"Follow you?" Bello Betty was stunned for a moment. She didn't mind Marco's questioning and generously explained, "I'm not following you. We have been tasked to rescue the kingdom from the crisis. Coincidentally, I met you."
Marco drank the water from the cup. "Commander of the Eastern Army of the Revolutionary Army, it really is fate to meet here by such a coincidence."
"We have a fate!" Bello Betty sighed, pulling out a bounty order and tapping her finger on the photo on it. "Right, brother-in-law."
"Your brother-in-law?"
Marco 'snorted' and spat out the water he had just drunk, fortunately spraying it to the side, harmlessly.
He looked carefully at the bounty order and confirmed that it was his own, with the words 1.555 billion Berries written on it. "Who is your brother-in-law?"
Bello Betty said solemnly, "You are! Say, where did you kidnap my sister?"
Marco narrowed his eyes. "Your sister?"
Bello Betty's jade-like finger knocked on the bounty order. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, who's your sister?" After speaking, Marco took another sip of water.
"Bello Belivia."
"Poof~~!"
Now, Marco had just taken a full sip of water and sprayed it directly on Bello Betty's neck, who was sitting directly opposite him…
The spray… drenched Bello Betty's upper body entirely.
The two were stunned on the spot, and Marco subconsciously glanced at Bello Betty's chest.
It was so pale white…
The scene grew awkward, and Marco coughed dryly. "So Belivia is your sister. I have to say, she's smart and knowledgeable."
It turned out that she had pointed to Belivia in the very corner of the bounty photo.
Bello Betty made a move that shocked Marco; she boldly reached into her chest, wiped the water stain, and flicked her hand. She looked at Marco. "Where did you hide my sister? Is she okay?"
"She's very good." Marco knew this. "I asked her to follow Stussy's studies."
"Stussy from Happy Street?" Bello Betty stood up with a 'huff,' her face clearly displeased. "You actually let her learn from that kind of person?"
It seemed… Bello Betty and Stussy were old acquaintances.
Did the two have a feud?
If you think about it, these two women—one being the queen of Happy Street, the other the commander of the Eastern Army of the Revolutionary Army—could indeed have crossed paths.
"What kind of person is she?"
"She's called the most greedy and evil woman in the underworld. She's destroyed countless people, and even kingdoms have fallen because of her."
Marco shook his head. He had heard that the people killed by Stussy were all pirates who deserved it. The wealth she amassed was also taken from pirates who obtained ill-gotten gains.
Bello Betty, being a commander of the Revolutionary Army, naturally had a different position and perspective.
"Huh?"
Marco suddenly raised an eyebrow and looked outside.
"Someone is coming!"
Bello Betty also raised her head. She glanced at Marco with slight surprise, feeling a bit shocked. She thought to herself, Marco's Haki is indeed far superior to mine. "I have to go. Good luck."
"I'm afraid you won't be able to leave."
At this moment, three figures, with a sigh, stopped in front of the restaurant.
The one who spoke wore a navy justice coat and held a large sword, blocking Bello Betty's way out.
"Vice Admiral of the Navy Headquarters, three of them at once. You really are attractive enough," Marco laughed and quipped to Bello Betty in front of him.
"Immortal Phoenix Marco!!!"
The three vice admirals of the Navy Headquarters, upon seeing Marco, instinctively approached a bit closer, gripping their swords even tighter.
These three headquarters vice admirals were Dalmatian, Doberman, and Stainless.
All were among the forefront of strength at Navy Headquarters.
But… they were extremely tense at the moment. Marco's reputation was well-known to them. Having killed Jack the Drought and slaughtered several other powerful figures, they were well aware of his capabilities. The three of them… weren't confident they could take on Marco.
At the same time,
What shocked them even more was that
Marco was in private contact with the commander of the Revolutionary Army!
What was the relationship between these two?!
"It's a big problem now."
Bello Betty's heart tightened. She didn't have the slightest certainty about facing three vice admirals at the same time. Her previous victory against the supernova Apu had been purely due to the fruit's power; her Inspire Fruit happened to counter him.
If it came to an actual fight, she wouldn't even have a chance to escape against three vice admirals.
"Why were my movements discovered?"
Bello Betty flashed a series of possibilities in her mind. She raised her eyebrows and finally figured out what the issue was.
However, how to overcome the current difficulty?
Marco was still sitting there, speaking calmly. "A few vice admirals, give me face and turn around. Leave, and everyone's fine."
"!"
Bello Betty couldn't help but be shocked when she heard Marco's words. She hadn't expected Marco to tell the three vice admirals to give him face…!
Was he joking?
These three vice admirals were all formidable!
"This…"
The three vice admirals hesitated.
This was the first time they faced these pirates, and there was hesitation... hesitation to retreat!
With their usual approach, whenever they encountered pirates, they would take immediate action, arresting them to uphold naval justice.
But,
The pirate standing in front of them now wasn't just any pirate.
It was Immortal Phoenix Marco!
A man who had shaken the entire world!
The three had gone through great lengths to track down the Revolutionary Army's whereabouts. They had even used their authority to pressure the World Government, convincing the allied kingdom to pretend to support the Revolutionary Army just to lead them to this location.
To retreat now would mean abandoning all their previous efforts.
However,
Even with their combined strength, they realized they had no chance against Marco.
Staying
would be nothing short of a suicide mission.
After a moment of hesitation, the three exchanged glances.
"Then we'll give you a pass this time, Immortal Phoenix…" Dalmatian gritted his teeth, feeling the urge to charge in and capture Marco, but reason told him… the stakes were too high.
The three vice admirals turned and left.
"Phew~~!"
Bello Betty breathed a sigh of relief, even more surprised by Marco's influence. His reputation… was incredible!
He had managed to make three vice admirals of Navy Headquarters back down simultaneously!
"Thank you, brother-in-law, for the help. When you get married, my sister and I will definitely prepare a big red envelope."
Despite her shock, Bello Betty didn't forget to express her gratitude. After speaking, she swiftly exited the store. "Goodbye."
...
Beyond the island.
The three vice admirals boarded their naval warship and immediately contacted Navy Headquarters.
However,
Instead of contacting Fleet Admiral Sakazuki first, they chose to report to the Grand Inspector who had stepped back from the front lines—Sengoku the Buddha.
"Grand Inspector, while we were tracking the Revolutionary Army, we encountered Immortal Phoenix Marco…!"
"Marco and the Revolutionary Army are in direct contact?!"
From the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Sengoku's surprised voice echoed. Such news was indeed shocking. "What are they planning?!"
"I don't know. We… were forced to retreat by Marco. He told us to give him face and to spare the Revolutionary Army commander. We… had no choice but to retreat."
Dalmatian said in a low voice, directly admitting to Sengoku that they had chosen to back down.
Three vice admirals of Navy Headquarters forced to retreat by Marco's words alone.
It was a definite embarrassment for Navy Headquarters.
However, Sengoku didn't scold them but instead said reassuringly, "Your decision was correct. Three vice admirals… it's impossible to take down the current Immortal Phoenix… Senseless sacrifices would be an even greater humiliation."
Sengoku's words were tactful, but the meaning was clear.
Not engaging Marco head-on was the right call.
If they had fought, the three of them would have surely died.
"..."
The three vice admirals understood the underlying message in Sengoku's words, and for a moment, they fell silent.