Settsetse! The Pirate Nemesis

Immediately following, a deafening roar. Then, dozens more roars followed in quick succession. Sett's body blurred into countless afterimages in that instant, starting with those closest to him—the weakest, Kalifa, was caught before she could even react and was tucked under his arm. Then, the surrounding space transformed into a raging storm. The continuous brutal shavings caused even Sett to feel pain in his legs.

However, this had no effect on Sett in the slightest—after countless uses, Sett had long been accustomed to this level of physical strain.

Muscle strengthening, organ strengthening. Sett's vitality is beyond imagination. Even an ordinary person who can use Berserker's Shave would suffer irreversible damage and scarring from continuous use. But for Sett, none of that matters. As long as there is sufficient nutrient storage and intake, Sett can recover completely even from a comminuted fracture!

When Sett appeared in front of Lucci, all the CP9 members in Water 7 were already being carried by Sett like cargo under his arm.

His gaze suddenly locked on; faced with the threat, Lucci had no choice but to overcome his inner demons. And then:

"Finger gun! Coptis chinensis!!!"

Immediately afterward, Lucci's arms became a blur, striking Sett's chest repeatedly like a storm.

In Lucci's mind, he had already trained for so long, and even learned from his previous mistake by proactively strengthening his bones. No matter what, he shouldn't be able to make things worse like last time.

Unfortunately, just as Lucci was still thinking about it, he was accompanied by the same familiar, excruciating pain as before.

His gaze froze, followed by the sound of bones breaking. This time, the fracture was more severe than before, because Sett's body also shuddered the instant Lucci attacked. And it wasn't the dark Armament Haki, but a more aggressive, powerful Armament Haki.

With a deafening explosion of Armament Haki, Lucci's arm emitted a teeth-grinding cracking sound.

By the time Lucci realized what was happening and tried to escape, it was too late… In fact, Lucci himself already knew this fact. Therefore, Lucci did not resist at all. He half-squatted on the ground to relieve the pain in his arm, then gasped and said, “I know… what do you want to do?”

Having gained some understanding of his own identity, and knowing that Sett had no regard for the World Government, Lucci quickly realized that he and Sett didn't have any major conflict. Now, faced with this overwhelming power, he only had two choices left... one was death, and the other was to obediently follow Sett's orders.

Although the choice that followed was cruel, there was no doubt that it was Lucci's only option... No one would give up their life. Especially not someone like Lucci, who had such strong convictions. Glancing at his comrades, whom Sett had casually tucked under his arm like objects, Lucci took a deep breath and said, "We lost... Do whatever you want."

Upon hearing Lucci's words, Sett's lips curled into a smile, and he laughed, "Not bad, kid! Your reaction is quite satisfactory... In that case, obediently follow me."

As he spoke, Sett shoved his arm. Immediately afterward, Kaku, Kalifa, and the others collapsed onto the ground. Sett showed no concern whatsoever, and strode towards the headquarters of the Carrera Corporation.

Getting to their feet, everyone turned to Lucci, their leader. If Lucci agreed, they would have fled again without hesitation. But this time, watching Sett's retreating figure, after a moment of silence, Lucci simply shook his head silently: "Listen to him..."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Kaku, the youngest and closest to Lucci, fell silent. His eyes held a hint of hesitation, and although he didn't say anything, Lucci could guess what Kaku was thinking.

Lucci wasn't angry about this—although to outsiders, Lucci was a silent killing machine who killed five hundred soldiers simply because they were weak, citing the reason that "such weakness might bring shame to justice." But everyone in CP9 knew very well that at that time, they were at the point where they were least trusted by the World Government.

As the World Government's intelligence organization, CP9 doesn't have a concept of retirement. After all, as the World Government's black glove, they know far too much.

In order to avoid being abandoned, someone had to step forward to take on everything and regain the World Government's attention... and so, Lucci stepped forward.

Indeed, any outsider could call Lucci an executioner, a cold-blooded demon. But Kaku and his ilk are the only ones who don't have that right... If it weren't for Lucci, they might not even be where they are now.

This is precisely why, despite being seen by outsiders as nothing more than cold, hard killing machines, CP9 is unusually united...

It's like in the future, after being defeated by the cheat-like Luffy, the CP9 members even went to the streets to perform in order to raise enough money for Lucci's medical expenses. Kaku, who ate the Giraffe Fruit, even made children use his neck as a slide. Kalifa, Jabra, the owl, and everyone in CP9 didn't care about their identities at all... If it weren't for the fact that the manga is called One Piece, CP9 would definitely be treated like the main characters in other manga.

“We are agents of the World Government…he won’t hurt us.” Lucci’s forehead was covered in cold sweat, and the excruciating pain in his arms constantly assaulted his nerves, but there was no time to worry about it now. Standing up, Kaku quickly came to help stop the bleeding and reposition the bones. This emergency treatment would further irritate the wounds, but even in such agony, the calmness in Lucci’s eyes did not diminish in the slightest.

"Carrera Corporation is the same... Even if they knew our identities, they wouldn't dare to act rashly. The worst outcome would be mission failure. But this guy has no scruples. If we refuse to cooperate, even the World Government can only suspect us... Don't forget, we're undercover."

Lucci said, “Even if we die, the World Government won’t acknowledge our identities… They can’t even be sure if Sett killed us. In other words, our deaths will be meaningless.”

Upon hearing Lucci's words, everyone around fell silent once again. Both Kaku and Jabra's expressions turned grim upon hearing Lucci's words… having been trained from a young age, they didn't actually have much fear of death.

In fact, in their hearts, they truly believed they were upholding justice and eliminating those evil enemies...

But all they seemed to encounter... was evil? Whether it was Flevance or whatever else, it was all the same. In contrast, they hadn't forgotten the story of Sett they'd read about in the newspapers...

The lack of remembrance and the accountability following a failed mission are even more disheartening... It seems to tarnish even the heart of justice.

Especially that guy named Spandam, who clearly has no ability whatsoever, yet he gets to order people around just because his father does it… The future members of CP9 might be able to accept it, or even ignore Spandam altogether, and faithfully carry out the World Government's orders. But right now, they're just teenagers; who doesn't have a rebellious streak? Expecting them to accept orders without their consent? How could that be so easy?

The first failure can be addressed by looking for reasons within oneself. The second failure is also possible... but repeated failures, even with the strongest heart, will inevitably lead one to question the surrounding environment, right?

How can you uphold justice when you're surrounded by a bunch of scoundrels?

188·Dimensional Reduction Attack

You're saying they're agents of the World Government?

Upon hearing Sett's words, Barry, the future vice president of Carrera Corporation and one of the five foremen of Carrera Corporation's No. 1 dock, took a deep breath and looked at Lucci and the others in front of Sett with suspicion.

As the only shipyard in Water Seven, Carrera Corporation's existence is far more than just a shipyard. This is evident from the fact that the then-president of Carrera Corporation also served as the mayor of Water Seven... As the foundation of Water Seven, Carrera Corporation conducts thorough investigations even on trainee employees to ensure they have no criminal record.

There's a reason for such tight security. Because of its illustrious past, many individuals and forces covet the Galera Company's shipbuilding technology. Even the World Government is merely a partner of the Galera Company—yes, just a partner. Almost everyone is certain that, given the chance, the World Government would be the first to annex the Galera Company of Water Seven.

After all, on this vast ocean, the ships built in Water Seven Dock One are like Rolls-Royce and Ferrari among sports cars. This analogy might be somewhat inaccurate, since the ships in Water Seven Dock One far surpass ordinary warships in both speed and resistance to wind and waves.

Especially when equipped with rams, it's no exaggeration to say that the Seven Waters could sink enemy ships directly in boarding action.

It would be strange if the World Government didn't have some concerns about such a military industrial company building warships for the enemy... In fact, even the Navy has repeatedly forbidden the Galleyra Corporation from selling warships to pirates.

However, there's no way around it; when it comes to power and profit, whether or not to sell is often not a decision Carrera has the authority to make...

"Of course~ Why would I lie to you?" Hearing Barry's words, Sett sat down on the sofa with an indifferent expression and said, "I dealt with them back in Flevans... I remember it was in the newspaper. What, don't you guys even read the newspaper?"

As he spoke, Sett gave Morgans a thumbs-up as he soared through the sky, ready to gather big news at any moment.

In his previous life, the news media were known as the uncrowned kings, the mouthpiece of public opinion. But in this world, it's not like that... Power reigns supreme, and the law cannot protect these people who sell privacy for attention. Therefore, Sett's relationship with Morgans is more of a friendly cooperation where he holds the upper hand.

Upon hearing Sett's words, Barry stroked his chin and said, "This... I don't think I've ever heard of it. You're not lying, are you?"

"What the heck?" Sett raised an eyebrow when he heard that Barry had actually never heard of it.

Seeing this, before Sett could answer, a clear and rational voice came from the side: "Mr. Sett is not lying to you, it's just that the news in the newspapers has been blocked."

Iceberg, the leader of Carrera Corporation, walked out from the side, holding a newspaper in his hand, and approached the group in front of him, saying, "The news in that newspaper must have been blocked... The World Economic News Agency and the World Government have probably reached some kind of cooperation, at least the newspaper you mentioned didn't appear in the Grand Line. Even I only found out about it through some special channels... but it's just a silhouette."

As he spoke, Iceberg handed the newspaper to Sett. In Sett's view, the newspaper cover did indeed feature a photo of Sett with CP9 members hanging upside down at the gate. However, unlike the photo taken in the newspaper, the CP9 in this photo were a completely different group… one Sett had never heard of.

Goodness, there's Photoshop in this world too?

Touching his chin, Sett realized something: the "female bodhisattvas" in this world's erotic magazines were probably no better...

But it doesn't really matter, since Tina and Robin are already good-looking enough... I just wonder what their situation is now after two years.

“We are willing to trust Mr. Sett’s integrity.” Iceberg said, glancing at Sett before him; “We just don’t know…”

Before Iceberg could finish speaking, Barry stepped forward and said, "Wait! Boss! How could you believe them?!"

"That newspaper article clearly doesn't feature them! They probably just grabbed a few random people to scam us..."

Upon hearing this, a black line appeared on his forehead, and then Iceberg sighed and said, "I was looking out from the company balcony when Mr. Sett caught them..."

"……Oh."

Upon hearing Iceberg's words, Barry seemed to realize that he might have done something wrong, and he shrank back and fell silent.

Iceberg was somewhat helpless about this—Barry, though young, was a veteran of Dock One, having helped out since he was eight. Realizing Sett was there to make a deal, Iceberg could have used the uncertainty surrounding Lucci and the others' identities as an excuse to negotiate a lower price, but now it seemed unlikely.

Taking a deep breath and looking at Sett in front of him, Iceberg said, "Thank you very much, Mr. Sett, for helping us find these agents... If Mr. Sett needs any help, then Carrera Corporation will definitely do its best to assist you!"

He spoke confidently, giving Sett a lot of face. But if you listen carefully, you'll find that Iceberg only ever said he would help within his "capable" scope. And just how big that "capable" scope is, only Iceberg himself knows.

However, Sett didn't care—that's the advantage of having power. No matter how chaotic the situation, if something really goes against him, he has the power to overturn the table.

It must be said that in an era of weak laws and chaotic legal system, those who possess power can indeed do whatever they want.

"Lend me twenty shipwrights! I need to build several large ships!"

Upon hearing about twenty shipwrights, Iceberg frowned slightly—Carrera Company certainly didn't lack shipwrights. After all, possessing the world's best shipbuilding technology, the people of Water Seven, through their daily exposure, all knew a thing or two about shipbuilding. Even those who couldn't actually build a ship could still talk a good game. And Carrera Company itself had more shipwrights than it could use, the competition reaching an absurd level.

It could be said that this request was not demanding, even somewhat lenient. But precisely because of this, Iceberg hesitated, wondering if Sett had some deeper purpose.

If Sett's goal is to uncover Carrera's construction techniques... then these twenty shipwrights are probably just a smokescreen.

While pondering, Iceberg asked, "May I ask, Mr. Sett, what do you want these twenty shipwrights for?"

Seti didn't hide anything from this, casually saying, "We're preparing a few ships, but the shipwrights at the West Sea Shipyard aren't quite up to par."

Upon hearing this, he paused slightly, then a smile appeared on Iceberg's face. Realizing that Sett really only wanted to build a few ships, Iceberg said, "If it's just shipbuilding, Mr. Sett can completely trust us. Water Seven has the best shipbuilding workshops, and Mr. Sett has helped us find these World Government agents. To repay Mr. Sett's help, as long as it's up to ten ships, we are willing to use the most basic raw material prices."

That being said, it's not that Iceberg is stingy. The warships at Water Seven's shipyard are far larger than the smaller vessels of the Four Seas. If no payment is required, then ten top-tier warships would still have a significant impact on Water Seven's shipyard. More importantly, it would generate unnecessary negative publicity.

Sett shook his head at this, saying, "No need, my blueprints will do."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Iceberg fell silent. He was unsure whether to offer some advice to Sett—some nouveau riche from all corners of the world could indeed be like this at times. They only believed what they saw, had an overwhelming confidence in where they had made their fortune, and were completely unaware that the warship blueprints they possessed were already two or three generations behind the Grand Line…

While Iceberg remained silent, Sett simply produced the blueprints for Ark Maxim.

Of course, only a portion of the design drawings were shown; not all of them were revealed. Furthermore, the core powertrain area was completely kept hidden.

At first, Iceberg was somewhat dismissive. Barry, standing nearby, shared the same thought. After glancing at the design drawings, Barry couldn't help but jump in and say, "Um... how about you just use us?"

Barry scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "Although you're a good person and helped us capture these little agents, that huge oar on this ship seems rather useless. And without sails, it can only sail with the ocean currents. Such a huge oar is practically useless on a warship; it would easily be rammed and destroyed by approaching enemy ships during boarding maneuvers. At that point, there wouldn't even be any chance of escape..."

While Barry was still boasting, on the other side, after a long silence, Iceberg stared at the design drawings. Although he could tell that the design drawings were incomplete, as a disciple of the shipbuilding master Tom, Iceberg had seen more than just the dozens of warships currently in service with Carrera Company.

It can be said that everything that has ever appeared on this sea, including Pluto's design blueprints and icebergs, has been seen... Just as the World Government knows, Pluto's design blueprints did indeed come from Water 7.

In this context, Iceberg had also learned about many legendary warship models during his studies with his teacher. Being an expert, after observing for a while, Iceberg raised his hand to stop Barry's boastful talk, and said with a hint of seriousness in his eyes, "This is... the Ark Maxim?"

Upon hearing Iceberg's words, even Sett couldn't help but stroke his chin in surprise, then asked with amusement, "What, you know?"

"...Hmm." After realizing that Sett didn't deny it, but instead looked at him with a mixture of amusement and surprise, he confirmed his thoughts, and a hint of amazement appeared between the icy brows.

"I've heard of it... I thought it only existed in legends, but I never expected... But what are its power system and flight device? With current technology, it's impossible to operate them at all!"

As the apprentice of a shipbuilding master, Iceberg instinctively wanted to uncover the truth. Meanwhile, Barry, listening to Sett and Iceberg's conversation, looked completely bewildered—but even so, he could guess that Sett and Iceberg were probably discussing something significant. He couldn't help but interject, "What ark... Iceberg, what are you talking about? This ship's design is completely out of step with modern naval warfare..."

“This ship is not a warship at sea.” Upon hearing Barry’s words, Iceberg shook his head helplessly. He didn’t blame Barry, after all, even for his master, Master Tom, who had researched the sea train and built warships for the Pirate King, the warship on the blueprints in front of him was a legendary existence.

"This is a warship that travels in the air, the Ark Maxim."

"Flying in the air? You're not kidding, are you?!"

Upon hearing this, Barry, forgetting his embarrassment, instinctively rushed over and practically pressed his face against the table to examine the design drawings. Although the core elements were missing, his experience was undeniable. After receiving guidance from Iceberg, Barry realized, just as Iceberg had said, if those outdated designs were applied from a different angle—like rising from the sea to the sky—then everything that seemed illogical gradually began to make sense!

"...The power unit is missing here..."

"That's none of your business," Sett said casually. "You probably can't build the power unit yourself. So I asked some friends from the Kingdom of the Future to do it."

After hearing Sett's words, Iceberg nodded after a moment of silence. It was absolutely impossible for him not to have the idea of ​​keeping the blueprints for himself... after all, this was a legendary warship that could fly in the air.

The reason why Shiki was called the Pirate Admiral was largely because of the terrifying power of the Float-Float Fruit, which allowed him to appear anywhere in the world at any time... He could even cross the Red Line of the Grand Line directly from above.

Now, we can mass-produce these legendary spaceships... This is an unprecedented, game-changing blow to the entire shipbuilding industry!

Just like the disruptive impact of food delivery services on the instant noodle industry, this kind of threat, stemming from something outside our understanding, is the most terrifying...

As for Sett's claim that he "entrusted some friends from the Future Kingdom," Iceberg didn't doubt it. After all, the Future Kingdom did indeed have that kind of power... Sett wasn't foolish enough to expose his allies. Anyway, he wasn't very familiar with the Future Kingdom yet, so if they pinned the blame on him, he wouldn't feel any guilt.