One Piece: King of the World-Chapter 378: “I Never Thought I’d Be a Marine One Day?”

In the middle of the year 1518 of the Sea Circle Calendar, as the Reverie drew closer, the waters around Mariejois grew increasingly lively.

Marine warships frequently patrolled the area, escorting over a hundred royal families from World Government member nations to the Holy Land—Mariejois.

At this moment, aboard a Marine Vice Admiral's warship, a young man with a metal pipe strapped to his back, a small top hat, a blue shirt, and a black casual suit leaned against the mast, gazing at the surrounding scenery.

Despite the "Justice" cloak draped over his shoulders and the Marine colonel insignia on his uniform, this man was no Marine. Anyone familiar with the Revolutionary Army would immediately recognize him by the burn scar at the corner of his eye.

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This was none other than the Revolutionary Army's rising Chief of Staff—Sabo.

Behind the massive warship, several luxurious-looking ships followed closely. These belonged to the delegation from Drum Island. Vice Admiral Momonga was tasked with escorting the country's new king, Wapol, to this year's Reverie.

Sabo had been nearby when, following Dragon's orders, he sought out Vice Admiral Momonga. Before long, he had embedded himself into the warship's ranks under the guise of a Marine colonel. At the same time, a group of Revolutionary Army members had also boarded and were now lying low aboard the vessel.

As Sabo took in the sights of Mariejois' surrounding waters, Vice Admiral Momonga slowly approached him.

Hearing the footsteps, Sabo turned his head, glanced over, and smiled. "Vice Admiral, thank you for taking care of us along the way."

Momonga was one of the Marine officers responsible for overseeing operations in the Calm Belt.

As a Vice Admiral, he wielded significant authority, holding considerable influence even on a global scale.

After all, the Calm Belt was a challenging region to manage. Not only did he have to liaise with Amazon Lily—dealing with the Pirate Empress Boa Hancock, whose pride was as high as the heavens—but he also had to maintain relations with the labor forces of Fish-Man Island, coordinate with the Sea Train system in Water 7, and possibly even establish diplomatic ties with Elbaf after the Reverie.

In short, Momonga's duties required him to be highly adaptable and diplomatic. Over the years, he had become quite skilled in navigating complex political landscapes.

Although he had initially been ordered to cover for the Revolutionary Army, he was also well aware of the nature of their struggle. Having fought against them for years, it was almost amusing that they now found themselves on the same side.

But at the end of the day, a soldier's duty is to follow orders. If he had spent years handling affairs in the Calm Belt without question, then taking on this mission was no different.

Thus, he picked up Sabo and his fellow Revolutionary Army members, and together, they set sail for Mariejois.

At first, when Sabo met Vice Admiral Momonga, he had been somewhat wary, not out of fear of Momonga's strength, as he was confident in his own abilities but rather due to the sheer strangeness of the situation.

The Revolutionary Army had never directly cooperated with the Marines before.

To suddenly go from being enemies to allies left Sabo somewhat bewildered. However, since Dragon himself had approved of the arrangement, there was no reason to doubt it.

Surely, Dragon—the very founder of the Revolutionary Army—wouldn't betray the cause, right?

With that in mind, Sabo boarded the warship.

Over the course of the journey, he had gradually warmed up to Momonga, and they had even developed a somewhat cordial relationship.

Hearing Sabo's words, Momonga chuckled, nodded, and said, "This is certainly a novel experience. I never imagined that one day I'd be chatting and laughing with the Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army aboard a Marine warship."

"Hahaha, I never thought I'd be traveling alongside one of Marine Headquarters' most renowned Vice Admirals either," Sabo replied with a grin.

Momonga smiled knowingly. He understood that when Sabo mentioned "Vice Admirals," he was excluding the likes of Gion, Tokikake, and Garp—figures who, despite holding the rank of Vice Admiral, were in an entirely different league. Some were Admiral candidates, while others were legendary heroes.

In reality, no one truly regarded them as mere Vice Admirals, it was just a technicality.

"I'm not too familiar with Mariejois," Sabo admitted. "I've never been there before, so I don't know what to expect. Vice Admiral, how long until we arrive? And once we're there, how should we conduct ourselves?"

Momonga gazed out at the sea before responding with practiced ease. "We'll reach Mariejois in about two days.

There are plenty of rules, but we Marines have our own procedures. Our job is to escort the royals safely.

Once we arrive, you'll wait at the Marine base.

As long as you don't leave the base, there shouldn't be any problems.

The rest of my colleagues will also be escorting your fellow Revolutionary Army members to Mariejois one after another."

The two continued their conversation pleasantly.

Just then, Sabo's sharp eyes caught sight of a pirate ship in the distance. What surprised him was that the ship wasn't avoiding the Marine fleet at all.

In fact, it sailed boldly, with an upright and dignified air, almost as if it were part of the Marines.

"Pirates!" Sabo immediately warned.

Though the Revolutionary Army was primarily at odds with the World Government, that didn't mean they had any fondness for pirates. In fact, they often clashed when their paths crossed.

Momonga's expression shifted slightly, showing a hint of surprise.

In previous Reveries, pirates had generally followed an unspoken rule: they avoided conflicts with the Marines during this period. Otherwise, they'd face immediate and overwhelming retaliation.

The only pirates who dared to disrupt Marine operations at this time were those specifically targeting the royal families. Such groups were rare, but when they did appear, they were known for their sheer brutality.

Given that they were already so close to Mariejois—and that this route was separate from Sabaody Archipelago—running into pirates here was highly unusual.

Instantly on alert, Momonga pulled out a single-lens spyglass and peered at the pirate ship in the distance.

After a brief look, he relaxed and even smiled as he put the spyglass away.

Seeing this, Sabo was puzzled. Aren't Marines supposed to fight pirates?

Why did he just shrug it off?

Judging by the ship's bold approach, it didn't seem to belong to the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

"Is that a Warlord's ship?" Sabo asked instinctively.

Momonga chuckled and waved a hand dismissively. "No, all the Warlords are already in Mariejois. Saint Claudius summoned them a month ago."

"Then if it's not a Warlord... why is that pirate ship just sailing around so casually?" Sabo asked, growing suspicious.

Momonga, with his thick eyebrows and stern expression, seemed like a righteous man. Could it be that there's some shady deal between him and this pirate crew?

Did I just stumble onto something corrupt? Am I going to get silenced now?!

Momonga had no idea that Sabo's imagination was running wild, but he chuckled and said, "That's no ordinary pirate crew—that's the Spade Pirates. They're returning to Mariejois."

Sabo was taken aback.

Having spent years in the Revolutionary Army, he had clashed with CP agents frequently, but his knowledge of pirate crews was somewhat limited.

He had vaguely heard of the Spade Pirates before—apparently, they had made quite a name for themselves in the New World.

But what truly shocked him was the subtle respect in Momonga's tone when mentioning them.

"What's the deal with the Spade Pirates?" Sabo asked curiously. "I don't know much about them, Vice Admiral. Care to fill me in?"

Momonga was momentarily surprised but then grinned.

"The captain of the Spade Pirates?" he said.

"Portgas D. Ace."

***

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