Hearing their conversation, on the deck, Gin, hands and feet tightly shackled under the mast, finally lost hope.
He hadn't expected that after separating, the Krieg Pirates would be in such terrible shape, powerless even to fight back, adding insult to injury.
And in this predicament, he had been unable to share the highs and lows with everyone on the ship.
Gin gritted his teeth, eyes red and swollen, deep regret shining in his eyes.
If Captain Krieg got hurt, he would never be able to forgive himself in his life.
Before he could dwell too much on self-blame, a figure fell from above.
Bang!!
The loud sound startled everyone nearby, drawing their gazes.
Seeing the figure's golden armor, Gin was momentarily stunned, then shouted loudly, "Captain Krieg!!"
"This voice... Gin...?"
Hearing the familiar voice, Krieg, lying on the ground tied up, struggled to turn his head and indeed saw the expected figure.
Seeing Gin shackled, Krieg showed no joy. He thought for barely two seconds and seemed to finally understand something.
"Gin, I didn't expect it to be you! You traitor, you dare to leak our base's location!!"
Krieg's forehead veins bulged out, his face twisted with fury.
Hearing this, Gin's expression instantly vanished, his mouth open in speechless disbelief and eyes blank with incomprehension.
"Ca... Captain... What are you saying...?"
Gin's lips twitched bitterly. He could hardly believe his ears, doubting whether he had misheard something.
"How could I betray you, captain? I didn't know everyone's situation, and there's no way I would lead anyone here."
Yet Krieg had no intention of hearing any defense. His eyes revealed undiluted disgust as he continued yelling: "Don't play dumb, you bastard! Who in the East Blue dares oppose me!"
"If you hadn't leaked our situation, how could these guys have coincidentally found us at this exact time!"
"I..."
Gin clenched his fists and opened his mouth to explain, but no words came out.
Strictly speaking, Gin had indeed revealed that the Krieg Pirates had been hit.
But he hadn't mentioned casualties, and he never said a word about the base.
At that time, he was only thinking of surviving and finding another chance to escape and return to Krieg, never considering that the other party might be a marine with information about their base.
In fact, when Alan first saw Gin, a plan was already brewing in his mind.
Regardless of whether Gin revealed anything or even if Gin had not been captured, Alan would have brought people to them anyway.
But now, Gin was defenseless and couldn't explain himself.
Boiling hot tears poured from his eyes, then Gin closed them in despair while lowering his head to the floor, sobbing and trembling as he cried: "I'm sorry, captain! It's all my fault! It's my inability, I've failed you, captain!"
"You bastard!"
Krieg's face contorted with rage, his fists tightly clenched.
Now, he had completely lost any chance of turning the tide. All the emotions he had forcibly suppressed during this time finally erupted.
From encountering Hawk Eyes, sailing through the perilous Calm Belt, enduring hunger and wounds, to now being violently beaten and captured by Alan, all the accumulated misery and negative emotions were vented crazily on Gin.
Buchi and Sham watched this spectacle with amusement.
They hadn't expected a fearsome pirate like Krieg to be such a person in private.
At this moment, another figure jumped down from above.
After landing lightly on the deck, Alan glanced at Krieg and Gin, having heard their entire conversation from above.
He then turned to Sham and Buchi and instructed them: "Where's Karl? Tell him to bring people up to help escort the prisoners and loot, and have the medical room ready to treat the wounded."
"Got it, boss."
Sham and Buchi nodded cheerfully.
Looking up, the pirates were already being escorted down the ladder from the giant ship.
Sanji also stepped forward while saying to Alan, "I can't ignore starving people; that's against my professional code. I'll go cook. If you want to absorb these pirates, you can't let them starve to death."
Alan glanced at him, then turned toward Gin while waving nonchalantly: "No need to ask me. The kitchen's your territory, do whatever you want."
Sanji's lips curled slightly into a soft smile: "Hmph, glad you remember this agreement."
With that, he walked toward the kitchen on the first floor.
...
Soon, only Alan, Krieg, and Gin remained on the deck.
Grabbing a wooden bucket casually, Alan sat down in front of them and looked at them from above: "I won't beat around the bush. I'm going to absorb your pirate crew, and I need someone to manage it."
"I've heard you both have high authority on the ship, but I don't want to recruit both of you. So the choice is yours."
"I'll offer one leadership position. As long as one of you pledges loyalty, the other..."
Alan's eyes narrowed slightly, a cold glint flashing in them, as if the answer was already obvious.
...
Krieg gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with resentment yet tinged with hesitation, his mind already struggling.
As long as he could survive, there would be opportunities in the future.
Krieg thought to himself while clenching his fists. If only one of them could live, it had to be him!
But before he could speak, Gin shouted angrily at Alan: "Go ahead and kill me, bastard! I'm good at nothing but fighting, I can't manage anything, and I will never swear loyalty to you!!"
"No need to shout so loudly, I can hear you. Also, maybe you've misunderstood something."
Alan tugged at his earlobe with his pinky while looking down at the two of them with a nonchalant expression: "I have no intention of taking either of your lives. Keeping a resentful subordinate on board would mean I couldn't even sleep peacefully."
"Fear-based rule isn't in fashion these days; gratitude is what counts. Gratitude, do you understand?"
Alan's gaze was disdainful.
Under Krieg and Gin's stunned eyes, he raised two fingers and said: "So, both of you will live, on the condition that one of you swears loyalty to me. If one does, I will unconditionally release the other."
"W-wait, you mean you won't kill either of us?"
Krieg couldn't help but ask to confirm.
If one person surrendered, the other would be released unconditionally?
This couldn't even be considered a threat. Such a merciful condition sounded like a dream.