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Rouge naturally trusted Rojen completely.
After packing up her things, she left together with him. By now, Dadan had already gotten back to her feet, but she didn't dare enter the house. That young man's gaze had left her utterly terrified.
Watching helplessly as Rojen took Rouge away, Dadan eventually worried that failing to handle this matter properly would get her beaten up by Garp, so she chose to run away.
Of course, whether she could actually escape Garp's grasp was another matter entirely.
After bringing Rouge to meet up with the others, their trip to Windmill Town officially came to an end.
Rojen didn't stay there any longer. Under the watchful gazes of the villagers, they quickly departed.
"Captain, are we heading straight to the Grand Line next?" Jason asked with a smile.
He had originally thought that, now that everything was settled, Rojen would directly head for the Grand Line.
But Rojen shook his head and seriously denied it.
"I need to leave behind some seeds in the Four Seas."
"Seeds?"
Not only Jason, but everyone present failed to understand.
"Seeds of piracy."
The crew still didn't understand what Rojen intended to do. But over the following days, they came to understand.
The reunited Nether Soul Pirates had undergone a rebirth this time, and they had absolutely no intention of keeping a low profile.
The arrival of Rojen's group threw all of East Blue into unrest.
No, more accurately, it caused all four seas to boil over, stirring up a storm named Nether Soul.
Three days later, the Logan cut through the waves as it sailed toward an island.
Sea winds howled, and standing at the bow, Rojen's black hair fluttered in the breeze, his eyes sharp and spirited.
"The Marines act in the name of justice, yet commit acts completely devoid of justice. So let us carry out justice in their place and execute them."
Jason, Trens, Crocodile, and the others stood on deck, gazing at the distant island with strange expressions on their faces.
"Is Captain trying to uphold justice on behalf of heaven now?"
"Didn't he already say it? He's planting seeds."
The group held back their laughter as they chatted among themselves.
"Enough. Whatever Captain says, we do."
Jason stopped their discussion, then paused before adding:
"Besides… this island really is a complete cesspool. It's unbearable."
Ablis Island was a medium-sized island inhabited by roughly one hundred thousand people.
It was also one of the military strongholds the Marines had established in East Blue.
For decades, Marines had been stationed here under the banner of justice.
Throughout the years, every successive commander of the base had been famous for their fierce style and iron-fisted methods.
But in recent years, problems had emerged at this base.
Anuki, the highest-ranking officer of Ablis Military Base, held the rank of Commander.
Without anyone realizing it, he had already become deeply corrupt and was involved in underground dealings.
His formidable strength had plunged the entire island into terror.
Violence, cruelty, and ruthless methods had effectively made Anuki the king of the whole island.
And all of this remained unknown to the upper ranks of the Marines.
The ones truly suffering were the ordinary citizens of the island. As the Logan approached Ablis Island, the crew quickly sensed the strange atmosphere.
"It's so quiet… What happened here?"
After disembarking, they discovered that the enormous harbor was completely empty.
Not a single person could be seen.
The entire port was wrapped in an eerie silence.
As for the island's architecture, although it was called a city, it looked more like an enormous military fortress.
Towering walls stood everywhere, austere and oppressive.
"This island really does have problems." Rojen's eyes flickered.
Even when they had first entered East Blue, stories about this island had already reached their ears.
The Marines, supposedly defenders of justice, had transformed into agents of evil, exploiting civilians and turning an entire island into a living hell.
"Are we really going to go to war with the Marines?" Little Robin asked worriedly.
"Heh heh, Robin, we're pirates. Picking a fight with them is only natural, isn't it?" Chaporos said with a grin.
Robin pressed her lips together and said nothing more.
That disaster had left an indelible mark on her young heart. In her mind, the Marines were synonymous with demons. Rojen remained silent as he led the group deeper into this strange and eerie city.
After passing through the tall city gates and stepping onto the streets, the oddness in everyone's eyes deepened further.
This hardly looked like a city.
It was more like a ghost kingdom.
The broad, neatly paved streets were sparsely populated.
The occasional civilians who passed by all kept their heads lowered, hurrying along without even the slightest interest in glancing at them.
"How weird."
Lordling looked around and realized that there weren't even any merchants on the island.
A lifeless island, devoid of all vitality.
This was the first time the group had ever seen a town like this.
Even from afar, they could see the city's residents wearing blank, numb expressions, devoid of all spirit, as though their souls had been forcibly sucked away.
"What exactly is going on?"
Chaporos felt astonished and strode forward, grabbing a passing civilian.
"Hey, what's going on here? Why are there so few people?"
"Y-you… you're outsiders?"
The civilian trembled violently the moment he was touched.
This reaction only made everyone even more curious.
An ordinary person would never react so intensely just from being touched.
"Yeah, we came from outside." Chaporos replied in confusion.
'Wasn't it perfectly normal for outsiders to visit?'
'Why was this man reacting with such terror and shock?'
"Hurry and leave! Otherwise, once the Marines arrive, it'll be too late!" The civilian's face turned pale as he spoke quickly.
"The Marines?"
Everyone's expressions shifted slightly, their confusion deepening.
'What exactly was happening here?'
'Why would it be "too late" once the Marines arrived?'
Chaporos wanted to ask more questions, but the man had already broken free, stumbling away in a panicked run before vanishing from sight.
"It seems the situation on this island is far worse than we imagined."
The crew all straightened up.
Rumors had said that the island was under the control of corrupt Marines, and that the island's residents all lived under a shadow.
But now, it seemed reality was even worse than that.
Just what had this Marine Commander named Anuki done to the island to make even an ordinary civilian this terrified?
They continued deeper into the island.
As they got closer and closer to the central district, more civilians began appearing on the streets.
But most of them were little more than refugees, poorly clothed, gaunt, and yellow-faced from hunger.
"This is truly a living hell." Jason clenched his fists tightly.
He had never seen such a miserable island before.
Just what kind of ruler could turn an island into something like this?
Their arrival was naturally noticed by the refugees on the streets.
But these people merely glanced at them numbly before lying back down, as if simply waiting for death.
"Big brothers, big sisters… You should leave quickly."
Suddenly, a filthy, foul-smelling child stepped out and blocked their path.
"The Marines will arrest you!"
Rojen narrowed his eyes.
The expressions of the crew members also changed slightly.
(End Of This Chapter)
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