Pirates: I Rely Only on Myself

The other auction participants were struck with fear, chilled by the sight of the nobleman's brutal death.

Noah showed no pity or hesitation. Without looking back, he headed to the temporary storage room next to the auction stage.

Galdino, Kuro, and their companions understood Noah's intentions right away.

The merciless killing had turned the entire auction house into a scene from hell.

Noah pushed open the storage room door.

Inside, the guards in black suits were already lying dead in pools of blood.

Five family members were sorting and recording the captives here, who would later be sent to the Department of Supervision for further inspection.

Among these captives were ordinary people and children, but there were also dangerous criminals; Noah had no intention of letting such people into his family.

For example, Kuro and Galdino were accepted because their past wrongdoings were minor.

Kuro had only once engaged in some shady business in his hometown.

Galdino, as a bounty hunter, had hunted pirates—something hardly evil.

If Kuro had become the captain of the Black Cat Pirates, or if Galdino had joined the Baroque Works group, Noah wouldn't have taken them in. In fact, he might have killed them himself.

This was Noah's principle and his bottom line.

He believed that anyone who chose to be a pirate didn't deserve mercy.

After all, just because someone is persecuted by the World Government doesn't mean they have to turn to piracy—they could join a resistance or become revolutionaries. To Noah, anyone who chose to become a pirate was just transferring their hatred of the government onto innocent people.

To him, true strength meant daring to challenge those in power. Pirates who harmed ordinary people were simply scum of the sea.

Noah passed the room holding the slaves and went into the storage room for the auction items.

In the first room, he found a large number of guns—about two thousand—and two million rounds of ammunition. He used his card ability to store them away.

In the second room, he found rows of freezers, each filled with thousands of "Paradise Mushrooms."

"Paradise Mushrooms, huh?" Noah wasn't fond of drugs, but he knew that substances could have different uses. These mushrooms could actually be used in making certain medicines. He stored them away, intending to give them to Andy for research.

The third room contained antiques and jewelry, which he stored without hesitation.

The fourth room was mostly empty, except for six boxes, each containing a rare item: a well-crafted katana of the "Ryo Wazamono" grade, a box of fifty seastone bullets, a Zoan-type Devil Fruit (Spider-Spider Fruit, Red Spider Model), three vials of a banned substance called "Black Blood," a swordsmanship manual titled Flying Willow Swordsmanship, and a treasure map leading to an island in the Lost Sea.

These were the prized items in the auction.

Noah picked up a vial of Black Blood, recalling what he'd heard about it. Made in the Kingdom of Shetou in the South Blue, Black Blood granted temporary immunity to all poisons but came at a high cost—each dose took five years off a person's life.

The katana and swordsmanship manual didn't interest him much.

The seastone bullets were valuable, though.

The Red Spider Zoan Fruit was decent, as insect-type animals had good potential.

But the treasure map truly caught Noah's attention.

The Lost Sea was near the Antarctic ice cap of the South Blue. According to local legends, this area was once prosperous, but a catastrophe around 630 years ago made the climate here extreme.

Although the Lost Sea wasn't on his planned route, it was close enough to make a small detour worthwhile.

After Noah finished collecting the items, Arihad eliminated over fifty Donquixote Family members hiding in the covert port and destroyed all their Den Den Mushi.

At the same time, Noah's elite team members were wiping out the Donquixote Family members throughout the island, also destroying any remaining communication devices.

In less than an hour, the island was emptied of life.

All Donquixote Family members and auction attendees had died, and the items were looted.

North Blue, Northwind Archipelago.

Bam! Doflamingo smashed his fist onto his desk, veins bulging with rage.

Beside him, Rosinante looked quietly worried behind his painted clown face.

Trebol, who managed the family's assets, wore a dark, angry expression.

Doflamingo grinned through clenched teeth, "Heh… Find out who did this. I want to see who's foolish enough to cross me."

"Doffy, I'll find them," Trebol growled.

But Rosinante, who stayed quiet as usual, was already thinking about how he would report this to Sengoku.

While the Donquixote Family fumed, the massacre on the deserted island in Baishan Kingdom in the South Blue was causing a similar uproar.

In Baishan and the surrounding kingdoms, nobles, merchants, and crime bosses who had attended the auction were all wiped out at once.

This sudden power vacuum led to chaos as various groups moved in to claim the unoccupied territories and businesses.

Meanwhile, on Hart Island in the South Blue…

The Navy had established Base 201 here, where the South Blue Commander was stationed.

Currently, Rear Admiral Aust was respectfully accompanying a tall, laid-back Navy officer, showing him around the base.

"Vice Admiral Kuzan, how long will you be on leave in your hometown this time?"

Just as Kuzan was about to reply, his Den Den Mushi started ringing.

Brrr-brrr…

Kuzan gestured for silence, then answered the call.

Aust quickly ordered everyone to step back. "Everyone, take up guard positions!" He moved away as well, giving Kuzan space to take the call.

Kuzan answered.

"Hello… This is Kuzan."

"Vice Admiral Kuzan, this is the HQ Operations Office. My name is Kong Ming. South Blue Intelligence just reported a critical incident. I'll keep it brief…"

After hearing the report, Kuzan's expression stayed calm. "So, what does Fleet Admiral Sengoku want me to do?"

"The Fleet Admiral would like you to stop by Baishan Kingdom to investigate. But your main mission to capture the Crescent Hunter, Catarina Devon, remains unchanged."

"What a hassle… Alright, I'll make a detour to check it out."

Kuzan hung up and stretched out on a sunny patch of grass.

His aide immediately started preparing the ship and supplies.

The Navy often used the officers' vacations in the Four Seas as an opportunity to assign them difficult local missions.

For example, Vice Admiral Garp frequently visited the East Blue, which had led to a significant decline in pirate strength there over the past two decades.

This time, Kuzan's "vacation" in the South Blue came with the task of capturing Catarina Devon.

It wasn't that Devon was particularly strong, but her actions had terrified many nobles in the allied nations. Her Nine-Tailed Fox Fruit's shape-shifting ability also made her especially hard for the South Blue Navy to catch.

However, Kuzan didn't yet know that Catarina Devon had already become Noah's prisoner, locked inside one of his cards.