom!

The manor’s gates burst open—Gao Wen appeared, carrying Akin on his shoulder.

“You’re in such a hurry to inherit my ant flower… damn it, to inherit my position?”

(End of Chapter)