A thick mass of swamp surged, covering the rooftop, flowing down the eaves onto the four walls, gradually enveloping the entire bungalow. Wilder's expression was grave; he had just captured something from within it. It was a signal brought about by the unraveling of his ability. His swamp power had undergone a new change, and this change was none other than from one of its characteristics—Containment.
"What was the catalyst for this change?" Wilder frowned, trying to grasp that feeling while pondering. No change occurs without reason. Wilder believed something must have triggered this transformation. "I haven't focused on developing this characteristic for a long time, nor have I used it. Could it be that during this period, the swamp's containment characteristic has already been evolving?" This wasn't impossible. If it had been undergoing gradual, long-term changes, then the current transformation would make sense. And his recent application of it was clearly the process that pushed this change forward.
"Then what about the other characteristics?" Wilder mused. Since the containment characteristic had changed covertly, there was no reason the other characteristics wouldn't also change. But what caused this change? Wilder had some guesses. Firstly, his overall development and application of his swamp abilities had improved. Secondly, the enhancement of his own physical constitution might have automatically unlocked shackles within his Devil Fruit power that would have otherwise required specific development, since the body determines the fruit's capabilities. The final point was the reason of his soul. Wilder leaned towards the possibility that all three factors were involved.
However, this was still just speculation. Wilder wasn't yet sure if other characteristics had changed. For now, he could only focus wholeheartedly on capturing that feeling, otherwise, it might be fleeting, and he could miss the opportunity.
He closed his eyes again. His Observation Haki, while monitoring his surroundings, also participated in trying to grasp it. Before long, Wilder's eyes snapped open, a gleam flashing within them.
Got it! A hint of a smile appeared. Wilder, with a surge of effort, finally captured that sensation.
Vmmm...! An invisible ripple swept over the swamp. The swamp seemed to gain even more momentum, writhing frantically.
Gurgle, gurgle. The bungalow enveloped by the swamp seemed to turn into air at that moment, allowing the swamp to contract without revealing even a corner, as if the house was shrinking along with the compressing swamp. Gradually, the swamp that had expanded to completely cover the entire house shrank in the blink of an eye to the size of a fist, connected by a thread, flowing along the thread, and slowly surged into Wilder's body.
Silently, a bungalow vanished from its original spot, leaving only a wide, flat piece of land. Wilder descended from mid-air, his body showing no bulges or protrusions, maintaining its normal appearance. The containment characteristic had undergone a qualitative change.
A trace of joy appeared on Wilder's face, but it quickly returned to calm, his expression serene. After waiting a moment and confirming everything was intact, swamp gushed from Wilder's palm, instantly forming a pool-sized volume. Swamp continued to pour from his palm, pushing Wilder upwards. Simultaneously, the swamp below, under the propulsive force, surged and undulated, gradually taking the shape of a bungalow. Once everything was complete and calm again, Wilder retracted the swamp. A bungalow reappeared, perfectly intact, in its original location, completely unchanged, everything as it was before.
"Perhaps… 'Containment' should be renamed 'Storage,'" Wilder mused to himself, then jumped off the roof, landing on the ground before the door. He opened the door and went inside. In the room, little Aisha was sleeping soundly, seemingly unaffected by everything that had just happened. He glanced at her, gently closed the door, and left the room again.
Sitting on the corridor, his gaze, however, was directed towards the Royal Palace. Full-scale war would likely erupt in less than two days. Before that, he needed to make some plans and preparations for his own objectives. After some thought, with his Observation Haki still enveloping his surroundings, Wilder took out a Den Den Mushi and made a call.
"Ashin, I need a large quantity of remote-controlled explosive packs."
"Yes, sir," a grim, low voice replied from the other end.
Hanging up, Wilder waited quietly for a while. Now, all he had to do was wait. It wasn't yet time to go after that great fortune. He had to wait for the explosive packs to arrive. Then… while taking the money, he'd plant the explosives and detonate them at the right time. Thus, the money's disappearance would be accounted for. An explosion, right? Being blown up was a very scientific explanation. Simple and crude, it couldn't even be called a proper plan. But sometimes, the simpler the approach, the more surprisingly effective it could be. He didn't need everyone to believe the money was truly destroyed by the explosion; he just needed no one to suspect him.
"Heaven's timing, Earth's advantage, and Man's harmony—all are on my side, ah." Wilder couldn't help but smile. Anyone else planning this couldn't have made it so simple. But everything seemed fated. The "Heaven's timing" was the wartime period; the "Earth's advantage" was the unguarded treasury; and "Man's harmony" was his ability.
That night, Wilder stayed up all night, drinking wine and watching the moon. He was waiting—waiting for the two machine guns to be delivered, and also for those explosives. Although he was acting alone, he would still arrange for some personnel in the surrounding sea areas to be able to issue tasks promptly. Ashin happened to be not far from here, so, if there were no accidents, the two machine guns should arrive around the same time as the explosives.
The night passed quickly. At six in the morning, Wilder left the bungalow. The surveillance set up by the Revolutionary Army was completely useless against him. Before long, Wilder arrived at a deserted reef area by the sea.
In a hollow among the massive rocks, Wilder saw Ashin, clad in a black cloak and mask, along with several dozen members of the "Morass" faction, separated from the Black Serpent. About twenty-odd wooden crates were placed in the hollow. Besides these, there was a longer crate in the middle, containing two heavy machine guns that gleamed with a dark, cold light.
They nodded at each other without speaking. All necessary actions and tasks had already been arranged; nothing more needed to be said. Without dismissing the others, under the gazes of the several dozen Morass members, Wilder waved his hand. A large amount of swamp surged from his hand, covering the dozens of crates in the blink of an eye. Taking these crates, Wilder departed.
The dozens of Morass members watched Wilder's retreating back with varied expressions—some with adoration, some with respect, some with a fiery, resolute look.
Ashin remained silent, watching Wilder depart. His mask bore the character "监" (Jiān - Monitor/Oversee), corresponding to his position as captain of the Morass Monitoring Unit, responsible for surveillance and investigation. Of course… he also had the duty of dispatch and arrangement—that is, through monitoring, to make the most appropriate arrangements and deployments based on known information, regardless of whether it involved troops under his direct command. His role was to support other units and the overall operations of the entire Morass faction. His importance and authority were among the highest of the senior officers.
As for other units, for example, the "斗" (Dòu - Fight/Battle) character masks represented the Battle Units. There were five Battle Units in total, with captains Vice, Bacon, Bica, Sherilmo, and Franpetar respectively. The "暗" (Àn - Dark/Shadow) character masks represented the Assassination Units, two in total, led by captains Eigg and Yves. The "护" (Hù - Guard/Protect) character masks represented the Guard Unit, a force stationed at headquarters, with captains Claire and Franpetar. However, Claire also held the position of secretary and handled commercial operations. Franpetar held captain positions in two types of units, but her focus was on the Guard Unit; she would only be dispatched with a Battle Unit when absolutely necessary. There was also a Transport Unit, with masks bearing a "运" (Yùn - Transport) character. Its captain was General Kuchiel, one of the twelve officers Wilder had personally recruited. Not long ago, he had won first place in the grand martial tournament on the training island, was promoted to senior officer, entered the central authority, and served as the captain of the Morass Transport Unit. The island he was previously responsible for had already been handed over to other officers. His authority partially overlapped with Ashin's, responsible for transport and deployment.
...…
Less than half an hour had passed when Wilder returned to the bungalow. He picked little Aisha up from the bed, and after they both freshened up, the two went out for breakfast. Naturally, breakfast didn't consist of soy milk and fried dough sticks. Bread and milk clearly didn't suit their tastes, so "stupid lamb leg" and "sand-sculpture fish" once again became the top choices.
"Yummy! Yummy!" Little Aisha grabbed the stupid lamb leg with one hand and held the sand-sculpture fish with the other, eating until her mouth glistened with oil, her eyes shining.
Wilder said nothing, formulating his next plans in his mind.
After eating, Wilder left little Aisha at the courtyard house and departed alone.
BOOM! The sound of cannon fire came from the distance. Wilder frowned; he hadn't expected the fighting to resume so quickly. And judging by the commotion… it was very likely a large-scale battle would erupt today.
"But it probably won't escalate to all-out war just yet," Wilder said. The reason was simple: the place where he was staying was completely quiet.
Thinking of this, Wilder's figure flickered, and he swiftly flew towards the Royal Palace. According to the agreement, today was the day he was to make his move. But for now, of course, finishing his own business was more important.
He silently infiltrated the Royal Palace treasury. Swamp erupted from Wilder's body, engulfing the gold piled on the floor in the blink of an eye. This was just the beginning. The next instant, the swamp surged and spread like a tide. Wherever it passed, gold and antiques were all submerged and devoured. In less than ten breaths, the vast space was empty. Wilder retracted the swamp, his gaze turning to the tall iron gates around him. The swamp surged again. His body transformed into a flowing, semi-liquid state and slipped through one of the large iron gates. The same process, one after another. For every area, including the vast main space, he left only a tiny bit to serve as residue after the explosion; all the rest was taken by Wilder. Afterward, he did some other things in there. The entire process involved no superfluous actions. Upon completion, Wilder silently left the Royal Palace.
The sounds of cannon fire grew increasingly intense. On the streets, blades and guns clashed. Amidst the roars of countless people, the two forces collided fiercely.
"Die! Royal Army!" a man in heavy armor roared, bringing his raised chopper down hard!
CLANG! Sparks flew as two blades locked together. A Royal Army soldier gritted his teeth, barely holding back the ferocious blow!
Thwip! Then, a blade pierced through the soldier's chest. A rebel, his face contorted viciously, stood behind him, gripping the blood-dripping sword.
"Kill!" After pulling out the bloodied blade, the rebel's morale surged! He raised his chopper and shouted!
Weapons clashed. The two armies charged into each other's ranks. Slaughter erupted, and they descended into a chaotic melee. Meanwhile, from the rear echelons of both sides, further away, cannon fire constantly boomed! The town streets were already a ruin of overturned boulders and flying debris. The thundering of footsteps was deafening as soldiers continuously arrived from both sides, quickly engaging each other in battle.
The rebel army advanced towards the Royal Palace, but their progress was arduous. For every step forward against the Royal Army's resistance, countless fell—both Royal Army soldiers and rebels. The battle was incredibly brutal.
The fighting continued until dusk, the situation remaining a stalemate. By then, the flames of war had spread across more than half the country; it could be considered an all-out war.
Darkness fell. Wilder knew he couldn't wait any longer. After making arrangements for little Aisha, Wilder stepped onto the battlefield. By this time, with the rebels' continuous advance, the main battlefield had shifted from the major streets to the King's Square—a massive plaza capable of holding a hundred thousand people. After the rebels pushed this far, the previous situation instantly reversed, because it was here that the true strength of the Royal Army was finally revealed. Among the army's generals, aside from the Grand General of Conquest, all other generals had already poured into the battlefield, quickly routing the rebel forces.
"Then we'll be counting on you, Mr. Morass."
In the shadows, two figures stood on a rampart, watching the battlefield below. One, clad in a greenish-brown robe, spoke. Beside him stood a tall figure, in a black cloak and a pure white mask. The character "王" (King) was inscribed on the temple of the mask. It was Wilder.
"Understood," a low voice issued from beneath the mask.
Before long, Wilder's figure flickered and vanished from the rampart.
"Keep an eye on him," the person remaining on the rampart said. In the shadows, several others dressed in similar greenish-brown robes nodded and dispersed into the battlefield. This person who stayed behind watched the battlefield, frowning slightly. "The situation is unfavorable." His gaze shifted to the direction Wilder had departed, and his expression calmed. "Let's hope he doesn't disappoint us."
...
The battle raged fiercely, cannons thundered, and the two sides slaughtered each other relentlessly. People constantly fell, only for others to charge forward.
And just then, a black shadow landed on the non-operational fountain sculpture in the center of the plaza, instantly drawing the attention of everyone nearby. The fighting parties nearby simultaneously paused, frowning, their expressions grave as they stared at the figure, momentarily unsure if he was friend or foe.
"Who is that?!" someone exclaimed in surprise and suspicion.
As the words fell…
Just then, two faint click-clack sounds were heard, and the figure began to move.