Inside the main keep of Micity Port.
"Useless! You're all utterly useless!"
"A patrol fleet of twenty warships, and you couldn't even pin down a single pirate ship? Incompetent fools, the lot of you!"
Angus Abel stood in the center of the grand hall, his furious roars echoing off the high, vaulted ceilings. At his feet lay a corpse clad in heavy metal armor. Fresh blood leaked from several jagged bullet holes riddled across the chest, pooling outward and staining the pristine white marble floor a deep, crimson red.
Around the perimeter, more than thirty kingdom generals stood lined in two rigid rows. They kept their heads bowed, trembling in sheer terror, not daring to make so much as a peep. Thick beads of sweat dotted their foreheads, and the sheer volume of cold sweat had already completely drenched the tunics beneath their armor.
The corpse in the middle of the hall belonged to the very general who had been tasked with commanding that failed patrol fleet. While the blame might not have rested entirely on his shoulders, any excuses were meaningless now, as he was nothing more than a cooling body.
His time of death was a mere five minutes ago. Right before the eyes of every general present, Abel had personally executed him with a flintlock pistol right there in the castle hall.
Abel was well aware of how massive Brady Island was and how sprawling its coastline could be. However, the vast majority of those shores consisted of sheer, jagged cliffs or shallow waters entirely unsuitable for docking medium-to-large vessels. The only two viable deep-water berths on the entire island were where Micity Port and Unzan Port sat.
Because of this, the Chris Pirates' patrol fleet always operated using Micity Port and Unzan Port as core hubs. They would fan out along the coastlines, with the density of the patrols scaling from tightest to loosest based on the terrain: deep-water berths, shallow shores, minor reef beaches with gentle slopes, and finally, the towering cliffs and massive crags.
The stretch of sea where the Straw Hat Pirates had been spotted was supposed to be the single most heavily fortified sector under Micity Port's jurisdiction. It was actively monitored twenty-four hours a day, without interruption, by twenty large masted warships. Yet, the enemy had somehow managed to close within twenty nautical miles of Micity Port before being noticed. It was no wonder Aeridar had demanded a head, and Abel had been swift to personally deliver the execution.
Realizing the sheer magnitude of their negligence, the twenty captains responsible for the sector had gone utterly pale. Their legs shook so violently they could barely stand, terrified that they would be the next ones Abel lined up for execution.
"Hmph! Deploy another ten masted warships immediately! Intensify the patrol grid!"
Abel glared at the shivering generals before him, letting out a cold snort as his voice dropped to a deep, menacing register. "Furthermore, I will personally request Captain Aeridar to reassign several sky airships here to monitor the sea from above. This time, I will not tolerate a single oversight!"
"As for the rest of you, get out there and mobilize your troops! Scour the coastlines on both flanks. You will find where the Straw Hat Pirates have anchored their ship!"
Abel's harsh commands carried a raw, unadulterated trace of murderous intent that filled the room with suffocating tension.
"Understood!"
The dozens of kingdom generals snapped to attention in perfect unison, bellowing their acknowledgment at the top of their lungs.
Meanwhile, roughly sixty miles east of Micity Port, tucked away within a highly secluded, hidden gorge, a meticulously crafted pirate ship sat wedged tightly between two massive, jagged sea stacks.
The ship featured a distinct figurehead shaped like a cheerful, sunflower-like lion's head. Atop the observation crow's nest on the main mast, a proud skull and crossbones flag sporting a straw hat fluttered in the sea breeze.
It was none other than the Straw Hat Pirates' vessel, the Thousand Sunny!
Originally, after being spotted by the patrol fleet near Micity Port, the Straw Hat Pirates had endured a relentless pursuit. To shake their tail, they resorted to the Thousand Sunny's ultimate escape maneuver, the Coup de Burst, successfully blasting themselves clear of the enemy fleet to make landfall. However, by a cruel stroke of cosmic irony, they had managed to launch themselves straight into this particular gorge, leaving the vessel firmly wedged between two massive rocks, unable to budge.
"Hahaha! Well, this is a pickle! Let me just smash these rocks to pieces!"
Luffy stood balanced on the ship's peripheral railing, craning his neck forward and backward to survey the squeeze. Laughing heartily, he began spinning his arms like windmills, preparing to shatter the giant sea stacks below.
"Wait, Luffy! Don't do anything yet!"
Nami hastily cried out, cutting him off before he could throw a punch.
"Huh?"
Luffy turned his head in confusion, blinking at Nami.
"We were already spotted by the patrol fleet earlier. The Chris Pirates will absolutely send search parties to comb the nearby coastlines," Nami explained, pointing up toward a massive, projecting shelf of rock extending from the cliffs dozens of meters above them. It formed a natural stone ceiling that perfectly shrouded the Thousand Sunny from view. "The terrain here is excellent. That overhanging rock perfectly masks our position. If you smash the boulders below, the ship will drift with the current and lose that overhead cover!"
"Once we make our move, everyone will have to head inland. That means no one will be left behind to guard the Sunny. If any patrols from the Chris Pirates happen to spot her, they'll inevitably tow her away."
"She's right. The Chris Pirates have an iron grip over the Clifford Kingdom. Not only do they possess over ten thousand elites within their core crew, but they also have hundreds of thousands of kingdom troops at their beck and call," Law said as he walked over, carrying Kikoku propped over his shoulder.
His face remained entirely expressionless as he picked up where Nami left off. "An immense military force will be combing these shores very shortly. Leaving the ship wedged right here is actually the perfect camouflage for now. What we need to do is move out immediately."
Unlike Luffy, Law had conducted extensive intelligence gathering before setting foot on this island. He was well aware of the various moving pieces operating in both the light and the shadows of this territory.
"Oh, is that so? Never mind then!"
Luffy nodded, understanding about half of the explanation as he let his arms drop back to his sides.
At that moment, Law swept his gaze across the assembled crew. "While we still have a few minutes, gather around, everyone. There are some critical pieces of common knowledge regarding this place that I need to brief you on."
Hearing Law's serious tone, Zoro, Chopper, and the rest of the crew began closing the distance. Surprisingly, several mink warriors, spearheaded by Pedro, also stepped forward to listen in.
Seeing everyone form a tight circle, Law's expression grew incredibly grim. "The Clifford Kingdom is nothing like Dressrosa. This place is absolutely crawling with monsters. Therefore, we must exercise the utmost caution. Not a single slip-up can be afforded."
Sensing the suffocating drop in the atmosphere, Usopp swallowed hard, his anxiety flaring as he hurriedly urged, "Tra-guy, cut the suspense! Just tell us what we're dealing with!"
"Fine."
Law nodded, dispensing with any further pleasantries. His voice dropped to a tense whisper. "The raw military might of the Chris Pirates is in no way inferior to that of a Yonko. Their primary stronghold is the kingdom's capital, Nakor. It stands as one of the largest and most prosperous metropolises in the world, housing the grandest Palace Entertainment City on the planet. Nico Robin is likely being held captive there, or perhaps within the Chris Grand Prison located three kilometers outside the city borders. We will need to infiltrate the interior to verify her exact location."
"Next is the sheer scale of the Chris Pirates' forces. Their main crew is divided into seven distinct thousand-man divisions, supplemented by two entirely independent detachments led by 'God' Enel and 'Black Arm' Zephyr. Their core strength alone exceeds ten thousand seasoned fighters. On top of that, the kingdom maintains a standing army of four hundred thousand regular troops. Combined with 'Golden Ring' Aeridar's Animate-Animate Fruit abilities, they possess a virtually infinite, self-replenishing Animate Army."
"To make matters worse, the Chris Pirates are on the absolute brink of total war with the Big Mom Pirates. Dozens of subordinate pirate crews and various allied factions under their banner are continuously converging on this territory. As we speak, the sheer concentration of military power inside the Clifford Kingdom has reached an unprecedented, terrifying peak."
As Trafalgar Law meticulously laid out the facts, the expressions on Luffy and Zoro's faces grew increasingly stern. Meanwhile, Nami, Usopp, and Chopper turned completely pale, swallowing hard as their teeth chattered uncontrollably from sheer terror.
"Furthermore, the Chris Pirates possess the most advanced biological technology in the world. Hovering directly above their capital of Nakor is a floating island dedicated entirely to cutting-edge research, known as Alvis. Not only have they engineered cybernetic killing weapons called Dragonians, which possess combat capabilities easily on par with the World Government's Pacifistas, but they've also artificially bred all manner of gigantified, ferocious beasts. Word also has it that the interior of Alvis Island houses an immense legion of automated robots equipped with an arsenal of both conventional and high-tech weaponry..."
Before Law could even finish his sentence, the eyes of Luffy, Usopp, and Chopper suddenly lit up with blinding excitement.
"Robots?!"
"Seriously?! They actually have real robots?!"
"I want to see the robots so bad!"
"…"
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