"Stop it, you fool."
With those four simple words, Wolf, who was about to throw the Kuja pirate ship, froze in place. After five seconds, he slowly lowered the ship back onto the sea.
Suddenly, a countless swarm of bats descended from the sky, gathering on the bow of the Kuja ship and forming the shape of a man.
"Cap-Captain…"
Seeing Alucard's back on the ship's bow, Wolf awkwardly fell silent, unsure what to say. "A man?!"
"Should we capture him too?"
"I thought all men were monsters several hundred meters tall. Turns out there are some who are about our height too~"
The crew members of the Kuja Pirates chattered away. Some of the warriors looked at the Boa sisters and saw that Sandersonia and Marigold were both stunned, as if they had seen something unbelievable.
After a few seconds of bewilderment, Hancock rushed forward to stand in front of Alucard. Although she was nearly six feet tall, she still only reached his chest.
"Ma... Master?"
Hancock asked timidly. While she usually slipped into a "delusional" state when she thought about him, seeing him in person made her revert to the "little slave" she had been years ago in the Mariejois palace.
"Master?!"
Aside from Marigold and Sandersonia, the hundreds of female warriors behind her cried out in surprise.
Alucard stared at Hancock for a long time, making her too nervous to speak. Then, Alucard stretched out a hand. Hancock flinched back nervously, but then a soft touch landed on her head.
Alucard had placed his hand on top of Hancock's head and was gently patting her.
"Hancock… Boa Hancock." Alucard said her name and then her full name with a smile. His bangs covered one eye, and the only visible one was filled with a gentle warmth.
Hancock stared in a daze for a few seconds, then broke into a childlike smile. The women behind her had hearts in their eyes and shrieked nonstop.
"She's so cute! Our Empress looks so beautiful like this!" " Hancock-sama!"
"Ah! I can't take it anymore!"
As night fell, about two hundred meters from the ship, Wolf occasionally poked his upside- down, pointed head out of the water. His small, round eyes darted around. On the deck of the Kuja pirate ship, countless young girls with binoculars and notebooks observed this man whose size was far greater than a Sea King's.
"Men have two forms," a girl with a pencil scribbled in her notebook. "One is about our height, and the other is as large as a Sea King." She then watched as Wolf pulled another Sea King out of the water and began eating it. She wrote, "Men eat raw Sea Kings… yes, they truly are a barbaric species."
She continued to write and mumble to herself. One had to wonder if men from other parts of the world would cry if they heard her.
"He's one of Captain Alucard's crewmates; he's so unique…" Marigold said from a spot behind the others.
"I'd say he's terrifying, rather," Sandersonia said, her eyes narrowed. She was still in awe of Wolf's body, which blotted out the sky.
Marigold turned to her. "But, in a way, Captain Alucard is even more terrifying for being able to subdue a monster like that, isn't he?"
Sandersonia's expression froze for a moment, then she nodded in agreement. "You're right." Inside the Kuja Pirate ship's captain's quarters.
"Master…"
Hancock brought countless bottles of blood before Alucard. "These are the blood samples I've collected from various places," she said in a tone that seemed to be asking for praise. "We have blood from Amazon Lily, as well as some from female pirates and female Marines we defeated. I would never drink the blood of a disgusting man…"
She cut herself off with a gasp, shaking her head frantically. "Bu-But Master is different! I'm talking about other men! A-And of course Master is a man too…"
The more she spoke, the more flustered Hancock became. Finally, she hid in a corner of the sofa, hugging her knees. Her pet and combat partner, a giant non-venomous python named Salome, stared at its owner in the corner, occasionally flicking its tongue and tilting its head in confusion as it glanced back and forth between Hancock and Alucard.
Alucard ignored the huddled Hancock for the moment. He casually poured some of the blood into a wine glass. After taking a sip, he asked, "When did you drink the blood?"
The previous fight, where her vampire abilities had flared up and she had revealed the same red eyes as Alucard, proved that Hancock had already consumed blood and completed her evolution, becoming a true vampire.
As soon as Alucard spoke, Hancock seemed to be revitalized. She turned around and knelt dutifully before him. "Yes! It was a year ago. During our expedition with the previous Empress, we were ambushed. The Empress was severely wounded, and Sandersonia and Marigold almost died…"
Hancock's expression turned sorrowful as she recalled the event. "At that time... for some reason, I just drank the blood from Sandersonia and the others… and then I…"
"You only drank blood so long after you left me?" Alucard's voice still sounded a little displeased.
"I'm… I'm sorry…" Hancock, who had been hoping for praise, lowered her head in disappointment.
After a half-minute, Hancock looked up stubbornly. "B-But I promise to make this first expedition as Empress a success! Master, please watch me!"
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