Chapter 54: Redfield and the Marines Arrive
The auction sequence for this Scythe was in the middle-to-late section, not the finale.
The item truly reserved for the finale was that precious Mantis-Mantis Fruit.
It was hard to imagine that this auction was completely different from what Hades had expected; there were no Rare Treasures, but instead, the vast majority were munitions.
They were either from the Hephaestus Company, the Aeolus Company, or from the King of Arms of the Underworld.
It felt more like a munitions wholesale event.
As the auction progressed, another Famous Sword appeared.
It wasn't the one Hades was interested in, but one of the "Fifty Ryo Wazamono".
Compared to the Scythe Hades had auctioned for, the bidding for this Fifty Ryo Wazamono was clearly more heated, eventually being won at a high price of sixteen million Beli.
In terms of quality, Hades's Scythe was definitely better, but it couldn't compare to the popularity of a Wazamono.
Finally, "Next up is the grand finale of this auction, the top-tier Zoan-type Devil Fruit, the Mantis-Mantis Fruit!"
The prolonged auction had left many people feeling tired.
The Auctioneer shouted loudly, trying his best to make the atmosphere more lively.
A vibrant green Devil Fruit, with leaf-like structures on both sides resembling a Scythe.
This was the main target in the hearts of many present.
"Starting bid: twenty million!"
This struck Hades as very interesting.
In the future, Devil Fruits would start at a high price of one hundred million Beli, but now they only cost twenty million Beli.
Moreover, this was the top-tier Mantis-Mantis Fruit among Zoan-type Devil Fruits.
The Mantis-Mantis Fruit had a great reputation on the Great Sea, and most of its ability users were not weak in strength.
Marine Vice Admiral, Great Pirate, Local Powerhouse – they were quite active, one could say.
History had already proven the power of this Devil Fruit; you could even write a book just about its successive ability users.
If the seller hadn't been a powerful individual and lone wolf, this Devil Fruit would have long been secretly swallowed by the faction behind the Auction House.
And that person, Hades couldn't help but turn his gaze towards the back of the Auction House, a Noble-like figure, with blood-red clothes and hair, and a Purple Umbrella Sword hanging at his waist.
As if sensing Hades's gaze, that person looked towards Hades at the same time.
Like attracts like; Hades felt his solitary pride, while that person also felt Hades's dominance.
They were also the only two Noble in this Auction House, and likewise, they were on the list of people not to be provoked.
They were both somewhat curious, unable to see through each other.
They tacitly withdrew their gazes.
"Baron Omatsuri Redfield."
Hades silently muttered the name.
In the future, a Legendary Pirate whose strength alone was enough to stand alongside Roger, Shiki, and Edward Newgate, the Lone Wanderer of the Sea, "Red the Solitary," the "Red Count," was now beginning to make his mark on the Great Sea.
A powerful monster, the moment he saw him, Hades felt as if he had been seen through.
Of course, he hadn't.
Possessing innate Observation Haki as well, Hades had the ability to resist Redfield's prying.
That mind-reading ability was simply too overbearing.
Similarly, Redfield had the same feeling; his innate strength had uncommonly failed.
It was as if he had met a peer.
Due to his extremely secret movements, Redfield had not joined the Rocks Pirates.
"How interesting." A smile appeared on Redfield's face.
It was the first time he had ever felt this way.
However, this was just a small interlude; the auction continued.
The price of the Mantis-Mantis Fruit kept climbing, quickly reaching forty-two million Beli.
For what was considered a powerful Devil Fruit, this point was nearly the limit.
It was then that Hades realized just how enormous a sum his thirty billion Beli was.
Just how much had the chaos of the future Great Sea caused prices to soar?
However, this didn't affect the Kronos Kingdom.
The Kronos Kingdom's main currency was Walker, directly linked to silver, and would not be affected by the depreciation of Beli.
Conversely, the depreciation of Beli would only make Walker more valuable.
The more powerful a Kingdom, the more it possessed an independent currency, reducing its reliance on Beli.
Even stronger was the Hilton Kingdom, whose circulating Hilton Gold was directly linked to gold.
Of course, not using Beli at all was impossible.
Hades also planned to spend the Beli he had on him soon, because over the next few decades, Beli would become increasingly worthless.
The bidding amount for the Mantis-Mantis Fruit rose slower and slower, seemingly hitting a limit at forty-two million.
"Fifty million!"
Hades made his bid, directly increasing the price by eight million from the previous offer.
The entire venue fell silent.
It was like the final straw that broke the camel's back; no one could compete with Hades anymore.
The Mantis-Mantis Fruit was easily obtained.
Walking out of the Auction House.
Before taking more than a few steps, the alarm sounded.
Pirate, Criminal ran towards them, trying to escape to the other side of the Island.
"This is bad! The Marines are here!"
"The entire Island is surrounded!"
"We can't get out!"
.
.
.
The sudden news startled everyone.
Standing on high ground, one could see from a distance that around Kent Island, Navy warships were patrolling, their artillery barrels pointed towards the shore of the Island.
And at the Port, it had been surrounded by Marine warships, with all the pirate ships and merchant ships within the range of the artillery.
The Marines had come too suddenly, and the timing was perfect.
Just as the auction was nearing its end, the core figures and high-end strength of the entire Island were gathered at the Auction House.
By the time they received the news and reacted, it was already too late.
The Marines had silently completed their layout, the encirclement net around this Island.
"Fire! Cut off these guys' hope of escape!"
Vic looked at the gradually approaching Port, a cruel smile on his face.
Without their pirate ships, dealing with the evil on this Island next would be as easy as catching turtles in a jar.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
.
.
.
The artillery fired in unison, cannonballs shooting towards the Port like meteors falling from the sky.
At the sight of this, the Pirate at the entire Port fled in panic, not even caring about their pirate ships.
Facing such bombardment, it was impossible for them to survive.
Devastating destructive power.
"Boom!"
A near sky-high explosion.
With just three rounds of artillery fire, ninety percent of the ships at the entire Port were destroyed.
Smoke filled the air.
The warships slowly approached, crashing through some of the remaining wreckage.
Marines disembarked from the warships in formation, quickly occupying the Port of Kent Island.
Three Marine Vice Admiral, led by Vic, walked at the forefront.
(end of chapter)