The old man was the mayor of Pegasus Town. After Pegasus Island was destroyed and the Twin Horse Kingdom handed over control of the island to the World Government, the mayor here basically lost his power.

"The pirates have finally disappeared!"

"There are no more pirates in this town, we're liberated!"

"Long live the liberation!"

The sight of pirate corpses scattered on the ground brought smiles to the faces of the ragged civilians, like withered trees sprouting new buds, their eyes gleaming with renewed hope.

"Please forgive us, Marines, but we have had a very hard time living under the rule of pirates."

The mayor bowed to Kuro, who had already landed, and said, "It wasn't always like this. Although those pirates were very vicious, they treated us better and weren't so unscrupulous. But ever since the kingdom ceded the island to the World Government, we've been in a terrible situation."

"After that, the appearance of a navy officer made them even more ruthless... Sir, we secretly hid that navy officer, just so we could wait for you to completely reclaim this island before handing it over to you."

The mayor looked at Kuro, his tone very serious.

"navy..."

Kuro paused for a moment, then looked at everyone, including the woman who had previously taken her anger out on the Navy. At this moment, she also wiped away a tear, and the resentment in her eyes had disappeared, replaced by a sense of determination.

"You mean, some marines came here, injured these pirates, but were also seriously wounded, and then you hid them?"

"Kro asked in surprise."

"That's right."

Betty gritted her teeth and nodded, "We took in the seriously injured navy man."

The man whose money pouch was stolen and who died at the hands of the pirates was her husband.

Of course there was resentment; if these naval personnel had arrived sooner, they would have suffered less of this hellish scene.

But if you regret it...

From the moment they took in that navy officer, they were fully prepared for the price they would have to pay!

"This is really..."

A hint of shock appeared in Kuro's eyes. He was so weak, and he didn't even dare to fight back against pirates, yet he had such thoughts.

Humans... are truly contradictory creatures.

Kuro closed his eyes, then opened them again, and nodded. "Take me there. With your abilities, it's already quite an achievement to keep her alive."

"she?"

Lida paused for a moment, "It's a woman?"

A female navy woman?

"How did you know, sir?" The town mayor was also stunned and asked:

"That female marine fought those pirates for us. Although she ultimately failed, we all admire her."

"What's her name?" Kuro asked.

"I don't know her name, I only know she looks... hey!" the mayor said with a hint of excitement.

"Which unit did she come from, and under whose command?" Kuro continued to ask.

"I don't know which unit she's from, all I know is that she looks... hey!" the mayor continued, beaming.

"Did she say anything? Like offering support or something?"

"I don't know if she said anything, I only know that she looks..."

"Stop, stop, stop, take me there."

Kuro waved his hand speechlessly.

"Yes, sir."

The mayor nodded and walked toward a corner of the town, followed by the other townspeople.

After wandering through Pegasus Town, the mayor arrived at a remote outskirts where a temple stood. The bronze paint on the Buddha statues had long been scraped off by pirates, and their heads had been cut off. The entire temple was in a state of disrepair.

Inside the temple, you can see some tattered mattresses; those who were oppressed by pirates and driven to bankruptcy lived here in a state of barely survival.

"My lord, I'm here."

The mayor walked behind the Buddha statue, pried open a section of the floorboards, revealing a tunnel. "Your colleague has been hidden here."

*Snap*

Kuro lit his cigar with a lighter and went downstairs first.

The tunnel under the stairs was very dark, and if you went down suddenly, you really couldn't see the environment inside.

Just as he stepped down the stairs, a cool, clear voice appeared beside him.

"Don't move."

A gun was pointed at his forehead.

Gradually, a sliver of light appeared in the darkness, revealing a small warehouse inside the tunnel, filled with straw and some wooden barrels. In front of the straw, a person was holding a large-caliber pistol, pointing it at Kuro.

That person had long, wavy blue hair. Although her features were somewhat obscured in the darkness, Kuro knew that this woman was indeed as the mayor had described—hey!

"navy?"

The female marine pointing the gun also saw Kuro's navy cloak through the light shining through the floor, paused for a moment, and put the gun away. "Sorry, I thought he was a pirate."

“Lida,” Kuro said.

"oh!"

Lida transformed into her girl form and placed one hand on Kuro's back, saying, "Absorb my essence!"

Then, she flashed and appeared in front of the female navy officer in an instant, striking her in the abdomen with a palm strike to her astonishment.

Bang!

This heavy blow sent the female navy officer flying, crashing into the warehouse wall.

"What are you doing?!" the mayor shouted in alarm.

"asshole!"

The navy officer with long blue hair stood up, drew two short swords strapped to his thigh, and was about to attack when he suddenly froze.

"I..."

She looked at her hands; the injuries from the battle had vanished, and the internal wounds seemed to be healing gradually. Moreover, the vitality within her body...

She's fully recovered!

“Don’t point guns at your colleagues, Navy officer,” Lida said, waving her hand.

"I'm sorry, I was too nervous. There are too many pirates here. It was a misunderstanding." The female marine bowed to Lida and said, "Thank you for healing my wounds."

"No... never mind, I've already treated you anyway."

She did it on purpose, since this person was pointing a gun at Kuro.

"Sir Navy officer, are you alright?!" the town mayor asked.

The female naval officer nodded: "Yes, I'm healed. Thank you very much. I am Lieutenant Commander Ain from the Headquarters, and I belong to the 'Pirate Guerrilla Team' led by Mr. Zephyr. And you are?"

"Who do you say you are?" Kuro was stunned.

Ian thought he hadn't heard her, so she repeated it again.

“Mr. Kuro, Zephyr is…”

Kro, who was standing to the side, pushed up his glasses. He knew this person well enough now that he was focusing on intelligence.

A former naval admiral, a powerful figure known as the "Black Arm".

Having lost an arm in a pirate attack while leading his recruit training camp, he had long since retired to the sidelines and formed his own 'pirate guerrilla force,' patrolling and attacking pirates everywhere.

Kuro, however, knew even more.

A year later, Zephyr will completely leave the Navy and establish a new Navy, and this Ain is one of the bugged ability users that Kuro needs to be wary of.

The user of the Rewind-Rewind Fruit can revert an object to its state twelve years ago with a single touch.

However, they are still colleagues now.

"You're here? Where's Mr. Zephyr?" Kuro asked.