［Inside the “Old Times” antique shop, the thin shopkeeper was talking nonstop, introducing antiques to a slender woman wearing glasses and a high ponytail.
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［After a moment, the woman asked where the stone slab she had seen last time had gone.
She wanted to buy it for collection.
］
［Hearing this, the thin shopkeeper, although somewhat puzzled, still told her that the stone slab had already been sold to someone else.
］
As he spoke, heavy iron cages covered with black velvet were slowly pushed onto the display stage by strong men.
Each time one was uncovered, it caused a low exclamation of surprise from the customers below.
The “goods” inside the cages—male and female—were all very young and beautiful, each with a unique temperament.
Some were clearly well trained, their eyes obedient, while others carried a wild and unyielding light, which instead stimulated some buyers’ desire for conquest.
Horn kept talking about each “item’s” features and origin stories—some true, some false—to increase their value.
The auction quickly entered a heated stage, bidding sounds coming one after another, and the Berry amounts kept rising.
Horn’s smile became brighter and brighter.
Every hammer strike meant huge profits flowing in.
He seemed to already see himself taking advantage of the “Black Cat Sheriff” incident (a recent local crisis) to make money against the trend and further consolidate his position in the underworld.
On a seat at the side of the auction hall, a slightly fat man wearing a Marine officer uniform, with a habitual smile on his face, was watching the lively auction with satisfaction.
He was the Marine officer responsible for tonight’s security coordination, Captain Basti.
Although he was not the highest-ranking officer permanently stationed in Sabaody, he held real authority and had close ties with the underworld.
“Not bad, really not bad.” Basti drank a sip of high-quality red wine brought by a waiter, watching another “item” sells at a high price, feeling very pleased.
Horn had promised that 5% of tonight’s total auction amount would go into Basti’s private pocket as “hard work fee” and “cooperation sincerity,” so the higher the price, the more he earned.
“It seems Horn really has some ability.
He knows that security is the most valuable thing right now.” Basti said to his adjutant.
“Captain is wise.
With the Marines here, those petty criminals naturally would not dare act,” the adjutant flattered.
Basti nodded, smiled, then put down his wine glass, straightened his uniform, and said:
“I’ll go outside and take a look.
See if the men outside are slacking off.
You stay here and watch.
Report any situation immediately.”
“Yes!”
Although corrupt, as a professional soldier, Basti still had basic vigilance.
So he took a few personal guards and slowly patrolled along the edge of the hall.
Inside, the lights were bright, and Marines stood guard at intervals.
Everything looked normal.
Then he pushed open a door and walked into the corridor connecting the inside and outside security area.
Gas lamps cast light onto the floor and walls, stretching the shadows of Basti and his guards.
While passing through the corridor, a young guard looked at the wall and said in confusion:
“Huh?
These stickers… bullets?
Who put these here?
Did a kid sneak in?”
Stickers?
Basti suddenly felt a sense of unease.
He turned his head and saw dozens of small stickers pasted on both sides of the corridor.
Each sticker had a simple line drawing of a bullet, ready to fire, carrying a motionless killing intent.
“Not good!”
Basti’s combat instinct instantly exploded.
His muscles tightened.
He activated Marine Six Styles—Tekkai, hardening his body like iron.
At that moment, the stickers flickered violently—
then transformed.
A sudden burst of gunfire erupted.
Dozens of bullets shot out from all directions.
The corridor was instantly filled with gunfire.
The two guards in front did not have time to react.
Their bodies were torn apart instantly, blood spraying out.
The guards further back also fell quickly, not even able to scream, blood spreading on the ground.
Only Basti relied on Tekkai.
Most bullets were deflected, leaving burns and dents on his body.
“Damn it!
What kind of ability is this?!”
BOOM!!!
The end of the corridor exploded open.
A black object, about the size of a clenched fist, shot in from outside through the broken door.
“What?!”
Basti widened his eyes.
There was no cannon.
No soldiers.
He crossed his arms to block.
CRASH!!!
The impact hit him directly like a heavy train.
He spat blood and was sent flying backward, crashing into the wall.
The brick wall cracked like a spider web.
His Tekkai was broken.
The object fell to the ground and rolled a few times.
Basti stared at it.
In an instant, he understood.
There was no cannon.
It was a Devil Fruit user.
If stickers could turn into bullets, they could also turn into cannonballs.
He shouted with all his strength:
“Help!!
Intruder!!”
A calm voice came from outside the broken door:
“Don’t shout.
They won’t hear you.”
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