"Little girl, here's for everything. Not just the drinks I had, but wrap up all the alcohol in your store for me." Alucard placed the large gold nuggets he'd found on Ernst onto the bar, speaking to the mermaid girl.
Alucard's sudden elimination of the Ernst Pirates caused a stir on Fish-Man Island. However, while pirate skirmishes on Fish-Man Island weren't common, they weren't unheard of either. Presumably, the incident would be forgotten by most of Fish-Man Island within a month.
Alucard didn't spend much time in this underwater paradise. After packing up Fish-Man Island's specialty alcohol, he immediately departed for the New World.
He'd already spent too much time idling on Sabaody Archipelago. As the saying goes, even rest can become tiresome after a while. Moreover, the news of the New World's turmoil only fueled Alucard's inherent desire for chaos, making him restless.
The name Alucard would soon fade from the minds of everyone on Fish-Man Island, like a passing traveler. They wouldn't realize at this time what that name would come to represent in just a few years.
BOOM!
As Alucard controlled his warship to break through the surface from underwater, the first thing he heard was a thunderous roar from the sky.
He looked up to see dense dark clouds, with lightning resembling giant dragons soaring through the clouds. But Alucard knew that the bizarre weather of the New World was far more than just this.
"It's a ship! A ship from Fish-Man Island! Prepare for battle!" Hearing the shouts, Alucard turned to see several Marine warships slowly approaching from afar. A Marine officer, standing at the front of a cannon battery, yelled, "An iron ship without sails! It's Alucard the Immortal's ship!"
"You lot, were you specifically waiting in ambush here?" Alucard smirked. Coming up from Fish-Man Island generally meant emerging at a few concentrated points. It was no surprise for the Marines to set up ambushes at these landing spots. "My vacation just ended, and now work begins."
Alucard spread his hands, and the unique screeching sound of bats filled the air. His body, like that of a Logia-type Devil Fruit user, transformed into countless bats, flying towards the opposing Marine warships.
Unlike other pirates, whose first instinct upon encountering the Marines was to flee, Alucard preferred to quickly resolve his enemies before leisurely departing. Of course, if he wasn't interested in a fight, Alucard would simply leave.
"He's turned into bats!" a Marine navigator on the mast's lookout platform shouted to the Marines below. "Be careful! Alucard's flying over!"
"That's one of his abilities, a direct eye-to-eye approach!" a Marine Rear Admiral yelled, drawing the twin short swords at his waist. "All hands, battle stations!"
"Hwaaah!"
Alucard let out a strange cry. The bats first coalesced into a single hand, which drew Casull and began firing continuously downwards, before gradually forming his human shape.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
"Aaagh!"
The hit soldiers screamed, while others quickly sought cover.
"Prepare to die! Alucard!" The Marine Rear Admiral agilely leaped into the air. By this time, the bats had reformed into Alucard's body.
CLANG!
Twin blades clashed against twin guns, sparks flying everywhere.
"How did the Marines know I was here? Didn't they suspect I'd still be on Sabaody Archipelago?" Alucard questioned at close range as he exerted force against his opponent. No one should have known about his journey from Sabaody Archipelago to Fish-Man Island and then into the New World.
So why did this Marine Rear Admiral recognize him immediately? Had he really become that famous? Even Alucard himself found that hard to believe.
"I don't need to answer your questions," the Rear Admiral gritted out.
"Oh? Never mind, I'll find out in the end anyway."
No sooner had Alucard spoken than he abruptly retreated several meters. Seeing this, the Rear Admiral quickly lunged forward in pursuit, shouting to the other Marine soldiers, "Machine gun squad! Commence support!"
There were already two Marine ships. Upon hearing the Rear Admiral's command, the snipers began aiming at Alucard, firing continuously. Yet, even in this moment, the Rear Admiral didn't forget to shout, "Be careful not to hit vital points! The government's order is to capture him alive!"
Alucard almost burst out laughing upon hearing this. 'At a time like this, they're still bothered by the government's ridiculous orders? Capture alive? Can you even capture me alive?'
In Alucard's view, the government's demand for a live capture simply meant sending more Marines to their deaths.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Countless bullets riddled Alucard's body. The Rear Admiral, who was not yet fully familiar with Alucard's fighting style, was startled that a pirate with a 200 million Berry bounty could be hit so easily. What's going on?
'No matter what, the mission will be successfully completed now,' the Rear Admiral thought to himself.
Being hit directly by hundreds of bullets would incapacitate even an Admiral, let alone Alucard. However, what he didn't expect was that less than two seconds after being hit, Alucard suddenly raised his own gun, and a flash erupted from the massive muzzle of the black gun.
The Rear Admiral reacted quickly, blocking with one of his short swords. But in an instant, the short sword shattered, and the Jackal's bullet, along with fragments of his own weapon, pierced his body.
"Haaah!"
Alucard delivered a hand-chop through the Rear Admiral's abdomen. The Blacklight Virus instantly consumed him, integrating him into Alucard's body. In an instant, the Rear Admiral's memories flooded into Alucard's mind.
In the memories, the Rear Admiral received a call at the New World Marine branch, saying, "This is Rear Admiral Jurgle Delasol of the Westend Island branch. Speak."
"Headquarters command, Rear Admiral Delasol, immediately proceed to the New World entrance waters and await pirate entry. Target is Dracula D. Alucard," the Den Den Mushi said expressionlessly.
"Is the intelligence reliable?" Delasol asked.
"This information was deduced by Vice Admiral Tsuru after Gold Roger, the captain of the Roger Pirates, let it slip on Sabaody Archipelago. There will be no mistake," the Den Den Mushi explained.
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