In a town on Koss Island in the East Blue.
Rumble!
A tremendous roar echoed through the town. A visible white shockwave covered an entire street. In the face of this terrifying power, the ground shattered, houses collapsed, and trees were snapped in half. The whole street was reduced to rubble in an instant.
"D-damn it... Wh-why?" A pirate, covered in blood, lay slumped against a fallen wall. He feebly reached out, staring in terror at the man in front of him.
"You can blame the organization you joined, 'Mad Dog' Daichi, Captain of the Mad Dog Pirates," Aeridar said, glancing indifferently at the man.
"Urgh..."
Mad Dog Daichi's eyes widened. He never expected the organization he joined a month ago to bring such a terrifying enemy down upon him.
Just one punch turned an entire street into a wasteland, and his entire Mad Dog Pirates were wiped out. Was this the power from the Demon Sea (Grand Line)?
"Just a little nobody. I thought there'd be a pleasant surprise... What a headache!" Aeridar scratched his head in frustration. He casually flicked a finger at Mad Dog Daichi.
Pop!
A slight ripple formed in the air.
The next moment, a bowl-sized hole appeared in Mad Dog Daichi's chest, and blood splattered across the ground.
According to the intelligence, there were a lot of people from that organization here. Aeridar had thought this was one of their branches in the East Blue, but it turned out to be just one of their pirate crews and an intelligence hub—nothing of value.
Pere pere pere... Pere pere pere...
Suddenly, the sound of a Den Den Mushi rang out over the piles of corpses and ruins. A man in a coat with gold earrings held a small Den Den Mushi in his hand.
"This is Aeridar."
"What? Slave traders? Are you saying slave traders kidnapped five children from the forest behind Amazon Lily and killed two of the Kuja warriors?!" Aeridar's expression changed.
"That's right. I hope you can help me get them back, because I don't want the tragedy from my past to happen again in my country," Hancock's somewhat frail voice came from the Den Den Mushi.
"Alright, I understand." Aeridar nodded knowingly and said with conviction, "Leave it to me. Just wait for my news."
"Th-thank you..."
"I think unlocking that last move for me again would show more sincerity than just your thanks, Hancock! Hahahahaha!"
After teasing Hancock, Aeridar hung up with a laugh. Then, his face immediately darkened.
Slave traders!
They were the people he held in the most contempt. Even though Aeridar considered himself a bad guy, he was a bad guy with principles and a bottom line. Slave traders were the lowest of the low, a class of people with absolutely no principles or bottom line.
Aeridar sat on the roof of a collapsed building, ignoring the terrified looks from the people around him, and dialed another number on the Den Den Mushi.
"Is that you, Mina? It's me," Aeridar said calmly.
"Captain, how was the haul?" Mina asked with a smile, clearly in a good mood.
"They're hiding too well. Just a bunch of small fry." Aeridar didn't want to elaborate and just said, "Help me find out if any slave-trading crews or pirate crews are selling children from Kuja Island."
"Oh, someone actually dared to capture people from the Kuja!" Mina exclaimed in surprise.
Ever since Empress Boa Hancock became the ruler of Amazon Lily and Captain of the Kuja Pirates, she had been relentlessly cracking down on slave-trading crews.
It was safe to say that within the Kuja Pirates' range of activity, no slave traders dared to enter the sea around Amazon Lily. She couldn't believe someone had dared to capture Kuja people.
And even if someone did capture Kuja people, not many would dare to buy them. After all, Empress Boa Hancock was a Warlord of the Sea acknowledged by the World Government. The World Government would give her some face, and keeping a Kuja slave would be a very hot potato.
"If anyone dares to buy them, kill the buyer, too," Aeridar said in a deep voice.
"Understood. I'll go check right now and send people to rescue them." Although she was annoyed with Hancock, Mina knew what the Kuja represented. As they were allies, Mina readily agreed.
Mina then added, "Also, Doflamingo's Violet has arrived, and my sister has already started to eliminate those spies and traitors."
"That's your business. I trust you to handle it," Aeridar said flatly.
He ended the call and hung up the Den Den Mushi.
Aeridar kicked Mad Dog Daichi's body nearby, then interlaced his fingers. His right index finger habitually tapped the back of his left hand, his eyes shifting as he seemed to be deep in thought.
After a long while, Aeridar murmured to himself, "Well, the little mice in the East Blue are pretty much cleared out. Time to go somewhere else."
"But the butterfly effect is starting to take hold. What kind of storm will the flapping of my wings create? I think I'll go to Alabasta to see."
....
On a large raft near Drum Island in the first half of the Grand Line.
"Wiiihahahahaha! Captain, your plan is insane!" A tall, muscular man with long purple hair, a purple mustache, and a wrestler's mask raised his arm, laughing heartily.
This was Jesus Burgess, Champion and Helmsman of the Blackbeard Pirates.
Tappity tap tap...
A slender man with sickly pale skin, no eyebrows, and bright red lipstick, wearing a black top hat, a jumpsuit, a floral shirt, and leather shoes, did a little tap dance. He waved his red cane and then said, "Burgess, your voice is too loud. But isn't this the very reason we follow Captain Teach?"
"Everyone has to go crazy at least once in their life. And if we fail..." A man with a long face, a strange hat, an eye patch over his right eye, and a black cloak, who was always holding a long rifle, said in a low voice, "That is fate."
This was Van Augur, Supersonic and Sniper of the Blackbeard Pirates.
"Quit it, Doc Q! Zehahahahaha! I won't eat them. Go trick some gullible fools instead! Zehahahahaha!" A brawny middle-aged man with coarse, dense hair and a fluffy black head scarf laughed heartily. Several of his teeth were missing.
This was Marshall D. Teach, also known as Blackbeard. He was a former member of the Whitebeard Pirates' Second Division and is now the Captain of the Blackbeard Pirates.