The moment Rosinante saw Shaxia running over, her face pale, a sharp chill went through his chest. And when he heard the words — Robin and Laki were missing — his expression darkened instantly. He shot to his feet.
"What happened?" Rosinante's voice was low and heavy, his tone ice cold.
Robin and Laki weren't just his companions — Rosinante treated them as if they were his own little sisters.
Ever since coming to this world, Rosinante had gone through a lot — and since his journey started long before the timeline of the manga, he never had any real emotional attachment to the original story's characters.
He might feel a certain fondness when meeting them, a flicker of respect because he knew their backstories — but that was it. They were no different to him than anyone else in this world.
But after spending the last few months with Robin, Rosinante had grown to truly like the sweet little girl.
Of course, not in a romantic way — Robin was still just a young child. Rosinante simply saw her as a younger sister, someone to protect. As for the future… well, who could say?
Laki was another he valued deeply — he had even entrusted her with the quick calculation fruit. In Rosinante's grand plan, the Fruit was meant to be one of the cornerstones of his future Bloodsworn Guard. The fact that he gave it to Laki showed how much he believed in her.
And now, under his very nose, the two of them had gone missing. Judging by Shaxia's terrified expression, this was no simple case of wandering off. How could Rosinante's face not turn grim?
"After we finished riding the flying coaster, we were a bit tired, so I told them to wait while I went to buy some ice cream. But when I came back… they were gone. No matter how I searched, I couldn't find them," Shaxia said anxiously.
"Calm down. Did you check all around?" Rosinante asked with a deep frown.
"We searched everywhere — no sign of them! It's my fault… if I hadn't left them, this never would've happened!" Shaxia said, guilt twisting her voice.
"This is bad. We let our guard down. Robin still has a bounty on her head — seventy million berries. And since Sabaody is the gateway to the New World, the place is crawling with pirates, bounty hunters, and slavers. Human trafficking — of humans, fishmen, even merfolk — is practically tolerated here. And for slavers, Robin is the perfect target," Raijin Kisu said suddenly, his face going ashen.
After the tragedy of Ohara, every scholar from the island had been placed under a bounty for the crime of attempting to awaken the Ancient Weapons and destroy the world.
From him, the World Government learned that Robin could read the Poneglyphs — and so they put a bounty on her head, seventy million berries.
A child worth seventy million? For the slavers of Sabaody, that was an irresistible prize.
And if she was paraded on the auction stage as the "child who can read the True History" — the price could skyrocket to an astronomical figure.
As Rosinante's appointed guardian of Sabaody, Raijin Kisu realized he should have anticipated this possibility and arranged hidden protection around Robin.
But he hadn't. And now that the worst had happened, Kisu felt an overwhelming sense of guilt — this was his failure, and it was unforgivable.
"Slavers?!" Shaxia gasped, face going completely pale. "No… what do we do? If Robin and Laki are in their hands, the consequences—"
"Mobilize everyone we have on Sabaody," Rosinante ordered, his voice quiet but full of an unyielding fury. "Even if we have to turn the entire archipelago upside down — we will find Robin and Laki."
His tone was calm, but his rage was palpable.
Right now, finding them was the only thing that mattered — before it was too late.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Raijin Kisu said grimly.
Eager to make up for his mistake, Kisu immediately began issuing orders to launch a full-scale search.
"And round up all the World Government spies who are watching us," Rosinante added coldly. "Interrogate them. Find out if they know anything about Robin and Laki's whereabouts."
"Understood!" Kisu replied, pulling out a Den Den Mushi and quickly contacting his subordinates.
"Ryan," Rosinante said, his voice carrying a steel edge, "tell Bins to bring Enel over from Birka. I need his Mantra and his lightning sense — he can scan the entire Sabaody Archipelago. I want Robin and Laki found, now."
"Yes, I'll contact Commander Bins right away," Ryan answered.
"And have him bring the Bloodsworn Guard's reserve unit as well," Rosinante continued, his expression darkening. "They've been training long enough — it's time they tasted blood. If slavers dared lay hands on my people — and did it right under my nose — then every last one of them dies. If bounty hunters were involved, wipe them out too. Consider this the reserves' trial by fire."
"Yes, I understand." Ryan nodded — but then his expression grew serious.
"And what if the Marines or the World Government are involved in this?" he asked quietly.
Rosinante's eyes turned razor sharp. "Then we go to war."
"Understood!" Ryan said, his own eyes flashing with killing intent.
"Come on. We're going to the human auction houses," Rosinante said, turning to Shaxia.
"The auction houses?" Shaxia asked, stunned.
"No matter who took them, the most likely outcome is that they'll be sold at one of those places. We'll be there waiting," Rosinante said coldly.
"Damn it… how dare they do this to Robin! I won't forgive them!" Shaxia growled.
Rosinante led Shaxia straight into the lawless district — the notorious slave-trading area of Sabaody.
But when they arrived, Rosinante realized just how complicated this would be — there were over a hundred slave trading houses in the area, and several dozen major auction venues.
If they searched them one by one, Robin and Laki might already be sold before they got there.
Rosinante's frown deepened. This was going to be far more troublesome than he'd hoped…