If the commotion were to affect the nobles attending the auction, even a Warlord of the Sea wouldn't be able to escape the Navy's intervention.
Conversely, as long as those nobles remained unaffected, the Navy would be forced to stand by and watch.
With this premise in mind, Maude had Lafitte destroy the auction house right in front of the Navy.
People were killed.
Goods were taken.
The auction house was reduced to rubble.
Once Doflamingo received word of this, he would likely be furious beyond measure.
To Doflamingo, an underground king with a vast business empire, a single human auctioning house was insignificant in the grand scheme of things.
However, his grudge against Maude had yet to be settled, and now Maude had openly razed the human auctioning house to the ground.
This act was akin to rubbing salt into wounds that had yet to heal.
Maude, however, had no interest in Doflamingo's reaction.
In the end, Doflamingo would have no choice but to swallow this bitter pill.
"Let's go."
Without sparing the surrounding Marines a second glance, Maude took the lead toward Grove 18.
Their ship and the rest of Gaya's crew were waiting on the shore near Grove 18, ready to set sail at a moment's notice.
Lafitte calmly sheathed his cane sword, picked up the bag of stolen money, and followed closely behind Maude.
The surrounding Marines could only watch in silence as Maude and Lafitte departed.
"This outcome… isn't the worst."
The leading Marine officer secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Had the situation escalated further, it would have spiraled completely out of his control.
Besides, no Marine who had climbed to his rank wanted to cross paths with Maude.
Better to never encounter such a menace in his lifetime.
"However…"
The officer glanced toward several groups lurking in the shadows nearby.
These were individuals with ill intentions, itching to make a move.
After all, a rare female mermaid—one with both beauty and a stunning figure—was an extremely valuable commodity.
Even if they couldn't defeat Maude, gathering in numbers might give them a chance to seize the mermaid.
That was likely their plan.
"Idiots."
The Marine officer sneered.
Ever since Whitebeard had planted his flag over Fish-Man Island, the once-thriving slave trade targeting mermaids had been severely curtailed.
As a result, the price of mermaids had skyrocketed.
A mermaid of decent quality could easily fetch a price in the billions.
And where there was profit, there were always those blinded by greed.
"Withdraw."
The officer had no interest in watching these fools throw their lives away. He signaled his men to fall back and leave the scene.
Before Maude and Lafitte could reach the waterways between the archipelagos, they found themselves surrounded by a large number of people.
Such is human nature.
Observing the mix of fear and excitement on their faces, Maude sighed inwardly.
When profit reaches a certain level, there will always be those willing to risk everything.
"Should we just leave, or…"
Lafitte twirled his cane playfully, a dangerous smile forming on his lips.
Given the chance, he never shied away from indulging in violence.
Maude's eyes narrowed in thought.
He had little interest in wasting time on these people.
Suddenly, both Maude and Lafitte sensed something—a powerful and imposing presence.
Their gazes shifted in unison toward the direction they had come from.
"Perfect timing."
A moment later, Maude smirked.
Someone had arrived to clean up the mess, which suited him just fine. He gently set the mermaid girl down from his arms.
She leaned against his shoulder, looking both ashamed and confused.
Lafitte, meanwhile, withdrew his cane sword and rested it behind his back.
The presence they had sensed signified that they no longer needed to waste their time here.
Under Maude and Lafitte's watchful eyes, a tall, muscular blue figure strode toward them.
It was none other than the Warlord of the Sea—Jinbe.
The slavers who had been eyeing the mermaid girl immediately took notice of his arrival.
"Jinbe… the Warlord of the Sea!"
Recognizing his distinct appearance, panic spread among them.
Had it been any other Warlord, they might not have been so afraid.
But of all people, it just had to be Jinbe.
Jinbe's cold gaze swept across the slavers.
His eyes, sharp and frigid like a winter gale, carried no trace of killing intent.
Yet, the sheer pressure of his presence alone was enough to make them tremble.
"Damn fish-man scum!"
"Forget it! Let's get out of here."
"Damn it, if only we had gotten that mermaid, we'd have been set for life…"
Jinbe's mere presence was enough to make them abandon their plans and flee without hesitation.
Neither Maude nor Jinbe spared the slavers a second thought, letting them scatter like rats.
"You're safe now."
Maude gently pushed the mermaid girl off his shoulder and carefully helped her sit on the ground.
Before she could react, Maude turned and walked away.
"Let's go, Lafitte."
"Hoho…"
Lafitte glanced at Jinbe, who was now approaching quickly, then followed Maude without hesitation.
The mermaid girl stared at Maude's tall figure, biting her lip before calling out loudly:
"What's your name?!"
Maude didn't answer. He just kept walking.
Disappointment flashed across her face.
Jinbe arrived beside the dejected mermaid girl, silently watching Maude's retreating form.
"…Sigh."
He let out a soft sigh.
If Maude had paused for even a few seconds, he might have been able to convince him to stay and talk.
But Maude had decisively put the mermaid girl down and left without looking back.
It was clear he had no interest in further interaction.
"Did they save you?"
Jinbe turned his gaze to the mermaid girl.
"Yes."
She nodded lightly, still shaken. "If it weren't for them…"
"Don't dwell on it. I'll take you back to Fish-Man Island now."
Jinbe cut her off.
Some things were too cruel to dwell on.
The mermaid girl nodded again, but her gaze remained fixed on Maude's departing figure.
Jinbe lifted her into his arms but also found himself staring after Maude.
Bacardi Maude…
What kind of human are you?
Crossing through several groves, Maude and Lafitte soon arrived at their rendezvous point.
On the shore, Gaya, Brook, and the others had been waiting for quite some time.
Rayleigh and Shakky were there too.
No matter how busy they were, they made time to see the younger generation off.
On the deck of the ship, Cavendish and his Beautiful Pirates watched Maude approach with complicated expressions.
Over ten days ago, their ship had been coated and was ready to set sail for Fish-Man Island.
The plan had been simple—sail happily to Fish-Man Island, admire the beauty of the mermaids, and then charge into the New World with renewed vigor.
That was before they had met Maude.
Now, they were heading back the way they came.
Cavendish lowered his head, on the verge of tears.
He was supposed to make a grand entrance into the New World and bask in worldwide attention.
Now, that dream had turned to dust.
But who could he blame?
Himself, for ever picking a fight with Maude?
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