Chapter Ninety-One: Human Traffickers

After seeing the study group off, the next thing Qiu Bai and the others had to do was not to press farther into the Grand Line, but instead to head back toward the entrance and retreat to an uninhabited island west of Saint Indigo Island for the handover of the cargo.

Doflamingo’s contact and instructions had already arrived, and the time for the rendezvous and transfer had been roughly set. Since Qiu Bai was the receiving party, he could only arrive early and absolutely not late, so time was somewhat tight.

More importantly, with Beppo’s level of seamanship, night sailing on the Grand Line was little short of suicide. They could only travel by day and, when night fell, try their best to find a suitable place to anchor.

Thus their already limited time became even more limited.

Still, as the saying goes, diligence is rewarded by heaven. After sacrificing themselves and paying the price of several dozen pounds of fat, they still arrived at the designated place on time.

At the earliest, at once; at the latest, within five days, they would see the cargo they were waiting for.

At dusk, the little boat lay quietly in the small bay of the desolate island. Qiu Bai rested his head on both arms, leaning against the gunwale as he gazed up at the sky.

With his almost professorial level of erudition, he could have murmured a famous line at such a moment: two things fill the mind with ever-renewing and increasing awe and reverence the more often and steadily we reflect on them—the starry sky above and the moral law within.

It was a pity, though, that there truly was a starry sky overhead, but Qiu Bai himself was not necessarily a man of conscience, let alone one governed by a moral law.

Eyn was resting with her eyes closed. Continuous sea travel did indeed wear one down.

But Beppo, who should have been the most exhausted of them all, was still full of energy. Sitting cross-legged in the middle of the little boat, he was intently admiring the treasure placed between his legs.

A Devil Fruit.

Whenever Qiu Bai looked down, he could see the polar bear’s hesitating expression.

“Still undecided whether to eat it?”

It was the Devil Fruit they had taken in excess that day. After studying it a little, Qiu Bai had given it to Beppo. In his opinion, it was a fruit of great practical value, one worth swallowing despite the torment it would bring to the palate.

Of course, valuable as it was—otherwise it would not have been locked away in a vault—whether to eat it still had to be Beppo’s own decision. Qiu Bai would not force him.

From what Qiu Bai knew of Devil Fruit reference materials, there was a strong possibility that this Paramecia-type fruit could allow its eater to change in size, from as small as a thumbelina to as large as a giant, like Oars, the bald sea monster, or the giant battleship Saint Juan Wolf.

Well, all of that was based on an idealized interpretation.

This fruit, which altered the size and weight of oneself or other things, was called the Multiplication Fruit, distinct from the Moa-Moa Fruit. The information in the reference book stated that its range of change lay between zero point one and ten, meaning that a one-meter stick could be altered anywhere between ten centimeters and ten meters.

That alone was enough to say this fruit was absolutely among the most practical kinds of Devil Fruits. Simply put, if Beppo ate it, he could go make a living in an Ultraman set.

“But... if I eat a Devil Fruit, I won’t be able to swim anymore.”

It was not the taste that troubled him. That flaw, shared by all Devil Fruits, was the real reason Beppo hesitated.

Being unable to swim, becoming a complete landlubber—that was the harshest curse for anyone who sailed the seas.

“This... cannot be avoided. Every gain comes with a sacrifice. In any case, think it over carefully before making a decision. This is no small matter.”

Qiu Bai naturally had no way to remove the price one had to pay for gaining a Devil Fruit’s power, but in his view, the strength it granted was enough to offset the curse it brought.

Besides, though Beppo seemed undecided, it was easy to imagine that in the end he would still eat it. When faced with a choice that might bring a fifty-fifty chance of benefit or harmful change, most people, after wavering back and forth, would still choose to try.

First, everyone has a streak of luck in them; second, everyone has curiosity. It is an inclination rooted in instinct.

What would it feel like to gain such power? Who would not want to try?

And besides, this fruit was far better than a true fifty-fifty gamble. Its ability was already known from the reference book, not something wholly unknown...

Thus, while hesitating over whether to try the foul-tasting fruit, Beppo drifted into a drowsy sleep.

...

The next morning, in the haze between sleep and waking, Qiu Bai suddenly rose to his feet on the boat.

He heard a faint sound of water. Then, lifting his eyes, he saw through the thin mist a ship several times larger than the InterNa entering the harbor.

The people he had been waiting for had arrived.

The instant they saw him, the other side saw him as well, and when the vessel drew to within about twenty meters, it stopped.

“From the Don Quixote family?”

A man wearing a tricorne hat and a face-covering mask, with only his eyes exposed, stood on that ship and called out loudly. The vessel itself was eerily silent, as though there were no one else aboard.

By then, Eyn and Beppo had also awakened.

“Yes. Are you Delivery Man Two?”

Qiu Bai asked in return. After the other man nodded, the two sides began exchanging code phrases. Their passwords differed, and only if both the dynamic passcode and the static password matched would the identities of both sides be truly confirmed and the “goods” be properly handed over.

Qiu Bai could not possibly get these codes wrong, but even after the identities were confirmed, he remained vigilant. In matters like this, a black-on-black rip-off was far too common.

The man glanced at Qiu Bai, then chuckled softly.

“No need to be nervous. The Don Quixote family is a long-term partner of ours, and unless we have no other choice, we would not offend Joker.”

Anyone with a brain would not lightly offend Doflamingo, and when Doflamingo was doing business in earnest, it was best not to try to play tricks on him.

So whatever attitude the courier had toward Doflamingo sending such a little brat to handle such an important task, he would not show it.

All that mattered was delivering the goods properly.

Qiu Bai nodded, but he was not swayed by the other man’s words.

“Pull alongside,” he said, tilting his head toward Beppo.

The other ship had a high freeboard, and the InterNa could just berth beneath it for unloading. Qiu Bai was actually the same as the other side: he was only responsible for the matter before his eyes. As for how Doflamingo and the other party settled the money, that was not his concern, nor did he need to worry about it.

As the man had said, this was not their first cooperation with the Don Quixote family.

Once there were no problems, the other side moved briskly. A not-so-small iron cage, accompanied by the clatter of chains, was slowly lowered from the ship.

“I’ve checked the count. Eleven in total. We take no responsibility for any loss, death, or injury after delivery.”

As soon as the cage had been lowered, the man said this without fuss.

Working with Doflamingo, they were in fact quite tense as well. The ship before them was certainly not their main vessel, but merely a temporary delivery craft to be used and discarded. Where the real flagship was anchored, Qiu Bai of course had no way of knowing.

Nor did he care.

When the cage landed on the boat, the InterNa sank a little deeper in the water.

Qiu Bai, wearing a curious expression, looked at the “cargo” inside the cage. Then he lightly tapped the iron bars with his index finger, producing a clear ringing sound.

“Excuse me... is Seto-san here?”