Chapter 18: Pirates

Heavy footsteps approached as a large group of guards rushed toward the office.

Due to their numbers, the guards crowded tightly at the office entrance.

“Listen up—this is our new boss, Lord Baiye.”

Hank stood beside Su Xiao, making his allegiance clear.

The surrounding guards looked confused, but when Su Xiao raised the appointment letter, they understood at once.

“Greetings, Boss.”

“Boss, I’m Kaba.”

“Boss, from now on, we all follow you.”

Compliments poured in, but Su Xiao merely nodded, his gaze fixed on Oka’s two trusted men.

“These two have colluded with pirates, aiming to disrupt the capital’s order…”

Before Su Xiao finished speaking, the two of Oka’s men suddenly drew weapons and pointed them at him.

“Brothers, don’t listen to him—Oka is our real boss!”

Su Xiao froze, surprised. Could these two really be that stupid?

It wasn’t that they were foolish—they were terrified by Su Xiao’s current position and his earlier words.

Su Xiao had just said he’d make them stay here forever.

“Attack! These two have colluded with pirates and are now exposed—they’re openly rebelling!”

Hank reacted instantly, grasping the situation.

“Pathetic… idiots.”

Su Xiao sat behind the desk, motionless—he no longer needed to act himself.

A flood of guards surged forward; in that moment, Oka’s two men were utterly doomed.

“Wait, we only meant to…”

Before they could explain, the guards slashed wildly with their blades.

Clashing weapons, gunshots, and the sound of flesh being torn echoed through the room.

Thirty seconds later, two mangled corpses lay on the floor; every guard was splattered with blood.

The stench of blood filled the air.

It seemed absurd—but it wasn’t.

In the pirate world, the rules were brutally simple: the strong controlled everything; the weak only waited to die.

In this blood-smeared office, the royal messenger swallowed hard. Su Xiao’s ruthlessness chilled him; his original plan to extract favors vanished entirely.

“Clean this up. You’re dismissed.”

Soon, only three remained: Su Xiao, Hank, and the messenger.

Hank didn’t leave—he stood rigidly beside Su Xiao.

Su Xiao glanced at Hank once, then ignored him. He knew too little about the Guard Headquarters—he needed someone like Hank, a seasoned veteran.

A clever, ambitious assistant—he needed one badly.

“Lord Baiye, please have your subordinate step out—I have urgent news to convey.”

“No. He’s my ‘trusted man.’”

At Su Xiao’s words, Hank smiled.

“Very well. This is it: you’ve heard of the ‘operation’ tonight, correct?”

The messenger’s “operation” referred to the burning of the Scrap Terminal.

“I’ve heard.”

“Good. Here’s the order: three pirate crews are suitable for this task. We’ve made preliminary contact with all three. Now, you must meet them and choose one to carry out tonight’s ‘operation.’”

“Hmm?” Su Xiao turned to the messenger, his eyes gleaming with interest.

“I get to decide who does it?”

“Yes. We’ve only heard rumors about these pirates—we need to meet them firsthand before deciding.”

With a clear answer, Su Xiao was elated—he had chosen correctly. His current status was proving vital.

“Understood. I’ll contact the three crews shortly.”

The messenger smiled at Su Xiao, then turned to leave.

“By the way—one more thing: although there are three crews, only one may carry out tomorrow’s plan. All details are in the documents.”

The messenger departed under Hank’s respectful escort. Su Xiao picked up the documents on the desk.

They contained the detailed plan for burning the Scrap Terminal:

Choose one pirate crew, supply them with explosives, and use the explosives to ignite the Scrap Terminal.

Three pirate crews were available for selection.

The first was the Bursam Pirates, a native force of the Goa Kingdom—the same crew that fought young Luffy and Ace in the original story.

The second was the Krieg Pirates, who had recently sailed into nearby waters.

Seeing this crew’s information, Su Xiao was surprised—they were another crew he recognized.

The Krieg Pirates were a well-known crew from the East Blue. In the original story, they were annihilated by Mihawk, fled to the Baratie, fought Luffy’s crew, and were ultimately defeated.

Though this was ten years before the original timeline, the Krieg Pirates were still powerful, with roughly six hundred men across their fleet.

The third crew, the Skullbone Pirates, were weak—Su Xiao dismissed them immediately.

According to the original story, the Bursam Pirates were mediocre—they were defeated by young Luffy, Ace, and a band of bandits.

But the Krieg Pirates—he had high hopes for them. He needed to meet them first.

“Hank, contact the Krieg Pirates.”

Hank smiled awkwardly.

“Uh, Boss…”

Hank’s reaction made Su Xiao understand.

“Handle it. You must meet them today.”

Clearly, Hank could reach the Krieg Pirates. What their relationship was—Su Xiao didn’t care.

Government officials colluding with pirates was common in the pirate world—many financial dealings existed between them.

Hank didn’t disappoint. Within two hours, he arranged a meeting location with the Krieg Pirates.

The location was, of course, inside the capital—no one trusted pirates.

In a filthy alley of the civilian district, several men in loose black robes and hooded cloaks stood alert, scanning the surroundings.

“Boss Krieg, this is it. The old warehouse ahead is the meeting point.”

A thin pirate, a sailor’s knife at his waist, stood nervously behind a tall man.

The man wore the same loose black robe and hood, but gaps in his clothing revealed a golden battle armor beneath.

“Hmm. Wait here. Akin, come with me.”

Krieg’s voice was low; each step rang with the clink of armor.

“Yes, Boss.”

Akin dressed the same, weapons hidden in his sleeves.

“Boss, they say the new Guard Chief is extremely ruthless. We should be cautious.”

Krieg turned his head toward Akin.

“Huh? Do you think I can’t handle a Guard Chief? If not for the advantages a noble title brings, I wouldn’t lift a finger for the Goa Kingdom.”

Arrogance was a common flaw among pirates.

Akin said nothing. The two walked toward the warehouse.