Alucard walked past the kneeling shipwrights and entered the shipyard, looking at the iron ship inside. He wondered how long it had been—a decade, perhaps—since Tom had built this ship in Water 7?
He had never once thought about maintenance, despite using it to the extreme so many times. It was a true miracle that it had lasted for ten years.
"So, what will be this ship's final fate?" Alucard asked, his back to the shipwrights.
The leading gray-bearded shipwright quickly got up and scurried over. "If… if you don't mind, we can build you a new one. As for the old ship… it's beyond repair. We can either dismantle it and recycle the materials… or… we can use explosives and sink it into the sea."
After saying this, the old shipwright was on pins and needles, terrified that Alucard would get angry. This was a great pirate who had single-handedly annihilated twelve countries and killed eight million people!
Alucard stared at the ship on the steel plate for a long time before saying, "Sink it." Even with his immortality, Alucard didn't believe that everything should be unkillable.
Sometimes, some things should be allowed to have a natural death, like this iron beast in front of him.
"Understood, sir!"
The old shipwright quickly ran out of the shipyard and called out to his men, "Hurry! Begin the demolition work on the ship at once!"
Given the order by one of the Three Monsters, all dozens of men in the shipyard immediately dropped their other work and prepared to demolish the ship.
Listening to the clanging sounds of work inside the shipyard, Alucard stared at the steel ship, recalling how he'd used it to ram through several of the Whitebeard Pirates' ships, and how he'd been on it during the Battle of Edd War, witnessing the once-in-a-century great tsunami.
Countless memories flashed before Alucard's eyes like a slideshow. "Things that can die are sometimes more beautiful…"
Alucard murmured to himself with a light laugh, then turned to leave the shipyard. "Thank you…"
Suddenly, Alucard heard a voice like a young girl's behind him. His expression changed, and he turned to look, but there was no one there except for the shipwrights preparing for the demolition.
Besides, this place was full of gruff, grizzled men. Where would a young girl come from? "Heh, I must have misheard."
Alucard grinned and left the shipyard.
An hour later, Alucard's ship was towed out to sea by another shipyard vessel. The old shipwright came up to Alucard and said in a low voice, "Alucard-sama, your ship is still very sturdy, so we can't burn it. We can only detonate it. We'll begin in half an hour."
"Do it now."
Soon, black smoke began to rise from Alucard's ship. Thirty seconds later, a violent explosion rang out, and the once incredibly strong steel ship was twisted and mangled.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of continuous explosions blasted the ship into metal shards. After several minutes, the ship's wreckage finally began to sink into the sea.
"I suppose… this counts as a natural death?" Alucard was smiling, as he always was, but few people could understand the true meaning behind that smile.
"Alucard-sama… would you… like to have a new ship built?" the old shipwright asked softly.
Although Alucard had the ability to fly, he preferred to sail the seas, so a new ship was necessary. However, Alucard still had a soft spot for Tom's ships.
Speaking of which, was that guy still alive? After building a ship for him and then for Roger, Tom should have been sentenced to death.
Rumble…
Just then, the ground began to shake, causing the civilians by the pier to stumble and fall.
The old shipwright barely managed to get back on his feet, holding his head and wailing, "Is… is that an earthquake?!"
Alucard's eyes shifted, and he turned his head to look behind him, to the right. There was a small hill there.
But standing on that hill, which was about 200 meters tall, was a monster whose size was no less than that of the hill itself. It was incredibly strange-looking, with a pointed head, a fat face, and a full beard. Its head seemed to take up half of its body, and its clothes were disheveled and filthy; if it weren't for its size, it would look like a beggar.
Its messy hair and clothes were dripping water, indicating that it had just swum ashore, which was what had caused the earlier tremor.
Its monstrous size blotted out the sky. The only other person who could even come close was the Celestial Dragon with the Mythical Zoan: Titan Fruit that Alucard had faced when he and Shiki had attacked the World Government.
But an even more astonishing scene played out. The monster stared intently at the forest on the hill. After a dozen seconds, it suddenly opened its huge mouth and took a bite out of the cliff, tearing off a massive corner of it. It then began to chew, constantly.
"Mmm, mmm, mmm!" As if enjoying the most delicious delicacy, it crunched up a corner of the hill and swallowed it.
Alucard's brows furrowed slightly, but then he began to laugh. "Is that a pig?"
The old shipwright and his men, seeing the body that blotted out the sky, fell to the ground once more. This time, it wasn't from the tremor—it was from pure terror.
"Mmm, mmm…"
The creature, which Alucard had called a "pig," swallowed the piece of the hill and began to aim at the town. Amid the residents' screams, it ripped a three-story house out of the ground and put it in its mouth.
"Run! Run!"
"Notify the Marines! Notify the Marines at once!" "Wahhh! Wahhh! Mommy, where are you?!"
In an instant, the entire town was thrown into a panic. Screaming, cries for help, and wailing mixed into a chaotic din.
Alucard, meanwhile, stood in place, watching the "pig" that was eating houses and hills with great interest.
He had never seen such a fascinating creature before. It would be a shame not to watch.
"Not enough, not enough~"
The pig, in its unique voice, muttered to itself. Then, its eyes fell on the largest building in the town—the shipyard right next to Alucard.
"I'm hungry, so I need to eat more~"
The pig stretched out its gigantic hand and reached for the shipyard.
"St-Stop! My shipyard!" The old shipwright screamed in agony. The younger shipwrights held him back, preventing him from rushing forward.
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