Chapter 15
Compared to pirate ships, the Paradise Emperor’s vault isn’t hidden in some secret nook. It’s just tucked in an unassuming corner of the deck. It’s a cruise ship, after all—most of the space is for guest entertainment, not high-security storage. Besides, a slick operator like Badsey wouldn’t be dumb enough to keep all his wealth on one boat.
The vault holds passenger fees and the gold, silver, and jewels Badsey’s scooped up from islands along the way. Even so, it’s worth a cool ten to twenty million Berries. In the East Blue, where the average pirate bounty’s only three million, that’s no small haul.
Nami and I reach the vault in no time. Like before, guards are posted at the door—five this time, more than at Badsey’s cabin. The guy in front grips a long-barreled rifle, while the four behind him sport sabers and pistols, all stone-faced. They’re watching a steel door with a tiny ten-centimeter window like hawks. From their vibe, these guys are tougher than the ones we dealt with earlier.
“Tch, another guy who’d rather die than lose his cash,” I mutter, glancing at Nami from our hiding spot.
“What? Don’t look at me when you’re talking about him,” she snaps.
I don’t answer, just pull a small lock from my pocket and secure the Devil Fruit box.
Suddenly—
Beep! Beep! A blaring alarm cuts through the ship.
“Damn it, Badsey must’ve sounded the alarm!” Nami’s face pales.I stay calm, locking the box and shoving it into her arms. “Hold this.”
“Hey, you—” She starts to protest, but I’m already gone, vanishing without a trace. A faint breeze is the only sign I was there.
“What… he just disappeared?!” Nami rubs her eyes, stunned. She’s never left the East Blue and hasn’t seen speed like mine.
Meanwhile, the five guards at the vault door perk up at the alarm, scanning their surroundings. I appear right in front of the rifle guy, slamming a fist into his gut.
Thud!
“Urgh!” His stomach churns, eyes bulging as his rifle flies from his hands. He curls up and crashes backward.
I snatch the rifle mid-air, chamber a round, and fire. Bang! Bang! Bang! Three guards drop before they can react. I’m no stranger to guns on missions—my marksmanship’s not as sharp as my swordplay, but it gets the job done.
The last guard draws his pistol, aiming at me.
Next second, I’m at his side. His eyes widen as I yank the saber from his waist, flip it, and press it to his throat.
“Guh…” He freezes, pistol dropping limp.
“We’re going in the vault,” I say coolly. “Got a key?”
“N-no…” he stammers.
Before he finishes, my blade slices his throat. No time for chitchat. These guys are Badsey’s bodyguards, probably up to their necks in his dirty deeds. I don’t waste mercy on them.
“Key… where’s the key…” Nami hurries over, setting the box down and rifling through the guards’ pockets.
“Don’t bother,” I say, shrugging. “Badsey probably keeps the key. These guys won’t have it.”
“What?! Why didn’t you say so earlier?!” Nami groans, thinking of how we just left Badsey’s cabin. She pulls a thin wire from her pocket—her go-to lockpicking tool. “Ugh, fine, I’ll do it this way. First time cracking a vault door like this.” She glares at me. “If more guards show up, you’d better cover me!”
I ignore her, stepping to the door and slashing twice with the saber in a cross pattern.
Nami rolls her eyes. “Don’t waste your energy. That little knife can’t cut through a ten-centimeter steel—”
Her words cut off as two flashes of steel split the door into four pieces, collapsing with a crash.
“Ten… ten centimeters…” Nami stammers, swallowing hard. “That’s… insane!”
“Go on,” I say, grabbing the Devil Fruit box and tossing the saber aside. “Like we agreed, everything in there’s yours.”
Nami bolts ahead, like she’s scared I’ll snatch the loot first.
As she saw from outside, the vault’s stuffed with Berries and treasures. The cash alone is worth ten million, and with the gold and jewels in those boxes, it’s easily twenty million or more.
“Haha, I’m rich!” Nami dives into the loot, her eyes practically turning into Berry symbols. Without my help, she stuffs a massive box and a huge sack to the brim, moving like a pro.
Footsteps echo outside—guards, probably alerted by the gunshots and Badsey’s tip about the vault raid.
“Time to go,” Nami says, slinging the sack over her shoulder and hugging the box, which is big enough to fit her inside. She looks like an ant hauling a giant load.
“Want me to carry one?” I offer.
“No way, I got this!” she snaps, clutching the box tighter, a flicker of suspicion in her eyes.
“Tch.” My kindness gets the cold shoulder. “Fine, let’s move. Don’t fall behind.”
I lead the way out.
Outside, the ship’s guards are converging on us.
“Heh, time to split,” Nami says with a grin. We’re far enough to make a clean getaway.
Soon, I take out a few more guards, and we reach the ship’s stern, releasing two small boats and hopping in.
Our boats drift over a hundred meters out, the massive Paradise Emperor shrinking in the distance. The guards reach the railing, firing a couple of wild shots our way, but their aim’s so bad it’s almost funny.
“I’m heading that way. Catch you later, Mr. Bounty Hunter,” Nami calls, waving as her boat veers off. She’s bound for Cocoyasi Village, while I’m headed to Loguetown—one’s in the western East Blue, the other’s near the Grand Line entrance. Different paths.
“See ya, Miss Nami,” I say, waving back with a smile. “This was fun. Let’s team up again sometime.”
“Haha, you bet!” she replies, grinning ear to ear, as if she’s forgotten how I bossed her around on the ship. Probably because her haul’s got her closer to her “little goal.”
As Nami fades from view, I unlock the box and glance at the Devil Fruit inside, chuckling to myself. “If that little thief knew this thing’s worth a hundred million, she’d have bolted the second I handed her the box.”