Chapter 261: Crocodile's Mecha Dream
"Alright, Clan Leader Buggy."
Crocodile straightforwardly tossed over the family token.
Buggy carefully examined it and, after confirming it was genuine, immediately proceeded to found the family.
[Congratulations, player "The Real Joker," on founding the family: Desert Circus!]
"Old Sand, no need to be polite. Since you provided the family token, the name should include a part of you too."
Buggy, acting overly familiar, threw an arm around Crocodile's shoulder,
pleased with himself for recruiting such a powerful ally.
"Thanks, but don't do it again,"
Crocodile muttered with a twitch of his mouth.
The name "Desert Circus" sounded ridiculously dumb to him.
He'd rather not be associated with it at all.
Still, Buggy kept his word.
He appointed Crocodile as vice clan leader and transferred over 150,000 reward points.
With the points in hand, Crocodile couldn't wait to open the game shop interface
and buy an item he had long been eyeing.
"President, isn't Pluton supposed to be a massive battleship?
If you summon it inside a tent, won't it get stuck?"
Daz Bones—one of the few who knew Crocodile's plan—spoke up.
He hadn't always known.
Only when their plans completely collapsed did he piece together Crocodile's original goal.
Crocodile had gone to great lengths to seize Alabasta
just to get his hands on the Poneglyph hidden beneath the royal tomb.
It supposedly contained information on Pluton.
According to legend,
Pluton was an enormous warship capable of destroying entire islands in a single strike—
the pinnacle of ancient kingdom technology.
"Vice Clan Leader, you were really aiming for Pluton? That's some ambition."
Buggy was shocked.
After all, he had once sailed with the Pirate King Roger.
Even if he hadn't seen Pluton himself, he'd heard the old crew talk about it.
"Pluton?"
Crocodile looked up, his face reflective,
but then he sneered and shook his head.
"After becoming a player, I realized how laughable my obsession with Pluton was…
How pathetic I must've looked under the gaze of the Game Merchant."
The Pluton he once craved so badly—
now it was nothing to him.
Just like the Merchant said:
The Reincarnation Game could fulfill any wish a player had.
Whether it was old ambitions like Pluton,
or entirely new dreams inspired by what they'd seen inside the game.
Compared to his new ambitions,
Pluton was nothing but a child's toy.
"I'm not chasing some rusted relic anymore,"
Crocodile declared.
Then he threw his head back and laughed wildly.
"Ancient weapons? The Great Kingdom?
What a joke."
"I heard the World Government's made some progress though,"
he added, turning to Buggy.
"Yeah. When I raided the Celestial Dragon vault,
I saw some papers about that,"
Buggy replied, unbothered.
"Didn't read them closely, but it mentioned Vegapunk and something called… Seraphim?"
Everyone across the seas knew the "God Clan" (World Government)
was developing terrifying new weapons.
Rumors said they were stronger than Pacifistas—
the peak of ancient and modern technology fused.
That leak was intentional.
The World Government didn't want the Navy to get too powerful and attract too many elites,
so they exposed some of their trump cards.
"'Strongest weapons'? Please."
Crocodile scoffed.
"In the face of the Reincarnation Game, they're trash.
Watch and see what I've exchanged for."
He stretched his arms wide.
A golden glow filled the entire tent.
"Before, I would've laughed at someone saying stuff like this,"
Buggy said, eyes serious.
"But now… with the Reincarnation Game?
Nothing surprises me anymore."
Everyone in the Buggy Pirates—including Daz Bones—
stared at the glow in anticipation.
A moment later,
the light faded.
Crocodile stood holding a metallic golden pistol.
"Huh?"
Buggy's jaw dropped.
It was like going to a circus expecting lions and tigers,
only for a clown to stumble out.
Everyone looked baffled.
Mochi couldn't help himself and burst out laughing.
"This is your 150,000-point item?
A little toy gun?"
The Reincarnation Game was always fair.
The more it cost, the better the quality.
So this pistol had to be special.
But it really… looked like garbage.
Like one of those tin toys sold to kids by Drum Island's old king Wapol.
"Tch. Don't be hasty."
Crocodile shot him a glare.
"This pistol?
It could reduce your purple-fire lion to molten scrap."
He pulled the trigger.
Bang.
A quiet pop.
A spinning top engraved with desert symbols rolled out.
As it spun along the ground, it left a glowing trail behind it.
When it finished tracing a circle,
a surge of magical energy exploded outward.
A golden magic circle blazed to life—
hot, shimmering, dry like desert winds.
"Watch closely, Mochi.
This is my… summon!
Come forth—Desert Envoy!"
The circle became a portal.
Something huge stirred behind it.
A golden mecha head rose into view—
etched with desert patterns.
[Desert Envoy]:
From the world of the Photon Guardians,
a magical mech forged from enchanted metal and desert power.
Crocodile tossed the pistol aside.
It transformed into a golden hoverboard.
He jumped on,
surrounded by golden light,
and shot into the mech's forehead crystal.
Buzz.
The mecha came alive—
unfolding into a massive golden titan, dozens of meters tall.
Its head burst through the top of the tent.
"Mochi, are you unhappy I became vice clan leader of the Desert Circus?"
Crocodile's voice echoed from within the mech.
He had always known how to balance grace and cruelty.
Now was the time to show power.
"No, Vice Clan Leader! My mistake!"
Mochi grabbed Richie,
bowed deeply, and apologized.
"Ahahahaha!
You idiot, Mochi!
How dare you underestimate the vice leader?"
Buggy burst out laughing.
He had no complaints.
In pirate culture, power spoke the loudest.
Even Crocodile with a giant mech couldn't beat him—
so he remained clan leader.
And the stronger the Desert Circus got,
the happier Buggy became.
He hadn't risked his life stealing from the God Knights just to stay in hiding.
He used to lack the strength.
But now, the Reincarnation Game had given him a second chance at his dreams.
Suddenly, Buggy grew uncharacteristically serious.
He looked up at the Desert Envoy and asked:
"Old Sand… what's your dream?"
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