Chapter 31: King Of Maritime Transport, Umit
“Sorcerer······ I didn’t expect you to still be alive, fufufu!”
On the rooftop terrace,
Doflamingo, who was watching the show, revealed an extremely delighted smile. This old man Umit really went all out. A figure like Sokachio Elus, who had never been recorded in any intelligence, had appeared. This Black Prince seemed to have truly made Umit feel threatened and under pressure.
“And not just the Sorcerer, there’s also [Deep Sea], [Gray Knight], [Flying Rabbit], [Red Hat]······”
Without exception, each of these individuals was once a prominent figure of their time, top strong persons in their respective eras. They had all delusionally sought the great treasure left by the Pirate King, charging into this bloody Xiuluo field, only to have their ideals crushed by the cruel reality of the New World.
Then, for various different reasons, they ultimately became subordinates of the King of Maritime Transport.
From pirates chasing dreams to mere wage earners.
This is,
the Xiuluo hell named ‘reality’.
“However, an Ancient Zoan animal Devil Fruit—our Black Prince here is not to be underestimated either!” Doflamingo’s gaze shifted to the massive Earthquake Dragon, hill-like and impossible to ignore, his eyes flickering slightly. As an intermediary in the Dark World, he had been instructed by Beasts to collect as many animal Devil Fruits as possible.
If he couldn’t regularly hand over a certain amount of Devil Fruits, what awaited him would not be Beasts’ understanding and forgiveness.
Thinking about how he had no results yet for this year’s Devil Fruits to hand over, Doflamingo’s mood soured. He looked at Eschbach, who had transformed into the Earthquake Dragon, and couldn’t help but think how great it would be if that Devil Fruit hadn’t been eaten.
An Ancient Zoan animal Devil Fruit—this thing would absolutely be worth ten or even more ordinary animal Devil Fruits if sent up.
Unfortunately, it had been eaten.
“Eckmond Kingdom······ should have quite a stockpile.”
The gaze under Doflamingo’s sunglasses flickered. He had also set his sights on the Eckmond Kingdom, a kingdom with a not-so-short history. And not just the Eckmond Kingdom—his thoughts extended to the numerous large and small kingdoms in the New World.
These kingdoms’ treasuries must have some Devil Fruits, more or less, right?
Previously focusing only on the Dark World had been too narrow. Compared to the underground world with its astonishing digestive power, the treasure-hoarding royal families of various countries might be the real big sources for collecting Devil Fruits.
“Hm? Did this old man Umit make his move?”
His wandering thoughts instantly snapped back. Doflamingo picked up the telescope clamped on a nearby stool and looked toward the distant beach. His Observation Haki was fully activated, locking onto Umit and Elus, who were currently engaged in combat.
The result—
Elus was being beaten down by Umit?
This seemed like a perfectly natural outcome. After all, Umit was the King of Maritime Transport in the New World, one of the magnates of the Dark World, an indisputable big shot in the New World. In comparison, Elus was just a rising star who had only recently gained some reputation.
Most people could naturally make a clear judgment on who was stronger between the two.
But,
Doflamingo was not most people.
“Sokachio Elus······ something just feels off?” He slightly furrowed his brows, a strong sense of confusion flashing in his eyes under the sunglasses. He always felt that the scene ‘seen’ with Observation Haki seemed somewhat incongruous.
“Doffy, what did you say?”
Nearby, Diamanti looked over.
“Nothing, just talking to myself. Watch the show properly.”
Doflamingo waved his hand and continued to focus intently with Observation Haki on the battle on the beach.
————
“Bang——!!!”
Another heavy fist.
Umit’s steel-forged robust muscles emitted a furnace-like scorching aura. He was not an ability user but a pure martial artist like Vice Admiral Garp the Navy Hero. His most powerful weapon was his own fist.
It was this simplicity and purity that gave his fist such astonishing destructive power.
The mushroom-shaped rocks on the beach, standing for countless years, were completely shattered under the sweep of his fist wind. That ferocious momentum was even hard for Eschbach, who had transformed into the Earthquake Dragon and was fighting Marcus, to match. Despite his massive size, he could no longer draw people’s attention.
The battlefield wasn’t just these two spots.
Dillon, Dick, Kappas, and Farrug were all entangled by two or even more enemies. These enemies weren’t just filler—they were no pushovers. The three aide-de-camps also couldn’t defeat these enemies in a short time. Farrug, the weakest among the aide-de-camps, was in particularly dire straits with his attendant, the situation looking quite bad.
Besides that,
Umit’s legion bypassed these individual martial power-listed human weapons and advanced toward Elus’s flagship docked at the port.
“Hey, Eschbach, your master doesn’t look so good!”
Marcus shouted loudly.
“If you’re trying to shake my will with this tactic, I can only say don’t waste your effort. You don’t understand His Highness’s capabilities at all.” Eschbach was completely unmoved by Marcus’s psychological attack, maintaining his established pace, probing bit by bit and uncovering Marcus’s various strange abilities.
“Whoosh!!!”
Tail whipped down like an iron lash.
Shattering that explosive shockwave.
“Confidence······ it’s actually this strong.” Marcus, bouncing around like playing a game on a trampoline, dodged Eschbach’s attacks, which showed no impatience or change, while feeling some worry for his own boss who seemed to have the upper hand against Elus.
After tangling with Eschbach for a while, he had somewhat figured out Eschbach’s personality.
This was not a man who lied.
Since he had such confidence in that Black Prince, it could only mean the other side truly had backing. This made Marcus’s heart tighten.
“Are you worried about that King of Maritime Transport?”
The mountain-like massive body didn’t hinder Eschbach from detecting subtle emotions. He noticed Marcus’s distraction and, with a slight turn of his mind, understood what was troubling Marcus.
“Rest assured! Your boss’s defeat is inevitable! No one can block His Highness’s path forward.”
Eschbach stated in a matter-of-fact tone the truth that one wave pushes the last, each stronger than the previous,
“That······ Black Prince, is he really that strong?”
Marcus pressed.
“His Highness’s strength is beyond your imagination, and····· getting distracted in battle is a great taboo.” Eschbach let out a roar that shook the earth and Vast Sea, his long tail viciously whipping away the divided-attention Marcus.
