Chapter 222: The Last Snack
This was one of the many ports of Marineford, the headquarters of the Marines.
As a symbol of Marine prestige, the port was grand and imposing. Iron plates were embedded into the muddy ground, and enormous, heavily armed warships lined the harbor one after another, creating a spectacular scene.
At this moment, a group of more than a hundred young Marines had gathered beside one of the giant warships.
With rifles on their shoulders, they stood in proper formation, waiting for the arrival of their superior officer.
However, upon closer inspection, many of them were trembling.
Their legs shook involuntarily. Their faces were tense. Some even bit their lips hard, looking like students who had failed to finish their exam papers before time ran out.
But their situation was far worse than that.
Because they had received orders from their superior to go out and subjugate pirates.
For these people, who had only recently become official Marine recruits, they had barely encountered pirates a few times. Being ordered to take up weapons and hunt pirates inevitably made them anxious.
But the command of a superior officer was absolute.
No matter how much resistance they felt inside, they could only brace themselves and stand there.
Of course, the formation was not filled only with recruits.
There were also veterans who had participated in several battles before.
Seeing the recruits' expressions, those veterans quietly reminded them before the officer arrived, "Actually, as long as you're careful and follow the squad during the hunt, nothing will happen."
After hearing this, some recruits let out quiet breaths of relief.
The heavy weight in their hearts eased a little, and they relaxed considerably.
Just then, a figure slowly walked over from the distance.
His lazy, languid demeanor, paired with his short stature and fair skin, made him look nothing like a soldier.
He looked more like a sickly invalid.
As the figure gradually approached, his appearance became clear.
It was Axel.
He found a spot, yawned, and stood in the formation.
Clearly, he was also part of this search party.
Yet no one in the crowded formation commented on his late arrival.
Was it because they were following discipline and unwilling to break the silence?
Or was it because of his rank?
Neither.
Marines prided themselves on following rules. If someone broke them, someone would naturally step forward to punish them.
As for rank, among Vice Admiral Vergo's subordinates, there were certainly officers with ranks equal to or higher than Axel's, so it could not be because of that either.
It was because of respect for strength.
Although Axel and Vice Admiral Vergo seemed to have reached some kind of agreement, Vergo had never stopped testing him.
Not only in opinion, but also in strength.
During normal training, Vergo had incited these Marines to fight Axel.
The result was obvious.
These new recruits could not even touch Axel before they were defeated.
Over time, they gradually developed awe toward him.
"Ain, Binz, good morning."
Axel greeted Ain and Binz in the formation, completely ignoring the atmosphere around him.
Then he took out his breakfast and began eating with a crisp munching sound.
Binz glanced at Axel and secretly swallowed.
He wanted to eat too, but restrained by Marine discipline, he did not dare say anything.
Ain secretly tugged on Axel's sleeve.
"Don't eat during assembly."
Although Ain knew this was part of Vergo's scheme, this was now simply a matter of Marine discipline, regardless of anything else.
Despite her advice, Axel continued stuffing food into his mouth without concern.
"What's the big deal?" he said slowly. "Assembly is assembly. My eating doesn't get in the way of anything."
Then he added, "Besides, things are going to get lively later."
"What does that mean?"
Before Ain could ask properly, Axel casually took a snack from his box and stuffed it into her mouth.
After doing that, he walked away on his own, leaving Ain standing there with the snack in her mouth, caught between swallowing and spitting it out.
Binz wanted to follow, but was restrained by discipline and could not move.
He watched the snack in Axel's hand as Axel walked away.
For some reason, his stomach suddenly felt hungry.
Axel did not intend to go anywhere else.
He simply walked to the front of the formation, sat down facing the Marines, and ate his snacks while watching the soldiers standing stiffly in place.
At that moment, even the soldiers who had submitted to Axel's strength could not help grumbling inwardly.
It had already been several hours since breakfast and assembly.
Under high tension, people became hungry more easily.
The person in front of them was indeed strong, but not only had he arrived late, he was now brazenly eating food right in front of them.
This was too much.
If there was anyone who could do this without causing resentment, it would only be their superior officer, Vice Admiral Vergo.
Just as they thought this, Vice Admiral Vergo slowly walked over.
Contrary to what they had imagined, Vergo had not been preparing the items needed for this expedition.
How did they know?
Because from the fresh food stains on Vergo's mouth, it was obvious that he had just finished eating before coming here.
Just like Captain Axel sitting in front of them.
Although the Marines had opinions, they did not dare show them.
Even if those opinions were full of malice.
When Vergo approached, a Marine immediately stepped forward and reported the situation.
"Vice Admiral Vergo, one hundred and twenty-five Marine soldiers have assembled."
"Mm."
Vergo gave a soft response.
Then he shifted his gaze toward the direction he had been watching even before arriving.
He walked over and stopped in front of Axel, who was still sitting to the side and eating snacks.
"You really came after all."
Axel did not look up.
He only stared quietly ahead and slowly chewed the food in his mouth.
"I didn't want to come," Axel said. "But did you think I had any other choice?"
Vergo understood what Axel meant and calmly said, "Of course you had other choices. You simply didn't choose them."
The Marine officer standing to the side listened to their strange conversation with confusion.
He felt as though he understood, yet not quite.
The general meaning seemed to be that Vice Admiral Vergo was forcing Captain Axel to do something.
But considering how Vice Admiral Vergo had constantly found excuses to target Captain Axel before, it seemed either Captain Axel had offended him, or Vice Admiral Vergo intended to train him.
Either way, the officer had no intention of getting involved.
Axel slowly swallowed the food in his mouth.
Then he picked up a snack and tossed it to Vergo.
Vergo caught it smoothly.
He looked at Axel with some confusion, wondering what the gesture meant.
Was this merely a child throwing something in a tantrum?
Vergo did not believe Axel was that kind of person.
"Yes, I did have other choices," Axel said. "But how do you know my choice must be the one you think it is?"
He smiled.
"A good show is about to start."
Vergo's eyes sharpened slightly.
"Eat up," Axel said. "Perhaps this is the last time you'll eat a snack like this."
Then he paused, as if seriously considering something.
"Hmm. The Last Snack. How's my naming talent?"
Vergo's face changed drastically.
In that instant, he understood what Axel meant.
.....
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