Kela and Joya each carried a burlap sack slung over their backs, their faces glowing with excitement.
As two of the most notorious slavers on the Sabaody Archipelago, they had been raking in profits recently.
Thanks to the Celestial Dragons, the slave trade was more lucrative than ever. Prices for slaves had skyrocketed several times over, as the Dragons were spending with reckless abandon.
Today, the two had agreed to meet at the Grove's Bubble Park before starting their day's hunt.
After meeting up, they were about to head toward the lawless district to look for today's "catch."
But suddenly, Kela froze mid-step, his face a mask of disbelief.
"What's wrong?" Joya asked, puzzled by Kela's reaction.
"Look over there!" Kela said, pointing in a direction.
"What, just two little brats?" Joya glanced over, frowning. "What, Kela, since when did you develop a thing for little girls — and dressed like maids, no less?"
Following Kela's finger, he saw two girls — one with a calm but curious face, the other looking thrilled and sweaty as if fresh from a ride. They were gazing around with innocent wonder, clearly enjoying their day.
"You idiot — that's Nico Robin. The Demon Child, Nico Robin. Bounty: seventy million beli," Kela said, barely able to contain his excitement.
"That little kid? Seventy million? You sure you're not mistaken?" Joya asked, shocked.
"How could I be wrong? You know I've memorized every bounty poster on this island. I guarantee it — no mistake."
As he spoke, Kela rummaged through his coat and pulled out a stack of bounty posters. Flipping through them quickly, he handed one to Joya.
"See? That's her!"
Joya's eyes widened. "Whoa… it really is her! Demon Child Nico Robin, daughter of the demon scholar Nico Olivia, who tried to awaken the Ancient Weapons. Ability to read the Poneglyphs. Bounty: seventy million beli! If we hand her over to the Marines, we'll be rich!"
The two were seasoned slavers, but their strength was limited — normally they wouldn't dare touch anyone with a bounty that high.
But this was just a little girl, standing there with no guard and no sign of strength. And the bounty poster said she was a scholar. Scholars didn't fight.
To Joya, it was as if seventy million beli were standing there, smiling and waving him over.
"You fool, why hand her to the Marines? We take her to the auction house! Do you have any idea how rare someone who can read the True History is? The big powers would go crazy bidding. The price will skyrocket several times over. And with the Celestial Dragons here, they might even want her themselves," Kela said greedily.
"And look at the other one — wings on her back. She's from Skypiea. Rare merchandise too!" Joya said, equally thrilled.
The two exchanged a look, their faces twisted with greed.
Since this was a busy area full of tourists, they decided to avoid commotion and use knockout gas.
Robin and Laki, still buzzing with excitement, were too distracted deciding what to do next to notice the danger creeping up behind them.
Robin, protected for months under Rosinante's watch, no longer lived like the hunted fugitive she had been in the original timeline — her constant vigilance had dulled. And Laki, seeing the attractions of Sabaody for the first time, had completely lowered her guard.
By the time they felt the cloth pressed over their noses, it was far too late. Darkness swallowed them almost instantly.
Kela and Joya were stunned at how easy it was. Seventy million beli — just like that, in their hands.
They stuffed the two unconscious girls into their sacks and, not daring to linger, sprinted straight toward the auction house district.
Meanwhile, at Rosinante's residence on Sabaody, a black portal opened. One by one, figures emerged — young men, faces alight with excitement.
"So this is the Sabaody Archipelago? Not bad — nice scenery," one loudmouthed youth said with a smirk. "Shame it might not exist after today."
"Laki really disgraced our Shandia tribe," another said darkly. "A warrior of Shandia, kidnapped so easily? She's gotten soft. She's going to get an earful from me later."
"Hah! Right — in front of His Majesty, no less!" the cocky youth laughed. "And you, Wiper, always bragging about Shandia this, Shandia that — the proud warrior tribe. Looks like you're not so tough after all."
"Humph. Someday, I'll make you understand just how fearsome the warriors of Shandia are," Wiper replied coldly, glaring.
If it had been anyone else mocking Shandia, Wiper would have already launched himself into a brawl to prove their tribe's strength.
But this youth was different.
This was Enel — the wielder of the Goro Goro no Mi, one of the strongest Logia fruits, master of lightning itself.
Even if Enel just stood there and let you swing at him, odds were you'd still end up the one losing.
Wiper trained relentlessly at the Boin Island camp, hoping that one day he could master Armament Haki — to finally earn the right to fight Enel as an equal.
"Yeah, well — she's His Majesty's maid. Even if you wanted to teach her a lesson, you wouldn't have the right," Enel said dismissively, clearly amused.
At the training camp, every member — reserve or full-fledged — feared Enel. His monstrous power and rapid growth were legendary.
Only Wiper still dared to stand up to him after countless humiliating defeats.
That was exactly why Enel liked teasing him — there was no fun in mocking someone who couldn't even talk back. Over time, the two had become strangely familiar with each other.
Familiar enough that Wiper found himself electrocuted almost daily under the excuse of "training" — sometimes until he completely lost consciousness.
"Anyway, Enel, if you've got time to stand here mocking Wiper, hurry up and find their location. Then we can start the hunt. Kidnapping someone from the Grey Kingdom is an act of defiance against the Grey Kingdom itself. Even if we're just reserves, we can't let this insult stand," a burly Skypiean recruit said with a grin.
"No need to search. I already know where they are," Enel said, looking up with a faint smile.
"And they're not far from His Majesty, either. Vice Commander…" Enel turned to Ryan, eyes gleaming, "can I just kill my way straight through to them?"