Chapter 22 - Supernova

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Auction House!

After learning about the munch munch fruit, Aaron immediately set his sights on the upcoming auction. Just from the name alone, he was reminded of a certain Celestial Dragon pirate who would one day grow arrogantly infamous, along with the powerful crew under his command.

Donquixote Doflamingo—the Donquixote Pirates.

"Could this be connected to him?" Aaron thought grimly.

Lately, he had instructed Shuma to focus intelligence gathering at the docks. With their intel group still understaffed, Aaron knew very little about the many factions active in Vilia Harbor.

Still, the name Donquixote Auction House was well known. It was located in the busiest district of the inner city—and it was the largest auction house in town.

It had only appeared within the past two years. About a year ago, it swallowed up the city's former largest establishment, the Lindes Auction House, and then suddenly rose to the very top.

For such a small auction house to expand so quickly and even devour the city's number one competitor, there was no doubt a powerful force was backing it. Otherwise, such rapid growth would have been impossible.

Time—everything was about time.

Aaron's own power had grown considerably, but his influence was still weak. If he clashed head-on with the forces behind the Donquixote Auction House, it would be like throwing an egg at a stone. He might survive—but his comrades would pay a heavy price.

Still, with the Munch-Munch Fruit involved, the Donquixote Auction House could not be ignored.

He needed more information—intel that would allow him to figure out how to obtain the Devil Fruit with the smallest cost and lowest risk.

"Shuma, from now on, keep an eye on the Donquixote Auction House. But remember—don't dig too deep. Know your limits."

After a brief silence, Aaron gave the order.

"I understand. Don't worry," Shuma replied with a nod.

Then he turned his head, pointing at Absalom. "And what about him?"

Aaron shifted his gaze. His eyes hardened as his right hand drifted toward the hilt of his blade.

The fewer people who knew about the Munch-Munch Fruit, the better. Absalom was impossible to control for now and posed an unstable risk.

Killing him seemed best—removing a future threat and, at the same time, testing a certain theory Aaron had about Devil Fruits. Who knew—he might even get his hands on the Clear-Clear Fruit.

"I've already told you everything valuable I know! I swear I'm not lying this time! I'm useful—you're interested in Devil Fruits, right? I can help you steal it from the Donquixote Auction House! And I can even turn others invisible, not just myself! Please, don't kill me—I'll listen, I'll obey!"

Seeing Aaron's murderous look, Absalom shouted desperately, struggling to prove his worth. By the end, his voice cracked with panic. He had nearly been killed once already—he couldn't gamble with his life again.

He can cloak others in invisibility…

And he'll obey…

Hearing this, Aaron released his grip on his sword hilt. Turning to Shuma, he said, "We'll keep him for now. Verify every bit of information he just gave us. If even one piece turns out false, kill him. I don't give second chances to liars."

Absalom let out a shaky breath of relief—but Aaron's final words left him terrified again. His mind raced, reviewing everything he had revealed to make sure nothing had been mistaken.

He couldn't afford a slip.

When Aaron and Shuma prepared to leave, Absalom grew anxious and quickly spoke up: "Wait! Lord Shuma, please—go over the details with me again. I may have misspoken earlier. There was so much information—it's hard to be certain I got it all right."

Shuma glanced at Aaron. After Aaron gave a nod, Shuma pulled out his notebook with a cold expression and reviewed every detail with Absalom.

Meanwhile, Aaron left the basement and returned to the living room, where he and his crew enjoyed a hearty midnight meal.

It wasn't until late at night that Victor and Dorak finally departed—they both had families and hadn't yet moved into the hideout.

Knock, knock, knock—

Aaron's room door rattled with knocks. He set down the item he had been studying, opened the door, and allowed Shuma and Williams inside.

"Aaron, is there something urgent?"

Williams spoke as soon as the door closed. During dinner, Aaron had discreetly used a coded signal—one only the three of them knew—asking them to meet him afterward.

"The reason I called you here now is because of this."

Aaron picked up a pill from the table and explained.

"This was taken from Douglas and his men."

Shuma's eyes widened in recognition.

Williams, who hadn't participated in the night's battle, didn't yet know what it was. He only knew from Shuma and Victor's accounts that Douglas and his crew had used something to suddenly grow stronger—only to be cut down by Aaron.

Now, seeing the pill in Aaron's hand and Shuma's reaction, Williams quickly pieced it together. His merchant's instincts told him this tiny object carried enormous value.

Aaron nodded. "That's right. This was what caused Douglas and the others to suddenly grow stronger. After swallowing it, their power surged—especially Douglas. If I hadn't mastered Observation Haki, I might not have won."

They forced Aaron to use Haki?!

Shuma and Williams froze in shock. They didn't know Aaron's true limits, but they were certain he was a monster.

The fact that he had so easily defeated Douglas—a pirate with a 20 million bounty—even after Douglas enhanced himself with the pill, was proof that Aaron was already a formidable force. In the first half of the Grand Line, he was no longer some small fry. Even in a dangerous hub like Vilia Harbor, he was far from weak.

But for Douglas to have eaten one of these pills and forced Aaron to rely on Observation Haki… that meant the drug had raised Douglas's strength to a level capable of defeating a non-Haki-using Aaron.

Haki. Both Shuma and Williams knew of it—and had long tried to learn it. But the difficulty was enormous.

So far, only Aaron had awakened Observation Haki, and even he hadn't managed to master Armament Haki.

Yet one thing was clear: anyone who could wield Haki instantly became leagues stronger. In the first half of the Grand Line, that alone was enough to place someone among the top tier.

If Aaron chose to become a pirate now, Shuma and Williams believed he could easily rise to the rank of Supernova.

A 20 million bounty pirate like Douglas was decent for the first half of the Grand Line, but nowhere near Supernova level. Yet from Aaron's words, these pills had allowed Douglas to temporarily reach that kind of strength.

Both Shuma and Williams now stared at the tiny pill in Aaron's hand, their eyes gleaming.

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