By now, daylight had broken.
It had taken quite some time to sail from Impel Down to the Devil's Triangle by mistake.
"Huh?"
'Did we really drift into the Devil's Triangle?'
Rokuya raised an eyebrow in mild surprise.
He knew this place well.
From the outside, it looked like an island blanketed in dense fog all year round. Visibility was next to zero.
But, in truth, it wasn't an island at all — it was the massive vessel known as Thriller Bark, once home to one of the Seven Warlords: Gecko Moria.
Rokuya had once considered this location as a base of operations.
The perpetual darkness would have been ideal for a vampire like him.
Ultimately, however, he had abandoned the idea.
The main problem? Thriller Bark was too close to the Marine Headquarters.
It was too close to the lion's den.
Only someone like Moria, protected by his status as a Shichibukai, could survive here under the government's watchful eye.
Rokuya, being a wanted fugitive, clearly didn't have that luxury.
Still, now that he had ended up there anyway, he might as well make the most of it.
There was no point in leaving empty-handed.
If memory served, this place housed one of the famed 21 Great Grade swords: Shusui.
An exceptional blade. There was no way he was going to let it sit around collecting dust in Moria's castle.
Besides that, there was Perona, the Ghost Princess.
While he was here, he might as well convert her.
He could turn the Ghost Princess into a Blood Princess.
Her Hollow-Hollow Fruit was powerful — far beyond what most enemies could handle.
Whether they were the morale-crushing Negative Hollows, explosive Mini-Hollows, or other variants, her ghosts could be deadly in the right hands.
"Pass down the order.
'Have them bring the ship to shore.'
Thanks to Rokuya's vampiric charm, the Marine soldiers on board lacked the willpower to resist and obeyed him without hesitation.
No questions. No resistance.
—
At the same time…
Back in the central castle of Thriller Bark, Gecko Moria was slouched on his throne, listening to a report from one of his subordinates.
"What did you say?"
'A Marine ship entered the fog?'
'Those bastards really don't know how to mind their own business!'
'I'm one of the Seven Warlords, damn it! I'm a legally recognised pirate!"
What are they doing sniffing around my turf?!'
He let out a screeching laugh.
'Eh, whatever. A few more ships disappearing around here won't raise any eyebrows.'
'Go handle it, Absalom.'
True to form, Moria didn't move a muscle himself.
Instead, he sent Absalom, one of his 'Monster Trio' and user of the Clear-Clear Fruit, to deal with it.
His plan was simple: sink the ship, erase the witnesses and let the fog do the rest.
What he didn't know was that this 'Marine ship' wasn't what it seemed.
—
Absalom moved quickly, bringing with him an army of zombie soldiers and generals.
Ten minutes later...
Rokuya stepped off the Marine vessel, accompanied by Domino and Sadi.
Although the two women hadn't been particularly powerful before, becoming bloodbound familiars had significantly enhanced their physical strength and stamina.
The trio began advancing towards the castle at the centre of the island.
But when they reached the graveyard...
Rokuya's eyes narrowed.
'Looks like they're trying to ambush us.'
As he spoke, the earth began to shift.
Skeletal arms burst through the soil one after another.
Within seconds, over a hundred zombies had clawed their way out and surrounded them completely.
"Huh?"
'They're not Marines?'
Absalom's voice rang out as he revealed himself, surprised to see civilians instead of soldiers.
'Who said riding a Marine ship makes someone a Marine?' Rokuya asked with a smirk.
Absalom scoffed.
"Doesn't matter.
Orders are orders. Everyone ends up the same!"
'The guy becomes a zombie. And the girls..."
He licked his lips, his lechery plain to see.
The zombies lurched forward at his command.
As for Absalom, he used his Clear-Clear Fruit to turn invisible and disappear from view.
Rokuya shook his head in disappointment.
Zombies had no blood. No life. They had no value to him whatsoever.
They couldn't be absorbed into his Death River, as they were nothing but puppets animated by shadows.
There was no hesitation.
Rokuya raised his Casull gun and opened fire.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The white semi-automatic pistol spat out bullets non-stop, tearing through the undead.
Meanwhile, Absalom crept closer from behind, thinking he was about to launch the perfect ambush.
If he could take out the man, the women would be easy prey.
But just as he closed in...
Rokuya spun around.
And fired.
*BANG!*
Blood sprayed into the air, exposing the invisible threat.
Absalom stumbled, stunned and bleeding, his powers deactivating as he became visible again.
'Cough... How... How did you see me?!'
The shock was written all over his face.
'I didn't,' Rokuya replied coolly. 'But I could smell your blood.'
'You might be invisible, but you're still human.'
For a vampire, your scent is impossible to miss.'
Absalom's fruit only hid his body. Not his presence. Not his heartbeat. And certainly not his blood.
To someone like Rokuya, who possessed the senses of the Vampire King, the Clear-Clear Fruit was laughably ineffective.
"You're done."
Rokuya reached out and grabbed Absalom's head with one hand.
'Guess cyborgs really are durable,' he muttered. 'One bullet wasn't enough.'
"Time to send you to my Death River."
With a twist of his wrist, he crushed Absalom's skull as though it were a melon.
Blood gushed out and pooled at his feet.
A familiar voice chimed in his head.
DING!
"Congratulations, host. Death River Life Count +1."
Another extra life earned.
Every kill meant another chance at resurrection. The Death River grew stronger.
Behind him, Sadi and Domino approached respectfully.
"Master!"
'We've dealt with the rest of the zombies.'
'Well done,' Rokuya said, glancing at them.
"Feeling stronger?"
Both women nodded confidently.
Rokuya smiled.
Of course they were. As his direct familiars, their power would only continue to grow.
And this was only the beginning.
He led them deeper towards the castle.
'Ghost Princess...'
"Black Blade Shusui..."
'I'll take them both.'
He raised a hand and summoned dozens of Blood Bats, sending them ahead to scout.
Thriller Bark was massive; he didn't have time to search every room.
Three minutes later, his eyes gleamed.
The bats had relayed useful information.
"Perona… Shusui…"
"Wait for me."
He smiled, his fangs glinting.