Chapter 49

Night fell.

The warship sailed out of the dock and left Sherry Island amidst the champagne salute of the Whale Shipbuilding Company.

"The next stop is Loguetown. It’s not far, we can arrive in four or five days at most. That Mr. Gandolf gave us enough food and fresh water for ten days, more than enough to cope with this voyage."

Kuina studied the sea chart, bending down and pointing at it.

"Loguetown is the town closest to the entrance of Reverse Mountain in the entire East Blue. There is a Marine branch stationed there, and the public security is relatively stable. It can be used as the last stop in the East Blue. Captain, after we replenish food and fresh water there, we can officially head to the Grand Line!"

She had read extensively since she was a child and knew a lot of knowledge about navigation, so before finding a professional navigator partner, she took the initiative to temporarily take on the responsibilities of this position.

And the lack of navigation experience could be compensated by asking Zeff for advice.

"Yeah, let’s do that..."

Xia Nuo lay limply on the back of the silver wolf figurehead, while Gin on the side was glaring at the figurehead with great unhappiness, baring its teeth at it from time to time.

Kuina calling him Captain made him feel comfortable all over.

Although he had already been called that before officially going to sea.

But when he really had his own warship, and was called that again, the feeling was completely different.

He was more and more satisfied with this ship. The training room specifications were even higher than he thought, and the decoration style of the bedrooms and corridors followed a minimalist solid wood style, with some small Bohemian-style decorations, which were also very much to his taste.

Just missing a good name.

The four of them had already discussed the ship’s name together, but the names they came up with were all a bit off—Silver Wolf, Great Swordsman, Frost Moon Coconut, Iron Fist...

In the end, the names became more and more outrageous. Xia Nuo almost wanted to call it "The Flying Dutchman," but fortunately, he calmed down in the end, and everyone unanimously decided to postpone it and consider it for a few more days.

"Hey, Nojiko."

Xia Nuo yawned and looked up at the mast. "You’ve been up there for over an hour; hasn't the novelty worn off yet? It’s about time to come down, wash up, and sleep."

"Eh? Why, let me watch a bit more, Brother~!"

Nojiko started acting like a spoiled child as she did when she was little. It was the first time she had boarded such a large ship’s lookout tower, and everything looked novel.

Really no choice, Xia Nuo waved his hand, and Nojiko giggled and picked up the monocular telescope again.

I don't know how much time passed, Nojiko suddenly let out a light "eh": "Brother, there seems to be a pirate ship over there? This pirate flag, it looks so familiar..."

She frowned and racked her brains to think. "Seems to be the Black Cat Pirates?"

Black Cat?

Hundred Plans Kuro?!

Are there points delivered to the door again?

Xia Nuo sat up straight with a swish and issued the first order as captain: "Then what are we waiting for, hurry up, sail the ship over!"

The ship really sailed over, and everyone realized something was wrong.

This Black Cat Pirates’ ship only had the front half left, as if it had been divided into two sections by something from the middle.

The cut was smooth and flat, and as for the remaining hull behind, it didn't know where it had drifted.

Stepping onto the deck, there were corpses everywhere, and the smell of blood was soaring to the sky.

Xia Nuo saw Kuro’s upper body on a rattan chair under a parasol. A look of horror remained on the other’s face, as if he had seen something unbelievable before he died.

"What on earth..."

Kuina squatted on the edge of the cut cross-section, her brows furrowed. "There won't be any mistake, this biting feeling of being cut in two, it’s definitely sword Qi slashed by a Master Swordsman..."

But there were only three Master Swordsmen in the East Blue.

Her, her father Koushiro, and Lord Xia Nuo.

Where did this Master Swordsman she hadn't met yet pop out from?

"Ghost knows."

Xia Nuo was happy. He didn't care who the one who made the underhanded move was. Maybe it was Kuro’s bad luck, bumping into Hawkeye peeing and shaking his bird on the bow, who knows.

Taking advantage of the others going to check other places, he hummed a happy little tune and began to skillfully shear the wool.

Kuro’s ten metal claws, Jango’s hypnotic pocket watch...

And he didn't let go of those two cat-man cadres who looked familiar but couldn't name for a while, and casually stripped their weapons too.

Added together, a total of 1000 points were obtained.

It was actually more than the Don Krieg Pirates, making the remaining points return to the 30,000 mark.

"Brother, searched it, there isn't much treasure on the ship, mainly cash, totaling 50 million Berries."

Nojiko poked her head out of the cabin door and reported on her fingers. "Added to the funds we have on the ship now, it’s exactly 80 million Berries."

Is it about to exceed 100 million?

Xia Nuo nodded. He left all the bounties he earned from Branch 77 to his family, and he only brought tens of millions out.

Going out to sea, there are opportunities everywhere. As long as you have strength, are you afraid of not making money?

"There’s also quite a lot of food that can be taken away."

Zeff came to report happily after checking the kitchen. "Hehe, these pirates seem to have just finished replenishing food and wine, and haven't moved much yet. It’s enough for us to eat for a month."

Points, treasure, food... the harvest delivered to the door was quite complete.

Of course, there was one last thing that couldn't be forgotten.

Xia Nuo waved his hand and ordered: "Remember to cut off their heads and bring them. When we arrive at Loguetown, find the Marines there and collect the bounty!"

Food doesn't need to be replenished there.

But no matter what, Loguetown was a place he had to visit.

There, there was still a big fat sheep that hadn't been harvested for several years, quietly waiting for him!

…………

Five days later.

The four of them surrounded the long table on the deck, staring at the sea chart with inconceivable expressions.

"Didn't they say it would take four or five days to reach Loguetown at most..." Xia Nuo pinched his chin. "Why is there no one around, and I haven't even seen an island?"

"..."

Kuina supported the table with her hands, silent for a long time, before struggling to spit out the words. "It should be... off course. Our current route seems, seems to be more biased toward the direction of the Goa Kingdom..."

"What are you doing?"

Nojiko attacked from behind, poking Kuina’s waist vigorously. "When you patted your chest and said confidently that you could be a navigator before, it wasn't this expression!"

"Plans can't keep up with changes..."

Kuina was aggrieved and didn't have the face to argue more, but she had really tried her best. For the first two days, with Zeff’s assistance, the route was normal, and everything was under control.

But on the third day, there was a rainstorm, vision was blocked, and the wind direction was chaotic.

After this rainstorm that lasted for a day and a night stopped, she discovered that the route had deviated significantly from the original plan.

"This can't be blamed on you, don't take it to heart. Anyway, adjust it back first, continue to head toward Loguetown, it won't delay for a few days."

Xia Nuo smiled and patted Kuina on the shoulder to comfort her. He didn't care about this, but this matter did indeed give him a wake-up call.

This was in the East Blue, it didn't matter if it was off course.

As long as it was discovered early, it could still return to the original route quickly by relying on the compass.

But what to do when going to the Grand Line?

The magnetic field there is chaotic, the wind and ocean currents are all unpredictable, the compass completely loses its effect, and one can only rely on the Log Pose to lead the way. The risk is far greater than the East Blue.

It seems that the plan to find a reliable navigator must be put on the agenda as soon as possible.

"Beep..." Just at this moment, a prompt sound suddenly rang in his ears. Xia Nuo was stunned for a moment, then reacted, his eyes showing surprise.

This is...

The Devil Fruit Detection Radar, finally responded?

Rumble!

Almost at the same time, the hull suddenly shook and began to bump violently. The people on the deck staggered and almost fell to the ground.

"What’s going on?"

Xia Nuo turned off the backpack bar and turned his head to shout loudly.

"It’s a whirlpool current, and the scale is quite large!!"

Kuina rushed to the helm, twisting it back and forth desperately, trying to keep the hull balanced. "It’s sucking us in a certain direction... Damn it! We haven't even entered the Grand Line yet, how could we encounter such a thing!!"

(End of chapter)