That night.
The Rutherford Inn witnessed a fierce "battle."
The creaking bed frame had the innkeeper ready to start cursing.
But the woman had paid far too much.
A hundred thousand Beli — enough for him to give the whole place a small renovation.
By the next morning…
When he saw Rona, refreshed and cheerful, leave behind a list of giants before departing, Magnus lay in bed in silence.
By rights, as a man, he should have felt like he'd come out ahead in this kind of situation.
So why did it feel like he had been the one paid for?
His relationship with Rona was less like that of a normal man and woman and more like a one-night fling, after which they each went their own way.
But looking at the bloodstains on the sheets, Magnus couldn't help covering his eyes.
Had this woman really been single for fifty years?!
The night passed without further incident.
Rocks and the others remained cautious — they knew that even if they were going to carry out a rescue mission, they had to wait until the resin from the Yarcheman Mangrove arrived before they could set sail.
But now, the plan was going to change.
Magnus looked at the list in his hand — the giants who'd been sold to Acropolis Port were only a fraction of the total.
The war at Elbaf had resulted in 163 giants going missing, a number that matched the list exactly.
Only ten had ended up in Acropolis Port. The majority had been taken by the World Government as trophies of their conquest of Elbaf, enslaved by the Celestial Dragons.
The list Rona provided could only give a rough idea of their fates. For those auctioned off and purchased, who they ultimately ended up with was beyond even her knowledge.
The White Wolf Pirates rented a house on the outskirts of Acropolis Port. Even though they'd agreed to gather again in two days, it was important to have a shared base for now.
When Magnus returned to their temporary quarters, he found everyone already there.
"Well, looks like we're all here," Magnus greeted them.
"I've got a list here. To get it, I—"
"Captain!"
Ripley stood before him with a grim look. "Where did you go last night?"
"Ah, well…"
Magnus was about to wave the list in his hand, but Lily had already stepped up, sniffing at him.
"A woman's scent!"
"Don't tell me… Captain Magnus knows someone in Acropolis Port?"
Toki looked at him innocently.
"Damn it! If you'd just said the word, I'd have been ready anytime — and yet you went looking for another woman?"
Stussy murmured while biting her finger.
Four women putting on a scene left Magnus momentarily speechless.
"Sigh…"
Seeing this, Magnus could only let out a long breath.
"If you've all decided I went looking for a woman, what can I even say? So in your eyes, I'm the kind of man who can't walk past a woman without stopping?"
He tossed the list onto the table, suddenly disinterested.
"This is the list of giants who went missing during the war at Elbaf. If you want to rescue them, go ahead."
"The Marines' admiral won't be making a move on this one."
The thick booklet contained not only the names of those captured, but also detailed portraits.
Moments ago, Ripley had still been upset that Magnus seemed to be ignoring them to be with a woman who looked suspiciously like the Marine admiral.
But when she saw the list, she was struck silent.
"Captain… you spent the whole night getting this list?"
"The truth doesn't matter anymore," Magnus said with a fond look in his eyes as he regarded Ripley.
"As long as it helps you, that's enough."
"Captain~"
Hearing this, Ripley immediately pictured Magnus spending the entire night searching for the list, only to be misunderstood by them. Guilt washed over her.
"Captain, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have doubted you!"
"It's fine. You're my most beloved crewmate, after all."
Magnus ruffled Ripley's hair.
"I'm sorry too, Captain Magnus. I had some bad thoughts just now," Toki admitted with a guilty look. How could she have thought Magnus was the sort to abandon his companions just to go enjoy himself on Pleasure Street?
"So it's not because I lack charm!"
Stussy patted her chest in relief.
Only Lily still looked at Magnus with suspicion. The list was clearly real — but how exactly had he gotten it?
Surely it couldn't be as Newgate claimed… that the woman who looked like the Marine admiral was the Marine admiral?
The Marine admiral dragging Magnus into an inn?
Impossible. That crazy woman wanted them all dead every time they met — how could she possibly have other intentions toward Magnus?
"Brat, next time you look at something, look carefully before you speak nonsense!"
Unable to figure it out, Lily smacked Newgate on the head for spreading false reports, leaving him looking aggrieved.
"But I really saw the captain with—"
Before he could finish, he saw Magnus smiling at him pleasantly.
So it was you, kid.
He'd been focused entirely on Rona at the time and hadn't expected that Newgate would spot her dragging him into the inn.
Good thing he was quick-witted — otherwise, wouldn't the captain's dignity have been completely ruined?
Off to the side, Rocks looked impressed.
He hadn't expected Magnus to defuse what could have become an internal conflict all on his own. Could Rocks have done the same? He figured the only real solution would be to have fewer women on the crew.
Dean, the fishman shipwright, looked out the window.
On the same crew, on the same ship, arguments were inevitable.
The most important quality in a captain was the ability to unite everyone.
That said…
Dean didn't mind Magnus recruiting new members.
But weren't a bit too many of these new recruits interested in him?
Ripley, Toki, Stussy…
Well, maybe it wasn't that bad.
At least there was Linlin.
At eight years old, her life still revolved around eating — especially now that she'd started training her Haki.
With the list of giants in hand, Magnus decided to adjust the plan.
Originally, the idea had been for everyone to head out to sea together.
Now, Magnus decided that Lily and Stussy would remain in Acropolis Port to rescue the giants there.
The rest of the crew would continue on to Fishman Island.
Originally, the plan had been to capture the giant lantern fish and locate Pure Gold.
But now, the plan had changed.
It was time to make the name of the White Wolf Pirates ring out across the world!
(End of Chapter)
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