The crew of the Buggy Pirates hurriedly carried all the treasure from their ship and piled it in the center of the deck, quickly forming a small mountain.
There was a vast amount of gold, jewelry, crates of Berries, and more.
Moge’s gaze swept over the pile of treasure as he patted Buggy’s shoulder with a wide grin.
“Not bad, Buggy.
I didn’t expect you to be hiding so much treasure.”
With a long face, Buggy said, “This is the result of all my hard work over such a long time…
You have no idea what I went through.” Thinking back on this period, he had followed a hard-won Treasure Map and gone through great difficulties to find these riches.
He had just intended to return to Orange Town to take proper stock when he ran into Moge’s group and got ransacked.
His heart was bleeding.
“Is that so?
Then you’ve really worked hard,” Moge raised an eyebrow and said with a relaxed expression.
After a pause, his tone grew a bit heavier.
“Is all the treasure here?
You didn’t hide any away secretly?”
The members of the Buggy Pirates nodded frantically, their voices trembling.
“It’s all here!
We promise we didn’t hide a thing!” They didn’t dare keep anything for themselves; if they were caught, their lives would be forfeit.
Section 2: The Hidden Map and Future Plans
Moge nodded in satisfaction.
His hand pressed down on Buggy’s shoulder again with a slight squeeze as he asked, “Is that so?
Then do you have any other Treasure Maps or clues on you?” Moge knew full well that Buggy had a habit of collecting Treasure Maps.
Who knew if he had more on him?
He wouldn’t let such things go; he could take his crew treasure hunting in the future.
That kind of adventure was a joy in itself.
“Take it easy!
My shoulder’s going to break!” Buggy wailed in pain, no longer daring to hide anything.
He defended himself, “There really isn’t any more!
It’s all here!
But I do have one Treasure Map on me that I found inside the treasure during this hunt.
We haven’t gone to dig it up yet!”
As he spoke, Buggy looked pained as he pulled a yellowed, ancient-looking map from his breast pocket.
If it were just the treasure being stolen, Buggy would only be heartbroken for a while.
But having a Treasure Map taken away meant he really wouldn’t be able to sleep for days.
Watching Moge take the map, Buggy looked at him pitifully, hoping that Moge would find such an old map uninteresting and return it to him.
Moge took the map, gave it a cursory glance to confirm it was real, and then casually tucked it into his own pocket.
“Mm, you know what’s good for you.
Since the haul was so generous this time, I’ll be merciful and let you all go.” He paid no mind to Buggy’s pathetic appearance.
He turned to the members of the Buggy Pirates and shouted, “A few of you, move all this treasure onto our ship.
Once you’re done, you can leave.”
Actually, he never intended to kill Buggy from the start.
Although the guy wasn’t particularly strong, his ridiculous luck was no joke.
Keeping him alive might cause some trouble for the Marines or provide some entertainment in the future.
Though he didn’t know if Buggy would still create the Cross Guild in the future, with his luck and disposition, he might stir up something else.
Keeping him was more useful than killing him.
Besides, he had no grudge against Buggy, and there was no benefit in killing him.
Now that he had obtained so much treasure and a Treasure Map, he had already made a massive profit.
Section 3: The Departure and a Thick Skin
Soon, the members of the Buggy Pirates had moved the mountain of treasure onto the Voyager.
When the last chest of treasure was moved onto the ship, Moge waved his hand at Buggy.
“Alright, you can go now.”
Buggy was overjoyed to hear this and hurriedly led his subordinates toward their own battered pirate ship.
After taking just two steps, he heard Moge’s shout from behind: “Hey, Buggy!
Thanks for the gift of treasure this time.
Remember to get more next time.
If I run into you again, it won’t be as simple as handing over treasure to save your life!”
Buggy, who had just stepped forward, saw his face turn dark instantly.
He turned his head stiffly and squeezed out a smile that looked worse than crying.
“Ah…
thank you so much for your mercy.
I hope we never meet again.” Having said that, he boarded his ship without looking back, cursing under his breath, Damned brat!
Bastard!
That was all my treasure, and you just stole it like that!
Wanting to meet again?
Go to hell!
Moge watched the Buggy Pirates sail into the distance, a smile playing on his lips.
He had heard Buggy’s teeth-gritting muttering perfectly clearly with his Observation Haki, but he didn’t take it to heart.
Such petty complaints were not even worth mentioning compared to the treasure he had gained.
He turned to Kuro beside him, his tone full of banter.
“Look at that.
I rob their treasure, and they have to turn around and thank me.
How interesting.”
Kuro’s mouth twitched, and even his movement of pushing up his glasses faltered.
He was stunned by Moge’s shamelessness and could only force himself to agree.
“Yes, after all, you gave them a way to live, Captain.” He had come to realize that the Captain’s skin was unusually thick.
Section 4: Counting the Spoils
Just then, Carina ran out of the cabin excitedly.
She had been in her room organizing sea charts, but hearing the commotion outside, she couldn’t suppress her curiosity and came out.
As soon as she saw the treasure on the deck, her eyes widened as if money symbols were flashing in them.
She said very happily, “Wow, so much treasure!
We’re rich!”
She rushed to the pile of treasure and squatted down with glowing eyes.
Immediately after, she skillfully began to count and estimate the value of the treasure, her fingers moving quickly through the bags of Berries while she whispered calculations under her breath.
Before long, Carina suddenly looked up, her face full of excitement as she shouted to Moge, “Moge!
So much money!
My preliminary estimate is that the total value of this treasure is at least over five hundred million Berries!”
“Mm, that really is quite a lot,” Moge’s smile widened at the news.
“But it makes sense.
That guy Buggy must have dug up some great treasure.
I didn’t expect it all to go to us in the end.
It’s like finding it for free.” With 500 million Berries in funds, they wouldn’t have to worry about money problems for a while and could even recruit more hands.
As he spoke, he pulled the yellowed Treasure Map from his pocket, waved it, and said with a smile, “Besides this treasure, there’s also an unexpected harvest: this Treasure Map.
See where the place marked on it is.
We’ll dig up the treasure on the way; it might be another big windfall!”
“Really?
Let me see!” As soon as Carina heard the words ‘Treasure Map,’ she jumped up and rushed to Moge.
She snatched the map and stared intently at the markings on the paper, her breathing quickening with anticipation.