"Say that again? you found these three on a pirate ship?"
Michael pointed at the three girls still fast asleep and calmly repeated his question to Hina.
"Yes, Rear Admiral Michael!"
"They were indeed discovered aboard the pirate vessel!"
After intercepting and eliminating the pirate crew, Stella and the others had regrouped with Michael.
However, before they could even report the seized goods in detail, Michael had immediately led them to the island designated as the exchange location.
"Alright, you're dismissed for now."
"Everyone except Issho, out."
Michael waved his hand and without hesitation, the members of the SWORD filed out in an orderly manner.
If there was one thing they had learned over the past two years, it was this—when Michael gave an order, they obeyed without question.
Disobey Sengoku and he'll lecture you.
Disobey Garp and he'll laugh and say you've grown up.
Disobey Aokiji and he'll just ignore you.
Disobey Kizaru and not only will he ignore you, but he'll also to slack off with you.
Disobey Akainu and you'll end up cooked.
But none of them compared to Michael's punishments…
Smoker had already been stripped down to his underwear and hung from the ship's bow as a makeshift figurehead for quite some time.
Now that they were being dismissed, it also meant they could finally take him down.
He was, after all, one of the Marine's prodigies—destined to become at least an elite vice admiral in the future.
It was only right to spare him some dignity.
Once the others had left, Michael turned to Issho.
"Any unusual movements in Mary Geoise?"
"None so far. It's been the same as the past two years."
Issho overwhelming combat prowess hadn't seen much action under Michael command, so he had temporarily left the unit to take on the most critical task…
Surveillance of Mary Geoise.
Only his monstrously vast range of Observation Haki can made such a feat possible.
At present, Issho was the only one among Michael's forces who could escape unscathed from either the God's Knights or the Five Elders if his identity were exposed.
Fortunately, in the past two years, Issho had never been discovered.
"Good. But for now, return to the unit, Issho." Michael smiled warmly.
"The Celestial Dragons have stabilized completely. It's unlikely they'll stir up any trouble anytime soon."
"Mm. Just as well—I've already been blacklisted by all the casinos on the islands near Mary Geoise."
"...I told you, your gambling luck is so bad it's practically designed to bankrupt casinos." Michael shrugged.
"But I won't complain about seeing a casino go bankrupt because of sheer misfortune."
Unfazed by Michael's teasing, Issho used his Supreme Grade Sword "Yakuza Kasen" to tap the ground to locate the chair in front of him and take a seat.
Then, he "looked" at Michael with his blind eyes.
"What's the deal with these young girls?"
"They're from Amazon Lily and this little one with black hair is most likely the future empress of Amazon Lily."
"So.... you're telling me a pirate with a 76 million bounty bravely charge through the Calm Belt and took away their crown princess from the hands of the Kuja Pirates?"
Even the usually composed Issho couldn't hide his astonishment.
"Has the Kuja Pirates... weakened to such an extent now?"
Michael first nodded, then shook his head.
"Weakened, certainly. Last year, the previous empress of Amazon Lily passed away from illness. They had no choice but to ask the former empress to temporarily handle state affairs."
[Note : the empress is probably tritoma but she should be still have 4 years to live before passed away]
"But anyone who could be instantly defeated by Smoker would be a joke to think they could take on the Kuja Pirates head-on."
"It's just a matter of taking people from the ship when no one's paying attention."
Hearing Michael's explanation, Issho nodded as well.
That made much more sense.
"So, what do you plan to do with these children?"
"What do I plan? I can only say they arrived at the perfect time." A smug smile curled at the corners of Michael's lips.
"The promises I made to Gloriosa can finally be fulfilled... After all, I'm a man of my word. Guess I'll reluctantly take Amazon Lily under my wing."
"My, my, Michael, you really are a shameless fellow."
"...Says the guy who calls the power of the Gravity-Gravity Fruit 'gambling luck'! You've got no right to call others shameless!"
"What!? Hancock-chan and her sisters went missing from the ship!?" Shakky abruptly looked up at Gloriosa, who had come to the bar in disguise.
According to the original timeline, Gloriosa should have already begun shrinking into a petite old woman by now, gradually losing most of her strength.
Yet here she stood, still the stunning beauty from two years ago, with only a few faint wrinkles at the corners of her eyes—as if mocking the passage of time with a "That's all you've got?"
Gloriosa herself found it strange.
In her despair, she had sensed her premature aging approaching.
But after collaborating with Rayleigh and Gaban—even occasionally sparring with them—she had grown stronger instead.
At first, she thought maintaining combat readiness preserved her state, but later she realized...
It must be because of Michael!
Michael's Holy Light was the only unknown force she'd encountered in these two years.
That this power had resisted her aging was the most plausible explanation.
But right now, she's in no mood to discuss Michael's Holy Light with Shakky in detail.
"Exactly! By the time the Kuja Pirates contacted me, it had already been nearly half a day since it happened!"
"Tch. With the Empress just passed, the Kuja Pirates have immediately fallen into disarray." Shakky rubbed her temples.
"Gloriosa, don't panic yet. I'll notify all intelligence channels immediately to focus on searching for any leads about Hancock and her sisters."
"Before coming here, I also asked Rayleigh and Gaban for help. Though they're not exactly skilled in intelligence work, the Cross Guild has plenty of members. At the very least, they can be somewhat useful."
In the small bar, the former and former-former Empresses of Amazon Lily exchanged silent glances, left with nothing to do but wait for new information to arrive.
After nearly half a day, a distinctive knock suddenly sounded at the back door, known only to their allies.
Gloriosa hurriedly opened it, only to find several Marines standing outside.
She tensed to defend herself, but then recognized the man at the lead—Michael.
"Madame Gloriosa, please remain calm." Michael calmly pressed a hand to Flame Flower's shoulder, whispering just loud enough for her to hear.
"They don't know your identities—they think you're just the children's relatives."
"The children!? You found Hancock and the others!?"
"Mhm. Hancock-tan and her sisters got lucky."
Michael nodded, his smile radiant.
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