The sailing ship circled for half a lap and successfully entered the Alabasta Kingdom's port city, Nanohana.
After mooring at the pier, Carina and Nami disembarked.
Two pretty girls with different styles immediately drew many gazes.
Because the little dragon wasn't with them, those gazes didn't turn covetous; people only assumed they were noble ladies sightseeing.
After all, ordinary people can't afford a large three-masted ship that costs at least a hundred million belli.
"It's so hot. Let's buy cloaks first, or our skin's going to get baked black."
"First buy a map, then gather intel. Tonight Perona and I will go out and look around."
"Alright. I just wonder which city Karl went to?"
"Don't worry—he's no child. He probably has more tricks than I do."
Though Karl had rarely shown his brains, as her childhood friend Carina knew him inside out and could tell he was playing dumb.
She simply didn't call him out, deliberately playing along like they were solving puzzles together.
Since entering the Grand Line, Karl had been "acting dumb" less and less. Starting from Water Seven he began moving on his own, returning with the superhuman body art Rokushiki and the intel on the City of Gold.
Now, Karl was clearly not just "visiting the island's strongest." He must have other plans that weren't convenient to bring the girls along for.
Just as Carina said…
Karl hadn't picked Sandy Island on a whim.
He had three main goals in the Kingdom of Alabasta.
None of the three were convenient to carry out with the three girls in tow.
Riding the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Karl quietly arrived at Rainbase—the stronghold where Sir Crocodile was crafting his heroic image in Alabasta.
"A fifty–fifty with a pirate? I really want to have a go."
Looking at Rain Dinners, the largest casino in Rainbase, Karl sighed inwardly.
As the first big villain Straw Hat Luffy defeated after entering the Grand Line, Crocodile's loss was even more absurd than Enel's—purely crushed by the protagonist's halo.
Enel could be chalked up to inexperience; his mentality didn't match his power.
But Crocodile—a great pirate who entered the New World before the Great Pirate Era officially began, who'd fought Douglas Bullet to a standstill, who'd lost to the world's strongest man, who wielded a mighty Logia and rich combat experience—was still one of the great pirates.
For such a pirate to lose to a rookie who'd just left the weakest sea with only a 30-million bounty—
If Crocodile had sunk into decadence like Gecko Moria, that'd be one thing.
Yet after breaking out of prison, Crocodile's performance—especially his flair at Marineford—showed he hadn't let himself go like Moria.
So losing to Straw Hat Luffy…
Wasn't it the dictionary definition of ridiculous?
"Enough. This isn't the time. Let's start staking the place out."
Hands in his pockets, Karl walked toward Rain Dinners' doors.
As for the little dragon, which had reverted to its whelp form, it uncharacteristically returned into the card.
Dragons are far too conspicuous in this world.
On an ordinary day, Karl wouldn't mind bringing it along.
But he had business now; to avoid alerting the snake, it wasn't suitable to parade a dragon around.
Inside the casino, Karl exchanged a few chips to pass the time while using Observation Haki to sift through the countless auras for the presence of Nico Robin.
One of Karl's three goals was to recruit Nico Robin.
Before she turned ten—before he poached Nami—there had been no way.
After poaching Nami, his resolve only grew firmer.
In the original Straw Hat crew, everyone had their strengths and value.
But in Karl's eyes, only two were the most valuable.
One was Nami, with the world's finest navigation talent, who could smell the wind and sense weather problems hundreds of miles away with her own body.
Even the soaring pirate Golden Lion Shiki coveted Nami intensely.
The other was Nico Robin, with her ability to read the Poneglyphs.
Born on the scholars' island of Ohara, a scholar at eight, Robin was a walking library; add to that the experience she'd accumulated while fleeing since eight years old, and she was practically Carina's ultimate evolved form.
Compared to Robin, the years Karl and Carina had lived looked like children's make-believe.
And for seeking the legendary treasure to become Pirate King, both Nami and Robin were indispensable.
Setting aside his past-life fondness, Robin's value—and yes, her looks and figure—meant the unabashed LSP Karl would never pass up such a crew mate.
As for whether recruiting Robin would turn them from bounty hunters into pirates—
In truth, had he not set his sights on Sky Island's gold, Karl wouldn't be recruiting Robin so soon.
But to boost Carina's strength with pay-to-win methods, Karl needed vast sums. Since he'd decided the next stop was Sky Island, he no longer minded changing his "identity."
Once they took the City of Gold on Sky Island, money would be just a number.
By the time they reached the New World and carved out territory, if Karl wanted money, countless people would rush to pile it at his feet.
Back to the point.
"...Found her."
After scattering some cash at the tables, the corners of Karl's mouth lifted slightly.
Within his sensing range, he had located Nico Robin.
Crocodile and Robin had only just begun their plan this year; Baroque Works wasn't fully formed, and Princess Vivi hadn't infiltrated yet.
Crocodile was presently polishing his hero persona.
Robin managed Rain Dinners and covertly ran Baroque Works.
At the moment, she was upstairs at Rain Dinners handling all manner of affairs.
A full-spectrum talent like that was utterly wasted under Crocodile.
Don't worry… Miss Robin, you'll be liberated soon.
Karl tossed all his chips, didn't even look at the result, and turned to leave.
That reckless way of scattering money made several red-eyed gamblers grow malicious and trail after Karl.
"...Wherever I go, idiots line up to target me."
In a narrow alley, Karl looked at the gamblers sprawled on the ground, speechless.
Did he also have some kind of halo that attracted fools wherever he went?
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