Vice-captain of Whitebeard pirates

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The banquet lasted until midnight, and after that, everyone returned to their rooms to rest.

It wasn't until daybreak the next day that the Whitebeard Pirates officially set off.

But what was different this time was that Larson's ship was followed by a small tail. That ship was filled with Rakuyo's brothers. Because their ship was too small to carry so many people, they could only drive their ship and follow behind Larson and the others.

Today, Larson still did not receive any tasks from the system as usual, but with the addition of a chef and a navigator to the ship, his mood had calmed down significantly, and he was even a little happy.

The Whitebeard Pirates had grown from just two people when they first set sail to nearly twenty now. It can be said that they had truly expanded.

In Larson's view, the need for a bigger ship was becoming increasingly urgent. They were currently navigating the Grand Line, and as long as they had some time, they could reach Water 7. By then, Larson's vision of the Moby Dick could come to life.

"Vice Captain, we're here!" shouted one of Rakuyo's younger brothers from the bow of the boat, using a telescope.

With the more than twenty members brought by Rakuyo, Marco and the others were completely relieved. Normally, it was Marco and Gangplank's job to keep watch, but with the new crew in place, that duty had fallen to them.

Larson and his boat finally docked at an island.

It's finally here! Larson stood up and stretched. "Marco, carry the box and follow me!"

Marco held the heavy box, curiosity getting the better of him. "Larson, what's in this?"

Larson chuckled, "You'd better not know just yet."

Marco rolled his eyes. "Yeah, pretending to be mysterious."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Larson playfully shoved Marco. "Let's get off the boat."

Marco winced, rubbing his head. He couldn't help but feel confused. After all his training, he didn't flinch when others hit him—so why did Larson's shove hurt so much?

"What are you still doing? Let's go!"

"Oh, right!" Marco quickly followed.

After Larson and the others disembarked, some of the new crew members also jumped off the boat, but they didn't follow Larson to the town. Instead, they lingered around their boat, waiting for Larson to finish his business so they could leave as soon as possible.

After a long search, Larson finally arrived at their destination.

"Larson... are you sure about this place?" Marco asked hesitantly as they stood in front of the naval branch.

Larson grinned. "You're right. This is exactly where we came."

"Are you crazy? What are we doing here? Are you throwing yourself into a trap?"

Marco hadn't known where they were going, just that Larson had asked him to follow.

"Don't say such useless things. Just come inside quickly," Larson said, walking confidently through the front door as if he owned the place, hands behind his back.

This carefree demeanor looked more like that of a civilian than a pirate, which left Marco, who stood behind, dumbfounded.

What kind of naval officer does this look like?

Even the Navy guard at the door was surprised. He approached Larson cautiously and asked, "Hello, who are you?"

Don't blame him for being so wary; Larson exuded an air of authority that was hard to imitate.

With a smile, Larson replied, "Brother, I'm here to exchange for the bounty."

"In exchange for bounty money?"

"Yes," Larson said, gesturing to the box Marco held. "There's a pirate's head inside there. I want to exchange it for the bounty. Can you tell me how I should go about this?"

The Navy guard visibly relaxed. He thought Larson was some high-ranking officer come to inspect, but it turned out he was just a bounty hunter.

"Keep walking in, and you'll see a sign when you turn the corner. That's where you can exchange for the reward money."

Larson smiled. "Thank you very much."

"You're welcome," the Navy soldier said as he went back to his post.

As Marco trotted up to Larson's side, he asked, "Larson, are there really heads in there???"

At that moment, Marco's face reflected fear, nausea, and discomfort. After all, who could calmly carry a human head?

"I told you it's best not to know," Larson replied.

Marco's face turned pale upon hearing this.

"I'll be there soon," Larson assured.

Marco's heart sank. "If you want to exchange for money, why don't you just take this yourself?"

Larson replied matter-of-factly, "I'm disgusted too!"

Marco was incredulous: "So you think I disgust you?"

"Oh, how could you say that?" Larson patted Marco on the shoulder. "You have to think of this as a test. It's also about overcoming the discomfort of confronting enemies in the future. Can you still be afraid of a human head?"

Larson's argument was so reasonable that Marco couldn't really find a way to rebut it. He stared at the box in his arms, feeling ill at the thought of the menacing head inside, and he averted his gaze.

Just then, they arrived at the location pointed out by the Navy soldier.

Larson quickly noticed a marine sitting at a desk inside, and he walked over with Marco.

"Hello, I'm here to redeem the bounty," Larson said.

The marine looked up and casually asked, "Where is he?"

"Right here." Larson stepped to the side to allow Marco to present the box.

Larson added with a smile, "This is the head of LaBelle, the captain of the LaBelle Pirates."

The marine's hand, which grabbed the box, suddenly trembled, his expression turning serious. "La Belle?"

"Is there a problem?" Larson asked.

"N-no, no problem." The marine glanced at Larson again, then lowered his gaze and opened the box, confirming that it indeed contained LaBelle's head.

"Please wait a moment; I need to verify if it's really LaBelle."

The marine offered an apologetic smile to Larson.

"That's fine; I'll wait here," Larson replied.

With LaBelle's head in hand, the marine left for an unknown room to conduct the identification, while Larson and Marco sat in the waiting area.

"Larson, why do you care so much about money?" Marco suddenly asked.

Larson's expression remained calm. "What do you mean?"

Marco looked at him and said, "Nothing, I just feel like you have a deep obsession with money."

Larson smiled. "Because we haven't truly started using money yet. Do you think that when we're worried about finances in the future, we'll resort to burning, killing, and looting like those pirates?"

Marco rolled his eyes. "Isn't that what pirates do?"

"But not all pirates do that," Larson countered. "At least we, the Whitebeard Pirates, are different from those other pirate crews. We won't prey on the weak."

Marco was taken aback, contemplating Larson's words before lowering his head in some remorse.

After a long silence, Marco suddenly asked, "Larson, are there many pirate groups like that on the sea?"

Larson thought for a moment. "Not many, but we're not the only ones."

"I see." Marco breathed a sigh of relief.

Just then, a distinctive sound echoed through the air: "Blu! Bru! Bru!"

"What's that sound?" Marco asked curiously.

Larson frowned, pulling out his Transponder Snail.

Who was calling him?

As soon as the call connected, a familiar voice seethed through the receiver: "Larson, did you really take LaBelle's head to exchange for money???"

Larson sighed in relief. "Hey, if you don't want me to exchange it, why don't you allow me to do it myself?"

He chuckled and continued, "But what about you? You actually sent someone to report this news. I'm just getting a little bit of money from your Navy. This amount is nothing for you, right?"

Tsuru gritted her teeth in frustration: "Of course, this money is insignificant to us, but do you know how much prestige our Navy has lost because of you? Can that prestige be measured in money?"

Larson shrugged helplessly. "You can't blame me for this. You were the ones who insisted on messing with us. If you hadn't come, nothing would have happened."

Tsuru laughed angrily: "If you hadn't gone after the Heavenly Gold, would we have even cared about you?"

"I don't want to discuss that right now," Larson said calmly.

He had shifted into a serious tone!

Click!

At the Navy Headquarters, the pen in Tsuru's hand snapped under the pressure.

"Call."

Taking a deep breath, she said, "Larson, just this once, don't come to the Navy Headquarters again to exchange for a bounty."

Larson understood why Tsuru said that.

If the outside world found out that Larson, a pirate, could come to the Navy for bounty exchanges without being captured, it would expose their agreement and diminish public trust in the Navy.

Larson didn't want to make it too difficult for Tsuru, especially since he also needed something from her.

"Okay, okay, I understand."

After hanging up with Tsuru, the marine who had taken LaBelle's head for verification emerged from the back room.

When he returned, he was holding a box, but it no longer contained a human head.

Marco leaned in to take a look and spotted piles of cash inside: all in Berries.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. This is LaBelle's bounty, and it's all here."

The marine maintained a humble demeanor. After all, it wasn't so terrible to leak some information, but being caught with a pirate could lead to embarrassment.

Larson nodded, leaving the naval branch promptly without lingering. Marco carried the box for him.

But as Larson exited, he felt puzzled. Judging by the Navy's earlier reaction, they hadn't recognized him, so how had they been able to report the news to Tsuru?

How did the Navy know that after he called Tsuru before killing LaBelle, she had ordered a lookout to report if anyone came in to exchange LaBelle's head for a bounty in the near future?

That was why the Navy had reacted so strongly to the mention of LaBelle!

...

"Dad, Larson and the others are back!"

"Oh! Kids, get ready to go!"

"Yes!"

Once Larson and Marco were back on board, the ship began to sail away.

"Gangplank, collect all these gold coins and make sure to keep them safe," Larson ordered.

"Yes!"

"Where's Thatch? I'm starving after working all morning. Is there anything to eat?"

"Everything is ready for you."

"Awesome! It's great to have you on board."

...

After eating and drinking, Larson lay comfortably next to Whitebeard.

"I feel like I'm being targeted by the Navy..." Larson sighed, recounting the previous ordeal.

Whitebeard looked at him, speechless. "As a pirate, you're the only one who can come to a naval base to exchange for a bounty."

"Well, obviously we're helping them!" Larson retorted.

Whitebeard chuckled and said, "Then why don't you just let the Navy know all of this?"

Larson felt a bit embarrassed. Wasn't he now cooperating with the Navy?

He glanced at Gangplank, who was bustling about in the distance, and sighed lightly.

When would they receive news about Kaido?

After sailing on the sea all morning, something finally occurred at noon.

One of Rakuyo's brothers, responsible for patrolling, scanned the horizon with a telescope.

"I found something ahead!"

"What is it?" Marco asked from below.

"It looks like a pirate ship ahead!"

Upon hearing this, Marco rushed towards Larson and Whitebeard.

"Dad, there's a pirate ship approaching us!"

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If you enjoy please support me on my patreon Future 80+ chapters at patreon.com/Darkphoenix11

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