"Hold it! The blueprints aren’t with that guy!" the newly arrived Franky shouted.

"You?!"

Iceburg, held by two Government agents, widened his eyes. Flam—no, he went by "Franky" now.

The Pluton blueprints that were supposed to be in Iceburg’s possession were indeed with him. The two had become like strangers, yet he didn’t expect...

Seeing Franky’s bizarre appearance, Aranea’s lip twitched. "Don’t tell me they’re with you?"

"That’s right," Franky said, opening his stomach to reveal a small built-in storage compartment.

Robin and the others were shocked, but Aranea remained unfazed. She led a unit of Pacifistas, which were essentially cyborgs, and had worked with Dr. Vegapunk for years. This level of modification was nothing to her.

Franky pulled out a stack of blueprints. Even the complex diagrams and text on the cover were enough to leave these laymen in awe.

Seeing the papers in Franky’s hand, the Government agents’ eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "Give them to us! Give them here!"

Whether they were real or fake, the mere thought that the Pluton, which the Government had craved for years, might finally be within reach made them tremble with excitement.

"Release that idiot first!" Franky jerked his chin toward Iceburg.

"No, hand over the blueprints first," the Government refused to compromise.

"Hey, you two," Aranea interrupted, raising her palms toward both parties. "Have you... forgotten about us?"

Franky pulled his hand back, trying to hide the blueprints behind his back.

Suddenly, clusters of Shadow Hands erupted from the ground, firmly binding everyone present except for Aranea and Robin.

"What is this?"

Franky found himself unable to move. In the next second, the weight in his hand vanished. The Government agents watched in horror as Alucard appeared behind Franky out of thin air.

"Captain!" Aranea chirped happily.

"Alucard?" The Government agents stammered in disbelief. "N-No, impossible... the Marines, the Air Force, and the troops from Enies Lobby... there’s no way they were defeated so quickly..."

These men didn’t know that the Marines had already defected and fled.

"So these are the blueprints for Pluton?"

Alucard flipped through the stack of yellowed, aged papers. He couldn’t understand the diagrams, let alone the text. Was it the Ancient Language?

Alucard had no intention of building Pluton. To prevent the Government from getting it, he should have destroyed it. However, after considering it for a few seconds, he decided against it and tucked them away instead.

"Captain, what now?" Aranea stepped forward for instructions.

"There’s no reason to stay here any longer."

Alucard tossed the blueprints into his blood pool as if they were trash and turned to leave. Aranea grabbed a still-dazed Robin and followed closely.

Having escaped Water 7 on a stolen pirate ship, Robin remained stiff, staring at the Pluton blueprints Alucard had handed her to carry. It took a long time for her heart to stop racing. "It... it truly is the same script as the Poneglyphs."

"In that case, we really did find a treasure," Aranea said with interest. "Captain, do you plan to build Pluton?"

Alucard sat on the lid of a coffin, one hand draped over the side. He chuckled softly. "No interest. I’m only keeping it so the Government’s power doesn’t grow any further."

Building another Pluton held zero appeal to him; he had snatched it purely to deny the World Government the opportunity.

"Um, excuse me..."

Robin spoke softly, lacking any of the wise and daring aura she had shown during her time with the Straw Hat Pirates. The authentic "pirate" atmosphere radiating from Alucard and Aranea was on a completely different level than the "adventurer" vibe of the Straw Hats.

Alucard finally turned his full attention to Robin. After a few seconds of his piercing gaze, Robin couldn’t help but look away.

"Nico Robin of the Straw Hats?"

"Yes... but, I have already left them," Robin clarified her stance.

"It doesn’t matter," Alucard said with a faint, eyes-closed smile. "If you want to go back, no one will stop you. Following the normal route, the Straw Hats’ next stop should be the capital of water. You can head back."

If she didn’t know the dark history of the Immortal Pirates, Robin might have actually thought Alucard was an easy person to talk to.

Go back? Did she dare go back?

Anyone with a modicum of knowledge about the sea knew what happened to those who crossed the "Immortal" name.

If she went back, knowing Luffy and the others, they would almost certainly welcome her again. But then, they would face the endless pursuit of the pirates under the Immortal flag. Even Weevil, whose strength rivaled an Admiral, was forced to seek Government protection as a Warlord under such pressure. A fledgling crew like the Straw Hats stood no chance.

Robin bit her lip and summoned the courage to meet Alucard’s eyes. "I won’t. I have decided to pledge my loyalty to you. Please take me in... I will do anything."

Alucard stared at Robin for a long moment before suddenly asking, "Are you a virgin?"

...

Meanwhile, on another magnetic route in the first half of the Grand Line.

On the island of Banaro.

"It’s been a long time, Teach."

Ace crouched atop a building, one hand pressing down his hat, looking down with a face full of mockery. "It seems you’ve been doing well for yourself."

Below, the five members of the Blackbeard Pirates stopped in their tracks. Teach turned to look up at the roof and grinned. "Zehahaha! I’ve been waiting for you, Commander Ace!"

Ace was slightly surprised. Logically, this man should have been hiding from him. Why would he say he was waiting?

"Sigh..." Teach let out a long breath. "I always wanted you to be my First Mate, Commander Ace. But unfortunately, for the sake of many things... I’m going to need you to hand over your life."

Ace’s pupils constricted, his body turning into flames as he dove down. "It seems you’re up to no good again. Fine. I don’t want to waste words, let’s settle this here!"